the sound, settle down [mashton af]

// t w o //

Well I know when you're around cause I know the sound/ I know the sound, of your heart

"So what do you do?" Michael asked as they walked from the restaurant and into the warm, August Nashville air, "We never got to that part."

Ashton followed Mike because he didn't have a car in the parking lot. He was planning on going to the bar next door after their meet up, honestly.

"I'm a manager at a sub place downtown," he responded quietly. Ashton wasn't really ashamed of his job, it was just nothing compared to Michael's job.

"That's kind of cool," Michael put his hands in his pocket, reaching for the keys of his Mercedes. "Do you remember that boardwalk by the high school?"

"The Pier?" Ashton asked, stopping in front of a cream colored car.

Michael nodded.

"Yeah," he laughed, "The place Timothy was conceived."

Mike let out a bellowing laughter, his pearly teeth glistening under the streetlights. "I forgot about that." He scratched the back of his neck, his fresh haircut feeling too short for his liking. "Do you wanna go there? Stargaze or something."

"Ye—."

"It's stupid, isn't it?" He interrupted the older man, not wanting to hear his response. "I'm sorry, I'm stupid."

"You were the valedictorian in high school, undergrad, and grad school, Mike." Ashton took a step forward, rolling on the balls of his feet. "I'd really like to go to The Pier."

Michael didn't stop smiling. He clicked the keys of his car, the back lights flashing. "Get in." It was something the older man did. After all the years, Ashton could simply say a word and pull Michael into his grasp.

Ashton opened the passenger door, sliding onto the white leather and getting comfortable. He didn't match Michael in his skinny jeans and loose tee shirt. Michael's ties itself probably costed an entire paycheck for Ashton.

Michael had always been money motivated—even when they were fifteen. Ashton was more of a floater, just accepting it as it came. It's no wonder they never worked out.

Mike backed out of the parking lot, knowing the boardwalk by heart.

The night was calm once they left the congested area of Nashville. The highway was quiet, Ashton staring out the mirror and watching the headlights behind them.

"Tim is fourteen now, he'll be fifteen in a few month," Mike said, breaking their fifteen minutes of silence.

"Wow," Ashton responded, "That just feels weird."

"I know. I was almost his age when he was born. It's really, really peculiar." Michael relaxed his stiff body, moving his right hand to the top of the steering wheel and his left against his own thigh. "He's a really good kid, though. Always does what he's supposed to and he does it well."

Ash smiled. "Do you regret any of it?"

He shook his head. "When we first found out you were pregnant, I did regret a lot, but it's been so long since then. I'm happy with the way it turned out." Michael turned off an exit, speeding down an empty road to get to the desolate place.

Ashton didn't know if Michael was glad they broke up. It was all Ashton's fault, really. It started with the drugs, led to felonies, Michael didn't want to be involved. Mike had a career to build and he felt 100 percent responsible for Timothy growing up, too.