Asher's Heart

Chapter 31

"Mind if I join?" A voice came, making me look up from my lunch tray.

My eyes met with blue ones, making my stomach churn for a moment before my mind realized who was standing in front of me.

"Are you sure you wanna eat lunch with the freaks?" I asked jokingly.

"I'll be glad to join the club," Ashton said and sat on the seat across from me. I had rarely seen him these past few days and he wasn't there when the shit went down at the cafeteria a week and half ago.

"Where were you?" I asked.

"Oh, I had to accompany dad for a business trip. Said I would learn something," he ended the sentence with a laugh.

I joined in.

Then his eyes roamed to my side where Evan was sitting, his demeanor turning hostile as soon as Ashton showed up.

Ashton's eyes hardened. "I heard," he said.

"Oh," I said lamely.

"Congratulations man," he said to Evan, who glared at him.

I nudged him with my elbow.

"What?" he mouthed, facing me.

"Be nice," I hissed.

"I won't be nice. He's his brother. They are practically the same person," he said loud enough for every one on the table to hear.

Brooke and Megan exchanged looks.

"It's all right. I wasn't planning on being nice either," Ashton said, grinning.

"Hey Ashton," Megan said.

He looked at her.

"I don't think your brother likes you sitting with us very much," she said, looking behind his shoulder.

Brooke and Ashton turned to look too.

"If I didn't know better I would say he was jealous," Brooke said.

"He is jealous," Ashton said and my breath hitched but I still didn't look at him. These past days I had been avoiding him like the plague.

"He is stuck with morons while I get to sit with cool people. Except one," his eyes darted to Evan.

Evan scoffed.

I was getting uncomfortable. Why were they talking about him? It was hard as it is to keep him out of my head where he'd built a permanent residence.

I focused on Evan's lunch tray and a sigh escaped my lips. He never ate. I mean literally, he never touched his food.

I caught his eyes and glared at him.

It wasn't hard for him to figure out why I was glaring at him.

He gave me a sheepish smile and put his arm around me, pulling me to lean into him.

"I'm not hungry," he whispered softly in my ear.

"You never are," I mumbled. I was getting seriously worried about his health.

Brooke was staring at us, no she was staring at Evan rather weirdly. I raised my eyebrow at her.

She shook her head and went back to completing her assignment which was due next period.

Ashton and Megan were deep in conversation about the next soccer game. Who knew Megan loved soccer so much.

My eyes flitted across the cafeteria absentmindedly and when they collided with the ones I dreaded, I sucked in a sharp breath and looked away quickly.