The Tour - A.I.

22. Insecurities

The rest of the week went by pretty quickly. We were all trying to settle in and get back into a normal routine. Ethan and I went to check out a couple of apartments one day, but quickly agreed neither of them would work for us, so we continued our search. I had talked to Ashton on the phone or via Facetime a couple times, but we mainly texted throughout the day when we could because we were so busy. Friday night came quickly. Ashton picked me up from my apartment and we were currently on the way to Luke's place. Much to Travis's dismay, I took a bag with me and told him I would be back sometime tomorrow. I thought his head was going to explode but he didn't protest.

"So who's going to be there tonight?" I asked, looking out the window as Ashton drove down the busy streets of L.A.

"Luke didn't say." He shrugged.

"What are we going to be doing?"He smiled, a look of amusement on his face. "Hanging out."

"That narrows it down." I said jokingly, sarcasm dripping from my tone.

Ashton laughed in response as he pulled into the parking lot of Luke's building. Luke lived in a very ritzy part of L.A., his apartment was more of a large loft instead of a place made for one person. We made our way up to his floor, a bottle of tequila in Ashton's hand. He opened the door, letting himself in without knocking and I followed behind him.We greeted everyone as we entered and Ashton made his way to the kitchen, adding the bottle of liquor to the collection of alcohol on the counter. Crystal waved me over, she and Sierra were talking to two other girls I didn't recognize. Most of the guys were crowded around Luke's pool table, a few others scattered throughout the living room.

"Hey, girl!" Crystal smiled as I walked over to the group, "This is Chelsea and Bridgette." She said, pointing to each of the girls.

"Nice to meet you." I smiled.

"This is Ashton's girlfriend, Violet." Crystal explained.

"I didn't know Ashton had a girlfriend." The one named Bridgette spoke up, eyeing me up and down. She was a short brunette with a dark tan and wavy hair. She had on a black leather mini skirt and a white crop top.

"We haven't been together that long." I replied, forcing a smile.

"How did you two meet?" Chelsea asked, a friendly smile on her face. Her demeanor was much different than the other girl's. She was a little taller than Bridgette, with strawberry blond hair and green eyes. She was wearing a simple outfit of skinny jeans and a cute blue top.

"I worked as a crew member on the tour he just got back from."

"That's cool!" She replied, and I heard Bridgette scoff quietly.

I felt a hand on my arm and someone stepped up next to me. "Hey, Violet!"

"Charlie." I smiled, turning to embrace him in a hug. "Good to see you."

"You too! Ladies..." He smiled, nodding in acknowledgement to the other women. "I just wanted to say hi. I'll let you get back to your girl talk." He laughed, before heading to the group playing pool.

 Ashton was playing pool, but he looked up when Charlie approached them. He looked over at me across the room, seeming to piece together that we had just spoken. I gave him a smile, turning my attention back to the conversation in front of me. Bridgette was looking at me.

"So you know Charlie too, huh?" She questioned.

"Yeah." I replied, trying to force another smile. "He's a nice guy."

She hummed in response.

"How is the apartment hunting going?" Crystal asked, changing the subject.