Take Me Back

Chapter 2

Author's note: Sam Reid, anyone? I love this actor & based the description of Ewan after him. If you haven't seen any of his work, check out the film Belle. That is all! Thanks for reading! If you like this chapter, vote for it or leave a comment. Thanks! ~ B

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Ashley

Present Day

"Love, we just landed."

A gentle nudge to her shoulder startled Ashley awake. She looked out the little window at the dreary weather blanketing Seattle.

"How long was I out," she questioned.

"About two hours," Ewan's voice was clipped, causing Ashley to look up in his direction.

"What's the matter?" Now that she took a good look, her boyfriend seemed pretty pissed off.

"Flight was shite, I'm ready to bugger off this plane," he lugged their items in the overhead bins and plopped her duffle bag in his vacated seat next to hers. Over the course of their relationship, Ashley learned that Ewan's British accent become more pronounced the angrier or drunk he got. Given the expletives coming from his mouth in muttered growls, he was most assuredly upset.

Trekking through the crowded terminal, the couple walked with determination to baggage claim and breathed a sigh of relief when each bag was deposited one after another. The transaction at the rental car stand was quick and within minutes and before they knew it their bags were loaded into the back of a Subaru hatchback and they hit the highway.

"It's beautiful here!" Ewan perked up as soon as he saw the massive evergreen trees. Despite the chill in the air, the windows were rolled down and they breathed in the fresh autumn air. It was barely the end of summer so the temperatures were still moderately warm but the autumnal colors weren't on display yet.

"Remind me again where exactly we're headed?" Ewan rummaged through his messenger bag for his phone and once located began skimming his email account.

"Orcas Island. It's another 2 ½ hours away." Ashley maneuvered through the winding highway effortlessly, excited to be in her home state again. "My friends Andy and Sabrina have a house out here."

"Ah, Sabrina. The redhead that visited last year," his voice trailed off for a moment while he read an email. "She's a lively girl. Who else is going to be here?" He placed his phone in his pocket and settled in for the long ride, adjusting the radio to find a decent station.

"Well I know for sure that our friend Miles will be here," Ashley groaned. "He's a handful, by the way." She met Ewan's eyes quickly and rolled hers to convey her disdain.

"What's the matter with Miles?"

"He's even livelier than Sabrina. He used to hit on anyone with tits and would convince the boys to create all sorts of ruckus."

Ewan laughed and placed his palm to the back of Ashley's head. "Should be an exciting trip."

"Other than that, I'm not sure who all committed to come." Ashley let that statement linger in her thoughts for a moment, remembering Miles' constant companion Lee and obviously Mark.

Ten years had passed since she had spoken with Mark. When she left for the U.K. she all but severed her ties to everyone in the States except for Sabrina and even their communication was limited.

Ashley grew up in a troubled household. Her mom abandoned her and her dad during her freshman year of high school. After she left his dependence of alcohol became a growing problem and he resented Ashley for all of his life's problems. They moved to Seattle the summer before her sophomore year and lived in a run-down apartment complex. Her mother's abandonment and father's lack of healthy parenting forced Ashley to grow up quickly. She hated having to transfer to a new school but on her first day she met Sabrina and the fiery redhead immediately took her under her wing. Ashley joined every extracurricular activity she could in order to limit her time at home. Other than speaking to her like she was trashed, her dad never abused her. She preferred the times he ignored her but it made for an extremely lonely existence. The more time she spent at school, the less time she would have to deal with her drunk father. After joining the drama club, Ashley discovered how passionate she was about acting. It allowed her to escape her miserable existence and be someone else, even if only for a few hours each day. It helped having an amazing teacher who nurtured her talent and whom she loved working with. Within a year, it became her dream to study theater abroad. Working hard, she found scholarships and miraculously was invited to study at the Rose Bruford College in London.

Her father adamantly protested her move to England which seemed hypocritical considering he hated her existence in Seattle. He constantly threatened her leaving and made sure to make her life even more uncomfortable as she finished her high school career.

She coasted through school until graduation and then met a boy who turned her world upside-down. Mark Carlson invaded her life the summer before she left for England and made an already complicated situation ten times harder because she fell in love with him fast and hard. Things between Mark and her father were always tense but he made them worse every time he tried to defend her to him. Her love for Mark was almost enough to keep her in Seattle, but in the end she cut and run, thinking a clean break and a fresh start in another country was the only way to start a fresh, new life.

Earning degrees in both American and European Theater Arts and a postgraduate degree in theater for young audiences, Ashley eventually emerged into a professional acting career in London. She met Ewan during her postgraduate studies, and after a short time of dating moved in to a flat with him. Over the course of their four year relationship they have travelled with theater companies all over Europe and she's supported his new production company which he started from the ground up.

Agreeing to Sabrina's endless pleas for both Ashley and Ewan to come on this trip stirred up emotions for Ashley she hasn't had to deal with for years. Truthfully, she was comfortable with her life she built with Ewan. She loved living in England but memories would seep back into her brain when something reminded her of home. Since planning this trip she thought more and more about Mark and where his life had taken him. All she knew was that he worked for his family's construction business and remained single, with a string of short-term girlfriends off and on through the years.

Simply imagining what Mark's presence would do to Ashley on this trip sent shivers down her spine.

"Cold, Love?" Ewan adjusted the automatic windows and firmly rubbed her shoulder to stave off the cold.

"Everything's fine," her tight smile placated her boyfriend but did little to quell the unease pitted in her stomach.

This is going to be a long trip, she thought to herself and prayed her heart would survive the next five days.