Begin Again - A.I

PROLOGUE

I turn to him, rolling my eyes. "You've been seven for a week," I state.

"But I didn't feel seven then," he responds. "But I do now. And it feels weird."

"Why's that?" I had yet to turn seven, so couldn't really relate.

He shrugs, eyes focused ahead. "I don't know. It's just weird."

I laugh. "You're an idiot."

"Hey!" He cries, shoving my shoulder. "Am not."

"Are so!"

He stays looking at me for a while and I feel rather uncomfortable under his stare. Ashton hadn't really looked at me like this before. I was so used to him teasing me, not just looking at me.

"Can I kiss you?"

I'm so shocked by his outburst that I almost fall off the rock. "W-What?" I splutter. What was he talking about? What did that mean? I had seen my parents kiss, and seen it on movies, but I wasn't really sure what it involved. Or why Ashton was asking me.

He scoots closer and I want to pull away, but for some reason I can't. I feel physically glued to the rock. He smells like dirt and mint and grass and being so close to him is something I am very unused to.

"Can I kiss you?" He repeats, eyeing me carefully.

"Okay," I say simply, watching his eyes as they dart across my face. I don't really know what to expect so I just remember what I had seen on movies and close my eyes. Within seconds I feel a pair of warm lips on my own tasting of the remnants of the apple juice we had for lunch. And as quick as they landed, they disappear.

I open my eyes and find Ashton smiling, and I don't really know what to make of the tingling feeling on my lips. So I smile as well, but I can't stop the redness blooming on my cheeks.

"Aw, El, I made you blush!" Ashton cries.

I hide my head and reach out to punch him on the arm. "Screw you, Ashton! You did not!"

"Did so! I can see it!" He cries, trying to lift my head up so that he can look.

I hit him again and get to my feet, done with his constant teasing. Why did he have to kiss me? I feel my stomach flip at the thought of what just happened.

"Hey, come back!" Ashton cries as I jump off the rock. "El, I'm sorry! We can kiss again!"

I spin around. "I don't want to kiss you, Ashton Irwin."

He grins. "Do so."

"Do not!"

He jumps off the rock, landing successfully on his two feet, and chases after me as I start to run off. "Hey, wait up!"

I run all the way back into the clearing of Ashton's backyard and seconds later he crashes into me, unaware that I had stopped.

"Ouch," he laughs, rubbing his head.

"Eleanor!" My mum stands on the deck, bags at her feet. "Ella, honey, it's time to go."

I turn to face Ashton. "I'm leaving," I tell him.

"Yeah," he says, and he looks down. We both know what's to come, but don't really know what to say. I had tried to push the thought out of my head all day as I spent my last day with Ashton, and he had done the same. But now the time was here, and I had to go.

"Did you kiss me because I'm leaving?" I ask him.

He looks back up, a little confused. Then he shakes his head. "N-No," he stammers.

"Then why did you do it?"

He just shrugs, looking back down again. My eyes catch a tinge of pink creeping on his cheeks and I grin.

"Ashton, are you blushing?"

He whips his head back up. "What? No."

"I made you blush." I grin madly.

"Did not!"

"Did so!"

He bites his lip as he smiles. "Bye, El. Uh, have fun in LA."

I sigh, my shoulders sagging. "I really don't want to go." I didn't want to leave Australia, and most importantly Ashton, behind and move to LA. My parents said it'd be exciting, but I wasn't at all excited. My happiness belonged here with Ashton.

"It'll be cool," Ashton says, trying to cheer me up.

"Ella!"

"I'm gonna miss you," I blurt out. Ashton and I had the kind of friendship you didn't really talk about, but it was true. I was going to miss him. He was really the only friend I had, and I found it impossible to meet others like him.

"I'm gonna miss you too," he replies, smiling a little. "Best friends forever, right?" And I nod.

 He holds out his little finger. "Promise you won't forget about me?"

I smile and loop my finger through his, locking the two together. "I promise." Then I let go and give him a shy wave before running over to my mum. When I look back, Ashton just stands there watching me with sad eyes. I quickly look away to avoid him seeing my own.

"Hey, El!"

I spin back around. "What?"

He grins widely. "I so made you blush."