Ashton's POV
I sat on the couch in the apartment with a beer in my hand. Every time I finished one drink, I grabbed another. I lost count of how many I had.
I took one of the bottles and threw it at the wall. It shattered on impact. One of the pieces cut a gash in my arm. I let out a string of profanities before sliding to the floor.
"I'm such a screwup," I said and gulped down another drink.
*~*
Whenever I was drunk, I did stupid stuff. I made myself look like a total idiot.
Tonight, I was going for a walk in the middle of the road, not knowing where I was going or where I'd end up. I stumbled as I walked in the dark. I saw someone on the side of the road. I went and stood next to them.
"Hey! What's going on?" I asked the person. They didn't respond.
"What? Too scared to talk," I said and lightly punched them. I felt metal collide with my skin.
"Ow! What are you? A robot? Robots are real!"
I saw a flash and covered my eyes. More followed.
"Ashton!" someone called out.
Who was Ashton? Oh, wait. It was Ashton.
People surrounded me. I pushed them away and started running. I narrowly dodged a car and kept going. After about a mile, I leaned against a tree and threw up all the alcohol I consumed. My throat burned as I puked my guts out. When I was done, I was constantly spitting and wiping my mouth. I looked around and realized I had no idea where I was.
A cop car pulled up near me. An officer got out and walked over to me.
"Hey. What're you doing out here in the middle of the night?" He asked me.
"Going for a walk," I slurred.
"Let me give you a ride home."
"No. I'm fine," I said and stood up as straight as I could.
"I insist. Come on. Get in the car," he said.
"No! I said I'm fine," I yelled.
He went closer, and I tried to swing at him. He grabbed me and pushed me against the car. I felt metal digging into my wrists. Handcuffs.
"You're going back to the station with me," he said and shoved me in the back of the car.
Michael's POV
I went to wake up Maya when my phone started ringing. I pulled it out of my pocket and answered the call.
"Hello," I said.
"Hello. This is the Sydney Police Station. Is this Michael Clifford?" A man said on the other end.
"Yes. Why?" I asked.
"Do you know a person named Ashton Irwin? He told us to call you. He claims that he's your friend."
"Yeah, he is," I said, wondering why the hell the police were called.
"We found your friend walking around last night intoxicated. He's here with us. Someone needs to come down here later."
"Okay. Thank you," I said and hung up. "Damn it!"
I walked back into the living room and saw Maya stirring.
"Why are you yelling?" She asked groggily.
"I'm sorry. I tripped and hit my knee," I lied.
"Well, I'll see you in eight hours," she said and went under the blanket.
"No. You need to go to school," I said and uncovered her face.
"Dad, I'm tired," she whined.
I picked her up and sat her on the couch. I moved her hair away from her face. Her eyes opened a little and immediately shut. I saw that they were bloodshot.
"What time did you go to bed?" I asked her as she rested her head on my chest.
"I don't know. I think around four," she said and rubbed her eyes.
"Maya, you can't stay up that late. You have to go to school now. It's been almost two weeks. I'll make coffee. Go take a shower," I said, and she went to her room.
Maya's POV
Thomas and Leila were walking on the other side of the street when I left the house. I still felt like shit even after the shower and the coffee.
"Hey, guys," I said.
"Hi," Thomas said and hugged me.
We all managed to stand side by side on the sidewalk. The three of us were silent, but it was comforting. No one was yelling or arguing with each other.
We arrived at a familiar neighborhood and stood in front of a house we knew all too well. Nick's. There was a big lock on the door and not a single car in the driveway.
"That's weird. No one's home. There's always at least one car here," Thomas said.
"Where are they?" I asked.
"I don't know. Let's go through the basement door. You can open it from the outside," Thomas replied.
We followed him to the back of the house and went down a few stairs to the basement. It was empty like no one had used the space. We went upstairs to find the same. All the expensive furniture. Every picture, every painting. Gone. It was as if no one had ever lived here.
We went upstairs and stood outside Nick's door. Leila opened it and stepped inside. All of Nick's stuff was still there. It looked the same as the last time I'd been there.
"They must've moved," Thomas said.
"I can't believe they would do that. They left all his stuff here," I said and looked around the room. Thomas checked his phone.
"We have to go. We're going to be late for school," he said.
"Thomas, I can't leave," I said.
"Maya, we need to go. I'm sorry," he replied, giving me a sad look.
"Thomas, please," I pleaded.
"We'll come back after school. I promise. Come on. Let's go," Leila said and pulled me up.
We went back through the basement and walked the rest of the way to school. I laced my hands with my friends.
"Ready?" They asked me.
"Ready as I'll ever be."
Luke's POV
I was going to pick up Maya from school, but she texted me saying that she was going to walk home.
I went up to my room and put on my headphones. I didn't know how long I sat there listening to music, but someone ripped them off my head. I opened my eyes to see Calum.
"What the hell, Calum!" I shouted.
"Ashton's back. He's- well, let's just say Michael isn't very happy with him," he said.
There was a crash from downstairs. Calum and I ran to see what it was.
Michael and Ashton were standing in the middle of the living room. Ashton was holding his left arm and had blood dripping from his nose. Michael had a black eye.
"What's going on?" Calum yelled.
Michael pointed at Ashton and was about to say something, but stopped when the front door opened. Maya walked in and stopped right in her tracks.
"Dad? Uncle Ash?" She said. She was mortified.