“Always be yourself, express yourself, have faith in yourself, do not go out and look for a successful personality and duplicate it.”
-Bruce Lee
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Epilogue
Things happen for a reason. Ashton and Charlotte happened for a reason, and nobody can ever think differently. They were put together to help one another open new doors and close the old.
It was the second to last day of summer for the two, it was a summer that was filled with love and happiness however all good things must come to an end someday. Charlotte was sitting in her room, it didn’t feel like much of a room considering it was almost empty. She was remembering all the good times that had happened in that room and all the sad times, tears welled in her eyes from the memories.
Ashton came up to her room and wrapped his arms around her side. “You’re a college student once you leave this place.” Charlotte looked at Ashton with teary eyes and smiled a little before leaning in to peck his lips softly. Ashton grinned and looked into Charlotte’s eyes when she pulled away. “You know I love you, right?”
Charlotte rolled her eyes. “What do you want?”
“Nothing, honestly.” Ashton smiled slightly. “I just wanted to say that I love you and that Chase, Liam, Poppy, Lucas, Max, Cody, Lucas and Aiden are all going out to dinner and then they’re all coming back to my apartment to play drinking games. I really want to go, but I want you to come with me.” He made a cute puppy dog face as he looked at Charlotte.
“Do you really think that I would pass up going out with friends and then getting drunk afterwards?”
“Yes, I actually do.”
“Do I really look that innocent to you?” Charlotte pouted.
“Well, you just seem like the type of girl that wouldn’t go out and drink while you’re underaged. I know for a fact that you aren’t innocent.” Ashton said as he pulled Charlotte close to him on her bed.
“You’re actually true, however I’m thinking about saying yes to coming.” She smirks a little making Ashton wonder what the smirk is about, but he never questions only smiles.
“Pretty pretty please with a naked me on top will you come with.” Ashton pleads making Charlotte laugh.
“I most definitely will come if you promise me that I’ll be able to see you stripping on a table while dancing around drunk.” She smirks before Ashton stood up and pulled her with him before picking her up and spinning her around making her giggle.
The two of them smiled and connected lips once Ashton put Charlotte back down. Charlotte wrapped her arms around Ashtons neck and weaved her fingers through the hairs at the nape of his neck as they kissed deeply.
Once Charlotte pulled away she scanned over Ashtons body. “Is that the reason you came looking all spiff?” She questions as she looks back up at him.
“Maybe.” He said sounding innocent, but hell, Ashton was never innocent. “Now you best be getting into something sexy and hot because we’re leaving in thirty.” Charlotte rolled her eyes and pushed him a little.
“For sure, now you tell me.” She playfully groaned before she went to her wardrobe and began looking through it. “I know you already said sexy and hot, but I don’t think wearing lingerie would be appropriate for going out in public.” Charlotte looked back at Ashton for a split second making sure he saw the smirk on her face before she turned back around and continued to look through her clothes. “So, what should I wear that is appropriate?”
“Do you want simple or elegant?” Ashton questions as he stands up and walks over towards Charlotte and her wardrobe.
“I need to wear something that I can dance in and be comfortable in.” Ashton starts to look through her clothes and comes across a nice beach dress.
“Hold this.” He says as he hands it to her before he begins searching for a jean jacket which he finds quite quickly. “Wear that with some black flats and you’ll look great and feel great while dancing.” Charlotte smiled at him before starting to walk to her bathroom. “Oh I almost forgot, wear that bracelet I got you for our eight month anniversary.” Ashton said, a smile present not only on his face, but also in his voice.
Charlotte came back about ten minutes later. “How do I look?” She said as she twirled around, her dress frilling out at the bottom.
“You look absolutely stunning.” Ashton gushed as he scanned Charlottes outfit up and down. “It fits you good.” He told her as he made his way over towards her and wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his head on her shoulder. “To think that I might not see you again once you leave because you’ll find someone your own age saddens me.” Ashton sighed.
Charlotte pulled his head away from her shoulder and looked into his eyes. “No one will ever be better than you. You are my one and only, and I love you. If I wanted someone else I probably wouldn’t have given you a second thought. I know in my heart that this was for the best. We helped each other through a lot, we changed each other.” She said genuinely as she looked up into his eyes. “I’m yours as long as you want me to be.”
Ashton grinned. “As cheesy as it sounds, I want you and us to be forever and always.” Charlotte smiled widely and looked at him fondly before she leaned in and pecked his lips softly. “I love you.” He whispered against Charlottes lips.
“I love you too.” Charlotte grinned and rested her forehead against Ashtons as his arms hold her close to him, beginning to rub Charlottes back with his masculine, slender hands.
“Aww, you too are so cute!” A feminine voice gushed from the doorway making both Charlotte and Ashton turn towards it only to see a grinning Poppy at the door. Lucas was next to her, shaking his head.
“I don’t know why I stick around.” Lucas mumbled.
Poppy turned to him. “Because you love me.” She smiled at him making him smile back.
“That I do my love, that I do.” He leaned forward and pecked Poppy’s lips before pulling away and looking at the other two. “You two ready to leave?”
Charlotte looks at Ashton in question making Ashton nod his head. “Yeah, lets go you two fools.” Ashton says with a smirk as he turns away from Charlotte, his arm wrapped around her waist, and started to follow Lucas and Poppy downstairs where Kristen was leaning against the countertop like she was waiting for us all.
“Is everyone staying at yours tonight?” Kristen asked, diverting her question towards Ashton.
“Yeah, I don’t think anyone is going to want to drive home tonight.” Ashton smirks as he looks at Charlotte and winks when he catches her eyes on him making her blush.
Kristen rolls her eyes. “I’m guessing you guys are going to be drinking tonight.” She assumes with a slight smile on her face as she walks closer towards Charlotte. “Surprisingly as your mother, I am allowing you to drink even though I know that you’ve anyways.” She said making Charlotte chuckle.
“You know me too well, Mom.” Charlotte grinned before pecking her mother's cheek.
“You guys probably should be going, you four don’t want to keep anyone waiting.” Kristen said as she began to shoo us out of the kitchen. “I’ll see you tomorrow, honey, when you’re totally hung over.”
Charlotte rolled her eyes before she put on her black flats and grabbed her purse from the coat rack. “Love you, Mom, bye.” She called out before the door closed. “She’s pushy.” Charlotte mumbled to herself.
“Applebee’s!” Poppy screamed excitedly as they all got into Lucas’ car.
“Poppy, it’s just Applebee’s. It’s nothing special.” Charlotte told her, but got a glare in response making Charlotte shut up and snuggle up to Ashton’s side. Ashton wrapped an arm around Charlotte and kept her close to him as he placed light kisses to the top of her head.
About ten minutes in silence passed before they were pulling up to Applebee’s. “Greasy food and then drinking, I love this combination.” Ashton voices as he opens the back door and steps out of the car and holds the car door open for Charlotte before shutting it.
They all walk into Applebees and sit in a book that everyone else was in. “Took you long enough.” Max grinned as he looked at his brother. “I’m hungry and I want a beer, but these dweebs wouldn’t let me order until everyone got here.” He groaned.
"Well you could've ordered." Ashton insisted as he scanned the table and grinned when his eyes crossed Aiden. "Long time no see." He smirked.
"Shut up." Aiden told him as he picked up a menu and scanned it.
A waiter came over not much later and took each of their orders before going back to give the order to the cooks. She came back a few minutes later with five bud lights, two sprites, two diet cokes, and a coke.
Throughout dinner they all talked about random stuff, and then when they were finished they all headed out to the cars they came in and drove to Ashton and Chases apartment. They all stumbled into the apartment that was surprisingly clean considering the fact that two guys lived there. There for sure was alcohol neatly placed out on the counter, courtesy of Chase.
Charlotte laid down on the sofa, taking over the whole thing making Poppy groan a little before sitting on top of her. Landon walked in and rolled his eyes at the two. “Things never change, do they.” He said to himself as he sat down on the floor with a drink of some sort in his hand.
“You know you love us.” Poppy said, making kissy noises with her mouth making Landon look up at the two rolling his eyes.
“I don’t even know how I’m related to you.” He voices as the rest of the lot come into the living room.
“Poppy, get off of Charlotte.” Ashton says in a formal tone, one he’d use when he was teaching which made the two of them groan, but nonetheless made Poppy stand up and move over to sit in Lucas’ lap. “Sit up.” He said to Charlotte while he tried to sit down only realising that Charlotte was in the way.
Charlotte sat up and let Ashton sit down before she cuddled into his side. “Comfy.” She whispers against his neck making Ashton shiver. She took the drink from Ashtons hand and sipped it, loving the adrenaline rush the alcohol had going through her system. “Anyone want to play a game?”
“It depends on what game it is.” Liam says which everyone agrees with.
“Well, we could play sixes.” Charlotte suggests. “All we need is beer or something that will get us tipsy, a die, and six red solo cups.” Chase stood up and walked to the kitchen, bringing Liam with him and came back five minutes later with the supplies needed.
“This sounds like fun.” Cody voices as he looks around at everyone. “So, how do you play?”
“You’re going to fill up all six up the cups with the beer and then whoever wants to can go first and shake the die and then whatever number you roll is the number cup you drink out of. If the cup is empty then you’ll refill it to the top and drink it all, but you must drink it all no matter what. The first person to have drunk all the cups wins, but you have to drink them all without repeating a number. Whoever drinks them all first wins and then we have to start again.” Charlotte informed all of them getting a few quizzical looks.
“How do you know so much about this?”
“Do I really seem that innocent to you? I do my research.” Charlotte puffed before she began to pour beer into the six red solo cups on the coffee table.
“Would anyone like to make this game more interesting?” Poppy smirks a little as the rest all nod kind of hesitantly. “What if whenever someone wins, the rest of us all have to take off one article of clothing of the winners choice?”
“Let the games begin.” Cody says as he takes the die and rolls it, rolling a three.
They play for around three hours, but no one really could tell how long they had played because they were all too tipsy to care. The bunch had all resumed to watching Ashton dance around practically naked on the kitchen counter; they all found it quite enjoyable in some way, but Charlotte got the most pleasure out of it considering the fact that she was the only one who wasn’t totally smashed like the rest of them.
Eventually Ashton got off of the counter before moving over to the stereo and shuffling songs; Shots was the first song to play making Charlotte grin a little.
Around 2 AM, they all slowly started to doze off. The adrenaline rush from the alcohol was slowly wearing off. Charlotte was laying on the floor in Ashtons arms looking up at the ceiling, He Likes Boys was play quietly in the background.
“You know, there was a time that I thought this song was true.” Charlotte whispers softly.
"There was a time you thought this song was true, but no matter what, I would always come back to you."
“You cheesy monster.” She chuckles and rolls her eyes. “You are so cliche. I love gay men." She said in a joking matter.
"I'm only flamboyant and gay for you honey bun." Ashton leaned over and placed a light kiss on Charlotte's cheek. "I'll be as gay as you want." The two of them let out soft chuckles before they were turning and looking into each others eyes.
"I don't need you to be gay, I need you to be mine."