Chapter six: (Asher's POV)
This is boring. Just blatantly boring. We were both sitting on the floor now, her leaning against her bed while I lean against her closet. My eyes are peeking from above the book while hers are curiously scanning the pages of hers.
"Can we please do something?" I asked while nudging her leg. Her eyes shot up to meet mine from her book. She glared at me before going back to reading. "Ry Ry," I nudged her leg again. Her eyes didn't leave her book, she just nudged my leg back.
"I'm willing to talk. Let's talk about how our best friends are so in love." I nudged her leg, again. Her eyes met mine, more intrigued now, as she put her book down and gave me her undivided attention.
"Spill the beans, Ashy," she sighed while hugging her knees, waiting for me to begin.
"Only if you spill them in return." She nodded before holding out her pinky which I entangled mine with. "He's been trying to impress her and get close to her for a while. It started as just another girl but I think he's starting to genuinely like her. He doesn't tell me much about his love- or well, lust life. But he's different with her. He's more... careful." I explained everything in a nutshell.
"She usually tells me everything but she's very secretive about him. I think she's trying not to like him because of the image he carries and the number of girls everyone's seen him with. She's different with him too but she's trying to be cautious. I don't know if it's working. I don't trust your best friend with the heart of mine." She has a valid point there.
"I don't think he'd risk fucking shit up with her, I think he likes her," I shrugged, genuinely not knowing what's been going through Mason's head.
"Well, I hope he does," she sighed before stretching in her seat. "You know that the students aren't going to follow rules in Paris," I began.
"There's only one rule?" she asked in confusion. She's so innocent sometimes. Most of the time.
"Exactly. No one's going to follow it. Everyone's already thinking of ideas." I informed her.
"Ideas to what? Find a roommate?" she asked with curiosity while I nodded. She sighed in exhaustion. "Are the teenagers of our generation really so desperate and sexually frustrated?" she groaned into her hands.
"They're just horny, Riles. You're gonna have to deal with it," I laughed and shrugged.
"No, I won't. I'm rooming with Allison," she pointed out. Way too innocent for her good.
"And what if she chooses to room with Mason?" I arched an eyebrow at her.
"Then I'll just have to room with whoever, it doesn't matter. It's just for the nights," she shrugged.
"Not if they choose the most popular method so far," I paused, waiting to see if she'd get it.
"No!" she groaned, "They are not considering picking chits, please no!" she screamed into her pillow while I chuckled.
"I hope I get you, your reaction would be so priceless," I laughed. Her screaming stopped and she immediately turned to me with a death glare.
"I will kill you." She that so seriously that I genuinely got scared for a second. I sighed before continuing,
"You're not as sly as you think you are. I know you put up a tough front and try being mean like you hate everyone and everything around you, but I know that's not true. And whether you admit it or not, you are thrilled to be going on this trip because you want to see that tower. Stop lying." I shrugged.
"You don't even know me anymore. What makes you say that?" she raised her brows at me curiously.
"You forgot that I've known you for a long time," I smirked, using the words she used earlier.
"Did you though? Or did I just know you?" she arched an eyebrow at me, making me second guess my words. How much do I know? To be honest, compared to how much she knows about me, I don't really know much.
"Give me a chance to get to know you then," I suggested.
"Why?" she scoffed. "So we can go down the same path again?" she stood up while I mirrored her actions. "So that we get close only for you to turn into a dick and leave me?" she had pent up tension and this was the boiling point.
"We weren't together?" I voiced my confusion.
"That's not what I mean! We were friends! I trusted you and then you became a dick!" she exclaimed.
"I didn't do anything, Riles!" I paused. "I just came to school and you hated me!" I explained my side of the story.
"Did you ever wonder why?" she paused. "I know what you said, Asher!" she used my full name, no Ashy Bashy or Ash. This was way worse than I thought.
We hated each other but the nicknames were always there. Not anymore I guess.
"You talked so much shit on me the day you found new friends! They're not here anymore but now our friendship is down the drain because of what you did! You hurt me!" she reasoned.
That's what this has been about all along. "It's been a year, Riles, come on." I countered.
She scoffed, "I didn't know there was a time limit on healing from the hurt you feel?"
I hurt her bad.
"I'm dumb, okay! It was my mistake for doing that, I am sorry!" I wanted this feud to be over, I was tired of our hatred. I wanted my friend back.
"No, you're not." I don't blame her for not understanding but I want another chance. "Why do you suddenly want to be friends with me?" she asked, thinking out loud.
"I'm tired of acting like we hate each other!" I let out an exasperated sigh.
"We do hate each other! I'm not acting, Ash!" she argued. That hurt just a little.
"You don't miss the relationship- friendship, we had?" I corrected myself.
It was just a friendship.
"It was a toxic one. We kept hurting each other. It's better this way." Her voice was dying down. That's how I knew she didn't mean that.
"You don't mean that. Not one bit." I argued.
"I don't want to be friends with you, don't you get that? I never did!" she lied. I didn't want it to come to this.
"You're right, you wanted to be more!" I blurted out as confusion clouded her eyes. "You liked me, Riley. Admit it!"
As those words escaped my mouth, her right hand made firm contact with my cheek. "You are so full of yourself! Open your fucking eyes! Not everybody likes you, Asher! Not everybody is willing to die just for you to notice them! You were my friend!
And when you left me for other people and talked shit about me, I lost all feelings of friendship that I had for you! And that's all they were! Feelings of friendship!" she clenched and unclenched her fists.
"You were my friend, but you betrayed me. I don't want that again." Her voice cracked so slightly that I thought I had imagined it. Maybe I had? I bit my lip, not knowing what to say to her.
"I didn't mean to hurt you," I tried explaining my sad excuse. She chuckled humorlessly.
"No," she shook her head, "You just meant to talk shit and me to never find out."
She's going back to being cold. She barely started warming up to me today and it was already all gone.
"Just trust me. Please?" I tried to take a step closer to her but she stepped back, increasing the distance between us.
"I can't. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't," she shrugged, her voice soft.
"I won't ever hurt you again, I promise." I tried. I don't even know why I want her in my life so badly. She was a person I could always talk to. And now I lost her.
She shook her head before speaking, "I'm not willing to risk that for the friendship we had because I don't think we can even get close to the one we had earlier. It's gone, Ash. We're not getting it back," she shook her head slightly. "We'll only ever be acquaintances now," she paused, "You should go."
She walked over to her window and opened it. I looked at her, trying to find a sign that contradicted her words. "Riley," I whispered taking a step closer but she only distanced herself more from me.
"Go," she whispered. I got out of her room and swung into mine.
That last thing I saw was her locking her window, and closing her curtains.
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