~~Carson's POV~~
It was nightfall, and the umpteenth time I refreshed Ashley's chat and she had yet to reply to the tons of texts I left her. I had gotten off the phone with her mom who called to inquire about her wellbeing a few moments ago, and I told her she was doing just fine. Frankly speaking, I was curious as well but I wanted to give her some time to herself hence my staying away until now. Right now, I figured that wasn't necessary anymore. Besides I would not be able to get a good night's rest if I didn't see her.
I went over to hers. A maid answered the door.
"Hello, good evening, Mr. Carson." I guess I was just as familiar to them as I was to the household.
"Yeah, hello," I reciprocated with a mild smile. "Ashley…is she in?" I inquired, going straight to the point.
"Yeah, she's in."
"Okay, can I see her?" Although really slight, I noticed the frown that came between her brows.
"Did you call her?"
"No, I texted her."
"And she knows you're here?"
"Ummm…" I stressed, getting confused. What's up with the questioning? It's not like I was a stranger trying to gain access. "Not really."
The interrogation was getting really awkward. She was now staring at me like I was clueless with the way her eyes scanned me down to my toes.
"Is there an issue here?" I was forced to ask.
"She's in her bedroom right now." So?? Just go upstairs, tell her she has a guest, and it's done! I still struggled to fathom the essence of the interview she was making me go through.
"Okay…just go up there and tell her she's got a guest." 'What's the big deal?' I held back from blurting as I didn't want to sound rude.
"I suggest you call her yourself," she declined politely. "Did you try calling?" she added, probably to sound more civil.
"Okay, so I…"
"Mr. Carson?" 'So I cannot see her if I don't call her myself,' I wanted to say when a dulcet voice cut in. I looked ahead to see the petite lady with coffee-brown hair from the other day, who just walked into the living room.
Approaching us, she was smiling from ear to ear. My lips were moved on impulse to return the warm gesture when they spread out broadly before letting out, "Hi."
Now standing close, she said, "You're here to see the young madam, right?" Now you're talking.
I faced her completely, ignoring the other lady who was busy cross-examining me. "Yes, please," I replied, still not realizing how spread out my lips still were. Her smile was contagious and it held hope for me. How could I not smile?
"Alright, come in."
"Emerson, Miss Ashley should be in bed by now." She made to usher me in when the other feisty lady stood in front of her to stop her. What is God's name was going on here? Was it that difficult to meet her without her consent, and in her mom's absence?
"Miss Ashley doesn't sleep that easily," she pointed nicely, giving her unyielding colleague an arm rub. The way she confidently said that made me feel a little sad. Ashley's suffering was no longer news, huh? "And besides, it's Mr. Carson. Not some stranger. I'm sure she'll let it go," she tried to convince while I watched in silence behind her.
The feisty one extended her questioning eyes to me before taking them down to her colleague again. "You never learn, Emerson," she muttered faintly before backing off finally.
Turning around to me, she beckoned, "Come on."
Reluctantly, I walked in, not sure of what could become of her because of my resilience. The other lady made it look like granting my request was a pretty big deal.
"You need something to drink?" She offered once I was seated.
Shaking my head, I replied, "No thank you," with a closed-lip smile. She'd done more than enough. I wouldn't want to demand more from her.
She went on to get Ashley. It didn't take long before I heard footsteps descend the stairs. Subconsciously, I straightened up before Ashley finally materialized before me.
"Ashley," I called, standing up slowly. I breathed a sigh of relief. I already thought she'd turn me down and not let me see her.
"Carson? Are you okay?" she asked rather casually for someone who looked hurt earlier.
"I should be asking you, Ashley. Are you okay?"
"Do I have a reason not to?" she retorted, crossing her arms over her bosom.
Her reaction was quite puzzling, to be honest. She didn't look like the same person I had a misunderstanding with.
"Umm. So …okay…about what happened earlier today…," I started, to clear the air between us.
"What happened earlier today?" she asked cluelessly. Was she no longer sulking? How could she even ask that when she was the one who almost left in tears?
"You don't remember?" I paused but her expression remained blank. "This morning when you asked me of a suspect."
"Oh, that?!" she exclaimed as if she only just recalled. "It's fine, Carson. You didn't have to come all the way here for that." Was she being for real right now? Did I let guilt stomp over me when she'd been fine all along? Or was she playing with me as usual?
"You sure?" I managed to ask. She nodded.
I came here prepared with a handful of explanations for her but she just rendered my efforts useless.
"Your mom asked to check on you."
She huffed, and then a corner of her lips twitched like she was trying to force a smile but it didn't work. How difficult was it for her to smile? I'd heard and seen in movies where people forgot how to smile. Was that the case for her? Or did she never have a genuine reason to smile? Just thinking about it made me sad. Being able to wear a smile can make anyone escape the toughest torture and yet… I heaved a silent sigh.
"Anything else? Why do you keep staring at me like that?" Snap, my eyes must have given the pity I was feeling away. But at least, she sounded mild, not upset as usual. She detested being pitied by anyone.
"If you need anything, just call me," I said.
"Sure," she replied simply with a nod.
I said goodbye and left her alone. Fair enough, she wasn't as hostile to me as before but it still bothered me to think she may have forgotten how to smile. No one should be allowed to. Then, was she thinking of suicide? Unable to contain my curiosity anymore, I dialed Mrs. Elle's number.
"Hey, Carson!" She picked up in no time.
"Good evening, Mrs. Elle. I hope I didn't disturb your sleep."
"No. I was actually waiting for your call." Yeah, sure. "How's everything? How's Ashley?"
"She's good. Just came from checking on her now."
"Alright, that's great. What about you? You good?"
I fell silent for a while, engaged in my thoughts.
"Carson? You there?"
"Ye…yeah! Actually, I called to ask you something else."
"Go on."
I hesitated, wondering a second time if my question was worth asking.
"Car…"
"Does Ashley still know how to smile?"
I heard her giggle lightly, probably amused by my weird question. "Yeah, she does. I've caught her a couple of times."
'"Caught"? That sounded like she never wanted to be seen.'
"'Caught'?"
"Yeah, it was unintentional," she explained. "I've caught her smiling a few times to herself but it's really rare." I then heard her sigh sadly. "I hope things change for the better, honestly. You do know how beautiful her smile is, right?"
How could I forget? Ashley's smile was not just cute but contagious. She could trap even the saddest soul in her hearty smile. And I missed that a lot; not just me, but all of us. We all wanted the Ashley we all knew back. "Of course, I do," I managed to reply, suppressing my sudden overwhelming emotion from escaping through my voice.
"Lately, she's been showing some changes." I noticed that too. "Hopefully, Miss Antonia would make a difference."
"Yeah," I whispered. "Alright ma'am, I'll leave you to rest now. You must have had a long day and I wouldn't want to make it longer."
"A good night to you, Carson."
Now standing in front of my door while staring at Ashley's porch, I replied, "A good night to you too."
Days On…
"About your boyfriend…"
*Cough cough*
I choked on the water I was drinking when that came out of the blue.
"Mom!" I hailed, quite shocked. How could she say something like that so casually? Moreover, where did that come from?
Breakfast was peaceful until now.
"He's really something," she continued calmly, ignoring my fuss. "I'm speaking of Luke."
Lu…Luke? I narrowed my darting eyes, thinking about it.
"You forgot your date again, huh?" She pouted her lips.
Yeah, that's right. Daniil. "Not at all." I adjusted my seat, trying to look more staunch.
Hold on, a sec. "again"? Did she sense I could not remember the last time?
"Ashley, are you okay?" She snapped me out of my thoughts.
"Sure!" I blurted at once.
"As I was saying…"
~~~
'Your boyfriend dropped you off, dripping water as well. He must have jumped in to get you out of the pool.' Now that was new. What my mom said to me this morning got me thinking a lot. I subconsciously assumed the haughty guy made anyone jump in to get me out. Now knowing he did it himself despite his narcissistic nature sure hit differently. I sighed, my brain was already feeling exhausted. Which was the real him? The guy who only cared about himself? The guy with a dark aura around him? "The annoying jerk?" Or the same guy my mom sweetly described? Did he like me as much as my mom suggested?
I shook my head as if to shake off the last part. My mom didn't know it was all an act so it was pretty easy to assume things. But still, thinking of it that way didn't help my course. Why else would he jump in to help me?
"Miss?" I heard Maverick's voice and was immediately called back to my senses.
"Ah…yeah." Looking around, I realized we'd gotten to school and I needed to get off. And so I did. After one last deep breath to pull myself together.
Getting off, a white car just got parked beside ours. I recognized it from the other night. 'Daniil?' I wondered, then subconsciously waited.
I was right. Daniil got off the back seat and our eyes locked. 'He must care for you a lot,' my mom's voice rang through my ears as I held firmly his gaze that pierced through the nose mask and the hood over his head.
'Thank you,' my inner voice said. Oddly, I felt grateful this time without excuses. It was decided; I was going to say thank you right here and now. "Tha…"
*Door slams*
He shut his car door and walked out on me. 'What was that?' Not even a greeting or just anything to annoy me? Wait, why was I even thinking in this direction? Why would I even expect those? Why would I care?!! It was obvious he was finally showing his true colors to me.
I was about to lose interest when I noticed the gauze around his left hand as he swung it, walking away. It was dipped in his pocket so I could not see it earlier.
Did he get hurt?