Ashley took a deep breath as she walked threw the doors of her school the next day. She again opted for the mile long walk to school not wanting to deal with the close quarters of the school bus. As she walked down the halls she felt like all eyes were on her. In her mind every time she heard someone laugh she thought it was directed towards her even though in reality no one was paying her any mind. She walked to her locker and opened it quickly tossing her bag in.
Out of the corner of her eye she saw two people approaching her. She took a deep breath as they stopped by her locker. She turned her head to acknowledge them before turning her attention back to her locker.
“Ashley, right?” the girl spoke.
“Yes.” Ashley sighed. “and no I didn’t have sex with him, no matter what he says.”
“Umm ok.” The girl laughed a little.
“Isn’t that what you came over here to bug me about?” she said turning back towards them.
“Well no, actually…”
Ashley’s face turned a bright shade of red from embarrassment.
“See my friend here informed me that you’re a Backstreet sister and he is kind of obsessed with Nick Carter and he was too shy to come introduce himself to you.” She pointed to the boy next to her. “We didn’t want to be intrusive but he’s been dying to say hi since yesterday.”
“Well hi.” Ashley couldn’t help but smile at his nervousness. “I’m not related to Nick but I’ve been in the same room as him.” She joked.
“Is he as hot and delicious in person?” he finally blurted out.
“Excuse my friend he’s a little too gay to function sometimes.” The girl laughed.
“It’s ok.” Ashley laughed. “And yes he’s absolutely gorgeous.”
“I would die!” he fanned himself off with his hand.
“I’m Tina by the way and this is Jared.” She smield.
“Ashley.” She smiled back. She froze in her spot as Tiffany and her two friends walked by her glaring. Ashley took a deep breath before she heard Tina speak up.
“Don’t let that evil bitch and her clones get to you.” Tina said seeing the exchanged glances between them.
“It’s not her who’s getting to me.” Ashley sighed. “I’m sorry it’s not your problem, don’t mind me.”
“I saw her talking to you yesterday after school…is that what all this is about? What did she say to you?” Jared asked but Tina smacked him. “I’m sorry I’m being my nosy self.” He apologized.
“It’s ok. It’s just a whole bunch of crap and lies from an arrogant jerk.” She leaned up against her locker.
“Where there’s Tiffany drama there’s usually Derek drama…been there dealt with that.” Tina sighed.
“Really?” Ashley raised an eyebrow at her.
“We’re in the same grade as Derek, freshman year we had a thing going on. That is until little miss Tiffany started liking him. She spent three weeks planting all this fake bullshit to try and convince him I was a lesbian so he would break it off with me.” She rolled her eyes. “It’s such a crock of shit but the world revolves around what them and their stupid little friends say. Even the people who hate them believe it. They know they have the power and they abuse it.”
“I still want to bitch slap her.” Jared chimed in.
“That really sucks.” Ashley sighed.
“So what’s your deal?” Tina asked.
Ashley was hesitant to tell her at first but she figured if she had been threw something similar she would understand.
“I met Derek a few weeks ago at the beach and we went to a party together…long story short I wouldn’t have sex with him but he decided to tell people that I pretty much begged him for it and on top of that the sex was apparently ‘pathetic.’” She rolled her eyes.
“Wow that’s a new low.” Tina shook her head. “Are you ok?”
“Not really happy about having my name being associated with the word skank but I guess I have to deal and just ignore them.”
“Well I’m a great listener if you need to vent…ask her.” Jared smiled.
“Thanks. I’ll keep that in consideration.” She smiled back as the bell for homeroom rang. “I guess I’ll see you guys around.”
She shut her locker and waved goodbye as she made her way to homeroom.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Ashley had made it threw yet another day with little to no run-ins with Derek and his friends. She tried her best to ignore their childish comments as she passed them in the halls and the lunchroom but it was hard. She was glad to get home and relax again, hoping that AJ would finally call her. As much as she was trying not to let this affect her he knew how to deal with rumors better then she did and he would know what to do.
She again opted to walk home and grabbed her book bag heading out the door. She crossed the street and made her way towards the main street that led towards her home. She was about to grab her phone to try calling AJ again when she heard a car horn. She turned around just as a gray van pulled up next to her.
“You drive this?” she laughed seeing Jared in the driver’s seat.
“Eh it was my step dad’s…it’s not fabulous but it’s the best I can do for now.” He laughed. “What are you doing walking?”
“After spending a whole day with those people, riding in the close quarters of a bus is not appealing.” She smiled. “Walking gives me time to clear my head.”
“Well too bad, jump in.” Tina smiled from the front seat. “Were going to get pizza”
“You sure you don’t mind?”
“Get in!” Jared laughed.
Ashley smiled and jumped in the backseat of the van sliding the door shut.
About an hour later they arrived back at Ashley’s condo. At first she was going to invite Tina and Jared in but she decided she would have to get to know them better first. As nice as they seemed she had only met them earlier that day and she knew she had to be cautious. She thanked them for the ride home and for inviting her out for pizza and made her way inside.
“I’m home.” She called out as she locked the door behind her. She had called Denise earlier to let her know she would be home later. Denise emerged from the back door and made her way into the living room.
“Why didn’t you invite your new friends in?” Denise asked as she greeted Ashley.
“I just met them today. I want to give it some time.” She half smiled as Denise sighed.
“Honey you can’t keep worrying that everyone you meet is going to want to use you. We’ve talked about this.”
“I know and I’m trying to do better. It just takes a while to break the bad habits.” She took a seat on the big chair opposite the couch that Denise had sat in. “Has Alex called at all today?”
“No. I haven’t spoken to him in a few days, I believe they’re in New York now. It gets crazy there.” She smiled. “How are you two doing? You don’t talk much about it.”
“It’s getting there.” Ashley faked a smile sighing. She was upset that he still hadn’t called her yet. “I have some stuff to look up for class tomorrow so I’m just going to hang out in my room for a little.”
Ashley laid back in her bed not knowing what to do. She wished that Angel was home to talk to but she was with Aaron touring overseas. They hadn’t spoken in almost two months because it was too expensive. She decided to vent the only other way she knew how. She reached into her dresser and pulled out her journal. Turning to a clean page she began to fill it with her inner thoughts.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
It had been three days and still no call from AJ. Ashley knew his little promise to her was too good to be true. He lied when he said he had changed, he was still the same A.J, not Alex.
Friday afternoon had rolled around fast and Ashley grabbed her books and quickly tossed them into her bag making her way outside to meet Tina and Jared. She was really beginning to like them and they had been nice enough to pick her up and drive her home from school all week. When they pulled into the driveway of her condo Ashley noticed Denise’s car was gone. She smiled knowing it was the perfect opportunity to finally invite them in. Denise tended to get embarrassing when she brought new friends home for the first time.
“Do you guys wanna come in and hang out for a while? My mom’s not home so we have some peace.” She laughed and turned to Jared. “I know you’ve been just about dying to.”
“Awesome!” he said shutting off the van and jumping out before anyone else had a chance to respond. Ashley and Tina laughed getting out of the car and meeting him at the front door.
“It’s nothing special. It’s pretty small and not so decorated.” She said as she unlocked the door letting them in.
“It’s really cute.” Tina smiled as she walked them around the small downstairs area.
“So my rooms down here and then my mom’s room and the guest room are upstairs.” She led them to the back hall where her room was.
“Holy crap it’s like cotton candy exploded in here!” Tina laughed at all the pink surrounding her room.
“What can I say, I love pink.” She grinned. “So what do you guys wanna do?”
“Snoop!” Jared teased as he looked at the pictures hung on her wall. “Can I say how much I’m jealous of you right now!” he said pointing to the picture of Ashley with Nick and Brian from the Millennium tour.
Ashley and Tina just shook their heads laughing at him. Ashley thought his little obsession was cute and he was always really mellow about it, never letting it come between a conversation or them hanging out. He treated her completely normal and that was a lot more then she could say for the other Backstreet fans she had encountered at the school in the past week. Half of them hated her and the other half wanted to be her best friend. She tried as best as she could to be nice but some of them were just too much for her.
“Sweet, do you play the guitar?” Tina asked noticing the case in the corner of her room,
“Yea a little. Nothing crazy.” She laughed. “I just know the basics but it works for writing.”
“Writing? Like songs? I wanna hear!” Jared said excitedly finally turning his attention away from the pictures.
“I dunno. I never really play my stuff for anyone.” She said timidly. She usually only played her music for Angel and Matt. Aside from the song she wrote for her mom she’d never let anyone hear anything else.
“Come on consider it my payback for driving you. Please!” he begged handing her the guitar case.
“I usually have my best friend approve all my songs but she’s been out of the country. I guess I could get your approval on this new one.” She smiled pulling out the notebook she had been writing in the other day and taking a seat on her bed. “Ok so I wrote this in the mix of being mad at my brother and pissed off at Derek. It kind of just combines everything I wanna say to the both of them into one, but you’ll definitely get the Derek references.”
“A brand new song, I feel so privileged.” Tina laughed taking a seat on the floor next to Jared.
“You should.” She teased. “Alright so it’s called You Think.”
She began strumming the melody letting the lyrics flow to her as they sat quietly listening in awe.
“I made a big mistake, Ever thinking that you cared, When it's obvious There's nothing here, That you would need to share.
I ain't gonna cry, Cause you can't hurt me anymore. You can run your mouth, You can speak your mind, Everything you say is a waste of time.
You think you're so incredible, Completely unforgettable, You think the world spins just for you, You don't have a clue. You act like I'm invisible. With out you I'd be miserable. One thing is undeniably true…You think it's all about you.
I can see it now, I can read you like a book. All you care about is What you say, And how it makes you look.
You can talk all night, Words can't hurt me anymore. You got a million answers To impress yourself, But it really don't matter To no one else.
You think you're so incredible, Completely unforgettable, You think the world spins just for you, You don't have a clue. You act like I'm invisible. With out you I'd be miserable. One thing is undeniably true…You think it's all about you
I know I’m better off. You ain’t that big a loss to me, yeah. Anytime your not here, Baby the air is clearer to breathe…
You think you're so incredible, Completely unforgettable, You think the world spins just for you, You don't have a clue. You act like I'm invisible. With out you I'd be miserable. One thing is undeniably true…
You think it's all about you yeah, yeah. You think it's all about you, yeah, yeah, yeah. You don't have a clue…
You act like I'm invisible. With out you I'd be miserable. One thing is undeniably true, You think it's all about you…”
She strummed the final chord and placed the guitar down next to her looking at them, awaiting their response.
“Add another thing to the list of why I’m insanely jealous of you!” Jared was the first to speak teasing. “Talent runs in your family big time.”
“That was awesome. How did you even write that? I would never be able to think of anything like that it was…so cool.” Tina smiled at her.
“You really think so?” she could feel the smile growing on her lips.
“Umm yea!” Jared looked at her as if she were insane. “What are you doing in high school when you could be out killing it with songs and a voice like that?”
“I just write to get all the problems off my chest. I would never be able to perform in front of a crowd.” She put the notebook away.
“Umm hello aren’t you in the academy? Isn’t that what you do?” Tina laughed.
“It’s different, I’m playing a character…It’s someone else’s work being criticized not my own. If some one doesn’t like it it’s not that they don’t like me, they just don’t like my character…” she tried to explain her crazy logic “I know it sounds weird but in a play I could perform in front of millions of people and love it…just singing that song for you two I thought I was gonna pass out.”
“And you’re insightful?” Jared laughed. “If you were a guy I would so date you.”
Ashley and Tina rolled their eyes laughing.
“You’re too much.” Ashley shook her head at him
“But admit it…you know you love me already.” He grinned.
“How could I not with those killer lines of yours.” She laughed.
“She so wants me.” He said to Tina pointing at Ashley.
“Oh baby, oh baby. Hold me back before I can’t help myself.” She said in a monotone voice causing them all to erupt into laughter.
“Let’s just get some food.” She said and made her way into the kitchen the smile not leaving her face.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Hey man, I just saw the crowd out there and they are pumped tonight. This new set is gonna blow them away.” Brian said walking into the dressing room where Nick and AJ were sitting around relaxing before the show.
“Hey Nick, D needs to see you really quick.” Kevin said sticking his head in the door.
Nick groaned loudly as he pulled himself out of his chair and left the room. Brian quickly replaced himself where Nick had been sitting and looked over at AJ.
“So I heard Marcus say that Ashley had called the other day. How’s she doing?”
“Ah crap, I knew I forgot to do something the other day.” AJ said realizing he had never called her back.
“Dude that was like three days ago, you still haven’t called her?” Brian raised an eyebrow at him. “I thought you said things were just starting to go better with you.”
“Fuck. I know, I just forgot…she said it was important too. Damn it! She’s gonna be pissed.” He got up and began searching threw his bag for his phone. After a moment he thought. “Crap.”
“What?” Brian looked over at him.
“I left my fricken phone at the hotel. Can I use yours?”
“Leighanne has it…she’s already down front.” He said. “Sorry man. Just call her when we get back, it’s Friday I’m sure she’ll be up and they’re behind a few hours any way.”
“I guess you’re right.” He sighed wanting to kick himself in the ass for forgetting about her. He knew she wouldn’t just let it blow by either, he was going to have to pay her back for this one that is if she would even forgave him and give him yet another chance.
“Ten minutes to show time.” He heard from the hallway. He pushed all his thoughts aside as he made his way out to do the only thing he could at that point, put on a killer show.
Chapter End Notes:
song used was "You Think" by the Clique Girls who are amazing by the way. This song completely inspired me today, I had no clue where this chapter as heading then I heard that song and it just fit the situation with both AJ and Derek perfectly...it as meant to be haha...hope you enjoyed it! More tomorrow night hopefully!
of and yay for my favorite line ever from mean girls "he's too gay to function." love it haha
of and yay for my favorite line ever from mean girls "he's too gay to function." love it haha
