Catch or Fall

Chapter Nine

"You know what, this spicy ramen is making us philosophical as fuck. We have to counter that with some beer."

Drinking beer with Ashton Price while we're alone in my room? Na-uh. Na-da. That's not going to happen. Besides, I don't have a stock of alcoholic drinks here. I shake my head and say, "Sorry dude but if you're doing that to get to me, you're failing."

"I'm just a beer fan, Harper. You don't have to drink with me, you know. And to make you feel better, I also know how to control myself. So it's not like I'm going to jump at you the first time I find a chance," He sounds pretty hurt with my accusation. But what does he expect me to say? Does he expect me to go Oh yeah, let's drink and have fun and make out and regret it the next day? He might have zero bad intention, but if there's alcohol involved, I should be careful. That's the first rule for ladies out there.

"Yeah right. But there's no beer so you can't drink. And even if there is, you still can't. So suck it up and settle with water instead."

"Can I, at least, have a coffee?" He asks with puppy eyes and all. He has muscles everywhere but his face looks gentle, like he's not going to break anything. Damn it. Why is he disarming?

"There's a water dispenser in the pantry. You can go there and make your coffee."

He shifts in his seat and groans. "Are you letting me go there alone?"

"Why? It's just near the emergency exit. You can do it. You're a big guy."

"But—" Ashton swallows. I give him a what the fuck look but he's still not moving. "Your dorm is fucking creepy, Harper. It's like someone is going to chase me with a chainsaw when I get out of here," He laments.

"Are you freaking kidding me?" I laugh. God, he's old enough not to be scared of ghosts or serial killers. But here he is, scaring the shit out of himself for thinking that Windsorville is haunted.

"Laugh all you want but horror movies are death sentence to me. I can watch the Bourne series or any movie with Liam Neeson, but not anything with ghosts or scary shit. Childhood fucked me up big time."

I stare at him in disbelief and crack up over his silly confession. Maybe it's not silly and something might have happened that made him hate horror movies, but still, it's funny.

"Now stop laughing because you're going to the pantry with me," He says as he grabs my hand.

"Okay. You listened to my rant earlier like a gentleman, so I will take your confession like it's no big deal," I tell him even though there's no way I will take this lightly. Maybe a prank or two, then I'll let it go.

When we get to the pantry, Ashton is still holding my hand like it's a lifeline. He doesn't look scared anymore, but he's doubtful that when he lets me go, I'll do something silly like scare him off. Since he's been good to me for the past three hours, I decide not to prank him and have him make his coffee in peace. It turns out he's a black coffee drinker.

Back in my room, Ashton tries to make me forget about his fear of ghosts by suggesting a confessions game. In order to win, one has to share an embarrassing story that tops all embarrassing stories. Since it's his idea, I let him speak first.

"When I was fourteen, I kissed this pretty girl at my brother's party. She was into me as well so it was not hard for me to make it to first base. We made out and did all kinds of things, only to find out she's my cousin."

"What the F?! You had sex with your cousin?" I screamed. That's not only embarrassing but fucked up as well.

"Well, we only made it to second base. No home run for me, which was actually okay because if we had sex and found out we're cousins, that would have been creepy."

"Ashton, second base with your cousin is already creepy," I say and roll my eyes.

"So that means I win?" He teases. "I didn't know I'd win this easily considering your life seems like a soap opera or something."

"Not yet over, dude. We're just getting started," I reckon. If there's anyone who has a lot of embarrassing stories to tell, that's me. "My first kiss was when I was thirteen. Before that, I kind of dreamed of having a perfect first kiss like those in the movies. Then the time finally came when our high school's top jock asked me out on a date. I was pretty awkward back then, with braces and braids, so when he made the offer, I didn't think twice. So we're in his car and we're kissing when suddenly I tasted blood. It turned out I bit his tongue and, sadly, my braces added to the injury."

Ashton is grinning but it's not because he finds my story funny. "Is that all you've got, Harper? That's not even half as embarrassing as making out with a cousin."

"Okay, let's see what your second embarrassing story is."

He winks at me and clears his throat. "I was home from school when I heard a noise coming from Adrian's room. Adrian is my older brother, FYI, and the noise is not just any other noise. There's screaming and swearing involved. I thought someone was trying to murder him so I grabbed a knife and ran to his room. His door was not locked so I went inside. But Adrian was not being murdered. He's just having a threesome and they're doing a roleplay. The embarrassing thing was they even invited me to join because I was ready, you know, with the knife."

"And you're still in high school that time?"

"Yeah, and so was my brother. I watch porn, but seeing my brother getting into it creeped the heck out of me."

"Tell me why there's always sex involved in your embarrassing stories?" I ask because what the heck?

"Because most of the embarrassing things happen during sex," He says matter-of-factly. "So is there anything you'd like to share to top that off?"

"Maybe that time when I caught my dad giving oral to his mistress. Instead of stopping when they saw me, they still got into business like I wasn't there. I had to fight the demons telling me to kill them right then and there."

Ashton holds both hands up and shudders. "Okay, you win."

"I warned you. You're not going to win against me."

"But your first kiss story was crap, Harper. I won't let your last confession distract me from the fact that you made the guy bleed in your first kiss."

"Whatever. You know what, I think you should get—" I stare at the clock and WHAT THE HELL?! IT'S ALREADY TWO A.M.

"Fuck. Jackson Price is already home so I can't just barge in the house," He mutters. Ashton seems to be the type of person who loves going to parties so I'm surprised that his father is not used to his late-night shenanigans. As if he has read my mind, he adds, "Don't give me that look, Harper. I don't give a shit if dad finds out that I came home late. It's just I can't fuck around this time. He's threatening to send Alex away if I do something stupid."

"Alex, your—"

"My brother who got drunk out of his mind at the bar last time. Jackson and Adrian put the blame on me and they're making me pay for it."

"So what are you going to do?" I ask, a hint of concern evident in my voice.

"I can call Chris or Ryle and ask if I can crash tonight. Then I'll go home at six. Dad has probably left home by that time."

"Or you can just stay here and leave at six," I make an offer that I can't take back.

"Would that be okay with you? I can really just call Chris and—"

"No. I mean, yeah—" Shit. My voice is quivering. "If you want to stay, you can stay. But if you want to go to your friend's house, that's okay, too. But it's already late and I can sense you're sleepy as hell. It's not safe for you to drive."

Did I really just use safety driving as an excuse to make Ashton Price stay?

Ashton gives me a look that suggests he's waiting for the punchline. But there is no punchline. He stares at me for a few seconds then says, "Okay, I'll stay."