"It was never like that between us," I tell her after a while. "We were like brothers and sisters."
"We didn't know," Natasha mumbles.
"Of course you didn't." I roll my eyes. "He stopped talking with me after that day." And it got very awkward since I started dating Derek. I would go to every match of theirs and Eric would've been there too. I thought he'd talk with me again once the rumors died but he never did. Not even when he failed in English lit on the final.
At some point, I thought I was the reason he chose Ashton over Derek to be the captain after him. Though when I confronted him later, he told me that was not the case.
"And even if it was like what you three thought," I continue. "You guys had no right to spread those lies. You don't get to choose whom I or anyone will date or show interest in."
"I regret every decision we made that day, and I believe Cora did too," Natasha mutters.
"What about Ashely?"
Natasha raises a brow. "You wanna talk about her after what we witnessed today?"
Right. The unexpected encounter at Jim's.
"I apologize again for all we did, we were all young and still struggling. I know what I say won't make a difference but I would appreciate it if you stop hating us." I wonder why I should do that.
Now I know everything that they've done to me. Natasha gave me the reasons behind their actions, but it's no excuse to forgive them. Not after when they ruined my reputation. Ruined my friendship with Eric and made things awkward between us.
But-But there's still a part of me which is willing to forgive them. They were my best friends. They were always there for me until we started to fall apart. Yes, they made mistakes, more than once, but that doesn't mean I can deny the past we had, all those happy memories we share.
Moreover, if they hadn't pushed me away then, I would've never become the person I am now. I owe them for that.
Maybe I'll never be able to forget what they've done, I can never love and trust them the way I did before, but I can always forgive them and move on. I can stop hating them.
Holding grudges to my past will do no good for my future anyway.
Maybe I will do that one of these days. But the day isn't today. Because today, I have a greater matter to deal with.
Natasha stops the car in front of a huge mansion. I look out of the window. It doesn't take me long to figure who it belongs to.
"This is it," Natasha confirms and sighs. "I don't know why Fellan thinks he's so smart, but anyone seeing that Aston Martin coming in and out of that place can tell who it belongs to even with their eyes closed."
I agree with her. No one's as rich as the Fellans' in this town.
"But how did you figure it out?"
Natasha raises a brow. "I live in this street?" Oh yeah, right. Rich people.
I was about to open the door when Natasha's voice stopped me. "Are you sure you want to go there?
You might not like what you'll see inside."
"That decision's on me and not you," I snap.
Natasha doesn't get mad. Instead, her feature softens as she gives me a knowing smirk. "If that's what you want," she mumbles. "Let me know if I can help you to catch them in some way."
I blink. "You want to help me?"
Natasha nods. "It's not just for your sake or to beg your forgiveness, in case you're thinking. I know you won't give it to me anytime soon," she pauses and lets out a deep sigh. "It's just- for once in my life, I want to do something for someone who isn't me. Don't want to remain as the evil ex-best friend of your story."
I chuckle. My poor pathetic story, yeah right. "Okay, I'll let you know."
Natasha nods and jerks her head towards the mention behind me. "Good luck with that."
I watch until her car's out of the sight and turn around to face the huge mansion. The mansion is beautiful in every way possible. It's not enormously huge. It's a two-story house with a beautiful garden in the front. The design is simple. There's a water fountain in the front. Yet, it stands out on the street for its natural elegance.
I wonder why Ashton never shows it off to anyone. Anyone in his place would've done so. He never even threw a party in his place. That's right folk, the party king of our town never threw his own party in his place. Or shall I say ex-party king now?
I shrug mentally. This boy is so unpredictable. I walk inside the gates. Not even a single guard is posted at the gate. I walk around the fountain and step on the porch. No one came to inquiry about me. I wonder if the Fellans' have no fear of getting robbed. Or they all are as stubborn as the certain one I know.
I ring the bell and almost instantly I hear a squeal from inside. Then loud footsteps approaching close. Seconds later the door flips open revealing Riley on the other side. She's wearing orange fairy wings and has a fairy wand in her hand. But her black curly hair looks like the horrible result of trying to braid several times. She gasps when she sees me. Do her eyes go wide in... fear?
I bend a little to reach her level. "Hey orange fairy," I say with a smile. "Remember me?"
The little girl shakes her head. "No," she says and closes the door on my face.
I stare at the wooden frame in front of me. What just happened?
Am I in the right place? Or did Natasha trick me? But I'm damn sure it was Riley who opened the door.
'Leave the damn place before they charge you for trespassing.'
Right. I turn around to leave when the door opens again, revealing a tall guy this time. He has a black apron tight around his waist as is almost as tall as Ashton. Though his eyes are brown and his hair is blond.
"Riley, how many times have I told you not to do that?" He scolds the little girl hiding between his legs. His accent sounds different. He must not be a local.
"But papa-" He doesn't let her finish as he turns to me. "I'm sorry for my daughter's rude behavior, that's so unlike her," he apologizes with a smile.
I return it. "No it's fine, I think I'm in the wrong place, I was actually looking for the house of Ashton Fellan-"
"Ashton?"
I nod.
"Are you his friend?" He asks me again. He sounds kind of surprised as if he never saw a friend of Ashton.
But who is he? I wonder. He called Riley his daughter. But Riley is Ashton's sister and I met Ashton's dad a few times before and I'm pretty sure he's not this guy.
Is this what Natasha was talking about? I think about turning away and running for home calling it the wrong number but the man beats me to it.
"Where are my manners?" He slaps his forehead and turns to me. "Please come inside, it's getting dark out there."
I hesitantly step in, unaware of whatever's coming next. My only hope of not getting murdered tonight is Riley's adorable face. She's still staring at me without saying a word. I wonder what's up with her today. She seemed pretty enthusiastic when we met last Monday.
"I brought some of my mom's cookies, I hope you'll like them," I hold out the basket for the big guy here to take.
He accepts it and turns to Riley. "See? She's brought cookies for us and this is how you treat her?" Riley blushes and takes me a basket from him and turns to me with a cheeky smile. "Thanks, Kiara," she says and runs inside.
The man shakes his head. "She's always like that."
I laugh a little and look around the hall. The house is more beautiful from inside. And it's kind of huge. The hallway seems to be going forever. The man tells me to follow him and I do as he says.
He doesn't seem like a runaway murderer or rapist, at least not to me. I follow him silently and only stop when I see the wall of memories. I freeze on my step and walk close to get a good view.
The man also turns around. "That is our family photo wall," he informs me. I stare at the wall wordlessly.
All my doubts and questions- Ashton's fear, his greatest secret, his missing mother in all conversations, his hideous behavior when it comes to his family, Riley's shocked face when she saw me earlier- all are answered when I look at the photos closely.
There's a good number of photos covering the wall. One can hardly see the bricks behind them. Most of the pictures are from years ago, probably when they were still living in New York. There are photos of every possible occasion, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, New Year, Chinese New Year, Ashton and Riley's baby photos, birthday photos, and pictures probably with their extended family. But those are not what has taken me by surprise.
It's the largest frame in the middle. It's not taken long ago, regarding Riley's missing front tooth. Ashton is hugging his sister from behind and Mr. Fellan has his one arm rested on Ashton's shoulder. However, his other hand is around-
I turn to the side and find the man smiling down at me.
"I'm sorry but I think I have forgotten to introduce myself," the man says and extends a hand for me to shake. "I'm Ezra, Ezra Fellan, Ashton's father."
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Dun dun dun!