For the writing-prompts I'm doing on tumblr. mr-lapin asked for "So, it was you." for BusterXAsh.
If Buster knows one thing about Ash, then it's that the female porcupine has a problem with asking for help.
Even if she needs it.
Even if she really needs it.
When Ash comes to his office to tell him that, starting with Monday, she has a new address, it's up to him to put two and two together and understand that this means that she's moving this weekend.
For a moment, the question to ask her if she needs help is there on the tip of his tongue, but he doesn't say it.
Ash would never accept it, though.
So he just nods, writing down Ash's new address.
But when Ash leaves, the wheels start turning in his head.
He doesn't know if Ash actually needs help with her move.
What he knows is that she doesn't have a car and that her family doesn't live in the city. He doesn't know if they live close-by and if they would show up on the weekend to help Ash with her move.
He knows that Ash wouldn't even ask her closest friends to help her with her move.
He knows that she's probably trying to get it done all by herself, because that's her.
Most of the things he knows about her, he knows because he's been working with her for months now.
She never told him.
Ash never does.
With Ash, it's about the little things he notices and puts together.
And in this case, they are that Ash has no car because she's never shown up at the theater driving a car and that she didn't even tell Johnny or Meena about her move because Meena just told him after rehearsals that she's looking forward to spend the weekend baking and Johnny asked if he could use his rehearsal room on Saturday.
Yes, with Ash it's about noticing the little things and reading between the lines.
He still doesn't know if her family will show up to help, he doesn't even know if she has big family, but what he knows is that while moving there can never be enough people around.
So he picks up his phone and dials a number.
"Hello, Meena?" he asks when the call is answered. "Think the baking could wait for another week?"
When they drive up in front of Ash's old apartment building, Buster can't help, but crane his neck to look if there's a bunch of porcupine running around carrying boxes.
There aren't.
There's only one female porcupine carrying a box to the street and placing it on the sidewalk where already a few other boxes have been placed.
A familiar female porcupine.
Buster frowns when he sees Ash counting the boxes. She's probably making sure that none of the boxes has been stolen while she was upstairs to fetch the next box.
Yep, this girl definitely needs help.
Although Buster will beware to use the word "help" around Ash.
He looks at the other animals in the truck - Johnny driving, Ms. Crawly sharing the passenger seat with him, Gunter, Rosita, Meena, and Mike - Buster still doesn't know how he got Mike to join them - on the truck bed.
"Okay, everyone," he addresses the others, "stick to the plan."
He earns nods from them and then Johnny stops the truck in front of the apartment building.
"Hey there, Ash!" Buster calls out. Ash jumps a little when she hears her name and turns towards them with her eyes wide. "We decided to all have pizza together. Wanna join us?"
Ash looks from them to the boxes and back to them.
"I … uhm … I'm kind of busy," she says. "But thanks for asking."
"Oh? What are you doing?"
"I … uhm …" Ash lets out a sigh. "I'm moving."
"Ah, okay," Buster says, going over his next sentence in his head. It's really hard to keep the word "help" out of it, but maybe if he paraphrases it, it could work.
"Well, how about we lend you a hand, and then we can all have pizza together?" he suggests.
Ash looks from them to the boxes again, then back to them.
She shrugs. "Sure, why not?"
It's late in the night when they're finally done with moving all of Ash's stuff to her new place.
So they decide to order pizza and Ash insists that it's on her.
They settle down between the boxes on some blankets and pillows Ash got out of some boxes.
They chat and laugh while they wait, and at some point, Ash shifts closer to Buster.
"So, it was you," she says.
It doesn't sound accusing, more like a fact, but Buster still thinks of denying.
But Ash sounds so sure that he decides against it.
Instead, he asks, "Who told you?"
Ash laughs a little. "No one," she replies. "But you're the only one I told about my new address. I just put two and two together."
"Oh, you mean like I did when I figured out you were moving this weekend?"
Ash laughs a little more. "I guess."
"You could have asked for help," Buster says.
Ash shrugs. "You know that's never been my thing."
"I do," he admits, "but you should work on that when it comes to your friends. You can't always count on me to put two and two together."
"I didn't," Ash says with a little shake of her head. "I was planning on trying to do it alone, realizing I can't do that, having a mental breakdown and curling up in a corner, crying and cursing my life."
She laughs, but it doesn't sound right in Buster's ears.
"That's why you should work on that, Ash," he says, and out of reflex he takes her hand. "We're your friends. You can always ask us for help."
Ash looks at him and there's something in her eyes Buster can't read, but it makes his heart pick up some speed.
"I'll keep that in mind," she says, giving his hand a little squeeze.
It makes Buster smile, and then Ash turns to talk to Meena.
Only when the pizza delivery animal rings, does Buster realize that they are still holding hands.