So this story is based on the book 'Beautiful Disaster' by Jamie McGuire with the substitution to SON characters. I liked the book a lot and thought to share to through SON.

Disclaimer: I don't own neither SON or Beautiful Disaster the book

Ch.1 Red Flag

Everything in the room screamed that I didn't belong. The stairs were crumbling, the rowdy patrons were shoulder to shoulder, and the air was medley of sweat, blood and mold. Voices blurred as they yelled numbers and names back and forth, and the arms flailed about, exchanging money and gestures to communicate over the noise. I squeezed through the crowd, following close behind my best friend.

"Keep your cash in your wallet, Spencer!" Kyla called to me. Her broad smile gleamed even in the dim light.

"Stay close! It'll get worse once it starts" Aiden yelled over the noise. Kyla grabbed his hand and then mine as Aiden led us through the sea of people.

The Sharp bleating of a bullhorn cut through the smoky air. The noise startled me, and I jumped in reaction, looking for the source of the blast. A man stood on a wooden chair, holding a wad of cash in one hand, the horn in the other. He held the plastic to his lips.

"Welcome to the bloodbath! If you are looking for Economics 101… you are in the wrong fucking place, my friend! If you seek the Circle, this is Mecca! My name is Adam. I make the rules and I call the fight. Betting ends once the opponents are on the floor. No touching the fighters, no assistance, no bet switching, and no encroachment of the ring. If you break these rules, you will get the piss beat out of you and you will be thrown out n your ass without your money! That includes you, ladies! So don't use your hoes to scam the system boys!"

Aiden shook his head "Jesus, Adam!" he yelled to the emcee over the noise, clearly disapproving of his friend's choice of words.

My heart pounded in my chest. With a pink cashmere cardigan and pearl earrings, I felt a schoolmarm on the beaches of Normandy. I promised Kyla that I could handle whatever we happen upon, but at ground zero I felt the urge to grip her toothpick of an arm with both hands. She wouldn't put me in any danger, but being in a basement with fifty or so drunken college boy's intent on bloodshed and capital, I wasn't exactly confident of our chances to leave unscratched.

After Kyla met Aiden at freshman orientation, she frequently accompanied him to the secret fights held in different basements of Eastern University. Each event was hosted in a different spot, and kept secret until just an hour before the fight.

Because I ran in somewhat tamer circle, I was surprised to learn of an underground world at Eastern; but Aiden knew about it before he had ever enrolled. Ashley, Aiden's roommate and cousin, entered her first fight seven months before. As a freshman, she was rumored to be the most lethal competitor Adam had seen in the three years since creating the Circle. Together Ashley and Aiden easily paid their rent and bills with the winnings.

Adam brought the bullhorn to his mouth once again, and the yelling and movement escalated to a feverish pace. "Tonight we have a new challenger! Easterns star varsity lacrosse player, Mia Young!"

Cheering ensued, and the crowd parted like the Red Sea when Mia entered the room. A circular space cleared, and the mob whistled, booed, and taunted the contender. She bounces up and down and rocked her neck back and forth, her face severe and focused, the crowd quieted to a dull roar, and my hands shot to my ears when music blared through the large speakers on the other side of the room.

"Our nets fighter doesn't need an introduction, but because she scared the shit outta me, I'll give her one, anyway! Shake in your boots, boys and drop your panties, ladies! I give you Ashley 'Devil' Davies!"

The volume exploded when Ashley appeared in a doorway across the room. She made her entrance, relaxed and unaffected. She strolled into the center of the circles as if she were showing up to another day at work. Lean muscle stretched under her skin as she popped her fist against Mia's knuckles. Ashley leaned in and whispered something in Mia's ear, and the lacrosse player struggles to keep her stern expression. Mia stood toe-to-toes with Ashley, and they looked directly into each other's eyes. Mia's expression was murderous; Ashley looked mildly amused.

They both took a step back and Adam sounded the horn. Mia took a defensive stance; and Ashley attacked. I stood on my tiptoes when I lost my line id sight, leaning from side to side to get a better view. I inched up sliding though the screaming crowd. Elbows jabbed into my side and shoulders rammed into me, bouncing me back and forth like a pinball. The tops of the fighters heads became visible so I continued to push my way forward.

When I finally reached the front, Mia grabbed Ashley with her thick arms and tried to throw her to the ground. When Mia leaned down with motion, Ashley rammed her knee into Mia's face. Before Mia could shake off the blow, Ashley lit into her, her fists making contact with Mia's bloodies face over and over.

Five fingers sank into my arm and I jerked back.

"What the hell are you doing, Spencer?" Aiden said

"I can't see from back there!" I called to him

I turned just in time to see Mia land a solid punch. Ashley turned, and for a moment I taught she had dodged another blow, but she made a complete circle, crashing her elbow straight into the center of Mia's nose. Blood sprayed my face, and splattered down the front of my cardigan. Mia fell to the concrete floor with a thud, and for a brief moment the room was completely silent.

Adam threw a scarlet square of fabric onto Mia's limp body, and the mob detonated. Cash change hands once again, and the expressions divided into the smug and the frustrated. I was pushed around with the movement of those coming and going. Kyla called my name from somewhere in the back, but I was mesmerized by the trail of red from my chest to my waist.

A pair of heavy black boots stepped in front of me, diverting my attention to the floor. My eyes traveles upwards; jeans spattered with blood, a set finely chiseled abs, chest drenched in sweat, and finally a pair of warm, brown eyes. I was shoved from behind, and Ashley caught me by the arm before I fell forward.

"Hey! Back up off her!" Ashley frowned, showing anyone who came near me. Her stern look expression melted into a smile at the sight of my shirt, and then she dabbed my face with a towel. "sorry about that, Pigeon.

Adam patted the back of Ashley's head. "C'mon Devil! You have some dough waitin' on ya"

Ashley's eyes didn't stray from mine. "It's a dam shame about the sweater. It looks good on you" in the next moment she was engulfed by fans, disappearing the way she came.

"What were you thinking, you idiot?" Kyla yelled, yanking my arm

"I came here to see a fight, didn't i?" I said, smiling.

"you aren't even suppose to be here, Spencer" Aiden scolded.

"Neither is Kyla" I said

"She doesn't try to jump in the circle!" he frowned "let's go"

Kyla smiled at me and whipped my face, "you are such a pain in the ass, Spence. God, I love you!" she hooked her arm around my neck, and we made our way up the stairs and into the night. Kyla followed me into my dorm room and then sneered at my roommate, Kara. I immediately peeled off the bloody cardigan throwing it into the hamper.

"gross, where have you been?" Kara asked from her bed

I looked to Kyla, who shrugged. "nosebleed. You haven't seen one of Spencer's famous nosebleeds?"

Kara pushed up her glasses and shook her head.

"oh you will." She winked at me and then shut the door behind her. less than a minute later, my cell chimed. Per her usual, Kyla texted me seconds after we had said goodbye.

Staying w Aid c u 2morrow ring queen

I peeked at Kara, who watched me as if my nose would gush at any moment. "She was kidding" I said

Kara nodded with indifference and then looked down to the mess of books on her bedspread. "I'll alert the media" kara deadpanned, keeping her head down.

The next day, Aiden and Kyla joined me for lunch. I had intended to sit alone, but as students filtered into the cafeteria, the chairs around me were filled by either Aiden's frat brothers or members of the football team. Some of them had been at the fight, but no one mentioned my ringside experience.

"Aid," a passing voice called.

Aiden nodded, and Kyla and I both turned to see. Ashley took a seat at the end of the table. she was followed by the two voluptuous bottle blondes wearing Sigma Kappa Ts. One of them sat on Ashley's lap; the other sat beside her, pawing at her shirt.

"I think I just threw up a little in my mouth" kyla muttered

The blonde in Ashley's lap turned to Kyla "I heard that, skank"

Kyla grabbed her roll and threw it down the table, narrowly missing the girls face. Before the girl could say another word, Ashley let her knees give away, sending her stumbling to the floor.

"ouch!" she squealed, looking up at Ashley

"Kyla's a friend of mine, you need to find another lap, lex"

"Ash!" she whined scrambling to her feet

Ashley turned her attention to her plate, ignoring her. she looked at her sister and huffed and they left hand in hand. Ashley winked at Kyla, and as if nothing had happened, shoveled another bite into her mouth. It was then that I noticed a small cut on her eyebrow. She traded glances with Aiden and then began a conversation with one of the football guys across from her. Although the crows at the lunch table had thinned, Kyla, Aiden and I lingered to discuss our weekend plans. Ashley stood up to leave but stopped at out end of the table.

"what?" Aiden asked loudly, holding his had to his ear, I tried to ignore her for as long as possible, but when I looked up, Ashley was staring at me.

"you know her, Ash. Kyla's best friend? She was with us the other night" Aiden said

Ashley smiled at me in what I assumed was her most charming expression. She oozed sex and rebelliousness with her brown curly hair and tattooed forearm, and I rolled my eyes at her attempt to lure me in.

"Since when do you have a best friend Ky?" Ashley asked

"Since junior year" she answered, pressing her lips together as she smiled in my direction "don't you remember, Ashley? You ruined her sweater."

Ashley smiled "I ruin a lot of sweaters"

"Gross," I muttered

Ashley spun the empty chair beside me and sat, resting her arms in front of her, "so you're the Pigeon, huh?"

"no" I snapped. "I have a name"

She seemed amused at the way I regarded her, which only served to anger to make me angrier.

"well? What is it?" she asked

I took a bite of the last apple spear on my plate, ignoring her.

"pigeon its is then" she said shrugging

I glanced up at Kyla and then turned to Ashley. "I'm trying to eat here."

Ashley settled in for the challenge I presented, "my name is Ashley. Ashley Davies"

I rolled my eyes "I know who you are:

"you do huh?" Ashley said raising her wounded eyebrow

"don't flatter yourself, it's hard not to notice when fifty drunks are chanting your name."

Ashley sat up a bit taller, "I get that a lot" I rolled my eyes again and Ashley chuckled "Do you have a twitch?"

"a what?"

"A twitch, your eyes keep wiggling around" she laughed again when I glared at her. "those are some amazing eyes though" she said leaning just inches from my face "what color is that anyway? Blue?"

I looked down to my plate, letting the long strands of my blonde hair create a curtain between us. I didn't like the way it made me feel when she was so close. I didn't want to be like the scores of the other girls at Eastern that blushed in her presence. I didn't want her to affect me in that way at all.

"Don't even think about it Ashley, She's like my sister" Kyla warned

"Baby" Aiden said "you just told her no, she is never going to stop now"

"You're not her type" she hedge

Ashley feigned offense "I'm everyone's type!"

I peeked over at her and smiled

"ah! A smile. I'm not a rotten bastard after all," she winked. "it was nice to meet you, Pidge." she walked around the table and leaned into Kyla's ear.

Aiden threw a French fry at his cousin "get your lips outta my girl's ear, Ash!"

"Networking! I'm just networking!" Ashley walked backward whit her hands up in an innocent gesture.

A few more girls followed behind her giggling and running their fingers through their hair to get her attention, She opened the door for them and they nearly squealed in delight.

Kyla Laughed "oh, no. you're in trouble, Spence"

"what did she say" I asked, wary

"she wants you to bring her to the apartment , doesn't she?" Aiden said. Ky nodded and he shook his head, "you're a smart girl, Spencer. I'm telling you now, if you fall for her shit and then end up getting mad at her, you cant take it out on me and Ky, all right?"

I smiled, "I wont fall for it , Aid. Do I look like one of the Barbie twins to you?"

"she wont fall for it" Kyla assured him, touching his arm

"this isn't my first rodeo, Ky. Do you k now how many times she's screwed things up for me because she one-nights the best friend? All of a sudden it's a conflict of interest to date me because its fraternizing with the enemy! I'm tellin' ya, Spence," he looked at me " don't tell Ky she cant come over or date me because you fall for Ash's line of BS. Consider yourself warned."

"Unnecessary but appreciated," I said, I tried to reassure Aiden with a smile, but his pessimism was driven by years of being burned by Ashley's endeavors.

Kyla waved, leaving with Aiden as I walked to my afternoon class I squinted in the bright sun, griping my backpack straps. Eastern was exactly what I hoped it would be, from the smaller classrooms to the unfamiliar faces. It was a new start for me; I could finally walk somewhere without the whispers of those who knew- or thought they knew- anything about me. I was as indistinguishable as any other wide eyed overachieving freshman on her way to class; no staring, no rumors, no pity or judgment. Only the illusion of what I wanted them to see; cashmere, non-nonsense Spencer Carlin.

I sat my backpack on the floor and collapsed into the chair, bending down to fish my laptop from my bag. When I popped up to set it on my desk, Ashley slid into the next desk.

"Good you can take notes for me" she said. She chewed on the pen in her mouth and smiled, undoubtedly at her most charming.

I shot a disgusted look at her, "you're not even in this class."

"the hell if I'm not. I usually sit up there," she said, nodding to the top row. A small group of girls staring at me, and I noticed an empty chair I n the center.

"I'm not taking notes for you." I said booting up my computer.

Ashley leaned so close that I could feel her breath on my cheek "I'm sorry… did I offend you in some way?" I sighed and shook my head "then whats the problem?"

I kept my voice low "I'm not sleeping with you, you should give up now"

A slow smile crept across her face before she spoke "I haven't asked you to sleep with me." her eyes drifted to the ceiling in thought "have i?"

"I'm not a Barbie twin or one of you little groupies up there," I said glancing at the girls behind you. "I'm not impressed with your tattoos and charm or your forced indifference, so you can stop the antics, okay?"

"okay, Pigeon." She was infuriatingly impervious to my rudeness. "whys don't you come over with Kyla tonight?" I sneered at her request, but she leaned closer. "I'm not trying to bag you. I just wanna hang out"

"bag me? how do you ever get laid talking like that?" Ashley burst into laughter, shaking her head. "just come over I won't eve flirt with you, I swear"

"I'll think about it"

Professor Chaney strolled in, and Ashley turned her attention to the front of the room. A residual smile lingered on her face, making her nose crinkle. The more she smiled, the more I wanted to hate her, and yet it was the very thing that made hating her impossible.

"who can tell me which president had a cross-eyed wife with a bad case of the uglies?" Chaney asked

"make sure you get that down,: Ashley whispered "I'm goig to need to know that for job interviews"

"shhh" I said typing Chaney's every word.

Ashley grinned and relaxed into her chair. As the hour progressed she alternated between yawning and leaning against my arm to look at my monitor. I made a concentrated effort to ignor her, but her proximity made it difficult. She picked at the clack leather band around her wrist until Chaney dismissed us.

I hurried out the door and down the hall. Just when I felt sure I was at a safe distance, Ashley Davies was at my side. "have you thought about it?" she asked, slipping on her sunglasses.

A petite brunette stepped in front of us, wide-eyes and hopeful "hey, Ashley" she lilted, playing with her hair. I pause recoiling from her sugary tone and then walked around her. I'd seen her before talking normally in the commons are of the girls dorm, morgan hall. Her tone sounded much more mature than and I wondered what it was about a toddlers voice she thought Ashley would fin appealing. She babbled in a higher octave for a bit longer until she was net to me once again.

Pulling a lighter from her pocket, she lit a cigarette and blew out a thick cloud of smoke. "where was i?" oh yea… you were thinking"

I grimaced, "what are you talking about?"

"Have you thought about coming over?"

"if I say yes, will you quit following me?"

She considered my stipulation and then nodded "yes"

"then I'll come over."

"when?"

I sighted. "tonight. I'll come over tonight."

Ashley smiled and stopped in her tracks "Sweet, see you then, Pidge," he called after me.

I rounded the corner to see Kyla standing with Carmen outside our dormitory. The three of us ended up at the same table at freshman orientation, and I k new she would be the welcome third wheel to our well oiled machine. She wasn't excessively tall, but she towered my five feet four inches. Her rounded eyes offset her lon, lean features and her raven black hair was straight.

"Ashley Davies? Jesus Spencer, since when did you start fishing in the deep end?" Carmen said with disapproving.

Kyla pulled the gum from her mouth in a long strin. "you're only making it worse by brushing her off. She is not used to that"

"What do you suggest, I do? sleep with her?"

Kyla shrugged "it'll save time"

"I told her I'd come over tonight"

Carmen and Kyla traded glances.

"what? She promised to quit bugging me if I said yes. You're going over there tonight, right?"

"Well yeah" Kyla said. "you're really coming?"

I smiled and walked past them into the dorms, wondering if Ashley would make good on her promise not to flirt. She wasn't hard to figure out; she either saw me as a challenge or a safely unattractive enough to be a good friend. I wasn't sure which bothered me more.

Four Hours later, Kyla knocked on my door to take me to Aiden and Ashley's. she didn't hold back when I walked into the hall "Yuck, Spence! You look homeless"

"Good" I said smiling at my essemble. My hair was piled on top of my head in a messy bun. I had scrubbed the makeup from my face and replaced my contacts with rectangular black rimed glasses. Sporting ratty T-shirt and sweatpants, I shuffled along in a pair of flip-flops. The idea had come to me hours before that either way, unattractive was the best plan. Ideally, Ashley would be instantly turned off and stop her ridiculous persistence if I was looking for a buddy, I was aiming for too homely to be seen with.

Kyla rolled down her window and spit her gum "you're so obvious, why didn't you just roll in dog shit o make your outfit complete?"

"I'm not trying to impress anyone." I said

"obviously"

We pulled into the parking lot of Aiden's apartment complex, and followed Kyla to the stairs. Aiden opened the door, laughing as I walked in. "what happened to you?"

"she's trying to be unimpressive." Kyla said.

Kyla followed Aiden into his room. The door closed and I stood alone, feeling out of place. I sat in the recliner closest to the door and kicked off my flip-flops.

Their apartment was more aesthetically pleasing than the typical bachelor pad. The predictable posters of half-naked women and stolen street signs were on the walls, but it was clean, the furniture was new, and the smell of stale beer and dirty clothes was notably absent.

"its about time you showed up" Ashley said collapsing onto the couch

I smiled and pushed my glasses up the bridge of my nose, waiting for him to recoil at my appearance "kyla had a paper to finish"

"speaking of papers, have you started the one for history yet?"

He didn't bat an eye at my messy hair, I frowned at his reaction "have you?"

"I finished it this afternoon"

"its not dues until next Wednesday" I said surprised

"ii just plugged it out, how hard can a two page essay on Grant be?"

"im a procrastinator, I guess" I shrugged " I probably wont start until this weekend"

"well if you need help, just let me know"

I waited for her to laugh or to show some sign that she was joking, but her expression was sincere. I raised an eyebrow.

"you're going to help me with my paper?"

"I have an A in that class" she said, a bit miffed at my disbelief.

"she has As in all her classes, she's a freakin genius. I hate her" Aiden said as he led Ky into the living room by the hand.

I watched as Ashley with a dubious expression and her eyebrows shot up "what? You don't think a girl covered in tats and that trades punches for a living can get the grades? I'm not in school because I have nothing better to do"

"Why do you have to fight at all then? Why didn't you try for scholarships? I asked

"I did I was awarded half my tuition, but there are books, living expenses and I gotta come up with the other half sometime. Im serious, Pidge. If you need help with anything just ask"

"I don't need your help. I can write a paper." I wanted to leave it at that. I should have left it at that but this new side of her she'd revealed gnawed at my curiosity. "you cant find something else to do for a living? Less-I don't know-sadistic?"

Ashley shrugged "its an easy way to make a buck, I cant make that much working at the mall"

"I wouldn't say easy if you are getting hit in the face"

"what? You worried about me?" she winked. I made a face and she chuckled. "I don't get hit that often. If they swing I move, its not that hard"

I laughed once :you act as is no one else has come to that conclusion"

"when I throw a punch, they take it and try to reciprocate. That's not gonna win the fight"

I rolled my eyes "what are you, the karate kid? Where did you learn to fight?

Aiden and Kyla glanced at each other and then their eyes wandered to the floor. It didn't take long to recognize I has said something wrong.

Ashley didn't seem affected. "I had a mom with a drinking problem and a bad temper, and four older brothers that carried the asshole gene."

"oh" my ears smoldered

"don't be embarrassed, Pidge. Mom quit drinking, the brothers grew up."

"I'm not embarrassed" I fidgeted with the falling strands of my hairs the decided to pull it out and smooth it into another bun, trying to ignore the awkward silence.

"I like the au naturel thing you have going on, girls don't come over here like that"

"I was coerced into coming here, it didn't occur to me to impress you" I said irritated that my plan had failed.

She smiled her nose crinkle smile and I turned up my anger notch, hoping it would cover my unease. I didn't know how most girls felt around her but I've seen how they behaved. I was experiencing more of a disoriented, nauseated feeling than giggly infatuation, and the harder she worked to make me smile, the more unsettled I felt.

"I'm already impressed, I don't normally have to beg girls to come to my apartment."

"I'm sure" I said screwing my face into disgust.

She was the worst kind of confident. Not only was she shamelessly aware of her appeal, she was so used to women throwing themselves at her that she regarded my cool demeanor as refreshing instead of an insult. I would have to change my strategy.

Kyla pointed the remote at the television and switched it on "there's a good movie tonight, Anyone want to find out where baby jane is?"

Ashley stood up "I was just heading out for dinner, you hungry, Pidge?"

"I already ate" I shrugged

"No you haven't" kyla said before realizing her mistake. "oh…er…that's right, I forgot you grabbed a…pizza? Before we left"

I grimaced at her miserable attempt to fix her blunder, and then waited for Ashley's reaction

She walked across the room and opened the door "c'mon you've gotta be hungry"

"where are you going?"

"wherever you want, we can hit a pizza place"

I looked down at my clothes "im not really dressed"

She appraised me for a moment and then grinned "you look fine, lets go. Im starving"

I stood up and waved to kyla, passing Ashley to walk down the stairs. I stopped in the parking lot, watching in horror as she straddled a matte black motorcycle.

"uh…" I trailed off, scrunching my exposed toes. she shot an impatient glare in my direction

"oh get on. I'll go slow"

"what is that?" I asked reading the writing on the gas tank too late.

"it's a Harley Night Rod. She's the love of my life, so don't scratch the paint when you get on"

"im wearing flip-flops!"

Ashley stared at me as if I's spoken a foreign language "I'm wearing boots. Get on"

she slipped on her sunglasses and the engine snarled when she brought it to life. I climbed on and reached behind me for something to grab on to, but my fingers slipped from the leather to the plastic cover of the taillight.

Ashley grabbed my wrists and wrapped them around her waist. "there's nothing to hold on to but me, Pidge. Don't let go" she said pushing the bike backwards with her feet. With a flick of her wrist, she pulled onto the street and we took off like a rocket. The pieces of my hair slung loose beat against my face and I ducked behind Ashley, knowing I would end up with bug guts on my glasses if I looked over her shoulder.

She gunned the throttle when we pulled into the driveway of the restaurant and once she slowed to stop, I wasted no time scrambling to the safety of the concrete.

"you're a lunatic!"

Ashley chuckled, leaning her bike onto its kickstand before dismounting "I went the speed limit"

"yeah, if we were on the autobahn!" I said pulling out my bun to separate the rats with my fingers.

Ashley watched me pull hair away from my face and then walked to the door, holding it open "I wouldn't let anything happen to you, pigeon"

I stormed past her into the restaurant, my head not quite in sync with my feet. Grease and herbs filled the airs as I followed her across the red, breadcrumb-speckled carpet. She chose a booth in the corner, away from the patches of students and families and then ordered two beers. I scanned the room, watching the parents coaxing their boisterous children to eat, and looking away from inquisitive glances of Eastern students.

"sure Ashley" the waitress said, writing down our drink orders. She looked a bit high from her presence as she returned to the kitchen.

I tucked the windblown hair behind my ears, suddenly embarrassed by my appearance. "come here often?" I asked acerbically

Ashley leaned on the table with her elbows, her brown eyes fixated on mince. "so what's your story, Pidge? Are you a woman-hater in-general or do you just hate me?"

"I think its just you" I grumbled

She laughed once, amused at my mood, "I cant figure you out. You're the first girl that's ever been disgusted with me before sex. You don't get all flustered when you talk to me and you don't try to get my attention."

"its not a ploy; I just don't like you"

"you wouldn't be here if you didn't like me"

My frown involuntarily smoothed and I sighed "I didn't say you're a bad person, I just like being foregone conclusion for sole reason of having a vagina" I focused in the grains of salt on the table until I hear a choking noise from Ashley's direction.

Her eyes widen and she quivered with howling laughter. "oh my god! You're killing me! that's it. We have to be friends. I wont take no for an answer."

"I don't mind being friends, but that doesn't mean you have to try to get in my panties every five seconds"

"you're not sleeping with me. I get it"

I tried not to smile, but failed

Her eyes brightened. "you have my word. I wont even think about your panties…unless we want me to"

I rested my elbows on the table and leaned into them "and that wont happen, so we can be friends."

An impish grin sharpened her features as she leaned in a bit closer. "never say never"

"so whats your story?" I asked "have you always been Ashley 'Devil' Davies, or is that just since you came here?" when I said her nickname her confidence waned. She looked a bit embarrassed.

"no, Adam started that after my first fight."

Her short answers were beginning to bug me "that's it? You're not going to tell me anything about yourself?"

"what do you wanna know?"

"the normal stuff. where you from? What you want to be when you grow up…things like that?"

"I'm form here, born and raised and I'm a Criminal justice major"

With a sigh, she unrolled her silverware and straighten her plate, she looked over her shoulder, her jaw tense. Two tables seating the Eastern soccer team erupted in laughter and Ashley seemed to be annoyed at what they were laughing about.

"you're joking" I said in disbelief

"no, I'm a local" she said distracted

"I mean about your major. You don't look like the criminal justice type"

Her eyebrows pulled together, suddenly focused in our conversation "why?"

I scanned the tattoos covering her arm "I'll just say that you seem more criminal and less justice"

"I don't get in any trouble…for the most part. Mom was pretty strict"

"where was your dad?"

"he died when I was a kid" she said matter-fact.

"I'm…I'm sorry" I said shaking my head. Her answer caught me of guard

She dismissed my sympathy. "I don't remember him, my brothers do, but I was just three when he died."

"Four brothers, huh? How did you keep them straight?" I teased

"I kept them straight by who hit hardest, which also happened to be oldest to youngest. Thomas; the twins, Taylor and Tyler; and then Trenton. You never ever caught alone in a room with taylor and ty. I learned half of what I do in the Circle from them. Trenton was the smallest but he's fast. He's the only one that can punch on me now"

I shook my head, dumbfounded at the thought of Ashley's running around on one household. "do they all have tattoos?"

"pretty much, except thomas. He's an exec in California"

"and your mom where is she?"

"Around" she said. Her jaws were working again, increasingly irritated with the soccer team.

"What are they laughing about?" I asked, gesturing to the rowdy table. She shook her head, clearly not wanting to share. I crossed my arms and squirmed in my seat, nervous about what they were saying that caused her so much aggravation.

"tell me"

"they're laughing about me having to take you to dinner first. Its no usually….my thing"

"First?" when the realization settled on my face, Ashley winced at my expression. I spoke before I thought. "and I was afraid there were laughing about you being seen with me dressed like this, and they think I'm going to sleep with you" I grumbled

"why wouldn't I be seen with you?"

"what were we talking about?" I asked, warding off the heat rising in my cheeks.

"you, whats your major?" she asked

"oh,er…General Ed, for now. Im still undecided, but I, leaning towards accounting."

"you're not a local, though. You must be a transplant."

"Wichita. Same as Kyla"

"How did you end up here form Ohio?"

I picked at the label of my beer bottle "We just had to get away?"

"from what?"

"my parents"

"oh, what about Kyla? She has parents issues too?"

"no, Mark and Pam are great, they practically raised me. she sort of tagged along; she didn't want me to come alone."

Ashley nodded. "so why Eastern?"

"whats with the third degree?" I said. The questions were drifting from small talk to personal and I was beginning to get uncomfortable.

Several chairs knocked together as the soccer team left their seats. They traded on last joke before they meandered towards the door. Their pace quickened when Ashley stood up. Those in the back of the group pushed those in the front to escape before Ashley made her way across the room. She sat down, forcing the frustration and anger away.

I raised an eyebrow. "you were going to say why you chose Eastern" she prompted

"its hard to explain" I said shrugging "I guess it just felt right

She smiled as she opened her menu. "I know what you mean."