South of Nowhere is a property of The-N and Viacom. I'm not a crack monkey therefore I do not work for the writers of South of Nowhere. I just borrow their characters for my own pleasure.
I know I should be writing the next chapter of "I Will Move Heaven" but I'm a lazy ass. This one-shot has been brewing in my head for some time now and originally it was supposed to be all fluff but for some reason, angst got thrown in there.
Just Forget the World
Spencer was in Paradise. Literally. Or at least that's what it felt like. Being on a secluded, private beach where the only occupants were her and Ashley was pretty much Paradise to Spencer.
It was like something from a postcard (or a Corona commercial) that Spencer actually thought she'd see the words "Wish You Were Here" appear in the cloudless sky. Even with the clichéd white sands and the ocean being crystal blue, there was no other place Spencer would rather be at the very moment.
Normally, Spencer never found hammocks that comfortable but she and Ashley were currently laying in one that was tied between two palm trees. Ashley was sleeping and snoring slightly with her sunglasses still perched on her face. Spencer was grateful that they were in the shade because she knew her girlfriend would have a major freak out if she woke up with an unflattering tan.
Sighing, Spencer rested her head on Ashley's chest and listened to her heartbeat. Accompanied with the crash of the waves and the seagulls cawing in the distance, Spencer felt at complete peace. It was the vacation she needed. No classes, no phones calls for Ashley to be at the studio, and no nagging mother asking them to come over for dinner. Just her, Ashley, and that blaring noise.
Spencer sat up and turned her head but instead of seeing the sand and water, it was replaced with her bed side table and her alarm clock that read 7:00 A.M. on it. She let out an annoyed groan as she tried to reach over to turn it off but couldn't move.
An involuntary smile appeared on her face when looked down to see Ashley's arm around her waist. It was a tight grip that it took Spencer a while to turn off the alarm. She turned to face Ashley and ran a finger down her face.
Judging from the fact that Ashley was still in her jeans, Spencer concluded that she didn't get home until late and was too tired to even change.
"Ash," she said but Ashley didn't stir. "Come on, Ash, I have to get ready for class."
Ashley's face twitched but she didn't loosen her hold. Spencer rolled her eyes and tried to pry the arm off but Ashley's grip just became tighter. "Seriously, baby, I have an exam at 8 and I promised Tasha I'd get there early for a last minute review." She tried to move again but had no luck.
"Cut class," Ashley muttered and pulled Spencer closer.
"I'd love to but this is a pretty big exam so I can't really miss it." Spencer once again tried to get out of bed but Ashley wasn't having any of it. For someone so tiny, Ashley was freakishly strong.
"Please," Ashley said finally opening her eyes. "I miss you." She gave Spencer a little pout hoping that she'd stay.
Spencer sighed and bit her lip. As much as she wanted to just skip class and stay home with Ashley, she really couldn't afford to miss a day. She was buried eyeball deep in projects that she wouldn't even know when she'd have time to make up the test.
"Sorry, Ash, I really can't," Thinking that was the end of the conversation, Spencer once again tried to get out of bed but Ashley was still holding on tightly. "Ash, seriously."
There was a tinge of annoyance in her voice that Ashley caught and immediately became annoyed herself. She quickly let go of Spencer and turned around.
Spencer took a quick shower and returned to the bedroom to find Ashley back under the covers. "Don't you have to be at work?" Spencer asked casually as she started to get dressed.
Ashley didn't answer her and she assumed she had fallen back asleep until the covers were pushed back and Ashley sat up in bed with a very annoyed expression on her face. "I took the day off," she said coldly.
Spencer turned around and raised a curious eyebrow at her girlfriend's tone. "Yeah? That's good, you deserve it. What are you going to do today?"
"Well, I was hoping I was going to spend it with you but that seems unlikely," Ashley snapped and crossed her arms across her chest.
"You know I had class today." The last thing Spencer needed was a fight with Ashley. She was barely up for half an hour and already the day was sucking.
"Well heaven forbid you miss a day and actually spend time with me."
"Whoa," Spencer said holding up her hands in defense. "I thought your period ended two weeks ago."
Ashley just scowled at her. "Oh funny, Spencer, you're freaking hilarious." She threw the covers off the bed and stomped off the bathroom and slammed the door.
Completely irritated at Ashley's attitude, Spencer pushed opened the door and confronted her girlfriend. "What is your problem?"
"Nothing is my problem, Spence," she said while roughly squeezing the tube of toothpaste. A huge amount covered her toothbrush.
"Clearly, there is, you're barely awake and you're snapping at me for going to class."
"Well maybe, just for once, I thought you'd like to spend time with me." Ashley shoved the toothbrush in her mouth and started to brush vigorously.
"You're going to make your gums bleed," Spencer said without thinking.
Ashley spat in the sink and glared at Spencer. "Aren't you going to be late for class?" she taunted.
Spencer groaned. "I'm not leaving until you tell me what the hell crawled up your ass?"
Ashley wiped her mouth with a towel and then pushed pass Spencer to go back to their room. "I don't know Spencer, maybe the fact that we haven't spent one goddamn minute together in weeks." She pulled opened the dresser drawers with more than necessary force and started pulling out some clothes.
"We see each other everyday!" Spencer countered. She had no idea why Ashley was acting like this and exactly what brought it on. All she knew was that she was going to be late but she didn't want to leave Ashley when they had just had fight. She knew that she wouldn't be able to concentrate for the rest of the day.
"Seeing each other and spending time together are two different things, Spencer." She had trouble trying to get her clothes off because her fingers were shaking with anger. "When you're not in class, you're at the library or at your friends' places."
Spencer opened her mouth in shock. "Excuse me? What about you and your work hours? You're always coming home at the strangest hours of the night. I don't even know where you're going or what you're doing." How dare Ashley blame this all on her?
Ashley whipped her head around facing Spencer. "It's called work, Spencer. I'm not out getting high or drunk or whatever else you think I'm doing. They make my schedules not me." She shoved on a new pair of jeans and a new shirt.
"Oh, so I should schedule my classes to fit yours?" Spencer spat back.
"Yes, that's exactly what I said, Spencer," Ashley sardonically replied. "Don't you have to be somewhere?"
Shaking her head, Spencer grabbed her bag and started heading for the door. "You're impossible you know that?" She didn't want to leave like this. Obviously this has been bothering Ashley for some time. She did notice the lack of time they were spending together but it was never brought up. Living together was supposed to make it easier for them but it seemed to have the exact opposite effect.
Ashley didn't respond and just sat on the edge of the bed. She watched as Spencer headed for the door and wanted to call out to apologize. She knew she was being irrational but she couldn't help it.
"I'll try to come home for lunch, okay?" Spencer said quietly as she opened the door.
"Don't do me any favors."
Letting out a defeated sigh, Spencer walked through the door and left.
The second the door closed, Ashley wanted to throw herself against the wall. She didn't mean one word she said but with the stress of work and the whole not being able to actually be with the one person she loved more than anything, had Ashley a little testier than usual. She hated lashing out at Spencer for things that both of them couldn't control but she just wanted one day.
One day where they could just lay in bed and just forget all their responsibilities. Apparently that was too much to ask. Now Spencer was mad at her and she was stuck in the loft with nothing to do but mope until Spencer did come back from class. And even then, they'd probably mope some more. Pride always got the best of them both.
Ashley threw herself backwards on the bed and brought a pillow over face. She let out a frustrated (muffled) scream. It was only five minutes of laying there when Ashley heard the front door open again. She took off the pillow in time to see Spencer walk back in the room and climb back in bed.
Biting her lip, Ashley lifted her arm so Spencer could snuggle up against her. "I don't like when you're mean to me," Spencer said as she rested her head against Ashley's chest.
Ashley started playing with her hair. "I don't like when I'm mean to you either."
"Then stop being mean."
Ashley smiled and kissed the top of Spencer's head. "I'm sorry I'm so needy."
"I'm sorry that we've haven't spent time together."
"I'm sorry I'm making you miss class."
"I'm sorry for not staying up and waiting for you to come home at night."
"I'm sorry I'm usually not awake when you leave in the morning."
"I'm sorry for not going to your boring work parties."
"I'm sorry for not going to your boring college parties."
"I'm sorry for this morning." Spencer looked up and gave Ashley an apologetic smile.
"Me too." She leaned down and kissed her. "And I'm sorry that I ate all the Oreos."
Spencer laughed. "It's okay, you make it up to me though."
Ashley smiled and pulled the blanket back over them. "Oh yeah? How?"
"Buy us a nice secluded private beach."
"Okay," she kissed Spencer again and pushed her back against the bed, hovering over her. "I'll start looking tomorrow." She gave her another smile before kissing her once more.
Maybe spending the day in bed wasn't too much to ask.
END
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