Chris arrived at the coffee shop outside the open-air mall before Ashley did. That was pretty typical for their hangouts. Chris hated being late, so he always gave himself plenty of time to get anywhere, usually too much. And the fact that it usually meant that Ashley didn't have to wait for him was a bonus.
Because he was so early, he decided to grab Ashley's usual frappuccino while he ordered his own mocha. He was just about to sit by the window when he spotted Ashley outside, so he instead went over to greet her.
Ashley had her phone out to send Chris a text, so when he started walking up to her, she jumped, only vaguely seeing something coming at her from her peripheral vision. "Oh, Chris," she greeted with a small smile as she put her phone away. "I was just about to text you."
"Hey, Ash. Sorry to startle you," Chris apologized. He held Ashley's drink out to her. She hesitated a moment, before taking it.
"I'm still a little jumpy," Ashley replied before taking a small sip. Chris noticed she didn't seem to be enjoying her drink as much as she usually did.
"I noticed," Chris commented with a wry smile. He bent down to look Ashley closer in the face, and her already-wide eyes went even wider. "Looks like your black eye is healing well. My ankle's almost healed, too." He pulled up his pant leg to show Ashley an ankle brace sticking up out of his shoe.
"I'm glad your ankle wasn't broken," Ashley commented.
"Yeah, me too. Sprains still hurt like hell, though," Chris replied. "So, anywhere you want to go?"
"Honestly, I just haven't been out of the house since we got back, and my parents have been nagging me to do something," Ashley replied, shaking her head.
"I want to stop by the tabletop game store, see what they have. After that, we'll just see what catches our eye. Probably browse the book store like we usually do." No trip to the mall was complete without Ashley dragging Chris into a bookstore, Ashley looking for books to add to her collection while Chris tried to make Ashley laugh with the most ridiculous book summary he could find.
"Sounds like a plan," Ashley replied. She gripped her drink close to her chest, though Chris swore he hadn't seen her take a drink since he handed it to her.
"Not up to your standards?" Chris asked, motioning to her drink.
"No, it's fine, I'm just not super thirsty right now," Ashley replied, before taking another sip as if to prove it tasted fine.
Chris began telling Ashley about a game he'd been thinking of picking up, when Ashley suddenly yelped out in alarm and jumped closer to Chris. "What, what is it?" he asked, instinctively wrapping a protective arm around her.
"Jeez, a little bump and you're jumping like you got stabbed. Who hurt you?" a man asked Ashley with a sneer. He then looked at Chris. "If it's him, Honey, you can do way better."
Chris felt rage rising up in his chest. "It's not any of your business, but we're both recovering from getting hurt," he stated, venom in his tone. The stranger seemed almost startled by Chris's intensity. "So back off, alright? A simple apology would've been enough."
"Sorry, man. You don't have to get so defensive," the guy stated, hands up as he backed away from Chris's death glare. He clearly still didn't take Chris fully seriously, but he at least knew he should stop. He then turned to continue to go about his day.
"Ash, you alright?" Chris asked, his tone softening as he looked down at Ashley.
"And this is why I didn't want to go out in public," Ashley muttered with a bitter tone.
"And also why you should go out in public, at least with someone you trust," Chris added. "If you don't, you'll just hide in your room all the time and become agoraphobic."
"There you go being annoyingly right again," Ashley grumbled. "I'm sorry, I'm probably not the most fun to be around right now."
Chris gently tilted Ashley's head up so her eyes could meet his. "You're exactly who I want to be with right now, especially if I can help you feel more at-ease."
Ashley nodded. "Okay, so, game store?" she prompted.
"Yes, I was just about to say, even though I read up on the game and everything, I have a hard time really deciding until I see the box and what's shown on the back," Chris said. The two of them made it to the game store just then, and Chris held the door open for Ashley. Ashley gave him a smile in thanks as she passed through.
Chris walked around until he spotted the game he was thinking about. He picked it off the shelf to take a look at the back. Ashley, meanwhile, sipped on her drink as she continued to browse the shelves. However, she stopped when one particular item caught her eye.
Chris heard a gasp, followed by rapid breathing. "Fuck," he muttered, hastily putting the game on the shelf and hurrying over to Ashley's side. "Ashley, Ash, what's wrong?" he asked.
Ashley fought for breath as tears streamed down her face and she started sobbing. She bent over forward as she tried to catch her breath. Chris wrapped his arms around her and guided her into himself, spotting the culprit as he did so. A mass-produced Spirit Board, sitting innocently on the shelf.
"Ashley, nothing was haunting us, remember? It was just Josh messing with our heads," Chris stated, trying to calm Ashley down.
"I know, Chris," Ashley sobbed between breaths. "I just- this just-"
"Shh, shh, hey, it's okay," Chris soothed, gently rubbing Ashley's back.
Ashley managed to get her frantic breathing to a more normal level and rested her forehead on Chris's shoulder. "I felt like I was back on the mountain, fearing for my life," she muttered.
"Ashley, I won't let anything happen to you, okay?" Chris said. He stepped back slightly out of the hug so he could wipe away Ashley's tears, even though her breath was still catching in her throat.
Ashley's eyes locked with Chris's as she looked for something to say. Instead, however, her mind took her back to a different moment on the mountain. She leaned in, touching her lips to his as her eyes fluttered shut.
Chris was startled. He counted himself lucky to get one kiss from Ashley, but now he got the pleasure of experiencing a second. He kissed back, letting his eyes fall closed for the moment that was all too short.
"Sorry, mind still not quite in the present," Ashley stated. She sounded tired, her anxiety attack having drained what energy she had. "That, uh, fear and flashbacks have been happening a lot. Anything that reminds me of that night. Did you know there's a comic book character named after that stupid creature? I nearly threw my dad's Wolverine comic across the room when I read what the character was supposed to be. I don't feel safe in my own house; ghosts might not be real, but something from that mountain is haunting me."
"Ash, I'm so sorry, if I knew what you were going through, I'd haveā¦" Chris said, sighing at the end when he realized he had nothing.
"Come over to my house?" Ashley supplied. "I know how much my dad scares you."
"If that's what you think will help, I will," Chris stated. "Any time you need me."
"What about tonight?"
