Ashton was touching up her make=up, waiting for a phone call or text from Bill to signal that he had arrived. She looked at herself in the mirror. She was dressed in her nice black skinny jeans and a shiny sleeveless silver top that went over only one arm. She had a nice little black jean coat to keep her warm and black leather high heeled boots. Her make-up was done mostly black with a touch of silver, and she admitted to herself that even though she may have spent a big too much time getting ready, she looked amazing, and ready to do anything Bill may have had in store for their date. She stopped when she realized how dirty that thought could have been taken. Giggling a bit, she hair sprayed the curls at the ends of her hair again. Turning to Vanessa, who had easily agreed to her going out on the date, she sighed.

"I guess this is the best it's gonna be!" Ashton said with a sigh and sat on the bed beside her friend. Vanessa shook her head and stared at her friend. She had just gotten possibly the best date(in Ashton's point of view of course), and she still didn't think she looked good enough? It was almost tiring how nothing seemed to be good enough for whoever the hell this guy was. She was anxious to see him, though Ashton had said he probably wouldn't even come to the door.

"Seriously, Ashton, you look great for the fifteenth time. I'm sure he'll think the same!" Vanessa watched Ashton pace back and forth a bit, constantly checking the time. Vanessa rolled her eyes and sat back, looking at her phone. She had agreed to the other going out on the date at first just to shut her up about how cool and awesome it was, but later was glad that the other was going. She could finally call her boyfriend Kevin! It was only the second day away, but she missed him so much! Ashton gasped and looked at her phone as it dinged. She squealed and quickly put her boots on. Vanessa rolled her eyes. "I'm guessing he's here?" Ashton just nodded, put her coat on and opened the door looking around for signs of the other, looking for the bright blonde hair. She saw Bill leaning against a red convertible and smiled. He looked good in the blue shirt and leather jacket he had changed into since the last time she saw him. Smiling happily, she went out to meet him. Vanessa peaked out the door and was shocked. Wow. He actually was hot; really hot. Vanessa almost changed her mind about joining them on their date; she thought with a smirk but closed the door. She couldn't do that to Ashton. Kudos to here though.

"Hey! Ready to go?" Bill spoke up, grinning as he looked Ashton over. She looked great! Ashton grinned, blushing a bit as she noticed him check her out, and nodded. Grinning, Bill stood up from leaning and went around opening her door for her. Once she got in, he hopped into the driver's seat and drove off to the restaurant.

~!~

"Kevin, it's not even a big deal, really! I can handle being by myself for one night!" Vanessa sighed as her boyfriend spoke loudly, pissed that her friend had left her alone on the second night of their trip. It was getting annoying how he was always calling Ashton out on things that weren't even true. He even tried to convince her that Ashton had some sort of girl-crush on her. Sometimes, boys can be real assholes. Like right now for instance. "I mean, he was really good looking. I'm proud of her for finding someone that hot. Plus apparently he's like some big name singer in Germany that she's totally into." Shrugging, Vanessa focused on painting her toe nails a bright pink as she listened to her boyfriend talk, sighs and sits back setting the nail polish aside. "Isn't there something else we can talk about? What have you been up to since we've been gone?" Kevin's voice was hesitant before speaking.

"Well, uh…I hung out with Erin last night. We went to this party with a bunch of people. It was nothing big, but we got pretty wasted." Vanessa pouted at that. It wasn't the first time Kevin had hung out with Erin without saying anything beforehand. He had even had the nerve to go to prom with her at her school, then make up some stupid excuse to not go with her to her own and instead went out to dinner with her friend, Sam. She could hear Ashton's voice in the back of her head, why are you even dating him if he keeps doing so many stupid things like this and hurting you? Vanessa couldn't really explain why she put up with all the shit that Kevin did, and for all the stuff he refused to admit doing until she found out. She hadn't even known until a month after Erin's grad night that they had hung out in her hot tub afterwards. God knows what they might have done, but yet she was still with him. It was weird, but she wasn't sure that she wanted to break up with him. They had gone through most of their final year of high school, knowing the liked each other but too nervous to do anything about it, and when they finally were together it seemed like everything was trying to pull them apart. Though the more she thought about it, the more it seemed it was Kevin that was trying to keep them apart. The thought made her feel down, tears gathering in her eyes as she chewed on her lip quietly. "Vanessa, are you still there?" Vanessa blinked and nodded, then remembered that he couldn't see her doing that.

"Yeah, I'm here," she said quietly, "So; uh…what did you two do then?" Vanessa asked carefully, hoping he would tell her the truth. Of course, he probably wouldn't but she was really good by now to tell when he was lying. After all he had plenty of practice with him. If he didn't tell the truth, she wasn't sure what she would do. This would be the second time with the same girl. She wasn't sure how much longer she would be able to put up with it. She loved Kevin. She had lost her virginity to Kevin, and she didn't regret it, but it was just getting ridiculous how much he was lying to her, and now even possibly cheating. Of course she didn't want to assume anything though. Even if he was lying there was no guarantee that he was cheating.

"Oh come on Vanessa, don't start with that again. We didn't do anything. You gotta have more faith in me!" Vanessa rolled her eyes. She was so sick of his pathetic lying. Even now it was obvious.

"Look, I have to go…Talk to you later," she said quietly, tired of the conversation. She heard Kevin sigh.

"Yeah okay. Just, don't be mad. Seriously, nothing happened." Another lie. "I'll talk to you later, then. I love you." She just made a small 'uh-huh' noise and hung up. Sighing, she threw the phone aside and contemplated what to do next. Unable to think of anything else, she decided to take a walk on the beach. Putting on a sweater as it had gotten somewhat chilly out, she walked down the street in her flip flops until she got to the beach. It was dark out by now and the moon was out, shining against the glassy surface of the water. Vanessa smiled sadly and walked along the beach, taking her flip flops off to feel the sand between her toes. There was a small breeze that made small swells in the water, and she eventually sat down, watching the water, deep in thought. What was she going to do about Kevin? She didn't want to deal with this anymore…but could she really break up with him while she was away? Could she really break up with the only guy she had trusted enough to sleep with? Now it seemed though that the trust may have been given to the wrong person after all. Sighing at that, she closed her eyes and just listened to the waves.

She barely noticed as someone walked up, only hearing the footsteps as a twig broke underfoot. Looking up, she saw a delightfully sexy man standing in front of her in loose summer shorts and a long white button up top. His hair was in black dreadlocks which suited his face very well. Vanessa could feel her cheeks heat up as she saw him looking at her. She hoped that he wasn't here to tell her to leave, or she might just be embarrassed enough to never, ever speak to another hot guy again. Looking up at him, she wondered what he was doing, but he just spoke a soft "Hey" and sat next to her, she smiled a bit. Looking at him, she was surprised by how casually he just sat beside her. He seemed nervous at first, but for some reason when she did and said nothing, he relaxed. Vanessa found this odd but smiled a bit and kept watching and listening to the ocean. She didn't really know why he was there, but they seemed to be able to just sit there and listen to the ocean together in silence; and it was comfortable. She actually found herself enjoying the quiet time beside the man. It was a very welcome change.

~!~

Ashton giggled as they walked down the street, dinner long over as they just enjoyed each other's company. Bill was chatting away excitedly about his many dogs and the trouble that they had gotten into over the years. Ashton couldn't keep the grin off her face as she listened to some of the insane stories, watching Bill's arms flail about as he spoke. It was just too funny how into the conversation he could get. All throughout dinner she had noticed that he spoke with his hands a lot. It was cute, she had decided. She wasn't entirely sure where they were going for the dancing, but Bill had mentioned that it was close to the restaurant, so that they could walk, enjoy a conversation and see more of LA at nighttime. She had willingly agreed and was glad she did. This way she could hear Bill talk more instead of him having to focus on driving. Besides they probably got their quicker walking then being in the huge traffic jam they called the streets of LA.

Ashton looked up as Bill stopped in a huge mass of people. Blinking she looked around. Where were they? Looking up she saw a bright sign that obviously showed it was a night club. Bill wanted to take her to a night club to dance! That was so awesome, she thought, grinning. Her grin faded slightly though. She wasn't even old enough to be in there. She was only nineteen, going on twenty. Didn't she need to be twenty-one to get into a club? Looking at Bill, she wasn't sure if she wanted to say something or not. Did he know she was underage? Obviously not if he was bringing her here. Would he still be interested if he knew? Probably not. But wouldn't it be more embarrassing if the bouncer asked her for idea, and she couldn't do anything about it? She figured she better just tell him and deal with the consequences ahead of time, and save them both the embarrassment, and the possibility of the press getting at it, and trying to make him out to be a pedophile or something like that. Not what he needed, and really neither did she. What if her parents saw her face on a magazine with the same headlines as the word pedophile? Things would not go so well. The whole trip would be shut down and she would be forced to return home, even though she was well old enough to be making her own decisions. Just not this decision. Not in the eyes of the law at least. Looking at Bill, she bit her lip. What was she going to say?

"Bill…uh…I'm actually…not –" she was surprised when he cut her off, a small smile on his face.

"Old enough? Yeah I know," he laughed. "I figured as much. I don't mind as long as you're not like…sixteen or something like that. That would be a little weird for me." He chuckled and continued. "Don't worry about this. If you get in with me, they won't bother asking." Going up to the door, he looked at the door, telling him who he was, showing a VIP pass, and smiled at him. The bouncer was obviously new, because he studied the VIP pass, obviously thinking it must be a fake. Bill got a bit annoyed as the man had to go inside to get it checked. Really? Of all the nights for this to happen. He grimaced a bit, and didn't look at Ashton. It was kind of embarrassing after all. And to make it worse, the paparazzi just had to show up. Seeing the first flash, he stood in front of Ashton as if he didn't know her so that they couldn't and wouldn't bother to be taking pictures of her. Why did this have to happen tonight? Like she would want this? He'd be lucky if he got a second date with this happening.

"Bill! Bill, are you having trouble getting into the club? Why aren't they letting you in?" He tried his best to ignore them, keeping the sunglasses on his face to help with ignoring them, glad when the bouncer finally came back out. He nodded to the man when he apologized, took Ashton's hand, still keeping her hidden as they went into the club. He let out a relieved sigh when the cameras finally couldn't get to them anymore. He looked down at her, hoping that she was horrified, freaked out or mad or anything like that. To his surprise, she looked a bit shocked, but still smiling.

"Nice moves getting rid of them," she said, obviously impressed by how easily the other was able to ignore them. Well that was a first for him. Usually fans would just start getting worried about him apparently "changing" or getting "rude" or "unhappy". He rolled his eyes at the thought and smiled at her, quickly realizing that she might have thought the eye roll was towards her. Walking in through the club, they went into the VIP section and sat down in one of the booths. He pulled her gently to sit beside him instead of across from him. He liked it better this way. They were closer.

"Would you like something to drink?" Ashton nodded, but she didn't really know what to get. She hadn't exactly been drinking before. In fact the only drink she'd ever had before was a cooler that her mom had given her during the summer at one of their many barbeques. It was good, but she wasn't exactly sure that was the sort of thing that they served here. "What would you like?"

"Actually, I really have no idea," she said, blushing. It was so embarrassing to admit how little she knew about this. Especially when he seemed so comfortable in this setting. Bill just smiled and leaned over passed her and grabbed a small, paper menu that was laying on the table, showing her the list of drinks. Well, duh. Way to go, Ashton. Brilliant as always, she told herself sarcastically. Looking over the drinks, she still couldn't really decide which one would taste good. She had no notion of what each alcohol tasted like. She set the paper down and looked at him, putting a slightly flirtatious smile on her lips. Hey, why not? She had already made a fool of herself plenty enough times and he was still here. That had to be a good sign, right? "Why don't you order one for me? I'll take your word that it'll be good." Bill grinned and ordered them two drinks named Hurricanes. She looked at the list and noticed that it had fruit juice with two different types of rum in it. Hmm, sounded interesting.

"Now, they're really good, but I wouldn't drink it too fast, or have more than a couple. They're kind of strong," she heard Bill say. She smiled and nodded. This was fun already. Sitting here, talking with Bill over the sound of the loud music as they waited for their drinks. When they arrived she cautiously took a sip and grinned. It really was good!

~!~

Vanessa was walking with the guy from the beach, blushing as they talked about different things; mostly people. For some reason, Vanessa felt really comfortable around this unnamed stranger, and after sitting with him quietly for what seemed like hours, they had begun talking and the big mess with Kevin just came up. Of course, the man had advised her to break up with him. She knew that he was right when he said that she shouldn't have to put up with shit like that. She knew he was right, because people had been telling her that for a while now. But she was still unsure. She wasn't sure if the man could tell. She hoped not. She didn't want to seem rude by ignoring his advice. She really liked him. After they had gotten past the whole "Kevin" topic, they had moved on and the man had even talked a bit about some of his past relationships. It was so strange how they could talk about things like this with a complete stranger. She knew that it wasn't common. She knew she would never be able to talk about it depth like they did with just anybody, but this man was different. It was just so comfortable around him.

They had eventually left the beach once Vanessa mentioned that she should head back to her hotel. After all, she didn't know when Ashton was going to be coming back, and her not being there when she got back could easily make her friend worry. The man seemed disappointed that she had to go, and suggested that he walk her back. After all, it was really late by this point, and LA wasn't safe at night, as you know. She wasn't sure if he was concerned, using it as an excuse to talk longer or both. She was leaning towards the last option, or at least that's what she hoped it to be. She smiled as they walked, and blushed as he slowly took her hand in his as they walked. She didn't protest because it just felt so right. What else was she supposed to do? Getting back to the hotel, she stopped in front of the room door and looked at him, smiling thankfully.

"Thanks for walking me back. It was nice talking to you tonight, but I don't think I ever caught you name." She really hoped that he had a good enough time to even give her his name. He seemed a little hesitant and she worried for a bit. Why would he hesitate when they had just been talking for so long? He smiled eventually though and looked at her with a small smirk.

"Forgive me, I completely forgot to introduce myself. It's usually the first thing I do," he said with a small laugh, "My name is Tom. What's yours?"

"Vanessa," she said with a small smile.

"Well, Vanessa, it was great talking with you tonight. I'm guessing by the fact you're in a hotel that you won't be staying in LA for very long, but you would want to trade numbers? I'd like to talk to you still, even if you're not close by. I feel very comfortable talking with you, and trust me when I say for me that's really rare." Vanessa grinned and nodded eagerly. They switched phones for a second and put their numbers in each other's phones. Tom smiled once they gave each other's phones back, leaned in and kissed her cheek. "Sleep well, beautiful." Vanessa blushed deeply said goodnight and watched him walk off with that small smirk before going inside herself. Ashton wasn't back yet luckily and she fell back on her bed. WOW! He was so amazing! Why couldn't they just stay here for a little bit longer! She grinned and squealed happily. She did still have his number! If nothing else, she had just made a new, really close friend. Looking at the clock she realized that it was already three in the morning. Where was Ashton? Vanessa wondered if she should be worried, but then she remembered that after all, she was on a date with a celebrity. That would make her want to stay out all night. If nothing else, they probably just got caught by the paparazzi and were stuck somewhere. She would probably be back soon anyways. Her friend usually couldn't last very long stay awake past two or three in the morning. She wouldn't be surprised if Bill brought her back, passed out, sleeping in the passenger's seat. Vanessa laid back on the bed and turned the TV on to wait for her friend to return, sending her a text to remember that they did have to leave early the next morning, and to not stay out too late.

~!~

Ashton was having the time of her life. She had already had two of those amazing drinks and could feel her head buzz, but luckily she was still fully aware of what she was doing, just without the stupid feeling that she was going to embarrass herself at any moment. At this particular moment, her and Bill were on the dance floor, chest to chest with his hands on her hips as they danced to the fast paced music. Normally, she would be blushing like a school girl at this, but with her newly found confidence, she didn't bother worrying about that, and was just having a great time with the hot blonde man holding her close. She did blush, however, when the phone in her front pocket started to vibrate. How embarrassing since a certain part of the other just happened to be pressed against it. She blushed as they moved off the dance floor so she could check her phone. After reading the text, she signed and closed her phone, looking up at Bill with a small smile.

"Who was that?" he asked curious as he sipped on the last of his drink. He had only had one as he was the responsible driver that was getting the other back to her hotel after all. He, of course, wished he could have drank more, but oddly enough, with Ashton around, he didn't seem to need the alcohol to be able to have as much fun as he usually did. In fact, he found that he might have even enjoyed himself more tonight than normally. He listened as she explained that her friend was complaining about her being out so long, since they needed to leave the next morning. He nodded understandingly until he registered what she had said. "Leaving?" he asked, disappointment in his voice. Ashton nodded and explained how her and her friend, Vanessa were on a road trip across the western states. Bill was disappointed but nodded. Of course it would be his luck that when he finally found a girl he could actually like and possibly trust, she wasn't even going to be sticking around. He should have guessed since they were staying in a hotel, but he just hadn't thought about it. "Well, if you want to go back, I can drive you back. Though I have to be honest, I'm disappointed that you're not sticking around. I would have liked for us to go out again." He smiled at her as they walked out to his car, glad that the paparazzi had finally disappeared. When he checked the clock and it showed it was already three in the morning, he was shocked. No wonder her friend was asking where she was. "I'm sorry I kept you out so late, I didn't mean for it to go so late."

"Don't worry. I had a great time, Bill. Yeah, I wish we could stay longer, but my parents are paying for this trip and if they see we aren't leaving LA…well, they might get a big suspicious of what we're doing here," she said with a soft giggle. She knew for certain that if her parents knew she was at a nightclub with a twenty-three year old man, drinking none the less, they would not be very pleased with her. Luckily for her, they had no way of finding out! So hah! She grinned at that thought. It really did suck that she couldn't stay longer. She wasn't sure, and she hated to say such things so fast, but she thought she might actually be falling for the blonde man. And not just for the star that she had known for years, but the man behind the face that she had gotten to know tonight.

Once they got to the hotel, Ashton sighed. She didn't want to leave. Bill noticed the look, and knew that she didn't want this night to end any more than he did. He wasn't sure why he was going to bother since she was leaving, but he leaned in and kissed her softly. Ashton froze in shock but quickly relaxed into the kiss, even returning the kiss a bit nervously, as she really had no idea what she was doing when it came to kissing. She really hadn't kissed anybody before. Well, once; with this boyfriend that she had in grade ten. But that was another story, and one that she didn't want to remember, thank you very much. Unfortunately, at some point they had to part lips, and the time came too soon for Ashton. Looking at him, she couldn't help but pout. Bill chuckled at the cute look, poking her lip lightly. "Don't pout, beautiful. It's adorable, but there's no need. You have my number, right? Give me a call sometime." He knew that he shouldn't be trusting someone he just met, especially with his lifestyle, but he didn't really care anymore. He liked her. She liked him. That was enough this time. Ashton nodded and sighed, opening the door as she said a quiet goodnight. Bill couldn't help get out as he watched her walk back to room, and run over to her. He pulled her into another soft kiss. He didn't know why he cared so much in just the one night, but the feeling he had was overwhelming and he really didn't want her to go. They stood outside the door for what seemed like forever, kissing, until Bill saw the curtain move out of the corner of his eye, and broke the kiss. He stroked her cheek softly looking at her sadly, not knowing the next time he would see her, if ever. "It seems your friend has been peeking at us. I should let you go because she comes out here and gives me shit for keeping you out so late," he said, chuckling. Ashton giggled softly and nodded. He was right. Vanessa would probably murder him for getting her back so late if he wasn't so gosh-darn good looking! They shared one last chaste kiss before Ashton mumbled a sad goodbye and went inside. Bill sighed deeply and went back to his car, driving home thinking deeply.