A special shout out to Shayleychillin who's been very supportive of this fic since day one. Thank you for always taking time to review my Chapters ; ) Thank you also to those who have favorit-ed and added my fic to their story alerts… It's a nice feeling that there are people out there who appreciate my work. It definitely keeps me motivated on continuously working on this fic. I hope you guys would also take some time to review my story...

From the bottom of my heart, thank you for all the support!


Chapter 3

Flashback… Sept 5, '2011

Based on Mrs. Benson's tweet in real life:

Shannon Benson: Waiting for hubby to get home. He is going to bbque some yummy food! Grilling your food saves calories. Love the grilled vegies & potato's.

5 Sep Favorite Retweet Reply

It was a sunny Monday afternoon and Mrs. Benson is just glad she could have her family for herself today. Ash finished early with her scenes today while Ash' sister, Shaylene, will be finished with her practice in an hour. Mr. Benson will also be joining them in a few. He's just in a convention at the moment… He promised the girls that he'd grill some bbq for them. Mrs. Benson on the other hand decided to top it off with salad, grilled veggies and potatoes. Meanwhile Ash's hands are busy with her iPhone, flipping from one picture to another-Ash' old habit.

"You should have asked her," Mrs. Benson said while she was preparing their lunch.

"Ask who what?" Ash said inattentively, eyes and fingers still fixed on her iPhone.

"Shay."

Mrs. Benson got into a pensive state the moment she mentioned "Shay"…

Ash wouldn't stop talking about her since the first day that she met her. And she knew right there and then that she would like Shay… She was extremely happy when Ash made an effort to introduce Shay to her and to Shaylene last year. She was even amused at the fact that Shay's name was a combination of all of their names—she's Shannon, they call her daughter Shaylene 'Shay' and then there's Ashley which turns out to be Shay's second given name.

Mrs. Benson could tell Shay has a kind heart, beautiful inside and out... And although neither Ash nor Shay may have noticed it, but she could see that they both bring out the best in each other… and that they always have the best smile for each other… She secretly thanked the Man up there for bringing Shay into Ash' life, and vice versa…

"What about Shay?" this time Ash has her full attention on her mom, unconscious that she interrupted Mrs. Benson's thoughts.

Mrs. Benson snapped back to reality and continued, "Oh, sweetie, you know exactly what I'm talking about."

"No, I don't, mother. You tell me," Ash said defensively. She's been trying hard to cover up her jealousy over Shay's plan to move in with Alex but it seemed like the more she hides it, the more people notice it—especially her mom.

"I was just thinking… You should've asked her to move in with you when you had the chance to. You two are inseparable on and off cam. When we went to the Lakers game before, I honestly thought you were gonna bring her home and have her meet your dad. I was actually surprised that you didn't. Well, disappointed may be a more proper term." Mrs. Benson said in a matter-of-fact tone, as if trying to stress to Ash that she should've made a move a long time ago.

Ash was supposed to say "because I got scared, that's why". Instead she found herself saying, "mom, don't you think it would be awkward to just storm our house and tell dad 'oh hey dad, here's Shay, she's my best friend.' You know he's not used to it. And besides, she said they were just planning on moving in together. It didn't occur to me that they'd really go with it."

"Ash, baby could you please pass the salad?" Ash obediently passed the salad to her mom... She was amused at her mom trying to multitask—whipping up their lunch and giving her usual 'motherly advice'. "Where the hell is Shaylene? I'm on a hot seat because she's not here," Ash secretly complained to herself.

Mrs. Benson continued, "well as I was saying, we don't get to meet your friends a lot. Last time you introduced a 'best friend' to me was back in grade school and the only thing you both had in common was your love for chocolate, and ironically that was also the same thing that made you two grow apart."

"But mom, I was ten that time. And you know I like having more guy friends than girl friends. I don't wanna get too involved…"

"My point," Mrs. Benson said while raising both of her hands, as if trying to tell Ash she's not trying to argue but she just wants to make a point... She could sense that Ash is getting uncomfortable with their talk but she felt compelled to push Ash a little harder especially on Shay…

"And you know Shay, when she wants something, she puts her heart and her mind to it… and this moving in thing with her friend is no exception to that fact. And besides, I'm a ShayLey shipper, I like you two together, you know," Mrs. Benson teased, as if trying to lighten up the mood between her and Ash.

Ash' eyes widened when she heard her mom say "Shayley" but it brought her a different kind of happiness—hearing her mom rooting for her and Shay, riding her fans and Shay's fans' craziness…

"Mom! Oh my god! Where did you learn that? Who told you about this whole 'ShayLey' shipping thing?"

"I have my sources," Mrs. Benson said with a wink. Both ladies cracked into a joyous laughter at their silliness, looking like fan girls grinning at the mention of "Shayley ship"…

Mrs. Benson shifted into a serious tone and continued, "you know baby, you had your chance but you blew it. I was rooting for you. I wanted you two to be together... I was... waiting for you to ask Shay to move in with you but you never did… or tried, at least."

"I did try," Ash said in a low voice… almost inaudible to Mrs. Benson's ears.


"What are you looking at?" Lucy asked Troian out of curiosity. She noticed that Troian has been looking intently at Shay, Keegan and Ash on the other end of the room. Lucy shifted her eyes to where Troi's eyes' are… Yet she still can't find anything out of the ordinary among the three… Ash was just sitting closely beside Shay while Keegan was standing while talking to them. "But that's so normal," Lucy cooed, as if convincing herself that there isn't really anything more to whatever the three are doing.

"Troi?" Lucy tried to get Troian's attention again but she was looking at the three as if she's deciphering their words and their gestures. Lucy figured Troi has this 'look' on her face again—as if she has finally decoded the answer to whatever puzzle she was trying to solve. "She's so Spencer Hastings," Lucy chuckled at the thought.

Troian could hear Lucy clearly. She didn't mean to be rude but her attention was inadvertently focused on the three. This time, Troian's facial expression shifted from 'calculating moves' to 'I knew I was right all along' face. She's always had a hunch over what's happening on the three. Troian reasoned out to herself that she didn't really need a bunch of guesses... She just needed actions to reaffirm it. And that's exactly what she's seeing right now. She then turned her face towards Lucy's and told her directly...

"Denial. That's what I'm looking at," Troian said with utter conviction.

"Deni—what? Who's in denial? What is? Wait, is that our new ep's title?" Lucy asked, more confused than ever.


A couple of hours after…

Keegan found Shay sitting on the couch, absentmindedly tapping her iPhone with her fingers… Shay seemed to be lost in her thoughts, her eyes rather sad and pensive... He debated with himself whether he would approach her or not. He felt like Shay's mind is preoccupied with something… He didn't want to come off rude by barging in and approaching her right there and then… He was still quite embarrassed on how he mumbled like a shy junior high the other night-asking Shay out for dinner. Yet whatever he reserved for himself, his feet felt otherwise… He found himself walking towards Shay, meeting her gaze with his boyish smile…

"Hi princess!" Keegan said, nudging Shay on the side, asking to make room for him on the couch... Keegan shivered at their initial physical contact. It was a brief encounter… his left arm brushed against Shay's right arm. Yet it was more than enough to make him feel butterflies in his stomach again…

"Oh, hey there," Shay answered with a faint smile.

Keegan couldn't think of anything to say to Shay. Scratch that… he actually knew what he wants to tell her… it's just that he always finds himself lost for words whenever he's with Shay. It's like he's under some sort of spell and would rather be lost in Shay's bubble than say the words that he always meant to.

"Do you wanna have dinner?" Shay asked, still looking preoccupied and impatiently tapping his fingers on her iPhone.

"Sure. Your car or my bike?" Keegan asked. He tried to hide his sudden urge of excitement, not wanting to give out too much to Shay.

Silence.

"Shay?"

"Huh?"

"You said dinner? Your car or my bike?" Keegan repeated.

"Ow! Yes, sorry. Um, dinner. Your bike." Keegan flustered at the sight of Shay… for a brief moment, he saw a smile crept out of her beautiful lips. Keegan couldn't help but beam at the thought of spending more time with Shay even if it's just for dinner.

Keegan felt like he had an idea of what may have been bothering her but he'd rather not pry. It pained him to see Shay looking preoccupied these past few days… There's nothing else that he'd want to than be with her off set. It's already bad enough that they don't get to do together as many scenes as they used to but he was thankful nonetheless for having Shay around. Keegan tried to dismiss these nagging thoughts and instead focused on the reality that he's having dinner with Shay… And for Keegan, that was more than he could ask for.

Meantime, Troian was feeling a little restless after walking out on Lucy. She saw Shay sitting beside Keegan, both seemed to be having a talk… She's glad that Keegan is always around for Shay whenever, wherever… And today is not an exception for that.

She wanted to join the conversation of the two but both seemed engrossed with each other… Sure, Shay was looking at Keegan, but her mind seemed to be elsewhere. Troian observed that Keegan seemed like he has an idea on who or what may have caused Shay on being not her usual self these past few days… She actually admired Keegan for not pushing it with Shay and for respecting her privacy… She figured… Shay will talk… whenever she's ready. It didn't escape Troian though the sight of Shay still tapping her fingers on her iPhone absentmindedly… as if waiting for a call or a text message…

Troian felt compelled to fix the 'unspoken rift' between Shay and Ashley but she always ends up reasoning out to herself that 'it's not her business' to do so. It somehow pains her that two of her closest friends seem to be having an FQ and neither of them actually wants to acknowledge it or do something about it…

Shay saw Troian looking intently at her and Keegan but she couldn't really care less. She reckoned Troian has always had intense eyes and whatever it is that may be going on in her mind, Troian would often keep it to herself. Shay was happy enough that Keegan is sitting beside her… trying his best to cheer her up, making an effort to make her smile… Shay's slowly feeling that familiar feeling of security and at peace whenever he's with Keegan… And for that, she was utmost grateful.


"Has anyone seen Shay and Troian? How about Ashley?" Marlene asked her crew but almost everybody answered her with a shrug.

Marlene noticed that Shay and Ashley have been distant with each other for almost a week already. She's getting a little worried that it might affect the two's working relationship on set. Marlene is grateful though that both Shay and Ashley are always very professional... One can rarely recognize onscreen if the two are having a rift…

What also bothered her is that the two may usually have these "unspoken rift" but it doesn't really take long for them to patch up. She could feel the tension between the two especially when they are filming their scenes together or with the other cast members… She wanted to do something about the whole Shay/Ashley thing but she resorted to not doing so... She figured Ash and Shay always ends up patching up things with each other… She's just a little worried this time because their fans are also noticing that Shay and Ash haven't been together in pictures and apparently haven't tweeted each other for days—something she also finds unusual.

Marlene wanted to intervene… To point out a couple of things to both girls but reason won over her heart… She resorted to leaving the two alone, keeping her fingers crossed that whatever the two is fighting about, will be fixed soon enough…


One of the crews pointed Marlene to Shay and Troian's direction… Ash was still nowhere to be found…

"So, Ash hasn't talked to you yet eh?" Troian asked casually, careful not to hit a nerve on Shay.

Instead of Shay answering her back, she grabbed her iPhone and showed her screen to Troian showing…

[ Ash' tweet in real life ] AshBenzo Ashley Benson: Can't wait to help you decorate shaymitch Neighbors. Yayyy

23 Sep Favorite Retweet Reply

"Isn't that a good thing? I mean, at least she tweeted you?"

Shay could feel her eyes burning already… She deliberately tried to hide the tears that she's been trying to stop from falling… But having Troian's presence allowed her to put her guards down and just let it all go... Her eyes welled and the next thing she knows Troian's arms were wrapped on her body trying to comfort her…

Shay was grateful Troian's with her right this very moment… It's like Troi already knows what's happening and she's just waiting for her to talk… To be ready… Troian was Shay's steady rock. And this rift between her and Ash is already taking its toll on her… Exhausting her even. She could use a little help, comfort... especially from Troian who's been nothing but a great friend to her since day one.

"So this is what's bothering Shay… Ash. I knew it," Troian secretly thought to herself. "Hey, sweetie… Don't cry… People might think I'm doing something wrong to you. You'll be up for your scene in a few…" Troian said, trying to lighten up Shay but to no avail. Instead she resorted to gently rubbing Shay's back, trying to pacify her… Shay instead silently cried while wrapped in Troian's embrace…

"What did you say to her?" Troian couldn't help but ask out of curiosity.

Shay moved a bit and showed her iPhone to Troian again… She showed her reply to Ash' tweet…

[ Shay's tweet in real life ] shaymitch Shay Mitchell: AshBenzo ohhhhh yeahhh! I think a couple episodes of the 'Buttah Benzo' show could take place during that time too...! Hmmmmm...:)

23 Sep Favorite Retweet Reply

Troian almost slipped telling Shay "well you looked happy on that tweet" instead she resorted to saying "that was it?"

"She didn't even mention Alex' name," Shay said briefly, referring to one of her best friends', DJ Alex. "Ash won't talk to me… She's sick…" Shay said in between her sobs.

"Baby please don't go
if I wake up tomorrow will you still be here
I don't know
if you feel the way I do
if you leave I'm gonna find you"

"She's sick? I didn't know that. Wait, aren't you gonna answer that?" Troian asked Shay, referring to Ash calling her on the other line… Troian knows that 'Please don't go' [by Mike Posner] was Shay's personal ring tone for Ash. It took some time for Shay to answer back… making her miss Ash' call.

Ever since that brief moment when Ash asked her why she didn't tell her sooner about the moving in thing… Ash treatment towards her has significantly changed…Ash hasn't tried waking her up for her early shoots… Normally when Shay has to shoot early, Ash would wake up earlier than her so she can call her and wake her up. Ash has also stopped calling in the morning to greet her… Ash also stopped taking pictures with her... It's like she doesn't exist in Ash' world…

Ash has been nothing but civil to her these past few days especially on set. The last time they spent some quality time together was when they had dinner at Ash' car. Shay has called Ash several times these past few days, asking her for a chance to explain her self but Ash wouldn't bulge. She thought she and Ash are okay already since they were talking to Keegan earlier today… But she was wrong… It seemed like Ash was just being civil to her… to Keegan… to everybody. She knows Ash is in pain… She wants them to go back to how they used to be… But that seemed liked a rather distant reality for now…

Shay feels like there's something more to it that just Ash being jealous over her moving in with Alex… She's exhausted... She can barely think clearly... She's literally and figuratively stressed out... She tried masking her 'Ash situation' on set by hanging out with other crew and lately with her onscreen mom, 'Momma Fields'.

She wasn't sure herself if she can talk to Ash and tell her how sorry she is about moving in with Alex… She wanted to tell her she meant to tell her about it sooner… Had she known Ash wouldn't approve of it, she wouldn't have otherwise done so. Shay was under the impression that Ash was okay with her moving in with Alex… She has lost count how many times she cried because of Ash. It never occurred to her it'd be that much of a big deal to Ash…

Shay looked at her iPhone and longingly looked at her screen… It didn't help that it showed her that she missed Ash' call… She felt a great amount of pain realizing that it's like they stopped being "Ash and Shay"…

Troian grabbed some tissues beside her and handed them to Shay. Shay in turn wiped her tears off, both eyes puffy now… Shay straightened herself up and heaped a couple of deep breaths, dialed Ash' number… not letting go of Troian's hand.

Ash picked up after a few rings. "Hey," Ash said blankly.

"Hey there... Your mom told me you went to the dentist… Are you still hurting?"

"Yeah. Still am," Shay wasn't sure if Ash actually referred to her toothache or if she meant otherwise…

"Listen, Ash…" Shay could feel her eyes burning again, unable now to stop her tears from falling… She continued, "I've been meaning to talk to you…"

"I'm fine." Ash said, cutting Shay off from what she was saying... And then Ash' line went dead.


PS: I personally feel that Shay and Ashley are having an FQ. That's where I actually based this chapter. I don't know… They've been so quiet lately. They haven't posted any picture of them together. And is it just me or what? I feel like they only tweeted each other because their fans have been tweeting them that they miss "ShayLey". Plus Ash has been hanging out with Ryan a lot lately… I could be wrong though. = l

By the way, the scene where Mrs. Benson said Shay's name is a combination of her's, Ashley's and Shaylene's… I made her real life tweet as my reference for that…

1) shannonbenson Shannon Benson

Funny Fact: Shay Mitchell's real name Shannon Ashley Mitchell. She has both My name & Ashley's name :) So Ironic & they're good friend's.

17 Sep Favorite Retweet Reply

2) shannonbenson Shannon Benson

and sometimes I call my daughter Shaylene - Shay! So needless to say Shay Mitchell has her name mixed with all three of us lol!

17 Sep Favorite Undo Retweet Reply

Check out Nia Peeple (Mrs. Fields on PLL) and Shay's real life tweets these past few days... They both said they've been hanging out on set a lot lately.

Also the last scene where Ash is in pain because of her toothache… I learned that on Ash' and her mom's real life tweets….

1) AshBenzo Ashley Benson

In the worst pain :/ blahh

23 SepFavorite Retweet Reply

2) shannonbenson Shannon Benson

Off to Ashley's for sleepover...She is not feeling well :( Hope she's better by tomorrow.

23 Sep Favorite Retweet Reply

3) shannonbenson Shannon Benson

Ash is doin better 4 those askin! She had a flare up where her wisdom teeth were pulled out a 1yr.1/2 ago,very painful,antibiotics r workin.

24 Sep Favorite Retweet Reply

And oh! I gotta admit there's been a coincidence with this Chapter and ShayLey's pictures on tumblr. Imagine my surprise when after uploading this Chapter... I checked my tumblr the day after and actually saw a pic of Shay and Ash sitting beside each other for their Halloween ep. The same thing goes for Mrs Benson's tweet... I found her tweets about their bbq day by accident after I wrote my scene for this Chap... With that being said, I made Mrs Benson/Ash/Bbq scene as a flashback in reference to Mrs Benson's real life tweet.

Wish I can post pictures here for easier reference. Anyhoo, if you're curious, just look it up on my tumblr. Same username: whothewhaat. Tagged those pictures "Pictures of you". Will update soon!

Whoopsie! Sorry. My "PS" is longer than I intended it to be...

Don't forget to hit the review button! : )