A special shout out to my lil sis, Fefi... Lil sis, bet you'd recognize something here! Shout out also for my Shayley ship sisters-Shayleybabies, Shayleydaily, Mitchbenzolove, ShipShayley and fellow author, xTasteTheRaInboWx! Sending my love also to Ires_andrea and Rainrain23 :) Much, much thanks also the rest of you guys who favorited me and this fic/added this fic on your story alerts... Wow! Hope there'd be more Shayley shippers! Thank you very much for the support and the reviews!
This chapter is quite longer than I anticipated… Here you go kids, enjoy!
Chapter 9
"Do we really need this much?" Ryan asked Ash while looking at their grocery cart filled with junk foods, chocolates, pizza ingredients and other 'healthy' foods he's not even aware of…
"Yeah," Ash said absentmindedly; one headset piece plugged to her ear while her right arm is holding Olly, the other free hand holding her iPhone… She's been trying to get a hold of Shay but to no avail… She settled listening to Maroon 5's album instead…
...
"How does it feel to know you never have to be alone?
When you get home?
There must be someplace here that only you and I could go
So I can show you how I feel"
*Sweetest goodbye – Maroon 5
...
Ash stopped walking when a cereal box caught her attention…
**Flashback… Based on Ash and Shay's real life tweet…
shaymitch: I would like for this cold to go away now. #ugh
2 Sep Favorite Retweet Reply
AshBenzo: Since taking a bite of your cereal im catching it booooo RT shaymitch: I would like for this cold to go away now. #ugh
3 Sep Favorite Retweet Reply
...
Ash grabbed her iPhone and called Shay…
"Hon, I'm sick. Your fault," Ash said in between her sneezing, while she grabbed another tissue on her side… She's been feeling lightheaded throughout the day thanks to the colds that she got from Shay…
"Buddy? You okay there? Are you really sick? Or you just want me to come over there?" Shay teased.
Ash can tell Shay was smiling while she was teasing her… "Of course, I am! And yeah… That too. I miss you… Come over now, please? Pretty please?" Ash pleaded.
"You didn't have to say please, babe. Of course, I'm going. Give me an hour okay? I'm almost done here… Are you at the apartment?"
"Yeah," Ash said after she sneezed again.
"Wait, whose apartment? Yours or mine?" Shay asked.
"Mine, silly. I'll wait for you, okay? Hurry up…" Ash said while she played on her remote control, flipping from one channel to another…
"I'm coming, love. Hang on," Shay said sweetly… And then she went back to their set and finished shooting her scenes…
...
Shay went through her bag looking for her spare keys of Ash' apartment. For a moment, she worried that she must've forgotten it at her apartment… It's already bad enough that it took her longer than she promised to finish shooting her scenes due to technical difficulties on set…
"Oh gosh, it's gotta be here," Shay whispered to herself anxiously… And when she found her spare keys, she paced immediately to Ash' room and found her sound asleep…
She thought of waking up Ashley but she decided not to… Instead she went to Ash' cabinet, grabbed one of Ash' lose Lakers shirts and changed into it… She also went ahead and changed into more comfortable shorts and found her set of slippers exactly where she last left it…
Shay picked up a few pieces of used tissues on Ash' bed and threw them away… She also picked a few of Ash' clothes left on her bed and put it on her laundry bin instead… She made a mental note of bringing their dirty clothes to the laundry shop but she figured that can wait…
Shay walked to the left side of the bed… Shay chuckled when she recalled Ash usually prefers sleeping on the side while she couldn't really care less…
Ash looks sound asleep while hugging the pillow that she gave to her… Shay sat on the floor, crossed her legs, her face drawn close to Ashley's… Shay tucked a few strands of Ash' hair giving her a better view of Ash' beautiful face…
A sweet smile curved on Shay's lips while she stared at Ash' pretty face, looking serenely asleep… She then traced Ashley's face gently with her index finger as if trying to memorize it, enjoying the calmness radiating from Ash… Shay drew her face closer to Ash' and was about to kiss her when she stopped midair…
She was taken aback when Ash caught her finger, Ash' eyes still closed…
"Are you fantasizing about me, Shannon?" Ash teased, eyes still closed, her left hand still not letting go of Shay's index finger…
"No! Of course not, why would? I just… I mean you looked—"
"Pretty? I know," Ash continued teasing Shay, still not letting go of her finger… Still feeling woozy because of her colds...
"Come here…" Ash' voice already coarse, "Buddy wants to snuggle… Buddy wants it now…" Ash said, playfully mocking a command on Shay…
"Done and done boss," Shay's eyes beamed while she heaved a sigh of contentment, stood up, Ash's eyes still closed with her hand still not letting go of her finger…
Shay snuggled closer to Ash and buried her face to Ash' neck… She let herself drown with Ash' faint smell of shampoo… Ash still not letting go of her finger… Shay tried to release her finger from Ash' hand but Ash held it tighter instead and tugged her, drawing her closer to Ash'… Shay placed a light kiss behind Ash' ear and whispered, " feel better, buddy… for me?"
Ash smiled when she heard Shay's voice, eyes still closed, both slowly breathing, enjoying their moment… Ash then laced her hands with Shay's and held it tight… Wishing they can stay like 'this'… Always.
And then Ash responded, "I will… For you."
** Based on Shay's real life best friend, DJ Alex' tweet…
DJALEXMERRELL: Abandoned plans to hike because of all the LA road closures & ended up getting a massage with shaymitch instead... Thanks BarackObama.
27 Sep Favorite Retweet Reply
DJALEXMERRELL: Chloe, Alex (with a mean St Barth tan), and shaymitch all dressed up and ready to hit the town! twitpic(dot)com(slash)6r7iup
27 Sep Favorite Retweet Reply
Alex just finished dj-ing at the House of Paladin and made a mental note to call Shay to remind her about their night out with Chloe. And if she remembers it right, Shay should be finished shooting her scenes already, enough time for her to get ready before they pick her up for a drive and a dinner in L.A…
Chloe on the other hand just finished practicing for her upcoming concert. She freed her schedule for the evening as soon as she got a call from Alex telling her that they'll be out for dinner with Shay. Both Alex and Chloe were excited to hit the town amidst their busy schedules.
….
Alex parked her car outside Shay's apartment… She checked herself on her rearview mirror, and when satisfied she stepped out of her car and walked to Shay's apartment…
"Shay?" Alex said in between her knocking… Alex didn't get any response after a few knocks so she decided to call Shay instead… Shay picked up on the first ring…
"Yeah?" Shay said lazily.
"I'm outside your apartment sweetie. Open up," Alex replied.
Shay jerked up from her bed and walked to her door… As soon as she opened it, she welcomed Alex with a tight embrace, not wanting to let go, as if trying to draw some strength...
"Hey, hey…" Alex said gently to the quiet Shay who's still not letting go of her… "You okay?"
"Yeah, I am. I just missed you. That's all," Shay responded after letting go of Alex, wiped a few tears off of her cheeks, and walked to her couch…. She lumped her tired body on the couch and rested both of her feet on the table… Alex followed her and sat beside her…
"You missed me? You're a bad liar, Shay. C'mon, sweetie. Deets!" Alex replied.
"Are we gonna meet Chloe later?" Shay retorted, avoiding Alex' question.
"Yes, we are. Oh! By the way, I got you something," Alex said while going through her bag. She brought out a pile of interior design magazines and handed them all to Shay. "Now aren't you excited? See this bathroom? It'd be perfect for our apartment," Alex said while she pointed out a picture of a semi-transparent shower cubicle to Shay. Shay made a mental note to look for a similar picture online and post it on her tumblr…
And then Alex continued, "cheer up! Let me see a smile on your face, c'mon?" Alex said while she playfully bumped her shoulder on Shay's shoulder.
Shay thanked Alex with a half-smile and casually skimmed through the magazine pages… Still not saying a word to the curious Alex. Shay felt sorry for being not her usual bubbly self but after that confrontation she had with Ash at the parking lot, she suddenly felt exhausted and would rather stay in and probably just watch a movie or catch up on Gossip Girl. She's been meaning to call Ash and apologize about her actions but she can't seem to find the courage to do so after she somewhat broke her silence about her feelings on Ash dating Ryan…
"It's Ash, is it? What happened this time?" Alex asked, as if she read Shay's mind.
Shay furrowed her eyebrows and pretended she didn't hear Alex…
Alex pushed, "so it is Ash. Really, what happened sweetie?"
Shay heaved a sigh and met Alex' eyes full of concern for her… She tried to fight back the tears that she's been holding… She just can't….
"Hush now, ssshhh…" Alex said while she embraced Shay, gently rubbing her back to comfort her. "Have you been crying since you got here?" Shay quietly nodded. "Stay here, sweetie…"
Alex got up, went to Shay's kitchen and walked back to where she and Shay were sitting and handed Shay a glass of cold water… "Here, drink this… You're probably dehydrated now."
"I… I lashed out on Ash… today… I shouldn't have," Shay said, finally breaking her silence.
Alex took a deep breath and said, "you're always crying. Seriously. It's gotta stop. You… Ash…" Alex' eyes searched for a box of tissue on Shay's apartment but she figured Shay must have used them up all already…
Shay then recalled to Alex what happened at the parking lot earlier the day… That Keegan gave him a music box and told Ash about it, that she felt like Ash was jealous of Keegan again but she won't admit it, how she left Ash at the parking lot and how she subtly brought up her feelings about Ash dating Ryan…
"What did Ash say?" Alex asked.
"Nothing. I… I didn't give her a chance to explain," Shay replied weakly, recalling she has 5 missed calls and two voicemails from Ashley, add to that the 8 text messages that she's received from Ash asking her to talk to her…
"You should have let her explain," Alex said rationally.
Shay paused and said, "what's there to explain? I know for a fact that they're going out… She and Ryan… We all know… Even our fans are getting the idea already that they are."
"Then what are you so upset about if you're really okay with it?" Alex probed. "You three have gone out before, quite a lot... You even had a Ustream with Ash and Ryan back in June, you guys also had a pajama party with Ry back in August... You seem to be okay with it?" Alex responded although she knew better…
Shay rested her eyes and leaned on Alex shoulder… "I am okay with it. Why wouldn't I be? Ash is also my best friend. I want her to be… happy. Whoever she's with. Even if it's Ryan."
"Are you? Really?" Alex asked meaningfully. And continued, "then why did you have to delete your tweet of your 'almost kiss' picture with Ashley? Were you scared that the pictures would say the words that you can't say out loud?" Alex paused, "you know what they say, a picture can say a thousand words…"
"Touché," Shay half-smiled at what Alex said… Alex had always known which buttons to push on her, and she nailed it again…
"That's different," Shay responded.
"How so?" Alex said casually.
"I don't know… I…" Shay said while she heaved a sigh of frustration. "I mean, I had to delete it because our fans are already thinking that Ash and I… That, well… That Ash and I have feelings for each other," Shay retorted. "They even have a couple's name for us, 'Shayley'…" Shay said shyly. "It's cute—Shayley…"
"Hmmm, and the last thing you and Ash would want are fans thinking that you two are secretly together," Alex said in matter-of-fact tone. "That you and Ash-just friends? And you're concerned about Ryan eh?" Alex said; half-convinced at what Shay just said. "When did Ash start going out with Ryan again?"
Shay's face looks like she's going to crumble again anytime when she said, "February this year." Alex instinctively caressed Shay's arm to comfort her… While both shared a quiet moment of understanding…
Shay broke their silence and continued, "I mean I told Ash it might be better to just have it deleted on my timeline and my [Whosay] album … I just, well, we don't want other people getting the wrong ideas about Ash and me; especially now that everybody knows she's going out with Ryan. And besides… Ash and I, we're just friends… No matter what people say or how fans see it… Justfriends,'Shayconvincedherself."It'll be unfair to Ryan to not get the support that he deserves for being with Ash, don't you think?"
Alex wanted to respond, "do you? really?" but she opted to keep the question to herself...
Shay added, "I… Well, there's a picture of Ash and Ryan kissing during our pajama party that's already been leaked on the Internet…" Shay heaved a sigh and continued, "everybody's probably have seen it especially our fans. It's like everybody's just waiting for Ash and Ryan to go out and put a label on their relationship and-"
"They're not doing that," Alex cut her off and continued, "And I don't think Ash has any plans of doing that anytime soon. Does Ash know? Have you told her already?"
"About what?" Shay asked.
Alex can't help but worry for Shay sometimes… Especially whenever she's having a 'situation' with Ash… "You know what... That…." Alex pressed her.
Shay remained silent over Alex' last statement and wondered to herself if she made the mistake of waiting… Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard Alex say…
"You know, you two should've deleted the picture in the first place when it first got out. I mean, why just now? Or better yet…" Alex paused for a moment, "I hate to say it but maybe you two shouldn't have tweeted and posted that picture of you and Ash when clearly you weren't ready for the repercussions of your actions…" Alex remarked, referring to Shay and Ash' picture where Shay looked like she's about to kiss Ash on the lips at In-and-Out with Ryan on the background; Ash wearing the same yellow bear hat that she wore on the picture that was leaked almost two weeks ago where she's kissing Ryan…
….
Re: Shayley's "almost kiss"… This is Ashley's real life tweet about it…
AshBenzo: In n out shaymitch and thatrygood lockerz(dot)com(slash)s(slash)131592701
21 Aug Favorite Retweet Reply
AshBenzo: Love uu RT shaymitch: Pajama party success ! thatrygood and ashbenzo ...Love these two! say(dot)ly(slash)UcsCs2
21 Aug Favorite Retweet Reply
….
"I know," Shay agreed in a low voice… "You're right…"
"I know for a fact that Ash and Ryan are going out more often now than they used to… But we can get past that. You always have… I know, you can. YouandAshhavesomething… It'sthere. We can all see it. I can see it," Alex stressed to Shay while she held Shay's left hand and gently squeezed it, assuring her she can get past this like she always had before….Yet at the back of her mind, she wished Shay didn't have to go through these things over and over again...
"Tell you what? Let's get Ash off of your mind, okay? Why don't we hit the city and get a massage? And then after we can pick up Chloe for dinner… She already freed her evening for us," Alex said cheerfully.
Shay's face lit up when she heard 'massage'… "That would be nice," Shay thought to herself.
"See? You're smiling now! Now we're talking," Alex cooed. She couldn't be any happier seeing Shay finally flash a smile… She wished she could do more to cheer up her hurting friend… But she can only do much.
Shay nodded in agreement and heavily walked back to her room and changed to casual clothes…
"All set, sweetie?" Alex asked to Shay who's already grabbing her iPhone and her bag.
"Yeah, in a minute," Shay replied while she grabbed from her drawer her "love" charm bracelet.
The two walked the hallway of Shay's apartment's building, holding on to each other's arms, Shay doing it more for support literally and figuratively… When they got to Alex car, Shay went inside and sat on the passenger's seat… She rested her head and was just glad Alex came for her…
Alex opened her car door when her phone suddenly rang. Alex frowned when she saw who's on the other line. Sure, they're civil to each other, and they go out as long as Shay is going with them too… But this is very unlikely…
Shay wondered what's taking Alex long to get on the car… And when Alex finally did…
"Was that Chloe on the phone?" Shay asked.
"Um, yeah, she said she'll see us after we get our massage," Alex lied, and secretly apologized to Shay for doing so when for a fact…
"Hey, Alex? I've a favor to ask…"Ash said on the other line.
FYI:
- Ryan and Ash did start going out back in February this year… At least that's what Google told me. Hehehe. Well, let's just assume Google is correct, ookay?
- Olly is Ashley's dog…
- Ash, Shay and Ryan did a Ustream back in June '11…
- Ash listens to Maroon 5 based on her real life tweet…
AshBenzo :Sweetest Goodbye - Maroon 5
21 Sep Favorite Retweet Reply
- Chloe is also Shay's real life close friend… And yep, she's an awesome pianist. You may follow Chloe and DJ alex on Twitter… Chloe's chloeflower on twitter while DJ Alex is djalexmerrell. Check out DJ Alex' mixes. They're pretty rad : )
Kids, this is important… Listen up…
Remember in Chapter 7 I said I was looking for Shayley's tweet about their In-and-Out pajama party with Ryan? Well, good thing I looked for it because surprise, surprise… I found out that "almost kiss" pic is no longer on Shay's timeline. I swear to God, my Shayley memory serves me right, Shay did tweet about that picture before Ashley did. Anyone who can prove me wrong is welcome to say so though… I'd be happy to revise this chapter if that would be the case. You guys know I'm trying my best to make this fic look as realistic as possible...
By the way, Ash still has the tweet about that "almost kiss" on her twitter and she still has that picture on her Twitter album as we speak…
PS:
I did feel the need to dedicate my Chapter 8 to Troian and Keegan. They play important roles in Shayley's lives here and in real life and I think it's important also to understand their pov's on Shayley (fic). Also… Keegan isn't the bad guy here [in my fic]. Let's all give him a chance. He's done nothing but be there for Shay despite knowing things about Shayley…
Yes, more Shayley secrets and moments to be revealed on the coming chapters… Only if you want me to keep writing, of course. Although to be honest, I don't know how long I'm gonna be writing this fic…
Depends on you guys. So…
Thoughts about this chapter?