OMG IM SO SORRY THIS IS SO LATE! :( hopefully the chapter makes up for it! :) i know it kind of cuts off.. but i think i should have stopped it there... just me tho. let me know what you think! R&R

love

ashley

Ashley slammed her cell phone down on the counter letting out an irritated groan. She covered her face as she leaned against the counter of her home, looking through her fingers at the white iPhone on the counter. She picked up her phone once again, debating whether she should call once more. Just as she was about to dial the familiar number her phone rang, but it was not the person she hoped for.

"Hello."

"Hey Ash, how are you?"

"I'm fine."

"Good, are you in the mood for a visitor?"

"Not really."

"I'll be there in a few minutes!"

The other line went dead. She sighed before placing her cell phone back on the counter and walking into the living room. A small smile crept onto her lips when she saw her little girl fast asleep. She heard the sound of a car door slamming shut, signaling that someone had arrived.

She took a deep breath before opening the door. She smiled weakly towards the man on the other side of the door. He embraced the new mother before entering the foyer of her home. "What are you doing here Paul?"

"I just wanted to see how you were doing; you know they say that new mothers can get postpartum depression."

"I'm fine; I'm just ready to be back to work."

"We all miss you; it has been really weird without you." She nodded before leading him to the kitchen. "How is she?"

"She's fine. She doesn't keep me up through the night so I get a nice amount of sleep, but she eats a lot. I swear the child never stops."

"Well she is a growing girl." Ashley silently agreed. "Is everything okay? With you and John I mean?" Paul could tell that something else was bothering her. He could sense it the second she answered the phone.

"We're fine. It's just hard on me not being with him."

"Well I'll tell you one thing, he hates being away from you two. You know that he tries his hardest to get here."

"Yeah I know." They were both silent for a few moments, the only sound was the ticking of the clock. But Ashley decided to take the opportunity and figure out what was going on with Stephanie. "Paul, have you heard from Steph lately?"

"Well I talked to her about two weeks ago, before she left for England."

"I'm sorry what? England. She's in England?"

"Yeah, didn't she tell you?"

"No she didn't fucking tell me!"

"Oh, well she went over there to see her mother."

"And how long is she supposed to be there?"

"I'm not sure."

The sound of cries came from the living room. Ashley sighed before leaving Paul in the kitchen to aid her newborn. Picking Savannah up she cradled the baby, which seemed to sooth the cries. Still holding the baby, Ashley walked back into the kitchen where Paul was messing with his phone.

"There she is!" he exclaimed when he saw Savannah in her arms. "She is getting so big!"

"Yeah, she's growing like a weed."

"If I hear from Steph, I'll tell her to give you a call, yeah?"

"Please."

"Alright, I have to get to the arena. Bye Ash," he said giving her a hug and placing a soft kiss on Savannah's forehead.

She walked with Paul to the door, smiling at him as he walked towards his rental car. Walking back into the living room, she placed Savannah into her play pen before she heard the front door open. "Did you forget something?" she asked thinking that Paul had returned for something he had forgotten. When she turned to see who was standing in the foyer, a smile appeared on her lips. He wrapped his arms around her before pressing his lips to hers.

"How are my girls?" he asked brushing her bangs from her face.

"We're good, missing you though."

"I miss you too." He kissed her lightly before picking up the little girl from the playpen. "How is my little girl?" he asked rubbing his finger under chin and pressing small kisses to her forehead.

Ashley smiled before walking into the kitchen to make a pot of coffee. She noticed that her phone was lit up, displaying a new message.

HEY SORRY I HVNT RESPONDED IM W/ MY MUM IM JUST TRYIN 2 FIGUR SOMETHINGS OUT ILL B BCK SOON. ILL CALL YOU SOON GIVE SAVVY A KISS FOR ME YEAH? –S

XOXO

Stephanie smiled towards her mother who looked at her daughter with a concerned look. The entire time she had been home, her mother did nothing but continuously ask her if she was okay. Of course she was okay. Why wouldn't she be?

"Stephanie, you leave in two days. Now this entire time I know that you have been lying to me. Something is going on that you aren't telling me," her mother said sternly from across the table of her kitchen. "I'm your mother; you can tell me these things."

"Nothing is wrong mum, I promise."

"If you aren't going to tell me, that's fine. But just know when you're ready to talk I'll listen." Stephanie watched as her mother walked towards the door. "I'm going to bed; I'll see you in the morning sweetheart." She swallowed the lump in her throat. Where did she even begin if she told her mother, maybe with Paul or with her Phillip problem? Running her hands through her hair she groaned before finishing her coffee.

She hadn't spoken with anyone since she left. The only person who had really tried to get ahold of her was Ashley. Natalya and Paul knew where she was, they knew only to call if there was an emergency. She told Vince that she needed some personal time, which he granted her three weeks of time off. Finally giving in she decided to text Ashley and tell her where she was but got no response from her friend.

Stephanie knew she should have told Ashley that she was leaving the country. She also knew that she had to accept the consequences of not forewarning one of her best friends that she would be gone for a couple weeks. Knowing Ashley, she probably thought that Stephanie was lying dead in a ditch somewhere and no one had the guts to tell her.

Picking up her phone, Stephanie dialed the familiar number. After a few rings it went to voicemail: "This is Ashley; sorry I can't get to my phone right now. Leave a message & maybe I'll call you back. Kthanksbye!" Steph sighed before hanging up and trying once more. This time after the second ring, someone on the other line picked up.

"Hello."

"Ashley?"

"Yeah."

Steph could tell that Ashley was pissed at her. She gave short responses and her voice was emotionless. "How are you?"

"Cut the shit Steph, why didn't you tell me that you were going to London?"

Stephanie sighed. "I don't know."

"I thought that we were friends Steph, I thought we told each other everything. You know you could have trusted me not to tell anyone. Who the hell am I going to tell anyway? Savannah."

"I know I should have told you, I'm sorry I didn't. I just… I just wanted to get out as fast as possible and get away from everything."

"I get that, I really do. But you could have at least warned me, a text message or something."

"I know."

"Look I have to go. John has obviously forgotten how to make milk while he was gone. I'll see you when you get back." The line went dead. Steph looked at her phone before placing it on the table.

"You didn't even tell Ashley?" she heard her mother ask. Turning to face the door, she saw her mother shaking her head. "You two have been friends for a long time, longer than you've known Natalya or any of those other girls, you should have at least told her."

"I know."

"She's stubborn as a bull." Stephanie laughed at her mother's statement. "But she has a kind heart."

"I know."

"Stephanie, you're not going to find the answer to any of your problems here. You'll only get your answers back there."