DISCLAIMER: I don't own Pokemon, or know anyone from Pokemon. Except the fictional characters, hehehe!
A/N: Alrighty, here's chapter four, finally! Sorry it took a while, guys, hope you like! :)
"Happy birthday to you..." The familiar chorus rung through Ashley's ears, and she grinned. She was fifteen now, a year that promised so much. Only two more years of school, an illustrious trip to France, and a small part in a movie her father was producing.
As Ashley blew out all fifteen candles in one go, she felt a strange sensation inside her, like her stomach was spinning. She shrugged it off, knowing that it was probably just the excitement she felt from being another year older.
"So sweetpea, how does it feel to be fifteen?" Vincent asked his daughter. Ashley eyed her father. "I love the Gucci suit you bought me. It'll be perfect for mufti day at school." Ashley went to a very established boarding school with a restricting uniform, and mufti days were the few days that she could show off her wealth and integrity. (A/N: Mufti is when you can wear whatever you want instead of uniform!)
"I thought so" Vincent smiled. He loved his daughter, and somehow couldn't see how spoilt she was.
Olivia came over and switched off her cellphone. "Sorry about that, some director...did I miss the candles?" she asked distractedly, fiddling with the phone.
Ashley sighed. "Yes Mom, you missed the candles. Can't you forget about your damn phone for one minute and witness a very important day in my life? I'm fifteen now, I'm not a kid anymore!"
Olivia felt a pang of guilt inside her stomach. "I'm sorry Ashley, but Mommy's very busy. I should've been there..."
"Geez, it was only candles..." One of Ashley's friends, Stacey, commented to herself. She also went to the private school, as a boarder, but she was there on a scholarship. Her family could hardly afford to buy her a public school's uniform, let alone attend a private school.
"Thankyou for the make-up, Stacey. But don't you think Revlon is a little...oh, I dunno...overrated?" Ashley asked.
Stacey grit her teeth. Sometimes it was impossible to like Ashley, even though they had been friends for nearly seven years. "I don't know much about make-up..."
"Obviously" Ashley muttered. Stacey glared, but then smiled. Ashley was her friend, they had been through thick and thin together. It just would've been nicer if she wasn't so spoilt...
Later that night, Ashley was lying in bed, the important people and invited guests now gone. She stared at the ceiling and sighed with satisfaction. It had been the most perfect day. She was drifting off to sleep, when her private line interrupted her thoughts.
"Who could be calling this late?" she wondered as she reached for the receiver. "This better be good" she answered curtly.
"Ashley dear, come downstairs. Now." The voice of her mother penetrated her brain. The tone was urgent, and Ashley knew something was wrong. She leapt out of bed, put on her Versace robe, and raced downstairs, only to find her mother and father sitting at the dinner table looking extremely worried.
"Mommy, Daddy...what's wrong?" Ashley asked. She didn't want her perfect life shattered, not now, not ever.
Olivia sighed. "We've got some bad news..."
"Well, duh!" Ashley yelled. "Don't play around, what's going on?"
Vincent looked at his wife, and then at his daughter. "You had to know before the public did. But now it's too late."
Ashley eyed her parents. "Too late? Too late for what?" she asked nervously. "Do the public know something I don't?"
"I'm afraid they do, Ashley. We were going to tell you when you were a little older, but...now that some nosey reporter has found out, we have to tell you now before you read it in a newspaper" Olivia explained.
"Sit down, honey." Vincent indicated a chair and Ashley timidly walked over and sat down. What could possibly be so bad that she had to sit down to hear it? Did she have some life-threatning diesease? Were her parents aliens? Was all this high life a joke, like on the movie "The Truman Show"?
"Fifteen years ago today the most wonderful thing happened to us. We got you. Our little munchkin" Vincent started, using his nickname for Ashley.
"I know, dad, but what has that got to do with anything?" Ashley demanded.
Olivia sighed. "Just say it straight out, Vincent. There's no point leaving her in suspense any longer."
"Okay, okay...Ashley, my dear Ashley, you're not who you think you are."
"Well geez Dad, that's great news, why did you bring me downstairs to tell me that?!" Ashley yelled. She was getting frustrated.
"Listen to me!" Vincent yelled. The tension was mounting, and the three people could feel it. "Ashley, you're adopted."
Ashley stared at her father as if he had just spoken to her in Japanese. After a minute of silence, she laughed.
"Uh-huh Dad, very funny...I know we've had our fights, but that's no reason to want to disown me!" She thought it was a birthday prank, and continued laughing.
"This is no joke, sweetie. The reporter got it from your birth certificate and now it'll be all over the news tomorrow" Olivia said gently.
Ashley stopped laughing and raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah? And just how did this reporter get a hold of my birth certificate?"
"Births, deaths and marriages office downtown" Vincent said simply. "It's not impossible, not much is confidential in L.A."
Ashley calmly stood up and glared at her parents. "How could you not tell me this? How could you just let me live the way I have, thinking I'm some wealthy, well respected citizen, when really I may have parents who live in a dumpster in New York!" she yelled.
"Your parents don't live in a dumpster!" Vincent yelled. "We love you, Ashley, but you're not ours biologically. Only legally."
Ashley felt her knees shake, her whole body tremble. Not only was she not who she thought she was, the whole world would know about it by noon tomorrow. It would be on the news, the papers, surely Entertainment Tonight would snatch it and expand it beyond what it really was.
"You can't do this to me!" Ashley screamed. "You CAN'T! I'm Ashley Casam, daughter of Olivia and Vincent! I'm famous! I'm rich! I'm better than every other kid in L.A!" Her breathing became shallow and she had to sit down again.
Vincent and Olivia both had tears in their eyes. "We adopted you before either of us became known. But you really have a brother, you're not an only child" Olivia explained.
"Oh great, now I'll have to share my stuff" Ashley rolled her eyes at the thought.
"What makes you think you're going back?" Vincent asked worridly. He didn't want to lose her.
"I suppose I've got no choice! I don't wanna stay here and be ridiculed by everyone about who I am...or who I'm not...and I don't want to stay with lying cheats like you!" Ashley said forcefully. The words made Olivia's tears spill over, and made Vincent's heart freeze. They both loved her, even if she wasn't theirs biologically. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go back to sleep. Might as well enjoy the comforts of a double deluxe four poster bed while I can!" And with those words, Ashley ran back upstairs, discreet tears running down her cheeks, and slammed the door, knowing her life had changed in a matter of minutes.
A/N: Well well well, that was the big one! Get ready for chapter five, coming to a fic near you...this one! I'll post it ASAP, now that I'm on holidays, I have tons of time to write! Please review!
A/N: Alrighty, here's chapter four, finally! Sorry it took a while, guys, hope you like! :)
"Happy birthday to you..." The familiar chorus rung through Ashley's ears, and she grinned. She was fifteen now, a year that promised so much. Only two more years of school, an illustrious trip to France, and a small part in a movie her father was producing.
As Ashley blew out all fifteen candles in one go, she felt a strange sensation inside her, like her stomach was spinning. She shrugged it off, knowing that it was probably just the excitement she felt from being another year older.
"So sweetpea, how does it feel to be fifteen?" Vincent asked his daughter. Ashley eyed her father. "I love the Gucci suit you bought me. It'll be perfect for mufti day at school." Ashley went to a very established boarding school with a restricting uniform, and mufti days were the few days that she could show off her wealth and integrity. (A/N: Mufti is when you can wear whatever you want instead of uniform!)
"I thought so" Vincent smiled. He loved his daughter, and somehow couldn't see how spoilt she was.
Olivia came over and switched off her cellphone. "Sorry about that, some director...did I miss the candles?" she asked distractedly, fiddling with the phone.
Ashley sighed. "Yes Mom, you missed the candles. Can't you forget about your damn phone for one minute and witness a very important day in my life? I'm fifteen now, I'm not a kid anymore!"
Olivia felt a pang of guilt inside her stomach. "I'm sorry Ashley, but Mommy's very busy. I should've been there..."
"Geez, it was only candles..." One of Ashley's friends, Stacey, commented to herself. She also went to the private school, as a boarder, but she was there on a scholarship. Her family could hardly afford to buy her a public school's uniform, let alone attend a private school.
"Thankyou for the make-up, Stacey. But don't you think Revlon is a little...oh, I dunno...overrated?" Ashley asked.
Stacey grit her teeth. Sometimes it was impossible to like Ashley, even though they had been friends for nearly seven years. "I don't know much about make-up..."
"Obviously" Ashley muttered. Stacey glared, but then smiled. Ashley was her friend, they had been through thick and thin together. It just would've been nicer if she wasn't so spoilt...
Later that night, Ashley was lying in bed, the important people and invited guests now gone. She stared at the ceiling and sighed with satisfaction. It had been the most perfect day. She was drifting off to sleep, when her private line interrupted her thoughts.
"Who could be calling this late?" she wondered as she reached for the receiver. "This better be good" she answered curtly.
"Ashley dear, come downstairs. Now." The voice of her mother penetrated her brain. The tone was urgent, and Ashley knew something was wrong. She leapt out of bed, put on her Versace robe, and raced downstairs, only to find her mother and father sitting at the dinner table looking extremely worried.
"Mommy, Daddy...what's wrong?" Ashley asked. She didn't want her perfect life shattered, not now, not ever.
Olivia sighed. "We've got some bad news..."
"Well, duh!" Ashley yelled. "Don't play around, what's going on?"
Vincent looked at his wife, and then at his daughter. "You had to know before the public did. But now it's too late."
Ashley eyed her parents. "Too late? Too late for what?" she asked nervously. "Do the public know something I don't?"
"I'm afraid they do, Ashley. We were going to tell you when you were a little older, but...now that some nosey reporter has found out, we have to tell you now before you read it in a newspaper" Olivia explained.
"Sit down, honey." Vincent indicated a chair and Ashley timidly walked over and sat down. What could possibly be so bad that she had to sit down to hear it? Did she have some life-threatning diesease? Were her parents aliens? Was all this high life a joke, like on the movie "The Truman Show"?
"Fifteen years ago today the most wonderful thing happened to us. We got you. Our little munchkin" Vincent started, using his nickname for Ashley.
"I know, dad, but what has that got to do with anything?" Ashley demanded.
Olivia sighed. "Just say it straight out, Vincent. There's no point leaving her in suspense any longer."
"Okay, okay...Ashley, my dear Ashley, you're not who you think you are."
"Well geez Dad, that's great news, why did you bring me downstairs to tell me that?!" Ashley yelled. She was getting frustrated.
"Listen to me!" Vincent yelled. The tension was mounting, and the three people could feel it. "Ashley, you're adopted."
Ashley stared at her father as if he had just spoken to her in Japanese. After a minute of silence, she laughed.
"Uh-huh Dad, very funny...I know we've had our fights, but that's no reason to want to disown me!" She thought it was a birthday prank, and continued laughing.
"This is no joke, sweetie. The reporter got it from your birth certificate and now it'll be all over the news tomorrow" Olivia said gently.
Ashley stopped laughing and raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah? And just how did this reporter get a hold of my birth certificate?"
"Births, deaths and marriages office downtown" Vincent said simply. "It's not impossible, not much is confidential in L.A."
Ashley calmly stood up and glared at her parents. "How could you not tell me this? How could you just let me live the way I have, thinking I'm some wealthy, well respected citizen, when really I may have parents who live in a dumpster in New York!" she yelled.
"Your parents don't live in a dumpster!" Vincent yelled. "We love you, Ashley, but you're not ours biologically. Only legally."
Ashley felt her knees shake, her whole body tremble. Not only was she not who she thought she was, the whole world would know about it by noon tomorrow. It would be on the news, the papers, surely Entertainment Tonight would snatch it and expand it beyond what it really was.
"You can't do this to me!" Ashley screamed. "You CAN'T! I'm Ashley Casam, daughter of Olivia and Vincent! I'm famous! I'm rich! I'm better than every other kid in L.A!" Her breathing became shallow and she had to sit down again.
Vincent and Olivia both had tears in their eyes. "We adopted you before either of us became known. But you really have a brother, you're not an only child" Olivia explained.
"Oh great, now I'll have to share my stuff" Ashley rolled her eyes at the thought.
"What makes you think you're going back?" Vincent asked worridly. He didn't want to lose her.
"I suppose I've got no choice! I don't wanna stay here and be ridiculed by everyone about who I am...or who I'm not...and I don't want to stay with lying cheats like you!" Ashley said forcefully. The words made Olivia's tears spill over, and made Vincent's heart freeze. They both loved her, even if she wasn't theirs biologically. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go back to sleep. Might as well enjoy the comforts of a double deluxe four poster bed while I can!" And with those words, Ashley ran back upstairs, discreet tears running down her cheeks, and slammed the door, knowing her life had changed in a matter of minutes.
A/N: Well well well, that was the big one! Get ready for chapter five, coming to a fic near you...this one! I'll post it ASAP, now that I'm on holidays, I have tons of time to write! Please review!