Chapter 13
Ashley jumped in her car and sped away. She wasn't Sad--She was surprised. She'd never been cheated on a day in her life. Never. Her eyes clouded over with tears. She felt sick to her stomach and empty. Everything about her tingled and her body shook. Was this the feeling of heartbreak, the feeling of pain and confusion brought on by love? Of course it was. She'd felt this way before. When her mom died, when her boyfriend died. The same feeling she'd felt years prior was all coming back. She chocked trying to swallow the lump in her throat.
"Why me?" She sobbed. "Always me!"
She was even more surprised, maybe even sad when she got home. She drove so reckless it was a wonder if she didn't crash into something and just died. She was sad and she was even more so confused.
In her house, she lay on the chair, the phone ringing off the hook. She just looked up at the ceiling with big teary eyes. After an hour of it, the steady ringing became a lullaby and it sung her slowly to sleep.
~*~*
Dominic dropped to his knees in the driveway. She was gone and he was left there in a cloud of exhaust and dust.
"Dominic…" Letty said, coming up beside him. "I'm sorry…"
"Letty, you need to leave." He said, slowly. His fists were balled into tight fist.
Letty shook her head. "I'm not leaving you here like this."
"Get out!" He said, his voice raising. "Just please GO!"
She cried and ran to her car, jumping in. She revved the engine and pulled out. She stopped and threw him another glance. She watched him still there on his knees with his head in his hands, crying and she knew that he really and truly loved that women, and she had no chance of getting him back.
After Letty left, Dominic got up and ran in the house. He charged to the phone and dialed Ashley's number. She didn't pick up the phone, so he kept on calling. He called and called until his finger was bright red.
"PICK UP!" He yelled into the ringing receiver.
"Hello?" He heard a soft voice say.
He closed his eyes. Her voice soothed him. "Hey…"
She was silent. "What do you want Dominic?"
"Ashley…Baby…Nothing happened between me and Letty! Nothing!"
"I didn't say it did…"
He bit his lip. "Well…I just want you to know that nothing happen. I would never cheat on you I swear on my life!"
"Dominic, you wouldn't believe how I feel right now. The way you made me feel…I-it kills me…I cant even think straight right now and,"
"I feel the same exact way you do! But I feel worst because your accusing me of something I didn't do. I feel like shit, Worst than shit! I can't stand how I feel right now! I feel like I'm hurting you and I'm hurting, and I don't know why!"
"Dom, I never said you did anything…and maybe it's not even that. Some weird stuff and thoughts have been going through my head and I think maybe we should… just you know….kinda just be friends. We are moving TOO fast and it is really scary me." She said. Basically she forced every word of that out. It wasn't her heart talking. It was strictly her mind.
"You can't mean that. I love you. You love me. You can't just fool around with fate!"
"They say if you love something, let it go. If it comes back, its yours….I just need to know if this is real…" She said. Her voices cracked with unshed tears. "I have to go."
She hung up quick. She didn't want to hear his voice and let it sway her thoughts.
Dominic stared at the phone listening to the steady hum of the dial tone, at lost for words. He couldn't think and he could breath. He felt like the wind had been totally knocked out of him. The phone dropped from his hand and hit the floor with a thud.
For the first time in the longest time, Dominic Toretto cried.
~*~
She didn't sleep well at all. Her dreams of her and Dominic haunted her thoughts. The thoughts of having all the pain she'd faced in her life, scared the hell out of her. She sat up with a jerk, threw on her housecoat, and trudged downstairs. Her eyes darted around her living area, falling on something she hadn't noticed in forever. Ashley walked over and sat at the white grand piano, looking blankly at the white and black keys. It was something her mother left her in her will. It had been so long since she'd played. So long since the last time her and her mother sat down and played a song together. Both laughing as they banged on the keys making sweet music. Her fingers traveled lightly over the smooth notes.
She hit the first cord of "Moonlight Sonata" and stopped, shocked at the thoughts that surfaced from the music. Even though it had been a long time, the notes were still freshly embedded in her mind. She positioned her fingers once again and started the song over. Her heart beat franticly against her chest and her pulse sped up.
All her emotions slipped slowly from her body and out through her long fingers into the enchanting tune.
~Flashback*
"Ashley, sit down here." Maria Hernandez instructed her 9-year old daughter, patting the spot beside her.
"Ugh, Mom." She groaned. "I don't want to play the piano anymore!"
Maria smiled, yet said firmly. "Sit."
Ashley trudged over to her and plopped down. "Its not fair!" She pouted, with her arms folded. She looked out the window at the nice spring day.
"I want to teach you this song."
Ashley rolled her eyes and kept her arms folded. "Fine." She said softly.
Maria hit the first notes and Ashley was instantly captivated by the melody. She sat wide-eyed as her beautiful mother played the equally beautiful song.
"What song it that?" Ashley asked. "I want to play it too!"
Maria smiled again and wrapped her arms around her. "Well, sweetheart I'm going show you so you can you can make me proud."
Ashley reveled in her mother's loving arms. "I love you mommy."
"I love you too sweetheart."
~End Flashback*
She made it through the song remarkably. She'd been crying so hard she couldn't see anything she was doing.
When she'd finished. She got up slowly from the piano and walked away from the memories. She was torn away from her thoughts by the doorbell. She wiped away her tears as she walked to the door. She looked out the peephole, and her eyes feel on Mia.
"Mia, don't even try it. I'm not running back to Dominic." She said, as she pulled open the door.
Mia gave her a funny look. "What are you talking about?" She asked. She took one look and realized Ashley had been crying. "Ashley, why have you been crying? What do you mean 'running back to Dominc'? What happened between you two?"
Ashley eyes clouded over with tears once again as she was bombarded by questions.
"Mia…I've been thinking so much about so much stuff and I've been thinking so much about my mom and I feel like Dom and I are moving too fast and I'm scared, because I don't want to loose him so I figured that it would so much easier to just let him go, and I went over to your house because I figured I would apologize and then I saw him with Letty and they looked so guilty!" Ashley sobbed in one breath. "I'm so confused Mia and I feel so helpless and stupid!"
Mia stood there astonished as Ashley fell into her arms crying uncontrollably. Mia pulled her over to the couch and sat her down.
"Oh my goodness! I can't believe this…."Mia whispered. "You and Dom…were so…so…"
"In love." Ashley finished.
Mia sat there, knowing for sure that Dominic was going insane, weather he would show it or not.
"Look…I was gonna come over here and ask you if you wanted to go out…but…I guess that's out of the question."
Ashley didn't even look at her. She was curled up into a tight ball on the other side of the couch.
"I don't want to talk about it!"
"Look, come stay over my house."
"No!" Ashley said quickly.
Mia rolled her eyes. "I don't want you staying here by yourself…with you like this…your dangerous."
"I'm fine really."
"No, you're coming. I'll keep Dominic FAR away from you. You wont even have to see him. Ashley, I'm worried about you."
"Ok, I'll come over there, but…"She started. "Never mind."
Ashley jumped in her car and sped away. She wasn't Sad--She was surprised. She'd never been cheated on a day in her life. Never. Her eyes clouded over with tears. She felt sick to her stomach and empty. Everything about her tingled and her body shook. Was this the feeling of heartbreak, the feeling of pain and confusion brought on by love? Of course it was. She'd felt this way before. When her mom died, when her boyfriend died. The same feeling she'd felt years prior was all coming back. She chocked trying to swallow the lump in her throat.
"Why me?" She sobbed. "Always me!"
She was even more surprised, maybe even sad when she got home. She drove so reckless it was a wonder if she didn't crash into something and just died. She was sad and she was even more so confused.
In her house, she lay on the chair, the phone ringing off the hook. She just looked up at the ceiling with big teary eyes. After an hour of it, the steady ringing became a lullaby and it sung her slowly to sleep.
~*~*
Dominic dropped to his knees in the driveway. She was gone and he was left there in a cloud of exhaust and dust.
"Dominic…" Letty said, coming up beside him. "I'm sorry…"
"Letty, you need to leave." He said, slowly. His fists were balled into tight fist.
Letty shook her head. "I'm not leaving you here like this."
"Get out!" He said, his voice raising. "Just please GO!"
She cried and ran to her car, jumping in. She revved the engine and pulled out. She stopped and threw him another glance. She watched him still there on his knees with his head in his hands, crying and she knew that he really and truly loved that women, and she had no chance of getting him back.
After Letty left, Dominic got up and ran in the house. He charged to the phone and dialed Ashley's number. She didn't pick up the phone, so he kept on calling. He called and called until his finger was bright red.
"PICK UP!" He yelled into the ringing receiver.
"Hello?" He heard a soft voice say.
He closed his eyes. Her voice soothed him. "Hey…"
She was silent. "What do you want Dominic?"
"Ashley…Baby…Nothing happened between me and Letty! Nothing!"
"I didn't say it did…"
He bit his lip. "Well…I just want you to know that nothing happen. I would never cheat on you I swear on my life!"
"Dominic, you wouldn't believe how I feel right now. The way you made me feel…I-it kills me…I cant even think straight right now and,"
"I feel the same exact way you do! But I feel worst because your accusing me of something I didn't do. I feel like shit, Worst than shit! I can't stand how I feel right now! I feel like I'm hurting you and I'm hurting, and I don't know why!"
"Dom, I never said you did anything…and maybe it's not even that. Some weird stuff and thoughts have been going through my head and I think maybe we should… just you know….kinda just be friends. We are moving TOO fast and it is really scary me." She said. Basically she forced every word of that out. It wasn't her heart talking. It was strictly her mind.
"You can't mean that. I love you. You love me. You can't just fool around with fate!"
"They say if you love something, let it go. If it comes back, its yours….I just need to know if this is real…" She said. Her voices cracked with unshed tears. "I have to go."
She hung up quick. She didn't want to hear his voice and let it sway her thoughts.
Dominic stared at the phone listening to the steady hum of the dial tone, at lost for words. He couldn't think and he could breath. He felt like the wind had been totally knocked out of him. The phone dropped from his hand and hit the floor with a thud.
For the first time in the longest time, Dominic Toretto cried.
~*~
She didn't sleep well at all. Her dreams of her and Dominic haunted her thoughts. The thoughts of having all the pain she'd faced in her life, scared the hell out of her. She sat up with a jerk, threw on her housecoat, and trudged downstairs. Her eyes darted around her living area, falling on something she hadn't noticed in forever. Ashley walked over and sat at the white grand piano, looking blankly at the white and black keys. It was something her mother left her in her will. It had been so long since she'd played. So long since the last time her and her mother sat down and played a song together. Both laughing as they banged on the keys making sweet music. Her fingers traveled lightly over the smooth notes.
She hit the first cord of "Moonlight Sonata" and stopped, shocked at the thoughts that surfaced from the music. Even though it had been a long time, the notes were still freshly embedded in her mind. She positioned her fingers once again and started the song over. Her heart beat franticly against her chest and her pulse sped up.
All her emotions slipped slowly from her body and out through her long fingers into the enchanting tune.
~Flashback*
"Ashley, sit down here." Maria Hernandez instructed her 9-year old daughter, patting the spot beside her.
"Ugh, Mom." She groaned. "I don't want to play the piano anymore!"
Maria smiled, yet said firmly. "Sit."
Ashley trudged over to her and plopped down. "Its not fair!" She pouted, with her arms folded. She looked out the window at the nice spring day.
"I want to teach you this song."
Ashley rolled her eyes and kept her arms folded. "Fine." She said softly.
Maria hit the first notes and Ashley was instantly captivated by the melody. She sat wide-eyed as her beautiful mother played the equally beautiful song.
"What song it that?" Ashley asked. "I want to play it too!"
Maria smiled again and wrapped her arms around her. "Well, sweetheart I'm going show you so you can you can make me proud."
Ashley reveled in her mother's loving arms. "I love you mommy."
"I love you too sweetheart."
~End Flashback*
She made it through the song remarkably. She'd been crying so hard she couldn't see anything she was doing.
When she'd finished. She got up slowly from the piano and walked away from the memories. She was torn away from her thoughts by the doorbell. She wiped away her tears as she walked to the door. She looked out the peephole, and her eyes feel on Mia.
"Mia, don't even try it. I'm not running back to Dominic." She said, as she pulled open the door.
Mia gave her a funny look. "What are you talking about?" She asked. She took one look and realized Ashley had been crying. "Ashley, why have you been crying? What do you mean 'running back to Dominc'? What happened between you two?"
Ashley eyes clouded over with tears once again as she was bombarded by questions.
"Mia…I've been thinking so much about so much stuff and I've been thinking so much about my mom and I feel like Dom and I are moving too fast and I'm scared, because I don't want to loose him so I figured that it would so much easier to just let him go, and I went over to your house because I figured I would apologize and then I saw him with Letty and they looked so guilty!" Ashley sobbed in one breath. "I'm so confused Mia and I feel so helpless and stupid!"
Mia stood there astonished as Ashley fell into her arms crying uncontrollably. Mia pulled her over to the couch and sat her down.
"Oh my goodness! I can't believe this…."Mia whispered. "You and Dom…were so…so…"
"In love." Ashley finished.
Mia sat there, knowing for sure that Dominic was going insane, weather he would show it or not.
"Look…I was gonna come over here and ask you if you wanted to go out…but…I guess that's out of the question."
Ashley didn't even look at her. She was curled up into a tight ball on the other side of the couch.
"I don't want to talk about it!"
"Look, come stay over my house."
"No!" Ashley said quickly.
Mia rolled her eyes. "I don't want you staying here by yourself…with you like this…your dangerous."
"I'm fine really."
"No, you're coming. I'll keep Dominic FAR away from you. You wont even have to see him. Ashley, I'm worried about you."
"Ok, I'll come over there, but…"She started. "Never mind."