Disclaimer: Not mine

Jenny: If you think that's a cliffhanger, you won't like the rest of the story very much. :grins innocently: Not that I intentionally keep you waiting, of course. But don't worry, this chapter is very straightforward.

Ashley Hammond/Astro Yellow: I only kill the bad guys. You can scream if you want, I can't hear you. : P

Juzblue: Nope, haven't seen Raise Your Voice

Chapter 6

Andros couldn't sleep. His earlier words to Ashley kept ringing in his head. I hate you . . . I hate you . . . I hate you . . . He couldn't make it stop, and he kept seeing the crushed look on her face when he'd said them. And what was worse, he hadn't even meant what he'd said. Sure, Ashley was annoying most of the time, but he didn't hate her.

"Deca, where's Ashley?" he asked. He was never going to fall asleep until he apologized to her, and as much as he hated the thought, he'd had enough sleepless nights already.

"Ashley is on the bridge," Deca said, and Andros sighed, standing up.

He walked slowly to the bridge, wondering what he was supposed to say. He'd never apologized for anything in his life. At least, he'd never apologized for anything sincerely.

Ashley was on the bridge, in her seat, curled up. At first, Andros thought that she'd fallen asleep, but then he saw that she was crying quietly.

"Ashley?" he said softly. "What are you doing?"

Ashley's eyes opened when he spoke to her, and she stood up. "I'll get out of your way," she muttered.

"No," Andros said quickly. "Stay here. I . . . I wanted to -Are you okay?"

Ashley started crying again. "You wouldn't care."

"I would," Andros insisted. Ashley was always so cheerful that it felt wrong to see her like this, so sad and devastated.

"I almost killed my brother today," Ashley sobbed. "If you really want to know."

"What happened?" Andros asked, in a much gentler voice than Ashley thought he was capable of.

"We were in the car," Ashley said. She was making no effort to dry her eyes, and her face was dripping with tears. "Another car ran into us, and - and Jeff -"

She choked, and it was several minutes before she could speak again. "Jeff got a concussion and a broken leg," she said. "But if he'd been hit an angle just a little different, he'd have died."

"Were you hurt?" Andros asked.

"No!" Ashley said. "I wasn't hurt at all, and I should have been. It's not fair. Why should he get hurt because of me?"

"But what did you do?" Andros said.

"I was the one driving," Ashley said. "That makes it my fault!"

The guilt was evident on her face, and Andros wasn't sure what to do next. He couldn't just walk away and leave her like this. Finally, he awkwardly pulled her into a hug. Ashley stiffened, and he let go immediately.

"I'm sorry," he muttered.

"Why are you doing this to me?" Ashley wailed. "You said that you hated me, and now you're being nice to me."

"I'm sorry I said that," Andros said, unable to look at her. "I didn't mean it, and I didn't mean to say it."

"Then why did you?" Ashley said him. He thought she was going to start crying again. "Do you know how much that hurt?"

Andros nodded guiltily. "I'm sorry," he muttered again. "I'm sorry about your brother, too," he added, thinking of Karone.

Ashley started sobbing again, and Andros hugged her again. It just felt so wrong to see Ashley sad. This time, she let him hold her, and buried her face in his shoulder. When she stopped crying, she stood there, still leaning against him, and after awhile, Andros realized that she'd fallen asleep standing up.

Andros was uncomfortably aware that he was holding a sleeping woman in his arms, who even he couldn't deny was beautiful. Finally, he slipped one arm around her upper back, and another under her knees, and carried her to her room, careful not to wake her. He laid her gently on her bed, and tried to take off her boots without disturbing her. She woke up slightly as he pulled the blanket up over her.

"Andros?" she said. "What are you doing here?"

"Go to sleep, Ashley," Andros said quietly. Ashley closed her eyes again.

He looked at her sleeping form one last time before leaving.