Epilogue:
"Distance between two hearts is not an obstacle; rather a beautiful reminder of how strong true love can be." -Unknown.
THREE MONTHS LATER:
Ashley Bullock does not believe in love.
She doesn't believe in the classic, famous tale "Romeo and Juliet." She does not believe that some vampire that glitters in the sunlight is going to whisk her away from her pitiful life, and spend eternity with her. Ashley even scoffs at "The Notebook," claiming that they would never actually be able to find each other in reality.
To Ashley love is illogical and pointless. Love is just another impossible, unattainable thing in her pathetic life. She used to be such a hopeless romantic, obsessing over the term 'soul mate.' Even her favorite holiday was Valentine's Day, the official day for love. But no, she doesn't believe in love. At least, not anymore. Not after she caught her boyfriend cheating on her with some girl who doesn't have the common decency to wear a shirt. Or pants.
She scoffs angrily, sipping her coffee, which was still piping hot.
She was intimidating and tough, and not to mention a rather striking women as well. The kind of girl that drew attention from just walking down the street. She was lean, short, but tall enough to pass for average. She had some visible muscle, which she was very proud of. Ashley admired the whole tough girl image ever since she had seen a blue eyed girl with spiky black hair, and a leather jacket. Since then, she was trying to corporate the teenage girl's idea into her own outfit, but still trying to keep it casual. She had her dirty blonde hair cut to level with her chin, and her pale emerald eyes seemed to edge people on, daring them to try and challenge her. She was wearing a leather vest, a white t-shirt, skinny jeans and black boots. Her hair was down and straightened, but it was becoming messy from the wind. Her clothes hugged her body tightly, showing off her curves, making her the talk of her High School. Of course, guys never commented on her figure. That is unless they wanted to have a broken arm.
She tried to take another sip of her coffee, hesitantly.
Bad idea.
The liquid burned her tongue, resulting in her spitting it out onto the busy streets. She earns a few odd looks, but she doesn't care and keeps walking to the nearest bus station. She's not in the mood to have patience with pedestrians. She just wants to be as far away from her cheating boyfriend and his idiotic...women, who can't be bothered to wear any clothes. Just the thought of that artificial brunette sent trembles of rage through her. Her hand trembles, nearly spilling her mocha. She brushes her dirty blonde hair to the side storming past the people of New York City.
Then she spots the familiar red sign and practically sighs with relief. Finally.
After waiting ten minutes for the bus, she decides that the world hates her.
Huffing irritably, she crosses her arms tightly across her chest, her coffee already drunken and thrown away.
"Thank god!" She exclaims as she sees the bus come into view.
"You been waiting a long time?" A blonde boy around her age asks her, his blue eyes seemed to blaze. He was sitting on the same bench as her, but she hadn't really noticed him until now. Her mind was thinking about other things, preferably about how her life completely sucked right now.
"You have no idea," Ashley grumbles, crisscrossing her slender legs. Then her eyes widen when she sees his features...he's actually kind of cute...
You have got to be kidding me, Ashley thinks to herself. You found your boyfriend, what? Ten minutes ago? Cheating on you and already you're thinking about guys. Her pale green eyes narrow in on the daisies on his hand, and her heart falls a little. He must have a girlfriend. Oh well. Win some lose some. He could be a good friend, though. Someone to rant to about David.
Blondie laughs. "Try me."
Ashley blows a piece of blonde hair away from her face. "I just discovered my boyfriend cheating on me. He was supposed to be my ride home, so here I am."
The blonde's face expression darkens, eyes narrowing in disgust and utter distaste for David's actions. "What a douche."
Yes! She chants in her mind. Someone finally actually agrees with her. Ashley came from a proper family, the kind of family that approved of people like David. The kind of family who just assumed that it was her fault if David cheated on her, as if she hadn't fulfilled his needs. But what about her needs? Didn't that count for something?
"Tell me about it. So, what are you doing here? Going somewhere?"
"Nah, just waiting for my girlfriend. She just got released from a mental hospital today."
She giggles airily at his strange joke, but ceases when she notices his straight, serious face. Her green eyes widen in shock and obliviousness. "Are you joking?"
"Nope," he replies popping the 'p,' like this was just a casual conversation that you have with any stranger. "Her names Piper Mclean. I've been waiting here all morning."
The last name sends some familiarity through her, but she brushes the déjà vu feeling off. Her eyebrows raise, arching foreword in a questioning type of look. "No kidding. You two must really love each other to be willing to stay together."
He nods in confirmation. And Ashley thinks that she needed to hear him say it. She needed to hear him state that not all relationships were doomed to end.
Blondie changes the subject. "So...what's your name?"
"Ashley." She responds instantly.
"Pretty name," he says kindly, not at all in a flirting manner. "I'm Jason."
The duo shakes hands in a friendly way. "So, Jason...can I ask you a personal question?"
He shrugs aimlessly, eyeing the blonde girl carefully. "Depends on what it is."
"Do you believe in love?"
He's obviously taken from surprise, his expression completely obviously started. She cringes, wondering if she was being too foreword to the teenage boy she had just met just minutes ago. She shrugs it off, though. She is Ashley Bullock, the loud, obnoxious, easy going person that doesn't care for other people's opinions except her own.
"Well, uh, I guess so. I'm supposed to, anyway. If not, my girlfriend would kill me."
"Do you love your girlfriend? Piper?"
"Yes."
Ashley bites her lip, her eyes darkening with remorse at her idiotic actions previously. "But how do you know that she isn't just going to walk away some day?" She's referring to David, and honestly wants to know this strangers imput.
A flicker of hurt glisten's in Jason's eyes, and Ashley immediately regrets her decision to ask him anything. She must've struck some form of nerve.
"I don't," he says eventually, after the pregnant pause breaks. "Love is a leap of faith. You can never love someone, and stay safe in your warm little shell, never getting hurt or rejected. Or you can jump, and just hope that someone catches you. Everyone says that love hurts, but that's really not true. Rejection is the thing that hurts. Betrayal is the thing that hurts. Not love. But people always assume that love is mixed into those bitter feelings. In reality, love is the thing that heals those negative emotions."
"I don't believe in love," she says bluntly out of the blue, crossing her arms stubbornly. "I used to, but not anymore."
Jason nods his head, silently agreeing with her. "I didn't either. But that's just because I hadn't found the right person yet. Once you find that special person, you'll know that love is real."
Ashley nods, taking it all in.
A bus rolls in and Jason is instantly on his feet, sprinting towards it as the bus doors roll open. A brunette climbs out- she's practically glowing. She's thin, but has meat on her bones. She's healthy. Her hair is long and two messy braids are resting on her shoulder's. She has turquoise eyes with streaks of violet, that are seemingly glittering from the sunlight. She's pretty- no, she's gorgeous. Ashley can only watch dumbfounded as they run towards each other calling out one another's name in desperation and longing. Jason's eyes are filled with lust and love, and Piper's with radiant beauty and admiration. The couple crashes into each other's arms, completely oblivious to the busy, bustling world around them. It's then that Ashley realizes that the girl is Piper, Jason's girlfriend from the mental institution. Huh. She didn't look crazy.
Ashley frowns puzzled at the heartwarming scene, as Jason and Piper's lips crash together. In an instant, a snap, she knows that the two are in love with each other just from their interactions.
Ashley Bullock does not believe in love.
But then again, maybe she did.
. . .
A/N: Yay it's finished! Whooo! The epilogue did not go how I planned it at all. I really enjoyed writing this story for you guys, and I hoped you enjoy reading it. Oh, shoot. It's eleven and my first day of school starts tomorrow...yipee. Also, do you guys think that we could get up to triple digits? We are so close!
Thank you guys so much for reviewing, following, favoriting or even just reading! Everything means so much to me! I really hoped you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing.
-Jaimee