Page 82 of Apathy
I tightened my hands against his shirt, as if me being here could erase the pain and anger he lived with.
“What happened to you guys after that?”
“Uncle Neal adopted us. He’s not really our uncle, at least not by blood, but he took care of us. He took us away from Winworth and gave us his last name.”
And I thought I had a fucked-up life. I couldn’t even imagine the pain, the suffering he went through. He was just a child.
“You’re too quiet now,” he said, and I could hear the worry in his voice. “I didn’t want to scare you, I just—”
“You didn’t scare me.” I lifted myself up and looked at him. “I’m just sad, Ash. Sad that you and your brother had to go through something like that. Sad that you were dealt such a shitty hand in life.”
“I’m okay, Sky.” He pressed his lips against the pulse on the inner part of my wrist. “You don’t have to be sad. Hell, I don’t want you to be sad. I’m okay. I’m alive, Sebastian as well, and that’s all that matters.”
“I know.” I sighed. “I just… I don’t know. I’m just pissed, that’s all.”
“I like you when you’re pissed.” He grinned and pulled me on top of him. “But trust me, we are okay now.”
“But you shouldn’t be only okay.” I frowned. “You should feel amazing, full of life, wonderful—”
“And I do. I feel all those things when I’m here with you.” His lips found mine, and I let myself fall deeper and deeper, wrapping my arms around his neck. “You make me feel alive, Moonshine. You make me feel, and I cherish every single moment spent with you.”
All the worry, all the pain, they just melted from my heart, like ice on a sunny day. It felt as if a swarm of butterflies flew through my stomach, lifting me higher and higher, all the way to him and his perfect smile.
“Wait.” I stopped and smiled down at him. “What was your family name?”
His hands on my hips tightened, and his eyes glistened in the dark. “Crowell.” He swallowed hard. “I used to be Asher Crowell.”
Crowell.
Why did that sound somewhat familiar?
“So, you were a little crow then?” I smiled and leaned down, stealing another kiss. “I like it. I think it suits you.”
“Yeah?” A smile slowly returned to his face. “You think so?”
“Mmhmm.” I nodded. “It suits you better than Weber.”
“I think so too.” He lifted his arms and wrapped them around my lower back, holding me tight on top of him. “Maybe one day I’ll go back to being a Crowell.”
“Maybe.” I grinned. “And maybe I’ll be there to see that.”
And maybe, just maybe, we would be able to protect each other from the wicked past.
Ash
I fucked up.
I fucked up majorly, and now I didn’t know what to do.
My entire life has been wrapped in all these plans, all these things I needed to do—train, move back to Winworth, get our revenge, and get the fuck out.
But now things have changed.
God, I didn’t expect to mess up the entire thing by falling for the one girl I could never have. Out of all the girls in Winworth, hell, in all the places we’ve been to, she was the one I was only ever supposed to use. But I couldn’t even fathom hurting her, even though she was an enemy.
She belonged to them, and I would always be on the other side. I knew she was going to choose them when the time came, but I wanted her to choose me. I wanted her to keep looking at me how she looked at me one week ago, when it was only the two of us in her room, when she told me the things she kept hidden.
I wanted her to tell me more, but whatever was haunting her didn’t want to be revealed yet.
