Page 68 of Forgotten Prejudice

“Do you want me to carry you, princess?”

Ash’s eyes shot to me, his cheeks a little bit red. “Fuck off. My legs hurt because we walked the whole day.”

“I was just messing with you, Ashy.” I poked my tongue at him, and he rolled his eyes.

“Paris is more mature than you.”

“I agree.”

He tried pretending to be angry, but the moment I smiled at him, he couldn’t keep up the act. But since he wasn’t the only one tired from walking the whole day, I pointed over to a bunch of rocks. “Let’s go and sit there for a bit.”

Reaching the rocks, I climbed up first and watched over my shoulder to make sure Ash didn’t slip or fall. I thought of offering him a hand but knew he’d refuse, so I sat down first, with him following me soon after. With the ocean spread before us and the sun almost setting, I was hit with a strong sense of nostalgia. God, I missed those good old days, the days before I screwed everything up.

“When did you come out?” Ash asked, breaking the comfortable silence we fell into.

“After I was out of rehab. I wanted a fresh start and didn’t want to carry any secrets.”

He snorted. Confused, I frowned at him. “What’s funny?”

“Nothing… I just understand what you mean.” He pulled his knees to his chest and hugged them close. “I know how hard a secret can be, especially this one.”

“I bet.” I leaned back on my arms while stretching my legs forward. I had no idea when Ash first learned he was gay and for how long he kept it a secret from me because instead of being there for him, I went out and got fucked-up.

“So, you’re bi?”

I nodded.

“How’d Zoe take it?”

I wasn’t expecting him to ask about her for some reason. “I think she’s fine with it now, but it wasn’t easy for her at first. I understand her, to be honest. But then again, we’re no longer together and will never be together again, so it doesn’t really matter if she’s fine with it or not.”

“So you’re really done with each other?” Ash asked while glancing at me.

“We’re raising Paris together, but other than that, yeah.”

He leaned back on his arms and placed his hand next to mine, our fingers almost touching. I turned to face him, and our eyes met, and I wished I could have snapped a photo of him so I’d remember how beautiful he looked right now. The golden hour did nothing but justice with his precious complexion, painting his face with a soft hue and making his green eyes shine even brighter than usual. He was so damn gorgeous, the mere sight of him bringing back all sorts of memories. Joy, love, pain, and sorrow, all bundled together into our joint past.

“I’m sorry for everything that I did to you.” The words were out of my mouth before I could even stop to think about the Pandora’s box I’d just opened. “So fucking sorry, Ashy. About everything.” From pushing him away, to telling him unspeakable things, and to using his body, only to punch him afterward. I was such a jackass, and he probably hated me for it, but being the kindest man that he was, Ash responded with a soft, little smile before placing his hand over mine.

“I don’t want you to feel guilty about those days. I knew it wasn’t easy for you, with your family and all. I understand. I really do.”

He was about to remove his hand when I grabbed it. His eyes snapped to where my fingers were wrapped around his wrist before he brought them to meet my determined stare.

“K-Kai—”

“Still, it doesn’t justify the things I did to you,” I cut him off.

“I know.” He paused, the sound of the waves filling in the void until he spoke again. “But I chose to forgive you.”

My heart beat fast as my chest flooded with warmth and love. Without thinking twice, I closed my eyes and leaned in until I was met with his perfect lips. They were like soft pillows I wanted to taste forever, but before I could dive deeper into how good kissing him felt, I was pushed back with a hard shove.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Ash snapped as he jumped to his feet.

Confused, I stared at him while trying to spit back an answer.

“What do you mean what am I doing? Kissing you, obviously,” I said while rubbing the spot on my chest he’d punched when he shoved me away.

He gawked at me. “Why the fuck would you do that?”