T W E N T Y - F I V E

I DIDN'T EVEN GET AMPLE TIME TO PROCESS WHAT HE SAID.

In fact, whenever I tried to bring it up, he shut the conversation down so that we weren't interrupting the movie. A valid put down if any, but that was until it lasted after the movie ended. Luke just clearly didn't want to talk to me about it. It was kind that he had at least told me before just disappearing, but he was still leaving me hanging regardless. We were now filing out of the theater together, pushed forward by the moving mass of people walking behind us.

"Why are you not telling me," I tried asking again. "You know this is eating me up on the inside. Come on, for old times sake."

Luke admirably kept a straight face throughout - which wasn't exactly admirable since it was getting on my nerves - maneuvering the crowd with expert grace while I bumped into different, angry people time after time.

Luke basically was the one who told me to go with Ashton when we both knew that he liked me, so I should've known that his will was made of iron and that it would be practically impossible to get him to give me an answer. But at the same time, I couldn't just let him go. He meant a lot to me, much more than he thought and had reason to.

We finally made it out of the large crowd as it finally guided us out into the main lobby. People all around us were purchasing tickets and hoarding up their snacks, children taking pictures with the cardboard standees; making for a joyful scene but I felt anything but. I needed to know why Luke was leaving and why he was so intent on me not knowing the reason why. I just felt completely horrible because of not knowing and it was eating at me from the inside.

Finally, he stopped and turned to face me, his eyes hot with emotions I couldn't decipher. "Look, Fiona, I like you - I mean really like you - but we both know that as well as that you don't like me the way I like you. So I don't want you to be worried about me."

"What?" I said, shocked to say the least. "You're mad because of the dance?"

He rolled his eyes at me. "It's not like that. Literally at all. I still think of you as my friend, but at the same time, it's so painfully obvious that I'm not your Prince Charming who's going to sweep you away. You're just part of the fairytale I had in my head and I hate to be rude, but I need to be away from you. Because every day, I can't help but think about you even when I know you'll never feel the same."

With that, he turned away and pulled his phone out of his pocket, his fingers flying across the screen. I was too dumbstruck to process anything he was doing, so I was quite surprised when he put his phone back in his pocket and said, "I hailed you a cab. If you want, I can reimburse you for the fare if you want, but I just don't want you to be walking home all alone."

His words tugged at my chest, a part of me being relieved that Luke was still gentle with me although I knew he had anger to get out of his system.

"Okay," he said with a wave of his hand, "get home safely."

He started to walk off when I called out his name, making him stop and turn around to meet me in the eye. "I care about you, Luke. And I really like you too."

Just as I expected, he only gave me a curt nod before he went away. Hopefully, I'd have a bit more time with him, but now I had other things to worry about.

-

"JUST SHOW UP NAKED AND TELL HIM YOU'RE THE MAIN COURSE."

That, surprisingly came from Eric tonight as my friends all came over to help me get ready for my dinner with Ashton. Everything else was business as usual, save for the fact that Lily Masters was also there since she had been so helpful to me yesterday that I was hoping we could become friends in the long-run. I initially thought that she would be more dirty-minded and erratic like the rest of my entourage, but instead she just hung back on her phone while Dana and Elijah raided my closet together and Eric sat in an arm chair with a glass of champagne twirling in his fingers.

I coughed in a mix of shock and disgust at the idea of doing that. Amanda Leighton was probably going to be there since it was another large, fancy restaurant, and I didn't need her to see how much better her body was than mine. Nor did I want to step out naked in public in the first place.

"Of course not," I said when I recovered. "In fact, this is probably just another night of me playing as a cock block for Ashton and Amanda."

"Both literally and physically if you know what I mean," Dana said with a wink, making Elijah and Eric chuckle mischievously.

"Wow," Elijah said, reaching into my closet, "how about this one? This will make Ashton take you to the bathroom."

What he pulled out was a dress I somehow forgot I even had. It must've been from my college days because it looked so short and sexy. The amount of cleavage it showed made me gulp considering that Elijah was probably right. While I was trying to go for something classier, I had to admit that deep down - and even on the surface - I wanted Ashton to fall in love with me. Hopefully, he wouldn't assume that I was attempting to seduce him because he would never let me live it down if he did, but I wanted to look good for him, to make him notice.

Staring at the dress, I could only imagine what would happen when Ashton saw me. Maybe I had to take a risk.

-

I HAD TO TAKE A CAB TO THE ROOSEVELT.

I was disappointed and so was Ashton - who had originally offered to drive me - but he told me he was urgently needed elsewhere so he would have to meet me there. He already made the reservation and it was under then name Baldwin, so I didn't have to worry about a wait when I got there which I thought was pretty considerate of him.

Traffic was intense tonight, as well as the cabbie who was cursing over a baseball game over the radio. My heart swelled with pride at the mention of how well I heard Bretton was doing, hoping that would be my good luck charm for the night. It was dinner with not only Ashton but Vivian and possibly even Amanda. No amount of spending the night in her room and talking to her about dealing with boys would make her not see me as some kind of threat - not only because of my weird relationship with Luke and how we briefly yet unofficially were a thing but because now I was her brother's girlfriend whether it was real or not. Amanda was sweet as far as first impressions went, but so was Meredith and I wasn't sure if I would be able to avoid walking into another trap again.

What if I was doing so now? What if I were with Luke?

I shook my head as if that would've shaken the thoughts from my head. I needed some closure about Luke and so did he, but him leaving me to move to another state wouldn't work out for either of us, especially in the long run.

I sat in the back of the cab contemplating until we finally arrived in front of The Roosevelt. It was mainly a hotel, but it sported the best restaurant on its ground floor, so it was usually opened up to the public, probably as a scheme to increase their bookings.

"Alright, miss," the man said, turning to face me, "that'll be six dollars."

With a sigh, I forked over the money before wishing him a good night and shutting he taxi door behind me. The dress that Elijah had plucked from out of my closet went best with a nice pair of six inch heels, however they didn't go nicely with my clumsy feet and I had to hobble to the door in an undignified manner, hoping desperately that people would understand my pain if they took notice.

Thankfully, I made it to the reception area without making a fool out of myself. "Hi," I said to the lady behind the podium, "I have a reservation for Baldwin."

I didn't miss the split second where her eyes bugged before going back to normal. She must've been familiar with Ashton and his family's name or they were already here and I must've had a big surprise in store for me.

"Yes," she said, flustered as she typed away at her computer to check for the reservation in the system. "They're already here, but if you need some help with finding them, I could take you there."

The dear woman looked as if her heart were about to leap out of her chest and make a bolt for the door, so I declined her offer kindly with a quick nod of my head. "I think I'll be fine," I said, "but thank you so much."

With that, I turned away and headed into the dining area. Like at Brielle and Bréze, it was made up of a sea of elegant tables and carpet with dining guests just as polished. I was glad Lily didn't let me leave the house without curling my hair, because I would've forgotten after the curve Luke had thrown me for and ended up having to tie my hair in as neat of a ponytail I could conjure up in the back of a dimly-lit taxicab. No, I looked great right now, and not like an idiot like the last time I stepped into a restaurant of this caliber.

When I finally saw Vivian's silky black hair, I realized where Ashton's table was and that he definitely had some guests with him that I didn't anticipate.

Why in the hell were his parents here?

Amanda wasn't anywhere to be seen, it was just the four Baldwins sitting together, Vivian and her parents conversing about something while Ashton seemed to be looking down at his phone - probably wondering where the hell I was at.

The last time I saw his parents, I didn't even notice they were there and spoke in an out of line way to Ashton. Not to mention, they thought I was a bumbling idiot for spilling the champagne over the table when I worked for Happenstance. If Ashton ever told them about me leaving the lipstick stain on his glass, who knew what they thought of me now? I definitely wasn't eager to find that out. It definitely didn't help that I was dressed to impress, in a manner of speaking. Was he inviting me here to come clean about how Meredith framed me or how he got involved with Emilie? A million questions were running through my head and I hadn't an answer I wanted to hear to any of them.

I seriously considered stepping out and calling Ashton to cancel, but that wouldn't have ended well for me either. And before I could assess the rest of my options, he sat up and looked around the room before his eyes landed on mine. I felt my heart stop, in just the way Ashton could always will it to. His green eyes stared deeply into my brown ones as if I were the only one in the room. And I stared back because I felt exactly the same.

Ashton raised his eyebrows at me, as if beckoning me to come over which made me realize how I had rooted myself to the spot. Sooner or later I would've had to come to him and face my fears, but for now, I couldn't help but just enjoy this feeling. His eyes were on me, taking me in like there was nothing more important to him. It was almost intoxicating, the idea that Ashton might have felt the same way about me making me blush read and my heart beat at a mile a minute when it finally figured out how to work again.

Maybe, just maybe, everything tonight would be okay.