Behind The Limelight 28: You Snooze, You Lose

Ashton yawned loudly. Today was the last day of the shoot before their four day break, and he could not wait to be done. He had already made reservations at a spa for some desperately needed massage and relaxation. Just a few more hours. That was it. He could do it.

“—am I boring you?” Tabitha asked.

“No, no, sorry,” Ashton said, shaking his head. His body betrayed him again as he let out another yawn. “Sorry. I’m just tired. Been a long day.”

“Oh man, I feel you. Lee and I are flying out to Mexico for a mini vacation tonight and I’m literally counting down the minutes,” Tabitha replied.

“Have fun,” Ashton spoke with a soft smile.

It was endearing to see Tabitha light up each time she spoke about Lee. Ashton could only wish that someday he would have someone like this too, a healthy and happy relationship like theirs. But after his past encounters, he was very close to giving up any hope of ever finding anybody to call his own, anybody to love wholeheartedly.

“Thanks! My agent was going to fill my schedule up with interviews and what not and I was like nope! Ain’t doing that none of that these next days!” Tabitha let out a small chuckle before continuing. “What are your plans? I know Ryk’s heading down to visit his family. Are you going to see your parents too?”

“Nah,” Ashton answered. “I’m just going to chill at home. Swim. Play video games. Get a pedicure maybe.”

“Oh,” Tabitha frowned slightly, before perking up again. “That’s nice! Lee and I are actually thinking of buying a new house together once we get married. I really like the neighborhood you live in. Any idea if anyone’s selling?”

“I’ll have to ask around,” Ashton said.

“Please do!” Tabitha exclaimed, an excited grin on her face.

“How are the wedding plans coming along?” Ashton questioned.

“Don’t even get me started on that,” Tabitha groaned. “So look, I really like orchids, okay? And I want a red velvet cake, multi-tiered, obviously. But Lee thinks that—”

Ashton braced himself for a long rant, which it was. And by the end of it he grew even more exhausted than he was before. Tabitha had a lot of opinions, as she should, and apparently planning a wedding was a shit load of work.

“—and then there’s also dance lessons. You may think that Lee has a lot of grace, but let me tell you something, they have two left feet when it comes to getting a move on. It feels like June is getting closer and closer and there’s no preparation whatsoever!”

“That sounds…stressful,” Ashton remarked, at a loss for words once Tabitha finally stopped rambling.

“That’s an understatement,” Tabitha muttered.

“You’ll figure it out,” Ashton offered, making Tabitha let out a long sigh.

Ashton’s phone buzzed in his pocket, but he ignored it. He guessed that it would probably just be his mother again, who had been blasting his phone non stop ever since the event. He was extremely close to blocking her number, but for the sake of their relationship, no matter how bad or superficial, he didn’t.

Then again, she’d probably find other ways to contact him if she wanted to. So blocking her would do no good in the greater scheme of things. He figured that if he just ignored her long enough then she would get the hint and back off. Or at least that was the hope.

A man can dream, right?

When his phone vibrated again and then again, Ashton begrudgingly decided to see what was up. He picked up his mobile, only to find that it wasn’t his mother texting him, but Ryker’s sister Abi.

From: Abi | To: Ashton

Can’t wait to see you tomorrow!

From: Abi | To: Ashton

I’m so excited!!!

From: Abi | To: Ashton

Mom and dad are too, mom’s already prepping for a big dinner tomorrow hahah

Ashton blinked at the screen. Why in hell would Abi think that Ashton was coming over to visit? He had explicitly told Ryker that he would not be joining him, but it seemed like Abi and the rest of his family believed otherwise.

“Excuse me, I need to go murder someone,” Ashton mumbled before standing up. Tabitha looked at him in confusion, but simply nodded with a blank expression as her co-actor left.

Ashton went to Ryker’s trailer, knocking as loud and fast as his fists allowed him too. He waited, tapping his foot impatiently with his arms folded in front of his chest. Ryker finally opened the door, and if looks could kill then the dark-haired man would be six feet under with his trailer covering up the freshly dug grave.

“What’s up?” Ryker asked, moving aside to give Ashton some space to enter. He closed the door shut behind him, turning to face Ryker with a deadly glare on his face.

“Why is Abi texting me like she thinks I’m coming with you to meet your family tomorrow?” Ashton asked, his voice accusatory and for good reason.

“Because I told her that you are.”

“And why would you do that?”

“I had to or else she would be after my life to bring you,” Ryker shrugged. “I just thought it’d be easier if I showed up without you and then make some excuse for why you couldn’t come. Maybe you had a last minute meeting. Maybe you got diarrhea. The possibilities are endless.”

“Wow,” Ashton scoffed. “So you lied to your family?”

“I didn’t lie! I’m just keeping the truth from them for a limited period of time,” Ryker defended himself.

“That’s the definition of lying,” Ashton retorted.

“Hey, if you have such a problem with this then feel free to call her and tell her that you’re not coming,” Ryker said.

“Uh,” Ashton blinked. “Well…I uh…”

“Exactly,” Ryker rolled his eyes. “You don’t want to be at the receiving end of her anger and neither do I.”

“It’s still not right to lie to them!”

“Why do you even care?”

“Because I care about them,” Ashton replied without wasting a second.

“Is that so?” Ryker asked, and Ashton nodded in response. “Then why aren’t you coming with me?”

“Hey, don’t put this on me, okay?” Ashton said. “It’s not like you want me to come either.”

“When did I ever say that?”

“You didn’t as much say it as you implied it,” Ashton answered.

“What the fuck do you even mean by that?”

“I told you I won’t be going with you and you just said ‘okay‘,” Ashton spoke. “That implies you don’t want me to come with you.”

“What even?” Ryker looked at Ashton as if he was the dumbest person on the planet. “Oh god, you’re infuriating.”

“Yeah, well, you’re not a prize either,” Ashton muttered.

“I said ‘okay‘ because I didn’t want to force you to do something,” Ryker explained.

“Like that has stopped you in the past,” Ashton folded his arms in front of his chest again as he mumbled.

“What do you mean?” Ryker furrowed his brows. “When have I ever made you do something you didn’t want to?”

“Remember when you made me try oysters?”

“Seriously?” Ryker sighed. “That was like, what, when we were seventeen?”

“I told you the squishy, slimy texture made me ick! Yet you made me eat them!”

“And you ended up loving it!” Ryker exclaimed.

“That’s not the point!”

“Then what is the point? Please! Please, enlighten me!”

“The point is that…that…” Ashton trailed off. He, indeed, did not know what the point was. “The point is that you’re an idiot and an asshole!”

“You’re not a goddamn prize either,” Ryker repeated Ashton’s words from earlier, making him narrow his eyes at his fellow actor.

“God, I feel like punching you,” Ashton grunted.

“Won’t be the first time,” Ryker added.

“Don’t be such a bitch about it. I’m pretty sure that punch hurt me more than you,” Ashton mumbled.

“How is that even possible? I was the one who took it in my face,” Ryker asked. “And if you’re forgetting then we’re actors. Our faces are our moneymakers.”

“I fractured my thumb,” Ashton replied, his voice so low that Ryker couldn’t comprehend what he said.

“What?”

“I said I fractured my thumb!” Ashton repeated. Ryker parted his lips to speak, before closing them again as he stared blankly at the other man.

“You…what?”

“Yeah.”

“How?”

“The doctor said my thumb was inside my fist when I punched,” Ashton muttered, looking away.

“Everybody knows not to do that! And you were calling me an idiot?” Ryker couldn’t help but laugh.

“Hey, I’m sorry if I forgot boxing 101 in the heat of the moment, alright? Now shut it,” Ashton snapped.

“How did we even get to thumb fractures from Abi?” Ryker asked.

“I have no idea,” Ashton answered. “Everything is an argument with you.”

“That’s the pot calling the kettle black…but sure. Whatever helps you sleep at night,” Ryker said.

“You not lying to your family would help,” Ashton muttered.

“If that’s the case then come with me. Plain and simple.”

Ashton whipped his head to look at Ryker, who was staring back at him with sincerity on his face. Ashton was waiting for him to laugh or say that he was just kidding, but he did nothing of that sort.

“But—”

“You did say you were missing those cheeseburgers, remember?” Ryker recalled. “One stone, two birds.”

“Oh, yeah,” Ashton nodded as he remembered that conversation. “Alright. Just for the cheeseburgers.”

“Of course, the cheeseburgers.”

“And your parents. And Abi.”

“Right.”

“Can your mom make that apple pie that she used to when we were kids?” Ashton questioned.

“Sure, I’ll ask her,” Ryker answered with a definite nod.

“Great. So what time are we leaving?”

“At five.” Ryker replied.

“Five? Isn’t that a little late? We’ll reach after dinner,” Ashton frowned, feeling puzzled.

“I meant five a.m, you genius,” Ryker corrected.

“Five a.m!? Are you insane? I’m not waking up that early!”

“You snooze, you lose,” Ryker shrugged innocently. “You can stay over at mine tonight. Will make it easier to leave in the morning.”

“Fine. But I’m sleeping in the guest room.”

“Fine.”

“Fine!”

***

ash is going with ryker?? who would’ve thought huh