Change
Ashton followed him, he didn't want to get away from his only confidant.
"Ahh, yes, this way," said Aaron, who had already come out of his trance and began to guide them through the apartment. It was small but not as small as the one Ashton had grown up in. -This is your room Ashton.
Ashton leaves his bag of belongings on the bed.
"You can put the decorations you want and we can buy whatever you need or stuff that you like, anything you can think of," he seemed nervous. This relaxed Ashton's nerves, the rest of the boys seemed very relaxed, apart from Nicky, who was silently shedding tears.
"Yes, thanks." Ashton didn't know what else he could say.
-Okay, I'll go now. - said Thomas- In a month I'll have to do a little inspection again, but if anything happens in the meantime, call me.
As soon as Thomas leaves, Ashton feels his nerves rise. He has no idea what to do now.
—
Andrew can sense the discomfort Ashton is feeling. Neither he or Aaron know how to approach him, neither of the twins is sociable.
- Ashton, do you want pizza for dinner? Let’s all watch a movie together!!- Good thing Nicky is there to calm things down.
- Sure, great. - Ashton responds timidly. Nicky walks over to Ashton's belongings and grabs the skateboard.
- Look at Aaron a skateboard. You know Ashton, Aaron had a skateboarding face, he thought that with his tricks he would be able to pick up all the girls, but he just looked like a loser.
"Shut up Nicky," Aaron replied without malice.
- Let's see a scary movie.- continued Nicky- or a cartoon. Ashton, which do you prefer?
- I don’t care.
- Let's see How to train your dragon, it is the twins’ favourite. Besides, Neil hasn't seen it yet.
—
Everything is going well, they are together on the sofa watching the movie while having dinner.
-We should go to bed, there is training tomorrow morning, we have to get up soon.- Kevin said always, thinking about the same thing.
"Damn Kevin, what a party pooper" Aaron yelled at him.
- That?? Ashton also has to go to school. Sleep is very important in the development of a teenager.
- You'll see Ashton, Kevin is addicted to exy and only thinks with his racket.
That's when Ashton connects the dots in his head.
- You’re Kevin Day - He didn't mean to say it out loud but the words escape him before he can think.
- Do you know him ?? Do you like exy? Are you his fan?
- I used to follow the ravens years ago, but I stopped following teams a long time ago.
- Do you play exy?- Kevin asks.
- Kevin! - Andrew says suddenly with a warning voice.
- What? I just want to know if he has potential, he could be as good a player as you.
Andrew rolls his eyes.
- I play on the school team. I play offensive dealer.
Ashton is reminiscent of a younger Kevin Day. He remembers watching videos with Simon, in which people referred to Kevin and "his brother", Riko, as the future of exy. Simon wanted to be like them, and while Ashton never had the same desire, he still admired them.
"This is perfect, you can train with us," said Neil, who hadn't said anything until now.
-Junkies! - Andrew said as he turned off the TV. - Everyone to bed, tomorrow we need to wake up early.- he said mocking Kevin’s voice.
Nicky and Aaron tried to protest but it was no use.
- All right, mother hen, you rule. - Nicky said jokingly. Andrew glared at him, but relaxed when he saw Ashton smiling.
—
The next day, the foxes have a game and so does Ashton's team. The twins let him know that they are coming home late and leave dinner ready for him. Although Ashton wishes he could go see his brothers’ game, he can't skip his.
During classes he stays awake, which hasn't happened for a long time. Even his teachers are surprised.
His team is the Rabid Bears, stupid name. When he walks into the locker room his team is making whoops, throwing things and jumping aggressively. It's a ritual that Ashton will never understand, he prefers to sit and watch the rest.
The coach walks in and makes a little speech, his team yells more and they all run onto the field.
The bears win, which means there will be a big party at someone's house. Ashton is removing his gear when Liam approaches.
Liam is in all of his classes, but unlike him he studies and is quite social. He is a tall boy, with short curly hair, dark skin, who is almost always smiling. He is the captain of exy's team, and one of the strikers.
The same thing always happens; Liam approaches him and asks him if he wants to go with the rest of the team to the party, Ash says no and everything repeats itself the following week.
- Hey Ash, I was wondering if...
- No Liam, I don't want to go to the party. I appreciate that you always invite me, but it's not my environment. I do not like parties.
- Aaa... yeah, I know. But that’s not what I wanted to ask. Do you want to hang? Just us.
Ashton is confused, they've never talked much and he doesn't know if this is some kind of joke, or if Liam is looking for something. Before he can answer, Liam speaks again.
- I have weed.
And that's enough for Ash to agree.