The Five Dimensions Part 1: Shadow World

Chapter 14

"Are you going to open the door, or what?" she said, throwing her arms wide when they reached his unmissable, bright red monster of a car. Ash smiled and pushed the unlock button on the car keys. Then he got in the driver's seat and started the car. Hailey already started to give him directions, but he waved them off.

"I know where you live, don't bother," he said, keeping his eyes on the road. There was nothing strange about the way he said it but how could he know?

"Oh, that's kind of... creepy. I guess." She looked in the side mirror at herself. Hailey wished she didn't always look so ruffled after school.

"Thanks for calling me Ash by the way." He looked at her for a second, but she kept her eyes on the mirror.

"Why wouldn't I call you Ash?" Her voice was still rough when she said the words, but she realized a second too late that Ash's voice had actually changed. It was talking much more softly, having dropped the presumptuous façade he kept up at school.

"You've called me lots of things since I got here, but you never called me Ash." It was true, she had never called him by his actual name. During any previous interactions, she had usually referred to swear words to call him. Not his actual name. She thought that this was a bad sign. Her walls were coming down, and she wasn't sure she could put them back up again. But all her previous plans to avoid him were out of the window anyways. What was the harm in letting a few more walls down? Especially because it was feeling so right.

It stayed silent for a while.

"Are you going to that party-thing next Friday?" he asked, sounding casual again.

"Party?" Hailey said absentmindedly. If she had been really listening, she would have realized that any party Ash could be talking about was a party that involved Julia and Jayson because there weren't any other parties in Pinemarsh.

"It's for the new members of the hockey team, which they consider me to be. Anyway, they invited a lot of people and I thought if you'd go, maybe it'd be fun." Ash's voice was very stable, but Hailey could feel he was tense, as if he was nervous about her answer. She was finding it easier to read him now than it was when they'd just met. She realized it was because she was so much more aware of him.

"You do realize that being invited to a party requires a social status and since I'm lower than the lowest social rank of Pinemarsh High I'm fairly sure I'm not welcome." Hailey crossed her arms over her chest. She knew it would show her discomfort about the subject and even though it exposed weakness, she didn't care as much as she usually did.

"I think you are just high enough on my social ranking to be my second." Ash grinned at Hailey, probably he was thinking this would please her. The strand of hair that was hanging loose bounced slightly as he moved his head. She was momentarily focused on it, until she realized she was staring at him again.

"I know for a fact that Julia doesn't do seconds." Hailey gave Ash a stern look and he turned to her for a moment, then he focused on driving again as he had to make a right turn.

"What do I care? Besides, I thought you were going to go anyway with Nolan and that brown-haired little girl with glasses, I heard them talking about going." Ash clearly hadn't understood the impact his words would've made because he was very shocked by Hailey's reaction.

"What?" Thoughts were racing through Hailey's mind. Was it true or had Ash heard wrong? If it was true, what did it mean? Why hadn't Nolan said anything to her? Hailey forced herself to say something, even if her voice was harsh and strained, because Ash was looking at her with wide eyes. "Nolan... he didn't tell me, I guess."