Ashton

Sam frowned at the light above the door as we stepped out to the patio. Of course. In the middle of a pitch black desert, that dusty bulb was her savior. Aside from the sand circling the house, the dark swallowed everything. There could be anything in front of us and we'd have no clue.

"Oooh, stars. Very pretty, very pretty." The dork looked up in an obvious rush. "I love the stars. They're so pretty! Thank you for showing me, thank you. Okay, let's go back inside—"

"Wait." I caught her hand, laughing at how much she hated being pulled closer. I lowered my mouth to her ear and whispered in a serial killer voice. "Are you ready to get murdered?"

She burst out a weak laugh, holding onto my t-shirt.

I held her in my arm and cupped her face. Kissed her slowly. She tasted like green apples, sour and sweet. I couldn't get enough of her. She let out a melting breath, like she was feeling the same. I pecked her once. Twice. Three times. She went along with it. I had to kiss her again and grope her a little. Squeeze that fine ass.

"Are you calm?" I asked against her lips and she nodded. "Good girl. Do you feel safe with me?"

"Of course," she said softly, a question mark in her gaze.

I kissed her forehead, slipping my palm under my hoodie she had on. My thumb caressed her low back.

"I want to show you something." I looked at her and slowly placed my other hand on the switch beside the door. The one in control of the light above our heads.

"No, no, no, no, no." Realization dawned on her and she tried to back away, but I didn't let. "Ashton, I can't. I can't! I swear. Please, don't force me—"

"Shh... baby, relax. I'm not forcing you anything. Shh, relax." I squeezed the back of her neck and gave her a firm kiss, hoping the physical pressure stabilized her.

Her pulse was beating wild under my fingers. Lips parted with shallow breaths. Eyes a-glaze at nothing. Definitely overthinking a thousand miles a minute.

"Look." I took her hand and put it next to the switch. So if she lifted her finger, she could turn it off and on. "You're in control, see? I want you show you something, baby. I want to show you something beautiful. Can you do that for me?"

"N-no." She teared up, yanking her hand back behind her. Angrily shook her head. "I can't."

"Not even for me? What about my promise to take you to stargazing?"

"We just stargazed—"

"What, this?" I looked up at the sky and chuckled. "This is nothing! You can't see the Milky Way like this. Have you ever seen the Milky Way?" She shook her head no. "You have to. Oh, it's so fucking beautiful. You'll love it."

"It'll be too dark." she whimpered, eyes begging not to do this. "I can't. I'm too scared. Please, don't make me, Ashton. I feel so bad. I don't want to, I know I'm missing out, but I can't. I just can't okay? I'm too..." She raised her voice. "I'm too messed up!"

I switched the lights off and on.

She gasped, froze, stared at me. "How could you do that?"

"Because I'm an asshole," I smirked, touching her nose with mine. "And I like freaking you out."

"Clearly!"

"And I like watching you cry." My smile stretched at the fear in her eyes. "I like how you become so small and helpless, but still let me do what I want. 'Cause you want to please me so bad. Hm?" I kissed her, not letting her have control. I spread my fingers on the back of her head and fisted her hair. The sound in her throat traveled to my cock. "Don't you want to please me?"

"This is borderline manipulative, just FYI." The jackass broke the tension. "Especially, after the talk we literally just—"

"God damn it, can you just go along? I'm trying to do something here!"

"Well, you're failing." She turned red giggling. "Sorry, it's my nerves! I'm freakin' the crap out. If I had a diaper on, I'd be pooping right now."

"That's exactly what I want to hear when I have my hand on your ass." My hand, indeed, was still on her ass. She just laughed harder, making me scoff. But her having fun is exactly what I wanted. "So are you going to continue being a chicken or turn the lights off?"

"Cluck, cluck!"

"Dumbass." I tried not to smile. "Okay, ready? One, two—"

"Three and four, five six, seven eight," she said on beat with body rolls, already out of breath.

"How bad are you at cardio? Seriously, Samantha, I'm freezing my balls off already. Turn the lights off so we can enjoy the fucking stars and you can see the Milky Wave. Then get the fuck inside, so I can harass you under the blanket!"

"Okay, okay, okay. I'll try." She rolled her eyes, lifting her hand over the switch.

Oh? I stayed still and kept my expression neutral, but the whole time, I was holding my breath.

"I don't know how long I'll last," she said. "That's what she said."

I snaked my arm around her waist for reassurance, holding her close. "I got you, baby. I believe in you."

She sobered up, her big brown eyes blinking so vulnerably. Like she wanted to listen, wanted to believe. I kissed her forehead, then her cheek. Other cheek. Nose. Her perfect lips.

"Turn the lights off for me, baby," I murmured. "Please? Be in this moment with me. Just me and you. Don't think of anything else. Be with me. Can you do that for me?"

She nodded slightly, her finger crooking over the upward tip on the switch.

"Yeah?" I asked. "Look up and wait, just breathe in my arms. Okay? Can you do that, sweet girl?"

"I think... so," she whispered. Then darkness came over.

So sudden. My first reaction was to panic she did it by accident.

But soon, my sight shifted from black to deep blue; showing Sam. She was doing it.

She was looking up.

A tearful smile spread across her whole face. Her eyes liquid, reflecting the glimmering clouds of stars. Constellations, planets. Meteor showers. Wrapped in a villainous fog like the ultimate symbolism. That the most fulfilling moments come from confronting our darkest doubts.

"I can't believe how beautiful it is..." she softly laughed.

My chest tightened at her happiness. I couldn't stop staring at her the way she couldn't stop staring at the sky.

"Похоже, в тебя влюбляюсь." (Looks like I'm falling in love with you.)

"Huh? Speak English!"

I pushed my finger under her chin, lifting her lips to me. "I'm proud of you."

~

Despite the chaos last night, I was thankful for how everything turned out as we drove back to LA. Nobody was on their phone. No social media. No obsession with online likes or followers. Just the four of us blasting our favorite songs and speeding with the windows down.

What Cara had done for Luka was brave as hell, and I knew it meant the world to him. My girl had made a breakthrough as well. When I found her in that stunning white dress, she was insisting to wear hip pads. Now, my crackhead was happily singing to music on the radio wearing my sweatpants and hoodie. Mascara smudged like a raccoon. Hair electrocuted.

"What?" She caught me looking and shyly smiled. "What are you staring at?"

I smiled. "Can't I just stare at you?"

We stopped by Cara's apartment so Sam could borrow makeup. Luka tagged along, very curious to creep on Cara's personal space. I was curious too. Would it be full of coffins and garlic? Did the breeze whisper like a haunted cemetery? Would there be owls and wolves howling?

"Tada." Cara opened her front door. "Welcome to my casa. Roommates meet people I learned to tolerate. People I learned to tolerate, meet the smartest geeks in the world."

I'd never heard her say so many words at once. She smiled at Luka. Oh, what a whipped bat.

Six sleep-deprived nerds by cluttered desks lining up the living room looked our way. Two played cards on a moldy tan carpet, drinking out of red plastic cups. Another cooked refried beans in the kitchen, wearing an oversized shirt and flip flops. The air smelled stale, like the windows hadn't been opened for the last five hundred years.

"We're here to ask for Cara's hand in marriage!" I said. "Do you guys still have her receipt?"

"Cara..." A girl with red glasses twisted her computer screen toward us. "Is this you?"

A picture of Cara protecting Luka in the middle of the dance floor in her bra had been published on a website. Luka and Sam gasped, murmuring it was a famous news article.

"Yeah..." Cara stilled. "Why?"

A unanimous gasp broke out. Then they stormed at us, cornering us against the wall. All with their phones out. Talking at the same time. Eyes wide, pointing at pictures and videos.

"You're going VIRAL!"

"Two hundred fifty thousands views!"

"You're dating a famous TikTok dancer!? That dance was SO hot, I've watched it a million times."

"What you did was SO beautiful, I almost cried."

"So empowering."

"Other influencers are responding with reaction videos..." Sam scrolled on her phone, voice distant and lost in a daze. "They... love you."

Poor baby. This was everything she'd been dreaming of and now she had to watch her best friend get it.

"Are you guys done?" Cara rolled her eyes, turning to the hallway. "Good, on to more—"

One of her roommates held out a large gift bag in black and white stripes. White tissue paper poked out of it, a designer logo labeled in the front.

"Uh..." Cara wrinkled her nose, holding the bag as far away as possible. "Thanks?"

"It was at the door for you."

Luka jumped to take it from her. "Wait a minute, I think I know what it is."

Sam wrapped her arms around herself. "It's a Sephora—"

Luka flung the tissue papers out and fished out a letter. "Dear Cara, we hope you join us at our special event in the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Beverly Hills. We would like to treat you to an all-inclusive experience with world-known celebrity makeup artists and photographers for once in a lifetime experience!"

"Why?" Cara grimaced while her roommates swooned and cheered.

Luka kept on reading. "Please accept this one-thousand dollar gift card and we hope to see you there with your loved one, Luka."

"Say what?" Her eyebrows shot to her scalp.

"Cara and Luka sitting under a tree. K.I.S.S.I.N.G." I sang to lighten the mood.

"Cara, this is incredible..." Sam said softly, looking at her hands. "It's a huge opportunity—"

"Opportunity to what? Feed my ego and be around fake people? No, thanks."

"They're not all fake." She laughed weakly. "You're being celebrated for being bold and brave."

"Celebrated? I'm being used for profit. You really think they care about me?"

"Guys," I said in a tone to end the conversation and focused on Sam who was on the verge of breaking down. "Baby, if Cara doesn't want to go, she doesn't have to."

She nodded, swallowing the lump in her throat and looked away.

Cara sighed, equally soft for Sam. "Fine, we'll go... Besides." She waved the gift card and smirked. "Who doesn't love money?"

A/N
Awww :( How do you think this Sephora event is going to go as Sam watches Cara get everything she'd dreamed of having?