Chapter 47

Ashley wasted no time to get to the underpass. She took all the shortcuts and alleys she knew. The fast she can get to Johnny and kick his ass the better. With each step closer she got, Ashley thought of multiple ways their situation can go down. There was a chance of them arguing, Johnny could blow up, she could blow up, they could break up...

No.

Ashley wanted to save their relationship, she wanted to talk about their problems and fix them. But then again, that all depended on Johnny and his actions. Jimmy went ahead on a stolen bike to get his money before Ashley arrived. That was fine by her, it gave her time to think things through, especially on what to say when she sees Johnny. She wondered if she'd snap at him for hiring Jimmy to follow her and Gord around town, or for accusing her of infidelity. Both made her blood boil. Ashley pursed her lips and clenched her fists into tight balls. Try as she might, she could not contain herself. As she neared the underpass, she kicked an empty plastic bottle. That had been the most expressive she's been in a while, violent outbursts weren't a thing in her family. It was something disciplined right out of her before she became a teen. She watched the bottle skid off to the right, it slowly rolled to the bottom of a trash can. Then she heard Johnny before she saw him.

"What's this Gord kid got that I ain't got?"

The raven-haired Smith quietly crept towards her loud boyfriend's angry ramblings. Ashley managed to stay unseen, hiding behind the pillar. She heard every brisk step he took like he was marching in a parade. The very corners of her lips threatened to quirk upwards, ultimately betraying her rampaging emotions. She couldn't help it. Ashley pictured how Johnny must look like. Going against her judgment, she snuck a peek and a smile broke out. Johnny was exactly how she pictured he'd be. Eyebrows furrowed down in anger; his brown eyes aflame with seething hate and destruction; his mouth snapped shut, pressed into a hard line. Johnny walked back and forth swiftly, every other step he paused to say something else to Jimmy.

"Uh... nothing," Jimmy answers. He stood there awkwardly, not sure on what to do next. Not that the ginger gave a damn to begin with, he didn't want to be there when Ashley showed up.

Johnny faced Jimmy at the speed of light. "You think it's funny, don't you? You think I'm a joke... Well, my little friend, I'm the king around here. Me!"

Jimmy resisted an eye roll. "I know. You're the king," he said with a bland voice.

Johnny continued his rant, though his voice dropped severely, completely heartbroken. "But my queen is a slut and now everybody's laughing at me. Well not anymore."

Ashley's eyebrows rose so far up that it blended in with her hairline. Johnny called her a slut. A slut. 'Now Johnny's walking around with a 'slut' of a girlfriend. Well not anymore.'

Pulling out her phone, Ashley furiously typed down every other stupid thing Johnny continued to say in his blinding rage as ammo to bring up again in their upcoming argument.

"Good, good, kid. You and me, we're going to teach young Gord to keep his dirty paws off my woman. My queen. Get him to the abandoned building in New Coventry behind Union Hall. I'll be waiting there to school that little weasel," Johnny finalized, pounding his fist into the palm of his hand.

"I'll be there."

'And I'll be there too.'

Ashley got up and threw herself behind a parked car before either boys caught her. Once she was certain they both left, she got up and fled to search for Gord before it was too late.

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Ashley couldn't believe she had to resort to running around this shitty town to look for that pompous fashionista. Despite it being basically winter and there was snow everywhere, Ashley was sweating like a pig, her ears and cheeks glowed a bright red. Her lungs were at the brink of collapsing if she didn't stop. Submitting to her aching chest and the fierce burning in her throat, Ashley leaned against a street lamp. She stayed there for a bit, with hands on her knees and gulping in the icy cold air.

"Don't worry, I won't scratch it."

Ashley glanced up to witness Jimmy throw Gord off his bike. Gord quickly got up and stole someone else's bike to chase after the thuggish ginger. The raven-haired teen was a good block and a half away from them, and with no means of transportation, she didn't run after them. Though, lucky for her, there was a bike shop just across the street. Thank the lord Gord made her buy that ridiculous purse or else her wallet would have fallen out of her pocket by now.

"Thank you! Enjoy your new moped!" The store owner shouted in glee. There was a spring in his step as he counted away the many green dollar bills in his hand. Originally, the moped wasn't even an item he sold at the bike store, it was his own vehicle. However, when a prep rushes in asking for the fastest thing ever whilst waving around more money than he makes in a whole month, how could he not sell his ride?

Ashley waved erratically, trying to get the stupid thing to turn on.

'I hope I'm not too late.'

As Ashley sped off to the abandoned building, Johnny's special guest had arrived along with Tad and Justin.

"Well hello, Gord. Seems like you've been messing' where you ought not." Johnny sat on his bike on top of a ramp, glaring down at the preps. His blood boiled at the sight of them all. Adrenaline pumped through his veins, overly excited to get this beat down over with. With the supposed 'king' was Lefty and Vance. Originally Norton and Peanut were going to join the massacre, but they got caught by the police for stealing bike parts.

Gord huffed, irritated that these people don't know the law. They constantly bashed him and the rest of his friends for trying to keep their bloodline pure. "No! Cousins are legal... oh... you mean Ash?" Gord said bored.

Johnny growled. What else could he be talking about, "Yeah. My woman. Now you pay."

The prep slightly pursed his lips, "I don't know what on earth you're talking about. Ash and I haven't done anything wrong. We're best friends."

That didn't sit well with the King. "Don't you lie to me! I know you've been snooping around her. My men saw you two together."

Gord attempted to say something else, but the greasers didn't give him the chance to explain himself. Jimmy watched Johnny throw the first firecracker and that was when all hell broke loose. Everyone threw firecrackers, the ginger included, at each other while simultaneously ride their bikes.

It was war. Full on war.

Jimmy would be lying if he said he didn't enjoy it. The fight itself was a challenge, balancing himself on the bike, aiming the firecracker to hit, and generally not get hit himself or fall off his bike. The ramps made it harder. But a challenge was a challenge and getting his targets proved to be difficult since both the greasers and preps become one big blur that Jimmy simply threw the firecrackers randomly hoping it was the right person.

The rumble lasted long enough for Ashley to arrive at the precise moment to witness Johnny stretch his arm far behind his head then launch the lit up sparklers. Ashley watched in horror as the firecracker flew in almost slow motion from Johnny's hand to across the room and directly hit Gord on the right side of his shoulder, the fragments of the fire burned his neck and parts of his face. The attack knocked Gord unconscious. Finally, the last of the preps have fallen, victory went to the greasers.

Johnny hadn't seen his girlfriend at all, a good thing too. When Gord dropped to the floor like a sack of potatoes, he turned to Jimmy to hand him his payment for completing his job. Johnny didn't see Ashley sprint to the unconscious prep, kneeling over him to check for any serious injuries. A few first degree burns, nothing too serious. His face was lightly peppered in scald marks which now made his flesh a bright burning red color and slightly swollen. Ashley sighed in relief. The damage wasn't at all bad, all he had to was slap some aloe vera as soon as possible to help with the pain and he'll heal up in a few days. Gord won't even have any scabs or blisters.

The raven-haired girl glanced at Tad and Justin, the two were knocked off their bikes and landed painfully on the floor. Tad hit his head and decided it was safer to lay there, admitting defeat. Justin, on the other hand, fell off his bike and had a fist fight with Vance and lost. Ashley did her best to help the three without calling the attention of her boyfriend and his two henchmen. Jimmy stood, watching Ash struggle. She did a fairly good job at moving around without making any noise until Gord moaned out in pain and caught Johnny's attention.

"Ash?" Johnny said, wondering when his girlfriend had come in, more importantly, if she saw what had happened. The whole ordeal was supposed to be confidential— guess not. "What are you doing here?"

Ashley stared Johnny down with this intense anger and betrayal it made her eyes look like a cold onyx color instead of her usual warm brown orbs. It scared the shit out of Johnny, her hot white rage seeped out of her pores, wrapping around her like a cloak. Vance and Lefty shuffled uncomfortably from where they stood, feeling her emotions as strongly as her gaze had the ability to cut through steel. Ashley took off her coat using it as a pillow for Gord. The female Smith stood up, she stomped her way to Johnny. "Ash-" He didn't get to finish his sentence, he was too focused on the stinging pain on his cheek.

Vance and Lefty flinched when Ashley sharply nodded her head towards them, urging them to leave the building. Take Tad and Justin with you. Jimmy take care of Gord, please. The greasers didn't protest her order, they quickly lugged the bodies and stumbled out the doors.

Johnny heatedly watched his mean scurry out the door with their enemies out on their backs. 'Traitors' he thought hotly. "What was that for!"

Johnny Vincent don't you dare yell at me!

"Then what should I do huh? You go out and do god knows what with that Gord kid behind my back and then you come here for him and slap me while you're at it!" That anger he had earlier came back at full force. "Admit it! You're just like that tramp Lola! You're cheating on me with that cousin loving freak."

Ashley stepped back, her expression hardened in attempts to hide the hurt and devastation she felt. Too late. Johnny saw a flash of pain in her orbs, her brows furrowed ever so slightly before she dulled her face. In that instant of raw emotions, Johnny hesitated in his crusade and wanted nothing more than to swoop her into his arms and beg for forgiveness. However, his stubbornness and pride prevented him from doing so.

You're insane to ever think that I would cheat and lie to you. And you're completely psychotic to compare me to her.

"Really? Because my sources said otherwise."

What sources?

Johnny glared at his woman, "Doesn't matter. What matters was that they saw you on a date with Gord down in Old Bullworth Vale. Apparently, the two of you were cozying it up together."

We weren't 'cozying' it up. If you haven't noticed, I'm wearing heels and it's been awhile so excuse me for tripping up once in a while. Gord was just helping me walk. And for the record, he dragged me to those stores because he didn't like my bum outfit. You know exactly how Gord gets when I dress like a poor person.

That he did know that. Gord had made his opinion publicly several times, opinions in which were made in Johnny's presence. For shits and giggles, and to further annoy the prep, Ashley dressed up like a grade A greaser, sporting Johnny's leather jacket with said greaser's arm wrapped tightly around her shoulder.

Johnny's mouth made a pathetic 'O' shape. "W-well-"

Do you like this? Do you like picking fights with people when there is no problem? Do you purposely enjoy straining our relationship?

"What? Of course not!" He stared at her incredulously, "Why would I want to ruin what we have?"

That's what I'm asking.

The two gazed at each other's eyes, both tried to desperately read each other's emotions. Ashley was the only one with the ability to do it, Johnny couldn't read a damned thing. Ashley saw that Johnny won't change; he refused to. Deep down, she knew he wouldn't change, not for her, not for any other girl he'd date. Lola absolutely destroyed him, tearing him and his self-esteem down to smithereens. All that remained was a sad, little, tattered boy, who clung so hopelessly onto whatever was left behind. Johnny was a lost cause.

Ashley's bottom lip tremble as she typed in her final paragraph to Johnny, her vision blurry. I've done everything I could to prove to you my loyalty. I've never lied, I've never gone behind your back. I've told you the truth since the day we met. And yet you won't even try to change, you won't try to help me to help you. I cannot be in a relationship so toxic and vicious. I owe it to myself. So I think it'd be best if we took a break until we're both ready to be together again. How long until then, I don't know. That is up to you.

Johnny blinked, praying that he read the paragraph incorrectly. It took a few minutes for it to settle. "You're breaking up with me?" Johnny's voice was bland and meek, too soft that Ashley almost missed it. Almost. His eyes said more than words could ever say. They were utterly devastated and filled with heartbroken panic. "Yo-you can't be serious?" Johnny stammered. "Look so I screwed up, I-I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions. I should have gone to you instea-"

Ashley silenced him with a sweet kiss.

Johnny embraced his pudgy girlfriend so tight she ran out of breath faster than usual. However, Ashley refused to break free. She wanted this moment to last as long as possible. Johnny somewhat broke the kiss, just to have a quick intake of breath before once more taking her lips against his. She hummed in response. Ashley made sure to drink up every single detail of him; she memorized his scent, how he smelled of grease and gunpowder from the firecrackers; she memorized his touch and how his roaming hands released a fierce heat that scorched her skin. 'God he is so handsome.' She thought in content. That brief high of happiness was shot down when the kiss became too heated and intimate. Ashley had to stop it.

The raven-haired girl wedged her arms between herself and Johnny, trying to pull away. The boy didn't let up, instead, he kept her close to him. She tried and tried to pry Johnny off her, and after several attempts, she got him off.

"Ash no! Please don't leave me!" Johnny cried out. The girl kept the tears from flowing but shamelessly allowed them to blur her vision. She turned around and ran, knowing Johnny would follow her, maybe even pull her back into his arms. The need to escape the building was all she could think about because if she didn't, she knew she'd stay. 

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A/N: OH WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT, A SHITTY AUTHOR HAS POSTED ANOTHER CHAPTER AFTER SO FLIPPING LONG. 

I legit have no excuses or reasons to explain why I take so damn long to write and post other than the fact that adulting is weird and draining and that I am horrible at it. I hope this chapter lives up to people's expectations and if it exceeds it then someone give me a gold star for doing something right lol. 

Till next time!

~Shitty Artemis