"Y—your what?" Ashley asks, completely not expecting that.

Ally nodded, "Yep. he's a whole other story."

"Wait, he sounds familiar." Ashley announced, frowning as she tried to remember where she heard that name from.

On her very first day, the day she saw Eros for the first time, he had come to her saying that their father wanted Donovan to be picked up.

"Yeah, he's the same one." Ally said, her jaw slacking, oddly resembling Eros' greatly.

"When will he ever just...stop trying to sabotage you two. It's been years." Casey grumbled, putting her plate of food back on the table, suddenly losing her appetite.

"What do you mean?" Ashley asked, as lost as ever.

"He's the youngest, right after me. His father used to work as the head cook for our granddad and typically had a thing for our mother. She instead, um, was in love with someone else and kept rejecting him. In the end, Donovan's father raped my mother, and she got pregnant. She was strong though, and refused to abandon the child. Our granddad took Donovan's father to the cops and he's still in prison to date." Ally paused, setting the bowl of popcorn on her arms onto the table in front of them.

"She had the kid, but had to send him off to an orphanage. It's like she knew he wouldn't have a good life if she raised him with us. The orphanage was good though, I'll tell you that. In fact, he was better off than me and Eros." She continued, her green eyes fogging over as if she was replaying everything in her mind.

"Later, our granddad chose his successor; our uncle Mika, and kicked his other two sons out to fend for themselves, though now, they are welcomed to visit and stay whenever they want. Granddad died of old age at 97, just when we started high school here. Donovan has always been bitter about being abandoned, and always blames it on us. He doesn't know how lucky he is, that he isn't involved with this messed up family. He hates Eros the most, but I don't know why or if something happened between them." She finished.

Ashley frowned, taking in all the new information. She really didn't know anything about her circle of friends. She shook her head and wrapped an arm around Ally's shoulders, feeling her stiffen under her hold.

She almost scoffed at how similar these siblings were, and they didn't even know it. Her heart ached for both of them, seeing it in her eyes that they have been through so much.

"Don't you worry, Ally. If he ever tries to start something with you, I'm there." Ashley said, trying her best to cheer her up.

Casey snickered and Ally scoffed, "Yeah right. You couldn't hurt a fly." She joked, playfully shoving her off

Ashley gasped, faking hurt on her face, "I would kill for you bitches."

Casey and Ally erupted into fits of laughter as Ashley smiled and looked back at the TV where they spent the rest of the evening doing.

🔱🔱🔱

"Sorry." Ashley said, rubbing her nose as she held her art project tighter, not wanting them to crinkle more than they already had during the collusion.

She was on here way to submit it to the teacher, Mrs. Sterling, when she turned a corner and bumped into someone.

"It's alright." A deep, unfamiliar voice said.

She looked up then, and nearly did a double take. She frowned, staring at him for longer than necessary. He must have noticed, because he too frowned and cleared his throat.

"Right, sorry, my bad. I just—." she paused, narrowing her eyes at his eyes; they were a familiar forest green, "—have we met before?"

He pursed his lips and shamelessly looked at her from the top of her head, to her white shoes, before he crossed his arms and met her eyes, "I would have remembered if we did."

Ashley wasn't convinced, but nodded nevertheless, "Right, never mind then." She dismissed and begun walking away, before it finally hit her.

She remembered the conversation she had with Casey and Ally not to long ago. His eyes slightly resembled Ally's. She spun back around only to find him still watching her, his hands in his pockets.

"Ally. Do you know her? Ally Huxley?" She asked, not exactly sure if he was Alessio or Donovan.

He clenched his jaw and momentarily looked away from her, before he answered her, "Depends on what you know about me."

"What's your name?"

He raised an eyebrow at her and subconsciously took a step towards her, "Are you friends with her?"

Ashley frowned but nodded, watching him carefully. By this point, she had already guessed which of the two guys he was, but decided to humour him and play along.

A sudden smirk snaked across his lips as a dark shadow foamed beneath the surface of his eyes. She clenched her jaw and stood up straighter, feeling an unpleasant shudder race down her spine.

"Well, nice to meet you. I'm Donovan Rummage, and you are?" He said, his voice deeper than it was before.

She parted her lips, about to say that she was just leaving, when Donovan looked behind her. His expression from before suddenly seemed like child's play. His face morphed into a mix of resentment and disgust, a look that scream hate and disdain to whoever it was directed at. Curious, Ashley looked behind her and immediately stiffened. She bit her lip and looked away from him, her mind deciding to remind her about the other night in his room.

Eros walked right past her, not bothering to look at either of them and kept his beautiful eyes ahead of him. Ashley's shoulder's sagged in defeat. She came to the conclusion that whatever they had was indeed over and done with. An aching lump formed in her throat but she refused to show how affected she was by him ignoring her.

"Didn't think I would bump into you this soon, brother." Donovan begun, growling out the last word with as much hate as he could.

Eros ignored him and clenched his jaw. He walked around the corner and disappeared towards the exit; completely disregarding both of them. Ashley looked at a distracted Donovan and decided to take the chance to tip toe away from him and disappear down the hallway. She took a turn on her right and quickly made her way towards the art class studio where she was most likely to find her teacher.

She pursed her lips and came to the conclusion that she didn't want to ever run into Donovan again. She frowned, remembering the foul look he sent Eros. A sudden wave of protectiveness hit her but she shook her head and walked into the classroom.

She wondered what he was doing in school so late. Usually he would be gone to god knows where with Seb and Brock. She pursed her lips and greeted Mrs. Denice with a smile and handed in her project.

"Right on time as usual, Miss. Crowther." She complimented with a nod of approval.

Ashley smiled and thanked her before she made her way out of the room. She opened the door and walked outside, turning back to wave at her teacher goodbye. As she shut the door, however, her smile immediately flattered and her heart dropped twenty feet underground.

Donovan sent her the most sinister smile she has ever seen on a person and pushed off the wall he was leaning on.

I'm so fucked.

Ashley eyed his skinny frame closely. She took a few steps back, putting as much distance between them as she could, her lips pressed into a hard line.

He tilted his head to one side, "I do believe we weren't done talking were we?"

Ashley straightened her back, "I think we were." She said, not wanting to appear weak in front of him.

"It's only fair that I know your name too, don't you think? You already seem to know so much about me." He said, walking towards her, "—tell me, are you close with him too?" He continued, his grin widening, "—you're not dating are you?"

Ashley gritted her teeth, alarm bells ringing in her head. She needed to get out of this situation, and she needed to do it quickly, before it escaped into something worse.

"Listen. Talking to you was clearly a mistake, so I'm going to walk away." She revealed, slowly retreating backwards, "—I wouldn't try anything if I were you." She warned and hunted at the cameras around every bend of the hallway.

Donovan didn't move and creepily watched her walk away. When Ashley was near the corner she fully turned around and fast walked out of the building in the same direction her former roommate had gone; towards the exit. She let out a long breath of relief that she had been holding and placed her hand over her rapidly beating heart.

She heard movement to her right and frowned. She turned her gaze towards it. If her heart had dropped twenty feet underground before, it might as well have reached hell in that moment. Eros Huxley pushed off his black Maserati and met her perplexed gaze. His eyes anxiously roamed all over her face, before lowering to her body and back to her eyes. He held her gaze for a few more beats before he opened the driver's door and wordlessly got in.

Ashley watched him drive off the parking lot and out of the university section of the academy. She stood at that exact spot for a while longer, before realizing who might appear behind her. Fighting of a smile, she walked down the small stairs leading to the parking lot and made her way towards the dorms, needing to tell Ally that she bummed in to Donovan and stupidly engaged in a conversation with him.

🔱🔱🔱

"You're late."

Eros took a seat beside Brock and nodded at Seb.

"Why? You're never late."

Eros clenched his jaw and look at the window behind Seb, "Donovan is in the academy."

Seb and Brock exchanged agitated looks before they looked back at Eros. They were back at the cabin, having been called by Gregor, who was typically yet to show up.

"You bumped into him." Seb concluded, but Eros shook his head.

"He bummed into Ashley."

"Shit, man." Brock growled out, "—they weren't supposed to meet. Ever."

Seb nodded, "You know how curious she is." Seb said, walking towards them and taking a seat besides Brock.

"Is she alright?" Brock asked, hoping like hell she wasn't.

Eros nodded his head.

Seb and Brock visibly relaxed, "But that just means he isn't sure if she's important to you or not."

Eros nodded, frowned and leaned forward, crossing his fingers together and placing his elbows on his thighs.

"Eros...?" Seb begun, and waited for Eros to meet his eyes, before he continued, "—do you really think not talking to her is the right thing to do?"

Eros' frown deepened.

"No, I mean, I understand that Gregor is constantly peering over your shoulder, and now Donovan, but—are you sure there is no other way to go about this?"

Eros looked away from him, "There is no other way. Alberto is her father, I cannot risk involving her, nor do I want Donovan to give her a hard time." He explained.

Brock pursed his lips, "I honestly don't see any other way either, Sebby. If he starts talking to her again, Donovan will probably find out who she is and will be out to get her, and Gregor, well, let's be honest here," he paused and looked over at Seb, "—that crazy fuck might decided to make her a target just to fuck with Eros."

Seb sighed and looked over at Eros who was frowning at the window again, his jaw clenching, "It must really suck." He commented, feeling bad for him.

Eros sighed and suddenly rose to his feet after taking in a long deep breath, "We are leaving." He announced, concluding that Gregor wasn't going to show.

Seb clenched his jaw and held his tongue back, knowing that he didn't want to talk about Ashley any longer. He must really feel terrible, if he was being more dismissive than usual. He followed them out, thinking about the both of them. He had been happy that they finally met each other, but as things were right now, he was beginning to doubt whether it was for the greater good to begin with.

He looked at Eros and noticed the subtle hunch of his shoulders and how he was walking lazier than usual. He gritted his teeth, anger suddenly boiling in his system.

This isn't how things were supposed to turn out.

🔱🔱🔱

It was already getting dark outside when Ashley decieded to go back to the spot she discovered a while ago; when she bummed into the students from the T.S.D.A. She would unfortunately have to walk past them not feeling like walking around the the main parking lot and basketball court just to avoid them. She grimaced when she saw their familiar silhouettes pooping out on the balcony. She pursed her lips and prayed they would just let her pass. Her feet grew closer and closer onto their tuff and her heart begun to paniclly race in her chest. Suddenly, a familiar voice emerged from the building. Ashley looked up then and nearly groaned out loud. 

Blake stepped out of the building with his hands in his pockets and a frown on his face. He hadn't seen her yet as he bid someone farewell from inside. His hazel eyes immediately locked with Ashley's brown ones once he turned away and his steps flattered slightly; a frown immediately gracing his hard, flawless features. Ashley had stopped on her tracks at that moments, contemplating whether or not she should make a run for it. She took too long to decide, however, as Blake stood towering in front of her.

"Hey, Ash." He greeted, reaching for her bag in an unsaid offer to carry it.

"Hi Blakey-boo." Ashley said as she let him slide her back off of her shoulders, "—were you buying...?" She trailed off as they fell into step with him, leading him to where she was planning on going.

Blake scoffed and shook his head, "I was visiting my girlfriend."

Ashley stopped mid step and slowly turned to face him, "Your—who?"

"Girlfriend. Her names's Minsook. Heard you bumped into her." He revealed with a chuckle as he hoisted her bag higher onto his shoulder.

"Oh wow. W-What a small world." Ashley stuttered, leading them down the right path once they reached the junction ahead of them.

"Indeed it is." He said, watching her nervously look anywhere but at him, "—Ash, about last night."

"Well, well, well, look who's back." A somewhat familiar voice said, causing both Ashley and Blake to look up.

Their eyes locked with hard, cold ones, staring back at them from the second floor. Ashley recognized him as the guy Minsook flipped off the last time she was here. He was standing alone with his arms resting on the rail and a glass of what she could only assume was water held in his left hand.

"You really shouldn't be walking around here, sweetheart. Especially not at this hour." He warned, his voice weirdly soothing. He was dressed in a super fitting pink long-sleeve that hug his huge arms nicely, showing off the bumps and ridges of his muscles. 

Ashley cleared her throat and looked away from him, before she got caught simping, "I'm just walking back; taking a short-cut really."

"Yeah? And where could you possibly be headed through here?" He asked, cocking up a nice, thick eyebrow.

"She's with me, Reece."Blake said, standing closer than before.

Reece scoffed and brought the drink to his lips, saying nothing more as he took a sip; all the while keeping his eyes on Ashley. She and Blake continued down the path and disappeared down the corner. Ashley let out a breath she didn't know she was holding and relaxed her muscles.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to that." 

Blake frowned to himself as he watched her, "Why would you need to?"

Ashley sent him a tight smile and pointed to the building on their right, "I found the coolest spot on here. I'm not sure if there's lights though, which is why I wanted to check it out at this hour—" She stopped short when Blake grabbed her hand as she was about to walk in. She frowned and finally met his eyes.

He pursed his lips and let her go, "Thought I saw a spider web." He said, with an embarrassed smile.

Ashley shook her head at him and led them inside. She remembered where she spotted the light switches last time and flicked the ones right next to the entrance on. There was a soft buzzing sound, followed by the lights flickering for a few beats then shining across the whole floor. She grinned and looked back at Blake, seeing him grin back at her.

"Looks like you got lucky."

Ashley led them up the stairs to the roof and pushed the huge metal door open that led to the real paradise. Once inside, she once again reached for the switch by the door, and watched in glee as the string lights above them flickered on one after another, all the way to the end on both sides. Blake let out a huff and leaned by the door, watching Ashley excitedly look from left to right in pure happiness. He shook his head at her,

"You walked into the wrong room."

Ashley froze and processed what he said. Slowly, she realized that he was talking about last night and her cheeks burned with embarrassment. She cleared her throat and walked over to the rails in front of them, leaning her arms up and gazing up at the sky. She pursed her lips and remembered Jason's words. She nearly groaned but instead placed her head on her arms, biting her lip; hard. She was relieved, however, as guilt set in at the fact that she thought Eros would be so careless.

I'm such an idiot.

Blake pushed off the wall and stood next to her, patting her head, "It's alright, we're used to it at this point."

She snapped her head up and glared at him, but this only made his grin widen a huge fraction. He looked away from her then and placed his own arms on the rail, "I'm guessing you don't know what this spot was before it got abandoned, yeah?"

She nodded and looked ahead of them, at the T.S.D.A building. She frowned when she locked eyes with Reece again, who only smirked at her and walked back into his room after a few beats of them awkwardly staring at each other. Ashley shook away the feeling that was brewing in her stomach and paid attention to Blake as he spoke.

"This Academy—." He paused, "—it belonged to Evelyn Huxley before she passed away."

Ashley nodded, having known that much from the school's website, which she had read thoroughly before her admission. Evelyn Huxley was Eros, Ally and Donovan's late mother. She had seen a picture of her before and to say that she was gorgeous wouldn't do her justice. She was immensely beautiful, and the splitting image of Ally; her eyes also greatly resembled Eros' own. 

"This was her secret hideout."

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