~*~ Chapter 34 ~*~
NEW YORK CITY, NY – Game Bar – Jan. 12th, 2002 – Saturday
“What happened?” Kirstin looked at Ashley holding his right hand with his left one, pain clearly in his face “What happened?” Kirstin asked again. People were gathering trying to help Barry out. Kirstin felt a deja-vu “What happened?” she asked once again.
“I… Sorry, Kirstin. I know I promised you I wouldn’t do anything, I wasn’t gonna try to help you if he’d try something, but… I just couldn’t. So… I… I punched him… I… Sorry, but he called you a slut! I couldn’t allow him to…” Ashley was trying to apologize himself, but when he heard Barry calling Kirstin a slut, a rush come over his body and he couldn’t control himself. When he realized, his fist was already on Barry’s nose, knocking him down.
“Ash…” Kirstin had no expression on her face “It’s alright.”
“Really? You’re not mad?” Kirstin shook her head “Oh, thank you, Kirstin. It’s just that I really… I… He was… He called you… Oh, man.”
“Ash, it’s alright.” Kirstin said pulling him into a hug “Thank you.” she whispered into his ear.
“What happened here? Kirstin?” Kirstin heard her best friend calling out her name. She backed away from the hug and saw Grace there and Mark helping Barry getting up.
“Grace, I really can’t talk now. I’m going. Me and Ash.”
“But what happened? Who hit Barry?” Grace was clueless.
“I did.” Ashley informed her.
“Why?” Grace couldn’t believe it.
“Because Barry called me a slut and forced me to kiss him.” Kirstin told her friend.
“What?” Grace was incredulous.
“Listen, we gotta go, but call me when you get home, alright?” Kirstin asked her friend and left without hearing her answer.
Outside, Kirstin waved to a taxi and it pulled over. Ashley
got in and then Kirstin.
“Does it still hurt?” Kirstin turned to Ashley after informing the taxi driver where to go.
“What do you think?” Ashley had a weak smile on.
“Oh, baby, I’m so sorry. If I hadn’t asked you to come, or allowed Barry to come, this wouldn’t have happened.”
“No, that’s ok. It was not your fault. It was entirely that Barry guy’s fault.”
“Yeah, well… maybe it was my fault too… maybe I did give him the wrong idea that I wanted to be with him, I don’t know, I was drunk that night. And I…”
“Kirstin, stop it! Even if you did give him the impression you wanted to be with him, you were drunk and it doesn’t give him the right to call you a slut! What was he thinking? That you were just another chick he picks up in bars like that? Chicks that want him because he’s a baseball player? That’s not you!”
“I know, Ash. But still…”
“Kirstin! No! You can’t make this your fault! It’s not! Now, just stop it! It’s his fault and he deserved the punch.”
“Yeah, he did!” Kirstin smiled into Ashley’s big blue eyes. Ashley smiled into hers.
When they got to Kirstin’s apartment building, she was about to pay the taxi driver but Ashley didn’t let her, getting his wallet and paying the driver.
On the way up to Kirstin’s loft, they kept in silence. She unlocked the door and they head in. No one was home. It was about 8 p.m.
“Let me call Tom to see if he’s coming later.” Kirstin informed as she placed her things on the kitchen counter. She dialed the number and sat beside Ashley on the couch “Hey, baby.” she greeted her fiancée over the phone.
“Hey, baby girl.” There was too much noise on the back, Kirstin could hardly hear him talk.
“Still at Luna’s I suppose.”
“Yeah. You can hear the noise, right?” Tom was practically yelling.
“Yeah…” Kirstin smiled to the phone “Do you know what time you’ll get here?”
“No. I still have no idea. Why?”
“Nothing. It’s just that I got home already. Just letting you know. So get out of there as soon as possible.”
“I’ll try my best. How was it with Barry and Mark?”
“I’ll talk about it later, when you’re at home, alright?” Kirstin looked down.
“Ok. Then talk to you later.”
“Alright.”
“I love you.” Tom really screamed this time.
“I love you too, silly. Bye.” Kirstin grinned and hung up the phone. Ashley played with his fingers. Kirstin saw that and made him stop “Hey, I know what playing with your fingers mean. I invented that, remember? Now talk. What’s bothering you?”
“Nothing…” Ashley lied.
“Come on! I invented the playing with your fingers when you’re upset. You can’t hide it from me.” Kirstin smiled at him and he did too.
“It’s just that… I don’t know… you asked me not to protect you, that you could protect yourself from that guy. Now, I’m imagining me not there. What would you have done? He was too strong for you! You couldn’t have done anything!”
“Yeah…” Kirstin looked down and played with her own fingers.
“You want no one to protect you, but you can’t protect yourself, K. And that makes me worried! If I wasn’t there, God knows what that guy would try to do to you!”
“Hm…” Kirstin said nothing.
“Kirstin, just… try to be more careful, alright? Don’t go out with these guys. You… you have… you love Tom. Just… don’t do anything else that stupid.”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
“I know I am.”
“I do love Tom.” Kirstin played with her fingers.
“I know you do.” Ashley played with his fingers.
“I love Tom, but he’s always at Luna’s, so he wouldn’t be there to protect me either.” Kirstin kept playing with her fingers.
“Well…” Ashley stopped playing with fingers and stared at Kirstin “That’s another issue.”
“Yeah… I know… But that just makes me think that I do need…” Kirstin stopped talking.
“What?” Ashley asked after a moment in silence.
“That I… That I do need you.” Kirstin looked
up deeply into Ashley’s eyes and Ashley into hers. Was that a moment?
* Thanx Taryn and Stacie for reviewing and correcting the grammar errors *
~*~ Chapter 33 ~*~
~*~ Chapter 35 ~*~
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