Catch or Fall

Chapter Thirty

Ashton

Fuck my birthday.

Fuck my father.

Fuck my life.

Harper has been in hiding for a week. When she left without telling me, I was confused and hurt. Here I was, ready to give up everything for her, and then she'd just run away.

I had no idea that she heard about the engagement Jackson price had set up. I even had no idea about the engagement at all.

Now she's gone, it feels like there's a gaping hole in my heart. How can I tell her the truth? That Jackson Price wants me to marry Samantha Semblat because he wants to make the Semblats his lifetime business partners. Samantha and I are just the collateral damage in this setup.

Fuck Jackson Price. When I told him that I don't want to get engaged to Samantha, the motherfucker just laughed. The asshole is a devil in disguise, I'm sure of that.

My phone rings and see Samantha's name flashing on the screen. Was she able to find Harper?

"Ash, I've got something for you. Please go to Woodsview Mansion. Harper is there waiting for you."

And I just feel my heart jump out of my chest. Harper knows the truth and she believes in me.

"Thank you, Sam," I tell her. Sam has been of great help looking for Harper when the news broke out.

"You've been good to me, Ashton, and I also think you deserve happiness. Good luck."

Once she hangs up, I immediately grab my car keys from my desk. I ran down the stairs and see Adrian blocking my way.

"Where are you going? The party's starting in an hour," he says, surprisingly, sounding calm.

"I don't give a shit about this party. I'm going to get my girl and you can't fucking stop me."

He moves out of the way and holds both his hands up. "Okay."

I give him a look of confusion when I hear Alex scream from behind us. "What are you waiting for? Go get Harper, you moron."

Adrian pulls me in for a brief hug and whispers, "If this is your choice, I'm happy for you. You're brave. And also, I'm sorry."

I return his hug and says, "We'll talk later. I'll go now."

When I get inside the car, an overwhelming feeling takes over me. Adrian's words have made me realize something. Finally, I am not scared.

*

Harper

The moment Ashton sees me, he wastes no time to kiss me. God, I didn't realize how much I missed him until his lips are locked with mine.

This is the feeling that I'm not willing to give up. When I told my parents about Ashton, I know they will disapprove. Mom doesn't want me to get hurt, and my dad doesn't want me to mess with his client. He even offered to give me money and to buy me a posh condo unit if I follow his orders.

But why would I sacrifice my happiness for money or a condo unit? I know mom will understand, and dad, well, he has to go find another client. It's not much of a payment after what he did to mom.

"Fuck, I missed you," he says, sounding like a lump is stuck in his throat. Was he crying?

He holds my hand and whispers, "I'm sorry about everything—the engagement, Jackson Price, and all. I just knew about the engagement when Samantha told me."

"Yeah, she told me everything. I'm grateful that she did," I say.

He nods. I know he's grateful, too.

"Now not to scare you or anything, but your life will be different. After today, Jackson will not go easy on us. He'll cancel all my credit cards and will probably drain all my savings. I'll start from scratch, and will probably have to figure out how to earn my own money. I'll have to learn how to cook, and at the same time, how to do my own laundry. Good thing my tuition is finally paid in full because I have to get used to living a life without all the comfort I'm used to."

"Are you really ready for that?" I ask just to make sure. He's going to give up everything if he chooses to be with me.

"It's not going to be easy..." he pauses. "But I'm ready."

I grab his shirt's collar and pull him towards me so I can kiss him. Just like what I did back when we were still figuring out our feelings for each other.

Yes, things are not going to be easy, but we'll get through this.

Ashton takes my hand and jokes, "I believe we still have a party to crash, babe. We don't want to be late..." He pauses and then adds, "Or fuck the party. Let's just go somewhere else."

"Where?"

"Wherever you tell me to," he answers.

And so we run out of the hotel, off to the future we bravely chose for ourselves.