Angels and Guardians Pt. 04

"Well, it happened right after you left...a week later. Do you remember Ashley Roberts?"

"Sure, she's the new girl who fell in practice and Joe caught. I remember that she was getting some practice on our cheers, so I sat out. It would have been me, if not for that."

Sister Kate nodded. "That's right. Well, she would have been killed by a semi if Joe hadn't put his car in between. They were in the hospital about the same amount of time, but Joe's head hit his window when Ashley hit him. He was in a coma for two weeks, and it didn't look good for a while."

Kim put her hand to her mouth. Joe said pretty much the same, but now it hit her. "But, he looks fine."

"Yes, he does now. That's where the excitement starts. The wreck grabbed a lot of media attention, as it closed down a very busy stretch of road for 5 hours. A couple of witnesses reported seeing his car tear around Ashley's and stop in front of her just before the truck rammed him. He was labeled an instant hero, as all involved survived the collision. Unfortunately, the driver of the truck had passed away well before the accident. Joe's well-known family name fanned the media fire."

"Wow, that is excitement."

Kim soaked up all the information. She had pieced together earlier that Joe and Ashley were an item, using the clues Joe had given her. Now, she had pretty much the whole story on how it happened. She couldn't help but feel disappointed that the chance to be back with her former lover was now long gone. But, at the same time, she was even happier for him.

Sister Kate broke her thoughts. "Do you miss your little club?" she asked as she eyed Kim's throat.

Kim's fingers instinctively reached up and toyed with her pendant. "Excuse me?"

"Oh come now...I'm not stupid. Your group of friends who all wear the same jewelry and worship Joe. When I first saw the pendants on Jasmine, Jill, and you, I was afraid Joe was marking his conquests. But then, I realized that unless one of you were actively dating him, y'all acted more like siblings. Always around each other whenever possible, comforting each other through their rough patches. It's a strong bond y'all have. Do you miss having that up there?"

Kim sighed. "Every day. But, my time with them had given me tools to feel strong enough to cope with facing a new, big city and school." Just then the text from Joe came through.

Sister Kate noticed the pained look on Kim's face as she read the message. "Well, Kim, I won't keep you. I know there's other staff you'd like to see."

Kim thanked her and hugged her former principal goodbye. She walked out of the office and headed for the courtyard outside the cafeteria, typing her reply as she walked.

Joe's phone beeped as it received the message. The dean snapped her head around. "Need I remind you all about the phone policy in class? It even applies to study hall," she announced to the students in the library.

Joe mumbled a "sorry," read the message and shut his phone off. He scribbled out a "meet me in the courtyard after class. Please?" on a piece of scrap paper. Joe took the note upstairs and dropped it on the desk in front of Ashley, who was still crying. He was tempted to stop and try to comfort her, but figured it wouldn't help. Besides, the second floor was basically an oversized balcony ringing the wall. If she started to make a scene, it would be a very big one that everyone in study hall would witness.

Before long, the PA rambled off the last announcements of the day, followed shortly by the dismissal bell. Joe waited for Ashley at the bottom of the stairs. "What do you want, Joe?" she asked, sounding weary from crying.

"Just let's go to the courtyard so we can be away from everybody."

She trudged next to him on the way, but froze when she saw Kim waiting for them. "Oh hell no!" Ashley spun on her heel and started walking determinedly back inside.

Joe took two large strides and grabbed her arm, stopping her. "Please Ashley."

She stared holes through his hand on her arm. "I told you not to touch me," she hissed.

"Please, just trust me..."

"Tr..Trust you? I say 'don't touch' yet you're touching me. You say let's go here to be alone, yet you ambush me with her! What's left to trust?!" She stepped to break away, but he held firm. "I said, LET GO!"

Kim rushed over. "Please Ashley, sit with us a minute?" She saw pain, rage, and disappointment in her eyes. But, what she recognized most was panic. "You've been held captive before, haven't you? Maybe not literally, but still...Joe release her arm. Now!"

Ashley was stunned by Kim's comment. Enough to make her listen for a second. "What did you say?"

As Kim spoke, she turned back to the courtyard, drawing Ashley with her. "Captive. I saw it in your eyes when Joe grabbed your arm. I know, I've been there. But trust your head...Joe would never do that to you. He only grabbed you to have you listen to me. He couldn't know you have that in your past."

"Yes, but how could YOU have known that I've felt that way in the past?"

"Like I said, I saw it in your eyes. That cornered panicked feeling when you're being made to do or face something you don't want to. Yes. I know that well. What was it? Boyfriend? Teacher?"

"My boyfriend whom I broke up with recently," she answered quietly as she sat down.

"Let me guess, he wanted it over and over, and you let him, even though you didn't want him to. Something in you head said to report it, but the other side said, well you let him, so it's not rape."

Ashley looked at Kim as if she were from Mars. "Who have you been talking to?"

"Sweetheart, I don't have to talk to anyone, I just know. My brother was my captor...I won't say more, because you can figure out the rest, as you've been in the exact same place. But enough about that. I didn't ask you here for that. There's been a huge misunderstanding between you and Joe. I took myself out of his equation the moment I told him we were being transferred. I see you've joined us Angels. I'm sure you deserve that necklace, and in time you'll understand and allow yourself to trust anyone who wears one as you trust yourself."

Ashley sighed deeply through her nose. A mere hour ago, she hated this perceived rival, but now she sat next to Kim, listening to her as a student listens to her mentor. "I saw you two together today and I just knew in my heart that everything I'd worked for with Joe was disappearing. Now, I'd have to work harder just to keep him. My head kept telling me to give him a chance. But, man, I just couldn't bring myself to reason."

"You can keep him, dear. As long as you want. If it makes you feel better, I'm only in town to visit. I leave Thursday."

Ashley didn't know why, but the last two sentences were unnecessary. Kim had somehow already won her trust. "Can you make it Sunday? We have sort of a gig for a radio spot Saturday night and it'd be cool if you were there, too."

Joe raised his eyes at the sudden turnaround, but then again, Kim had a knack for turning things around and winning people over.

Kim hesitated. "Uh, I got a great deal on my plane ticket. I'm not sure I can change the return flight."

Joe spoke for the first time since Kim took over. "If they won't, I'll buy you a new ticket for Sunday morning."

Kim relied, "I know you would, I just didn't want to ask that."

"And you didn't, did you?"

She got up and kissed him. "No, but thank you!" Kim paused and turned to Ashley... "I'm sorry, old habit."

Ashley beamed at her. "You didn't have to apologize. Though I'm glad you did."

Kim bent down to hug Ashley, who was still sitting on the bench. "I'm sorry how it looked earlier to you. I was just happy to see him again." Then in a whisper, "don't lose your intuition, just fine tune it." She noticed the questioning look. "I was hoping for a bit of a quick fling, but that was before I knew about you two. I'm sorry."

Ashley whispered back, "you still can. Just ask before you borrow him." Kim looked at her, but Ashley continued, "I want to keep his heart and soul to myself, but my friends can borrow his body on occasion."

"I'll keep that in mind," Kim said, pleased Ashley now considered her a friend. "Excuse me, you two. I want to tell my parents that I'm coming back a little later than planned." She pulled her phone out of her back pocket and started dialing as she walked away.

Ashley stood slowly, went to Joe and buried her head in his chest. "I'm sorry," she whimpered.

"I don't know, I just couldn't help but think the worst. I love you, and I can't stand the thought of losing you."

Joe put his arms around her. "I know, I love you too! You won't lose me. I'm sorry you felt I was cornering you. I didn't mean for that."

"You couldn't have known what I was feeling. I didn't know what I was feeling until Kim called me on it." She sniffed back the last tear, and checked around to ensure they were alone. "Anyway, I'll trust you from now on, no matter how hard it seems at that point."

"Well, thank you...I trust you, too," he replied, a bit bewildered at the last part.

Ashley's face blushed a bit. "No, let me finish. She came down to be with you physically, Joe...now that I know to trust you enough, I'm giving you both permission to enjoy it if it happens. Just promise you'll keep your heart with me."

"Ash, that's probably..." he stopped himself, remembering her earlier admonishment about using her abbreviated name.

"No, go ahead, you can call me what you want, now," she grinned up at him.

He smiled, relaxing for the first time since this started. "Ash, that's probably not going to happen. I'm too involved with you."

She flashed him a happy smile. "You're sweet. But, you're missing out on something very nice, I think," she teased. Ashley twirled around, grabbing his hand to lead him into the cafeteria. "Now come on! I want you to buy me a snack. I don't want to pass out at practice!"

Chapter 16

"Work" Party

Ashley and Joe were sitting at one of the front tables, having retrieved a package of snack cakes and a soda from the vending machines. Kim came bouncing in and perched herself on the table, her feet resting on the seat of a chair in front of her. "Guess what Ashley?" she asked with impeccable timing as Ashley had just bitten off a large piece of the cake. Ashley just shrugged her shoulders. "Mom said I could stay until Sunday morning!"

Ashley gulped the morsel down as fast as she could. "Yay! Saturday is gonna be so much fun!" she squealed.

"Sure...what exactly is going on then?"

Ashley gave a tiny version of what happened only last night, concluding with the invitation to guest-host the remote at The Shack, a hot dance club about an hour away.

Kim was excited. It had been Summer since she went clubbing, and to see her friends work the airwaves would be a hoot. "Sure does sound like fun! I can't wait!" Joe got up to get a sports drink from one of the machines. "Hey, when does practice start? 3:00 or 3:30?"

Both answered, "3:30." Joe called his answer from the other side of the cafeteria. Ashley asked, "are you staying for practice?"

"I thought I would...don't have a ride until y'all get out."

Joe strode back to the table. "You planning to stay at my house?"

Kim nervously answered, "I was hoping to...is it a bother?"

"Of course not. You know that! You can have the room on the other side of Ashley."

The wheels turned in Kim's head. "Ashley has a room? I thought they were all 'guest' rooms?"

"Well, yeah. But, a few weeks ago, my folks took Ashley in."

Ashley seemed to shrink in her seat, embarrassed as to why she moved in with Joe's family.

Kim pressed for details. "Where's her parents, are they ok?"

Ashley spoke up, but still slouched low in her seat, "hey! I'm still here!"

Joe smiled in her direction. "Easy, Ashley! There was a fight over what the TV station aired of the talent show. My parents were kind enough to invite Ashley to stay. If he weren't so busy, I'd say my dad had a crush on her."

Ashley didn't go down without swinging in this play fight, saying, "now, I thought it was your mom who had the crush on me!" She stuck her tongue out at Joe.

From behind them came Jill's voice. "What? Joe's mom has a crush on Ashley?"

Ashley thrust her fists in the air, pleased to have started a new rumor. "Score!! In your face, Joe!"

"I'd rather have you in my face!" He kissed her deeply, which prompted a chorus of "AWWWW" from Kim and Jill.

Jill looked at Kim and said, "Yup, he still has that silver tongue going for him."

Kim nodded. "And people tell me I could win anyone over. He puts me to shame!"

Joe broke the kiss, laughing. Ashley pouted, "what?"

"I don't know, Kim. You can certainly hold your own on winning people over. You defused this little bomb today!"

Ashley's face saddened. "Hey, stop talking about me like I'm not here, guys! I am not a bomb, that was a misunderstanding that Kim pointed out to me, that's all."

Joe grabbed her ponytail and twirled it like a propeller to mess with her. "I don't think so, sweetie. You were about to drive your car off a cliff, and you know it."

Weird, she thought to herself. Someone screwing with her hair like this usually pissed her off. But, with Joe doing it, it was playful, and she adored it. She sat still, letting him fling it around and around to his liking. "Fine", she answered finally.

Ashley sat quietly, letting Joe play with her hair while Jill and Kim watched. Jill spoke up after a bit. "Well, practice starts in 15 minutes...Joe, what the hell are you doing?" she asked, distracted.

"Look!" he said gleefully. "If I do it fast enough, it looks like a big cherry!"

Kim rolled her eyes. "Will you ever grow up? You're gonna give your girlfriend a headache."

"Good," he answered with a wink. "Then I can cure it later tonight in bed."

Jill and Kim groaned in good humor as they slid off the table and headed toward the door. Ashley got up and sat in Joe's lap, kissing him. "I do kinda have a headache. Can you make it go away, big boy?" He responded by making out with her a few minutes before they headed to practice.

"So, what was that about a misunderstanding earlier in the cafeteria?" Jill was driving Joe and Jasmine to his house. Ashley was driving Kim in her Z3. Jill only heard part of the conversation, and it piqued her interest. Joe explained how Ashley saw Kim jump on him in the hallway, figured the worst, and went straight to the library for study hall. He related how when he tried to explain what it was really about, it sounded worse and worse. He intentionally left out the imprisoned comments, but said that Kim was able to charm Ashley into trusting her and Joe's innocence.

Jasmine listened intently and cautioned Joe that even though Ashley is strong, when it comes to relationships, she is as fragile as glass. And, she will be until the hurt of Bill passes.

Jill nodded. "I'm concerned, Joe. If it doesn't work out, and you fuck up letting her go gently, she may actually drive off a cliff. Be careful with her heart. Let her know EXACTLY what you are feeling and thinking all the time. Don't let her build something up in her head, only to have it not be true and come crashing down on her. It sounds like you saw a snippet of that today."

Jasmine piped back in. "Yeah. Her heart might be screaming at her to trust you. But, she is very smart. She's been hurt following that heart before, even physically sometimes. She might listen to her imagination instead next time."

Joe sighed. "I know you're right, but that's only if things don't work out. Right now I don't see that happening. I love her completely."

Jill asked, "what if you hurt her, not meaning to?"

"I wouldn't."

Jasmine pressed on, "what if you slept with Kim this week? What do you think Ashley would do then?"

"Actually, she kinda gave me permission to do so, if Kim wants."

Jill kept the tag team going. "Oh yeah? She said 'kinda' the same thing to Jasmine."

"Yeah, I know."

Jasmine said, "You do. Huh...well nevermind that right now. Jill and I were talking about it today, and we decided that it would be best if we didn't. At least, not without her being there. I think it would be wise for you to do the same with Kim. Unless Ashley is right there, undressing and presenting Kim to you on a fucking silver platter, don't touch Kim."

"Well, why are you scolding me? I haven't done anything," Joe defended.

Jill said sternly, "We're not...just warning you."

"Thanks, but who says Kim is even interested in that with me any more? It's not going to happen, so just drop it, ok?"

Jasmine softened a bit. "Oh, she's interested. Trust me. Just keep Ashley in mind if something comes up, ok?"

The conversation ended as Jill pulled up to the gate. Joe told them to go in and that he would join them shortly. They all filed inside, heading to the showers, except Ashley. She went up to Joe and kissed him. He looked at her and said, "I'll be in in a minute."

"What's up?"

"I just gotta take care of something. I'll see ya in a bit, ok?"

Ashley looked at him suspiciously, but relented. Joe waited for the front door to close before he trotted out the gate. When he first saw the car as they drove up the street, he wondered if Bill had made some moves to threaten Ashley. But, as he jogged closer, his thoughts grew darker. It wasn't an undercover police car, this was one of the company's security fleet. He walked around the back of the car, keeping an unobstructed view of his property for the officer. It was an etiquette one of the officers taught him before he graduated eighth grade. "Hey Joe," the officer greeted him as he came up to the driver side.

"Hey, Matt. What's going on?"

Matt explained that talks were deteriorating, and some of the managers from both sides had stormed out of today's meeting. "We thought it would be best to keep an eye on the house for a while."

"Anything specific I should know about?"

"Nah, Joe...enjoy your party with those pretty girls of yours." He grinned, knowingly.

"You keep teasing me about that, but it's not like that."

"Well, maybe it should be. Ha! Well, whatever it is, go on back to it. We got this."

Joe grinned at the joke, nodded, and headed back.

Joe, his friends, and his parents were sitting around the dining table, eating the meal Joe prepared after his shower. Kim was busy answering the elder Smiths' questions about her new city, while the others listened intently. After relating a longer story, Kim asked Jill if the others were joining them later. Jill said no, Allison, Sally, and Marybeth all wanted to study for tests this week with their boyfriends. Something suddenly dawned on Joe. Ashley noticed it first, but his mom beat her to the question, "What is it, Joe? It's like you just saw a ghost."

Joe shook his head clear. "Oh...nothing, a touch of deja vu."

Dinner broke up shortly later, with the girls falling into their routine of cleaning up the dining room and kitchen. Joe joined his parents in the den, and asked them if there was any news from work. They told him that Greedy Electronics had started the process to attempt the hostile takeover. Joe asked how it was possible to take over a private company that didn't want to be bought. His dad explained that they were using an old trick, negotiating with the company's lenders to buy Carter's loans. Once they buy the capital loans, they effectively hold the title to the company. His mom said that they held a meeting with key managers from both sides, for and against the sale of the company. When his dad laid out his plan to pay off the loans before Greedy could buy them, some with their personal money, the discussion got heated. The arguments escalated to a shouting match, resulting in some of the managers storming out. Joe commented that it didn't sound good. His dad said that there was an increasing chance the family may lose the company, either through losing all the key people, or some other means invented by Greedy. Joe pondered this and asked what they wanted to do. Keep the company at any cost, or sell it. His mom said they'd rather keep it, but they had financial plans in place that they would still live very well, should they lose it.