Chapter 6: The Green-Eyed Man

It was 11:00 PM in the Los Angeles. Ashley sat in a rooftop restaurant with her laptop in front of her. Unbothered by anything or anyone in the background, she continued to type. Her headphones had been put on.

Ashley's mind was a mess, and writing was the only way she could take her mind off her problems. After what Nathan did to her, she couldn't stand his presence any longer. Luckily, she had received a message from her manager, Jonathan, about the 'Treasure Charity Event' being moved forward. Hence, at dawn, she booked a flight to LA and left at 8:00 AM.

As the loud music played in her ears, she felt a tap on her shoulder. Ashley raised her head to see a platinum blonde haired man. His lips were moving but Ashley didn't hear a thing. The young woman had a confused face on. The man laughed and took off her headphones. "You were listening to music"

Ashley made an 'oh' face before tucking her hair behind her ear in embarrassment. She then took her headphones from the man and placed it on the table. "I'm sorry. What were you asking?"

The man laughed, a dimple appearing on the left side of his face. Ashley couldn't help but look into his dark green eyes. It was exactly like her mother's which made her feel a sense of familiarity. Ashley couldn't help but smile back, two dimples appearing on both sides of her face.

"I was asking if that seat was taken.", he said, pointing to the seat opposite. Ashley shook her head.

"No, it's not."

The man smiled once again and took a seat, taking his bag off his shoulder and placing it on the ground before bringing out his laptop. "Thank you"

Seeing that he had begun his work, Ashley too got back to hers. Few minutes in, she received a call. Seeing that it was Isabelle, she automatically picked up and put it on speaker mode.

"Ash..."

"Hmmm." Ashley responded with a hum. After a few moments of silence, Ashley heard the young woman's loud voice.

"You're the worst friend ever. I don't think I can keep going on."

Ashley looked at the phone in alarm. "What are you saying? What did I do?"

"You freaking abandoned me at the club!" Isabelle's shrieked causing Ashley to pull the phone away from her ear. The loud shriek attracted the attention of the young man opposite her, making Ashley blush in embarrassment. She put the phone out of speaker mode.

"I'm so sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to.", Ashley said softly, putting the phone to her ear.

"You ran away from me, for goodness' sake. And when I tried to contact you later on, I wasn't able to reach you." Isabelle's loud voice was still heard by the man on the other side of the table.

"Me running away was not… well, I didn't mean to run away. And the reason you couldn't get to me was because… I was admitted to the hospital."

Another shriek was heard "What?!" Ashley couldn't help but pull the phone away from her ear once again. Isabelle's voice was so loud, she thought she would go deaf. "Why didn't you inform me?"

"I was put under tight security by you know who." She explained. "I wasn't allowed to go out or touch my phone."

Ashley heard a sigh from the young woman on the phone. "Aargh! When are you going to divorce that man?!"

"Soon.", Ashley replied, bringing the phone back to her ear. There was a pause from Isabelle.

"Seriously?" There was a hint of happiness in her voice. "Yeah", Ashley replied smilingly.

A squeal was heard, causing Ashley to almost throw her phone away. "OMG! Ash, I love you." "You're excited I'm getting divorced?", Ashley asked with a smile on her face, her brows raised in amusement. Her eyes stayed on the laptop screen as her left hand tapped on the glass with apple juice on the table

"I want what's best for you. And no matter how perfect he is, I gotta say that he's not the right man for you. My Ash deserves the best of the best." Ashley's gaze moved to the man in front of her. Coincidentally, their eyes met. She quickly moved her eyes away.

"So, when are you getting divorced?" Isabelle asked to which Ashley replied quickly. "In about a month."

Another squeal escaped Isabelle's lips and Ashley pulled the phone away, blocking the sound from her phone with her hand. "Relax, Isa."

"Okay, okay." The sound of a door opening was heard from the other side. "Well, Ash, I gotta go. I'm having dinner with mom and dad."

"Sure, tell them I said 'hi'."

Ashley immediately heard a middle-aged man and woman's voices from Isabelle's side. "Hi Ash, how have you been?" "I've been great.", Ashley replied, smiling.

"That's good. Don't forget to take care of yourself." Isabelle's mother said. "Okay, Mrs. Lockwood."

"And visit us some time." Isabelle's father said

"Alright, Mr. Lockwood."

"That's it. Bye, Ash." Isabelle snatched the phone.

"Bye"

She then hung up. Ashley still had a smile on her face as she looked down at her phone. Every time she spoke to the Lockwoods, she felt a sense of satisfaction. To her, the Lockwoods were a complete and happy family.

Ashley looked up and gave a bashful smile. "I'm so sorry about my friend." The green-eyed man smiled at her. "No problem." He then chuckled, exposing his perfect, white teeth. "You have an interesting friend."

Ashley smiled, melancholia in her voice. "She is the best of the few friends I have."

"I wouldn't mind us being friends." The man looked into her eyes. Ashley felt a gnawing sense of familiarity. "I'm William but you can call me Will." He extended his arm for a handshake.

The sense of familiarity she felt towards the man made Ashley curious. She felt it wouldn't hurt to get to know him more. She beamed at him and gave him a handshake. "I'm Ashley but you can call me Ash."

Ashley and William hit it off very quickly. The two deserted their work and began to chat. Ashley didn't know why, but she felt safe around him.

It was almost 1:00 AM and the restaurant was closing. "Should I drop you off?" William asked, swinging his bag over his shoulder.

Ashley had a grateful look on her face, but she shook her head. "Thank you but I have a ride." William stared at her. "Are you sure you'll be okay? I don't want my new friend getting hurt." Ashley chuckled

"If anything happens, I'll call you. I have your number, after all." She waved her phone at him

"Alright, then I'll be leaving first."

"Sure."

William smiled and waved as he walked away. Soon, he was out of sight. After, Ashley too was on her way. When she got to her car, she received a phone call.

It was Leticia.

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