I stare down at our hands again and this time span my fingers out so our palms are pressed together. The pads of her fingers rest right below mine, her hand almost hidden by the size of mine. I bend my fingers so they intertwine with hers and hold her hand tightly. Even as a kid, I would turn all of our pinky promises into an excuse to hold her hand. I do it now and the action comes to me like muscle memory.

"Are you really okay?" She asks me so quietly that if I hadn't been staring at her lips, I wouldn't have known what she said.

"I will be." I can't lie to her. I can't break a pinky promise like that.

"I'm here if you need me, Ash. I really am."

This time her words sound a lot more genuine then when she said them to me last time, a couple of days ago. This time she says them to me like the old Ria would say to the old Ash and I can't help my smile.

"I know, Princess." I murmur. Her lips twitch in amusement like they always do at the use of my nickname she pretends to hate. Without thinking, I cup her chin with my free hand, brushing my thumb over her bottom lip feather-light.

Her mouth parts and I feel the shaky breath that leaves her. When I drag my eyes away from her lips, I find her staring at me with slightly wide eyes. It's only then that I realize what I'm doing — that I got too caught up in the moment. Shit. I need to stop.

I squint my eyes so I can try and see through the darkness and faintly recognize a hunched figure. If I really concentrate, I can tell the shoulders are slightly shaking and the sounds are definitely coming from over there which means...it's Aria who's crying. My gut sinks heavily when I realize it.

Princess.

Shit. I need to go to her. Why is she crying? Who the fuck did this to her?

I'm equal parts livid and worried as I quickly climb the branch outside my balcony to get closer to hers, jumping down and landing on my feet perfectly. I've been doing this for years now and it's practically muscle memory. Her French doors are closed but her curtains are open so I can see her. I knock quietly, not so loud that it would wake anyone up but just to get her attention. I see her head snap up but still can't see her face because of the darkness of the room. I take one step as she slowly makes her way to me and opens the door even slower. My stomach only tightens when her tear-stricken cheeks and puffy eyes greet me back.

Who did this to my Ria?

"What happened?" I whisper and hug her to me when she starts to move away. I hate that she feels embarrassed crying in front of me. She should know by now I'll always be here for her to make things better. I'll always protect her.

"It's nothing." She tells me through a thick voice. "I'm sorry if I woke you up."

"Shut up." I mutter and immediately shoot down her attempt to play this moment off. She should know we don't have to pretend in front of each other, either. "I've got you."

"Thank you. I...I needed that. You always did know what to say to me."

"Not always." His lips twitch. "Most of the time I said the wrong thing and pissed you off."

I laugh softly at the truth of his words. "That's because you never knew how to express yourself. Even the nicest things you said came out aggressive."

He snorts. "I'm still working on it."

"You've gotten better."

"Because you kicked my ass every step of the way."

"Can't say I regret it."

"Me neither." His lips tug into one of his rare smiles that immediately soften his face. My eyes fall to the teasing indent of his dimple that stays hidden behind his scowl and rarely makes an appearance.

"Sometimes I forget you have this." I tap it for emphasis without thinking and quickly retract my hand. I don't know what came over me. He doesn't seem to mind though as his smile widens by the tiniest inch.

"Who said I was making fun of you?" He throws his hands up in exasperation.

"Well, you weren't exactly saying nice things either." I rub my temple. Nobody gets on my nerves like Asher. "I'm over this conversation. Just let me go."

"Stop." He murmurs firmly but gently. He takes a step closer and I tip my head slightly back to look at him. I'm the tallest girl in school and Asher is probably the only boy who's more than a couple of inches taller. "I wasn't trying to be mean about the way you look. That's the last thing you need to worry about anyways, Ria. You're easily the prettiest girl I know. You know, for a brat."

That weird feeling I had in my chest earlier? It transforms into something weirder at his words and for the first time since knowing him, I actually feel nervous and kind of shy around Ash. There is seriously something wrong with the universe today.

"Well..." I stumble over what to say. I've never had any problems with comebacks either but right now, my brain blanks out for some reason. It's hard to think past the thumping in my ear. Why is my heart beating faster? It's not like I've never been called pretty before but...this is the first time Ash has told me that. Why is it freaking me out? "Thanks, I think."

His lips twitch and his eyes are full of teasing. "Why are you blushing?"

"I'm not." I almost stomp my foot, especially when I feel my face growing even warmer. Freaking jerk.

_______________________