The two walked along the bike trail back to the park near Presley Place. They weren’t on bikes this time around so the trek took a bit longer. The atmosphere was a bit tense; they didn’t say anything to each other for the first few minutes.

Will was still trying to open up even to people close to him, and Ashley had exhausted herself from her earlier rants. Even though they’d spent the last half-an-hour having a conversation, they both walked side-by-side hoping the other would start a conversation, any conversation.

Halfway between their walk from Fate’s Hill, Will broke the silence.

“You and Nathan. How long have you two been friends,” Will asked Ashley.

“Hmm, let me think,” she answered him. “Was it second grade? No, that’s right. It was third. Yeah that’s when we met.”

“That far back, huh?”

Ashley let out a small chuckle upon Will’s question, “That far back? We’re not that old. But yeah, can’t forget that day we met. It was recess. I was sitting at one of the benches in our playground reading a book on the foundations of computer science. He came up to me and said, ‘you’ve got a pretty face.’ Honest to God, those were his actual words.”

“No, I believe you. He would say something like that.”

“Later on, he told me that he was dared by his classmates to come to me and say that. But at the time, I just smiled and thanked him for the compliment. When I did, he turned back to the classmates and yelled, ‘I TOLD YOU I’D DO IT, DUDES!’”

“Him adding a ‘dude’ in every sentence isn’t a recent phase I see.”

Ashley laughed quietly again, “No, it isn’t. He turned back to me and officially introduced himself to me after that. From there we would hang out with each other every day during recess. When we found out we lived a street from each other, we’d hang out and play with each other on the weekends too.”

Will started to ask, “He ever try to…” He got nervous at the next part. “Try to…hit on you? Like for real?”

“Hmm, not really. He might’ve called everyone dude since he was a kid. But this whole hitting on every girl he comes across thing is new. Part of it might be puberty. Or it might be that breakup.”

“Breakup?”

“Er…I’d rather not get too heavy into that. Let him tell you that story.”

“Okay.”

“Even if Nathan did hit on me, it wouldn’t had led to anything. He’s a good friend but he’s not my type romantically.”

Will got tense yet again as he asked his next question. “You’re more into guys…guys like Shawn?”

Ashley’s face blushed in a way that she couldn’t cover up even if she tried her hardest. “Shawn? No, no, no, no, nooooo. Even our friendship, if you can call it that, is one of convenience for the both of us. I help him with social studies homework, and he’d invite me to his amazing birthday parties. Even when you saw us together that night, he was asking if I could help him with biology work. Besides, the only way we’d end up together is if I woke up tomorrow a busty cheerleader.”

As the two reached the beginning of the bike trail, Ashley’s tone of nervousness became one of defensiveness. “You’re awfully interested in my love life, Will.”

“I..uh..was…just trying to…”

Before Will could finish his stuttering, Ashley asked him, “YOU ever dated anyone before? Or even had a crush on someone?”

Before he realized her name escaped his mouth, Will blurted out, “April.”

“Who’s that?” Ashley asked fully intrigued by Will’s answer and how quickly he gave it.

Will knew he couldn’t take his answer. He explained, “she’s the girl I told you about last week. The one who…who died in the car crash.”

“Oh. I didn’t mean to…”

“It’s fine. I’ve come to terms with what happened. Anyway, we were friends for a long time. I didn’t think of us as anything other than that. But…”

“Buuuuut?” Ashley asked.

“But that night, when it happened, when were at the movies. It was the scene when the Jedi council was going on about why Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi shouldn’t train Anakin Skywalker and…”

“Jedi council? Qui-Gon Jinn? Anakin Skywalker?” Ashley asked not sure what Will was talking about.

“Star Wars Episode One. Trust me, you aren’t missing much.”

“I’ll take your word for it.”

Will continued, “I noticed April was only half awake at this point. I couldn’t blame her, though. I was about to fade out myself. But then I also noticed that her hand was on mine on the armrest. I thought it was by accident at first, that she was just getting comfortable as she was falling asleep.

I tried to free my hand from under hers without her noticing. But when I did, her eyes opened up completely. She didn’t look at me at first, but she clenched on my hand with a little bit of pressure. It implied that she intended to have her hand on top of mines. She turned to me and gave me the warmest, most endearing smile ever. Then she leaned in towards me. I was sweating bullets, I could hear my heart beat louder than the sound of the lightsabers on the big screen. And…and…”

“And?” Ashley asked now more interested than ever.

Will tilted his head down in embarrassment and shame. He finished with, “I got out of my seat as fast as I could and told her I had to go to the bathroom. Then I hauled ass out of the theater.”

“Oh…wow. Awkward!”

“Tell me about it,” Will agreed. “I came back to my seat five minutes later. She was still there but her hand wasn’t on the armrest anymore. I don’t think either one of us said anything to each other for the rest of the movie.”

At this time, Will and Ashley had made it to Presley Place. There were a few streets to go until they reached Will’s house on Penley Avenue. They continued the conversation.

“Hey wait a minute,” Ashley said.

“Yeah?”

“You said you two were at the Star Wars movie, the one that came out earlier this year.”

“Yeah but it didn’t hit the local theater in Salem until like June.”

“Right. And your family came to Ingram Park in July?”

“What are you getting at, Ashley?”

“April had to know you guys were moving soon.”

“She did. So?”

“So, wouldn’t it be fair to say that she was using going to the movie with you, on your birthday no less, as her last opportunity to show you how she really felt about you?”

Will stopped in his tracks upon Ashley’s question. Ashley took a few more steps before realizing that Will was now behind her. She turned around and regrouped with him.

Will had his hands out in front of him. He looked down on them wracked with guilt, as if there was blood on them. “I…never thought that…I..I spent the rest of the movie trying to avoid her. And…and then...”

Ashley took note of the look of lifelessness on Will. She reached out to comfort him.

“Will,” she called out to him.

“I’m…I’m okay,” Will anxiously assured her. He let out a heavy breath of air. “I didn’t understand what I had with April. Until her last breath, I persistently tried to reject what she was offering me: friendship, and even more than that. I constantly pushed her away because I was afraid, afraid to embrace people, thinking that everyone was against me even if it didn’t seem that way. I was afraid to live.”

Will put his hands back to his sides, clenched his fists, and lifted his head back up. With a huge burst of passion, he said, “but never again. I’m going to keep that promise I made to April. I’m not going to push people away anymore. I’m going to live my life.” He looked to Ashley and said to her, “and you and Nate are going to help.”

“We are?” Ashley asked.

“Yup. You guys have already helped me a lot, not just with adjusting here, but with closing the darker chapters of my past. And, if last week was any indication, I got the feeling that there’s never going to be a dull moment as long as I stick with you two, which could be a good thing.”

The two continued walking through the neighborhood. Ashley said, “friendship goes both ways. If we help you, you gotta help us when we need it too.”

Will smiled at Ashley and said, “Well, I don’t know much about computers or flirting with every girl in school. But I’m sure I can help you guys in other ways, and I will.”

They were now on the corner of Presley Place’s main road and Penley Avenue near Will’s house.

“You promise?” Ashley asked. She stuck out the pinky finger of her right hand out to Will. When seeing Ashley’s pinky, Will was reminded of when April made him pinky promise to her just a few months prior. Without as much hesitation as at that time, Will extended his left pinky to interlock with Ashley’s and responded with, “yeah, I promise.”

“Good, I’ll hold you to it.” Ashley unlocked her pinky from Will’s. She started walking towards her street again. She turned to Will and waved at him. “See you at school tomorrow,” and walked off.