“Thanks, Dad,” I say sincerely.
“Are you going to do it?” My dad asks.
“Yeah, Dad. I’m going to do it. I’m going over to her office right now.” I laugh softly. “Holy shit! Yeah, I’m going to do it. I’m going to go and tell her I love her.”
“Go get her, son,” my dad encourages with a laugh.
I make my goodbyes and hang up. Grabbing my jacket, I rush out of my office. I’m really going to do this. Right now. “I have to go,” I call out to my secretary. “Something important has come up, so clear my whole afternoon please.”
“Got it,” she announces, looking a little surprised to see me practically running out of my office.
I run to the elevator and wait impatiently for it. When it finally comes, I hop in and ride it to the ground floor. I hurry across the lobby and by the time I’m outside of the building, I’m actually sprinting towards the parking lot.
I get into my car and drive as fast as I can.
As I approach Ashley’s office, adrenaline floods my system. I am excited and terrified in equal measure. All I have to do is convince Ashley that I love her and that I didn’t want my father to know before she did, and then we can be together. But while it sounds simple, it’s no small task. Ashley was hurt, really hurt, and I’ve seen how stubborn she can be. It’s going to take a lot of work to get her to come around. But that’s okay, because I’m willing to put the work in. I’ll do whatever she wants, wait as long as it takes for her to see this is for real.
I pull up outside of Ashley’s building and my jaw drops open. The building is all closed up, the shutters down. I get out of my car and look around, confirming I’m in the right place. I definitely am. I turn in a slow circle, looking around, as if the answer to what happened here is going to magically appear in front of me.
I mean I know Ashley was upset, but to not come in to work? That’s not like her at all. And why didn’t she get Andrea to open up the place if she couldn’t face coming in?
Eventually, after standing here staring at the building for a few moments, wondering what’s going on, I get back into my car. I think for a moment, then I pull my phone out and call Tyson and ask him to find Ashley’s parents’ address for me. I’m done waiting and I feel like if I don’t do this today, now, I never will. If Ashley isn’t at the office, then I’ll just have to find out where she is and go there. I end the call and sit waiting impatiently for Tyson to get back to me with the address, tapping my fingers against the steering wheel the whole time.
She must be hurt really bad to not even have come to work. God, what the fuck have I done? Nice going, Finn.
I hear a light tapping sound on my window and I glance up.
A scruffy looking kid is standing beside my car.
The old me would have waved her away, shooed her from me like a nuisance stray cat, but the new me, the me Ashley teased out, doesn’t try to get her to go away or ignore her. Instead, I open the window and look up at her. “What’s up kid?” I ask.
“I’m sorry to bother you sir, but I wondered if you maybe had some spare change for a sandwich or something?” The girl asks.
I study her for a moment. She looks to be around fifteen and although she’s a little dirty looking and her clothes have a few holes here and there, she doesn’t look like she’s high or drunk.
As I look at the girl, I hear Ashley’s voice in my head as clear as if she was sitting right here beside me… imagine being fifteen and not having eaten for three days and not one of the adults who you encounter on a daily basis cares enough to help you.
“Sure,” I say. I start rooting around in the glove compartment of my car looking for some change to give her. “Listen kid, do you have any idea what happened to the office here?” I point to Ashley’s building.
“I wish I knew,” the girl said. “The place was a charity that helped kids like me. The lady there would give us food and try to help us.” The girl’s eyes fill with tears. “She was contacting social services for me, trying to get me a place in a foster home. I guess that’s over now.”
“You wanted to go into the system?” I ask, a little surprised to hear it.