That day Mr. C held onto Ashley. He let her make all the decisions, he followed her lead. He didn’t push, he was just there for her. There was crying, lots of crying, but unbelievingly there was laughter. He had put her under his wing and accepted her, faults and all, and with out passing judgment he offered her a family.

                            Ashley parked her car in her usual parking space in front of the house she shared with Chelsea. This was the first day she was home before dark, the first time she would be walking through the door when people would most likely be behind it, and awake. To be honest with herself she hadn’t seen Chelsea or Sean in probably close to a month, let alone Spencer. She put the car in park and stepped out into the sun. she closed and locked the door and proceeded to close the gap from her car to the door. She walked in and was met with a surprised Chelsea. Ashley gave her a timid smile, to be honest she was waiting for Chelsea to slap her or something, she knew she deserved, she had just disappeared and here she was just waltzing back in like she never walked out. Ashley walked over to Sean Ashley, her namesake, she cooed at him, he was almost a year old now, and had grown a lot in a month, which, just made this, that much harder. She abandoned her best friend, her baby the people who she loved the most, and she was done with being that coward, she had to fix this, everything, herself. She knew it would hurt but sometimes the bad had to come before the good, maybe than when good did flash in front of your face, you’d know it, you’d grab a hold of it and know not to let it go again, if you were lucky to have said second chance. There would be yelling, arguing, accusing, but as she stared at this life she neglected, missing him grow, that was time she had lost, and yes she knew you couldn’t get time back, but that wasn’t going to stop her from spending all the time she needed to make it up.

---- “ He’s gotten to big"

== "He just seems bigger, because you haven’t seen him in a month"

--- "I deserve that sarcasm"

== "You bet you do….Were have you been?"

--- "Around….."

== "NO!…. No avoiding, no cryptic short answers, just the truth"

--- "What do you want me to say here Chelsea…. Tell me what to do and I’ll do it"

=="I don’t want you to do anything, I just want my best friend back"

---"Well here I am, take a good look"

== "This isn’t you, I don’t know what you’ve done with the Ashley I know, but you need to bring her back"

-- "I haven’t gone anywhere… I look different, but this is me, this is who I am"

== "No its not!…cut the shit Ashley, stop feeling sorry for yourself, get the help you need…"

--- "Feeling sorry for myself? God don’t you think that’s what I’m doing… I’m going to counseling, I’m talking to people… I’m trying to get myself back…. don’t you think I miss me to…. I snapped, I know….I cant look at myself in the mirror with out getting disgusted… How could I look at you or Sean, if I made my own self sick?"

=="And what about Spencer?"

----"What about her?”

==  "Here we go…. She cares about you Ashley, any one with eyes can see… but all you seem to be doing is pushing away, from her, from…. Me…. You are not alone… when are you going to get that through your head? When are you going to see that your amazing? That you’re my hero? Acknowledge all you’ve done, for so many people? You have to love yourself, you have to let go of all your doubts and live life Ash. I love you, I do, you’re my best friend in the whole world, but what your doing to yourself is not ok, its not healthy…. Just let me in.. let the people who are around you, who care about you, help you."