Ain't It Fun

Awkward couldn't even begin to describe the ride back to school the next day. Calum had claimed the front seat as soon as he knew Devin hadn't. Devin sat in the back squished between Michael and Luke. There was a lot less complaining than the first trip, save for the occasional request to stop for a bathroom.

Devin stayed quiet, not wanting to draw any attention to herself. Ashton turned up the volume of his mixed CD as if he was trying to fill in her silence. Devin tried to pretend that she hadn't seen him glance at her through the rearview as he did so. Instead, she focused on the Paramore song that was flowing from the speakers.

"Recount the night that I first
Met your mother.
And on the drive back to my house,
I told ya that I-"

She had to hold back a gasp as Ashton quickly changed the song. If any of the others noticed, no one said anything. This time, Devin met Ashton's gaze through the mirror. They maintained eye contact for a solid 6 seconds before Ashton had to look at the road again. She felt a stray tear fall but covered it up by leaning her head on Michael's shoulder and closing her eyes. She didn't open them until they were back at school.

-----

Devin didn't speak to anyone the following two weeks. She went straight to class and then straight back to her dorm. The only other times she left were to eat and do research in the library. She avoided Michael, Calum, and Luke at all costs. They always tried to corner her but she would duck out of the room before they could. Michael, in particular, was adamant on getting her to speak.

Everyday, there was a new voicemail from Michael. It had almost become a routine for the two. Mike would call, Devin would it ignore it and send it straight to voicemail, he would leave a long and hopeful message.

"Hey, Dev, it's me again, Mike. Calum, Luke and I are ordering a pizza and playing video games and wanted to know if you wanted to join us. Text me if you do! Later."

"Hey, Devin. I'm gonna stop by your room later and maybe study for that test in chemistry. If you're not there or don't answer, it's no big deal, I guess. Hope we can talk soon. Bye."

"Look, there's this party tonight and I know you could use a little break from everything, so why don't you come with me? I know you've had a rough time and I don't really know what happened but I want you to be happy. Please, talk to me."

"Alright, this is getting annoying. You have to talk to someone, Dev. Being holed up in your room everyday isn't helping anything. Talk to me, please. I want to help."

Apparently the colorful-haired boy was tired of her cold-shoulder because one night when Devin was in her room studying, there was a loud banging on her door. She tried her hardest to ignore it but Michael was incessant. With a heavy sigh, she pushed away from her desk and sauntered over to the door.

"Finally, Jesus," Michael grumbled, pushing past her and stomping into her dorm. Before Devin could ask what he was doing, he shoved a CD case into her hands.

Turning it over, she saw that it was a homemade CD. She looked at Michael with a confused expression. "What is this?"

Michael didn't reply; he placed a piece of paper in her hand, instead. It was a list of songs that were apparently on the disc. Devin recognized the handwriting on it right away.

"Is this Ashton's mix CD?"

"Yea," he replied. He sat down on the edge of her unmade bed, getting comfortable. "I yelled at him because he wouldn't talk to me and he threw that back at me. If you notice, the title on the disc says 'Dev's favorites.' I figured you needed it more than me."

Silently, Devin nodded and sank back down into her desk chair. She skimmed over the songs on the hand-written list and saw that they were, in fact, her favorite songs. Or at least, ones she listened to often. Even some of the broadway songs she had forced Ashton to listen to. Her eyes began to water at the thoughtfulness of it.

"Are you going to tell me what happened to you guys?" Michael spoke up, moving around on the bed so he was sitting across from her.

"He kissed me," she answered, not taking her eyes off the paper. "And then he said he didn't mean it."

"Shit. Wow. Really?" Michael asked. Devin nodded in reply. "Shit. I mean, it's not like that's not something I've done before; you know, girls and alcohol don't really go well with me. But Ash, shit, he had real feelings for you. Why would he say that?"

Devin shrugged. Michael sighed. They both went silent. Neither of them wanted to say what they were both thinking. Maybe they were both wrong and Ashton really didn't have feelings for Devin. Maybe everyone had forced this idea onto the two of them until it actually happened and one of them realized it wasn't what they wanted.

"Fuck that," Michael finally said. "He really liked you, Dev. I swear to you. So fuck him if he's going to pretend he doesn't."

"Michael, he's your best friend. Don't say stuff like that," Devin replied. She grabbed a nearby tissue and wiped her runny nose.

Michael stood. He had an angry expression on his face. "I will say stuff like that if he's going to be an idiot. He's fucking up and he deserves to know that." He walked to the door and pulled it open.

Devin bolted up and followed after her friend. "Where are you going, Mikey?"

"To talk to Ashton."

She stopped in the doorway and watched as he walked down the hall. "Michael, wait. You should know that I'm leaving tomorrow. After my last exam, I have a flight back home."

Michael stopped and turned back to her. "What? Leaving? Like for good?"

The blonde girl nearly laughed. "No, Mike. Just for winter break. I'll be back in January. I just wanted to say goodbye before I go."

"Oh," Michael breathed out in relief. "Good. You scared me. I thought I was going to lose my best friend because of a stupid boy."

The hot tears returned to Devin's eyes but for a totally different reason. For a purple-haired-best-friend reason. She pulled the taller boy into a hug and squeezed him. "God, Michael, what would I do without you?" And she meant it. She didn't know what she would do without him. Or any of the others. Even Ashton. She would still be the friendless hermit who stayed in her room most of the day. She was beyond grateful for those four Aussies.