Chapter 6

   The woman glanced up at the question and fixed her eyes into the young man's as if questioning his intentions before he flashed a toothed smile and tilted his head to the side. The woman cleared her throat and wiped her cheeks, where a few stray tears fell. "I'm Amaya." She quietly answered. Ash nodded at the name as he held out his hand for a handshake. 

   "I'm Ash." He grinned. Amaya took his hand slowly and shook it gently before quickly letting go and looking back down to her lap. Ash looked at the woman, his smile faltering until it fell completely and he groaned under his breath, looking down at the mattress before speaking up again. "What do you wanna do?" He asked. The woman in question raised her head and quirked an eyebrow up in amusement. She brought her eyebrows back into a frown quickly, hoping the man next to her didn't notice her slip-up. "I have a few movies we could watch. Come on!" Ash suddenly exclaimed as he jumped off the foot of the bed and held his hand out for Amaya to take.

   A few moments passed before Amaya finally reached over and grabbed the man's hand and sliding off the bed, letting the young man lead her into the living room where he told her to make herself at home before quickly walking into the kitchen to prepare some snacks. Amaya nodded at the information and she hugged her knees to her chest, staring at the TV which wasn't even on. She glanced over to the kitchen door and quickly yanked her phone out of her pocket and typing another text, informing the person on the other end that Ash had offered to watch a movie as a distraction. Once she got a reply, she locked her phone and pushed it back into her pocket, waiting for the man to return. 

   Once he did, Amaya shifted on the couch to make herself more comfortable and make more space for Ash. "What do you want to watch?" Ash asked, grabbing the remote controls from on top of the coffee table and switching the television set on. "We can watch anything you want." Ash grinned at the woman before quickly turning the DVD player on. Amaya hummed in fake thought before she sighed. 

   "You can choose. I don't really mind." She said quietly, fiddling with her fingers until Ash hummed in acknowledgement and getting off the couch to search through his drawer full of movies, and she looked around the room for a while, taking in the bare walls and minimal amount of decorations apart from the clock hanging on the wall and about two photo frames. Her eyes eventually landed back on the man as he sat on the floor, finally pulling a movie out and putting it into the player and sitting back on the couch next to the young woman. 

   As the movie played, Amaya looked around the room in boredom and eventually sighed out. Ash looked over at her in question before stopping the movie and shifting his body to face the girl. "Is everything alright? Do you not like the movie? I can pick another one if you want." Ash quickly fired out, pointing to one of the drawers under the TV and waved the remote control in front of the woman's face playfully with a smile. Amaya shook her head before speaking. 

   "I'm just thinking." She replied, mustering up a small smile before turning her head away and staring at the kitchen door for a few seconds before turning to face the floor. Ash nodded and looked at the floor as well, fidgeting with the hem of his t-shirt. 

   "Well, it isn't to bottle stuff up..." Ash trailed off with a small shrug, looking up through his eyelashes to find that Amaya was already staring right at him. "What's on your mind?" He asked once he realised that the young woman didn't get his hint. He looked up, fully, at the woman and folded his arms across his chest. Amaya shrugged and looked over at the TV, staring at the paused movie. 

   "Nothing important." She began slowly, uncrossing her legs and letting them fall past the couch to touch the floor. She swung her feet back and forth as she continued. "I was just thinking about what will happen once I get home." She chuckled emptily as her eyes trailed the frame of the TV screen to avoid looking over at the male beside her. "Nothing good is going to come of this. I should've just gone home -." Amaya couldn't even finish her sentence as Ash, almost instantly after hearing the word 'home', interrupted her. 

   "No." He objected firmly, placing the remote down beside him and unfolding his arms from across his chest, resting his elbows on his knees, his hands covering his mouth as he stared at the woman with a straight face, eyes serious. "I wouldn't have let you." He spoke calmly before his eyes widened and he waved his hands to stop the fearful and pained look in the woman's eyes from returning. "I meant that it's dangerous and I don't want you to get hurt." He quickly explained his previous words. Amaya nodded at this slowly before sighing and playing with the bottom of her jumper. 

   A few moments passed with Ash's face heating up in an embarrassed blush as he huffed at his own stupidity before returning to his serious stance when Amaya spoke. "Thank you." She smiled at the man sadly, finally looking up from her lap briefly. "No one has ever cared about me this much." She continued sadly. Ash frowned at the words and rubbed his hands over his eyes roughly before nodding at the statement, finally realising how cruel their society was, despite it being blatantly obvious since the beginning of time itself. 

   "I just know how you're feeling," Ash spoke after processing the new information he was given and deciding to share a little of his life with the woman beside him to let her know that she wasn't alone. "My mum and younger sister went through this type of treatment from my father." Ash continued, breathing out deeply and closing his eyes in nervousness. Amaya's eyes widened and she shook her head at the man, opening her mouth to tell him that he didn't need to talk about it if it was a sensitive topic but, before she could even say anything, Ash continued. "My mum was hospitalised for a month before my father was taken in." He sighed out., opening his eyes again and smiling softly at the woman. "So I know this fear. You're not alone in this." He nodded. Amaya's eyes teared up and she shifted in his spot in order to embrace the young man in a soft hug. 

   "Thank you, Ash."