Chapter Three-Hundred-Forty-Three
Nick and Ashley had their stuff and children moved into Ashley and Kori’s home by noon the next day. They moved Sarah and Dakota into Kori’s room and Bella into Ashley’s while Nick and Ashley decided to take the downstairs guest room as Ashley didn’t feel comfortable with sleeping with Nick in her parent’s bedroom. After getting settled in with the highest security to boot and having lunch with Mrs. Lane they went back to the Orphanage so that Nick could get back to work.
“Do you think that if I assign you to another child Ash you won’t fall in love with her and want to adopt her this time?” Brooke asked with a small smile as they were sitting around outside, Nick off playing with the children – organizing a soccer game and all.
“Just don’t give me any adorable babies like this one,” Ashley told her while looking down at Bella in her lap. “That was your mistake right there.”
“How attached to Holly are you?” Brooke asked while looking over at the six year old who was playing in the sandbox by herself at the moment. Brooke has seen Ashley and Holly’s little bond and she is quite fond of it.
“Well I love her to death but I promise you I’m not going to adopt her if you should assign her to me.” Brooke laughed.
“Well, if you must adopt any child in this orphanage I am not going to stand in your way since all of these kids deserve a loving parent, but you need an assignment if you want to keep this internship going.”
“I have enough children on my hands at the moment Brookie, believe me. I won’t go adopting anymore anytime soon.”
“Well, then, Holly okay for you?”
“More then okay,” Ashley smiled. “Strictly business I promise.”
“Okay,” Brooke laughed. “She’s yours then.”
“But she’ll have to be caregiver a little later because right now if she’s up for it I have other plans for her,” AJ spoke up while suddenly coming up and kneeling down beside Ashley. Ashley regarded her brother warily and when she saw the cautious look behind his eyes she looked away.
“You asked for this sweetheart and you know now more then ever that we can’t keep putting it off.”
“I’m not doing anything without Nick by my side” Ashley insisted as she looked down at Bella in her lap who was blowing bubbles happily. AJ sat there looking at her for a couple of moments, and then he got up and walked out into the middle of the field where Nick was playing referee. Ashley lifted Bella up so that they were face to face and she planted a kiss on her nose before hugging her close to her.
“Your Uncle Alex is a pain in the butt Bella. Great big pain in the butt can you say that? Pain in the butt uncle.” Bella squealed happily in response and Ashley smirked.
“Close enough” She told her. “You did good pal.” Brooke laughed.
“I think you have a few months to go before you get to teach Bella to call your brother a pain in the butt for you.”
“Well, they say to start them out early” Ashley mused as she made faces at Bella instantly getting a response out of her. Brooke shook her head while smiling at Ashley amusedly and suddenly AJ came back with Nick at his side while Brian took over the soccer game.
“Brookie do you mind baby-sitting for us?” Nick asked instantly taking charge of Ashley as AJ had requested knowing Nick would get her to cooperate a lot better then he would in a situation like this.
“Of course not,” Brooke answered readily.
“Ashley hand the baby over please.”
“I don’t want to. I am rather enjoying mommy and Bella time at the moment,” Ashley insisted knowing she isn’t going to win but she has too much dignity to just give in either. Nick squatted down in front of her and gently placed his hands to her shoulders as he rested his forehead against hers.
“Come on baby you need this. I’m going to be right here with you every step of the way okay?”
“What I need is to sit right here and spend time with my baby” Ashley told him stubbornly.
“If you don’t learn how to fight back and Sean gets a hold of you, you may never see Bella again. Learn how to fight back now and you won’t have to miss out on being with her ever again.” Ashley started to protest when Nick lightly pressed his finger to her lips.
“I really don’t want to bring you back there, but remember when you told me last night how you desperately wanted to get back to our girls but couldn’t? Remember how helpless and weak you felt?” Ashley suddenly had images of herself attacking Sean with the pepper spray, running off and hiding from Trevor in the dark tunnels. Of knocking Max out with a chair and then bolting out the door and running to the street while frantically yelling for help only to get yanked back by her hair, dragged back in, and beaten the rest of the night. Just thinking about those beatings, Ashley felt the pain in her bottom and backside from the cuts and bruises and she squirmed slightly. Nick watched as a single tear slid down her cheek and she wrapped her arms around him and nestled into him immediately seeking shelter. Nick leaned forward and brushed his lips lightly over hers. “Let us help you gain some control baby, please.” After a few moments when she was sure she wasn’t going to fall apart from the horrible memories Ashley looked down at Bella and planted a kiss on her forehead before hugging her close to her protectively. After a few moments she reluctantly handed her over to Brooke and allowed Nick to gather her in his arms so he is cradling her and he let AJ lead him inside. They went downstairs to the basement where they found Detective Stabler waiting for them. He had placed mats all over the floor making it look like a wrestling gym and he hung punching bags up. Much to Ashley’s relief none of them resembled the monsters in her nightmares.
“I thought you said the punching bags were going to resemble Sean?” Ashley asked softly as she still clung tightly to Nick as if afraid they might still bring it out.
“Not yet,” AJ told her gently. “We’ll wait for that.” Ashley allowed Nick to sit her down and she looked down at her clothes that Nick had been so insistent on her wearing earlier. Now she knows why. He had gotten out tanktop and sweat pants for her and when she asked why, he had come up with excuses. That he just wanted her to be comfortable and that they were going to be moving stuff from one place to another all day so why make a huge deal on getting dressed and stuff?
“If I told you I knew you would’ve never gotten out of bed this morning,” Nick told her when he saw what she was thinking. Ashley scowled at him.
“Thanks a lot Nick.”
“Anyway,” AJ spoke up when he saw Ashley give her boyfriend daggers and knew an argument was coming on. “I must point out the fact that you came to me and asked me for this yesterday, so is there anything in particular that you want to learn?” Again the flashback of running out of the warehouse screaming and being yanked back by her hair came to her mind. The memory of Trevor grabbing her from behind and making it pretty much impossible for her to get free.
“It would be nice to know how to break free of someone who suddenly grabs me from behind, holds my arms to the side, and makes me pretty much feel like I am paralyzed and have no chance at all” Ashley explained softly.
“That’s a very good lesson to learn” Detective Stabler spoke up. “That’s one of the most common ways for an attacker to get you – caught unaware from behind. But, we’ll get to it soon. For now we’re going to start you off at the beginning of self-defense 101.”
“Do I get to sit in a desk and everything?” Ashley joked, still not happy about Nick not warning her about this. Yes she did ask AJ for this and he did say he’d do it, but she just didn’t expect it to be the next day. And really she was still recovering from being terrified when she agreed to this. She wasn’t in her right mind at all.
“Nope, just on these really cool mats, sorry. Maybe I’ll bring you one down here for next time if you want to sit in one so bad” Detective Stabler told her mocking her sarcasm and he sat down on the mat and looked at her expectantly. Ashley rolled her eyes but sat down on the mat in front of Detective Stabler nonetheless and Nick and AJ joined them, Nick sitting behind her with his arms wrapped around her and despite how mad she is at him at the moment, she nestled into his chest comfortably. She doesn’t want to fight with him the day after her homecoming, she just wants things to go smoothly between them. She’s living life like she is dying whether he wants to as well or not. She listened carefully as Detective Stabler began his lesson first telling her how to avoid confrontation to begin with by avoiding places and situations that they may occur.
~*~*~*~*~*~
“Does she have to accompany us everywhere we go and do everything we do, Josh?” Chris asked irritably as Josh dragged Elenore a long with them to sit under the play structure.
“Do you have to ask that question everytime I drag her a long with us?” Josh wanted to know as he sat down in the sand and pulled Elenore down with him so she is sitting next to him. Chris scowled as he sat there silently giving Elenore daggers and Elenore scooted close to Josh ignoring how much it annoys Chris and she rested her head against his shoulder. The two cousins had been inseparable ever since she returned to the Orphanage.
“You know how much I strongly dislike girls,” Chris reminded.
“Brian says you’ll grow out of it,” Josh informed. Chris rolled his eyes.
“Brian is wrong. Soon as you realize he’s not a gigantic book of information in shoes the better things will be.”
“Brian is not wrong,” Josh insisted as he absent mindedly closed his hand around the gold cross necklace Brian had given to him for Christmas – the golden cross necklace that matches his. “Brian knows everything. He is my great big book of information in shoes.”
“Yeah well, Riley is pretty smart too” Chris informed. Josh shrugged his shoulders.
“Your point?”
“My point is, you should give her a break.”
“How did this manage to turn into a lecture about how I’m not giving Riley a chance? All I said was Brian is smart.”
“You look at Brian like he is the only person in this world that matters, but we have a mom too and a baby brother on the way,” Chris informed, refusing to believe the possibility that the baby might be a girl. In his mind it’s a boy by default.
“Well, I’m sorry I’m not as ready to accept her as my mom as you are Chris, those things take time for me.”
“Doesn’t mean you hafta ignore her. It hurts her feelings when you do that.”
“Well then, I guess it’s a good thing she has you to make up for it.”
“You are such a jerk” Chris informed.
“It’s not a crime for me to love my dad as much as I do!” Josh insisted while raising his voice slightly and he tightened his grip on his cross. “I’m not the only one who is having a hard time accepting parents around here! He’s your dad as well and you still have yet to act like it!”
“Kind of hard when he is busy giving you your every want and need since you can’t share him!”
“He would give you your every want and need as well if you just let him because that’s just the kind of dad he is! He’s great and you don’t appreciate him in the least bit” Josh informed before grabbing up sand, flinging it at him, jumping to his feet, and bolting out of there before Chris even had the chance to react. Chris got up, shook sand off of him, and he ran after his brother leaving Elenore behind. Elenore rolled her eyes and shook her head.
“Boy am I glad I’m an only child…” she muttered quietly before getting up and running after them as she does not want to miss the action. An only child she is, and proud of it but it’s still fun to watch siblings fight. She doesn’t get this kind of action out of Dakota and Sarah anymore now that they get a long. The two sisters are pretty much at each others side all day long like glue now, and Dakota is always hanging all over her and wanting to do and wear everything she does. Like a natural little sister. Elenore watched as Chris caught up to Josh and hopped up onto his back. Josh yelled out in surprise as his younger brother tried to tackle him to the ground. But being older and slightly stronger then Chris, Josh flipped Chris over and flung him to the ground like it were nothing. Chris was on his feet in a second and he lunged at him, the two of them going into a kicking and shoving frenzy.
“You stupid jerk I’ma tell Brian you threw sand at me!”
“And I’ll tell him you are lying!”
“Like he would believe you!” Chris insisted as he pulled at Josh’s hair. Josh yelped and grabbed Chris’s hair and pulled on it in return making Chris yell out too. The two of them circled around like that pulling on each other’s hair and trying to kick each other away. After a couple of moments of struggling, Josh managed to kick Chris in the shin. Chris yelled out in pain and grabbed at his knee and Josh took advantage of it and darted for Brian. When he got to him he flung himself into his arms, threw his arms about him, and held onto him tight knowing he was in safety zone. Brian who is surprised to now have a six-year-old clinging to him enveloped his arms around him protectively. Just then both Chris and Elenore caught up.
“Don’t listen to a word he says!” Chris demanded. “It’s all his fault, he started it!”
“Started what?” Brian asked narrowing his eyes at his two sons and Elenore.
“I don’t know what he is talking about Brian,” Josh told him innocently.
“Yes he does! He threw sand at me!”
“I did no such thing!”
“Did so! Tell him Ellie!” Chris snapped, turning to look at his cousin.
“How could you lie like that Chris?” Elenore accused, instantly going to Josh’s aid like he would do for her. Chris scowled.
“I’M NOT LYING, HE REALLY DID DO SO!”
“It’s not my fault you don’t like girls and don’t like Ellie around Chris, there is no need for you to go around accusing me of throwing sand at you!”
“If you didn’t throw sand at him then why is it that you just threw yourself into my arms, hmm?” Brian asked suspiciously as he knelt down in front of the kids.
“Cause I just wanted to see you,” Josh told him while nestling his head into Brian’s shoulder and hugging him instantly warming Brian’s heart.
“So bad that you had to throw yourself into my arms like some kind of evil was chasing you?”
“What can I say? I just love you that much” Josh insisted sweetly.
“Aww…Josh…” Brian replied fighting back his tears as no matter how hard he tried to stop it and stay strong so he can get to the bottom of this, Josh’s words got to him and tugged tightly at his heart strings. Dakota is right, he always does know the right thing to say and when to say it. Brian rubbed his hand over his back and hugged him tightly and he kissed the top of his head.
“I love you too buddy,” he told him and while Brian was busy cuddling Josh, Elenore smirked at Chris who scowled angrily and he turned around and stalked off in the direction he knows Riley is in. Riley will listen to him. Riley won’t fall for Josh’s charm like everybody else does. He’ll go tell her and she will fix this. He just knows it.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Here's the next chapter.
Enjoy =)
Enjoy =)
