"Please tell me you know how to make something condensed milk based," Dom begs Roy, as Roy dries his hands on a dish towel. Dom himself looks like he's about to collapse with fear. 

"Dude, chill out. Lots of Indian sweets are condensed milk based. Hell, my sister is married to a Bengali dude, and they have this kick ass kheer recipe that involves a condensed milk base. I got you."

Dom relaxes a little bit. "Thank goodness. I think Lara's going to attack me if we run out of condensed milk anytime soon. Kind of odd to be craving condensed milk, right?"

"Considering what I've heard, that's pretty normal. My sister in law craved baby wipes when she was pregnant. She also tried drinking detergent mixed with chocolate milk. Thankfully my brother caught her before she had any chance of dying. Don't worry, I think you're good."

I gag a little bit at the thought of that. I know laundry detergent smells really good, but it tastes nasty and the thought of it with chocolate milk doesn't make it any more appealing. I walk into the kitchen, and say, "Chocolate milk mixed with laundry detergent?"

Roy shrugs. "I don't know. I've heard pregnant women crave weird shit a lot. My mom craved the curd like cottage cheese and Tapatio a lot when she was pregnant, which is ironic, because I hate both of them now."

"Aren't you half Indian, and according to you, they use cottage cheese a lot  in Indian cuisine?"

"I mean, I'm talking about the stuff that has the same consistency as spoiled milk. Not paneer. Paneer is everything. I could snack on it for hours on end. But yes, we do use paneer a lot."

Elena walks in, wearing old sweats and a hoodie and says, "Now I want Indian food. And I'm in no mood for cooking."

"Good. I'm in no mood to call the fire department."

Elena playfully smacks Roy on the arm, and says, "I hate you."

He snakes an arm around her and plants a kiss on her cheek. "I wuv you, Ewena." She rolls her eyes, as they cuddle each other right there. Right when they have their lovely moment, I get a call on my phone, which is all the way in the living room.

"Gimme a second," I say, as I run to the living room. I pick up my phone, and it's Emily. I answer the call, knowing it's going to be good. "Hey, Em. What's up?" I ask.

"Hey, Nicole. How's it going back there?"

"Oh, nothing much. We just found out that my to be sister in law is pregnant! So, my brother is begging my future brother in law to give him condensed milk recipes so that my sister in law doesn't go crazy." I snicker, thinking about how much Lara is going to kill Dom when she finds out that we're running out of condensed milk. I look back at Dom, with slight amazement on how he hasn't devoted a whole cupboard to condensed milk. 

"Ha, that's hilarious. I hope Dominic doesn't die."

I also think about the numerous times he may as well have died from the stress load of work. "I hope so too." I look back at the kitchen, and they're all just having fun and giggling about whatever, which just makes me laugh a little bit more. "So, what's going on over at your house? Is Ash hanging out with you?" I haven't seen Ash in a bit, so I wonder how he's doing so far.

"Oh yeah. We've gone ice skating these past couple of weekends, and I'm starting a new job next week!"

"Oh, that's always awesome! Congrats!"

"Thanks! Also, this is kind of last minute, but do you want to come over this evening? I'm cooking tonight, because Ash is beat, and I know that Ash never minds your presence around here. What do you say? I know you both have a conference call in the afternoon, so I was thinking 5:30?"

I raise an eyebrow. That doesn't sound bad at all. I haven't been to their house in a couple of weeks, and being around Ash is definitely something that is nothing short of refreshing. "You know what? That sounds great. I'll go let my brother know."

I remove the phone from my ear, and yell, "Yo, Dom, I'm going to be over at Ash's house this evening!"

Dom leans over, and says, "That's fine. Thanks for letting me know."

I press the phone back to my ear, and say, "Yeah, I'm coming. So, 5:30?"

"Yep. Oh, and Ash can pick you up. He knows you love to ride his motorcycle. Oh, and plus, you guys will be alone tonight."

"Oh. That's fine. Why?" Not that I'm complaining, but I've known Emily long enough to know that she wouldn't leave us alone willingly like that.

"Oh, I'm going on a date at 6:30. So I'll be cooking for Ash and then you guys can enjoy it together." I smile, because Emily is really pretty, and I'm glad that she's getting out there and having a good time.

"That's exciting! Tell you what, I'll do your makeup before you leave. I'm a pretty decent artist, and I can create a nice cat eye!" I'm already envisioning what Emily will look like with a cat eye that can be used to knock out people cold.

"Oooh, appealing! Yeah, that sounds great! Thanks, Nicole!"

"Anytime. I'll see you later?" The excitement is building up from all around inside of me, because of how

"Totally! Can't wait!"

"Me neither!" I hang up, and go back to the kitchen area where everyone is  socializing. Dom smiles, and then my attention diverts to Roy, who's chopping up vegetables.

"Shit!" he curses, as he looks at the back of his wrist. There's a perfect cut right there, with a little bit of blood trickling out.

"Shit. Hold on Roy. I got you," Elena says, as she runs into the bathroom to retrieve the first aid kit. I stare at the blood trickling down from his wrist, and that brings back the memories almost immediately. The images of blood trickling down my arm after Colin's brutal outbursts come flooding back in my head. I can almost feel the pain in my upper arms where I was scratched and cut, and it sickens me to my stomach. It's like I can feel the warm blood running down my arms, as Colin just stares in more rage.

My hand goes to the table to balance myself, as I slowly start to collapse due to the sheer amount of exploding memories. Dom notices me, as the memories start to flash back and forth from back then and right now. Dom runs to my aid, and then grabs me, preventing me from falling to the ground. "I-It hurts," I say, as Dom comforts me.

Roy runs towards me, despite the fact that he's bleeding. He grabs a towel and puts it over his hand to mask his bloody hand. "Nicole, one, two, three," he starts, to which I just look at him with a certain amount of confusion. He keeps on counting, to which, I'm still kind of confused. However, after a few numbers, I start to realize what he's doing.

Even though he's done it a number of times, I feel like I blank every time he starts to count to help me with my attacks. I start to breathe, one by one, and with that, the memories dissolve, and they turn into nothingness. I can still feel a little bit of pain from my upper arms, even though nothing happened.

My breath is still kind of shaky, to which I just feel angry, all of a sudden. I don't know where it comes from, but I just say, "He didn't even help me! He just let me bleed! God, I hate him!"

Dom nods, and says, "I hate him too. You have every right to hate him."

Seeing Dom and Roy's worried faces, along with Elena's worried face when she walks into the area, allows me to relax a little bit, albeit with the anger being replaced with sadness. I sit down into a nearby chair, and just process everything that's going on. It's not getting any better. My health is just getting nowhere  right now.

I can't believe that we've gotten no progress. It's just frustrating because I've been suffering, and it's awful. "It's not getting better, guys," I say, and Elena sits down next to me.

"Nicole, it's going to take time. A lot of time. You have to be patient."

I look at her, with a raised eyebrow. "How long, Elena? How much longer do I have to wait for it to get better! I'm done waiting!" I yell, as I get up to go to the bedroom. I need to let some steam off, because everything is just so overwhelming. I throw myself on Elena's bed, and just stare at the ceiling, hoping the steam will just get off of me.

******

Thankfully, it seems that the steam has decided to get off by the time that Ash is supposed to come to Dom's house. I sip my glass of water, as I just idly sit on the couch and wait for the time that Ash decides to come. Dom comes out of the kitchen, in sweats, and just sits on the couch.

"I'm probably going to order takeout and call it a night. Way too tired to deal with anything right now. When is Ash coming?" he asks.

I shrug. "He should be here any sec-" I start, but before my sentence is finished, I hear the doorbell ring. "Speak of the devil," I say, and I go to answer it.

Surely enough, Ash is standing there, looking great as always. He's wearing a leather jacket, with his hair in its signature "I don't give two craps," look. He's still got a big smile on his face that nobody would dare to wipe off his face. I can see his motorcycle in the background, and he's holding an extra helmet in his hands for me.

I smile, and say, "Ah, Mr. Mitchell. Looking fancy tonight, huh?"

He smiles at me, and says, "Only for you, Ms. Wilson. Shall we? I've got a hot meal at home and a few good movies that we can watch."

I give him a sly smile. "Sounds great. I'm out, Dom!" I call. He gets up, and goes to greet Ash at the door. They do the little bro hug, and then Dom looks at his motorcycle.

"Nice bike."

"Thanks. Had it for a few years. Drives like a charm."

"Nice. Be safe Nicole. I'll see you later tonight."

I smile, and wave at Dom. "Bye, Dom!" I say, and with that, I leave the house, with Ash.

********

My hair is tousled because of riding in the motorcycle. Ash takes off his helmet, and I hand him mine. He takes out his keys, and then opens his front door and lets us inside. Surely enough, the smell of hot food wafts throughout the air, making me feel even more hungry than I should be.

Emily walks through the halls and to the front door, making a beeline to where I'm standing. "Nicole! Good to see you!" she squeals, and she comes in for a huge hug.

I smile, and hug her back. "Right back at you, Em. Now, tell me, where can I do that cat eye on you?"

"Right this way, madam." Em leads me to her bedroom, with Ash following, and she shows me her vanity that's riddled with lots of makeup products. Foundation bottles here and there, with blush palettes, highlighting brushes, and tubes of lip gloss messily scattered everywhere. The eyeshadow that's dusting some parts of the desk makes it look like a cosmetic lab did something wrong and there was a huge explosion.

"Oooh. Okay, I'm getting some ideas. Hand me your makeup brushes."

She hands me an old mug, filled with brushes, and I pull up a chair. "I think I have a good idea. Sit down, and let me work my magic."

Surely enough, Em does, and I get to work.

**********

My arm is hurting a little bit from all the blending that I had to do, but I'm proud of my work. The shadows really compliment Em's eyes and face shape really well, and along with the look, it's just going to tie everything together.

"So, what do you think?" I ask, as she looks in the mirror. The combination of dark shadows accentuates her full, doe like eyes to the perfect amount. The highlight makes it look like she's got a Greek goddess shining light right on her. Her innocence is highlighted, but with the perfect amount of accentuation to make it look like she's ready to take anything on.

"Oh, it's awesome! I love it. Thanks, Nicole!"

I smile. "Glad you like it!" Emily's phone then lights up, and with that, she gets up and walks out of her room. I follow the sound of her heels clicking, like the hands on a clock, and find her grabbing a coat.

"I'm out. You kids have fun!" she calls, as Ash hurries after her.

"Phone, money, purse, everything?" he asks, as Em takes her purse from the table.

"Yes, Ash, I have everything. Now, may I go?"

Ash rolls his eyes. "Yes, you can go. Have fun, and be safe, okay?" "I will. Bye, Ash!" she calls, and with that, she closes the door and locks it.

Ash looks back at me, with a slightly exhausted look, and I snicker. "Sisters. Love them, but they can be a handful. I'm hungry, but I don't know about you. Dinner?" he asks.

I nod. "Please. I'm starving, and what Emily made smells delicious."

He walks over to the kitchen, takes out a few plates, and then serves some casserole that Em made. "It's her 'secret' casserole dish. I don't know what's so secret about it, but oh man, it's delicious. Here." I take it, and Ash also hands me a fork, to which I take and dig in. It does look like something I can curl up to and tuck into on a cold Sunday night.

I take a huge forkful and shove it into my mouth. "Mmm," I say, as I continue to eat more. Surely enough, it does taste really good. Some secrets are the best secrets, and this one doesn't disappoint me.

Ash smiles, and says, "Ha, you like it?"

I nod, and then wipe the bit of sauce that's around my mouth. "I'm glad you do. Also, I have a few movies picked out. I have The Interview, Saw 3D, and The Hangover. Which one?"

I sit down on his couch, and say, "The Hangover."

He walks over with his plate of casserole, and says, "I thought so too." I smile, as Ash puts in the disc, and then sits down next to me.

"Hey, Ash?"

"Yeah?"

"Is this a date?"

He looks back at me, with a raised eyebrow, and says, "I don't know. Do you want it to be a date?"

I shrug, and say, "I don't mind it."

"Then yes, it's a date."

"Not your typical one."

"But hopefully a good one nonetheless."

**********

Somehow, it leads to us sitting on the couch and watching a funny movie to me leaning into Ash's chest, with my head resting against it, as his arm wraps around me. We continue to laugh and laugh throughout the movie, and when the halfway point comes around, I get up from where I was lying, and look at Ash.

"Ha, that was pretty good."

Ash gets up, and asks, "Do you need anything? Water, anything?"

I sit back, and say, "Water sounds good." He goes to the kitchen, where I hear him fill up a glass of water. I sit back a little bit on the couch, and then he brings me the glass of water gracefully. "Thank you, Ash," I say, and I drink my water.

He drinks whatever is left in the glass, and then sets it down on the table. "Nicole?"

"Yeah?"

"Can-Can I kiss you?"

My eyes widen at his request. I don't know if I'm ready enough to let him kiss me, because of everything that's happened. I shift a little bit, and I say, "I don't know if I'm ready for a full on passionate kiss. Maybe one on the cheek?" I suggest, gently.

He smiles at me. One that is pure hearted, like he is beaming at something in front of him. "I'll take it."

He leans in a little bit, and lifts his hand to brush the hair from the side of my face away. The contact sends shivers down m spine, but weirdly, I feel comforted. His head leans in, and I feel his hot breath against my skin caress it like an air vent. His soft lips press against my cheek, like pillows against a bed. He holds them there for a few seconds, while I remain steady, and don't budge an inch.

I feel at peace, weirdly. The feeling of his soft lips against my cheek is an unusually relaxing one. Eventually, his lips remove themselves from my cheek, and he looks at me deep into my eyes. I give him the smile of reassurance, and say, "You're good."

Just when I say that, a knock comes at the door. He gives me a slight smile, and says, "We'll continue this in a little bit." He gets up, and walks towards the door, as the knocking gets louder and sharper. "Coming, coming!" Ash says, as he unlocks the door.

He pulls it open, sharply, and there stands a woman. She's got blonde hair, slightly evil green eyes, and somewhat tight skin. I can just tell by the way she's standing and the look on her face that she means nothing but trouble.

Ash's eyes widen, and he asks, "You? What the hell do you want?" I look at Ash, with a slightly confused look.

"Now, is that any way to treat a guest, Asher? I'd expect a little bit more courtesy, especially towards someone who was once your mother."

My eyes widen, and I look back at Ash. "Ash. Don't tell me this is her."

Ash gives me a sad look, and says, "Yep. This is my pathetic excuse for an ex step mom." I look back at the woman, shocked that this is Tina. The woman who turned Colin into the monster that he is today.

I have every reason to fear her now.

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Ah crap, Tina's here! This lil' bitch is back, huh? Do you think she actually means harm, or is she just bluffing? Let me know in the comments.

Hey everyone! How's life? Also, we're 5 chapters from the end! (if you don't count the epilogue). I'm thinking of publishing the epilogue and last chapter at the same time. What do you guys think?

Also, antiheroes. Yay or nay?

That's all I got. Hope you guys liked this chapter!

Please vote/comment/share/follow/message if you liked this chapter! See you all next Saturday with a new chapter of Phoenix! Have a great week!

Love you guys,

Shree