“What?” Ashley muttered, a bit concerned after seeing the impish glint in Hunter’s eyes.

“You just said you’re gonna have the house to yourself.”

“Yes, that’s correct.” The stoic boy said with a matter-of-fact tone, as he discarded his now empty food tray. “My parents are attending to some important business. They’re leaving tonight because the trip requires an overnight drive to another city.”

Hunter’s grin only grew wider. “Meaning…” He started to gesture with his hands, to which Ashley simply creased his eyebrows in confusion. The delinquent huffed. “You can stay up way later! Go do whatever you want! Y’know, be an actual teenager?”

During their work sessions, amongst the several observations Hunter had made about the oh-so secretive Ashley was the fact that he never stayed over later than nine PM. It was almost scary how on the dot his departure always was, actually. He couldn’t tell if that was a by-product of something with his ostensibly uptight mom, or another issue altogether. Either way, the kid was out of there every time, without fail.

Maybe, just maybe, with a little convincing, this would be Hunter’s chance to see yet another side of Ashley.

The black-haired teen frowned and tilted his head at the suggestion, his dark fringe falling to the wayside. “I don’t see the point in that. And besides, we still have school tomorrow.”

Hunter leaned forward, expression still sparkling with mischief. “Ash,” he began, drawing out the boy’s name for emphasis, “it's about breaking out of your routine. Don’t you want everyone to know you’re not just some boring guy who goes to school, goes home, sleeps, rinses, repeats, whatever? You're more than that, aren’t you?”

“Who is ‘everyone’?” Ashley raised an eyebrow.

Hunter shrugged. “Anyone here. Including my friends.”

At that mention, Ashley sighed, but the look in his eyes showed that he was considering something. He ultimately shook his head after a moment. “No. I shouldn’t have to prove anything to them, or anyone else. No offense.”

The blond gave a quick wave of his hand, clearly not caring. He respected that answer. “Then, just do it for you. I mean, for real, have you even done anything fun since you moved here?”

Hunter watched Ashley’s face carefully, trying to pick up on the subtle changes that indicated his thoughts on the matter. Ashley hesitated, before finally speaking again.

“If I got found out…you would see my obituary in the papers next week.”

Pressing his lips together in a lopsided line, Hunter frowned, with no response to that.

“Just think about it, okay?” He eventually proposed.

Before Ashley could respond, the bell rang, signaling the end of their break. The boy quickly rose to his feet and grabbed his backpack. He was ready to take off so fast that Hunter thought he wouldn’t even bother to give him a parting look, but Ashley did, halting his personal whirlwind to give the other teen a small nod. With that, he shortly disappeared into the crowd of students rushing to their next class.

As Hunter slowly got up himself, he subconsciously hoped that Ashley would give him the answer he was looking for, soon.

                                                                                       ****

Later that afternoon, Hunter sat in his bedroom, swiveling in his desk chair. He fiddled around with one of his old guitar picks, chipping away at some of the plastic. He lazily rolled his gaze over to the instrument sitting in the corner, and considered if he should kill some time by practicing. Wasn’t like he had any plans for the night, anyway.

He rose from his seat and grabbed the guitar’s neck, pulling it from its dormant state. But, just as Hunter started strumming and opening his mouth to sing a lyric, there was a gentle knock at the front door. Must be that food delivery he ordered.

But nope. A swing of the door revealed none other than Ashley on the doorstep, holding his arms in a contemplative position. Without thinking about it, a tiny smile started to form on Hunter’s lips. He leaned against the doorway, with his hands in his jean pockets.

“Ash. What’s up?”

The words came out in a much smoother tone than Hunter expected. One he usually reserved for flirting with girls. He cleared his throat while awaiting a reply.

Ashley’s eyes were fixed on one of the misplaced wooden floorboards on the porch.

“I…was thinking about what you said this morning.”

Hunter's face lit up, but he restrained himself from appearing overly excited. “Yeah?”

The shorter teen squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath, as if gathering his resolve, then reopened them. “I don’t get many opportunities like this.” His uncertain gaze met with Hunter’s eager one. “Where were you thinking of going?”

Hunter smirked, although he could sense Ashley's cautiousness. But, there was also a glimpse of anticipation there. It was a start.

                                                                                      ****

Pulling on his beloved leather jacket—he managed to get the grease stains out, thank God—Hunter closed the front door behind him and grinned at Ashley, who still stood with his hands gripping his elbows. “Hey, it’s gonna be awesome. Trust me.”

“Oh, now I’m really afraid.”

With an eyeroll, Hunter beckoned Ashley to follow him. Each boy had a little money on hand, and so they hopped on the nearest bus to carry them along faster. Ashley still had no clue where they were heading to, but ultimately said nothing. After getting off the vehicle, they commenced their stroll down the obscured streets.

Ashley’s steps were tentative as he walked behind the other. He had always stuck to the suburban areas of Meadowbrook only: safe, well-lit, never too far from home. This route Hunter was taking him on quickly ventured into unfamiliar territory, the populated neighborhood streets soon evolving into a desolated area, where tall grass and abandoned buildings loomed.

Hunter, seemingly undeterred by the eerie surroundings, led the way with certainty. His usual stride was slightly subdued though, as he sensed Ashley's unease. He looked back over his shoulder occasionally, offering reassuring nods and confident grins.

After what felt like eternity for Ashley, the junkyard came into view, barely illuminated by the scarce streetlights. The twisted metal structures, piles of unwanted items, and overall emptiness sent a shiver down Ashley's spine. While Hunter strolled right in, he found himself lingering at the entrance, eyeing the rusted gates and broken-down cars that occupied the place.

“Trust me, it's more fun than it looks,” Hunter called from a couple yards away, trying to dispel the discomfort that was evident in Ashley's facial expression. “You won't regret this.”

“And you’re sure no one is here? We won’t get in trouble for trespassing?”

Hunter chuckled. “Nah, there’s never anyone checking this place, even when my friends throw parties.” He kicked a rock as he spoke. “There were some rumors of stray dogs or something, but I’ve never seen any and I’ve been here a billion times. So, for real, don’t worry about it. Come on.”

With a quick shake of his head, Ashley stepped forward, despite everything in his body protesting against it. He could tell the area was indeed abandoned, but every creak of metal and the occasional groan of random objects falling from their place set Ashley’s senses ablaze. Hunter stood ahead of him, waiting for the boy to catch up. When he did, Hunter decided to just take it upon himself to guide him along, possibly seeking to calm his fear a little.

As he ushered Ashley through the jungle of debris, Hunter excitedly relayed some of his past experiences there, pointing out remnants of bonfires and wild parties that had taken place not too long ago. Ashley listened wordlessly, simply observing the elevated mood of this boy who usually seemed reluctant to appear interested in anything.    

The two eventually settled on a raised platform overlooking the expanse of the junkyard, a view reminiscent of Hunter’s rooftop. The blond pulled out a couple of sodas from his backpack and handed one to Ashley, who accepted it with a murmured “thanks”, even though he rarely drank such sugary things.

“So, what do you think? Not so bad, right?” Hunter smirked, trying to gauge Ashley's reaction.

“It's...different,” he admitted, while popping open the can. Hunter hummed in response, and the two fell into an ambiguous silence for a moment. Ashley placed the soda, which he barely touched, to the side, and brought his knees to his chest. He rested his arms on them, staring off into the distance. Hunter glanced at him, still sipping his own drink.

“You look like you wanna say something,” he pointed out.

Ashley hid his face a bit in his position. “I’d rather not talk about it.”

Hunter gave a defeated sort of shrug at that response, although Ashley wasn’t looking at him. Right, he should have known. There was no point in asking, ever.

Maybe this was a waste of time. Ashley was never going to open up to him again.

Suddenly, the two teenagers heard a low growl come from somewhere behind them. Ashley froze, his eyes widening in alarm. He turned a little, only to unexpectedly catch sight of a stray dog just feet away on the platform, its pointed teeth bared in a menacing snarl. Hunter tensed, his eyes widening just as much from the surprising encounter. Well, looked like there was a first time for everything.

“Uh, hey, there..." Hunter's voice wavered as he attempted to coax the animal, but before he could finish, the German Shepard lunged forward, its bark echoing through the deserted junkyard.

Without a second thought, Hunter scrambled to his feet and grabbed Ashley's hand, now filled with raw panic. "Run!" he yelled, pulling Ashley along as they raced toward the nearest fence.