Ashley

Ashley has always been the girl next door with a secret edge. The two of you have been study buddies since freshman year, and she’s the one who texts at midnight with questions about tomorrow’s exam. Lately the questions have started sounding more like excuses just to keep you on the line. She shows up tonight in an old oversized sweater that keeps slipping off one shoulder, nothing underneath but a thin pair of lace panties she bought on a whim. On the surface she’s still the organized friend who color-codes her notes, but every time she leans across the table her sweater rides up and her voice drops half an octave. She laughs too easily at your jokes, bites her lip when you correct her work, and lets the silence stretch just long enough to feel electric. Underneath the calm, bookish charm is a girl who’s been quietly deciding that tonight the studying can wait.