An Angel's Fix Pt. 09

The doors opened and they filed out. The home had certain lights on low, and Ashley recognized her own house lighting program of 'romantic setting.' Dishes with the remnants of a meal were on the dining table, and an empty bottle of wine along with two glasses were resting on the glass coffee table.

Confused, Jasmine started to issue a command, "Molly, lights --"

Jill slapped a hand over her friend's mouth, cutting her off. Jasmine followed Jill's stare to her bedroom door. A soft glow peeked out from around the edges. "I don't close my door when I'm not in there," Jill reminded them. She set her duffel on the floor and made her way up the stairs to open her door. Jill crossed her arms over her chest once she opened the door and leaned against the frame. "Fuckin' figures," she said under her breath.

Jasmine was a step behind and her mouth fell open for a second at what she saw. Ashley guessed what happened and stepped to the side, giving an open path to the elevator. Joe twitched forward to run up and see what was going on, but Ashley stopped him with a touch on his arm. "This is Jill's fight," she said simply.

"GET OUT!" Jasmine screamed at the top of her voice. "What the hell is wrong with you?!"

"Jazz, just let them go," Jill said with emotional fatigue, still not moving from the door frame. She wanted to make the exit as difficult as possible, and intended to make them brush by her as they departed.

Jasmine ignored her. "You DO NOT come into our house to FUCK behind your girlfriend's back!! Get your shit and GO!" There was a slight pause. "I don't want to hear it! GO NOW! You can get dressed in the elevator!"

Sam had arrived with the rest of the luggage, and upon hearing Jasmine's growling screams, drew his weapon and lurched for the stairs. Ashley stopped him by putting her arm out. Naked, Ken and a brunette Barbie stumbled past Jill and wobbled down the stairs. His dick still glistened from the girl's lubrication.

"Sam, would you drive them home?" Ashley asked. "I wouldn't mind if they hurt themselves driving drunk, but I want to keep everyone else out of harm's way."

"Sure thing, Miss Smith," he answered while hitting the elevator button.

The disgraced pair stopped in front of Ashley. "I'm sorry," Ken slurred.

Ashley shook her head. "I'm not the one you should be saying that to." Her eyes glared into his and she held out her hand. "Key," she demanded evenly.

It didn't matter whether he gave it to her or not; her very next step would have been to delete his RFID tag from the authorization list, anyway. Ashley wanted his embarrassment to sink in, as he had to dig through the jumble of clothes in his arms to find the fob they had given him last year. He finally produced it and laid it in her hand, then entered the elevator with his fling. Sam tapped the garage button, but Ashley darted her arm in, swiping down the columns of buttons, lighting up every floor.

Raising an eyebrow, she said, "Better get dressed quick. Chances are someone will see you every time the doors open."

They were already scrambling with their piles when the doors closed and took them away.

Jill rubbed a hand over her face and motioned Jasmine out of her room. She closed the door and said, "I'm gonna have to buy a new mattress, now." With that, she walked around the corner of the rail and into the guest room, closing the door softly behind her.

She used the guest room every night until her new bed arrived the next week. The night before the bed swap, she did send off her old one by indulging in a favorite solo fetish. Ashley had caught her by coming home early, but surprised Jill by joining in her usually embarrassing vice.

* * *

The spring game was a couple of weekends later, a scrimmage between offense and defense that was a chance for veteran and new players alike to show their merit to the coaches. Free for students to watch and a small fee for others, it was an opportunity to quench those who were football-starved. With three guys vying for the top quarterback spot, the green "no-touch" jerseys were off, contributing to the game-like atmosphere. The girls arrived early, sighing with desire as they watched the muscles ripple during warm-ups.

Ashley smiled with pride when Joe appeared in the first quarter, but held a little disappointment when he lined up in the slot. He had told her he was still practicing that position, but she didn't like that he was hedging his bets. Three receptions and 40 yards later, he was withdrawn from the game before the second quarter ended. Her main interest off the field, Ashley watched the cheerleaders, noticing Jill was in form, now paired up with a different partner. Jill seemed to ignore Ken, but he stole glances her way. Ashley rolled her eyes at his unwillingness to let go.

The crowd atmosphere was that of a large picnic, hundreds of conversations taking place, with sporadic cheers urging on the bigger plays. Ashley and Jasmine engaged with the sorority sisters, catching up on the latest gossip. Near the end of the third quarter, a commanding voice boomed from the field, "Ready!" Audience and players snapped to attention, much like a stagecoach team would when their handler took the reins. Ashley's heart skipped a beat at the familiar voice, and seeing number 6 behind the center confirmed her hope. "Come on Joe!" she called out.

His squad frustrated the defense when they were on the field, and a few errors (some by Joe) created entertainment as he worked to make something positive happen. Jasmine remarked that he looked like a squirrel dodging traffic on two of the plays. Overall, his squad scored the most -- two touchdowns and a field goal -- during the game. The group around her congratulated Joe through Ashley on his productive performance, even though it was off-script at times.

A statement by the coach after the game said that the team showed promise, but had a long way to go. When asked about who might start at QB in the fall, he replied that each of the three could, but a decision might not come until after summer workouts.

Joe returned home later that night, finding Ashley on the sofa, sitting Indian-style while chewing on a pencil. "Hey," he said while coming up behind her, twirling her ponytail.

"Hey back!" she replied with a smile, tilting her head back like a kitten enjoying attention. "You were great today."

"Thanks!" He played with her hair a bit more, then stopped and shared a kiss with her when she turned toward him. "Whatcha workin' on?"

Ashley turned back to her notebook and fretted her eyebrows. "Oh, just toying with a mock journal for an idea I had." She sighed after a moment. "It's stupid, really, but I just wanted to have fun with it."

He reached down and softly played with her neck with his fingers before replacing them with his lips. "I know of something else you could have fun with," he murmured into her collarbone.

She closed her notebook on her pencil and dropped it on the seat next to her. "Ooh. Do tell," she groaned. Ashley let out a squeal of glee when he plucked her off the sofa and carried her up to their room.

"Ugh, Jill's been smoking so much lately, I can smell it in here," Jasmine huffed as she dropped into her chair in the studio.

"Well," Ashley said, almost disinterested. "she's just blowing off steam after what happened. As long as she does it outside, she's free to do what she wants." Ashley donned some earphones, ending the conversation.

Jasmine turned to ink her latest album assignment with her colored pens, but grew frustrated by the soft humming coming from Ashley. It irked her that she couldn't hear the rest of the music. Whenever she did her job designing these covers, it helped to listen to music. Oddly, it never was from the band she was working on, rather she listened to Ashley singing, or playing her guitar or violin. Lately, she had pitched a couple of ideas to Joe, who in turn referred to Carter's innovation team. The six tiny high-definition cameras now suspended from the studio ceiling were the result of one of the ideas. She'd used those to film Ashley playing her violin as part of a test, but hadn't been able to replay the recording as she intended yet, since the media was still in development. Jasmine replayed the scene in her head now, picturing Ashley in her white blouse, faded jeans, and bare feet, playing a tune to which Jasmine had yet to find lyrics or accompaniment. That tune didn't match the one Ashley was humming now, either, and it became a distraction.

"What are you working on?" she asked in irritation.

Ashley moved one of the bulky cans from her ear to her cheek. Unhappy with that placement, she moved it to behind her ear, where it promptly began sliding further back. She blew at the hair that had dislodged in her fumbling movements and settled for holding that piece in her hand away from her ear. "Something for school," she said, still awkward in holding half the headset.

"What's for school?...argh!" Jasmine's toes curled in frustration. "Could you take that thing off, please?! It looks ridiculous any way you have it!"

Ashley took the clunky studio phones off and set them down on her desk. "You gave them to me for my birthday last year," she pouted.

"Yes, and I bought them for listening, not a fashion piece. So, what's this school project?"

"Testy today, aren't we? Did Aunt Flo come to visit?" Ashley teased.

"That's not fair!" Then under her breath, Jasmine mumbled, "in so many ways."

Ashley cocked a seductive grin. "Aww, I told you I don't mind if it's a little messy. They have these new things called showers and washing machines."

Jasmine bristled. "That's not what...grr...never mind." She looked away to collect herself, then back to Ashley. "What is this project? I don't remember you saying anything before that there was another one."

Ashley knew her girlfriend was referring to a project she'd turned in a week ago. "Well, Professor told us about a contest a studio was holding. If we enter it through him, he'd grant us extra credit for Music Comp. I."

"But you're acing everything, why do you need extra credit?" Jasmine interrupted.

"If one of us wins the contest, that person gets to CLEP out of Comp. II and III."

"And you think you have a shot at skipping two classes for credit?"

Ashley scoffed. "You don't?"

Oops. Jasmine blew out a breath at being caught at getting carried away in an argument. "Well, school's over in two weeks. I mean, given enough time, I believe you could write a winner for anything."

Ashley smirked at both pointing out Jasmine's current bitchiness, and at the flattery. "Thank you," she said with a tip of her head.

"So, when do you have to turn it in?"

Ashley looked at the ceiling as if accessing her internal calendar. "Um...Thursday. He's gotta have time to review the pieces and score them for the extra credit before he submits them for us on the deadline Friday."

Jasmine shook her head. "That's really short notice."

"Well, big challenge equals big reward, right?"

"I guess. What's it for?"

"A studio." Ashley attempted a deadpan, but then giggled at Jasmine's annoyance. "Ahem. Apparently, someone bought Blizzard's concept and script. We were told that the movie is rendered, but fell flat for the test audience. The studio believes the music wasn't right, so they're trying a contest."

Jasmine raised an eyebrow. "Mystic?"

Ashley cocked her head. "Yeah, how did you know? I thought you didn't like sci-fi fantasy geek stuff." Ashley paused while thinking about something. "Which is odd, since you really know your way around tech stuff."

Jasmine bit her lip. "I might have sold some things to their production. Mostly art stuff like promo posters..." She ducked the pencil Ashley threw at her. "Hey! I didn't say anything because I didn't think they could pull it together. In fact, I still don't if they're opening a contest to the general public." Jasmine watched Ashley twirl a new pencil between her fingers while she digested Jasmine's information. There were more than a few times that a bow went accidentally flying mid-twirl when Ashley got bored, and Jasmine wondered when this pencil might take its escape. "So, what do you need in three days?"

Sure enough, the pencil fell to the floor, and Ashley let it stay there after a glance of frustration. "A written or digital hardcopy of the music, as well as a recording of the piece. I figure a video performance would be a good bonus."

Jasmine sighed while shaking her head. "Is that all?" she said, voice dripping with sarcasm.

Ashley clicked her mouse a few times, then detached a thumb drive from the front of her computer. Holding up the USB stick, she said triumphantly, "Yup. You already produced it over Christmas, as well as taped me playing and singing it. I was just making sure it was what I wanted to submit."

"You twit!" Jasmine gaped in playful astonishment. "You could have just told me you were finishing up. I was thinking you had to do all this from scratch."

Ashley shrugged. "And you could have told me you were working with this studio. Now, I'll never know if I'll get picked on merit or who-you-know."

Jasmine thought about that briefly. "I haven't talked to them since I sold the promo graphics, and I doubt that they know you know me. But if it'll make you feel better, just tell your professor to submit it using a name only he would know. He's gotta look at it anyway, right?"

Ashley followed that advice, telling her professor that she wanted it submitted anonymously, under the guise that her husband's name still occasionally made the news. The professor agreed, and since other students seemed shy about giving names out, he depersonalized all the entries. Ashley's was labeled 'Florida State Student #4.'

He announced the next week that a few entries were impressive, and he singled out two of the students by saying they had gained enough credit to raise their grade a whole letter. Late that week was an even bigger announcement: "Number 4 and Number 7" had been chosen for the short list. A webcast would announce the winner. There was a stir of excitement after that class, as it was now possible that one of their classmates could effectively skip two semesters of music writing. Two of them making the short list also guaranteed free pizza, since Ashley had sworn on submission day that she would throw a pizza party on the last day if any of them were awarded fourth runner-up or higher.

Music Composition was rescheduled the last day of the semester to coincide with the winner announcement by webcast. Ashley made good on her promise, directing three delivery people to dole out the pizza she had bought for each classmate. Sodas were passed around, pizza boxes opened, and the silvery white screen lowered from the ceiling. The professor plugged the projector cord into his laptop, and after a few clicks and keystrokes, the screen displayed a slowly spinning logo graphic of the studio. The din of over a dozen conversations filled the classroom until the professor called for quiet when the graphic dissolved to reveal a young woman who was the epitome of sunshine.

In the welcome speech, the self-introduced public relations assistant reviewed how the project and contest came to fruition. She went over some figures related to the project, including numbers of animators, voice actors, support staff, and man-hours put into the effort so far. It didn't escape Ashley that the happy girl glossed over the fact that the movie rights had been purchased far into the preparatory groundwork. Even so, she was excited by the possibilities that were presented through a special preview arranged for the contestants who were watching. The CG animation was amazing, the characters seemed lifelike, and the plot tease sucked her into wanting to know more. The only missing piece was glaring: there was no music.

The girl cheerfully acknowledged the trailer was missing an important thread that would pull everything together, and enthused that the team believed they had found that piece. She spilled right into the results. Fourth runner-up was a girl from a school with an unfamiliar name. Third runner-up was a guy from UF. Their classroom cheerfully booed the mention of their rival school. The Bronx cheer fell away when the second runner-up was announced as Florida State Student #7. A heartfelt cheer went up for the girl and she received hugs and high-fives from the adjacent students. The room quieted while the speaker drew out the suspense, overly enthusiastic in assuring the choice between the top three was very tough.

"Ashley!" a boy down the row prodded.

"Yeah, Ashley should get it!" said another.

The room picked up a chant of her name, and Ashley was amused by the team spirit, since no one but the professor had heard what she submitted. Well, Jasmine had. She played with the mixing board over Christmas break, using Ashley's new piece as fodder for trial and error. The result astonished Ashley with a work that was polished enough to have come from any big name recording studio. Jasmine had become a self-taught producer.

"To announce the winner," the speaker said, and the local room quieted again. "We decided to demonstrate our choice by replaying the trailer."

Their classroom groaned in frustration, and the screen flicked to the trailer once again. A soft violin sang beneath the narration at first, and Ashley broke into a wide grin. The action scenes that were void of speech now had the accompaniment of a riveting and powerful refrain. The music backed off in intensity for the closing of the trailer, returning to the smooth violin instrumental. The students looked at the professor as the trailer ended, and his smile was splitting his face from ear to ear. He nodded to confirm their suspicion and said, "It's Ashley."

A loud cheer of happiness filled the room, and Ashley was swarmed by a hug that seemed to include everyone in the class. In the background, she could hear the girl congratulating "Florida State Student #4" followed by a general thank you to everyone who submitted entries. It took her a few minutes to navigate the hugs and kisses on the cheek until she reached her happy professor.

"One of the best contemporary works to come across my desk," he said while wrapping her up in a tight hug. "Congratulations, Ashley."

"Thanks!" She backed out of the embrace that was a hair too personal for comfort. Adding a sly grin, "I guess I won't be seeing you again."

"Yes, yes, Ashley. I'll put in the paperwork for your credit. But, I'll be around, and I'm sure we'll see each other off and on. Doubt you'll need it, but I'm always here if you want to bounce things off of me."

Ashley kept her smile, but gave a curt nod. "I'll keep that in mind." She picked up her full pizza box and went back to the front to hand it to him. "Thanks for the A," she smiled as she turned to leave.

"You earned it!" he called after her. Then, once alone he said under his breath, "you're good enough to take my position."

Back home, they had a large celebration dinner with Ashley's parents and the couple that was Cindy and Doug. It was late to accommodate the two and a half hour drive and time for showers and changing, but that didn't dampen the mood any. The occasion was three-fold: Ashley's huge win, Kim's graduation with an AA degree in business, and Cindy and Doug becoming parents-to-be. There was much fodder for conversation, but heads turned when Mrs. Roberts posed a question.

"So, when's the date?" she asked.

"Oh, I'm due sometime in September or October," Cindy breezed.

Ashley's mom shook her head. "I mean the engagement."

"Mom!" Ashley didn't really want belief imposing to mar the dinner that had been so nice up to now.

Doug chuckled. "The engagement was about two days long. We're already married!"