In the meantime

Travis was just as confused about this place as he had been before Ashlee's explanation, but he didn't ask any more questions. The one person who really needed to be talking was his father...and as soon as he was well enough, he'd insist.

Realizing he'd started drifting to sleep, he opened his eyes and gave Ashlee a little smile and wave. She seemed really nice and...he hoped he'd see her again before he left. "Hey, yeah...nice meeting you, Ashlee. Thanks for the soup."


Hearing Misty still loved and missed him sent a pang to Carson's heart. Then why was she still keeping him at arms length? As he continued to listen and the truth finally came out, his eyes dropped. Slipping his hand from hers, he sat back in his chair and let his fingers fidget with his coffee cup. Silence reigned for several long minutes. What else could he do? How could he gain her trust again? What did he have to do to prove he wouldn't betray her again? He'd been trying so hard for so long...he was at his wits end. But...at least now he knew why she'd pulled away even after their time together yesterday. He didn't like the reason, but at least it made more sense. He just didn't have an answer as to how to fix it now.

He wanted to get mad. He wanted to be upset and tell her he was there to help her through all this and she shouldn't push him away. That he'd done all the proving he could do and if that wasn't enough, he didn't know what would be. That if she really loved him that much, she should let him come home so then he could really prove he'd changed.

But instead... he took a final sip of coffee, and slowly stood. "I'm sorry you can't trust me," he apologized softly. "I know that's my own fault, I just...don't know how I can ever prove you can trust me again. But at least now I know the truth of the matter."

He approached her chair and looked down at her eyes. At this point, what did he have to lose? "I'm not done fighting," he whispered hoarsely. "But you want me again..." Leaning down, he pressed his lips to hers. Hard. Passionately. But he pulled back before she could make him linger. "...you want more of this...you're gonna have to let me back in."

Straightening up, his face showed a whole mix of sadness, regret, pain and determination before he moved his sunglasses back down to cover his eyes. "In the meantime, I'll probably ask you out again. It's up to you whether you accept or not."


Garret didn't respond to Nate, though it was obvious he was deep in thought, and if one looked closely, they would be able to see that he had a lot to say, that he was withholding.

"Small victories can win the battles," he mused. But there was more he wasn't saying. More he was thinking of.