Ashley.

I don’t even know where to start.  When I started my job this summer, I was able to quickly decide that not many of the other people there were worth being friends with.  Well, except for one.  His name was Drew, and I guess if I was into guys still, I’d say he was pretty attractive.  In a weird, druggie kind of way.  But attractive, nonetheless.  To be honest though, a lot of what kept me interested in him was his constant rambling about some girl named Ashley.  Apparently, she worked there too but was on some sort of vacation, and he did a pitiful job of keeping his attraction to her a secret.  I had asked him a number of times whether he liked her or not, but I was always responded to with a short "No. Well, as a friend yes, but that’s it.  Oh, did you hear about…" and he would quickly change the topic.

About three weeks later, I was in the back room, and I remember feeling something change.  If I was into philosophy and horoscopes, I guess I’d call it a cosmic shift in planetary alignment…or something…but I’m not, so I’ll just describe it as a chill running down my spine, and feeling as though I should turn around.  I had been quietly humming a song that had been stuck in my head all day, so I guess I didn’t notice anybody walking through the back door, but when I turned around a short, dark haired girl was standing there and talking to two of the people I was working with. 

I kept my staring to a minimum, but after I finished washing the dishes it was hard for me to find anything else to do besides turn around and join in on their conversation.  Remember me telling you I wasn’t very attention-inducing?  I managed to stand quietly in between (and slightly behind) Drew and Nicole, listening to their bantering. 

Wait, scratch that.

I managed to stand quietly in between and slightly behind Drew and Nicole, listening to Ashley‘s part in their bantering.  To say I was captivated might just win an Understatement of the Year award.  Actually, I’m almost positive it would win.

But anyway, for the following ten minutes, I was unable to do anything other than listen intently to every word she said.  At this moment, I can’t even recall what she was saying, because with all that listening I was doing, I was only able to focus on how beautiful her voice was.

As far as feminine voices go, hers wasn’t the most appealing.  To most people at least.  It was deeper than most girls’, but it fit her personality well.  She seemed very laid back, and according to the Drew and Nicole’s reactions, she seemed like the type of person who could easily make your life at that place a living hell if she didn’t like you.

She was fairly short, …oh who am I kidding? She’s pretty damn short for an 18 year old….but either way, she was short, she had black hair that was partially bleached, and she carried that air about her that managed to say "Mess with me and I’ll fucking kill you" if she didn’t like you and also managed to make her quite intriguing.

She left about five minutes later, but I was definitely able to see why Drew was so obsessed with her.  Hell, I had only seen her for ten minutes, and I was already going to have a hard time getting her off my mind.

7 months later, however, I can honestly say that I still haven’t succeeded in completing that task.