“Am I gonna stand out here all afternoon or are you gonna imvite me in?” JC said, giving her a slight smile.

Ashley blinked rapidly but didn’t say anything, she held the door and opened it wider and invited JC in, snapping back into reality, she managed to let out the words she wanted to say.

“What are you-what are you doing here?” She stammered, her hands suddenly became very cold and she tried to warm them by clasping them together.

“I followed you.” He replied simply.

“You followed me?”

“Well, you see? It’s not like that, I saw you walking by Sunset, I mean, I think it was you at first, and I took a second look, and I did realize it was you, and when I went around the block. you were gone, and I thought I lost you, but I found you again at the intersection driving, and I was the one that let you pass, and I followed you all the way here and I waited until you came home and opened your door.” JC rambled and let out a breath.

He took a seat on a nearby couch and watched her.

Ashley was astounded, if he followed her all the way here, he must really care for her, but right now she wasn’t interested in having a relationship, thinking back to that night where she met him at the bar, and he brought her home, where something almost happened, but didn’t.

“JC” She sighed, “Um, I told you, you and I can remain friends, remember? Good friends.”

JC nodded, “I know, that’s what I’m here for.”

“But, uh..the reason why, come to think of it, I was at Sunset earlier today, cause I was quitting my job.”

“Quitting your job?”

“Yeah, at Chico’s, I worked there for a while, but to get to the point, the reason why I quit is because I moving.” Ashley sat down on the sofa across from him.

“Moving to a new apartment or a house?” JC asked.

“No, moving out of LA.”

“You’re moving to Sacramento? I heard its nice.”

“No JC, I’m moving back home, back to New Jersey.”

JC was quiet for a moment.

“It’s not a bad place as people say it is, the reason why I came out here, cause I wanted to finish college and be out on my own for a bit, but the college thing didn’t work out so well, and I realized that I have been feeling very homesick, I miss the change of the seasons, I miss having a supermarket in every corner, I miss everything about it.”

“I never knew you were from there though, no wonder you were different than most girls I dated.”

“I hope you aren’t mad at me.” Ashley said to him.

“I don’t want you to move.” JC told her quietly.

“But JC, I have to, I can’t be here anymore, this isn’t for me, this is for you, you like it here don’t you?”

JC stayed quiet for a moment again and started to think, did he really had a life here in LA? Sure he had to manage that girl group, but it was really all Jimmy’s idea, and LA is actually good for people who want to become actresses or singers or something, and maybe it was good for him before, but now? Not so much.

He felt a hand go on his shoulder, “JC are you alright?”

“Yeah I’m fine, but uh, when are you leaving?”

“Maybe Sunday afternoon, less traffic, I’m driving back you know.”

JC nodded and got up from the sofa, pulled out a piece of paper from his back jeans pocket, wrote down his phone number and gave it to her.

“Here take this, call me or text me okay?” JC gave her a quick kiss on the cheek without thinking about it, and with that, he went out of the front door.

Ashley stood there with the piece of paper in her hand, and she placed her hand on the cheek that JC has just kissed. “What was that all about?”