Cutie

By the time Ash was done conversing with important clients, he found a drunk Skye with her head resting on the table.

Without wasting time, he placed his jacket over her and took her to the car. Just like Skye, nearly everyone there was drunk so there was no problem with them leaving early.

Just as he placed her in the back seat, Skye grabbed him by the collar and whispered, "Don't leave me." before passing out on his chest.

He stared at her intensely before getting in the car himself. That was the first time he heard Skye say something as vulnerable as that. Despite the troubles she faced, ever since they met she was always acting brave and strong even through tears.

Ash made sure Skye was comfortable as she rested on him before telling Jack to drive off.

The whole ride was silent and Ash constantly kept looking at the girl clinging onto his torso. Even when drunk, she still looked as adorable as ever to him.

He didn't know she was a heavy drinker but he guessed it had something to do with Theo. He saw them leave the hall earlier on and he was worried for her wellbeing.

"I won't let him hurt you." He whispered into her ears.

After an hour-long ride of Skye tossing and turning in the car, they finally reached the house.

"Piggyback..."

"What?" Ash turned to look at Skye who could barely keep her eyes open.

"I want a piggyback ride." She stretched out her hands, welcoming him to carry her.

Ash chuckled at her cute behavior, he thought her drunk habit was to sleep but clearly, he was wrong.

"Your wish is my command, princess." He squatted in front of her and carried Skye on his back.

"Thank you ~" She gave him a peck on his cheek and wrapped her arms and legs around him tightly.

Ash chuckled once more, he'd never seen her act so carefree. At that moment, she was like a child, free from any troubles or stress. He wanted to see her happy like that always.

From the gate to Skye's room, all the servants they passed by stared at them in awe. None of them had ever seen their boss care so deeply for anyone much less a woman he barely knew.

Ash was very particular about people touching him or generally being too close to him and yet, as Skye clung onto him, even kissing his cheek, he simply chuckled and smiled at her behavior, it was a rare sight.

"I told you not to leave me," Skye said just as Ash was about to leave her room.

"It's not right for me to stay in your room at night, you won't like it when you wake up," Ash said, still holding onto the door knob.

"I won't complain, so come here." She patted the spot next to her on the bed as she yawned.

Ash could tell she wasn't in her right state of mind due to the alcohol she consumed but deciding to go against all reasonable thoughts, he shut the door and walked to the bed.

"I'll stay just until you fall asleep." He said while taking off his shoes.

Just then, he noticed Skye was still in her jewelry and outfit but realizing there was no way he could change her dress, he opted to remove her necklace, earrings, and bracelet instead so she could sleep more comfortably.

"Ash, am I a plaything to you?"

Ash turned to look at her, her face was buried in the pillows but from the way she stuttered, he knew she was still under the influence of alcohol.

"You're not a plaything to me, and I cherish you a lot." His words carried a great weight of emotions that even the drunk Skye could feel.

"I'm glad..." She turned to him with a smile on her face, "I'm happy to be cherished by you..."

Saying those words, Skye's head fell back and she began snoring. 

"You're such a cutie." Ash chuckled as he gently stroked her face.

He knew Theo had something to do with why she was asking him such a random question but he was glad he managed to clear her doubts a bit.

Before he could stand up to leave the room, Skye rolled over and held onto him tightly like he was her teddy bear.

"Don't...go..." She sleepily murmured.

Ash just shut his eyes tightly and gave up, he knew that night would be a tough one for him.

Earlier on, he felt like seeing her beauty without the dress on and now that she was that close to him, he felt dizzy. The silky skin on his and her feminine scent clouded his mind.

She smelt like lavender, even her hair had a hint of lavender smell in it, he was hypnotized by her once more and the closeness between them didn't help the matter.

"Control yourself, Ash, she's drunk." He gave himself a warning through clenched teeth.

For a while, Ash couldn't sleep, Skye's touch was all he could think of but things got worse when she started turning on the bed. She rolled and rolled and kicked him severally in her sleep but what amused him was how she looked cute even while being sleepily aggressive.

Much to his surprise, Ash managed to sleep that night, he slept better than he had in days and not surprisingly that was because Skye was right next to him.

.....

Skye woke up the next morning with a pounding headache. She sat up and rubbed her head, "I really need to control how much I drink."

Just then, she took notice of the body beside her, she nearly screamed until she realized it was Ash sleeping there.

Like a slideshow, the events from the previous night rushed into her head in a flash.

"OH MY GOSH!" She exclaimed, covering her face with a pillow out of embarrassment.

She couldn't believe she asked him for a piggyback ride and kissed his cheek in front of the whole staff. It felt like the world would end at that moment.

"You're up."

She peeked out of her pillow to find Ash sitting up, her yells must have woken him up from his sleep.

Ash tried to pull the pillow from her face but Skye held onto it tightly.

"I can't face you right now!" She yelled, burning with intense embarrassment.

Ash laughed out loud on hearing her complain like that. Skye peeked out to see him laugh, he looked different in the morning, maybe it was his messy hair, morning voice, or laughing face but She just couldn't resist looking at him.

Noticing her guard was down, Ash took the pillow from her hand and pulled her closer to him until her head was on his chest.

"Why are you shying away? Shouldn't you take responsibility for kissing me and holding me captive?" He teased her.

Hearing his deep voice thunder through his chest made Skye lose focus for a minute until she remembered the situation.

"How am I supposed to take responsibility for that?" She knelt before him, looking him in the eye with pouty lips.

"You're so adorable." Ash found himself saying as he stared at her.

"Liar! I'm sure my makeup is smudged, my hair is a mess and I haven't even brushed my teeth yet-"

"You're still adorable to me." He pulled her toward his chest once more and ran his hand through her soft hair. "as compensation for last night, follow me somewhere today."

"Where?"

"It's a surprise."

"Okay, but this cancels out what I did last night."

 Feeling her poted lip on his chest, Ash let out another laugh, "It does."

That was the first time in a while that he laughed as much as he did then and at the party with her. She was awakening the sleeping parts of himself and he loved it.

They stayed like that for a while until Skye's stomach interrupted their romantic moment.

"Looks like someone's hungry." Said Ash.

"Yeah, I'm famished but let me hit the shower first, my head is banging."

"That's why you shouldn't drink much, especially when out in public."

"Quit nagging me," She playfully pushed him away and jumped out of the bed, "Now go, let me change."

"So now you want me to leave, I'm not going." Ash crossed his hands and pouted like a kid throwing a tantrum.

"You're such a child..." Skye laughed at his cute behavior, "If you don't leave then we're not going anywhere."

Hearing her words, Ash quickly left the room without uttering another word making Skye laugh once more at his childish antics.

"He's so adorable." She muttered before stepping into the shower.

Little by little, she was warming up to him and he made his way into her frozen heart.