Hellbent
Chapter 20
Sketchbook
The next morning, Andreas and Blake were passed out in front of the TV on Andreas’ couch. Andreas was fast asleep, lying on Blake’s chest as he draped his arm around him. Suddenly, aggressive pounding at the door disturbed them from their slumber. They both groggily sat up and gave each other a knowing look.
Andreas: “What does he want now?”
He groaned.
Blake: “I’m going to kick his ass!”
He huffed, shooting up from the couch and furiously marching to the door.
Andreas: “No, Blake. Let me deal with him.”
He sighed and rose from the couch, pushing past him to the door.
Blake: “Fine, but if he steps a foot in here I’m kicking his ass!”
Andreas opened the door, surprised to see Veronika standing there.
Veronika: “So… the rumours are true then?!”
She glowered at them.
Blake: “What rumours?”
He sighed exasperatedly.
Veronika: “You pansy homewrecker!”
She rasped at Andreas, holding up Yvette’s sketchbook.
Veronika: “YOU. It’s always YOU. You’re ruining my life!”
She glared at Andreas with hatred. Andreas looked impassive.
Andreas: “What did I do now?”
Blake stood in front of Andreas.
Blake: “Back off, lady. Craig isn’t here! He’s with me now!”
Veronika gaped at him. She then threw her head back and snorted.
Veronika: “Oh, Blake… this isn’t about Craig.”
She shook her head.
Veronika: “It’s about you.”
She presented them with Yvette’s sketches of them kissing. Blake and Andreas both looked baffled.
Andreas: “That’s a nice drawing. Can I have that?”
He remarked. Veronika glared at him, snatching the sketchbook away from them.
Blake: “Why are you angry over a drawing? What’s this got to do with me?”
He asked exasperatedly.
Veronika: “BECAUSE! I want YOU!”
She raised her arm and pointed at him. Andreas gaped at her.
Blake: “Why? You don’t know me, and you’re with Craig?”
He gaped at her.
Veronika: “You’re much more of a man than he is!”
Blake gaped at her vapid response, he had no words to speak.
Andreas: “So what if he is? He’s with me.”
He stepped forward, placing his hand on the wall of his chest.
Veronika: “You put one of your stupid spells on him, didn’t you?”
She glared at Andreas. Blake rolled his eyes.
Blake: “What makes you think I’d want to be with you when you were nasty to my little brother? If you’re not happy with Craig, dump him, then. I don’t care about either of you.”
He said firmly, folding his arms across his chest. Veronika gaped at him.
Blake: “Now, leave us alone.”
He huffed, closing the door in her face.
Veronika: “No one says NO to me!”
She fumed, marching over to her Lamborghini Countach. She got in the car and revved up her engine.
Veronika: “It’s that fat little pansie’s fault!”
She seethed at Yvette’s drawing of Ashley. Her expression shifted into a wry smirk.
~
Ashley was out in the garden, harvesting fresh rosemary, sage, and thyme, merrily humming to Fleetwood Mac on the radio. He wore bell bottom jeans with his father’s faux fur coat over a loose purple paisley button shirt exposing his neckline. Maxx burst out into the backyard, stamping his feet.
Maxx: “You BETRAYED me, A-Rad.”
He pouted. Ashley drew a breath, keeping his eyes on his garden.
Ashley: “Dude... I really like her, and she makes me feel good. Don’t you want me to be happy? How is it a betrayal if you guys never dated and she doesn’t even like you? Aren’t you with Jaclyn?”
He protested, spraying down his vegetables with garlic water. Maxx gaped at him, taken aback by his response.
Maxx: “NUKLEAR ARE MY ENEMIES, A-RAD! THEY KICKED ME OUT AND BULLIED ME!”
He fired back at him. Ashley drew a breath.
Ashley: “Maybe if you didn’t screw them over in rent, they wouldn’t have kicked you out? Maybe if you apologise to them and pay the rest of your debt, you guys won’t be enemies anymore?”
He said gently, but firmly. Maxx gaped at him, and his fury soared.
Maxx: “Pfft, who cares about dat! I’m talkin’ about YOU TAKING MY ‘LADY BABE’!”
He whined.
Ashley: “What are you talking about? I don’t want Jaclyn.”
He laughed, pulling out some weeds.
Maxx: “NAH-AH! I’m talkin’ about MCKAYLA!”
Ashley looked up from the garden and turned to him, yanking out a big carrot from the soil.
Ashley: “...What?”
He gaped at him as if he had three heads.
Maxx: “You OWE me BIG TIME for what you did to me, A-Rad! You were supposed to find ME a hot lady babe, not STEAL her from me for yourself! You FUCKED her when she was supposed to FUCK ME!”
He warbled, pointing his bony finger at him. Ashley gaped and glared at him.
Ashley: “What the hell, dude?! I didn’t bring her home for you like some kind of snack! You talk about women like they’re a candy bar or something! It’s so…UGH! It's so wrong!”
He huffed, waving his hands at him.
Maxx: “Pfft, not everything is about food, A-Rad! You’re such a fatty!”
He scoffed at him. Ashley drew a breath and shook his head. I walked into that one, didn’t I?
Ashley: “Maybe if you treated people nicer, they’d like you…”
He embraced himself.
Ashley: “Also, we didn’t make–”
He paused, stopping himself. Why am I justifying myself to him? He’ll just say “Pfft, she didn’t fuck you cos you’re fat! I told you chicks don’t like fatties!” I’m tired of arguing with him. No, I can’t let his negative vibrations lower my vibrations. I can’t reason with him. He’s not going to listen.
Ashley: “I thought chicks didn’t like fatties? So, how could I ‘steal' her from the great Sex Beest?”
He said dryly. Maxx gaped at him again.
Maxx: “Pfft, that’s cos she was drunk, DUH! Mckayla is a drunk, A-Rad! It takes one to know one!”
He countered, taking a sip from his goon sack. Ashley paused, thinking back to her getting banned from Voyage Burger for being drunk and disorderly. He then thought of her drinking on the job at Hellbent. Then he thought of when he first met her at Craig’s birthday party and how she was drinking then, too, and then she got stoned on his cat cookies.
Ashley: “Ok, so she has a drinking habit, but that doesn’t mean she was drunk when she came here last night!”
He countered. Wasn’t she? He pondered, replaying the events of the night in his head again.
Suddenly, they were interrupted by knocking coming from the front door.
Ashley: “I’ll get it.”
He smiled a bit, hoping it was Makayla. He went up the stairs of the patio and entered the house.
Ashley: “Coming!”
He called out as he rushed over to the door. He opened the door, surprised to see an unexpected visitor.
Ashley: “...Yvette?!”
She wore jade-green makeup and an olive-green cape over her long, flowing, ivory white dress. She had a brown nordic sash bag over her shoulder and sandals on her feet.
Yvette: “Hello Ashley!”
She beamed and waved at him.
Ashley: “Hey, Yvette! Nice to see you! What brings you here?”
He smiled, delighted yet curious.
Yvette: “I rode my ‘Biking’ here and wanted to hang out with you…”
She swayed side to side. Ashley glanced over the veranda to see a red bicycle with horns on the handles and a basket perched on the front of it.
Ashley: “Haha, nice Vike!”
He smiled. Yvette giggled at his pun. Ashley scratched his head, wondering what she was doing here as he didn’t expect to see her again, or so soon after their last encounter.
Ashley: “Come in! I’m just doing some gardening out back!”
He gestured for her to come in. Yvette slipped off her sandals at the door and went inside with him. Ashley smiled when she respected that courtesy without him needing to ask to take her shoes off inside.
Ashley led her into the backyard, where Maxx was sunbathing in his leopard print G-string.
Maxx: “Hey, baby!”
He purred at her. Yvette’s face crumpled at the sight of him.
Yvette: “Eww!”
She covered her eyes and looked away from him. Ashley sighed. She wanted to come back here? He wondered. Ashley knelt to his garden, tracing his hands over his plants.
Ashley: “Did you want some carrots?”
He asked her.
Maxx: “Nah-ah! She wants my carrot!”
He grinned and lifted his pelvis in the air. Yvette gaped at him, appalled.
Yvette: “I don’t want tiny baby carrots!”
She cried back at him. Ashley looked away and laughed.
Maxx: “NAH-AH! I HAVE A BIG CARROT!”
He shrieked. Ashley sighed and rubbed his temples.
Ashley: “I’m so sorry… do you want to go somewhere else?”
He knit his eyebrows. Yvette smiled at him.
Yvette: “OOOH! I know somewhere you will LOVE!”
She jumped up with glee. Ashley’s face lit up.
Ashley: “Ooh?! Where?!”
~
Ashley and Yvette entered a large greenhouse converted into a restaurant. A green leaf-shaped neon sign read “Edgy Veggie.” Underneath it said “Fresh love from the earth!” illuminated in yellow with vector artwork of carrots, broccoli, and tomatoes. Upbeat reggae music bounced around in the background.
Yvette: “This is my faaaaaaavourite place!”
She beamed, stamping her bare feet into the soil that covered the entire floor of the establishment. Ashley removed his sandals and smiled at her enthusiasm as she led him through the restaurant.
In place of tables, there were rows of garden beds filled with patrons, sitting in the dirt, harvesting their vegetables from it and cooking them on camping stoves. Ashley and Yvette sat down in the garden bed available at the back of the restaurant.
Ashley: “Haha, oh wow! It kinda feels like home…”
He wiggled his toes in the soil. Yvette gave him a perplexed look.
Yvette: “Huh? OH! I get it! Your house is green, and this is a greenhouse!”
She laughed. Ashley chuckled and ran his fingers through his hair.
Ashley: “Hahah, good one!”
I meant my real home, he thought to himself, gazing down at his Sunshire tattoo.
A tall woman dressed in a blue sequin dress with big sunglasses over her face and a scarf over her head caught his attention as she looked out of place here.
Ashley: “Is that… Jaclyn?”
He laughed and squinted his eyes to get a closer look at her.
Jaclyn: “Hurry up with my green smoothie, peasant!”
She hissed to the server, dressed in hemp overalls with dreadlocks, confirming his suspicions.
Ashley: “Oh, uh, hey, Jaclyn…”
He waved at her. Jaclyn froze and sneered at him.
Jaclyn: “Don’t you DARE tell anyone you saw me here.”
She hissed at him, grabbing her smoothie and stomping off. Ashley scratched his head and laughed.
Yvette: “Who was that woman, Ashley?”
She frowned.
Ashley: “Oh, she’s Maxx’s… golddigger?”
He laughed. Yvette looked confused.
Yvette: “Oh? She works in the mines?”
Ashley chuckled.
Ashley: “No, no, a golddigger is someone who… uhh, dates people for their money?”
He scratched his head.
Yvette: “Oh, that’s sad…”
She frowned.
Ashley: “It is…”
He frowned when he thought of how much he had struggled financially while Maxx gave his money to that woman. Wait, if I’m giving Maxx my money and he’s giving it to her, does that mean… she’s golddigging me?!” He thought angrily.
An overweight server dressed in a tie-dye shirt and dirty blond hair, tapped the sign on the wall that said “NO FROWNING.”
Ashley: “O-oh, sorry!”
He forced a smile. The man nodded his smiling head in approval.
Tie-Dye man: “Smile, baby! You’re more beautiful when you smile!”
He chirped, pressing the sides of his lips upwards into a smile. Ashley kept his smile intact. What is wrong with me? He wondered, observing the happy people around him and the brightly painted signs with phrases like “Good Vibes, good tribes” and “Smile, it’s for free!”
Yvette: “Hey! He's not a lady! He's a man!”
She gestured to Ashley. Ashley shifted his eyes and shuffled awkwardly in the soil. The server's smile dropped and he shifted his eyes.
Tie-Dye man: “O-Oh, my apologies, dude!”
He replied quickly and scurried away. Ashley stopped smiling when the man was out of sight.
Yvette: “Isn’t this place amazing?!”
She beamed, admiring the fresh vegetables at their hands.
Ashley: “Haha, yeah!”
He glanced down at the pot of boiling vegetables on his tiny camping stove.
Ashley: “So, uh, I’m surprised you wanted to see me again...”
The statement slipped out before he could think. Yvette gave him an incredulous look, taken aback by his statement.
Yvette: “Oh? Why are you surprised?”
She pressed him, munching on her lettuce.
Ashley: “I dunno… after our last encounter, I didn’t think you’d want to see me anymore.”
He sighed. Yvette threw her plate down and picked up her sashbag.
Yvette: “Are you kidding me?!”
She reached into her sashbag, pulling out her sketchbook.
Yvette: “LOOK AT THIS!”
She beamed, proudly showing him the drawings she did from that day. The drawings of Blake and Craig’s Viking battle, Andreas and Blake’s Viking love, and the drawings of her tickling Ashley’s feet.
Yvette: “I had SO much fun and you inspired me a lot! I like hanging out with you very much!”
She beamed excitedly
Ashley: “Oh, WOW! T-thank you so much! I like hanging out with you, too!”
He smiled, blushing down at the artwork and cupping his cheeks. Yvette giggled at him.
Yvette: “I know you do! Don’t be shy, Ashley. Your friend told me!”
She teased and nudged him. Ashley lifted his head, looking confused.
Ashley: “Huh? Friend?”
He tilted his head.
Ashley: “Maxx? What did he tell you?”
He sighed. Yvette shook her head.
Yvette: “No, no, silly! Your friend with the black glasses! She found my sketchbook in the parking lot and she told me that you like me, but you were too shy!”
She giggled and smiled at him. Ashley froze.
Ashley: “...Friend in the black glasses?!”
He tilted his head owlishly as he racked his brain, trying to figure out who would fit that description.
Yvette: “I am SO glad you like me!”
She beamed, throwing her arms around him in a tight hug. Ashley smiled and hugged her back. He went to press her for more details, but before he could, they were interrupted by a woman clearing her throat.
Ashley’s eyes widened with surprise when he saw Makayla standing over them.
Ashley: “Makayla?! What are you doing here?”
He laughed, surprised to see her in a place like this.
Makayla: “Didn’t think I’d catch you here, huh? I can’t believe I fell for another facade! God, I’m SO stupid!”
She huffed, kicking up her heels and throwing her arms in frustration. The entire restaurant went quiet, turning their attention to them. Ashley recoiled, taken aback.
Ashley: “W-what are you talking about, Makayla? Why are you mad at me?”
He knit his eyebrows, holding his hands up.
Makayla: “Cut the crap! Don’t try to gaslight me! You act like you’re this innocent little lamb, but you’re just another corrupt sleaze!”
She leaned forward and scolded him, her words carrying a heavy pain. Ashley recoiled from her harsh words, which slashed at him like razors.
Ashley: “W-what did I do?! What’s going on?!”
He cried. Yvette glared at Makayla and put her arm around Ashley.
Yvette: “HEY! Stop bullying him!”
She fired back at her. Makayla turned her attention to her.
Makayla: “Haha. Funny, he thought we were ‘bullying' Maxx, too. Now the cycle repeats itself.”
She laughed bitterly. Ashley frowned as his head spun with confusion and hurt.
Ashley: “Look, why don’t you calm down and tell me what’s going on, Makayla?”
He offered firmly but gently. Makayla turned back to Ashley with a long breath.
Makayla: “Don’t tell me to calm down! I SAW everything in her sketchbook, Ashley, and now I’ve seen all I need to know!”
Ashley’s head spun with confusion. Yvette’s jaw dropped.
Ashley: “Wait, I’m confused. Are you the friend in the sunnies?”
He scratched his head, looking over at Yvette for confirmation. Yvette furiously rose to her feet.
Yvette: “WHAT?! NO! I can’t believe you took my sketchbook! THAT’S PRIVATE! Only special people are allowed to see it, and YOU’RE NOT SPECIAL!”
She snapped at Makayla. Ashley cupped his mouth, taken aback to see this side of her, too.
Makayla: “Oh, you didn’t want anyone to see what a nasty little bully you are?! I saw all the drawings you did mocking me and my brother and our friends! You can dish it, but you can’t take it!”
She fired back at her.
The staff of the restaurant surrounded them. The man in the tie-dye jumped in between them.
Tie Dye man: “ENOUGH! You’re bringing down the VIBES!”
He cried, gesturing to their surroundings. Some people were rushing to leave, while others stayed and watched with shocked faces. The server with the hemp overalls stepped forward.
Server: “Come on guys, that’s enough, you’re bumming everyone out!”
She said firmly. Ashley suddenly froze and shut down, going numb as he was taken back to a memory.
~
Flashback to Sunshire, 1968
Ashley and Blake were both surrounded by people dressed in white when they were children. They resembled a hazy white cloud of smoke surrounding them, their faces were obscured, lost to distant memory. A woman spoke.
Woman: “Selfish children, stop yelling and crying! You’re polluting the air with your toxicity! You need to think of how your vibrations affect other people!”
She scolded the children. Blake pouted with seering anger while Ashley bawled in a puddle of tears.
~
Cut back to present day, 1985
Tears rolled down Ashley’s cheeks as he snapped out of his daze to Makayla’s yelling.
Makayla: “Fuck your stupid vibes! This isn’t about you!”
She fired back at the hippies. They recoiled, cowering and sobbing.
Yvette: “You made everyone cry, you meanie!”
She snapped at Makayla.
Makayla: “He made me cry, and he will make you cry, too!”
She cried and gestured at Ashley.
Ashley: “I-I’m so sorry!”
Ashley slowly rocked as he felt like everything was spinning around him, as his mind overloaded with overstimulation. Everyone’s voices echoed and spun around his head, and he felt like he was drifting off the planet.
Makayla: “Now I know why you hesitated with me… I thought you were different. I poured my soul to you! I thought, finally, there was someone who understood me and cared about me as a person!”
She cried.
Makayla: “But you’re just like him and others like him…”
She pursed her lips and embraced herself. Ashley felt like she drove a knife into his heart with that statement.
Ashley: “I’m NOT like Maxx!”
He cried. Makayla went to speak, but the servers grabbed her.
Makayla: “HEY! Get off me! What are you doing?!”
She snapped at them.
Tie-dye man: “Get out of here, and take your bad vibes with you!”
He scolded her, ushering her out of the restaurant.
Ashley sighed and embraced himself, looking down at his feet, blocking out his surroundings. He felt ashamed of bringing down everyone’s vibrations and confused and hurt by Makayla.
Ashley: “I think I want to go home…”
He pursed his lips. Yvette hugged him.
Yvette: “Ok, we can go!”
She assured him. They both rose and went up to the server to pay for their meals.
Sever: “That’s fifty dollars, please!”
She smiled. Ashley froze to gape at her.
Ashley: “F-Fifty dollars?!”
He stammered and swallowed hard.
Server: “Yes, fifty dollars for you and fifty dollars for your girlfriend!”
She chirped, nodding to Yvette. Yvette beamed widely. Ashley’s jaw dropped.
Ashley: “...Girlfriend? ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS?!”
He gasped in an outrage.
Server: “Please don’t yell. Calm down. Those are the prices per customer.”
She smiled at him. Ashley pouted.
Ashley: “I could do this at home for free and cook it in a proper kitchen… with some herbs and sauces… and some meat… and some tea… and wash my feet.”
He muttered, folding his arms across his chest. Yvette chuckled.
Server: “Then you should do that at home and leave that princess attitude there. One hundred dollars, please.”
She chirped, forcing a big smile on her face. Ashley gaped at her.
Ashley: “Princess?! How could you be hippies and sell out Mother Nature like this? You guys aren't real hippies, you're just pretending for money!”
He pouted. The server’s smile dipped, and she glowered at him.
Server: “Seems like you're the faker!”
Ashley: “I wish I was! I only have three dollars to my name!”
He cried, trying to fight back tears when he thought of how Maxx was draining him financially and emotionally.
Server: “Then you will pay in karma when we remove you and ban you.”
She smirked. Yvette knit her eyebrows and stepped in.
Yvette: “NO! I will rescue you, Ashley!”
She assured him, fishing around in her sash bag, pulling out a purple velvet pouch with a golden string around it. She opened it up and pulled out one of many one-hundred dollar bills, handing it to the server. Ashley gaped at her. Wow, they must pay a lot at Voyage Burger, he thought.
~
Ashley and Yvette emerged from the restaurant, stepping onto the street.
Ashley: “T-Thank you, Yvette!”
He smiled and hugged her. Yvette smiled at him and hugged him tightly. Ashley sighed, feeling lighter.
Ashley: “I'm sorry…”
He pursed his lips.
Ashley: “I'm sorry for causing chaos again…”
He embraced himself, overcome with guilt.
Yvette: “It's not your fault! It's that wretched Makayla!”
She huffed.
Yvette: “She broke my special sketchbook bind, and she yelled at you for no reason!”
She ranted. Ashley bowed his head.
Ashley: “She was probably just drunk…”
He sighed. Yvette shook her head.
Yvette: “NO EXCUSE!”
She waved her finger. Ashley pursed his lips.
Yvette: “Don't worry! I put a curse on my book for anyone who looks at it without my permission!”
She assured him.
Ashley: “Oh?! What's going to happen to her?”
He knit his eyebrows.
Yvette: “A looooooot of bad luck!”
She chuckled deviously. Ashley shifted his eyes and scratched his head.
~
Makayla cruised through the streets of Selene Valley in her Ford Escort, blasting “The Wild One” by Suzie Quattro. She ascended the windy roads, taking her further up the mountainside of the valley, admiring the view of the town and bayside beneath her. The homes went up in value and size, the higher up she drove. She reached a large ivory fence with an iron gate that read ‘WOODS’ in bold capital letters, and she drove into the property.
She pulled into the terracotta driveway that surrounded the large white mansion and water fountains. The door to the Ford Escort swung open as Makayla got out with her guitar, and she headed down the stone pathway leading into the backyard. She was greeted by a sandstone entertainment area with a large pool and a tennis court down the back. Beside the pool, there was a stone pathway leading to a red brick building with a terracotta roof that looked to be a converted bungalow.
Lord Kradula was hovering around the building, pouting. His friend Bobby hung around him, chugging a beer.
Lord Kradula: “Be gone thot! This is MY studio!”
He hissed at her like a snake. Makayla rolled her eyes at him.
Makayla: “Beat it, Larry. I’m not in the mood to deal with you.”
She shoved past him to the door.
Bobby: “Hey, Makayla, wanna run your hands down MY fretboard?”
He slurred and belched.
Bobby: “In my PANTS!”
He cackled. Lord Kradula chortled. Makayla put her guitar down and turned around to them, snatching his beer bottle and smashing it all over the pavement.
Makayla: “Not even if you were the last guy on earth!”
She fired back at him.
Bobby: “HEY!”
They heard clapping and laughter that resembled a cackling witch. Makayla turned around to see Veronika emerging from the studio.
Veronika: “HAHAHA, good show, Makayla.”
She clapped. Makayla frowned.
Veronika: “Beat it bozos, band is in session now.”
She waved her hands at Lord Kradula and Bobby. Lord Kradula sneered at them and swished his cape, stomping off.
Veronika: “So glad you could make it this time, Makayla! Kurt and Craig are inside waiting.”
She grinned.
Veronika: “I’m glad you came to your senses and realised that the band is more important than silly little boys!”
She taunted her. Makayla sighed and bowed her head.
Makayla: “I’m sorry… you were right.”
She said with strain.
Veronika: “Of course I am! I told you Ashley was bad news! I’m just looking out for you, Makayla. I’m not the bad guy!”
She assured her with a smile.
Veronika: “But I will be the bad guy if you ever ditch again or do anything to fuck me over!”
Her tone bellowed sinisterly, warning her with her eyes. Makayla froze and slowly nodded.
Veronika smiled again, her demeanor shifted like she was changing hats.
Veronika: “Okay! Let’s THRASH OUT!”
She clasped her hands together and shoved her into the studio.
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