BXBX NOVEL Chapter 66 - I Know My Worth
Megan\'s POV
After my heart-to-heart talk with my mom, I felt more confident, and I felt like I could be whoever I wanted to be without fear because I had my mother to back me up whatever happened. I felt so happy that mom made an effort to talk with me, and she made me open up with her about my love life. It feels so lovely to have the support of my entire family, and I wish there were something I could do about my job at Lauren\'s place. Still, I know Aunt Sonia will not allow me to be absent because I am sure Lauren will never agree to it even if I give her a full refund of her payment to us.
I went straight to my room after I talked with my mom, and I smiled when I found my sister sleeping on her bed with a Science book on her chest. I get the book and put it on her nightstand, and I cover her with the blanket. We are both lucky because we are number one in our class, and I am glad that Ava maintained her grades. I was in the middle of answering my assignments when I remembered Ashton\'s post on his IG account.
I get my phone, and I open my IG app, and I am shocked that I have so many followers now, mostly guys from the Academy, there were also girls, but I didn\'t know them. My account is not private since, at first, I only had limited followers, and I realized maybe it happened after I became Ashton\'s girlfriend. And the boys, especially the football players, started following me, or perhaps it was when I stopped wearing my reading glasses, and I wore skirts, and I showed my legs.
I smiled when I saw Ashton following me, and I followed him back; I started looking at his profile and posts, and I saw what my friends told me about, and it has thousands of comments now, and it feels like the entire teenage population of Astikoz is excited to know Ashton\'s love life. There are so many comments that I skip reading, those written by unfamiliar names, and I was holding my breath when I came across Lauren\'s comment, and it had many replies. These girls were trying to call my attention, and they wanted me to show myself, and based on their comments, it seems they are not challenging Ashton but me.
Some comments are hurtful, and there are also hilarious, and I know that if Ashton read all the comments, he will become affected. And Alice and Oscar were right about Ashton\'s reputation being on the line since the girls said they couldn\'t believe Ashton would make up something like that, and I felt guilty that Ashton is now scorned because of me. And if I care about his reputation, I should do something about it, and I don\'t know how I can convince Aunt Sonia to cancel my remaining two Saturdays and two Sundays at Lauren\'s mansion.
I became more drawn to Ashton because he never told me about his viral post. And he didn\'t even tell me something about it, and I can tell because he cares for me, and he doesn\'t want me to get worried. I continued answering my assignments with a beautiful smile on my face. After seeing his post and some of his replies to the comments as I realized how much Ashton wanted me.
"Megan, I have good news for you," Alice said the moment we met at the entrance of the library the following day, and she was smiling at me from ear to ear.
"What kind of news is that, Alice? You should make sure it can make me happy," I replied.
"Aunt Sonia came to our house this morning, and she said, we don\'t need to come and work at Lauren\'s place anymore," Alice said, and my eyes widened.
"What? Are you sure about that, Alice? You know Lauren, and I don\'t think she will allow me to stop working for her until I finish the contract because that is what she wants me to do? She wanted to humiliate me and to make me feel so little of myself. But working at her mansion will never make me feel less of myself because I know we are doing a decent job. And there is nothing wrong with cleaning houses and tending the gardens, besides I love our job, Alice. And I will never be ashamed of my work because I love what I do." I declared.
"I know what you mean, Meg, but yes, it was confirmed. I even asked my aunt many times, but she got irritated by why I had so many questions. She told me I should be happy that I will have Saturday and Sunday off, and it is to our advantage because we have been paid for it, and I don\'t know what happened, but I think this is all happening right now because of one reason." Alice declared, and I raised my eyebrow.
"This is your chance to show up at Ashton\'s game this coming Saturday and make him proud," Alice said.
"Yeah, this is fantastic news, Alice, and I don\'t know if Ashton or Zachary is behind all this, but I couldn\'t be happier," I replied, and I suddenly felt excited about it, even if I could feel the nervousness in me. And I could tell my best friend was right, last night I was hoping that I would have an excuse from working at Lauren\'s place so that I can watch my boyfriend\'s game, and now that my best friend is telling me I am free to watch Ashton\'s game I couldn\'t say no. And I\'m going to tell my mom tonight that I am ready to watch the football game for the first time, and I am sure my mother will get excited. She will file a vacation leave to accompany me to the stadium, and I felt excited about the game, and I suddenly panicked about how I would get Ashton\'s Jersey.
"Do I need to tell Ashton about it?" I asked my best friend, and she suddenly stopped in her tracks, and she faced me as she put one hand on her hip.
"It is a no, Megan; you can\'t ruin the surprise. That is why you can\'t tell Ashton about it. You have to surprise your boyfriend, Meg. And we should have a facial on the night before the game." She said, and I shook my head.
"I don\'t think that is necessary, Alice," I responded.
"Well, of course, you don\'t need to have a facial since you have a perfect face. You look like a model of a moisturizer product for having perfect
skin. And you don\'t need to go to the parlor as well since you have healthy hair." She said, and I blushed. I didn\'t talk with Ashton the entire day, but he texted me now and then, and I felt inspired for the rest of the day. I got disappointed when Ashton texted me something came up, and he couldn\'t pick me up tonight at the fish shop.
I think something is happening at their house, and I am sure it was his dad again. He told me once, every time his dad would come home early, they needed to have dinner together. He told me sometimes they will have dinner at nearby cities riding their chopper, and just thinking about it made me think I don\'t belong in his world, but I guess it is the beauty about loving because we can never teach our heart whom to love.
I was right, and my mother was ecstatic when I told her I was ready to watch Ashton\'s game this Saturday. She told me to be absent from my part-time job on Friday because she wants to take me to the beauty salon after my class before the football game.
"Mom, you don\'t need to do that; Ashton liked me for what I am," I said.
"Megan, I will only bring you to the salon once in a blue moon; besides, I wanted to look beautiful during the game. I am sorry that I can\'t take you in a fancy car, and your dad will be using the car, so we need to ride the bus or take a taxi this coming Saturday. I know Ashton is the son of Gregory Pritzgold, one of the wealthiest men in the country." Mom declared.
"It is okay, mom. I am used to commuting every day." I replied.
"I know you may feel uneasy about our status in life, but I hope it will never be the reason that you will feel unworthy of his love. My dear, you are special, and Ashton is so lucky to have you as his girlfriend. You are beautiful, intelligent, and talented." She added, and I laughed.
"Mom, I know you will always be proud of me, and in your eyes, I will be the most beautiful girl in the universe because I am your daughter, and I felt so happy about it, but don\'t worry. I know my worth. I understand that I am way out of Ashton\'s league, but Ashton never let me feel I am different from him, and he told me we belong together." I replied, and mom smiled at me.
"Oh, Megan, that boy is so in love with you." My mom said, and I giggled.
The days passed by so quickly, and it was time for me to have a date with my mom. I already informed Anthony I couldn\'t report to my work on Friday because of a family matter, and I have a kind-hearted boss, and he allowed me to be absent. I had a wonderful time with my mom, and I enjoyed my facial, manicure, and pedicure, and she convinced me to have hair treatment too. I had a good time, and I insisted on paying, but my mom took good care of everything, and I felt guilty because we didn\'t have enough money, but the happiness I saw on my mom\'s face when she looked at me after we got out from the salon was priceless.. And I couldn\'t stop myself from feeling so excited about watching the football game of Ashton tomorrow.