Ashley and Frankie

To say that Ashley "Ash" Campbell didn't care much for his birth name would be the understatement of the millennium. He was named after the protagonist of the popular Evil Dead franchise, of which both his parents were huge fans of. Top it off with their last name being the same as the lead actor, Bruce Campbell, and the two just couldn't resist bequeathing this name on their firstborn. He even had dark hair and brown eyes like Bruce. Despite this annoyance, Ashley was also a fan of Evil Dead, plus movies in general.

Growing up, however, few kids his age were going to understand the reference, and to them he was just a shrimpy kid with a "girly" name. Kids are assholes. But he wasn't alone when it came to annoying names.

Francine "Frankie" D'Angelo was also not a fan of her birth name. Part of it could've had to do with being a tomboy, but she figured there wouldn't be many girls happy with that name. While she still liked "girly" colors, she could barely stand dresses and preferred her black hair short, much to the chagrin of her mother.

Her given name and nickname, combined with her tomboyish behavior, also made her a subject of bullying. Kids are assholes. But Frankie didn't grin and bear it. Far from it! She may have looked delicate with her fair skin, bright blue eyes, and big black rimmed glasses, but she definitely wasn't! It also helped that she was often taller than most boys her age.

The two lived in the same neighborhood, a few houses away from each other, but didn't start hanging out regularly till around 6th grade. On one fateful day, Ash was getting picked on for the umpteenth time.

"Where's your dress, Ashley?" one of the regular kids exclaimed. Despite all the teasing, Ash remained passive, he wouldn't even raise his fists. But he was quick with a comeback.

"Check your sister's room," he dryly replied with a smirk. "I might've left it there."

"Think you're a frickin' comedian, Ashhole?" the kid threw back.

"Compared to you, it ain't that hard," Ash retorted. This was followed by the bully knocking him down.

"Hey!" Frankie shouted. "Quit messin' with him, asshole!"

"Piss off, Francine!" the kid shouted. "This ain't your business!"

"You're really gonna pay for that, bitch," Frankie retorted while cracking her knuckles with a devilish smile.

She then proceeded to punch the kid right in the nose, knocking him right beside Ash. He got off the ground and ran off.

Frankie helped Ash to his feet and they sat on a nearby bench.

"Thanks," Ash said quietly.

"Why do you let these assholes walk all over ya like that?" Frankie asked with clear annoyance in her voice.

"I don't like fighting," he replied.

"Who said anything about liking it?" she asked. "I don't enjoy fighting. Well... ok... sometimes I do. Still, my old man says ya can't let people fuck with ya."

"Sounds like a colorful guy," Ash chuckled.

"You bet he is," she exclaimed with pride.

"My dad mostly quotes movies... mostly," he smirked to himself.

"Ya sound like the little girl from Aliens," she chuckled.

"You've seen Aliens?" he asked with surprise.

"Hell yeah, that movie's awesome!" she exclaimed. "My pop showed it to me! My ma wasn't too happy about it. She's not a big fan of violent movies."

"My parents like pretty much every kind of movie," he chuckled.

"That why you're name's Ashley? After that chainsaw guy from Evil Dead?" she asked.

"Yeah," he answered. "Plus our last name is the same as the guy who played him."

"No shit?" she chuckled. "I don't think I'm named after anybody. My ma just seems to like ugly names..."

"I don't think Francine is such a bad name," he smiled.

"Easy for you to say," she scoffed. "You can at least go by Ash. Then people will either think it's after the Evil Dead guy or the kid from Pokémon."

"Ash from Pokémon is who a lot of other kids think of first," he admitted. "Doesn't take long for them to find out what it's short for though..."

"Because your ma shouts it out when lookin' for ya?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

"Guessin' yours does the same?" he asked, also knowing.

"All the time," she groaned. "Ma hates it when anyone calls me Frankie. Plus other kids make fun of it for being a boy name."

"Is it ok if I call you Francine from time to time?" he asked blushing a little.

"I guess so," she replied, also blushing some. "But only if I get to call you Ashley; it's only fair."

After that, the two hung out basically every day. They typically hung out at Ash's house because both of his parents weren't strict when it came to watching R rated movies. Frankie was very popular with Ash's little sister, Cheryl, who was all about mouthing off to her big brother.

"Why do ya always gotta be buggin' us, Cheryl?" Ash asked annoyingly.

"What? Am I interrupting your make out time with Frankie?" Cheryl quipped, making the other two blush. Everyone was constantly thinking the two were a couple, which annoyed them both.

"Don't be a moron," he replied, tossing a pillow at her head.

Time only made their bond stronger. Then, the summer before they were gonna start high school, Frankie dropped a bomb.

"Ma's sending me to a fuckin' private school!" she exclaimed to Ash.

"Why's she doing that?" he asked,

"She says I ain't girly enough!" she exclaimed. "Can you believe that shit!?" Ash let out a slight chuckle. "Shut up! We won't be seeing each other anymore!"

"You're not movin' away, are ya?" he asked.

"Well, no," she replied in an unusually timid tone. "But, we'll be at different schools. Different schedules and shit. We'll make new friends... and drift apart... I don't want that."

Ash could swear Frankie was starting to tear up; something she didn't even do when she got a scrape. It was so weird seeing her vulnerable like this. It was even kind of... cute? That was a weird feeling! He immediately embraced his friend in a hug, surprising both of them. She was still taller than him, his head just touching her chin.

"Listen, Frankie," he began. "You're my best friend. Nothin's ever gonna change that. We may not get to see each other as often like before, but that won't change how we feel about each other." He pulled away slightly to look her in the eyes. "We'll always be friends. Promise?" He gave a warm smile stuck out his pinkie finger.

"Jesus, you're so fuckin' cheesy," she chuckled, though still clearly holding back tears. She let out a sigh and they locked their pinkie fingers together. "Promise."

Summer ended, Frankie began going to a private school, while Ash went to a public school. They did their best to stay in touch, cell phones and social media helped. But, just as Frankie feared, they got caught up in separate school activities and making new friends. Contact between the two dwindled, it got to the point where they didn't send any messages their whole senior year. The two still thought about each other often, hoping they'd get a chance to meet again. Spoiler alert, they would.