Living with Hope ✓ [ boyxboy ] [ Completed ]

04 | PATH THROUGH THE WOODS

04 | PATH THROUGH THE WOODS
My rival drops me to school and I receive the best surprise ever! (note the sarcasm)

Ivan's POV

When Alexander Hope wakes up, I'm not on the air bed. Realizing I'm not where I'm supposed to be, he curses and jumps out of his bed and reaches to open the front door.

"I'm here," I say from behind him. I'm sitting on the large window that oversees the sun. My backpack which I'm holding is light, all the clothes are in his closet.

He turns and sighs in relief. "I thought you ran away."

"I did," I say. "And I came back. Why does this neighborhood have no courts to play in? Not even a basketball stand. They're all indoors and locked."

He yawns. "Why are you up so early?"

"It's six in the bloody morning," I say. "I need to go to school on time. Takes an hour from here."

"I'll drop you."

I give him the blankest stare I can. He's either being extremely stupid or extremely kind. The latter's probably impossible, so stupid it is.

"No one will see us this early in the morning."

"No," I say. He's being unreasonable. "If anyone sees the two of us together..." I don't want to think of what will happen.

"You can wear a skull cap or something, they won't recognize you."

"It's you, idiot. No one wants to see a car the color of the Falcon mascot next to Everly High. They think this Wildcat-Falcon thing more seriously than the end of the world."

"So you're worried about me, Petrov?"

"They'll beat the shit out of you." I say truthfully. He knows what they did to Sebastian. And even though Alexander is stronger than his brother, he can't win against a group of tough basketball players alone. "And if you're injured, winning won't be so sweet," I add as an afterthought. Even if there is a small part of me that's concerned for his safety (which there isn't), I don't want to show it. "I like defeating our opponents when they've got nothing to blame."

He smirks. "We'll see about that, Petrov. But I'm not letting you walk through this side of town alone."

"I just did it for the past two hours and no one saw me." At the crack of dawn, I jumped out of the massive window in Hope's room and explored the neighborhood. It's a beautiful place, he should be thankful for where he lives.

"Because they were all asleep." Hope flicks his car keys from the desk. "Make a move before they wake up, shall we?"

Groaning, I slip my hands into the shoulder straps of my bag and follow him out. He knows he can do whatever he wants with me and that's what he's doing. He thinks he's being helpful, kind even. But in reality, he's only making my life worse. I can't stand him, imagine sleeping and sitting and living with him just a few feet away from me.

As we ride through the neighborhood under the light of the rising sun, everything looks beautiful. The houses are considerably larger than the ones in my neighborhood, and way more elegant. It's hard to take my eyes off them. Even though rap music is playing and my rival is sitting to my left, the ride is, dare I say, pleasant.

"Take the right," I instruct over the music. He gives me a puzzled look.

"There's a shortcut through the woods," I explain. "And we'll encounter fewer people on the way; I'll be able to keep my cover."