Alex Carter: A Red Band Society Fanfiction

Oops

As much as Kara loved staring at Hunter's back muscles ripple from under the thin fabric of his white t shirt, this was getting annoying. "Would you just pick something already? I don't have forever." she huffed.

"This is a serious decision," Hunter responded, refusing to turn around and face her. "Your snack determines your mood for the rest of the day." He continued to stare at the vending machine's contents, not moving.

"Oh, well in that case, take your time," she sassed. "I don't want to find you crying over your candy wrappers later." She tossed her ponytail over her shoulder and stared at her nails as she waited rather impatiently for Hunter to retrieve his snack from the bottom of the machine.

Hunter whirled around to face her, a smile playing on the edge of his lips.  "You're the best terrible person I've met in a long time. I mean, you really throw yourself into it."

"Thank you. I've learned so much from watching you," she shot back, punching in her numbers on the keypad.

"I noticed you left the festivities early last night too," Hunter said lightly, leaning against the side of the machine Kara was retrieving her snack from.

"Yeah, well, I had reached my natural tolerance for happiness."

"Too real for you?"

"Please. I'm the epitome of real."

"Real and uncensored aren't exactly the same thing."

Kara couldn't quite stop the smile she felt from forming on her face, and Hunter smirked. A woman somewhere behind them cleared their throat and Hunter looked over Kara's shoulder. "What? No way!" he an over to the stranger and hugged her.

They walked off together, talking so fast Kara couldn't understand what was being said. But she could understand one thing. Girlfriend. She walked over to the nurse's station and leaned on the counter top, her eyes refusing to look anywhere but Hunter and the beautiful stranger. She analyzed her long blonde hair and leather jacket with annoyance, a frown began to creep its way over her face.

"What's wrong with you?" Brittany asked, wheeling over to Kara. "You look like a sad turtle emoticon."

"Did you know Hunter had a girlfriend?"

"No. But then again, I don't know a lot of things. Like, I didn't know Dr. McAndrew had an ex girlfriend who is here. "

"Oh, so you didn't notice Hunter parading around on his blonde ambition tour?"

Brittany followed her gaze to the couple talking and laughing together. "Oh my gosh, you like Hunter!"

Kara readjusted her position, uncomfortable. "Um, I'm afflicted with a very serious heart condition. I have much more important things to worry about," she feigned. "I just thought we had a connection. "

"Then tell him that!" Brittany approached Kara excitedly. "Maybe it will be enough to win him over."

"You mean like be honest with him?" Kara scoffed. "Please. That never works. How I'd normally do this is by tearing down that old hag. But this sickness is making me lose my game. Taking what I want? Getting my way? It's my super power. Now that I have to be nice to get a stupid heart, I've lost all control which completely sucks." Kara pushed past Brittany and began walking away, but Brittany followed.

"Well at least take a page from my favorite author. Oprah says, "If there's nothing you can do, do nothing."

"Oprah isn't technically an author," Kara cut in.

"I'll help you," Brittany said excitedly.

"Funsies," Kara sassed.

"That's no way to say 'funsies'. Come on. " She dragged Kara off by her wrist, with a surprisingly strong grip for her petite body. She dragged Kara into a spare activity room, and unrolled two yoga mats. "You have to clear your mind," she chanted solemnly. 

Kara rolled her eyes in response, but quickly sat down as she spotted Hunter and his girlfriend from across the hall.

"Do nothing," Brittany continued.

Kara watched in surprise as the couple seemed to get into a heated argument. "Look, it's working!"

Brittany gasped as she saw what Kara did. Hunter was yelling and throwing his arms wildly to get his point across. "Quick! Do more nothing."

Kara nodded and quickly tried to resume her meditating position, but couldn't keep her eyes closed, entirely too focused on the argument. She watched Hunter storm away, leaving the girl in front of their room, lost and angry. Kara turned over to Brittany only to see her getting up and clearing her mat. "What're you doing? Don't leave me alone!"

"The universe has brought her to you! Talk to her!"

Kara sighed, watching her longingly as she ran away. She sighed, stood up, and walked out of the room towards the girl.

"You're the girl I saw talking to Hunter by the vending machines," the girl said.

"Kara Souders." She extended her hand as she was taught, having done so to various important people since a very young age. The girl took her hand and shook it, smiling in relief. Kara showed no sign that this girl had ever intimidated her, and pounced. "So sorry if I sparked a rift between you to, but in my defense, I was born with this slammin bod."

"I'm too tired to engage on this level, sweetheart," the girl said, refusing to give in and play Kara's game. "Are you friends with Hunter or not, if so, I may need your help."

"I bet you do. But I'm not making out with you just to make Hunter jealous," Kara replied, ready to spit venom. "If he's bored with your sex life, that's on you, Betty."

"I'm Ashley, " the blonde girl said, thrusting her hands into her back pockets and staring down at Kara, disapproving. "Hunter's sister."

Kara couldn't hide the shock as her stone cold expression dropped to one of surprise. 

"My bother wasn't always like this, all mad at the world and hopeless," Ashley, began, staring out at the passing cars. Kara had followed her outside, and they were now seated on the edge of an ambulance. "He used to be an idealist."

"The Dark Knight went through a happy Gilmore phase?"

Ashley chuckled. "He used to wake me up early on the weekends just so we could make chocolate chip pancakes. But Chef Cole would rather make one giant, perfect pancake than twenty average ones. Cause he always had to do everything bigger and better. otherwise it wasn't worth doing. 

"My moms were the same way when they remodeled their master bath."

"And then, one day, Hunter Cole just kinda stopped being Hunter Cole. He could barely get out of bed, not even to make his one perfect pancake. That's what leukemia does," Ashley sighed. "It rots you."

"Wait I thought it was just something to do with his liver, I didn't know anything about cancer."

"The drug that knocked out his leukemia is now causing problems with his liver. And now, after the transplant failed...I  just cant let my brother go through this. So, I came here to donate half my liver to him."

"You can do that? God, we're like in an actual Lifetime movie." 

"Except for the part when Hunter turned down my offer. "

Kara was shocked. "Why would someone turn down a free liver, that makes zero sense. "

"Agreed," Ashley said with a sigh. "Which is why, I need you to talk some sense into him. He won't listen to me."

"Why? Did he say something about me?" Kara tried to hide her peaked curiosity. 

"He may have mentioned you once or twice," Ashley said, with a hint of a smile. "Though I have to say, you're not really my brother's type."