Hand in hand Hunter and I enter into his home. Scattered everywhere are still moving boxes which I would expect. What I am surprised to see, is how huge his house really is. From the outside it looks pretty big but once you get inside, it really hits you. If it weren't for Hunter holding my hand I would think this would all be a dream.
"Come on, why don't I make us some breakfast. I'm pretty sure my mom is still here too, she would be happy to meet you." Hunter says pulling me into his side. I feel like melting into him with all of the warmth he is giving off.
As we walk to his kitchen I continue to stay as close to him as possible. I feel so lucky to of met him...I don't know how I got so lucky but the universe sort of owed me in a way. As we got closer and closer to the kitchen I could hear pots and plates being clanked around, which I assume is his mother.
"Why don't you just stand out here while I go talk to her for a second and explain whats happening." he said looking down at me. He pecks me on the cheek and disappeared through a doorway. Not but five minutes later he reappears and takes my hand again.
"Mom, this is Jessica. Jessica Blake. Jesse, this is my mom."
"Oh, it is so nice to meet you! Hunter has talked so much about you and has told me everything! You are welcome to stay here while your father is away!" his mother says as she pulls me into a hug. It wasn't at all what I expected to come out of her mouth but it will work...I guess. "Now, why don't ya'll just come on and sit down. We have bacon, eggs, toast, and some orange juice for you to eat."
Slowly Hunter pulls me to the table and we take a seat right next to each other. I notice as Hunter quickly slides his seat closer to mine in order for use to be closer together. Hunter makes a quick glance at me with a smile before digging into all the food laid out in front of us.
Doing the same, I begin to pile my plate a mile high with all the different food. After my plate is full I then begin to eat as if my life depended on it. From where Hunter is sitting I can hear a small laugh and I look over to see that he is just watching me, which of course makes me blush and slow my eating pace just a little.
"Well, arn't you just a big eater!" Hunter's mom says as she takes a sip of her orange juice and smiles. This makes me eat even slower which gives me a little more time to savor each bite. As I eat I examine Hunter's mom. She is a medium sized woman with beautiful brown hair where I am guessing Hunter gets his from. She has small patches of freckles on her face and her eyes are a beautiful honey color. As a whole she is a beautiful woman which is probably why Hunter is such a looker.
Looking over at him he is biting into some toast with jelly on it and just at that moment some jelly goes sliding of the edge and right onto his shirt. Thinking no one saw he quickly tried licking it off until he caught my eyes. Slowly his cheeks begin to redden which made me laugh. He grabbed a napkin and wiped his mouth and shirt before taking a long drink of orange juice without braking his gaze with me.
"Well, I guess I better get going! Someone needs to be there to open up the store! It was lovely meeting you Jessica." Hunter's mom said as she began to clear up her dishes.
"Bye Mom!" Hunter called as she walked out of the kitchen, and just like that we were alone. I waited until I heard the front door close before I spoke to Hunter,
"So, my dad is on a trip?" I said raising my eyebrow at Hunter. All he did was bite into some toast and once again spill jelly onto his shirt.
"I just thought you would like to not talk about that for a while, I mean we can tell her if you want but it would have to be tonight." he said while he wiped the jelly off once again.
"No, that's OK. I really appreciate you thinking of how hard it is to talk about. I kind of like it when everyone doesn't know. It just means those people won't be harmed for trying to help me...That's why I didn't want to tell you, but you sort of figured it all out."
"Jesse, you need to know that I won't let that jerk anywhere near you ever again. You can always trust me to protect you."
"But who is going to protect you?"
"Don't worry. Before you know it he is going to be long gone, I promise."
"Hunter, I don't think you understand. Jack is never going to just let me leave. He thinks I am his property and technically I am until I turn eighteen."
"That's why we just go to the cops."
"I don't think that will do anything."
"Why would you say that?"
"Jack IS the cops...he was the sheriff here until my mom passed away. They let him take early retirement because of how bad he was affected. You could say he has friends in high places."
"We will figure this all out, trust me."
"What if we can't Hunter. I don't want you to get hurt because of me. I should probably just go back." Hunter takes me into his lap with one swift motion and stares me in the eyes.
"Jessica Blake, you are never going to be touched by that Jake again. Do you understand, never." with that I broke down crying and once again Hunter just held me and rocked me back and forth. With these calming skills he is going to be a great father...I mean....what?... "Why don't we go into the living room and watch some movies and just relax?" I just nod my head.
About 2 movies later and an episode of Gossip Girl, I am practically laying on top of Hunter as he strokes my hair. The living room is a complete mess with all of the popcorn and pillows everywhere...lets just say we got in a little fight about who was cuter, Blair or Serena. I haven't been this happy in ages. I don't think I have ever smiled this long either. It is all just so perfect. If I could I would stay like this for the rest of my life, in Hunter's arms.
Just as I am about to fall asleep a loud banging comes from the front door and I instinctively cringe and try to hide myself in Hunter's arms. For a minute we just lay there hoping whoever it was would just go away but they pound on the door again, even harder. This really sets me over the edge with my anxiety and I just begin to wail and shake as I think about what Jake is going to do to Hunter and I.
"Jessica, listen to me. I want you to go up the stairs and into the first door on the left, okay? Just stay there until I come get you, alright." Hunter says as he lifts me up and onto my feet. Trying my hardest to reel back my tears I nod my head and go barreling up the stairs.
Just as I round the corner I hear Hunter open up the door and speak.
"Hi, how can I help you?"
"Yes, um I'm looking for a girl. Not very pretty, short, red hair, would of been seen with a boy." instantly I knew who it was, and instantly I froze right where I stood, not wanting to make a sound in fear of him hearing me.
"No, sorry sir. I haven't seen anyone like that up here. As you can tell I live pretty far away from my neighbors. But, um if I see her I will be sure to tell you." by the way Hunter is talking I can tell he knows. His voice sounds like when he would talk about the way Lucy and her minions would bully me. Instead of scaring me, this time, it made me feel safe and warm.
With the safety I felt I began to move towards the room Hunter told me about, still trying to be as quiet as possible. Once I made it to the door I opened it and quickly slipped inside. Still being able to hear what they were saying I listened in hopes of Jack finally leaving.
"OK, thanks anyway...nice truck by the way...not many around this town like that." Jack sounded as if he was talking calmly..which could only mean one thing.
"Yup, very proud of my truck. But like I said haven't seen anyone like you described around here. Have a nice day." Hunter sounded a little nervous. He quickly shut the door and locked it behind him before I heard him running up the stairs. "We need to get out of here. It was your father at the door and I am pretty sure he recognized my truck."
Just like that my world seemed to flip upside down all over again. It was like hyper speed as Hunter threw on some shoes and packed up some clothes. Down stairs we could hear Jack banging on the door some more but this time it was even louder. Hunter quickly grabbed my hand, looked at me one last time and started rushing out the door.
He took me down some back stair case and we ended up in his back yard. Around the corner we could hear Jack yelling at him to open up. Trying to be as silent as humanly possible we made our way around to the side of the house. Hunter peaked his head around the corner and then looked back at me.
"OK, he is at the front door still. So if we can just be as quiet as possible but still run as fast as we can, we can still get past him. He also seemed a bit drunk which means he will probably be slower."
Nodding my head I began to brace myself. Out of nowhere I see Hunter pull out a switch blade as he began to count down.
"One.......Two....Three....."
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Who knows where this story will go, or if it it will ever go anywhere. I have been working on this for two years and yet nothing has really become of it in regards of the plot...I don't know... maybe it is time to finally let it go and end it....