Hardin's POV.
"Are you going to follow me the entire way back?" I ask the pestering girl.
"No, I'm going back to my parents cabin."
"Well, go to their cabin alone,"
"You aren't very polite," she hums.
"Really? I've been told it's one of my strongest attributes." I roll my eyes even though she can't see my face.
"Someone lied to you," she giggles behind me and I kick at the rocks under the sole of my boots. For once I'm glad Tessa told me to take my shoes off at the door of the cabin, otherwise I'd be stuck wearing Landon's sneakers. Not a good look and I'm almost certain his feet are much smaller than mine.
"So where are you from?" she asks,
I ingore her and continue to trek down the road, I think I'm supposed to turn left at the next stop sign, I sure as hell hope so.
"England?" She questions.
"Yeah, which way?" I ask her and she points to the right.
Of course I was wrong.
"Do your parents know you're gone?" The last thing I need is to piss anyone else off.
"I doubt it, they have company and they were ignoring me anyway," she sighs.
Her eyes are an icy blue and her skirt drags across the gravel below her feet. She reminds me of Tessa, well the Tessa I was first introduced to. My Tessa no longer wears her long, hideous skirts. She has also learned a new vocabulary, all credit for that goes to me for pissing her off one too many times.
"Are you here with your parents too?" Her voice is low, sweet even.
"No, well sort of,"
"They are sort of your family?" she smiles, her use of 'they are' instead of the common 'they're' reminds me of Tess too.
I look over to the girl again to make sure she's actually there and this isn't some freaky Christmas Carol type shit where she's an apparition that has come to teach me some sort of lesson.
"They're my family, and my girlfriend. I have a girlfriend by the way," I warn her.
I don't see this girl being interested in someone like me but then again I once thought the same about Tessa.
"Okay.." she says,
"Okay," I pick up my pace, wanting to create some space between myself and the stranger.
The two of us turn right at the stop sign and move to walk on the grass as a truck passes us by.
"Where is she then? Your girlfriend?"
"Sleeping," It makes sense to use the same lie I told my father and Karen.
"Hmm,"
"Hmm, what?" I look at her.
"Nothing," she stares forward.
"You've already followed me half way back, if you have something to say then say it," I harshly remark.
"I was just thinking that you seem like you are trying to escape from something or hide, I don't know, never mind."
"I'm not hiding, she told me to get the fuck out so I did,"
What the hell does this wannabe Tessa know anyway?
"Why did she kick you out?"
"Are you always this nosey?"
"Yeah, I am." She smiles.
"I hate nosey people," I warn her.
Except Tessa, of course. No matter how much I love her, sometimes I want to tape her mouth shut following one of her interrogations. She's literally the most intrusive human being I've ever met.
I'm lying really, I love her pestering behavior, I used to hate it but I get it now. I want to know all about her too, what she's thinking, what she's doing, what she wants. I realize, to my fucking horror, that I ask more questions now than she does.
"So are you going to tell me?" The girl presses.
"What's your name?" I ask her, avoiding her question.
"Lillian," she tucks her hair behind her ear.
"I'm Hardin,"
"Tell me about your girlfriend,"
"Why?"
"It seems like you are upset and who better to talk to than a stranger?"
I don't want to talk to her, she's eerily similar to Tessa and it's making me uneasy.
"I don't think it's a good idea," the sun has started to lower in the sky, turning the horizon a deep shade of pink.
"And keeping it in is?"
"Look, you seem... nice and all but I don't know you and you don't know me so this conversation isn't going to happen." I tell her and she frowns.
"Fine," Lillian sighs.
Finally, I can see the familiar sloped roof of my father's cabin in the distance.
"Well, this is me." I dismiss myself.
"Really? Wait.. you're dad is Ken isn't he?" She slaps her small hand against her forehead.
What the hell?
"Yeah?" We both stop walking at the end of the driveway.
"I'm an idiot, of course! With the accents how did I not think of it earlier," she laughs.
"I don't get it," I look down at her.
"Your dad and my dad are friends, they went to college together or something. I just spent the last hour listening to them tell stories of their glory days,"
"Oh, that's ironic." I half smile, I don't feel as uncomfortable around the girl as I did a few minutes ago.
"So really we aren't strangers," she smiles.
Tessa's POV.
"Cookies," Landon and I answer in unison.
"Cookies it is then," Karen smiles and opens the cabinet.
Karen never stops, she's always baking, roasting, toasting. Not that I'm complaining, her cooking is incredible.
"It's dark out now, I hope he doesn't get lost out there." Ken says and Landon nods.
Hardin has been gone for nearly three hours and I'm trying my best not to panic. I know he's okay, if something were to ever happen to him I would know. I don't know how to explain it but I know deep down that I would just know.
However, something harming him is not what I'm worried about. I'm worried that he will use his frustration with me and himself as an excuse to walk down to the local bar.
As much as I wanted him to get away from me, it would kill me to see him stumble through the door with liquor on his breath. I just needed my space, time to think and cool down. I haven't gotten around to the thinking part, I've been avoiding it at all costs.
"I was thinking we could all get in the Jacuzzi tonight or maybe in the morning?" Karen suggests. Landon spits his soda back into his cup and I look away quickly, biting the inside of my cheek. The memory of Landon spotting my panties floating in the hot tub is much too fresh and I can feel the heat in my cheeks.
"Karen honey, I don't think they want to get in the Jacuzzi with us," Ken laughs and Karen smiles, realizing that it would be a little awkward for the five of us to get in a hot tub together.
"I guess you're right," She laughs, separating the premade cookie dough into small balls.
"I hate this stuff," she scrunches her nose.
I'm sure for Karen premade cookie dough is awful, but for me, it's heaven. Especially now when I feel like I could snap at any moment.
It was awkward when Karen and Ken arrived from visiting their neighbor, an old friend of Ken's from college, they said. Landon and I were in the middle of a discussion about Dakota and their soon to be apartment when his mother and Ken called our name's. They mentioned that they ran into Hardin as he was leaving, apparently he had told them that I was asleep so I did my best to go along with his lie, saying that I had only woken up when Landon came to the room.
I've been wondering where Hardin is and when he will return since the moment he left. Part of me doesn't want to see him at all but part of me, a much bigger part, needs to know that he isn't doing anything that will further jeopardize our already fragile relationship.
I'm still extremely angry at him for interfering with my apartment in Seattle and I have no idea what the hell I'm going to do about it.
Hardin's POV.
"You sabotaged her apartment?" Lillian asks, her jaw falling open.
"I told you it was fucked up," I remind her.
Another pair of headlights flash by us as we walk to her parent's cabin. I had every intention on going back to my father's but Lillian has proven herself to be a decent listener so far and so when she offered me to come back to her cabin and finish our discussion, I accepted. My absence will give Tessa some time to cool down and hopefully she will be ready to talk to me by the time I return.
"You didn't tell me what level of messed up it was, I don't blame her for being mad at you." The girl says, of course she would take Tessa's side.
I can't imagine what she would think of me if she knew about all the shit I've put Tessa through in the past six months.
"Well what are you going to do about it?" She asks, opening the front door to her parent's cabin. It's very extravagant, even bigger than my father's.
Fucking rich people.
"They should be upstairs," she says as we walk inside.
"Who should be upstairs?" A woman's voice questions and Lillian grimaces before turning around to the woman I assume is her mum. She looks just like her, the only difference between them being age.
"Who's this?" A middle aged man wearing a polo shirt and khakis walks into the living room.
Great, fucking great. I should have just went back to Tessa in the first place. I wonder how she would feel if she knew I was here, would she mind? She's pretty pissed off at me anyway and she has a history of being jealous of Molly, but this girl isn't Molly, she's nothing like her.
"This is Hardin, Ken's son." She introduces me and a grin appears on the man's face.
"I was wondering if I would get to meet you!" He's English, that explains how he would know my father from university.
He walks over and pats my shoulder, I take a step back and he frowns slightly but seemed to expect that reaction from me. My father must have warned him about me. I almost laugh at the thought.
"Honey, this is Anne's son," the man says.
"You know my mum?" I ask him before turning to his wife.
"Yeah, I knew your mom back before she was your mom," the woman smiles.
I'm confused.
"We were all friends, the five of us," She adds.
"Five?" I ask.
"Honey," the man looks at his wife, I suspect to silence her.
"Anyway, you look just like her! Only you have your father's eyes, I haven't seen her since I moved back to America, how is she?" She asks me.
"She's good, she's getting married soon."
"Really?" she squeals, "tell her congratulations from me, that is just so great to hear."
"Okay," I respond, these people smile too damn much. It's like being in a room with three Karen's, only much more annoying and much less charming.
"I'm going to get going," I tell Lillian, this has been awkward enough.
"You don't have to go, we'll go upstairs," Lillian's father says and wraps his arm around his wife's waist to lead her up the staircase.
"Sorry, they are.."
"Pretentious?" I answer for her.
"Yes, very." She laughs and sits down on the couch.
I stand awkwardly by the door.
"Will your girlfriend mind if you're here?" She asks me.
"I don't know, probably." I groan, running exasperated fingers through my hair.
"Would you want her to do the same thing? How would you feel if she was hanging out with a guy, one she just met?" As soon as the words leave her lips anger swells in my chest.
"I would be pissed," I growl.
"Thought so," she smirks and pats the couch next to her.
I take a deep breath and stride over to sit on the opposite side of the couch from her.
"You're the jealous type then?"
"I guess so," I mean I did nearly kill Zed and I still want to.
"I bet your girlfriend wouldn't like it much if you kissed me," she moves closer and I jump up from the couch. I'm halfway to the door before she begins to laugh.
"What the hell?" I try to keep my voice down.
"I was just messing with you, I'm not interested, trust me," she smiles, "and it's a relief to know that you aren't either, now sit." She may hold a lot of the same traits as Tessa but she isn't as sweet, nor as innocent.
I sit down on the chair across from the couch, I don't know this chick enough to trust her and I sure as hell don't want to have to defend myself from her trying to kiss me again.
"Now tell me what is in Seattle that you aren't wiling to face for her?"
"It's not anything specific. I do have some bad history there but it's more than that. It's the fact that she will be thriving," I respond, knowing how fucking insane I sound but I don't give a fuck, this girl stalked me for an hour so if anyone is insane, it's her.
"And that's a bad thing?"
"No, I want her to thrive, of course, I just want to be a part of it." I sigh, missing her desperately even though it's only been a few hours. The fact that she's so pissed at me makes me miss her even more.
"So you refuse to go to Seattle with her because you want to be involved in her life? It doesn't make sense." She states the obvious.
"I know you don't get it, she doesn't either but she's the only thing I have. Literally, she's the only thing in my life that I give a shit about and I can't lose her, I'd have nothing without her, she's all I have."
Why am I telling her this shit?
"I know I sound fucking pathetic."
"No, you don't." She gives me a sympathetic smile and I look away. The last thing I want is sympathy.
The light on the staircase shuts off and I look back at Lillian, "Should I go?" I ask.
"No, I'm sure my father is ecstatic that I brought you home," she says, no sarcasm in her voice.
"Why is that?"
"Well, ever since I introduced them to Riley, he has been hoping we would break up,"
"He doesn't like him or some shit?"
"Her,"
"What?"
"He doesn't like her," she says and I almost smile at her.
I feel bad for her father not accepting her.. relationship but I have to admit I'm extremely relieved.
Tessa's POV.
"It's really nice because the apartment is within walking distance of campus so I'll never have to drive in the city," Landon explains.
"Thank goodness for that," Karen puts her hand on her son's shoulder and he shakes his head.
"I'm a fine driver, better than Tessa," he teases.
"I'm not that bad, better than Hardin," I remark, grabbing a cookie off of the plate on the counter in front of us.
I keep watching the door waiting for Hardin to return, My anger has been slowly shirting to concern as the minutes tick by.
"Okay, thanks for telling me, I'll see you tomorrow." Ken says into his phone as he joins us in the kitchen.
"Who was that?"
"Max, Hardin's at their cabin with Lillian," Ken says and my stomach drops.
"Lillian?" I can't stop myself from asking.
"Max's daughter, she's about your age,"
Why would Hardin be at the neighbor's cabin with their daughter? Does he know her? Has he dated her before?
"He'll be back soon I'm sure," Ken frowns and I get the feeling he hadn't considered my reaction to this information before he said it.
"Yeah," I choke, standing from the stool at the counter.
"I'm just.. I'm going to go to bed." I tell them, trying to hold myself together. I can feel my anger resurfacing and I need to get away from them before it boils over.
"I'll come up with you," Landon offers.
"No, I'm okay, really. I had an early morning, we all did, and it's getting late," I assure him and he nods even though I can tell he isn't buying it.
As I reach the stairs I hear him say, "He's a damn idiot,"
Yes, Landon. Yes he is.