“Gee thanks Hunter,” I said remembering how I jumped into his muscles at the amusement park and at the hockey game. He was probably planning on a hat-trick—a hockey term I learned from him—with these scary movies. “What would I do without you and your chiseled abs?”
He smirked, grabbed a handful of popcorn and then turned back to the TV.
The movie was predictably cheesy. The Flyman was just an ordinary man who, as a result of secret government experiments, developed the head of a fly. Of course, the experiment also turned him insane, so he started wreaking havoc soon after his unfortunate transformation. It was entertaining but nowhere near as scary as some of the movies I watched as a teenager.
Whenever the Flyman would pop out from behind a corner though, Hunter’s eyes would widen and he’d shriek while grabbing my arm. I laughed it off the first time, but then I couldn’t tell if he was just teasing me or if he was actually getting freaked out. There was no way a six foot, two inch brawler like him who regularly fights other freakishly huge guys was afraid of some horror movies.
“Wait, wait, Hunter, you’re just teasing me right? You’re not seriously scared are you?”
He turned to look at me, wide-eyed. He shook his head back and forth quickly. I watched him carefully, my mouth half-open, unsure of what to make of it. I would’ve sworn he was actually scared if I hadn’t seen the hint of a smile playing at the edge of his lips. I slapped his arm.
“What happened to all that big talk of protecting me with your muscles?” I teased.
Hunter smiled, all suave nonchalance again. “Seems like you don’t need any protection from the Flyman, you didn’t even blink when he jumped out from behind the lab door.”
“Come on Hunter, you can’t possibly think that I’d be scared of black and white special effects from the sixties.”
“I don’t know, it looks pretty convincing to me. Next time I’m in the biology building, I’ll be checking all the corners.”
I laughed and we turned back to the movie.
When the movie finally ended with Flyman jumping into an incinerator to save the woman he’d loved when he was still a human, we had already finished an entire bowl of popcorn. I yawned, stretching out my arms. Hunter looked at me, holding up the disc for “The Vampire Bride.”
“One more?”
“I don’t know Hunter, I’m pretty wiped out.”
“Aw, come on, it’s Thursday night. It’s practically the weekend.”
“Fine, just one more. But let me text Daniela and use the bathroom first.”
“Great! I’ll make some more popcorn.”
I knew his bathroom was situated across from his bedroom, having showered there the first time I came to his apartment. On my way, I noticed his bedroom door was closed and had a sign that said “Uno Ab Alto”. I shrugged at the mysterious phrase and moved on. I texted Daniela when I was in the bathroom, letting her know that I’d be back to the dorms late. When I was finished, I could still hear Hunter in the kitchen microwaving the popcorn.
I was about to return to the living room when I noticed the door on my right was cracked open a slit. Curious, I pushed it open slightly. It was dark but it looked like it was a closet. The floor was covered in cardboard boxes, filled with irregular shapes. I struggled to make out what they were for a second, and then I recognized the shapes. They were model airplanes. There were maybe a hundred model airplanes of various types covering the floor.
“Lorrie, the popcorn is ready!”
His voice made me jump. Why did he have so many model planes? And why in this closet? He didn’t have any on display in his apartment. If he had them hidden away, it was probably something I wasn’t supposed to see. I pulled the closet door closed again and then went back to the living room to join him.
Hunter offered me the bowl and I popped a small handful into my mouth. He smiled at me brightly. I was relieved he hadn’t heard me snooping around. We returned to the couch and turned the movie on, thoughts of the contents of Hunter’s closet still swirling through my mind.
Halfway through the movie, my eyes started to droop. I looked over sleepily at Hunter, but he was entranced with the bloodsucking on screen. My eyelids grew even heavier. I couldn’t fight the tiredness anymore. I gave in and let my eyes close.
I opened my eyes and the bowl of popcorn that had formed the barrier between us was on the coffee table. I was leaning right on Hunter’s shoulder, a blanket covering us.
If I was less sleepy I would have freaked out, but I just looked up at him. “What happened?”
“You started snoring, and your head was lolling back. I figured you’d be more comfortable this way. Also those vampires got scary so I needed your protection.”
I smiled against his chest, suppressing a yawn. His chest was so warm and welcoming. He smelled faintly of aftershave and leather.
“Go back to sleep, Snorrie,” he said softly.
I grinned at the stupid name and nodded sleepily.
He leaned his head back to look at me. I squinted my eyes open and saw he had a serious expression on his face. “Hey Lorrie?”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks.”
“For what?” I yawned.
“For coming to the movies with me.”
“Thanks for inviting me Hunter,” I said, before drifting off completely.
Sunlight flickered against my face, bringing me slowly to consciousness. I felt completely content and satisfied. Then I realized I wasn’t in my dorm room.
My eyes shot open. I was leaning right against Hunter’s chin. His eyes were closed, and he was snoring gently. We were both laying on his couch together, my arms around him, his arms around me. My heart pounded erratically, and a cold sweat started breaking out on my skin.
Had we . . .
The previous night’s events came back to me slowly and I realized I’d fallen asleep on his shoulder while watching vampires. Thank god. We hadn’t gone that far, but it was still a mistake. We were supposed to be just friends. Friends didn’t casually fall asleep nestled together like lovers on the guy’s couch. I was supposed to be strong. I wasn’t supposed to fall for Hunter, yet I’d fallen asleep in his arms. This was bad. I gently unweaved my limbs from Hunter’s, careful not to disturb him. Then I grabbed my bag and snuck out of his apartment.
Why was I always sneaking out of his place?
Chapter Nine
LESSONS
Rushing across campus from Hunter’s apartment, I got back to my dorm around ten in the morning. It was Friday and I had to get to swim class. I climbed the four flights of stairs to my suite and gingerly unlocked the door, hoping that Daniela wouldn’t notice that I was away all night. Otherwise I’d owe her an explanation, and I did not want to have to explain that I’d slept over at Hunter’s place last night.
I opened the suite door and saw Daniela sitting on the couch watching TV. She slowly twisted her head in my direction and her wide green eyes locked onto me making me jump. Her movement reminded me of the movie The Exorcist. Damn horror movies last night.
“Well, well, well,” she said with a sly grin.
“Hello to you too. I was just grabbing breakfast in the dining hall.” It was a good excuse and I was pleased with myself for thinking quick on my toes.
“No, you weren’t.”
Shit.
“I knocked on your door two hours ago to go eat breakfast. I’ve been sitting on this couch, waiting for you to get up and here you come walking through the front door. You were out all night weren’t you? Hm?” Her eyes were mischievous yet probing.
Shifting nervously on my feet, I answered, “I got up at seven and went down early.”
“And ate a three hour breakfast?” She swiped her hand as if batting away my excuse. “I’m hungry and irritable. Admit it. I caught you, Lorrie. Spill.”
I put my hands up in surrender. “Alright, alright.” I sighed heavily. “I slept over at Hunter’s place.”
Her eyes widened and seemed to beco
me possessed. “No way. I know I warned you to be careful around him, but what’s done is done. Tell me everything. Was he big? Small? Was he rough? Tender? Spare no detail. I want everything.”
“Whoa, whoa.” I was tempted to make a cross sign with my fingers to ward her away but ended up just shoving my hands in the air in front me. “We didn’t have sex. We didn’t even kiss. I just went over to his place to watch some movies we rented and I fell asleep on his couch. It wasn’t even intentional, I was just tired.” I then remembered that Hunter was supposed to help me with studying for my psych class but that clearly never happened. Dammit Hunter.
“Oh.” Daniela deflated. “Well I’m happy for you Lorrie. Sounds like you’ve made a new friend in Hunter.”
“I don’t know, it’s really awkward. It was a mistake. We were supposed to be just friends and I think I might’ve given him an unintentional signal. He might think I want to take things further.”
“How do you feel about him? Do you want to be just friends?”
“Of course I just want to be friends!” I said, trying to convince her as much as myself. “Like I said before I’m not ready for a relationship. I’m having a hard enough time getting back into the swing of things and keeping up with my classes. I just want a normal, drama-free life.”
She looked at me skeptically as if me telling her I was only interested in Hunter as a “friend” was a bold-faced lie. “Not to be a nagging-nanna but I already told you he’s got a reputation for shagging and tagging girls all over campus. I’m glad you and him are friends but I don’t want to see you getting hurt by him. He’s broken a few hearts before.”
“Thanks Daniela, but you don’t have to worry about me. I’ll be careful.”
Daniela asked me a few more questions about Hunter and I responded as agreeably as I could. The conversation could’ve gone on for a good hour but I had to cut it short when I noticed the time on the clock in our suite.
“Well, I have to go to class,” I said. I hurriedly packed my backpack with my swimsuit and left the dorm.
It was the first day of my swim class which started later in the semester than the other classes. Since there was a lake around campus, students at Arrowhart were required to either pass a swim test or take a swim class. I had planned to take the swim test but there was some administrative mix up and they didn’t register me in time for it. I ended up being signed up for the swim class, which I didn’t mind. After that debacle with falling into the lake, I figured I could use the practice.
On my way past the student union, I received a text from Hunter.
Why did you leave?
I thumbed a quick response. Had class in the morning. Sorry.
You forgot to take my trash with you :).
I knew he was trying to be funny, but I didn’t find it particularly amusing. Sleeping over at his place was a mistake, not a joke. To drop the issue, I responded with a simple smiley.
Walking across the arts quad, I arrived at The Annex, which was a large glass building used for athletic activities. Among its various amenities, it had a state-of-the-art gym and an Olympic-sized swimming pool. I navigated the hallways, following the signs posted for the swimming pool, and found the women’s locker room. I changed into my swimsuit and went to join the swim class.
The instructor introduced himself as Mitch McHenry. He was an older man with gray on the top of his head matching his neatly groomed mustache and beard. His posture and the commanding tone of his voice reminded me of a military officer.
“All right, guppies! Who here already knows how to swim?”
About half the class raised their hand, myself included.
“Good. You guys can help out your fellow classmates. Since it’s everyone’s first day, I’m going to go over the basics: the doggy-paddle and treading water. Then you guys are going to do laps back and forth on the shallow end of the pool.”
One by one, each student entered the pool. Some dipped their toes to test the water before hopping in, some took the steps down, and some cannonballed right into the pool. Once everyone was up to their necks in chlorinated water, Mr. McHenry spent the next ten minutes demonstrating how to do the strokes properly then he ordered us to practice.
I already knew the basic strokes so practice was a breeze. It was apparent half the class felt the same way but the other half were borderline drowning in five feet of water. Mr. McHenry spent the next half hour helping the worst cases.
I was in the middle of helping a redheaded female freshman with her doggy paddle, when I glanced over and saw a student through the pool’s glass entrance walking toward the men’s locker room. He briefly passed by the entrance but then doubled-back. I recognized him. Hunter narrowed his eyes at me then waved in my direction.
My pulse leaped. The moment was beyond awkward—particularly because I was trying to avoid him—but I managed to wave back. Just when I thought he’d walk over and we’d have an uncomfortable conversation about why I bolted from his apartment this morning in front of the entire swim class, he turned around and continued toward the men’s locker room. I was left with both relief and regret.
“Focus your attention on your partner, Ms. Burnham,” a gruff voice said behind me, making me jump out of the water.
I twisted around to see Mr. McHenry helping the redheaded freshman stay afloat. Her face was as bright as her hair. I was supposed to be helping her but I’d been distracted.
“Oh I’m so sorry,” I said, apologizing to both Mr. McHenry and the redhead—who now had a scowl on her face.
“Just because you know how to swim, doesn’t give you the right to let your fellow classmate drown,” Mr. McHenry said, more as a statement than an accusation. He assigned the freshman to a different partner and then turned back to me. “So you know Hunter?”
I found the question odd coming from Mr. McHenry so I paused a moment before answering. “Yeah . . .”
“Are you guys friends?”
“Um . . . yeah I met him a few weeks ago and we became friends . . . Do you know him from somewhere?”
He glanced at the entrance where Hunter had been then returned his gaze to me. “I run the ROTC program here. Hunter was a member two years ago.”
“He wanted to be in the Army?” Just as I asked the question, the image of the shirt he’d given me and the model airplanes in his closet popped into mind.
“Air Force, actually. He was dead set on making it. I put a lot of effort into training and helping him. I hoped he’d make it but unfortunately he’s no longer in the program.”
Curious, I asked, “Why not?”
“It definitely wasn’t because of his performance. With evaluations like he had, he was a shoo-in for any branch . . . but well . . . it’s his story to tell, not my place to discuss details.” He scratched his neatly trimmed beard. “He’s a good kid but a bit troubled. Anyway, I have to go make sure nobody drowns. Although you’re a bit irresponsible, you seem like a nice girl. Just thought you ought to know. If you get the chance, keep your eye on Hunter. Make sure he stays out of trouble.”
Mr. McHenry swam away to help another student, leaving me to think about what he’d just told me. He’d asked me to watch over Hunter implying that Hunter, for some reason, needed watching over. Gary had mentioned something similar. Could it have been a coincidence? I didn’t know what to make of it except that Hunter seemed like the kind of guy who could take care of himself. Between Hunter and myself, I was probably the one who needed help.
Chapter Ten
FRIENDS?
The weekend passed as well as the beginning of the next week. I’d been trying to avoid Hunter but he’d been texting me at least a few times per day. I had to tell him I’d gotten sick over the weekend to gracefully turn down his requests to hang out. It was getting harder to make up excuses to avoid him without appearing suspicious.
I’d just finished art history class learning about how Van Gogh cut off his ear and was in the hall preparing to head to my next class when I received a
call. Nervous that it was Hunter, my heart started beating faster as I reached into my pocket for my phone. It was one thing brushing him off via text, it was another saying it out loud. Talking made it more difficult to come up with excuses. I took a deep breath and looked at my phone. I released a long sigh when I saw that it was my aunt.
“Hey Aunt Caroline!” I answered as I went to a private corner in the Arts building to talk to her.
“Hey hey! How are you doing?”
“Good. Just got done with my art history class.”
“Oh, sounds like you’re keeping busy. How’s your semester going so far?”
“It’s been a little difficult, but I think I’m getting used to it.”
“Sounds wonderful. Hey, what do you think about me visiting you next week? The boys are going on a field trip to D.C. and Stewart’s going on a business trip. Plus it’s been a while since I’ve visited Studsen.”
My heart leaped. “I’d love it if you came and visited.”
“Perfect. I’ll see you next week!”
Just as I hung up, I noticed an icon at the top of the screen telling me I had a voicemail. It was from Hunter.
“Hey Lorrie, haven’t heard from you in a while. Just wondering if you’re doing all right. You want to get together and hang out this week?”
An electronic voice asked me to press seven if I wanted to delete the message and nine if I wanted to save it. I thought about how I needed to have less complications in my life and at a tap of a digital button, I could do that. I pressed seven.
I had a good hour and a half until my economics class. It was a short enough break that it made going back to my dorm impractical. Instead, I found a bench outside and whipped out my sketch pad just as the sky started sprinkling snow. I became entranced by a lone blue bird perched atop a branch of one of the large trees that lined the arts quad. The color of his feathers reminded me of Hunter’s fighting trunks. Most of the birds had flown south by now, but this little guy was an exception. He wasn’t normal, just like me.