The Upside of Heartbreak

Out of the Frying Pan

I had hoped to get this posted yesterday, but work had me so stressed out last night that I just couldn't seem to focus. Ah well, at least I did manage to get it completed before the weekend was completely over. Let's just say that I was celebrating 'Procrastination Week', which ended yesterday. (Yes that's a thing. Google it) lol

Anywho, enjoy all. Thanks for sticking around and waiting for me :)

______

Hayden woke up to the obnoxious buzzing of his phone the following morning. A mass of blonde hair tickling his face and his feet hanging off the end of the too-short double bed. Grumbling and yawning, he removed his arm from around Astrid in order to silence the alarm before it woke everyone else. Noting right afterwards that there was a message from Frank showing on the lock screen. Opening the phone, he glanced at the text only long enough to get the gist of it. Frank had stayed to keep an eye on Scott too, and was glad to report that aside from a minor headache, he was completely back to normal this morning. No lasting damage.

Yippee for me, Hayden thought with an eye roll as he set the phone back down. Glaring once at the numbers on the clock before rolling back over to cuddle the woman beside him for a few extra minutes. Waking up at 5:00 in the morning was never fun, but it was even less desirable when Astrid's naked and warm body was pressed against him. Not to mention the nagging ache in his side where Scott's fist had struck its mark.

Stifling a yawn of her own, Astrid turned over in his embrace. "It can't be time to get up already," she murmured. Snuggling her face into the crook of his neck now and sighing contentedly.

"For me it is," Hayden replied blandly. "I need to get to the school early to try and do at least some damage control." When Astrid glanced up at him in sleepy confusion, he just shrugged at her. "I punched a student in the face last night, in case you forgot. I need to talk to Alvin before he sees it online. Stacy wasn't working last night, thankfully, but there were enough other people with phones at Hunter's Cove. I'm sure at least one of them noticed and thought to make a video."

"Oh yeah," she grimaced. "If it helps, I'll tell Alvin it was all my fault."

"That would be the opposite of helpful. You also weren't the one fighting mi'lady. I doubt Alvin is going to care about the reasons behind it when he finds out that I knocked out the star quarterback two days before a big game," he pointed out. "Besides, I would never let you take the fall for my bad behaviour. You should know me better than that by now."

"I know, but I still don't like it," Astrid grumbled back. "I'm just as much to blame as you two. Hopefully Scott isn't still angry enough to rat us out. He seemed calmer when I dropped him off last night, but who knows how he'll feel by this morning." Then her lips dropped into a frown as she met his eyes again. "If he tells Sabrina though..."

Hayden cut her off mid-spiral. "Then we'll deal with it." He pressed a kiss to the worried crease between her brows then. "What's done is done Astrid, and I probably wouldn't change it if I could. No matter what happens now, I'm not giving you up. I love you," Hayden reminded her simply. Watching a smile bloom on her face in response.

"I love you too," she finally sighed. Stretching up to press her lips to his briefly. "I just wish this could be easy for a change."

"Anything worth having rarely comes easy," he countered lightly. A fact Hayden knew far too well. After holding her tighter for another moment, he rolled out of the double bed with a groan. A twinge of pain slashing through his bruised ribs. Astrid's anxious eyes as she took in the purpling mark on his abdomen reminding him of exactly why he was getting out of bed at this hour. Making Hayden thoroughly wish he could just hide here forever instead, but this wasn't the sort of problem you could run from. No matter how much it sucked.