What You Don't Know (Sequel to "Secret Love")(Hunter Hayes/James Marsden)

Inconspicuous

"You're the water that gives life to the trees.

I'd drown on your love before I let you set me free.

You're everything I never thought I could be,

And that's why I love you, Bethany."

"Mmm. Sing it to me again," she whispered, feeling every stroke of his fingers through her hair. The sheets were warm and her eyes were closed, and his voice filled her head. She sighed contentedly and listened to him chuckle under his breath.

"You are a greedy thing, aren't you, love?"

She laughed, too, snuggling closer to his side and breathing in his scent.

"Please?"

She felt his lips on her forehead, and his arms tightened around her waist.

"How can I say no to you?"

She smiled and kissed his chest in gratitude as he began the refrain again.

"You're the water that poisons the trees.

You'll drown in your sweat before you break free.

You've been so long away from me,

I forget why I loved you, Bethany."

The first thing she saw when her eyes popped open was her reflection in the mirror across from her bed. Her eyes were ringed in red, and her hair was tossed and tangled. The dream stayed with her, and she could not shake the horrible pit that was forming in her gut.

That voice...why had it not been the same as she remembered? Familiar, yes, but not Hunter's voice. Who's was it? It had been his lips on her forehead, his arms around her waist, his song in her ears and his scent clouding her senses, but the first verse had not been sung in his tone.

Her blood went cold at the thought that perhaps it had belonged to Trenton. With all the time she had been spending with him, it was possible that he would appear in her dreams. She no longer doubted that he had feelings for her; he had made it very obvious. It could very well have been her subconscious's way of punctuating his affection and making it impossible for her to ignore, as she had been trying to do.

The manifestation had been cruel, no doubt. The harsh modification of Hunter's beautiful lyrics had no doubt been the cause of the soreness around her dilated eyes. That verse had been most certainly sung in Hunter's twang. Out of instinct, her brain rejected the possibility that those feelings could truly exist in him. It was simply too painful a concept to dwell upon.

Instead, she thought back to the night before, when she had accompanied Trenton to a Broadway production of The Phantom of the Opera. It was one of her favorite plays in existence, accompanied by one of her most revered soundtracks, but she had hardly been able to pay attention after Trenton had taken her hand. His thumb grazing her palm had been extremely distracting.

Just as Raoul and Christine were wrapping up their epic love song with a passionate kiss, she felt his eyes land on her face. She had looked over at him, but he did nothing more than give her a small smile and look away.

When he had walked her into the hotel lobby late that evening, he gave her a hug and kissed her cheek, making her blush. It was not until she reached her room and noticed the protective way her hand lingered over the spot he had kissed that she felt ashamed of herself.

She had shaken it off last night, though, and she shook it off again now. Today was an important day, and she needed to be at her best and brightest to capitalize on it. She dressed comfortably and pasted a smile on her face before heading to the warehouse at which rehearsal was being held this morning. It was on the outskirts of town, some place Trenton was renting from a friend; he said that it was better not to have so much city noise to interrupt the practice.