Raven's Hacker 2: Raven & Hacker

Chapter 5

Hacker POV

I was so freaking nervous. Ever since she and I had been texting, I'd been talking to Hades, Bullet, and Prez about my feelings. About why I felt the need to protect her and why I wanted to hug her. I like her. And tonight, I'm going to FaceTime her. For the first time. She lives in North Carolina with her kiddo and I live all the way in Ohio. So, this is the best I can do for now. Until I can work up the nerve to have her come visit or me go visit her. If she's ready for that. I think I'd prefer her coming here first, so if I have trouble talking to her or her son, my brothers are here to help. I mean...they wouldn't be that far away if I were in North Carolina.

"You okay, man?" Hades asked, looking a little concerned.

"Just nervous." I said, trying to smooth my hair down. I may be a white guy, but I have a fro like none other.

"Can I help?" He asked, slowly moving toward me, hands up. I took a deep breath, handing him a brush.

"What do I do?"

"Wet your hair again. I'm gonna use some of the gel Prez has. You know his shit is always smoothed back and solid like a rock." He chuckled at me. A few seconds later, there was a knock at the door and it opened. I could feel myself involuntarily freezing for a second.

"Figured you guys might need some hair gel for that fro! First dates mean making good first impressions." Prez came around the corner, holding the gel, hair spray, and a comb. "Can we get you all good-looking to meet this girl? Where are you guys going?"

"We're um..." I cleared my throat as they started brushing through my wet hair, "We're actually just doing a FaceTime call. She lives in North Carolina. You guys know how I help out that PI, right?" They nodded, slowly combing through all the fuss from the fro. "Well, she was one of the cases that needed help. She's got a son, 8, and, anyway, her husband was cheating on her with his boss for four years."

"Damn."

"What a piece of shit."

They both commented. I went on, "So I was looking up shit on him and I wanted to see who he was cheating on. And...her picture...she's just...wow. Her name totally matches her. Her name's Raven, and she's got this beautiful dark hair. And her eyes? Her eyes are so pretty. They have this twinkle in some of the pictures I've seen, and honestly, I don't think I've ever wanted to make a set of eyes sparkle before." They were both snickering under their breath at me.

"So, you're in love with her?" Hades asked me.

I thought about it for a moment, "Wait. You guys think I love her?"

They paused in styling my hair, because slicking it back was proving to be a two-man job. Hopefully, it will get easier the more we do it. I have to learn too.

"Does your heart flutter when you think about her? Do you find yourself unable to concentrate on other things?" Hades asked.

"Do you want to protect her? Do anything to see her smile? What about her laugh? Does it feel like everything is right in the world when you hear it?" Prez asked. I just looked at the two of them in the mirror, looking back at me.

"I think I might know more after the call tonight. Could you guys come back to talk about it around 11? If it's not too late?"

"As long as Willow and the kids are good."

"Same with Indie and our herd."

I smiled, thanking them. Happy to have two of my three best friends happy for me. I hope this call goes well. The guys help me finish getting ready and just as they're about to leave, the phone dings.

Raven: All ready Are you?

Hacker: Yes. I'll call you in two minutes. A couple of my buddies stopped by my room to wish me luck on my first date.

Raven: First date? Like...ever?

I face palmed. I'm 33 years old and going on my first date. And it's over the phone. I'm an idiot.

"You got his man."

"Don't worry. She'll love you."

Looking through my fingers, both of them had their fists out to me. "WAIT!" I heard from down the hall. Looking up, I saw Bullet running up to me.

"You got this. She's gonna love you. If not. She's. Crazy." He huffed, putting his hands on his knees, breathing hard. "Sorry. Ran. Parking lot." He huffed, taking a long inhale, "Boots," he puffed out, pointing at his steal toes. Yeah. Running is extra hard in those. He put his fist up.

"Good luck man."

I fist bumped all three of them, nodding and shutting my door. Taking a deep breath, I was ready. I picked up my laptop, and moved to the couch. I hit the call on FaceTime and waited for her to answer. When her screen came up, her face, live on me, for the first time...I swear. My heart stopped. She said hi and angels sang. I could feel my face turning as red as a tomato, earning a giggle from her and I blushed harder. I could feel myself growing stiff. I set the laptop down on my coffee table. I needed a minute.

"Do you want me to call you back?" Peeking from where my head rested in my hands, I couldn't help blushing again. She was so perfect.

"No. I like talking to you. I'm sorry...I've never...I've never done this before."

She raised an eyebrow. "Never...talked to a girl?" I fidgeted, looking down, and shaking my head. This was embarrassing. I'm 33 and never even talked to a girl.

"You're the first one. I um..." I cleared my throat; I can do this. There's nothing to be ashamed of. It wasn't my fault. My voice comes out stronger, "I had a really fucked up childhood. My mom...was horrible to me. She let horrible things happen to me. I'm not ready to tell you, but it caused some really deep trauma in me that I've been working on, because I want to know what it's like to be normal and live among other people without being afraid. I've come a really long way. I still have a long way to go," I chanced looking at her, and she looked sad, but proud?

"That sounds like a lot of crap to go through at such a young age. I'm sorry you didn't have a mother to protect you." She just looked sad for me. It didn't look like pity. "But that's awesome that you recognized you needed help and had a support system to get that for you. That's awesome."

"Therapy sounds like it's working for you too."

She smiled at me. She smiled. At something I said! "It is. I'm finally letting go of the anger and bitterness. I've been grieving the life I thought I was going to have, for the last couple of weeks. It's been hard, but I'm seeing a new future, and it's starting to take a much different shape."

"Are you happy with the shape it's taking?"

"Yes." She smiled, looking right into my eyes. Like she was trying to tell me something.

I think I'm in love.