The Heart Gets What it Wants

Episode 4- A Suit, and a Mistake

"What's that on your eye?" Alethea asked, facing Hunter with her eyes wide open. She wore a long dark green jacket, and sky blue denim jeans.
Hunter sat quietly, and looked down towards his food, hardly moving a muscle on his body. He was deep in thought, and hardly a word his mother was saying, registered into his mind.
"Honey?" She continued.

I'm such an idiot, aren't I?  Hunter thought, thinking back to the deal he had agreed to with Amber. He knew the deal didn't exactly benefit him in the ways that he wanted, and to make things worse, Amber had made it pretty clear that she had no feelings within her for him at all.

To his ears, this meant that there was a zero chance that he could ever become anything more with her......And knowing that kind of left a little hole in his heart.
But even so something within him seemed to want him, not just want him but need him to stay by her side, and remain in the deal.
Something strong, something powerful, something more than he could control.

"Aren't you going to tell me how you got that black eye?" Alethea continued, her eyes beginning to fill with worry.
"Hunter?" She called, noticing that his focus on the conversation they were having was completely non-existent.
"Ohh-uhh sorry, what did you ask?" Hunter replied, reacting to the sound of his name being called.

"I said, are you going to tell me how you got that black eye?" Alethea repeated, her voice a little lower than before.
"Ohh that—don't worry.....I just, I fell, and then my eye hit onto a nearby—table," Hunter replied, trying to be as secretive as possible, while at the same time being believable.
Alethea sighed, and looked hard into Hunter's eyes searching for a bit of truth in them. She could tell he was lying, but at the same time, she wanted him to be honest with her, and ask for help if he needed it.

"This tastes really good?" Hunter remarked, looking down at the warmed up Mac and Cheese seated on his plate.
He knew he had to find a quick way to get his mother to stop asking about what had happened to him, and complementing her food was the simplest way to shift her attention that he had could come up with on such short notice.
Alethea laughed, "it's the same one I prepare for you every Tuesday," she said, giving him an unsure eye.
"Well, it tastes a lot better today, that's all I'm saying," Hunter replied, taking another spoon full of his food, while at the same time....sending all his thoughts about Amber to the back of his mind.

"Okay?" Alethea voiced, giving Hunter a very confused smile, and standing up, "if you say so."
"I do say so!" Hunter exclaimed, "this is really good."
Alethea laughed, and raised an eyebrow, shaking her head at him, "okayy," she replied. "I will try and believe you."
Hunter laughed as well, and raised his head up towards her, giving her a small smile. "How was work?" He asked, changing the subject once more.

Alethea sighed, and leaned onto the wall beside her. "It was—good, I'm a little tired though," she replied.
"Don't worry," Hunter stated, "I'll clean the table up, you can go get some shut eye, you clearly need it."
Alethea smiled, and looked at Hunter happily.
She loved her boy, and even though she could tell something was bothering him. She trusted him enough to know that he would eventually be okay, and even if it didn't work out in that way, she knew she had made sure to raise him into someone who could fight his own battles.
He would be just fine, she was sure of it.

"Well since you insist," Alethea replied standing, and getting ready to head to her room. "I shall sleep."
"Good," Hunter replied, eating the remaining mac and cheese in his plate.
Alethea began to walk, but soon after taking a few steps out of the dining room, she stopped.
"Hunter, I know I always tell you this," she continued, convinced she had to remind him once more, "but I'll tell you again."
"You can always talk to me if something's wrong, ok?"
"Because, I would never be able to forgive myself if something bad were happening to you right under my nose."