Hunter's POV
The rest of the date didn't seem to be as romantic anymore. The look on Ashlynn's face reflected how Apple's words had affected her.
"Hey Ashlynn, cheer up! If you have anything troubling your mind, you can always speak to me."
Ashlynn finally looked up at Hunter after staring at her latte the whole time. Oh what has happened to your beautiful emerald eyes? Why are they filling up with tears yet again?
"Hey hey, don't cry. Come on, let's go somewhere else to talk about this okay?" Hunter tried his very best to comfort Ashlynn with a soothing tone. Ashlynn nodded and the both of them stood up to walk out of the cafe.
Arm around his girlfriend, the both of them made their way to their first meeting place. Being back in the Enchanted Forest seemed to lift a little sadness away from Ashlynn as he noticed an ever so small smile forming on her lips when they stepped into the thick foliage. None of them spoke as Hunter followed wherever Ashlynn was leading them. Finally, they stopped at a clearing in the middle of the forest. Hunter recognized it as the first ever time he had mustered up his courage to talk with Ashlynn. Hunter sat down beside Ashlynn as she sunk down to the mossy grass while leaning against a tree.
"So you wanna talk about it now?" Hunter asked, concerned. Whatever it was that Apple said to her , it was worse than a poison apple.
"Oh Hunter... I... I don't know where to begin," Ashlynn said. Seeing her confusion, Hunter assured her and coaxed her to continue talking.
"Well, I guess I must start the story from the beginning, so this is what happened..." Ashlynn confessed how she had fallen in love with Hunter in the first place, explained the incident in the Castleteria and finally the scene in the cafe, "...and she said that she would by all means find a way to break us up so that Royals would never mix with Rebels!" Ashlynn finished her story and started to sob.
It was hard for Hunter to take it all in initially. After all, no one would expect the Future Queen to have a heart as sour as a poison apple. However, seeing the tears trickling down Ashlynn's face seemed to unfreeze his arms. Leaning towards Ashlynn, Hunter softly caressed her face, wiping away the tears that flowed down her face.
"Don't cry, Ashlynn. We can still meet each other in secret."
"But don't you see, Apple's probably going to work with Headmaster Grimm on busting us out. She's also friends with the animals around here so they could act as spies for her. Oh, whatever should we do?"
"Well, for starters, we should try to be as discreet as possible when meeting up. Then, we have to find a way to rebel.We might have to meet up lesser in person as well no matter how much we hate that idea. But we have to do it, for us. Can you try, for me, and for us?"
"I'm not sure I can do it, but I'll try my very best. I love you Hunter." In return, Hunter planted a soft kiss on Ashlynn's lips, assuring he felt the same.
Under the warm orange glow of the setting sun, it was clear that they had to find a way to overpower Apple in order to be together.
