Freezing Cold

Chapter Two- An Unexpected Invitation

Chapter Two

    I tried to appear stern, but my voice came out sounding relieved. "Hunter."

    I noticed his dirty blond hair was a little shorter than before. It no longer passed his ears, where before it had ended almost at his shoulders. His long-sleeved shirt was a very dark shade of blue; his skinny jeans were only slightly lighter in color. Mentally, I grinned at the fact he was wearing skinnies. I couldn’t remember him ever having done that before, so it was funnily out of character.

     The familiar nervousness suddenly hit me like a tidal wave, forcing me to take a deep breath. I didn’t understand it when girls talked about crushes giving them butterflies. I usually got a totally painful, barf-inducing fear. It’s not as bad as it sounds… Sweets always fixed me right up, but I regrettably didn’t have any with me. I’d eaten my only chocolate on the plane, purely out of boredom.

    Hunter smiled a little, not even having the decency look sheepish. Despite the lack of apology in his features, Hunter touched his ever-present dog-tag necklace.The rectangular pendant was silver, like the chain, and had a large “King” inscription on it. Below the name was the symbol of the Heroes’ Union, a beautifully drawn bird.

    Clutching the necklace was a movement I’d seen him do plenty times, mainly out of nervousness. I doubt he even noticed, but I always paid attention to his actions. That small display made me already forgive him in my own heart. He cares what I think of him!

     "I was really busy this summer. I would have called you otherwise."

    I didn't answer; instead running down the hallway and tackling him in a hug. I nearly made both of us fall to the floor, but I knew he wasn’t too surprised. I had done the same thing every year when I got back. Still embracing him, I softly said, "I really missed you, H."

    He hugged me back, not making any attempt to move away. "I missed you, too, M," Hunter replied, a slight teasing tone to his voice. “M” wasn’t his nickname for me, but he used it to joke about my nickname for him.

    We stood there for a while and I set my head down on his shoulder, finally feeling tired from my long trip. Somewhere, there was a loud crash and we both looked up, but the  object (or objects) that caused it were nowhere to be seen.

    A sleepy-looking Flor came out of our room, probably woken by the same sound that had startled us. With a yawn, she inquired, "Whazgoinon?"

    Hunter pushed me away from off him, stepping back quickly. "Nothing," he said, shooting her one of his usual easy smiles.

    She didn't say anything, just yawned again and went back in the room, not as concerned with the situation as Hunter. I doubted Flor even realized who we were; her eyes were basically closed.

    I was sitting on the floor, totally ignored and nursing my wounded pride. Oh, and my scratched knee, which was bleeding slightly. I had hit the wall when Hunter pushed me away, causing my hurt knee. Is that all Hunter is ever gonna do? Hurt me? This is definitely some sort of sign. Maybe I should rethink the whole liking him thing. Out loud, I muttered, "And maybe I should rethink being friends with this jerk."

     You would think that after three years of knowing Hunter I would remember his powers include superhearing, like Flor, but I had momentarily failed to remember. It was a surprise when he got on his knees next to me. "Sorry for being a jerk, Myst. It was an accident. I didn't mean to hurt you. Don't stop being my friend over this."

    Unwanted tears sprang to my eyes. "Over this? You always do that! Whenever Flor is around, you act like I'm absolutely nothing to you and I'm tired of it. I'm done with this!" I pushed away his gentle hands when they went to probe my injury. "Don't touch me!"