That One Ride

9. Past Problems Fixing III

Neither of them slept that night, both trying hard to predict what will happen in the morning. Even if they did, it was a couple of hours at most. He got up earlier than was probably normal for a Saturday, going for a jog. Toothless didn't complain, happy to be out and get some exercise. But, the real reason was, that Hunter just didn't want to run into her before they went. He kept asking himself over and over when he got home, why the hell he accepted. He wanted to stop thinking about her, so why was he going for coffee? The cold morning air helped soothe his nerves, but only slightly. They ran for a good hour, trying to stretch out everything, so he wouldn't feel weird when they had the coffee. Well, weirder. He came back home, his father still snoring upstairs. He had no idea when he came home, but from what he heard, he was barely standing on his feet. Was it from his job or from drinking, he didn't know. He spent a long time in the shower, his fingers starting to get pruney and his mirror all fogged up. He threw on some jeans and a shirt, his tattoo's still glistening from the workout and the shower. He made his way downstairs, sitting in the living room till the clock stroke 09:15. He grabbed his phone, wallet and keys, the sound of the engine of his bike making him feel a bit more confident. He took the other way around to the diner, avoiding passing her house.

Her mind was buzzing, asking herself as much as he was, as to why she asked him that in the first place. Reneé would get a nice ass kicking for this. Her family was up and about when she finally decided to get out of the bed. Her body felt heavy, envious of the early leave Hunter had. But, with the way he responded to her question, she doubted he got any sleep either. God, she regrets doing it now. Maybe she should just not go? Stay home, pretend it didn't happen. But, every fiber of her being is telling her that she's being a coward. And Ashley Hawkins was no coward.

Come on, woman up. It's coffee. You're just gonna talk and solve whatever it is you have left to solve. This is Hunter Haddock we're talking about; if anyone would understand it, it would be him.

Well, she hoped, anyway. He seemed to change a bit over the years.

"Morning." She said as she passed through the kitchen, giving Jay a kiss on the head as she went. Her family was sitting at the table, eating breakfast with the boys commenting on the game that she missed last night.

"What about me?" complained Aaron, teasing her. She rolled her eyes, but gave him a kiss anyway, hugging him tight around his shoulders that were so much like her fathers. He grabbed her arm with one of his own, kissing her on the cheek as well.

"How'd it go?" he asked, still holding onto her.

"It was boring as fuck." She said, referring to the night she had to spend hanging around with people with too much money and John. She could stand the people with too much money, it's John that was the problem.

"Language." Her mother warned. She rolled her eyes.

"I'm not a kid, mom. I'm an adult, I can curse if I want too." She said, letting go of Aaron.

"Not under my roof." Ingrid said, raising her mug to take a drink. She rolled her eyes, but said nothing else. She checked the clock on the wall, thinking if she was gonna be on time, she should get going. She headed towards the door, pulling on her sneakers and grabbing her keys from the bowl. Her mother heard the commotion, craning her neck to see what she was up to.

"Where are you going? You haven't even had breakfast." Ingrid asked, making her entire family look at her as much as they can from their position.

"I'm not that hungry. Besides, I'll get it later at the diner. I'm meeting with a..."

Friend? Acquaintance? Ex? They weren't friends, but they knew each other on much deeper level to just be acquaintances. Telling her parents that she was meeting with her ex just sounded like something they wouldn't stop asking her about.