Hunter

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Sixteen:

|JOEL'S POV|

"How long has it been?" I whisper to Michael, and he glances once again at Kate, who hasn't left my sight since she woke up this morning.

"Four days," he replies after a while. "Is this normal?"

"For her?" I ask. "Definitely. This is how she copes with it." Kate is sitting at the kitchen table in silence, playing with a slip of paper. I'll bet fifty pounds it's the note that Alec left behind the first time he disappeared. She keeps reading and re-reading it, and she doesn't look up.

"How did you stop it last time?" Michael asks me, obviously concerned.

"I held her hand, and it seemed to work. But this time is different. She isn't talking. Last time it took two months for me to do anything, and she was talking to me."

"Please try." I step forward, and Kate's hand goes to her belt.

"Kate?" I ask, taking another step forward. She pulls out a knife and points it right at me without even looking up. I take one more step, and she throws the knife. I catch it easily, as it's not her best throw, and I drop it to the floor. Then I lay my hand on hers. She pulls her arm away from me in a motion similar to that of disgust. Then she looks up into my eyes. I stumble back at the emptiness in her gaze. There is absolutely no emotion whatsoever. "Kate, talk to me," I command her. She shakes her head. "Look, you walked away from him this time. You know where he is, you can see him whenever you want."

"He told me to choose you," she blurts out, jumping to her feet. "He told me to leave, because he wants me to be with you, Joel. But I realise now that I don't want that. I want him. It's always been him. We faced so many obstacles, but we made it through each and every one together. I want Alec. But then a part of me feels guilty for thinking that, because I love you, Joel. I love you so much, and I couldn't bear to part with you."

"Kate, I just want you to be happy. I know sometimes it seems like I don't care, but I do. I care so much about you, about how you feel. Although, I do admit that I'm being slightly selfish. If you're happy, I'm happy, and when you're like this, and I can't feel anything from you at all, it's terrifying for me."

"I'm blocking my emotions, because they keep overwhelming me. I don't know what I feel. I don't even know who I am anymore."

"Let me help you understand. I know one thing: I love you, and I want to be with you." A thoughtful look comes over her face, and then suddenly a tidal wave of emotions flows into my mind: love, hate, anxiety, depression, shame, distrust, and anger. 'You're angry at Alec for leaving, you don't know who to trust, you're ashamed of the way everything has affected you, you're anxious, afraid of what might happen if you ever see Alec again, and you're depressed because of the weight of your situation. You both love and hate Alec, and you love me. You also hate yourself for letting all of this happen.'

"Joel, I—" I step in, leaning down to kiss her, taking her face in my hands. Her hands grip my shirt, and pull me in closer. I pull away slightly

"You think too much," I say lightly. "I love you, Kate. That will never change."

"I love you, too," she sighs, leaning against my chest. "So this is it," she says softly. "This is my choice." Electricity bursts inside of me at her words, because I realise that this is it. She chose me.

"Finally. Geez, you two needed to do that a long time ago," Michael says from behind us. Kate draws a knife, threatening him, moving away from me at the same time. He takes a defensive stance. "Come at me," he commands her, making a really bad decision. She leaps for him, and then the doorbell rings.