Not From Around Here- A Hunter Hayes fanfic

Chapter 5- Walls Will Crumble

***Hey Hayniacs! So first off- today is the first show of the We're Not Invisible Tour! Ahhh I can't even contain my excitement and my show's not even till the end of May... Oh well. I'll manage until then, I suppose. Hahaha :D Anyways, oh! Excuse me, 'clears throat' AnyHayes! There we go, much better. Here is chapter 5! Enjoy :)***

Hunter's POV

      "So...your parents forced you to come down here for the summer?" I ask Melody, as we throw away our trash from Starbucks. I walk to the door and open it for her, and we walk back out onto the sidewalk and into the heat once again. We'd talked for almost an hour in Starbucks, and we decided to walk around town for a bit to get some fresh air. Well, it was more of my idea to walk around, she wanted to stay inside in the air conditioning, she said her hair would get frizzy in the heat. She's really not used to Nashville, is she?

       She quietly mumbles a halfway attempt of a 'thank you' as I walk out of Starbucks, following her. I don't know what she was saying thank you for, the coffee or holding the door, but I accept it anyway. "Anytime." I reply, slightly grinning. She stops and waits for me to catch up to her, then we're walking down the sidewalk. After a few minutes of comfortable silence, she speaks up. "To answer your question, yeah. They said my 'attitude' needed to change, and that I needed to get out of Beverly Hills for a few months." she explained, putting her fingers up in air quotations when she said 'attitude'.

        Your parents were right. I think to myself. I know it's rather rude, but it's the truth. The girl is a spoiled brat! But you gotta make the best of every situation, right? Right. "Oh. Well, I take it you miss California, yeah?" I ask, as we turn a corner. She sighs. "I don't exactly miss it, but I'd much rather be somewhere other than Nashville." she answers bluntly, pulling a pair of expensive looking sunglasses out of her purse. She puts them on, stopping to look at her reflection in a store window as we walk. I put my hands in my pockets. That wasn't really the answer I was looking for, about Nashville. I know she isn't very happy here, but this place is perfect to me.

       "Why don't you like it here?" I ask curiously. She looks at me as we continue to walk. "I don't know, it's just too....Southern here, I guess. I hate anything considered 'country' or 'southern'. Like cowboy boots, or sweet tea, or country music." she explains. I nod my head. "Everyone's got their own opinions on things." I reply, unsure of how to answer that. We walk in silence for a few more minutes. "Ugh, isn't there like, a Prada store around here or something?" she asks, huffing as she pulls her phone out of her purse. I chuckle. "This is Nashville, what do you think?" I ask, still chuckling slightly.

      She turns to face me, a pout on her face. "I never asked for you sass, Hunter." she snaps, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "Technically, you did." I retort playfully. She just glares at me. I put my hands up in defense. "Okay, okay, sorry." I say. She rolls her eyes at me, before walking away. "Wait, where are you going?" I ask, jogging after her. She turns to me. "To find some kind of designer store." she says sharply. "Okay, well, I hate to break it to you, but there are no designer stores in Nashville. Trust me, I know this city backwards and forwards in my sleep." I say, catching up to her.

        She huffs dramatically, crossing her arms over her chest. "What? I'm just saying." I say. "Yeah, but I won't be caught dead shopping in whatever gross stores you have in Nashville." she says, putting a hand on her hip. I sigh, starting to get tired of her attitude. I can see why her family sent her down here. "Looks like you'll be dying soon, then. I'm pretty sure the clothes you packed aren't anything less than the best money can buy." I say sarcastically. She rolls her eyes again, and begins walking again.

      "Hey, wait up!" I say, chasing after her again. She stops and turns to me. "What do you want?" she snaps harshly. I don't even flinch at her tone. "Look, I know we don't know each other that well, but I do know that if you want to make it here in Nashville, you gotta loosen up a little. Don't be so tense and, well, stuck up. You're gonna be here for a while, might as well make the best of it." I say, looking at her as my tone softens. She narrows her eyes at me. "You think I'm stuck up?" she asks, cocking an eyebrow at me, sass obvious in her voice. "To get to the point, no offense, but yes." I reply, not wanting to be rude. She throws her hand up in the air. "You don't know me, you don't know my story. So don't go making assumptions. I'm leaving." she says, walking the other way.

         "But-" she cuts me off. "I said I'm leaving, did I not? Goodbye, Hunter. Nice knowing you." she says sharply, turning away again. She walks down the sidewalk back the way we came. "Goodbye!" I call, but she didn't hear. If she did, she didn't answer me. Oh well. I have a feeling I'll be seeing more of her. I don't know when, or where, or why, but I just feel like I will. Something about her interests me, but I can't quite put my finger on it. Certainly not her attitude, that's gonna need some serious help. Maybe it was the way she was slowly starting to open up to me after a while? She wasn't exactly nice, but she had said 'thank you' after I got her coffee and when I held the door for her. Even though it was a quiet, halfway attempt, it was making progress, I suppose.

Melody's POV

      After about ten minutes of walking, I finally get back to my truck parked in front of the music store. Climbing in, I start the engine. "That was way too close." I tell myself, pulling out of the parking lot and out onto the main highway to go home. Well, "home" as in my house here in Nashville. What happened with Hunter was too close, I had let my walls down. I can't do that again, it's too much of a risk. What's too much of a risk, you ask? Well, since you asked, I guess I'll tell you.

       It was two years ago. Two years ago, my boyfriend, Ethan, had cheated on me with some trashy, no good girl. I was walking around Rodeo Drive one afternoon, and caught him practically making out with the girl on a bench on the sidewalk. He looked up and saw me, and laughed. I walked up to him, furious. "Why?" I asked, pointing to the girl. He just shrugged his shoulders. "I got tired of you, and she's better than you, anyway." he said simply. I looked at the girl. "How come she's not upset that you cheated on us with each other?" I ask. "Oh, when I found her, I told her I had already broken up with you. I just never told you, I guess." he said, smiling at the other girl. I turned away, tears in my eyes. "Aw, is poor little Melody crying?" he teased. I look back at him. "I should've known this would happen. You were never really in love with me. Goodbye, Ethan." I said, then walked away, trying to see through my blurred vision, as tear after tear fell down my face.

       That was the last time I ever dated someone, and I promised myself I would never fall in love again. Every relationship ends at some point, and it always hurts somebody. My theory is, if you don't fall in love, you don't get hurt. So far, it was working up until I met Hunter. I felt myself slowly, very slowly, opening up to him, and I can't let that happen to myself. I can't let myself fall in love, especially when I barely know him. I had let my walls begin to slowly crumble down, and the only way I know to build them back up is to shut people out. I do that by being rude, I guess. I'm not exactly proud of it, but it's how I am, and I can't change it.

       That being said, I cannot and will not let myself fall in love with Hunter. I won't risk my heart being broken like that again, and to make sure that doesn't happen, I'm not going to have any contact with him while I'm in Nashville.

This seems like it's easier said than done.

***So.....Melody is afraid to be in love. What do yall think will happen next? Comment below! See yall next chapter! :)***

-ML312