The Quiet

Chapter 30

Chapter 30

*Athena's Point of View*

           Nathan's kitchen is filled with a delicious aroma of chicken which he was cooking. He was a decent cook, something about him that I didn't know. He hasn't asked me about what happened, and I am grateful for that since I didn't want to talk about it. He stood in front of the stove with a pair of shorts and a muscle tee shirt, I couldn't stop staring at him. I didn't know what or who I wanted anymore. "Athena." I didn't realize he was waving his hand in front of my face. "Food's ready." He placed the plate of food on the counter in front of me.

           "Thank you," I smiled lightly at him. He placed his plate next to mine on the kitchen's island. He walked around and sat on the stool next to me. "You know, you didn't have to cook for me."

           "I wanted to since you said you were hungry." He looked over at me. We ate a few hours ago and I was still hungry, my body never made sense to me. "Plus, I get to show off my wicked cooking skills," Nathan admits, raising his eyebrow. A smirk played on his lips as he stared at me. He looked away from me to start eating his food. I did the same while looking around his house, I have never been here before, but I knew where it was. I have never met his parents before, the only relative I have ever seen was his brother. His house was nice but it seemed like no one ever used some areas of the house.

           Some of the furniture in the fancy living area seemed as if they were brand new, not used at all. The dining room was the same way, doesn't look like anyone ever went in there. I glanced away from the other rooms to eat the food that was made for me. It tasted amazing, it was tender and filled with so many different flavors that worked in each other's favor. "Nathan, this is amazing." When I swallowed the food, I felt the need for more. I looked at him and he was blushing, staring down at his plate. We sat in comfortable silence until we finished eating. I insisted on washing the dishes since he made the dinner.

           While I washed the dishes, I saw that Nathan had disappeared. I followed the way he went the last time I saw him. It was to the sliding glass door where I saw him standing on the deck while holding a cigarette in his hand. He took a long hit before exhaling the smoke from his mouth. I moved the door to the left, making the door move in a swift motion. Nathan looked over at me, not knowing what to say. I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to stay warm in the bitter cold. "When did you start?" I asked as I walked to his side, the opposite of where the smoke is going. I remember the first conversation I ever had with Nathan, he hated smoking because of the lung cancer that ran in his family.

           "When did you stop?" He countered my question.

           "I asked you first," I replied. I wanted to know why he would start smoking after repetitively telling me how horrible it is. After all the time of him telling me how I should quit.

           He took another drag before answering me, "I started after you went to Russia. I thought you weren't coming back." I looked up at him with confusion. That was well over 2 months now since he has been smoking. "It turned into an everyday kind of thing." He sounded so plain in his response, not knowing if he should be ashamed of his actions or not.

           "I quit recently after I got out of the hospital. The doctor was hell-bent on me quitting because I wasn't going to get any better if I didn't. I guess I want to live a little longer," I explained. "Dean made sure I didn't smoke, he took my cigarettes."

           Nathan put down his cigarette down, "how is good old Dean doing?" He asked sarcastically.

           "I don't know anymore, we broke up. Today." I revealed the truth that I had been hiding since I entered Nathan's house. The gorgeous green-eyes boy whipped his head in my direction, shocked at the information. "He was angry that I was hanging out with you and I told him that he isn't able to control me like that. You of all people know I don't allow people to control my life. He was just like Jason." I kicked my feet at the deck, wanting something else to focus on. Honestly, I wasn't upset about my relationship with Dean ending, it was going to happen one way or another. It was good that it happened before I got too attached.