Not From Around Here- A Hunter Hayes fanfic

Chapter 32 (part 1)- Tour Guides

***Part 1 of chapter 32! Enjoy :)***

Hunter's POV- 2 weeks later

     I think Melody is finally beginning to change. She hasn't made nearly as many smart remarks as she did when I first met her, and she's becoming nicer. Slowly but surely, of course. She still makes the occassional snappy comment, or she'll still roll her eyes at me out of habit, but it's better than not making any progress at all.

      Over the past two weeks that she's been here in Nashville, I've found myself thinking about her more than I'd originally planned. When she first came here, when I met her at the airport, I told myself that I was just a friend for her, nothing more. The past few days, that statement has gotten harder to believe. Now, I'm not head over heels, crazily in love with her, but I admit I'm beginning to have a little crush on her. But, I doubt she still likes me. I know she admitted to liking me before she came back up to Nashville, but by now, she probably just thinks of me as her friend, who just happens to annoy her every so often.

      Today I'm finally getting to show her some of my favorite things to do in Nashville, and I couldn't be more excited. I've never shown anyone around here before, so I'm excited to be able to play 'tour guide' for the day. As I drive through Nashville on my way to pick her up, I hear the all too familiar guitar intro to my song, 'Storm Warning' on the radio. Chuckling, I shake my head. "To call her a storm warning is definately an understatement," I tell myself, focusing on the road ahead of me.

        Fifteen minutes later, I pull into Melody's driveway. Stepping out of the car, I walk up to the front door and knock three times. She opens the door moments later, looking like she'd been rushing to get ready. She was in the middle of braiding her hair, and she didn't have any makeup on. I almost didn't recognize her without makeup, since she always has so much on whenever she goes somewhere. "Hunter! Hi, come on in. I'm almost done getting ready, I just gotta put on a little makeup," she says, letting me inside. As usual, I'm still in awe at how freakishly huge her house is. How could one girl need so much space?

       "You don't need the makeup, Melody, you look fine," I tell her, not realizing that I'd basically just called her pretty. I mean, she's very pretty, beautiful, actually, but it just felt odd saying that. Like, it felt odd because it just, slipped out unintentionally. She blushed slightly, finishing up her braid, tying it off with a hair band. "Are you kidding? I can't not wear something on my face! I look hideous!" she exclaims, throwing her hands in the air. "No, you don't! You look better without all the makeup, anyway. Come on, let's go!" I exclaim, eager to show of my tour guide skills. "Please? I hate not wearing something on my face, I feel ugly," she explains, giving me a pleading look. I shake my head, grabbing her hand. "Nope. You're not ugly, I can promise you that. I like the no makeup look better on you, honestly. Now, let's go!" I exclaim, leading her out to my car. I heard her sigh in defeat, following me.

       "I need my purse, though. My wallet's in there," she says, opening the passenger car door. "Not today, you don't. Everything's on me," I reassure her, climbing into the driver's seat. "But-"

"Nope, my treat,"

"Fine,"

        We drive in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, when she speaks up. "I listened to that Keith Urban CD," she says, raising her eyebrows at me. "And?" I question, giving her the same look. She looked at me, a smile playing on her lips. Regaining her seriousness, she looked out the window. "I hated it," she says, returning her gaze to me. I could tell she was trying not to laugh. "You did not, I can see you hiding a smile," I tease, jokingly shoving her shoulder. I kept my gaze on the road, ocassionally sneaking glances at her. "Alright, alright, you caught me. It was better than I thought it would be, but I'm still not that into country music," she admits, finally smiling at me. I nod, understanding. "Fair enough" I reassure her.

        Ten minutes later, I pull into one of my favorite places in Nashville.

The local music store.

      "We're here," I say, getting out of the car. "Wait, wait!" I exclaim, jogging around to open Melody's door for her. She steps out, and laughs. "What a gentleman," she compliments, smirking. We walk into the store, and she instantly seems overwhelmed by what she saw. Guitars, ukeleles, and banjos lined the walls, while the pianos, drumsets, and record collections sat on the floor. "It's huge, isn't it?" I ask, smiling. I come here so much, the employees have gotten to know me. "So huge," she replies, looking up at a wall of guitars.

       We split up and begin looking around, curiosity getting the best of us. Every time I come in here, there's always something new to look at. It's awesome. While I was looking at some old vinyl records, I heard Melody call from across the store. It was fairly empty today, so I doubt she bothered anyone by yelling my name. "Yes?" I call back, trying to follow her voice. "Come over here," she called, once I'd found her. She was staring at a wall of guitars. When I got closer, I realized that these weren't just any guitars, these were Taylor guitars. One of the most expensive guitars out there, but they sure were worth the money.

      "What is it?" I ask, watching her. "That guitar, it's gorgeous," she answers, pointing to a guitar that was hanging on the wall. It was solid black, with a cream colored outline around the edges. It was simple, but sometimes, simple is better. "It is. Do you play?" I ask, gently grabbing the guitar from the wall. She shook her head. "I've always wanted to learn, though," she admits. "Well, you can start learning now! I'll teach you, if you like," I offered, sitting on a nearby stool, placing the guitar in my lap. "I don't own a guitar, Hunter," she laughs, shaking her head. I stand up, walking over to the cash register.

       "You're about to," I tell her, smirking. "What? Hunter, no! These guitars are way too expensive. I can't let you do that, I'll use my own money," she protests, following me to the register. "Actually, Hunter, since you come in here so often," Mike, a salesman whom I've grown to know over the few times I've seen him working in here, says. "I'll let you take the guitar free of charge. It's a real beauty, so take it while you can," he says with a small smile. "Are you sure?" I ask, shocked. You don't just give away a Taylor guitar!

      "Positive. Don't worry about it," he says, clapping me on the shoulder. "Wow. Thanks, Mike!" I exclaim happily. "No problem! See you around, man,'' he replies, disappearing into the back of the store. I look over at Melody, who's jaw was dropped in shock. "Hunter, thank you so much! I guess it's a win-win for us, then!" she exclaims, taking the guitar out of my grasp. "Don't mention it. It looks like it is! Come on, I want to teach you how to play," I say, leading her out of the music shop.

      "What about the rest of Nashville?" she asks, confused. "We can do that tomorrow, you said you've always wanted to learn guitar, so let's go!" I exclaim happily, as we walk to my car. "I mean, I'll teach you, if you want, or you could find another teacher, if that's better-"

"Hunter, I'd much rather learn from you than a stranger. Trust me,"

***Part 2 of this chapter will be better, I promise!***

-ML312