Choices

Chapter 40

The song is Speak up By POP ETC!

(Hopes POV)

     I was in the gym on the treadmill, running as fast as I could on it, which was only five miles per hour. I know I should stop because it's too early for my body to handle this, but I didn't want to be in the common room with the guys, or in Evan's room with him. I was basically trapped in here until I man up and go back home to my apartment. IF I'm even allowed to go back, I'm pretty sure Evan is going to keep me trapped here till the Sydnee problem goes away. The door to the gym opens up but doesn't close.

     "You really shouldn't be doing anything physical right now. You've been bedridden for 4 months, aren't your muscles killing you right now?" Evan says as he walks up next to me and hits to stop button on the treadmill. I jog to a stop and look at Evan.

     "Why? I'm already dead like you said, might as well kill myself some more while I'm at it." I was already getting annoyed again. I get off of the treadmill and walk over to the leg press machine. I'm going to look healthy again starting right now, I hate looking like this.

     Evan stammers for a second, trying to find the right thing to say. He closes his mouth as he looks at the ground and takes off his shirt. I look at him and see new scars all over his chest. Gunshot wound scars and a huge scar running from his right collar bone all the way down to his bellybutton. I stare at it as he sighs.

     "About a week before you woke up, I thought I could take care of finding the rest of Warren's men. I guess I was wrong." He turns around and I notice smaller but thicker scars all over his back. Some even overlapping older scars.

     "This is what I wanted to show you earlier so you don't have to feel bad about your scar. It doesn't change anything about you, in fact, I love you even more with it, it shows how much of a badass you are." I go over to him and wrap my arms around him. He brings me closer to him as he runs his fingers through my hair.

     "I just want you to be safe is all. I didn't mean what I said earlier, this whole situation just has my nerves going, I mean you just got out of the hospital today Hope. You're so fragile right now that I don't want you to break." He says quietly. I nod my head in his chest before looking up at him.

     "What did you have planned for today? I still want to do whatever you had in mind." He starts to smile as he lets go of me. I let go of him and tighten my small ponytail.

     "Well, we can't do one of the things that I had in mind, because of how late it is already, but we can do the other two things I had planned, come on before it gets any darker out." I start to laugh as he grabs onto my hand and pulls me toward the door.

      Evan told Delirious that we were leaving for the night and everyone can go home whenever they wanted too. We got in his car and started to head back into Los Santos. I laid my head on his shoulder as we were cruising with the other cars. It felt nice to actually be going the same speed as them, we weren't rushing like we always are. We stopped in front of my apartment building and I looked at him confused.

     "This is just a quick stop before we go anywhere else. To get you changed into something else." He turns off the car and grabs his keys. God, I don't even remember the last time that I was in my own apartment.

     We got up to my apartment and when I opened the door, I noticed all of my things that didn't come with the apartment were gone. I give Evan a scared look, but he gives me a smile in return.

     "Well, since you said yes to moving in with me, I got everything that was yours and moved it into my apartment when you were still in the hospital. I think I left like one or two things in your bedroom. Once we leave here, this place will no longer be yours, and we'll be living together." He says giving me a kiss on my cheek. I start to laugh as I go down to where my bedroom is.