His Dreamer

26

Chapter Twenty Six - Troubled Minds

Two weeks later.

"Are you sure?"

I turn and meet the ocean blue eyes I love so much. They're filled with worry and concern for me. Nodding, I take his hand and give it a reassuring squeeze. The mindless chatter of people in the building fades away as I focus on him instead of the boring plain walls. A small yet fleeting smile quirks my lips as I exhale steadily.

"I'll be fine Hunt. I won't let him get to me...not anymore."

He bites his bottom lip before nodding with a sigh. Tugging me closer he presses a firm yet lingering kiss to my left temple. I can literally feel the stress rolling off him in waves. He has nothing to be worried about but I guess he'll never be comfortable with me being anywhere near my father again.

We're currently sitting in the prison where my father is being held until the trial. I wanted to meet him one last time before the hearing. It's something that Hunter understands but at the same time he's afraid my father might do or say something to break us apart again.

But we know better, we're learning and working on sharing. I must admit that it feels nice to be so open about the negative parts of us. There's no fear of judgement or thinking that we might cause the other to worry or stress. In fact, it's helped us split the burden of our troubles...even if they are small.

"Zoe Miller?" A man calls out gruffly and locks eyes with me when I stand. "He's ready for you."

"I'll be here." Hunter whispers and I smile widely at him.

"I know." I reply and we grin like fools for a few seconds before I let go of his hand and follow the man.

I walk down the long hallway right to the end where we take a flight of stairs to the bottom. The walls are lined with countless locked doors and narrow sliding sections where the guards can see inside and speak. The man continues onward into another hallway and finally we arrive into a darker, colder room split in half with metal bars...my father sitting in a chair on one side.

Light green eyes identical to mine now appear dull with blonde hair that has turned greasy and sits limp atop his head. His skin is paler and the freckles across his face stand out more because of it. I hear the man who guided me here step out of the room but I know someone is watching us just in case. I remain standing in silence, not knowing where to start.

"Why are you here?" He grunts as he stares at me...but it's like he's not actually seeing me.

"Why do you hate me?" He stares hard and for a long moment we don't say anything. "I just don't understand the logic behind the extremes you went to all because I picked a career path you didn't approve of."

"I invested so much time and energy on you." He chuckles humorlessly with a shake of his head. I almost flinch when his gaze meets mine again, fiery with hate and anger. "I got you into the best school, gave you whatever you wanted, worked myself to the bone every day to provide you with a comfortable life. And you threw it back into my face by picking photography of all things!"

He's yelling now and I take a step back at the sheer volume. "I told you every single time that I had zero interest in studying law! You'd rather I be miserable for the rest of my life doing something I don't enjoy?!"

"You think I enjoy what I do Zoe?! Money makes the world go round not emotions!" He's red in the face now as he stands and makes his way closer to the bars. "I wanted to start a law firm, the best in the damn state. But I didn't have the means so I put it on the back burner temporarily. I had so many plans for us –"