Heart of Ice

Chapter Five

Song: Good Thing- Sage the Gemini, ft. Nick Jonas

The process of walking through the airport and getting on the airplane is way too easy. We keep the cloaks on until we're by the gate for our flight, and once nobody's around, we take them off, folding them over our arms so they look like simple jackets. Luckily, it's mid-October in Chicago, which means the weather is... well, freaking cold, so it makes us seem ordinary. Not suspicious. We need as much of that as we can get.

Once we board the flight, Hunter sits by the window and I sit in the middle seat. There's only a few other passengers since it's a late night flight, and nobody seems like people we have to worry about. The flight attendant offers us a drink, and we both politely decline, but she makes it incredibly obvious what she thinks about Hunter with the way her eyes rake over him. She smiles more, leaning over me to ask him if he needs anything else. He shakes his head, shooting her a captivating smile, and I roll my eyes, my hands balling into fists.

Why do I care about his stupid flirting games with other girls? He disgusts me.

When the girl walks away, Hunter smirks. "Easy there, killer. You looked like you were ready to smash her head through this window."

"Like hell," I mumble, looking away from him. "I don't care what you do or who you flirt with."

"Ah, so you called that flirting. Exactly the kind of thing a jealous woman would say."

"Um, no? Contrary to what you believe, I know what flirting is, and after being around you my entire life, I know how you flirt," I click my tongue, crossing my arms over my chest. "You are a typical man."

He chuckles. "Alright, kitty kat. I believe you."

I gag. "Never, ever, call me that again."

I glance back at him, only to find that his smirk has grown. I should've known. He's just trying to get a rise out of me, like always. Sometimes, I really just want to punch him for the hell of it. Maybe his annoying and undeniable attractiveness will go away if he has a nice, Alaska-sized bruise around his eye.

As the last passenger boards the plane, Hunter wraps my cloak around me before throwing his on. I raise my eyebrow, and he shrugs. "Safety precaution. We can't take any risks."

Silence settles between us once again, and as the plane begins lifting off the ground, nervousness balls up in my stomach, and I swallow hard. I'm not necessarily afraid of heights, but I've never been on a plane before, and based on the way my ears start ringing as the plane quickly climbs in elevation, I'm a little nervous of how the ride will actually be.

So nervous, in fact, that I don't even realize I'm gripping Hunter's hand like my life depends on it.

He doesn't say anything, but he doesn't push me onto the floor either, so I assume he's okay with it. Despite the fact that he hates me, he still tries to make me feel comfortable in situations like this, and I guess that's one of the benefits of having an enemy who knows how to handle your emotions.

It's an... interesting combination.

Once we reach the highest elevation, Hunter gently pushes my hand away, tucking a piece of gum in it, before looking out the window. I figured it wasn't going to last for too long. Rejection truly does suck, but I know it's because of the fight we had earlier, which probably only fueled his hatred for me. I mean, I hate him too, for another reason, but I still try to be civil. Hunter tends to go off the rails after our fights to the point where he's reckless in the things he says. I've learned how to handle it, but it still doesn't soothe the sting from the words he says. But there's really nothing I can do about it anymore. I'm pretty much certain that we'll hate each other for the rest of our lives.