A/n: Okay so I lied. Decided to put the second chapter back up. There's not much different with it, I merely cleaned it up a bit. As always, enjoy.
...
A few weeks have passed after the fun Hunter and I had in the mud puddle, and it seems that he has lightened up with his bullying.
I think he even told his friends to leave me alone, because I've been having the time of my life! I don't have to look over my shoulder as much, and sometimes I'll even find little notes wedged into my locker. And not just any notes, but love letters signed by an anonymous party.
They're pretty cutesy, and they sound like the kind that elementary kids write. You know: 'I think you're cute; wanna come over and have some milk and cookies? Check Yes or No.' I'd answer them, if I knew who was doing it so I can personally hand them over and tell them to their faces that they're complete freaks. But I think I can safely assume that it's Hunter who's leaving them. It's pretty obvious. Sometimes I'll catch him watching me when I read the letters, and when I look over, he quickly looks away and pretends to be examining the flyers on the walls.
There are also the times when we pass one another in the hallways. He'll flick his eyes up and down as he ever so casually looks me over, and then winks, causing all the girls around us to swoon and squeal as they think he's looking at them. It must melt their hearts to see him batter his long lashes in their general direction, thinking that they're the one… ah, if they only knew.
See, I think that he thinks that just because he kissed me, I'm open to being courted or something. And that I actually like him. Honestly, I don't know how I feel. When we kissed, it was unlike anything I had ever done before, and it felt good. Then afterwards, when we said our apologies and briefly hugged, I felt like I was at peace. That we had settled something. I guess I thought that it would all be over between us. How, I'm not so sure…
I just wish he would come out and say something outright to my face, so I can stop thinking about it all the time.
Clink
What the…
Clink
As more ticking sounds continue to pelt at my window, I slowly head over and lift up a bit of the curtain. It's rather dark out, and the moon is mostly hidden behind clouds, making it nearly impossible to see outside. I carefully scan the grounds below, but all I can pick out are dark shadows that only turn out to be bushes and toys belonging to my younger brother. Maybe I was just imagining things. It could have been an animal or the tree on this side of the house… or it could be my secret admirer, climbing said tree like a freaking squirrel.
Without any prompt, I slide open the curtains and push up the window. "Hunter, what the hell are you doing?"
"Huh?" He looks up from his effortless climb at the sound of my voice, appearing confused before grinning and showing a bit of teeth. Some strands of his long hair, which has been tied back into a ponytail, whips about his face in the wind, making him look somewhat… okay, not gonna finish that thought. "Oh, hey Charlie. Nice night, yeah?"
I gape at him, "Nice night? Hunter, you're scaling a freaking tree at ten-thirty! I ask you again. What are you doing?"
He shrugs and continues up. "Coming to see you, Charlie. Move so I can jump in."
"What? No!" I stand my ground as he hoists himself higher. His eyebrows go up at my refusal.
"Why not? It's rude to refuse someone who's come all this way to see you."
"It's also rude to come unannounced," I complain, stepping back to shut my window. "Go home."
"Wait!" He extends a hurried hand to me, face now getting a hint of anxiousness. "C'mon, let me in. Let's talk, okay? I want to talk to you about something."
I shake my head, "You can tell me in the morning, at school. Not from a tree."
I just don't get this boy…
Just as I reach up to press the window back down, he makes this weird gasping sound and almost falls out of the tree as he tries to get to me.
"Please, Charlie, I love you!"
I freeze at his words. "E-excuse me?"
Seeing that he has my undivided attention, Hunter shimmies closer and uses my frozen state to his advantage by leaning over and casually hopping in. I let him, and watch as he dusts his hands off on his shirt and makes a beeline for my bed. Something inside heats up and flutters across my cheeks as he flops down on it with pure poise, as if he's at home, then looks me in the eye and motions with a finger for me to join him.
Whether it's because I'm just curious or I really am attracted, I take the silent request and move to sit about a foot next to him. He rolls his eyes before grabbing my arm and yanking me closer, nearly causing me to topple over into his lap.
"Listen, Charles," he starts bluntly as I sit up straighter, "I have some things to tell you. I'm the one who's been putting letters in your locker." The way he says it sounds like he's pronouncing a sentence for a convicted murderer. I wouldn't think so, since his posture is so chill. "That day, when we fought in the mud, I really meant it when we kissed. I like you, a lot. I can't…" he stops and sighs heavily, not looking at me. "I can't stop… thinking about you."
"Really?"
He nods, still facing forward with his eyes half lidded. "I've always liked you, you know, even when we first met. I was mean to you because I didn't know what to say, how to act. I never know how to… around cute boys, that is."
My face flushes once more at his words, because it sounds kinda stupid. I mean, come on. He can't be calling me cute. He's always called me ugly, and he's always sounded so sincere about it. He has to be lying. This has to be a joke.
"I must sound like such a girl, huh? But, you know, I don't care. I just want to tell you how I feel. And, judging by how willingly you kissed me, you feel the same way, right?"
"Um…" I falter as he finally turns back to me with those green eyes of his, awaiting my answer.
"You do like me, right?" He inches closer. "You enjoyed the kiss, right?" His voice lowers as he practically pleads and zeros in on my face. "You want to do it again, right?" He cups my cheek with a hand and gently pulls me towards him; I let him as if I have no free will of my own. "Charlie…"
My eyes flutter close as he rubs his lips against mine, slowly and artfully, as though he's giving me the chance to back away if I don't want it.
Do I want it?
I hate him… but he feels so soft, so right.
I hate him… but he's being so tender, so kind.
I hate him… but I can't push him away, I can't deny him.
I hate him, but… I…I think… I want it…
The same as when we were swimming in muddied pools and slapping each other with insults, I add pressure back and lay my hand on top of his, where it's still resting against my face. I feel him smirk, but it doesn't last for long and he caresses our mouths together, turning it into something a bit more intimate, intense.
I sigh as I open my mouth and repeat his gestures, the front of our teeth lightly tapping as we drift closer. Before I know it, he has his arms wrapped around my neck and is tugging me to him, our mostly chaste kisses evolving into pure heat and lust. We moan into one another, sucking, nipping, and panting as we fall back on my bed, him being trapped underneath me; the same as before.
I can't get enough of this, of him.
It's like he was made right for me, exactly what I needed all along. He's perfect. His body and the warmth it's emitting, his hands tangling in my hair, his maddening taste, his smell, his groans, his knee molesting my crotch—
"Wait… st-stop…" I pull away from his mouth and attempt pushing off from him, but he keeps his arms wound around my neck, keeping me still, his sinfully full lips persistent in continuing. "Hunter, please…"
With a whole lot of reluctance, he lets up and peels open his eyes. "What's wrong?"
"You… we can't," I tell him lamely, my face warming in embarrassment.
"Charlie, there's nothing wrong with a little… touching," he chides gently. "C'mon. We'll be quiet."
He tries kissing me again but I crawl off him and sit up. Hunter lies there for a long moment before pushing himself up into a sitting position, his eyes boring a hole in the side of my head. We sit in silence for a long while until he heaves a sigh and swings his legs over the side of the mattress and stands up to stretch; I stare at him helplessly as he doesn't make eye contact.
"Hunter, I'm sorry…"
"You're scared, aren't you?"
"I'm not scared of you," I start in a defensive tone, but he turns to me, face serious.
"I meant of sex."
I duck my head in response, as he's just read me like I'm nothing more than an open book. Can you honestly blame me, though? I've never been intimate in any way with anyone before, so this is all new to me. I don't want to move fast, I want to go slow.
"It's okay, Charlie."
"It is?" I look up at him to catch a sweet smile twist his lips, his gaze completely honest.
"Yeah. I must admit; I'm glad you stopped me. I wouldn't ever want to do anything that's uncomfortable to you. I should be the one saying sorry." I smile as he leans down and rubs our noses together before angling his head and giving me an innocent peck to my mouth. "I'm sorry."
"Thanks…"
"So what does this make us? Boyfriends?" He sits back down with a huff and wraps an arm around my shoulders, bringing me against his side. "Or do you prefer partners? Lovers?"
"Hunter…" I look down in my lap for a moment, then back to him, meeting his affectionate green eyes. "I'd rather not we slap any sort of labels on ourselves. Let's just be together. Why does love, of any sort, have to be named? It's not necessary. Let's not be boyfriends. Let's not be lovers, or partners, or even significant others. Let's not be gay or straight. Let's just be… us."
"…when the hell did you get so freaking philosophical?"
I turn bright red as he rolls his eyes to the ceiling, clearly making fun of me.
"Sometimes I wonder why I love you so much. Must be in the way you baffle me."
He flashes me a cheeky grin and I playfully shove him.
"Go home, Hunter. Isn't it past your bedtime?"
"Oh? Shouldn't you be getting your beauty sleep? You'll need about a million years before you're up to my level."
I pull a face at him, a bit hurt by the ugly jokes even though I know he's just kidding.
"Geez, Charlie, I don't mean it!" In assurance, he touches my face with his fingers and trails them down till he's caressing my lips. "You're so attractive; I have a hard time holding back." His words leave me shivering, and to my now bitter disappointment, he gets up to leave. "It is late, though. I'll um, see you in the morning. If you don't mind, I'd like to walk to school with you."
"Yeah, of course." I stand up too to walk him to the window, cause there's no way he can go downstairs and out the front door. No-one's definitely supposed to be here at this hour. "I'm glad you stopped by. It's nice to know that you don't really hate me."
He turns to me just before hoisting himself outside and motions me closer with his finger, reminiscent of earlier. I come to him, and without warning, he wraps both arms around my waist and pulls me taut to him, immediately crushing our mouths together and wasting no time in tonguing me. I can't help but return his enthusiasm, and when we break apart, all I see are little spots in front of my eyes.
"'Night, babe."
"Um, uh, yeah, night."
I stand, stunned, as he winks devilishly then disappears into the night.
Silence falls on me and the rest of the room after he's gone, and rather methodically, I shut the window and close the curtain. Feeling somewhat high, I change out of my clothes and into pajamas. Clicking off the lamp, I slide in under the covers of my bed, which is still warm from our activities and simply lie there.
Seconds, minutes, and soon an hour passes, but I can't seem to shut my eyes, because every time I do, all I see is Hunter, and even though he's not here, he won't let me sleep.
Damn him.
But, by God do I love him.