"She's still getting ready" Daniel said when he opened the door for Hunter. Arabella rolled her eyes, running around her bed, trying to get her purse and all of her jewellery and makeup together for the date. She tossed her wallet into her little purse and sat down on her bed.
"I'll be right there!" Arabella called towards the door, pulling on her high heels.
"So, where are you taking my sister tonight?" Daniel asked Hunter, leaning against the door frame and folding her arms across his chest.
Hunter leaned on the cabin, catching his breath. He looked up at Daniel and then took a deep breath.
"I'm actually taking her to a restaurant called Daniel." He said with a chuckle. "It should be...really good." He said, standing up straight. "Phew. I'm sorry. I ran here."
"You're driving there, though, right?" Daniel asked, narrowing his eyes at Hunter. Hunter nodded.
"Yeah. I've got a car parked on the other side of the hill." He said with a smile.
Daniel let out a bit of a sigh but he didn't say anything, however, when Arabella heard silence from the door she moved a bit faster. Daniel might not be saying anything but that didn't mean he approved of Hunter now. Arabella wanted to avoid as much awkwardness as possible. She grabbed her purse and stood up, tugging on the hem of her dress a little as she walked. "Hi, Hunter" Arabella said in a soft voice, smiling at him as she walked up to the door. He looked handsome and nervous and Arabella couldn't be more excited for this date.
Hunter looked at Arabella and his mind went blank. Now that she was there and dressed for their date it all seemed so real and it was actually happening. "Oh, wow..." He said quietly. "You look beautiful, Arabella." He looked at her dress then up to meet her eyes. He blushed, but he didn't look away. He just smiled and then licked his lips a little bit nervously before offering his arm to her. "Shall we?"
Arabella nodded then turned to Daniel, giving him a little wave. "See you later, Danny" She said and she stepped out of the cabin, closing the door behind her. She looked up at Hunter with a big smile. "Did I hear that right? We're going to Daniel?" She asked him, wiggling her eyebrows a little bit.
"Yeah." Hunter said with a nod. "I hear it's supposed to be really nice there." He said as they walked toward the hill. "You do look really pretty, Ellie." He said, looking over at her. "And now I feel a little underdressed..." He looked down at himself and smoothed out his shirt. "I'm...sorry." he said nervously.
"You look amazing" Arabella reassured him, touching his sleeve lightly. "I've heard that it's a really good restaurant, but I haven't had a chance to go there, yet" She told him, walking with him towards the hill. "How was your day today? I was kind of busy and I didn't really see you" She said, making a bit of small talk while they walked.
"It was good. I was...incredibly nervous, to be honest." He said with a sigh. "And I didn't really think asking you out through, so it was a bit of a rush and I don't know why I'm telling you this." He said, rubbing his eyes as they reached the top of the hill. "The jeep is mine. Well, it's not mine, but I'm borrowing it for this." He said, looking over at Arabella and sighing.
Arabella smiled up at him and she took a step closer to him, slipping her arm through his. She held onto him lightly as they started to walk down the hill. "It's okay, Hunter. Everything is going to be perfect tonight" She told him, trying to make him feel a bit better. "So, tell me about your family. You said that you have a cousin? What's she like?"
Hunter smiled at her, blushing softly. He tried to think of what to say about Chrissy without mentioning that she hated Arabella. Hunter nodded his head back and forth for a second. "Her name is Chrissy. She's a couple years older than we are. She's...She's kind of my best friend. At least she was. Not sure if she is anymore. I love her for obvious reasons and I always will." He said with a shrug. "I don't know what else to say." He said, rubbing the back of his neck a little nervously. "The rest of my family is my uncle and aunt then two other cousins." He said with a nod. "A set of twins. Julie and Steven. They're both in college. How about you? How's Tyler?"
"Tyler's doing really good!" Arabella told him, smiling when she mentioned her little brother's name. "He seems to really be enjoying school, which is good" She added with a little nod. It had been a little while since she had last seen Tyler and she worried about him a lot when they were apart. She always felt like she needed to protect him. Arabella cleared her throat and pushed a piece of loose hair out of her eyes. "I'm liking this Jeep" She said with a little laugh as they got closer to the car.
"Well, wait until we start driving." He said with a small laugh as he opened her door for her. He closed it and then hurried over to his side, getting in and starting the car. It died again almost immediately. Hunter gave it another try and sent a desperate prayer to any god that was listening. It finally started and he started heading down the road toward the city. "So, why don't you have your drivers license? No desire or no need?" He asked, glancing over for a second, his hands gripping the steering wheel tightly as to not embarrass himself.
"Uh, no need, I guess" Arabella shrugged, leaning back in her seat and glancing out of the window. She looked back at him and smiled a little bit, just happy to be in the car with him and driving towards the city. "My dad has always had drivers for us and he doesn't really want me to learn how to drive. I asked him but he totally just brushed me off" She confessed and played with the hem of her dress. "I'd really like to learn, though"
Hunter nodded. "Well, maybe I could teach you sometime..." He said quietly. "I mean, I'm not a teacher or an expert or anything." He said quietly. "If you wanted to learn, I guess." He looked down at the steering wheel and took a deep breath. "What does your dad do. I'm not sure if we ever really talked about that." He said, simply trying to find something to talk about.
Arabella laughed a little bit and shrugged. "Who knows? He's some...CEO for this big company." Arabella told him and she looked out of the window, watching the trees pass as they drove down the road. "We don't really talk about his job. It usually gives me a headache so I don't bother asking him about it anymore" She said with a bit of a laugh. "Did you get to see your family much this past year? You seem to be getting a bit closer to them"
"Yeah. My aunt and I have talked a lot more and we're just growing closer. It's nice. I feel like I have a place to go home to now." He said with a nod. "I mean, Camp is always going to feel like home, but sometimes it's just nice to get away from it, you know? Like...I go home to take a vacation. I don't know. I'm weird." He said with a shrug. "It's just...a really long and sad story that shouldn't darken our date." He said with a smile as he parked outside of the restaurant and got out to open her door.
Arabella blushed a little bit when he opened the door for her and she stepped out, holding onto the side of the car for a second while she balanced herself on her high heels. She looked up at the fancy restaurant with a look of awe on her face. "This is...wow. Hunter, this is really incredible" She breathed and smiled up at him and she stepped away from the Jeep, moving towards the doors. "I can't believe that we're coming here, I mean, really...wow"
"My uh...My uncle suggested it." He said, looking up at the restaurant. "Now you see why I feel underdressed." He said with a sigh. "You fit in perfectly." Hunter opened the door for her and then followed her inside. He headed toward the hostess and she looked up with a smile.
"Hello, sir. Welcome to Daniel. Do you have a reservation?" She asked, looking down at her podium.
"Uhh...No. I...We just walked in." He said, glancing over at Arabella, feeling embarrassed. The hostess' face fell slightly.
"Well, It's gonna be about an hour wait, unfortunately. Is that okay?" Hunter rubbed his eyes and then gave the hostess his name before walking back to Arabella.
"It's...It's going to be an hour..." He said quietly, looking at his feet. "Sorry..."
Arabella let out a little puff of air. An hour wait sucked but it wasn't the end of the world. Hunter looked so upset, Arabella just wanted to make him feel a bit better. "Well, that's no problem. We can...I don't know, we can go for a bit of a walk while we wait? Or we could go somewhere else. The possibilities are endless" She said with a bit of an added giggle.
"Yeah!" He said quickly. "Sorry. We can go somewhere else." He looked around for a moment. "I mean, I don't know any other places." He said. "I mean, we can just...go for a walk. I'm sorry. I should have called ahead..." He walked toward the exit and opened the door for Arabella, then following her out of the restaurant onto the street. "Maybe we should drive around."
"A drive sounds really good" Arabella said, honestly rather excited. It would be great going for supper but she really just wanted to spend some time with Hunter, talking about some things and getting to know him. ''So, where do you want to go?" She asked him, wiggling her eyebrows as they walked towards the Jeep.
"I don't know. I mean,you probably know this part of the city better than I do." He said with a nod as he opened her door for her. He got in then started the car, checking the time. "I'll just drive and if you see another restaurant or if we want to get out and walk, then you can just say so. Sorry about...not being more prepared..."
"Hunter. Stop apologizing. I'm really having a good time. Everything is going to be fine" She told him with a little smile and she slid into seat, buckling up her seat belt as she waited for Hunter to get into the driver's seat. When he sat down and started the car, she pointed down the road. "Head out this way. It's a good part of the city" She told him and leaned back in her chair.
Hunter nodded and opened his mouth to apologize again then stopped. He drove as Arabella directed and looked around, admiring all of the buildings and things. "See any other restaurants?" He asked, looking over at Arabella and finding himself looking at her as she bit her lip. He stared at her lips for a moment, only turning away when she looked and caught him. "So, where is your school and stuff?" He asked, clearing his throat a little bit.
"Uh, pretty close to here, actually" Arabella said, sitting up a little straighter and playing with her fingers in her lap. She glanced out of the window for a second before glancing back at Hunter. "Just down this street a little bit, we'll be going past Central Park and my school and my house is all within about a 10 minute walk of there" She said then let out a little breath. "It's nice, it's a good place to live" She shrugged. "Didn't you say that your family is close to camp?"
"Yeah. It's not too far from camp, but it's in a different direction from the city." He said with a shrug. "I haven't really done a lot of exploring in the city. I drove a fair amount in it, but I was kind of distracted by the whole...focusing on the road thing." He said, taking a turn toward Arabella's house without her telling him.
Arabella furrowed her brow a little bit when Hunter turned the car towards the street she lived on. "We, uh, we should go down to Times Square. Have you seen it, yet?" She asked him. Arabella wasn't sure if he knew where she lived or if she wanted to know the answer to that question. She just wanted the date to go well and she figured that if she got far from her house, things might be better.
Hunter shrugged. "Only in the daytime which didn't seem as impressive. It's probably tons better when it's dark, right?" He said, turning away from her street and toward Time Square. "Have you lived here your whole life?" He asked, looking at some of the buildings and stopping at a stoplight.
"Born and raised" Arabella nodded with a little smile and she glanced over at Hunter. She really didn't know that much about him or his past. He seemed to really keep it close to his chest for the most part. "What about you? Where is the magnificent Hunter from?" She asked him with a little playful tone in her voice.
"Connecticut." He said with a nod. As much as he had come to terms with his past and as he's gotten over a lot of it since talking to his Aunt, it was still a little sensitive. It felt odd sharing it with Arabella, but at the same time it felt natural. "My mom and I traveled around a little bit when I was very young, but then we settled in New York with my aunt and uncle and cousins." He said quietly, not wanting to mention the car wreck or his grandparents. "I owe my aunt and uncle a lot." He said, taking a deep breath.
Arabella nodded a little bit and she looked down at her lap. She knew that it was best not to push him anymore. If he wanted to tell her, he would tell her in his own time and when he was ready. "Well, your family seems pretty great" She said, looking up at him. Arabella bit her lip and looked out of the window for a long moment before turning back to Hunter. "How old were you when you came to camp?"
"Well, I started going part time when I was 5. That was summers and some other times of the year. I started going full time when I was 12 or 13, I think." He said with a nod. He kept driving when he felt the car shake a little bit and he kept moving when the engine revved several times and the engine died. Hunter took a deep breath in surprise and steered it into a parking spot before throwing it in park and looking over at Arabella. "Gods, no this can't be happening..." He said under his breath as he took the key out then put it back in, turning it. The engine turned and turned and finally started only to die immediately after. Hunter sighed and hit his head on the steering wheel. "I cannot believe this car just broke down..." He said quietly.
Arabella looked out the window, away from Hunter. She wanted to get her composure and stay calm and happy. He seemed so upset and she didn't really want to make it worse. Arabella looked back at Hunter with a small smile, resting her hand on his back. "Hey, it's okay. We, uh, we can walk. It should be that far from here" She told him. "Is there a manual or anything in here? A number to call or something?"
Hunter buried his face in his hands, thinking. "I can call my uncle. Let me find a payphone." He said, getting out and hurrying toward a payphone across the street. He put in some change and dialed the number. It rang twice and then his uncle picked up. "Hey, uncle Wayne."
"Hey, kiddo. How's the date going?" He asked excitedly. Hunter glanced over as Arabella made her way across the street.
"Terrible. The car just broke down. Arabella and I are going to get going to see if we can get still get a table at the restaurant." Hunter said. He told his uncle where the car was and then hung up, locking the car and then looking at Arabella. She looked beautiful and she got dressed up for the worst date in history. "I'm so sorry, Arabella."
"Hunter, it's really okay." Arabella told him, walking closer to him. She took a little breath before slipping her hand into his. "At least it's a beautiful night. It's warm, it's not raining and we're in the best city in the world" She said and smiled up at him. "What did your uncle say?" She asked him, not letting go of his hand just yet.
Hunter blushed and looked at their hands together. "He and my cousin are going to come and see if they can take care of it. Then they might call a tow if they can't." Hunter ran his finger over the back of her hand. "Well, we better hurry if we want to get a table." He said, pulled his hand out of hers, heading back the way they came to try and find the restaurant again.
Arabella looked down at the ground for a moment, part of her really wishing that Hunter hadn't dropped her hand like that. It felt good to hold his hand. She let out a little sigh before looking back up and following him as he walked down the street. "It shouldn't be too hard to find and with any luck, it won't take to long" She said and smiled up at Hunter. "So...Jake said that he broke up with that girl he had been seeing?"
Hunter looked over at her and took a deep breath. "Yeah. From what he told me, they were hanging out one night and he asked her why they weren't more serious or something." Hunter said with a shrug. "She laughed and he said he was being serious. That's pretty much all he told me. He seems to be perfectly happy without her anymore, so I don't feel too bad for him." He shrugged as he walked, slipping his hands in his pockets. Hunter felt a little bad for acting a little cold toward Arabella, but he was feeling a little stressed about this date.
"That's good! I'm happy for him" Arabella said, focusing on keeping pace with Hunter in her high heels. "From what he told me, it didn't really seem like that great of a relationship" She said and looked around at where they were, trying to figure out how far it was going to be until they got back to Daniel. "I have a sister in Aphrodite who was in a relationship like that. It was terrible. She would cry for a day straight over this guy when they would break up and the next day when she saw him again, they were totally fine. It was confusing!" She said, finishing with a bit of a laugh. Finally, she let out a puff of air. "I'm sorry. That was a stupid story, I'm just talking because I'm nervous and I want this to go well"
Hunter looked over at her and took a small breath. He couldn't help, but laugh a little bit, mostly because it was a little relieving to see that he wasn't the only one nervous about this. "That's okay. I'm just glad one of us is talking." He said with a sigh. They walked a little bit further and finally found the restaurant again. Hunter walked in and found the hostess. "Hi, we're back and it's been about an hour." He said, clearing his throat.
"Oh, I'm sorry, sir. We had a big group come in and we had to give them your table. If you'd like we can have another table ready for you in about 45 minutes." She said with a smile. Hunter's jaw dropped and he stepped away, rubbing his eyes. He finally gave her his name and Hunter looked up at Arabella for a second, feeling so embarrassed.
"They gave our table away. They can have another one ready in 45 minutes." He said quietly, studying his feet. "Gods, this is such a disaster." He said, walking out of the restaurant and back into the cool night air.
"Oh...uhm, it's okay" Arabella said and she looked over at Hunter, who looked crushed. "No, really, it's okay. Can we just find a bench or something somewhere? My feet are really killing me" She said, offering him a little smile and balancing on one foot lightly, to get pressure off of the other foot. Arabella was pretty good in high heels but she had walked pretty far in a pair of very high heels.
Hunter nodded and cleared his throat, walking down the street a little bit to find a bench near a bus stop. He helped her sit down and then took his seat next to her, looking down at his lap. "I'm sorry about your feet." He said quietly, watching her as she took off one of her shoes. "I like your nail polish." He said quietly, looking down at her foot.
Arabella grinned and glanced down at her feet, remembering that time they sat on the beach together and he mentioned her nail polish. "Oh, thanks. I worked hard on it" She said, moving towards him a little bit on the seat. She put her shoes down on the ground and rested her feet on top of them. "I see you still have the same green shoes you've always had" She said with a little smile.
"Why fix what ain't broke, right?" He said quietly. "I've been wearing green shoes since I was nine." He tapped his feet together and leaned back on the bench before checking his watch. "Wow. It's already 10 o clock." He said quietly. "And we haven't even had food yet." He added under his breath. "We're going to miss curfew at this point."
"It's probably too late to get supper" Arabella said softly and she glanced over at him. "And I highly doubt that we're going to make it back in time for curfew" She added with a little bit of a giggle. Arabella thought about it for a moment then let out a little sigh. "I live pretty close to here. Why don't we just go to my place? We should have enough stuff in the fridge to make a couple sandwiches."
Hunter sighed a little bit. He hated how this date was going and he felt completely embarrassed. He did blush a little at the prospect of going to her place, but he pushed it down when his stomach grumbled. "Yeah. That sounds okay." He said, taking a deep breath. "You need me to carry you? Or are your feet feeling better?" He asked, standing up and extending his hands to help her stand.
"I should be fine" Arabella said and she slid into her shoes. When she stood up, she winced a little bit but still held onto Hunter's hand. "Totally fine" She tried to assure him and she started to take a couple of steps but it was really starting to hurt. "When we get back to my place, you can call your uncle on the house phone. Maybe he'll be able to tell you something about the car"
Hunter nodded and kept walking, but stopped when he felt Arabella's hand squeeze his as she winced again. "Okay. Take off your shoes." He said, holding out his arm to let her balance while she slipped out of her heels. He picked up her shoes then put his back to her, crouching down. "Piggy back ride time." He said, glancing back at her.
Arabella laughed a little bit and she glanced around before she slipped her arms around his neck and she hopped on to his back, hooking her legs on his sides. "You good?" She asked, laughing as he stood up and started walking with her. "Oh...my hero" She teased and she leaned against him a little bit, closing her eyes for a moment. "Thank you, Hunter" She said softly.
"No thanks necessary, ma'am." He said with a smile as he hooked his arms under her legs. Hunter's face was bright red as he felt her warm breath on the back of his neck. He didn't mind giving her a piggyback ride and it was the very least he could do after the date he just put her through. "I'm really sorry about tonight." He finally said quietly. Arabella didn't say anything and that made him realize how quietly he did say it. She probably didn't even hear him.
"If you just go down this street about a block and then hang a right, we'll be at my place in like...5 minutes" Arabella told him. She had heard what he ahd said but she didn't want to dwell on it. Yeah, the date had gone a little off but it didn't ruin how she felt about Hunter or how she saw him. Arabella let out a relaxed sigh and she rested her head on his shoulder, happy that she was that close to him in that moment. She saw him turn down her street and she lifted her head "We're the one with all of the ivy on it and none of the lights on" She told him, stifling a yawn.
Hunter nodded, already knowing which house it was. He turned his head and saw Arabella's face, her head on his shoulder, her eyes closed. He felt so much like kissing her right then, but he resisted the urge, looking forward again. He doubted that she would want to kiss him after a first date. Especially a first date this bad. It was being salvaged for parts at this point. He stopped in front of her brownstone and climbed the stoop before letting her down, turning around to face her.
"Thank you so much, Hunter" She sighed, happy to be back home and not having to worry about her feet anymore. She took her shoes back from him and dug around in her purse until she found the key and unlocked the door. "My dad is off on business. I think he's in Europe for the next week or so" She said and she turned to Hunter. "Really, thanks for carrying me" She kissed his cheek then pushed the door open and walked into the house. "Gracie!"
Hunter stood there frozen as he took a deep breath. They had kissed plenty of times, but it felt so different now. In a way he truly did start over with her. He didn't count all of the other kisses they had shared. Hunter finally followed her into the house, closing the door behind him. "Oh, I finally get to meet Gracie." He said, looking around for the tiny dog. He had seen the dog from a far and he had read about her, but he had never met the puppy.
Arabella smiled wide when the little puppy came running down the stairs. She picked her up, scratching behind her ears. "My baby girl. I miss her so much in the summers when I'm away. I practically just come back during the school year for her" She said with a bit of a laugh. Arabella kissed the dog's nose then passed her over to Hunter. "I'll make us some food. The phone is in here if you wanted to call your uncle" she called back to him, walking into the kitchen and opening up the fridge.
Gracie squirmed in Hunter's arms a little bit until Hunter looked down only to be met with a tongue to the chin. Hunter scrunched his nose a little bit just as he heard some heavier footfalls on the steps. He looked up to see a young kid, tall and thin with a pair of glasses pushed onto his face. "Uhh...hey." Hunter said with a small wave as headed into the kitchen, looking for Arabella. He finally set Gracie down, met with a couple yips before Hunter grabbed the phone and quickly dialed his aunt and uncle's house.
"I can make us a super fancy meal and by super fancy, I mean a ham and cheese sandwich with a side of Pepsi and chips because I can't cook to save my life" Arabella told Hunter with a little laugh and she turned to face him, only to find him on the phone with her little brother walking into the kitchen behind him. "Tyler!" Arabella squeaked and she ran over, hugging him tightly. "You're home! I forgot that you were coming home from school"
"Yeah, I just got in yesterday" Tyler said, hugging Arabella back tightly.
Hunter looked up at the two of them as his uncle spouted off some details about the car. Hunter stepped into another room just as his uncle let out a sigh.
"So, we'll get a new car at some point." He said.
"I'm really sorry, Uncle Wayne." Hunter said quietly.
"It's alright, kiddo. That car was on its last legs, anyway. No need to apologize." He said with a chuckle. "Chrissy was begging for a new car anyway. With her birthday coming up, I might make it a nice one." He paused for a moment. "So, how did the date end up going?"
"Well, we got to the restaurant. It was an hour wait. So we left. The car broke down. We got back to the restaurant to find that they had given our table away. It was another 45 minutes wait, so we left and I'm calling you from her house now."
"Whoa, whoa. You're at her house?" He said. Hunter shook his head.
"Yes, but it's just to get some food. I'll walk back to camp after that." He said with a sigh. He knew that it would be a terrible walk, but he didn't have much of a choice.
"Alright. Well, be smart. Be safe. Feel free to come home for tonight. I don't want--" There was a voice in the background and Wayne's voice disappeared for a few moments.
"Give-Give me the phone." Hunter recognized the voice as his aunt Lucy. "Hunter?"
"Yes, ma'am?" He said, straightening up a little bit.
"Don't listen to your uncle. Have a good time tonight. From what he's told me, you could use a fun night, so don't worry about walking back to camp. If she lives in the city that's gotta be an hour's walk."
"Well, I don't want to impose. And I don't mind." Hunter said quietly.
"Okay, sweetie. Well, I'll leave it up to you. Call us if you need anything. Love you." She said. Hunter replied in kind then hung up, walking back into the kitchen and putting the phone back, letting out a small yawn.
Arabella was just finishing up with the sandwiches. Tyler was leaning against the counter, waiting for his and Gracie was at her feet, praying that Arabella would drop some food on the ground. "What did he say?" Arabella asked him, putting the cheese back in the fridge and putting the last piece of bread on top of the sandwiches. She passed one to Tyler then sat up on the counter, taking a bite out of hers.
Hunter moved, grabbing his plate and leaning on the counter next to Arabella. "Well, the battery is dead. And it has a cracked cylinder cap. My uncle is taking it to the shop tomorrow and he'll see if there's anything else, but it looks like we'll be buying a new car." He said, eating a couple of chips. He looked at Arabella then saw Tyler and quickly shook himself, brushing off his hand. "I'm sorry. Hi, I'm Hunter." He said, extending his hand to Tyler. "I've heard a lot about you."
"Tyler" He said, quickly shaking his hand. "Hey" He said, nodding at him then taking a big bite of his sandwich.
"So, do you have a plan for tonight?" Arabella asked Hunter, her eyebrows knitting together in worry. She really didn't want him to be stuck anywhere or end up having to take a cab or something like that, it would be a ridiculous amount of money.
Hunter opened his mouth to speak, but his stomach growled loudly. "Well, eat this sandwich." He said with a nod. He took a bite out of the sandwich and smiled, nodding toward Arabella. "My compliments to the chef." He said, swallowing. "After this, I'll probably walk home or walk back to camp." He said with a nod. "It's not that far." He said, eating a few more chips.
"It's far enough!" Arabella gasped, looking at Hunter with wide eyes. He might be able to brush it off like it was no big deal but Arabella knew that it would be a long walk, in the middle of the night, through New York City. "Look, you can sleep on our couch. We've already missed curfew and it's going to be a long walk. So you might as well crash on our couch for the night and we can both go back to camp tomorrow"
"No, no, no." He said with a shrug. "The sandwich is already enough. I don't want to impose." He said with a nod. "It's not that far of a walk. Seriously." He said, taking a bite of his sandwich. He chewed and swallowed before speaking again. "I don't want to be a trouble." He said. "Especially after that heinous thing I called a date." He said under his breath, eating a few more chips.
"You are not imposing and you are not any trouble" Arabella said, folding her arms across her chest and glancing down at him. "Really, it's okay. I would worry about you too much if I let you walk out of this house. That's a long walk and it's almost 11 at night, now." Arabella sighed and she leaned towards him a little bit. "Please, Hunter, stay here tonight" She asked him, her eyebrows knitting together lightly in worry.
Hunter sighed and put his hands up in surrender, not committing to anything, but simply dropping the topic while he finished eating. Hunter looked over at Tyler for a moment. He seemed like a nice guy. Shy, obviously, and as much as Hunter would like to get to know him, Hunter was hoping to have a little bit of time with Arabella. "Any ideas on how we're getting back to camp tomorrow morning? Unless, we walk." He said with a shrug.
"No clue" Arabella said simply with a little shrug. She looked over at Hunter and laughed a little bit. "It'll be fine. We'll figure something out. I'm sure that we can get a ride to camp somehow" She added and slid off of the counter. Arabella started cleaning up the kitchen and Tyler sighed, pushing away from the counter.
"Well, she's started cleaning and that is my cue to leave before she starts spraying me with Lysol" Tyler said, finishing off his sandwich.
"It was one time!!" She called up to Tyler as he walked upstairs. Arabella huffed and put the cloth down in the sink. "It was one time" She said to Hunter with a nod.
"Hey, I believe you." He said with a nod. "Just don't spray me with Lysol, too." He said, finishing off his food and then moving toward the sink, rolling up his sleeves. "Go...sit down or something. I'll do these." He said, nudging her out of the way slightly. "It's the very least I can do." He smiled at her and then turned to the dishes.
"Well aren't you just the sweetest" Arabella grinned and after thinking about it for a moment, she moved away from the sink and she leaned against the counter, glancing around her kitchen. "Have you ever thought about going back to a mortal school?" She asked him, just genuinely curious. Curious about him and his life and his plans for the future.
Hunter paused for a second then shrugged. "I guess I haven't really thought about it." He said, continuing to wash dishes. "I'd have to make up a lot of school, so I'm not sure how possible it is. I've got elementary schooll under my belt, but other than that no schooling. Other than what I learned at camp. And what I read." It didn't take him long to finish the rest of the dishes then he drained the sink and dried his hands. "Do...Do you think I should go back?" He asked after a moment.
Arabella shrugged and she played with the hem of her dress before looking up at him again. "It's up to you. I was just curious. It would be a heck of a lot to do to catch up" She agreed with a little nod. "I mean, if you ask me, it's really not worth it. Yeah, some of the social stuff is fun but the classes suck and a lot of the people really suck too" She said in a light tone, rolling her eyes a little bit.
Hunter shrugged and leaned on the counter opposite her. "Yeah. It's probably not worth my time." He nodded and then took a deep breath. "I'm having a hard time seeing myself successful in anything outside of camp. Inside camp, even." He said quietly. "Kind of a problem with us Hermes kids. Other than pranks it takes nearly destroying Olympus to get much attention." He said, picking at his pants for a moment.
"Oh, don't say that" Arabella said, looking over at him with a warm smile. "Hermes kids are funny and warm and just plain awesome. And I happen to like them very much" She added with a final hmmph and a nod. Arabella pushed away from her counter and she went over to stand beside Hunter. "I think you're pretty great" She told him in a lower, more serious voice.
"Well, you did offer to humor me with this date, so that's telling." He said with a shrug. He took a deep breath and looked over at her, blushing a little bit. "I really am sorry about tonight. I don't know what I was thinking with half of this..." He said, crossing his arms. "I was almost late. Well, I was late and then to take you in the jeep. You deserve a nicer car and then the restaurant. I hadn't really thought about any of this. I probably could have taken you somewhere less busy. We could have gone somewhere else. And I...I just feel so bad." He said, stepping away from her a little bit. "If you don't want another date, I totally understand. No hard feelings. We gave it our best shot and it missed."
Arabella sighed, hating the fact that he felt so bad. Was the date perfect? No, it wasn't but she didn't care. She just like being with Hunter for the night. She wanted to make him feel better and she wanted to prove to him that she really did have a good time, but she didn't really know how. She knew that if she were to just tell him, he wouldn't believe her. He would probably think she was lying just to make him feel better. So she moved closer to him and she did something that she had been dying to do all night. Arabella brushed her fingers along the side of his hand and she kissed his lips, leaning into him ever so slightly.
Hunter's cheeks turned pink as he felt the kiss wave over his body. After a moment, he let his hand move up her arm to gently cradle her cheek, leaning closer and deepening the kiss. It felt like he wasn't even touching the ground. Like he was floating right there in the middle of her kitchen. Hunter ran his thumb over her cheek for a second before slowly pulling away.
Arabella smiled up at him, her stomach filled with butterflies. This kiss was special and Arabella was so happy. After everything they had been though, she was ready just be with him and not have any drama to worry about. Arabella bit her lip, her cheeks bright red, and she glanced down at the ground for a moment before looking back up at Hunter. She leaned into him, just wanting to feel his warmth. "I had a really great time tonight Hunter, I really did."
Hunter took a deep breath, not sure what to say. "Wow..." He whispered, locking eyes with her. He moved his hand back down her arm to take her hand in his. It felt like everything disappeared except for Arabella. It took Gracie barking to break him out of this trance. He turned and looked down then checked his watch, clearing his throat a little bit. "I should go..." He said, looking toward the door then back at Arabella.
"Really?" Arabella huffed and she walked past him, standing in front of the door so that he couldn't open it and she looked over at him. "Would you please, please stay here tonight?" She asked him, looking up at him with big eyes. "I really don't want to know that you're walking around New York City in the dark, on a Saturday night. We can get back to camp in the morning. Please?"
Hunter took a deep breath, trying to not meet her eyes, but then finally sighed. "Okay. Fine. I'll stay here..." He said, looking up at her. "I don't want you to make too much of a fuss, though. I'll sleep in the living room. On the couch." He said quietly. "I'll make breakfast in the morning to make up for it, okay?"
"I guess I'd be okay with that" Arabella said with a little laugh. She moved away from the door and she took his hand as she walked past him. "Come on, I'll get you set up on the couch" Arabella walked with him to the living room, not letting go of his hand. "I hope that you're comfortable. It's actually a pretty great couch. I've slept here a few times myself, just because it's so comfortable" She told him, letting go of his hand so that she could open the ottoman and take out the blankets and the pillows.
Hunter quickly moved next to her, nudging her out of the way to take out a blanket and a pillow. "Thanks, Arabella." He said, setting the pillow down and putting the blanket on the back of the couch. He slipped off his shoes and then unbuttoned his plaid shirt, setting it on the coffee table, leaving him in his jeans and a plain white undershirt.. "I really appreciate this." He said, moving over to her. He licked his lips a little nervously and then put his arms around her, hugging her.
Arabella smiled to herself and she moved closer to him, resting her head on his chest. "Don't mention it" She said softly and she took a deep breath, wanting to remember everything about that moment. In the end, it had been the perfect date. Finally, Arabella pulled away from him and she cleared her throat. "Uhm, if you need to go to the bathroom, it's just down the hall and, uh, if you get hungry there's some left over Chinese food in the fridge" She said and she bent down a little, picking up his shirt, which was still warm from being on him. "I'll stick this in the washer for you" She said in a soft voice.
Hunter was sitting on the couch and he didn't realize what she was talking about until she had already disappeared. "Oh, you don't have to--" He said, but she couldn't hear him. He shrugged and then rubbed his eyes a little bit, wondering a lot of things. If she would want another date. How he would make sure it didn't fail as badly as this last one? When was the next time he would kiss her? He finally laid down, putting his head on the pillow. He carefully spread the blanket out over his body then closed his eyes, nervous about what was going to happen next for the two of them.
Arabella practically ran up the stairs and up to her room. Her heart was racing and she was really resisting the urge to go back down stairs and lay down beside Hunter. She changed into her pajamas and she let her hair out of the bun. The night had been crazy and emotional but Arabella was happy. Things had gone well between her and Hunter, which she had been worried about. She was worried that they were not going to be able to move on from their past and their friendship would be ruined. Arabella picked up his shirt and she walked to the laundry room, putting it in the wash before she padded back to her room and flopping down on her bed. Her lips still tingled with his kiss and her skin felt warm where he had touched her. She couldn't wait for a second date.