Heart of Ice

Chapter Forty-Eight

Song: Illicit Affairs- Taylor Swift

There has only ever been one time where I almost saw what Hunter drew inside his sketchbook.

It was the summer after he broke my heart. I was almost 17, and it was the last summer we were able to go to the safehouse because little had we known, Demetrius had managed to break through the grid and attack me. Although he never figured out where exactly we were, mom and dad decided it was too much of a risk to return the next summer. That attack from Demetrius and the loss of the only place I had peace wasn't even the most memorable part of that last summer at the safehouse-- it was catching a glimpse of Hunter's sketchbook and getting caught by him.

Hunter had just turned 22, so Bennett and Brett took him out for his birthday. I was kind of pissed off that he could freely roam the city and hang out with other people without any concern in the world, meanwhile I had to be stuck at the safehouse watching Grey's reruns with uncle Tobias. Not that I minded that part-- I love me some good medical dramas-- but I wanted to go out and have a good time too. I wanted to experience a normal birthday or evening out with friends without worrying that someone might crash my party by killing me for being a mind deceiver.

Maybe I was also jealous when I thought about the fact that Hunter was probably flirting with girls at the bar and dancing with them to celebrate another year of being legal, especially since he didn't get to go out for his 21st birthday the year before. It almost made me sick to think about it.

Why did I feel like that? I hated him with every fiber of my body for how he broke my heart. I hated him for the things he said about me, how he always treated me like a little kid when others were around. There was no reason to be jealous. Yet there I was, imagining the worst case scenarios of him with other girls at the bar, and I as I sat on the couch with uncle Tobias, not paying one bit of attention to the episode on TV, I gripped the pillow that was laying on my lap so tight that if I thought about him any longer, there might've been a stuffing explosion.

"You don't look like you're thinking about McDreamy," Uncle Tobias observed, lowering the volume of the TV as he leaned up to peer at me. I glanced at him before quickly looking away, my cheeks burning.

"I've been paying attention to the show the whole time, uncle Tobias."

"Why don't you be honest with your dear old uncle?" He sighs dramatically before holding out his pinky finger. "I promise I won't tell anyone."

I gnawed on my lip, contemplating if I should open up and just let it all out instead of bottling it up and preparing to destroy the poor pillow in my hands. With a huff, I mumbled, "Do you think Hunter is having a good time? Like, a really good time tonight?"

He's silent for a minute. All he does is eye me. But then, the tiniest of smirks appears on his lips. "Are you... jealous?"

"Of course not!" My voice raised three octaves, which totally didn't give away my true feelings. My face felt even hotter than before. "I'm just wondering where he went with his friends, who else they invited or met up with, how he's celebrating..."

"Honey, I can guarantee he's getting drunk off his ass and playing pool with his friends at a downtown bar."

"Oh, what? You don't think girls are there too?" I hiss, sending a deathly glare toward uncle Tobias before holding the pillow tighter in my hands to the point that it shakes slightly. "They're probably obnoxiously leaning over the pool table to get his attention and then asking him to dance in a very provocative way."

"You're really dwelling on this, aren't you?" Uncle Tobias teases, barely holding back his laughter. "I can also guarantee that he is doing none of that or entertaining it if it is happening."