Broken Lines || sequel • discontinued •

Chapter 14 ( Hunter Riston )

• Stella's POV •

"Hunter, how am I possibly gonna text Nat if we keep on runniiiing," I said and Hunter stopped, catching his breath. We were in the middle of town where it looked almost abandoned since it was already after midnight.

I pulled out my phone and texted Natalie, saying that I was with Hunter and I was sorry I left the party. Then, I looked at Hunter who was wiping his forehead with a handkerchief.

"Sorry... about a while ago," he said.

"It's okay," I said. "It's not your fault."

"It kind of is," Hunter said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I chose dare and yet I didn't complain or anything. Gosh, it sounds so selfish of me."

"Don't say that," I said. "It was a game. You only played fair."

Hunter sighed. "Guess so."

"But Isis likes you a lot," I chuckled.

"I see that," Hunter laughed. "I'd court her if I like her but she doesn't seem like the girl for me, you know? And I mean it. I don't want to get into a relationship with someone only because they like me. What about my feelings, right?"

I nodded. "That's absolutely true."

"So, where do you want to go?" Hunter asked.

"Anywhere, I mean, it isn't like we have so many choices," I said. "There's a 7Eleven, McDonald's and bars, but I don't wanna go there. God, I am so done with alcohol for tonight. I feel like I'm going to collapse at any moment now, then you're gonna have a hard time carrying me and something might happen to us and we die."

Hunter looked at me with a weird expression. "You talk a lot when you're tipsy," he said.

"What? No! I'm not tipsy," I said, wiping my eyes. "Let's head for the 7Eleven. I need a proper refreshment."

We both made our way to the nearest 7Eleven which was pretty much empty. The two cashiers greeted us and we went down to where the drinks were.

"Canned lemonade or water," I said.

"How about canned tea?" Hunter asked.

"Will that even taste good after drinking something alcoholic?"

"There's only one way to find out, Tella," Hunter said, grabbing two cans of Arizona.

We went to pay for the drinks and immediately popped it open. I took a big sip and made a sour expression. That did not taste okay-even a bit.

Hunter was laughing. "This tastes awful! I've had four rounds of vodka and shit."

I was laughing with him this time. "This is your fault. If we get upset stomachs tomorrow, you're telling Natalie."

"She doesn't have to know," Hunter laughed, taking a sip from his canned tea once more. "And hey, this is better than canned lemonade! Think about the acid in it."

"Okay, smarty pants," I said. "After finishing this can of better-than-lemonade tea, where are we heading?"

"Well, my car is back at the house," Hunter said. "I'll text Nat to tell Shania that I'll pick it up tomorrow. Anyway, do you have any places in mind?"

I sighed. "Wow, Mr. Smarty Pants just turned into Mr. I'm-not-listening." I laughed. "That's why I asked you, right? I don't know where to go."

"Uh... I could take you to the place where I used to hang out by myself," he said.

"Where's that?"

"I'll show you," Hunter said, putting down the empty tea can. "It isn't that far from here."