There's a Thin Line Between Love and Hate

There's a Thin Line Between Love and Hate (18)

The one thing I wasn't looking forward to about coming back to the camp?

Two words: Jesse Jacobsen.

The other reason I didn't want to go back was because of Hunter. How was he in Maine, and then in California? How did he know where I was going? Did that mean he knew that I was back in Maine, and that I was going back to the camp? I sure hoped not...

Even though I guessed I was safe in the camp, I couldn't really be sure. Hunter had lots of goons, and he looked like a high school student himself, even if he really was twenty. But I was sure that if he got in here and pretended to be a student, Jesse would do something about it almost immediately.

But I was sure Hunter was smarter than that.

Well...

I was seventeen, almost eighteen, and I was sure that I was smarter than him. When it came to academics, that is. When it came to things like fighting, gangs, and relationships, it seemed like Hunter was definitely the smarter one out of the two of us...

"Welcome back, Emery!"

Out of everyone in the camp, he had to be the person that greeted me first? And of course he was the last person that I wanted to see! Well... not counting Hunter...

I continued to pull my suitcase away from the car and into the camp, trying my best to ignore him. But even though I had been trying to ignore him ever since I had met Hunter, I found it difficultly hard. Especially after I had met Hunter. I didn't want to ignore him. I wanted to talk to him.

And more importantly, I wanted to tell him that I had seen Hunter and what he had said to me. But I didn't know what Jesse would do if he knew that Hunter wouldn't stop harassing me until he was dead. I really didn't want Jesse to die, but I wanted Hunter to leave me alone...

And there was another reason why I didn't want to see Jesse. Just as my grandmother was saying goodbye to me at the airport the day before, she told me that she hoped that she would be able to see Jesse and my wedding in a few years. That just made everything more uncomfortable around him.

"Aw, are you ignoring me, Emery?" he now asked, obviously catching on as he fell into step with me. "What did I do now?"

I continued to keep my mouth clamped shut, dead set on not talking to him. I was afraid that if I did speak to him, I would tell him what had happened. He didn't need to know, since I hadn't gotten hurt or anything. Hunter had just given me a warning.

And if Jesse knew, who knew what he could have done? Hunter wasn't going to stop until he was dead... Would Jesse go to that much to protect me?

I frowned at this. Jesse wouldn't have done that... He wouldn't get himself killed for me.

Noticing my frown, Jesse's grin immediately disappeared, and it was replaced with his own frown as his eyebrows furrowed as well.

"Seriously, what did I do?"

He thought he did something? He didn't do anything! I didn't want him blaming himself for something that he didn't even have any control over. Even if he was the reason why I had met Hunter...

"You didn't do anything," I said, not even looking up at him as we continued to walk to my cabin. It was the truth that he didn't do anything, even though it seemed like he always was the reason for my problems. But this time he could easily end it...

No. Jesse wasn't going to die.

"Then what's wrong?" he asked, his fingers wrapping around my wrist to stop me from moving any farther. I felt some kind of electric shock as his skin connected with mine, but I quickly brushed it off. It must have been from when I got out of the car...