Two Steps Back (Hunter Hayes fanfic Bk.3)

Therapy

Jordan took Bethany's hand and helped her off the stair master. Physical therapy had become a normal part of her schedule, and it was getting millions of times easier as her leg began to heal itself. She had been out of her cast for several weeks, and was now only required to wear a brace, which was usually concealed beneath her skirts or pants. Even though it was summer, she often wore pants for that reason alone.

"Thanks, Jordan, I owe you."

Jordan nodded, smiling widely and handing her a towel to dry the sweat from her brow. She sighed. She flew out to Nashville once every two weeks to see Jordan for therapy, and she was not excited about having to board yet another flight to make it back to work.

Nonetheless, she bid farewell to Jordan and headed downtown to board her flight, and an hour or so later was settling into the familiar blue airline seats and pressing her ear buds into her ears so as not to be disturbed.

She pulled a pad of paper from her bag and began to doodle, letting her mind wander. She needed to make a few decisions, namely about Sam and Hunter. She had promised herself she would have a definite picture in her head by the time she returned to the buses, but she hadn't managed it as of yet.

With that in mind, Bethany flipped over the page she had been drawing on absentmindedly and drew a line down the middle of the page. She labeled one side "Hunter" and the other "Sam". She began to write every good thing she knew about them both, quickly filling up the small pages with her cramped writing. She flipped the page over and filled the back as well, but ran out of things to put in Sam's column before Hunter's.

That doesn't mean anything, she told herself. I've known Hunter a lot longer. We dated a lot longer, and Sam and I just aren't there yet. He's still got a page and a half of things to recommend him! That's great!

She moved on and forced herself to think of all the bad things she knew about the two of them. There weren't nearly as many things to put in this section, and even she could admit that she was being nit-picky.

Bethany tapped her pen against one word under Hunter's name. "Unforgiving" she had written, and the word sent pangs of anger through her body.

She held a lot of resentment for Hunter in her heart, even still. Things in New York had been unbearable for her. She had been there for far too long, and Trenton had never given her a moment to rest. The FBI had been riding her about solving the case, and she had an actual job to do as well. Bethany had thought Hunter understood that, but she must have given him more credit than he deserved.

It had been a move of desperation that had led her to bed with Trenton, not love. Though she may have confused her emotions at one time to think she loved Trenton, she knew now it was just a mixture of adrenaline and loneliness that disguised itself as tenderness.

Part of her wanted so badly to just explain to Hunter that she hadn't meant any of it to happen, and to make him see that she was still the same Bethany that she was when she left: loyal, honest, kind, loving. But she knew he wouldn't believe her. His perception of her had forever changed, and it was hard for her not to blame him for it.

She tried to put herself in his shoes, to feel as he felt, but the betrayal she felt crept in and made the whole thing seem just as unfair as it always had. Why hadn't he forgiven her? Was there anything she could do to gain his trust back? Or was it too late now that he was with Stephanie? And what about Sam?

Bethany sighed. Sam was stable; he was safe and he made her feel normal again. Was that really so wrong? He helped her to forget Trenton; he made New York and the horrors that she left there seem like a distant, unimportant memory. When she was with him, she felt almost right again. But even then, there was always a dull ache deep in her heart, and a pounding thought in her head that screamed how wrong it really was. I mean, Sam was Hunter's best friend! Isn't that against the code or something?

She groaned. How was she ever going to figure this out? Maybe Amanda was right. She should have taken the opportunity for distance when she had it. It was no matter. Hunter's tour ended in another two months or so, after which she would resign her post and look for work elsewhere. No need in dragging this torture on. She would simply have to find something else to keep her mind occupied.

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Later on that evening, Stephanie paid a visit to Ned Conner, Hunter's manager. She had met him a few times before, and he had always been friendly. He gave her a hug when she walked in his door, and they chatted for a few minutes about life and work.

When it seemed to enter the conversation naturally, Stephanie asked about Bethany.

"So, why is she back after all that's happened with her and Hunter?"

Ned shrugged. "She wanted to come back, and we were more than happy to welcome her back in. She went through a tough time up in New York, and she wanted to be around people she trusted. At least, that's what she said."

Stephanie feigned concern, though it wasn't exactly hard to do, under the circumstances. "So do you think she was really just trying to get Hunter back?"

Ned chuckled. "Have you seen those two? They can barely look at each other! And Beth's dating Sam now, from what I understand."

She nodded again. "Okay."

Ned leaned forward over his desk and gave Stephanie a knowing look.

"Stephanie, you're a really sweet girl. Don't fall into this trap, okay? Hunter won't appreciate you going around talking about his ex behind his back. He's had enough of that for one lifetime. And don't you worry about Bethany, either. She's been through a lot, but she's not a man-stealer. You have no reason to doubt Hunter."

Sheblushed for her lack of tact, but quickly said goodbye to Ned, feeling foolishfor even asking. Of course Hunter wasn't still in love with Bethany. She justhad to remember that.