Hidden Play: The Return 《COMPLETE》

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Watching Hunter traipse through the cafeteria is like watching a car crash in slow motion. I really don't want to look, but I can't seem to tear my eyes away. Casper nudges me under the table. It's either his silent way of telling me to stop gawking before Zion notices or that this is the fun little factoid he's been holding out on me. Maybe it's both.

Boiling heat climbs up my neck and gobbles up the tips of my ears. It's been well over a week since I last saw Hunter, but damn. The low lights of the bar and the bedroom did not do him justice. He's just as tall and athletically built as I remember, but my memory has tactfully dropped a few details - his air of confidence, his smoldering eyes, and his perfectly proportioned features. Oh, and the fact that he's apparently a transfer student at my high school.

My focus never wavers as he tries to find a table. It's like I can't stop. This school is a living piranha. Whenever a new student walks into its hungry jowls, there's only a beat of silence while it licks its lips before they're eaten alive. Believe me, I know. At least I had the advantage of quickly tucking myself under the safety net of the basketball team, thereby thrusting me into the throes of popularity.

Before I landed my spot on the team, though, it was a nightmare. This place doesn't take kindly to outsiders. Granted, Hunter is easy on the eyes, so hopefully the chicks will dig him enough to lay off. But it's already day one and he's managed to piss off the right-hand man of the school's most popular jock. That's strike one.

If he's open about his sexual preference in a school where any form of homosexuality is seen as offensive?

Strike two.

If word gets around that he messed around with a dude on the basketball team (yours truly)?

Strike. Three.

Hunter pulls out a chair at one of the only empty tables left in the cafeteria. He doesn't search around for someone who will accept him as a lunch companion. He seems just as content to be by himself. The 'I don't give a shit attitude' will earn him admiration by a few but loathing from most. There's a certain comfort that comes with the consistency of the hierarchy. Even though some of the students don't like it, they all respect it. No surprises, no chaos. Whether popular or not, they won't allow anyone to throw off that balance, let alone a new kid.

The chatter and the commotion buzzing around the cafeteria dies down to near silence. A few people whisper behind the protection of their palms. If Hunter notices that he's got the floor, he doesn't seem fazed. He knits his finger together behind his head and comfortably slouches down in his seat. A lazy smile settles across his lips as he glances from table to table, meeting the occasional stares of onlookers.

Time to turn around now, Aiden. Now. Now.

The undeterred stare down continues, and he's getting closer and closer to our table. If I turn around now, he'll notice Kurt and move on without paying the rest of us much attention. I'll avoid being on his radar. For now.

But what did I say earlier about a slow car crash?

I just can't seem to look away.

His gaze cuts to our table, and his confident smirk widens when his eyes lock with Kurt's. Their incident is still fresh on his mind. Kurt mutters obscenities under his breath, and I know his temper is hanging on by a thread. Hunter takes in the team, sizing up the rest of us without the slightest flinch of intimidation. My heart jumps to my throat when he sees Casper. Recognition sweeps over his features and his smile falters.

Then his gaze locks with mine.

I can't breathe. Even throughout the worst moments of school, all the practices, games, and nerve-wracking free throws, I've never been this close to throwing up. A splotchy blush touches his cheeks, and I don't know whether it's from embarrassment or anger. After all, I was the guy who left without so much as a 'thank you, cum again.'