Hunter watched her through the window as she started pacing before taking off his jacket. He cringed as he pulled his arm out of the sleeve. The blood had soaked through the bandage and was starting to soak through his shirt too. Hunter had managed to give Arabella some nectar for her head, but he didn't have the luxury. He wrapped the clawmark in some bandages from a nearby first aid station and then picked her up. HE carried her to the car and started driving. He was so worried about everything. He was tired. He was pretty sure that his arm was going to get infected. Arabella was hurt. Arabella was hurt. His best friend was hurt. His just friend was hurt. He slid her into the car and started driving toward Keystone, knowing that was where they would be spending the night.
He was barely focusing on the road and had completely ignored the fuel meter. Until it was too late of course. He reached into the first aid kit that Arabella had packed and pulled out the bandages. He pulled out the soiled ones and hid them in his bag before rewrapping it quickly, making sure that Arabella didn't see. He didn't need another thing for her to yell at him for. "Why did you get hurt?!" He said in a mocking tone. "Oh, I'm sorry, Arabella. How dare I catch the magical hyena and toss him away from you, so that you're not mauled to death. I'll be sure to not do that next time." He said, rolling his eyes a little. He slipped his sweatshirt back on and rolled down the window.
"I can't...This...What am..." She was muttering incoherently. Hunter didn't anticipate that she would react this badly to running out of gas. He looked at her and sighed. If they were still together than he could hold her and kiss her and comfort her, but things were different now. She chose to stand and pace outside in the cold on the side of the road at night. Instead of stay in the car with music playing and the heat going. Hunter pulled his sweater a little tighter and was about to ask her where her phone was when he realized it was in her purse which was on the ground next to his feet. He reached in and grabbed her phone, rolling the window back up. He clumsily navigated to the phone option and called AAA. The signal was weak, but it was there.
"Emergency--how can--help--" A voice came through Hunter cursed under his breath and talked back.
"Yeah. Hello. We ran out of gas and we're kind of stuck up here. Is there anyway that we could get a tow truck?" He asked the operator. He heard fuzz and static for a moment before the voice came back.
"I'm sorry....we...with the storm...tomorrow morning." She said in a garbled voice.
"You can't send us a truck until tomorrow morning?!" He said into the phone.
"I'm sorry, sir." The operator said. "We'll send...as soon...clears. Thank you." Hunter cursed and hung up the phone. He put it back in Arabella's purse and then looked at her, still pacing, but much slower. She was cold. He took a deep breath and stepped out of the car and leaning on the side.
"No tow truck until tomorrow." He said over the sound of the wind. The radio was playing in the background and he sighed, only knowing the song from when Arabella told him about it. She stopped and looked at him.
"Tomorrow?!" She said, getting in his face. "This is all your fault!" She said, poking him in the chest. Hunter yawned and nodded.
"I'm really sorry, Arabella." He said quietly. "It's going to be a long wait and Marina enchanted the battery so it can't die. Why don't you get in the car?" He asked quietly, to the crazed Arabella. She waved him off and started pacing again. He felt so bad, but he couldn't let his best friend get pneumonia.
"You get in the car. You can use my phone and call Tiffany." She snapped angrily at him before sniffing her drippy nose she had gotten from the cold. "You guys can swap naked pictures or whatever and have phone sex." She said angrily, not making tons of sense at this point. Hunter sighed and rolled his eyes.
"I heard my mom." He added, stopping her theories dead in her tracks. "I didn't know how I knew, but it was her voice. My mind was telling me that was my mom's voice." Arabella stopped for a second and looked at him. She finally shook her head and kept pacing. Hunter sighed, standing up and stepping closer. "Arabella, get in the car. You'll freeze to death out here." He was tempted to reach for her, but he stopped himself.
"Leave me alone, Hunter." She said, waving her arms a little frantically. "I don't need you taking care of me." She added bitterly. Hunter nodded softly and rubbed his arms, getting some blood rushing back into them. "Just get back in the car and leave me be." She said, waving her arm toward the car. Hunter sighed and pulled his sweatshirt tighter around his shoulders. He watched her pace for a little while, but stopped when he heard their song come on. Keane's Somewhere Only We Know. It came on the radio. He sighed and shoved that memory out of his mind. He pushed it down. He looked at her and gave up. He took a step forward and reached for her arm. He miscalculated and she ran into him, their hands automatically falling into place comfortably. The feeling of her body close to his made Hunter so happy, but he knew it was an accident. It meant nothing. He shoved his feelings back down, but didn't move his hands. He closed his eyes a moment and swayed softly to the music. He felt Arabella relax and he wanted to hold her, but his feelings had no place on the surface. He needed to make them disappear. Hunter put his chin lightly on her head and sighed as they danced gently for what felt like ages. He looked down at her and she did the same, sharing a look of many mixed emotions. He saw her lean up, bring her face ever so closer to his and he leaned down, a feeling of joy sweeping over him. He shoved it down again and saw her lean closer, closing her eyes. Hunter felt a lump grow in his throat before pulling away.
She was hurt and she was angry and she was upset. He didn't want to kiss her. He was hurt and he didn't feel like they were ready to be back together yet. She was vulnerable and he wasn't going to make her be with him by kissing her while she was vulnerable. "Let's get in the car." He said as the song ended. He opened the door for her and stepped aside, letting her in. She swallowed and shook herself before climbing inside and leaning on the door. He grabbed a blanket from the back and set it next to her, making sure that he didn't touch her. He turned the heat on full blast and aimed them at her before shutting off the music. "Let's just try and get some sleep, okay?" He said quietly, shoving his feelings back down again. She didn't want him. She was just his friend. He was just her friend. He watched as Arabella curled up and put her head down, not near his leg and close her eyes, holding her teddy bear close. Not the won that he had won her, but the small one. The big one was somewhere in the back to be given away or gotten rid of later. He waited for her to be asleep before checking his arm again. The bandages were holding and he hasn't found any blood. Hunter looked over at Arabella and sighed. Gritting his teeth and pushing his emotions down again, he grabbed the blanket and spread it over her sleeping form.
"Good night, Arabella." He said quietly, brushing a little bit of hair out of her face. He put his head on the steering wheel and closed his eyes. All of the fatigue was hitting him like a freight truck. Not only that, but after that impromptu dance it was becoming difficult to push his feelings down. She was freaking out and she was angry and she was nervous and Hunter still saw the most beautiful girl in the world. He didn't want to. He shouldn't. She was just his friend. He couldn't have feelings for her. That wasn't allowed. They were just friends. Friends who danced in a blizzard and almost kissed. He was buzzing from dancing with her. It felt good to hold her again, but he can't feel this way. Hunter hit the steering wheel with his head and sighed. He glanced over at Arabella. She was still asleep. He hit his head on the steering wheel again and finally leaned back in his seat. Hunter closed his eyes and almost immediately fell asleep.
Hunter was standing in the sun. He could tell by the warmth. He opened his eyes and found himself on a beach. Well, sort of an island. He was standing in sand, but he seemed to be surrounded by water. Once his eyes adjusted he looked down at himself and found that he was wearing a tuxedo. The pants were rolled up and he was barefoot, but he was indeed wearing a tuxedo. He looked out and saw several boats nearby and next to him were people he knew. Kyle and Marina and Will. Was this his wedd--TAP! TAP! TAP!
"Hello! Sir?!" Hunter's eyes shot open. He rubbed his eyes and took a deep breath. It was that feeling when you wake up suddenly, so there's that brief moment of panic while you readjust to what was happening. Hunter rubbed his eyes and felt movement right next to him. He blinked a few times and looked down to see Arabella curled up next to him. She had apparently snuggled up to him in her sleep and was now waking up much to her chagrin. She stayed there for a second before shaking herself and moving back across the seat, far away from him. He immediately felt colder. Hunter turned to the window and yawned a little as he rolled it down.
"Yes? Hello." Hunter mumbled through his yawn to the rather large man standing outside his door. Hunter didn't realize who it was until he saw the AAA symbol on his baseball cap. "Oh! Are you the tow...truck...guy?" He asked with another yawn.
"Yeah. I just wanted to make sure I'd be towing this to a gas station and not the city morgue." He said with a nod. "I'll need you to sign a few things, but after that you guys can just sit tight and we'll get you to the nearest gas station. It's a shame, really. Up this hill and down the next pretty much and you're in Keystone." He said with a chuckle as he adjust his hat. Hunter looked at the hill and thought for a second. They were so close. They could have pushed the car there and then slept in a hotel. He glanced over at Arabella and chewed on his lip a second. They would have missed out on last night. The dancing. The talking. Well, more like the yelling. She almost kissed him. Hunter swallowed and scratched his forehead a minute and looked back at the man.
"Haha. Just my luck, right?" Hunter said with a semi-forced chuckle. The man handed him a clipboard and Hunter signed where marked and handed it back. "Thanks." He said as he rolled his window back up. Hunter sighed and looked at Arabella. He was tempted to ask about this morning, but he could tell that she was angry at herself and more than a little embarrassed. Once they were finally moving again, Hunter cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck out of nerves. "Morning." He said quietly.
Hunter could tell she was thinking it over. She wasn't still needlessly angry from last night, was she? She fiddled with her pants a little and looked up at him. "Good morning." She replied softly. Hunter nodded and put his elbow on the lip of the door, leaning his head on his hand. She wasn't angry, but she wasn't happy either. At least that's what it looked like. The rest of the ride to Keystone was quiet. They maybe shared three words, but other than that it was silent except for the sound of the tow truck. As soon as they cleared the hill that the driver had mentioned Keystone came into view. It wasn't a big town, but it looked comfortable. They finally parked in a gas station next to a pump and the guy unhooked their car.
"Well, there we are." He said with a sigh as he threw the chain into his truck. Hunter stood next to him.
"Thanks for helping us out. I really appreciate it." He said with a nod, shaking the man's hand.
"Anything for a young couple in love." He said with a chuckle. Hunter opened his mouth to correct him, but he kept going. "I've seen plenty of couples, but you two really seem meant for each other. It's all about those sly looks you give each other." He patted Hunter on the shoulder.
"We're uh...We're not a couple." Hunter corrected. "Just friends." He nodded solemnly and the driver raised an eyebrow. He looked back at Arabella and cleared his throat.
"Oh, my apologies." He said with a sigh. He leaned in toward Hunter. "Go see Rushmore at night. It's beautiful. Check out the president wax museum in the meantime." He winked at him and patted him on the shoulder again before getting back in his truck. Hunter stood there for a second before sighing and walking back to the pump. Arabella got out and walked into the store while Hunter was pumping the gas. She emerged in a few minutes with two coffees and a bag of stuff and got back into the car just as Hunter was done pumping.
"I uh...I got you a coffee." She said quietly. Hunter nodded and slid into the car, starting it up and heading to the hotel.
"Thanks." He said, taking a sip. He drove to the only hotel in town and got out, wondering if tonight would be different.