Arabella watched Hunter as he made his speech, trying desperately not to cry. Addie was sitting beside her and it felt good to have her friend beside her, however, it wasn't enough. She needed to have Hunter beside her. As soon as Hunter was done his speech, she turned away, finishing off her champagne and dabbing at her eyes. At least when people saw her crying, they would think that she was just crying because of the happiness and love at the wedding. It would be something reasonable to assume something like that from a daughter of Aphrodite. She took a breath and looked around as people mingled about but her champagne glass was empty and she knew that she wouldn't be able to talk and pretend to be happy if she didn't have something in her hands to distract her. She leaned across to Addie a little bit. "I'm going to go to the bar, I'll see you later. By the way, that son of Apollo by the DJ has been checking you out all day" She said with a nod and she left, smiling a little to herself at the look on Addie's face. She walked over to the bar and sat down at one of the bar stools. "Could I get dry martini, extra olives?" She asked the bartender and she sat back a little, letting out a sigh as she waited for her drink.
Hunter took a deep breath and rubbed his eyes. He needed to go out there and be presentable. He needed to go out there and shake hands and be happy for the married couple. He left the closet and walked back into the reception hall. The music had started and people were dancing. Hunter greeted and shook hands across the room and, with a sore hand, he made it to the bar. "I'll just have a water. Thanks." He looked out at the dance floor and smiled softly at the two newlyweds dancing to some song. He sighed and turned back to the bartender who placed Hunter's water on the counter. "Beautiful, isn't it?" Hunter said and heard at the same time. He glanced over to the source of the voice and saw Arabella on the other side of the bar, looking at the dance floor as well. Hunter took a deep breath and picked up his water, taking a sip and trying not to look at her.
Arabella kept her eyes on the dance floor and Vera and Rory. It was painful to watch them and know that she would never have that with Hunter, no matter how much she wanted it. But it was even more painful to look at Hunter. She took a sip of her drink and she felt someone move close to her side. She knew that it was a man and she didn't really want to look at him but she took a breath and turned her head. It was a man that she knew from camp. His name was Nathan and he was a very bulked out son of Ares. She didn't know him very well but he made himself known at camp. He was always really loud and he was always hitting on the girls from the Aphrodite cabin. Arabella sighed and she gave him a small smile. "Hello, Nathan" she said and he smirked down at her, moving a bit closer.
"Hey, Arabella. You're looking pretty fine tonight" He said and he winked at her. Arabella tugged on the hem of her dress and she took a sip of her martini.
"Thank you" She eventually said and looked away from him, but it was hard to do. He was standing very close to her.
"Why don't we go back to my hotel room and talk a little bit? We never really got to know each other when we were at camp, if you know what I mean" Nathan said with a chuckle and he placed his hand on her leg.
Hunter took another sip of water and rubbed his eyes again. Writing the speech all last night and then getting up early to make sure Rory had everything was catching up to him. He felt exhausted. He yawned and stretched a little as he finally glanced at Arabella. His heart clenched when he saw it. Some guy was hitting on her. He was touching her. Hunter wanted to punch his lights out, but that wasn't his job anymore. Hunter became lightheaded for a second and he had to sit down.
"Hey! Sir! Excuse me!" Hunter looked up and saw that the bartender was looking at him with a panicked look on his face. "Your hand, sir." Hunter looked and saw shards of glass on the bar and suddenly felt the pain shoot through his hand. He released the broken glass an cursed as he realized that he had smashed his drink in his hand. He shook the water and the glass off of his hand and accepted a clean towel.
"Sorry about that." Hunter said quietly as he wiped off his hand. He wrapped the towel around his cut up hand and tied it as a makeshift bandage. "I guess I don't know my own strength." He said with a nervous chuckle.
"Do you need me to call the paramedics, sir?" The bartender asked as he wiped the glass into a trashcan. Hunter shook his head.
"No, no. I'm fine." Hunter said as he adjusted the towel around his hand to make it feel a little more comfortable.
Arabella didn't notice when Hunter broke his glass. She had been trying so hard to block him out and even though she really didn't like Nathan being around her, she really didn't want to have to talk to Hunter either. It was too risky. She took a sip of her drink and she looked at Nathan with a raised eyebrow. "Oh, I think we know each other well enough" She said with a nod and she let out a soft sigh, wishing that he would go away.
"Oh, come on, Arabella. You and I both know that you don't usually object to things like this.." Nathan said and Arabella glarred up at him. She put her hand on his chest and leaned towards him then pushed him away.
"Leave me the hell alone, Nathan" she said and finished off the last sip of her martini. She placed the empty glass down and looked up. Another guy was walking towards her and he stood by the bar. He ordered himself a martini and looked over at her empty glass.
"Do you want a refill?" He asked her in a friendly voice and Arabella looked at him for a moment with a raised eyebrow before she nodded.
"Yeah, that would be great, thanks" Arabella said softly.
Hunter watched as the guy that was hitting on Arabella sulked off and he smiled a little. He was happy that she had rejected him. It told him that maybe she still had feelings for him and maybe they could figure something out. It was wishful thinking, but he couldn't help it. Hunter was about to order another drink when he saw a guy smiling at her and buying her a drink. His heart fell again. He looked at the bartender and thought for a second. "Hey instead of a water could I have something stronger? Like a...shot of tequila or something?"
"You're not old enough, man." Hunter cursed under his breath and leaned toward him.
"Look. Help me out. I am months away from 21. I've had little to no sleep in the past 6 days. I wrote my entire speech last night and stayed up until 4 to do it. On top of all of that, the only girl that I've ever loved is being hit on by scumbags on the other side of the bar." He whispered all in one breath. "If anyone deserves a drink right now, it's me. Help me out." The bartender looked at him and then glanced at Arabella.
"The bottle is right here and I just happened to leave a glass right here in front of you. If some of the tequila happened to go missing while my back is turned, I would have no qualms, understand?" Hunter nodded and waited for the bartender to walk off before filling his shot glass. He hesitated for a second before throwing it back and groaning as the liquid burned his throat. He needed to be a friend to Arabella. No matter what. It might take him getting drunk to be able to do it, but if she wants to go back to her room with one of these guys, who is he to stop her? He has no right. Hunter threw back another shot and filled his glass again. He put his head down on the table a moment and looked up, starting to feel the effects already.
Arabella took a sip of her drink and she looked over at the man with a small smile. She could see Hunter from where she was sitting and it was ripping her heart out. She wanted him to be happy but seeing him having a drink of alcohol broke her heart. Arabella turned her eyes away from him and she looked up at the man who had bought her the drink.
"My name's Devon" He said and he drank a bit of his martini. She cleared her throat and put down her drink.
"Arabella" She told him and she took another sip of her drink.
"Are you here with anyone?" Devon asked her and Arabella paused for a moment before shaking her head.
"No, I'm alone" She said.
Hunter stared at his next shot for a second before drinking it. He felt so crappy watching Arabella get hit on. He loved her, but he had messed it up. As soon as he let Tiffany into the hotel room, he messed it up. He cleared his throat and grimaced as he swallowed again, feeling terrible. He glanced at Arabella as she chatted with the new guy. He ran his hand through his hair and sighed, wishing that it could be him that she was talking to. He stared. He probably shouldn't have, but he did. He stared at her and her suitor. It was then that he saw her glance at him. She looked at him, almost to see how he was reacting to this. To her talking to another guy. He realized that he wasn't being the symbol of control and togetherness that her friend would be. He needed to be her friend. He drank another shot then put the bottle back. He was drunk, but he was going to encourage her. She glanced at him again and he gave her a thumbs up and a nod toward the guy. "You should go for it." He mouthed to her, hoping that she would understand.
Arabella looked at Hunter for a few moments, wondering if he really meant what he said. He probably didn't realize it but that small gesture meant a whole lot to Arabella. He cared about her. He loved her and he was letting her go. Arabella could feel her eyes start to fill with tears but she blinked hard and took the last sip of her drink. She wasn't even paying attention to Devon, who was standing close to her and telling her about his career as a photographer. He hand his hand on her leg and suddenly, he was standing too close. Arabella didn't want him next to her. She wanted Hunter next to her, even if he was drunk. "Devon. Can you leave, please? I just..really need to be alone" she said with a nod and Devon look at her for a moment before sighing and walking away. Arabella turned back to the bartender and was about to ask him for a sex on the beach when she heard a horribly familiar voice from behind her.
"She'll have a Mai Tai" The voice said and Arabella turned around to look at him. The brown hair and the tanned skin nearly made her sick to her stomach. Brian. "That is your favorite drink, right?" He asked, leaning down to whisper it in her ear. His hand brushed up her thigh, getting too close for comfort.
Hunter watched the guy walk away and he raised an eyebrow. Why didn't she go for him? He seemed wealthy, attractive, well-dressed. What stopped her? Hunter thought to himself. Now, in a regular situation, he would have kept those thoughts to himself, but after that many shots of tequila his sense of what he should and shouldn't do was addled. He picked himself up on drunken legs and cleared his throat. He straightened his suit as he walked around the bar and by the time he got there, new guy had been replaced by someone. Someone familiar.
"Actually, it's a sex on the beach with a small splash of orange juice." Hunter said with a nod, his words slightly slurred. He looked at Brian and gave him a big smile before turning to Arabella. He smiled even bigger at her then cleared his throat. "Hey, do you want to dance?" He asked her, raising an eyebrow.
Arabella looked up at Hunter and her heart raced. She wanted to dance with him. She desperately wanted to dance with him. He was drunk and they weren't together but Arabella wanted to be in his arms and she wanted to be away from Brian. "Leave me alone, Brian. I don't want to see you again" She said then grabbed Hunter's hand and she pulled him towards the dance floor. Her hand was tingling from the contact with Hunter. It felt like it had been so long since they held hands.
Hunter glanced back at Brian for a moment before looking at Arabella as they walked onto the dance floor. She looked beautiful. He either hadn't noticed it until then or had ignored it, but she looked gorgeous. When Arabella stopped, he put his hands on her waist and started to sway with her. He looked down at her and saw something that made him smile. She wasn't wearing makeup. Hunter wanted to kiss her and wrap his arms around her, but all he got was a dance. That's all he had.
"I wanted to ask you something..." Hunter said quietly. He stared at her as he tried to remember what it was. "I don't remember what it was. I'm sorry. You look really pretty. And uh...Vera. Vera's dress is absolutely perfect." He said, drunkenly.
Arabella smiled up at him softly. She thought that he was pretty adorable when he was drunk, even if she was worried about him. He never drank and she didn't like to see him drinking. But gods, it felt good to be in his arms again. Arabella took a breath and she pulled herself a bit closer to him. "Thanks, Hunter" She said softly and looked up at him. "Your speech was pretty perfect too" She added.
"Thanks." He said, letting his hands drop to her hips. "Can I let you in on a secret?" He said quietly, putting his face closer than he should have. "I wrote it all last night. I should have spent a lot more time on it, but I was dis--" He stopped himself. "No,I'm not going to tell you that. You're not supposed to know." He blinked slowly and looked into her eyes. Her eyes. He could look into them forever. "I'm sorry that I'm drunk." He said quietly.
"I'm sorry that I hurt you" Arabella whispered in a sad voice. She missed Hunter. She missed him and loved him with her whole heart and the longer she looked into his eyes, the longer she realized that she had been so stupid. Hunter would never have hurt her. Arabella closed her eyes and she had to look away from Hunter because tears were starting to build again. "I miss you, Hunter" She admitted, wondering if he would remember any of this in the morning.
"I miss you, Arabella." Hunter took a deep breath and smiled a little. He missed her. She missed him. They could get back together. Without thinking he leaned down and kissed her. It felt so good. He had missed being able to kiss her for so long and more importantly he missed her. He pulled her in closer and leaned into her. The song changed and he finally pulled back. "I...I...can't." He said with a sigh, putting his forehead on hers. "Arabella, I'm drunk. I can't do this."
Arabella took a shaky breath and she closed her eyes. Maybe they weren't meant to be. Maybe they were never going to be happy together. Hunter would start driving home tomorrow and Arabella would get on the plane. She would land in New York and pack up her things before moving out. Hunter was only close to her like this because he was drunk. Arabella pulled away from him and she looked up at him. He was right. He was drunk and she was starting to feel the alcohol too. "You should go lay down, Hunter" She said softly. and she pulled out of his arms, wrapping her arms around herself.
Hunter looked at her and let out a soft sigh. "I'm sorry that I hurt you, Ellie." He said quietly. He wouldn't have had this night if he weren't drunk, but he was cursing himself for drinking. It was going to make the drive tomorrow hell and he wouldn't even remember the last time he saw Arabella. This would be the last time. The very last time. He stepped forward and kissed her forehead. Hunter let his lips stay there for what would be the last time holding the girl that he gave his heart to. The girl that he wouldn't be getting his heart back from. Hunter finally stepped away and sighed before leaving the reception hall. He didn't remember anything about walking back to his room, but the next thing he knew he was flopping down on to his hotel room bed and falling asleep.
Arabella took a deep, shaky breath and she covered her mouth with her hand. The tears that had been threatening to fall all night had finally started spill down her cheeks. She couldn't be without Hunter. She knew that for sure. But Hunter was walking away from her and she was getting on a plane to go to New York at 7 the next morning. After a pause, Arabella turned and hurried up to the room that she shared with Addie. She didn't know if Addie was there and she didn't really care. Arabella needed to change her clothes and sob. She needed to figure things out. As soon as she got to her room, Arabella changed out of her dress and she pulled on a pair of shorts and a tank top. She wasn't going to sleep that night, just like she didn't sleep the night before. But she was okay with that. Arabella sat down at the window and sobbed until she couldn't cry anymore.