HUNTER

"What are you doing?"

"I am studying, Hunter." The sound of her voice from the other end of the call brought a smile to my lips. "What are you doing?"

"I want to take you out. You look beautiful, by the way."

"Hunter, I said I was – Wait, how do you know that?" I watched as she looked out the window from her spot on the bench, her eyes catching mine. "What are you doing outside my apartment?"

"I thought it would be romantic!" I answered with a shrug. "Now, come on. Let me take you somewhere."

"Hunter, I said I was studying."

"It's a beautiful Saturday afternoon, Angel. Are you really going to spend it all day inside?"

Her response was a low, audible sigh. From my view on the sidewalk, I knew she was contemplating.

"How long will this take?" she finally replied.

"Wow, are you putting a time limit on my romantic gesture?"

Dylan laughed, "I have a test on Monday!"

"A few hours."

"You promise?"

I smirked. "No."

"Will you finally tell me where we are going?"

I grinned. "I don't want to ruin the surprise. Don't worry, Angel, we're almost there."

I noticed her cheeks tint a shade of red, hearing her nickname. She was still getting used to me calling her that, but I could tell she liked it. Besides, it suited her perfectly.

The long drive felt shorter than usual. I assumed that was because of my company, whose sweet voice kept a smile on my face the entire time. Turning the car onto a side street, I drove us along a narrow dirt path with large trees on either side. Within a few seconds, the narrow path opened to beautiful scenery.

Slowing the car to a stop and shifting the gear into park, I turned my head to the side, "Here we are."

I got out of the car, hurried over to her side and opened the passenger door.

"Where is here?" She asked, stepping out of the car.

"Well, this is my family's vacation house."

"The one you said you came to all the time as a kid?"

"Good memory," I said, impressed she had remembered the small tidbit I had told her from our first date. "This is the main house," I pointed to the large brick home in front of us, "But where I want to take you is further down."

I grabbed a large bag from the trunk of the car and rejoined Dylan at her side. I could tell she was itching to ask about the bag, but I appreciated her restraint. Holding her hand, I led her past the house and towards the backyard.

"Are we allowed to be here?"

"Of course," I shrugged, "No one has come to the house in years."

As we continued to walk, I shared stories of a few memories I had here. How my sister once caught me off guard and tried pushing me into the pool, and I ended up breaking my arm and spending the rest of the summer in a cast. The flower garden that my mother loved, and how annoyed she got when my brother accidentally drove a golf cart through a hedge.

"And this..." I announced, "This is my favourite spot."

We stood in front of the small body of water, surrounded by overgrown grass and wildflowers. The old willow tree was still standing on the side, with branches elongated over the water.

"It's beautiful," Dylan whispered. Her eyes focused on the view in front of her.

I placed down the bag and pulled out a blanket, laying it flat on the ground.

"Are you finally going to tell me why we are here at your favourite spot?" She asked, taking a seat.

I shuffled through the bag again, pulling out a wrapped package. "For you."

"What's this?" She asked, taking it from my hands.

"Your Christmas gift."

"Christmas was over a month ago. Besides," Dylan motioned to the thin chain that hung around her neck, "You already got me a gift."

The sun beamed against the two pendants on the necklace. One was in the shape of a circle, with the number 18 engraved on it. The other was an angel wing charm.

"So?" I questioned with a shrug. "Can't I shower you with gifts?"

"Not when you won't let me get you anything in return!"

"That's because I don't need anything. I have you," I whispered, taking her hand in mine. "Now, could you please open the gift I got you? I wrapped it myself."

"Alright, alright," she said as she unwrapped her first gift. As she removed the paper, her eyes went wide. "Oh my..." Dylan ran her fingers over the leather cover. I watched as she slowly opened the book, flipping through the thick pages of sketch paper.

"Do you like it?"

"Of course I do." She looked up. "I've never had such a nice sketchbook before. Normally I just draw on a pad of paper. This must have cost you a lot."

I shrugged, "Not that much."

It did. However, I was worried if she knew the price, she would make me return it. And she deserved something like this far too much for me to do such a thing. I stayed silent as she slowly unwrapped the second gift, instantly handing it to me once she read the name.

"Hunter!" Her voice whined. "Are you kidding me?"

"What?"

"These watercolours are worth hundreds of dollars. All of this is way too much."

"You're not very good at accepting gifts. Do you know that?"

Dylan playfully pushed my arm. "I'm serious! You–"

"Do you like it?"

"What? Yes, of course, I do, I just–"

I leaned forward, my lips inches away from hers. "Just accept the gifts, then. Okay?"

"Okay," she whispered.

I moved my hand to cup her cheek, my thumb gently grazing against her lower lip. God, those innocent eyes of hers drove me wild. Dylan closed the limited space between us, gently pressing her lips against mine. A moment passed before I felt her deepen the kiss.

As much as I wanted this to continue, it wasn't why I brought her here. Begrudgingly, I leaned back to create distance between us.

"Thank you for the gifts," she said. "I don't know how I'm going to match what you just got me."

"Draw me something."

"Right now?"

I nodded, "That's why I wanted to bring you here. To escape from your textbooks for just one day and do what you actually love."

"You brought me up here so I could draw?"

I reached back inside the bag one last time, tossing her a package of graphite pencils, "Yes, now get to it. If you need some inspiration, I'm happy to take my clothes off and do some nude modelling."

"That won't be necessary," she giggled, opening up her new sketchbook.

I laid down against the blanket, glancing up at the sky as I could hear the sounds of her pencil moving against the paper. It was easy to watch her as she worked. I loved every minute. The crinkle that showed in her forehead when she focused. The ways her eyes would light up as she worked on an idea. How she bit her lip while she shaded and drew the finite details.

The hour passed with ease. I was engulfed in her beauty, watching while she worked.

Dylan looked up from her sketchbook, her eyes finding their way to mine. The sun was beaming off her skin, causing her to radiate under the light. Her lips curved into a smile, causing my heart to skip. That feeling they say one can get when they look at that certain someone in their life, and everything else fades to the background; that's how I felt when I looked at Dylan.

The worst part was, I knew it couldn't last.

I cleared my throat, doing my best to shake the thoughts from my head, and sat up, "Are you done?"

"I think so," she sighed, giving her work another glance.

"Are you going to show me?"

Dylan held the sketchbook close to her chest. "I'm worried it's not that good."

"Oh, come on, Angel," I reached out my hand out, "It is a drawing for me, anyway."

Hesitantly, Dylan handed over the book and placed it in my hands. The drawing on the page amazed me. She had perfectly sketched the view that was in front of us; the flower beds surrounding the water, the overgrown grass, the willow tree.

I flipped to the next page, seeing more drawings scattered all over the paper. I smiled, noticing sketches of my tattoos mixed in amongst the flowers and random faces she had drawn.

However, one stood out the most: a butterfly.

"What made you draw this one?" I glanced over at Dylan.

Dylan drew her eyes up from her lap. "Oh, don't look at those!" she quickly grabbed the book from my hands. "They're just random drawings."

"I like that one. The butterfly."

"Why?"

I shrugged, "It's beautiful."

Dylan shook her head, "No, it's messy."

"That's going to be my next tattoo. I think I'll get it on my leg."

"Hunter-"

"Stop." I pulled her closer, "Stop doubting your talent," I murmured, quickly pecking her lips, "Please."

Dylan responded by averting her eyes from mine. Whenever the topic of conversation revolved around her talent, she was quick to shut it down. It was frustrating, to say the least. I only wanted her to see what I did.

"Don't get it on your leg," she whispered, placing her hand on my side, "Get it here, instead."

"That's the spot then," I said, placing my hand over hers. "You know where we should go?"

"Where?"

"Paris."

Dylan sighed, "I've always wanted to go to Paris."

"Let me take you."

"When?"

"Now?"

"Oh, yeah, sure let's just go to Paris." Her laughter quickly faded, realizing I was serious. "Are you out of your mind?"

"Yes. But, why should that stop us?"

"Because I have school, Hunter."

"Fine. In the summer then. We can go to London... Florence... Berlin... Barcelona!"

Dylan raised a curious brow, "Are you serious?"

"Of course."

Her mouth opened to speak, but no words escaped. She appeared taken aback by my sudden vacation suggestion. Yet, the gleam of joy beginning to burst through gave me hope that she would say yes.

"So?" I pushed, unable to wait any longer for an answer. "What do you say?"

"I can't tell if you're being serious. I think it'll need to be on the plane before I do."

I rolled my eyes, "Fine. I guess you'll believe me when we're inside some of the most famous galleries in the world." Unable to hold back I added, "I still don't understand why you're letting your talent go to waste."

Dylan let a soft groan escape, "Hunter, not this again."

"Yes, this again! You're getting a degree in something you hate for what? To make your parents happy?"

"Hunter..."

"I'm serious, Angel. You hate what you're doing. You won't admit it, but I know you do. And instead of pursuing something you love–"

"Stop!" Dylan squeezed her eyes shut. "I know you mean well, but please stop. I can't do anything about it, alright?"

"Why not?"

"Because this is what Delilah was supposed to do!" She seemed surprised by her own words as she sat for a moment with wide eyes. "Delilah was the one that was supposed to go to business school. She was the one that wanted to work for my dad. And after she left, the expectation shifted to me."

"That's not fair–"

"I know it's not. But life isn't fair. Sometimes we have to put our dreams aside and just do what makes sense. Art isn't worth risking my future over. Just because you and Abby think I'm good doesn't mean anyone else will."

"And that's not worth taking a risk on?"

Dylan shook her head, "Unfortunately, no."

Silence fell upon us. Dylan kept her head down, looking at her sketchbook, which was laid open on the blanket. A feeling, one that I rarely ever felt, twisted in my stomach; guilt. I never realized how much weight she carried on her shoulders to hold up an expectation. One that was not meant for her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, finally looking up, "I didn't mean to ruin this afternoon."

"You ruined nothing. I shouldn't have pushed. I didn't know."

She showed a sad smile, "It's just hard to deal with still."

The twist of guilt pulled even tighter.

"I wish I could make it better for you."

Dylan pressed her hand against my chest, "You do."

"How so?"

She leaned forward, pressing her lips gently against mine, "You believe in me."

I needed to tell her. I wanted to tell her. The worry of losing her stopped me from doing so. It was selfish to hold it back, but I didn't want to lose her. I wanted to hold on to her for as long as I could.

As she shifted her body to straddle my waist, I was thankful at how easily the male mind was able to be distracted. My hand lightly trailed up the side of her thigh, pushing the material of her dress up with it. I moved my lips to her neck, kissing and nipping at the skin. A gasp of pleasure escaped her hand on my shoulder gripping my shirt. It always drove her wild when I did that.

I pulled my head back, allowing us both to catch our breath. As soon as her eyes met mine, those thoughts started to flood back. And this time, I wasn't able to stop myself.

"Dylan, I need to tell you something."

\\

:O

CHQ: WHAT DO YOU THINK HUNTER HAS TO TELL DYLAN?

don't forgot to vote/comment <3

love y'all.