"I smell your sandwich, Sapph!"

Hunter and I jumped apart. 

Scott barreled through the kitchen door. His eyes, wide and hungry, zeroed in on the sandwich on the island. He beelined toward us and snatched the sandwich from my plate.

My heart hammered in my chest. I was so out of it, I didn't even react when Scott fled out of the kitchen with my sandwich.

More people came into the house. Stefan and Jason no doubt. I could hear them trying to wrestle the sandwich from Scott. Cheddar jumped on the free stool next to me and licked his paws.

Clearing my throat, I glanced at Hunter. He was rubbing the back of his head, his face turned away. The tips of his ears were pink. The sight made me melt more than the almost kiss did. It was endearing.

I touched my cheeks. They were flaming hot. "Um, I'll go grab my laptop," I said and escaped the kitchen.

Ignoring the three idiots in the living room, I took the stairs two at a time and slipped into my room. I closed the door and leaned against it. My heart was a drumroll. I blew out a shaky breath, still feeling the warmth of Hunter's breath on my face. Oh my God.

Focus!

I slapped myself, giving myself two minutes to get my crap together. I checked my hair in the mirror, grabbed my laptop and returned to the kitchen.

Jason and Scott were in the living room. Crumbs of my sandwich decorated both Scott and Jason's faces. I pointed at them. "You'll pay for that later."

Their grins were unrepentant.

Stefan was in the kitchen, making his own weird grilled cheese with squished Pringles and pickles. Hunter observed the odd mix with a pained expression.

"It's disgustingly weird, I know," I said, dropping on the stool next to him.

"You lack complex taste buds," Stefan said over his shoulder, flipping the cheese in the pan.

"You lack taste buds, period," I replied, opening my laptop. Hunter pulled out his notebook. It was easier to ignore our earlier moment with someone else in the kitchen.

"That's a direct insult to your best friend, you know," Stefan said, turning off the stove. "Lia loves this shit as much as I do."

"Don't I know it," I mumbled.

Stefan lingered in the kitchen even after eating his sandwich. I wanted to roll my eyes at his protectiveness. He didn't like Hunter, that much was clear.

In a way, I was grateful for his presence. It made focusing my attention on the homework actually easier.

Hunter and I divided tasks for the history project, then he worked on Calculus with me.

"I didn't expect you to be good at Calculus," Stefan said, looking over my work. I shot him a chiding look.

"Why? Because I should be an asshole who only knows how to fight?" Hunter said.

Stefan blinked. Then nodded. "Yeah, pretty much."

"Stefan!"

"What?" my brother crossed his arms, his eyes locked on Hunter's. "You're pretty famous for fighting and screwing around. I didn't think you'd have the time to study."

I sucked in a sharp breath. Hurtling my laptop at my brother's head would achieve nothing except breaking my laptop. That was the only reason I didn't do it. But I was very tempted to.

Hunter's face snapped into the familiar expression he reserved for people he'd like to punch. Oh, no. If he got into it with Stefan here...

I put my hand on his wrist. "Hunter..."

He looked at me, and his face closed off. He shrugged off my hold, rose to his feet and shoved his notebook in his backpack. "Don't worry. I'm not going to punch your brother," he snapped, throwing his backpack on his shoulder and striding out of the kitchen.

"Wait!" I followed him out. He was already striding towards his car, his shoulders stiff and his hands in his pockets. I pounded down the steps of the front porch. "Hunter."

He turned abruptly. His face looked furious. "What?"

I stopped. "I- he didn't mean it."

"I don't give a fuck what he thinks," he said. "But if you think I'm going to beat up your brother because he's an annoying prick, maybe we should just call this thing off."

I opened my mouth, but denying that would be lying. I closed my mouth.

Hunter shook his head and rubbed his hair. He sighed and turned, getting into his car without a word and driving away.

I stared as the car turned down the street, the sunset's orange glow glinting off its sleek black one last time before it vanished.

Was he... hurt?

He was hurt that I'd expected him to harm my brother. I had judged him the way everyone else did. Guilt weighed down my stomach. I blew out a breath and went back inside. Stefan was still in the kitchen, drinking a can of coke, leaning against the island as if everything was fine.

"Really? You just had to be a jerk?" I asked, gathering my things.

He shrugged. "I only said the truth. You're better off without him, in my opinion."

I dropped my notebooks and pens and stabbed a finger his way. "Let's get one thing clear, Stefan. You can take your opinion and shove it up your ass."

He frowned. "He-"

"Butt off of my relationship!" I shoved my things into my backpack, picked up Cheddar and stormed out of the kitchen, past Jason and Scott in the living room, who were playing on their phones.

"Did you have a fight?" Jason asked, not taking his eyes off his screen.

"They had a fight," Scott said. "Stefan is so screwed."

I skipped up the steps and shut myself in my room. Stupid boys.

***

Cheddar curled on my stomach as I lay down on my bed. I had taken a long shower, letting the steamy water clear up my head, after which I curled up with Cheddar on my bed and spoke with Lia on the phone. I told her what happened. Out of the two of us, she had more experience with relationships.

"So he didn't say anything after that?"

"No, he just drove off." I sighed, looking out the window. The street light outside flickered, the night sky beyond it black. The bedside lamp reflected off the window glass.

"And you think he's hurt?"

"Yeah."

"Why?" She asked. "I mean, he doesn't look like he's the sort of person who'd get hurt."

"Hey, you're being mean," I said. "You guys are making it seem like he's some kind of monster."

"Hmm, I guess we are judging him," she said.

And I had done the same. I buried my fingers in cheddar's fur and sighed. "I don't like feeling like this."

"Like what?"

"Like... something is wrong. I feel heavy and guilty." I huffed. "Are relationships always so damn complicated?"

"Maybe you should talk to him," Lia suggested. "Figure out exactly why he was mad or hurt."

A thought popped in my head. Lia had been through a breakup not even a week ago, and I was complaining about my relationship. I was such an insensitive bitch. Ugh.

"Anyway, let's talk about something else," I said, putting an extra pip in my voice. "Where's that party going to be?"

Lia was excited about the party, so she went on about what we should wear and who would be there and what could happen. By the time we ended the call, it was well past my bedtime. I set my alarm, threw my phone aside, and turned off the light.

I couldn't sleep.

I stared at the dark ceiling. Cheddar was now curled up by my feet, his cute paws covering his face. My brain was working overtime. Should I talk to him? I should, and I would. I knew myself, I wouldn't last long before the not-knowing got the better of me.

I picked up my phone. Should I send a message? My fingers hovered over the keyboard. Doing this over text didn't seem right.

Still, I couldn't sleep, so I sent him a text.

'Can you pick me up tomorrow morning?'

I hit send and waited. He wouldn't answer. He was angry, or hurt, or whatever. If I was in his place, I wouldn't answer either-

'Okay.'

I sat up so fast my head swam. Cheddar startled, his sleepy eyes glaring at me. I petted his head. "Sorry, baby. Go back to sleep."

My cat stood up, stretched, turned once and curled around himself again.

I looked at my phone. He'd answered. My phone pinged again. Another text!

'Good night.'

I smiled, the heavy weight on my chest subsiding a little. I snapped a picture of Cheddar's curled figure and sent it with a text.

'Good night. Don't be late.'

I yawned and laid back down, sleep tugging me under. I fell asleep, my lips curved in a smile.

***

Hunter was bright and early. He sent me a text thirty minutes before my brothers and I usually left for school. I put on a black t-shirt, jeans, my sneakers and threw on a jacket. I looked at my reflection in the mirror of my bathroom. I had thrown my hair up in a ponytail out of habit.

I bit my lips. Oh, what the hell. I slipped my hair tie out of my hair and let it down. My eyes looked bright and clear this morning.

I sent a text to Stefan and Scott and hit the door. Hunter was already in the passenger seat. He watched me from the moment I stepped out of the front door to the moment my butt hit the driver's seat.

I turned toward him as soon as I sat. "Are you still angry?"

He raised one eyebrow. "Are you still scared?"

I frowned. "I wasn't scared."

"Yes, you were."

"No, I wasn't."

"Yes," he said slowly. "You were."

"No," I matched his tone. "I wasn't."

He blinked. I blinked back.

"You thought I was going to punch your brother."

"Well, yes. You did look pissed at him," I said. "But I wasn't afraid of you. I was never afraid of you."

We stared at each other for a few seconds, then I broke out a laugh. He chuckled, shaking his head.

"You thought I was scared of you?" I asked. "Is that why you were hurt?"

"I wasn't hurt," he grumbled, his lips still twitched up.

I rolled my eyes. "Okay, fine. Is that why you were angry?"

He shifted in his seat and looked out through the windshield. "Yeah, I guess."

I shook my head and buckled up. "I'm not afraid of you. If I was, I wouldn't be dating you."

I started the car and drove on. It was so early, there were almost no cars on the road. The sky looked remarkably blue and clear today.

"Were you going to punch Stefan?" I asked.

"I wanted to, but I wouldn't have," he said. "He's your brother."

I glanced at him. "So what stopped you is the fact that he's my brother?"

"Yes." He didn't even hesitate. Well, good to know.

"How about next time you're angry, we talk about it instead of storming out. I didn't even know why you were angry."

"Next time," he mumbled, almost to himself. I felt his gaze on my cheek. "I'll try. If you do the same."

"Sure."

"So, we're good?"

"We're good," I said.

He was quiet for several minutes, then, "I thought about what I want."

I glanced at him. "What you want?"

"In exchange for tutoring you," he said.

Oh. "And what is it you want?"

"Have dinner with me," he said. "Every time we get out of the gym."

"That's what you want?" I asked. I would've accepted even without him tutoring me. I enjoyed his company.

"Is that a yes?" He asked.

"Sure," I replied and glanced over in time to see his excited smile. Cute.

I stayed in a peppy mood the entire day. Liza joined us for lunch. She and Jason were steadily heading toward becoming a couple. It was kind of funny. Jason and Liza had been dancing around each other for months, and they weren't dating yet.

And here we were. Hunter and I knew each other for barely a week, and we were dating. Life was funny that way.

At the end of the day, I walked with Lia to the parking lot. She was telling me about something that happened in her art class, her eyes twinkling and her cheeks flushed. We hadn't seen Tom today.

Near her car, I stopped and looked at her, popping a mini peanut butter cup in my mouth.

"How are you?" I asked, pulling her out of the way when a boy came barreling down the sidewalk.

She wrinkled her nose. "What do you mean?"

I gave her a long look. Her expression cleared up. "Oh."

I raised my brows, waiting. She seemed fine, more than fine. But Lia could be very cunning when she wanted to. Although it wasn't in her nature to hide things from me.

She cocked her head aside. "You know, I haven't thought about him at all today. Is that weird?"

I smiled. "It's not."

She shrugged. "I guess I didn't like him as much as I thought I did. It still hurts, you know. But I don't feel like the world is going to end. I'm actually relieved it ended before I could give him more of myself."

She hit my arm with the back of her hand. "Is that why you switched the subject yesterday? You're stupid."

I rolled my eyes. "That's what I get for being considerate."

She laughed. "Considerate, my ass. Oh, your boyfriend is here."

I glanced over my shoulder. Hunter's dark head bobbed over the crowd. He looked pissed off. Someone was walking next to him.

"Hey, isn't that one of Charlotte's groupies?" Lia asked.

"Yep," I quickly told her about what happened yesterday near Hunter's car.

Lia's eyes sparkled. "You said that!"

"Yep!"

She laughed and hit my arm again. "Oh my God! I wish I was there!"

"Ow," I moved away from her little fist.

She glanced over my shoulder and lowered her voice, leaning closer. "She's chatting his ears off. He's not even looking at her. I think I like your choice of boyfriend better than mine. Oh, he saw us. He's coming."

We smiled at each other. She stepped back and waved, getting into her car. "I'll see you later., Sapph."

I turned. Hunter's eyes fixed on me. He closed the distance between us. The girl spotted me and stopped. She sneered and doubled back where she came from.

"How nice of her," I told Hunter. "She walked you all the way here."

He rolled his big shoulders and made a face. "I wish she was a guy. I'd punch her and be done with it."

I snorted, and we turned and walked to his car. "Your answer to everything is violence."

He grunted.

"What did she want?"

"I have no idea what she was saying."

"Mhm. I don't like her."

He looked at me with a half smile. "Don't worry. I don't want to be punched in the nose."

I laughed. We reached his car. "Good to know the threat of my tiny fist is what's keeping you in line."

We got in and drove off. Today was a gym day. Hunter's gym bag was in the backseat.

"Are you going to the party this Friday?" I asked.

"Are you?"

I nodded. "Lia is dragging me along."

"I'll go."

"Good. You can keep me company when Lia goes into beast dancing mode."

He chuckled and leaned back in his seat, looking relaxed. We reached the gym earlier than I usually did. Going to school early meant getting a good parking spot, so exiting was faster and easier.

The sound of boxing and training echoed even before we got in. It was quite busy today.

Emma wiggled her eyebrows at me when we walked in. She passed me a homemade energy bar. Hunter glanced at it.

"She keeps trying to get to eat healthy and quit my snacks," I told Hunter.

"You keep putting trash in your body," Emma said, fishing in her bag. Her hand came out with another aluminum wrapped bar. She handed it to Hunter. "You have to take care of yourself more."

"Yes, yes, ma'am," I saluted her and linked my arm through Hunter's, pulling him toward the locker rooms.

He unwrapped the snack and took a big bite, nodding to himself. "She's right, you know."

I scoffed. "Pot, kettle."

"How about a deal," he said, stopping in front of the men's locker room. I raised my brow. "You quit snacks, I quit smoking."

I narrowed my eyes. "You're serious?"

"Yes."

"But it's not the same!" I said. "Smoking and snacks, I mean."

"Really?"

I pursed my lips. "How about I reduce my intake of snacks, and you quit smoking."

"What do you mean by reduce your intake of snacks?" he said. "It's not tangible."

"I'll quit eating between classes," I said. "And during class. How about that?"

He wiggled his head back and forth. "Fair enough."

It would be difficult, but it would be worth it to have him quit smoking. I grinned and held out my hand. "You got a deal."

He wrapped his hand around mine, warm and strong. Instead of shaking it, as I'd expected, he leaned down and kissed my knuckles. Then he was gone.

The locker room's brown door closed after him with a quiet snick. I stared at it like an idiot for several seconds, feeling my heart beat in my throat.

Oh. My. God.

I slipped into the women's locker room and leaned against the door. A girl was tying up her tennis shoes on the bench. I put my hands over my cheeks, feeling their warmth against my palms.

This guy was going to be the end of me. He really was not good for my heart. 

--- ---- ---

Hey guys! Don't forget to vote and comment!

Also, Sapphire and Hunter are the cutest couple, aren't they? 

More coming soon.

Much love <3 <3 <3

M.B.