I'll Be The One

Chapter 22:

=Normal POV=
[Friday, 1/25/2019-9:15 pm]
[Archipelago; Arc Isle]
[Dreki Apartment; A1]

Hunter cried for a good twenty minutes in his bedroom, nothing loud, but he couldn't stop the flow of tears. Hunter sat the last five minutes on his bed, wiping his eyes and finishing his beer. Hunter splashed his face, blew his nose, and cleared his throat while overall calming down. Hunter didn't want to be rude to his friends who were still out there and probably had no idea why Hunter snapped on his uncle and father. It wasn't Hunter's style to get angry without a valid reason, and he didn't get angry about petty, small things. For Hunter to actually get mad; it had to be big. Hunter took a deep breath as he opened his bedroom door to glance out and see the friends all sitting around the living room with some light music playing.

"Hunter, hey…" Flynn said nervously.

"Hey," Hunter replied.

"How's your day been?" Seth asked.

Hunter gave a bored look, unamused at the remark before sighing. "Would you like the honest truth or a bold-faced lie?" Hunter inquired.

"We prefer honesty," Drew pointed out.

"Day has been pretty shitty," Hunter informed. "I'm sure you heard most of that from my father and uncle before and after I woke up…"

"Won't lie; we did," Avery nodded.

"But we weren't sure what it was all about; they just kept saying a death two years ago and you being really hurt by it," Harper jumped in quickly.

"Yeah…" Hunter replied quietly.

"Hey, we don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, Hunter," Tallon said gently. "We don't want to make you upset or mad," he added.

"I only snapped at them because I told them this morning I was fine, and they still made it a big deal…" Hunter mumbled.

"But you're not actually fine, are you?" Tallon looked into Hunter's eyes. Hunter stared into Tallon's eyes before sighing and shaking his head. "Come on, everything will be alright. Why don't you talk about it? I hear it helps,"

"I've…Kind of already told you before, Tal…" Hunter replied softly. "The night you snuck me out past paparazzi and took me drinking,"

Tallon thought a moment, and remembered what Hunter said happened in January 2017; his eyes widened. "That friend of yours who died in the accident?" Hunter nodded.

"Two years ago, today," Hunter said. "A lot more than a friend," he added gently.

"But you were with Cassandra two years ago, weren't you? Was this an ex?" Roxanne wondered.

"Yes and no," Hunter stated. The other blinked a bit. "Gather round; I'll tell you," he sighed as he went to his room and grabbed the box of thirty beer cans out of his fridge; he brought it out and sat on the couch next to Tallon. "You can help yourselves," he offered as he grabbed one beer and cracked it open.

"Whenever you're ready, and only if you want to," Tallon reminded. Hunter took a drink from the beer before holding it in in his hands and taking a deep breath.

"My friend who died was my ex. We had dated long before Cassandra and I became a thing; not to say Cassandra and I weren't friends before we got together, but I was with someone else before her. Cassandra and I didn't become a couple until the Homecoming Dance during our Senior Year in high school. But the person before her was my first love, and first friend; we were best friends. His name was Jay Nilsen," Hunter began to explain.

"It's okay, take your time," Tallon coached when he noticed Hunter's voice being a bit shaky.

"Jay and I met in second grade and got paired up as reading buddies. We started hanging out on the weekends, and just kept that friendship through the years. See, I found out I was bisexual because Jay kissed me in the boy's bathroom on a dare when we were thirteen. It took me a bit to figure things out, settle with it; I was probably fourteen by the time all that blew over. By this time; I had already moved to the mainland from Berk, and shockingly; Jay did too because of a new job in his family or something," Hunter continued. "I honestly have forgotten the reason,"

"Anyway. I had developed feelings for him, and when Jay and I were fifteen; we both confessed to liking one another and started dating. Things were great; we had an awesome relationship for about a year, maybe a little over. Jay started to get a bit distant, and we said we were better friends and mutually decided to break up. Jay stopped talking to me for a bit; I figured he just needed some space. I learned a month or two later that the cause of the break up was actually because Jay moved with his family back to Berk because of a family death; his parents had to handle all the arrangements, and take over the house that was left to his mom," Hunter took a small drink.

"He wanted to end things in the least hurtful manner, didn't he? That's why he said you two were better friends, to break up easy and keep the friendship?" Harper asked.

Hunter nodded. "Jay contacted me and apologized over and over again about not being truthful in his reasons, but the cause of the break up was because the distance would have been hard for us to maintain a relationship. However, the feelings between us were still strong and kept our friendship, joking all the time that if he ever moved back to the mainland or after we turned eighteen and had free reign to go anywhere; we'd get back together," Hunter smiled a little. The time went on and somewhere in Junior Year; Jay told me he met someone else and of course, I'd never stand in the way of that and told him to go for it. Around the same time, I started developing something for Cassandra,"

"That's real love right there," Madison beamed.

"Jay and I stayed friends despite our lingering feelings for one another, constantly laughed about if both of us ended up losing who we were with that we'd get back together since we were almost eighteen and deal with the distance for a bit. So, that's how things were for us up until I started college. When Cassandra started pulling her nonsense about us not having enough time together; she began putting us on breaks, saying she needed space or whatever. They only ever lasted a week or two; I think the longest was three weeks. I used to keep Jay in the loop about things when it happened, or any fights. During my second year of college is when Cassandra began actually breaking up with me for a week or two at a time and Jay told me that he'd find a way to cheer me up. A couple hours later; he showed up at my dorm room to hug me,"

"Aw, that's so sweet…" Avery smiled.

"We hung out like old times; grabbed food, talked…It was like nothing ever changed. I loved seeing him again, and he hung out with me the entire break up too. I learned he was moving to the mainland, had already found an apartment and promised we'd hangout whenever I wanted. Cassandra came back, we talked things out and got back together…But the next time she did it; I was more mad than upset. I told Jay; he told me to come over to his place and we'd game to take my mind off it. I figured I had the week off from school, so why not. Packed a bag, headed to his apartment, and we had a lot of fun," Hunter informed.

"Can I ask something? You don't have to answer if you don't want, but…You two ever…? You know…Do it?" TJ asked.

"Yes," Hunter nodded. "Jay and I were each other's firsts. We were sixteen, had been dating about eleven or so months…One of the times I slept over; his parents had gone out to dinner and a movie, my guards were outside the house, hiding at my request not to draw attention to themselves…Jay and I started making out and it went from there," he stated.

"But I mean like…During the breaks or break ups with Cassandra. You two ever…Just for the fuck of it?" TJ inquired.

"Only during the break ups. When Cass and I were on breaks; I assumed we were still together, so I didn't do anything with anyone else. I felt it would be considered cheating since we were only taking some time apart, but not actually broken up," Hunter shrugged.

"She was with others, though, wasn't she?" Trevor asked.

"Well, yeah…But that doesn't mean I have to violate the sanctum of the relationship. So…Only the times she actually said we were breaking up did Jay and I decide to have some fun. Usually started with kissing," Hunter chuckled.

"Usually all it takes," Tallon smiled. "But anyway…Your story,"

"Well, that's how things were for us until January 2017. Anytime Cass and I broke up; I was with Jay because we genuinely enjoyed each other's company and still had feelings for one another. Cass and I had a break up for two weeks in January that year…I spent all of it with Jay, and we actually talked about getting back together because I was sick of the back and forth with Cassandra and I still loved Jay; he still loved me. And we laughed that we had joked about this kind of thing years before…" he smiled a bit, but it fell afterward as he looked down. "The night we agreed to do this, start dating again; it had been one where we made love. Jay said he was going to make it special, us getting back together but we'd already started saying I love you, calling each other baby, babe, etc."

"It's alright…Take a breath," Flynn said.

"It was January 25th, 2017; Jay was supposed to pick me up from work at 5 pm; I told him to be careful because it was cold and there were warning of black ice on the roads. We said we'd just do something at his place, because the storm was supposed to get worse. Jay messaged me back that it was fine; we'd make it a little vacation since I was off school for the week. Jay told me he was on his way at 4:30 pm and I said okay, told him I loved him. He told me he loved me too and that it was the happiest day of his life; us getting back together finally, like we'd always planned. At 5 pm; he wasn't there. I figured he grabbed a few things for dinner first and that was fine, and he was probably driving slow because of the weather. By 5:30, Jay still hadn't come. I messaged and called him, no answer,"

Hunter took a breath; everyone had already figured it out, but didn't jump in and assume. "Kris showed up to get me, Harry told me my parents needed me home for something. I got a sickeningly bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. I remember feeling nauseated the whole way home because I was afraid my mom had taken a turn for the worst and it was gonna be me being told that she didn't have a lot of time left, or that Gregory was being deployed again; I worried for both of those being what was wrong." Hunter looked down. "I got there and was instantly assured mom was alright, I asked them to tell me what was happening because I was going to be with Jay for the next couple of days, that we were getting back together. My mom said that we weren't, and I got scared they wouldn't be okay with me and Jay dating again. Dad sat me down and told me that there had been an accident and Jay was involved…"

"I panicked instantly and demanded we go to the hospital to meet him there, and his family. I insisted I had to see him, and my parents told me that Jay didn't survive the crash. I froze at first, trying to let the words process. I denied it, saying I'd just talked to him; my parents tried to get me to relax and listen, but I refused until dad held my arms and stated that Jay was gone. I still tried to deny it. Mom made dad back up and she held my hands to tell me that another driver on the opposite side of the road was going too fast, lost control. Jay tried to avoid it, but they swiped hard; Jay's car hit a patch of ice, struck a telephone pole, and rolled off the side of the road into the ditch, landed on the driver's side and slamming against a tree and semi-wrapping around it…Jay died on impact…"

"Hunter, I'm so sorry…" Tallon frowned.

"I wanted to deny it again, but dad was a step ahead with turning on the TV…I saw the live report about there being a tragic accident involving two cars, saw all the wreckage…No bodies, thank the Gods. But then the reporter said one victim. As soon as they said his name; I lost it." Hunter sighed.

"What do you mean lost it?" Drew asked softly.

"I just broke down. I started shaking, saying no and it's not true over and over again. My legs gave out; I hit my knees and cried. I was screaming, trying to get away from all of them because in my mind; he was okay, and they were wrong about him being dead. That everything was alright, and I had to get to him. It took Greg and Dad to hold me in place and I fought them until my body gave out from what my mom called emotional stress or whatever. I just knocked out and they kept an eye on me until I woke up; took me a bit to remember what happened, then I just started crying again, the acceptance of the truth type," Hunter informed.

"At some point; I'd asked everyone to leave me alone. I just sat with pictures, memories, looking at the messages between us. I still ate and took care of myself; I was miserable. I came out for the service and funeral, returned to school when it started again. But unless it was class or something important; I didn't leave my dorm much. It was like that for a couple months, probably until March or April. Cassandra and I ended up getting back together, but it wasn't the same; she never knew I'm bisexual, or that I had a boyfriend at one point who I slept with. Never intend on telling her; Odin only knows the arguments that would ensue…" Hunter mumbled. "But yeah…That's…Why I'm the way I am today, kind'a have been all week as it started approaching. And of course…I dealt with my mom dying last year in April…It's just…"

"Hard," Tallon said as Hunter nodded. "Understandable, and nobody blames you, Hunter,"

"No, not at all," Trevor shook his head.

"You lost someone you love when things were at the happiest they could be," Harper frowned.

"And you had to deal with school, Cassandra…You've had a lot going on," Flynn added.

"I know. And I don't like using alcohol to deal with it, but…Fuck, I can't relax any other way when it comes to this stuff," Hunter admitted.

"Hey, it's not like you're an alcoholic, Hunter. You drink when you're a bit stressed and upset, but everyone does, so you're fine," Elijah laughed a little.

"Yeah, and you drink casually too. You're not an alcoholic, Hunter…Don't even try to class yourself with them; that's not you," Tallon smiled.

"I appreciate that, you guys," Hunter tried to smile. "I didn't mean to snap earlier; I'm sorry you had to see it…"

"Hey, it's cool. You're entitled to get mad or annoyed when everyone is on your ass," Seth stated.

"Wasn't so much that they were on my ass; just that they know today is hard and how I'm gonna be, so why make it harder by pointing out the obvious or talking about how awful that day was," Hunter sighed.

"I feel ya," Tallon nodded. "Well, we can leave ya alone if you want. Thank you, for telling us. We know it probably wasn't easy,"

"No, I don't want to be alone right now. Thanks for giving me my space through the last week or so, though. That's what I was trying to get across to my dad and uncle; I'll come to you when I'm ready, but don't hound me before then…" Hunter said.

"We understood that something had to be bothering you, or that you were busy with midterms and probably the preparations for tomorrow," Drew mentioned.

"Oh! Shit, completely forgot to tell you," Hunter said quickly. "You guys are invited to the inauguration tomorrow, both ceremony and celebration,"

"A-Are we really?" Roxanne blinked.

"But I thought that was for…Really important people, and invitation only…" Avery replied.

"Well, you're my personal list of guests this time; I made sure. And…You're really important to me. I…Haven't really had friends since Jay…So, this means a lot to me for you to come," Hunter said quietly.

"Well, it is our honor then," Tallon said as the others nodded. Hunter smiled some, going to his room and getting something; he returned a moment or two later with some envelopes.

"And this is just in case someone fucks up the list…One for each of you," Hunter handed out the black envelopes, each admiring the fancy silver writing of their names on it.

"Wow…Thanks Hunter…." Tallon looked at him gently as Hunter smiled lightly.

"You're welcome," Hunter responded; then finished his beer. "So…Cool if we hang for a bit? I understand if it's late,"

"No, no! Not at all. We can hang as long as you want," Trevor exclaimed.

"Well, let's kick back then. I may still be a bit…You know, but I just kind'a don't wanna be alone anymore," Hunter said.

"You never have to be with us," Tallon assured with a wink.

"I trust in that," Hunter replied.

"Well, relax on then!" Drew announced. Everyone sat back, talking and relaxing with a beer or different kind of drink. Hunter knew it hurt to talk about things, but how could he keep such a big thing from his friends? Hunter couldn't; it wasn't right. Honestly, Hunter felt a little better after talking and now he wanted to enjoy tonight, get through tomorrow, then relax for his week off school. Hunter would only be working three days next week, and they weren't crazy shifts, thank the Gods. For now, Hunter was content with his friends and glad to have them in his life.