Chapter 33- You can't go to the party!

''Where are we going? The forest is this way'' I say as he turns the corner.

''We're just gonna get some food first'' he says.

''It's after 1 in the morning, it's too late now to get food''

''There's a fast food place that opens 24 hours'' he says.

''Okay, but I'm not hungry''

''Well I am''

He pulls into a small drive-thru of some fast food outlet called 'The food that's fast' and orders a calzone, burger, fries, chicken tenders, mashed potatoes, and 2 drinks. I already told him I'm not hungry so why did he order all this food? He drives up to the front window as we await the food. A vehicle pulls up next to us and the driver scrolls down the window immediately.

''Yo dude'' Axe says and slap each other's hand outside the window and I notice the person in the front seat next to him, the person I was hoping I didn't have to see again for a while.

''Hey Sia haven't seen you since the party'' Brooke says and I force a smile at her.

''What are you guys doing?'' Axe asks.

''Just getting some food'' Hero answers before I can speak.

''So Sia there's a party tomorrow night at the cabin, you should come'' Brooke suggests.

''No she's busy tomorrow night'' Hero answers for me.

''Aww too bad, Monday night parties are the wildest'' she continues. I thought every party was wild but apparently Monday night ones are the wildest or maybe she's just saying that to persuade me to come for some reason.

''Yeah well she can't'' Hero continues and all three of them share an awkward look that's unreadable to me.

What is wrong with him? Why does he keep answering for me?

''Alright dude see you tomorrow'' Axe slaps back Hero's hand and waves me goodbye as they drive off.

The cashier hands us our food before I can talk to Hero about what just happened, I collect the food and hold it on my lap, the hot food burns my thighs so I put it in the backseat.

''What was that?'' I ask.

''What?'' he asks like he doesn't know what I'm talking about.

''You didn't even give me a chance to speak, you just answered for me. Who do you think you are to do that?'' I ask and stare at him as he focuses on the road.

''I'm the one that's telling you you can't go to the party'' he says through his teeth.

''That's not for you to decide, it's for me and if I want to go I will'' I stand up for myself.

''You're not going''

''I wasn't going to before but now I will. The only reason why you don't want me to go is to see you with Brooke''

''I already fucking told you a hundred times that's not the kind of place you should'' his voice becomes louder.

''No you just don't want me to see you and her together''

''God Stessian would you just drop it! Stop obsessing over her''

''Well excuse me for worrying about a girl who my boyfriend has slept with before and who he constantly hangs out with'' I say and as the word boyfriend leaves my mouth I wish I could push it back in.

''Boyfriend? You think I'm your boyfriend?'' he looks at me with clear shock and revulsion in his voice. He looks back at the road and lets out a laugh.

''You're not?'' I ask, my voice weak.

''Fuck no! You've been thinking that this whole time, I'm not your boyfriend and I never will be'' He snaps.

''So then what was all this about? All this time, our time together when you gave me the necklace with the deep words engraved in it and when you took me out tonight, what was all that then?'' I ask.

''Nothing, I already told you I don't date. The necklace was just some random words from a stupid comic book and just because a guy takes you to the beach and you spend the night in his bed doesn't mean that he's your boyfriend. I know all this is new to you and it means the entire world to you because it's all you'll ever have unless your square of a boyfriend is willing to pull his pants down for you but people fuck around all the time and don't even remember the person's name the morning after so that was nothing, just forget it'' he spits and continues to look at the road.

As the words leave his mouth I feel as if I'm dreaming and another person is in Hero's body. He's not the same guy who was at the beach with me tonight and he's not the guy who gave me the necklace. Every time he gets a phone call or is around them he is a totally different person, I think he was embarrassed to be seen with me tonight. My mind is racing and I just wanna get out of this car and never see his face again. I want him to leave me alone from now on and I mean it that's it! I look out the window and I feel tears trickle down my cheek then drop from my jaw onto my fingers. I would do anything to get out of this car right now but I can't right now because we're still a bit far from the tents and I don't know how to get back. I know Hero's eyes are on me but every time I turn around to look at him he turns his head away and pretends like he wasn't looking and his focus has been on the road the entire time.

''I'll walk from here'' I say as I see the familiar area. He ignores me and continues to drive up the trail.

''I said I will take it from here. Now stop the car'' I demand, giving him a taste of his own medicine.

He stops the car to the left side of the trail and just as I'm about to open the car door, he gently grabs my arm indicating me to stay in place but I refuse. I snatch my arm away and look him in the eye as I warn him.

''Don't touch me! Leave me alone from now on I mean it, I want nothing to do with you and your life. I told you already to leave me alone but you keep coming around which I don't know why. You've said what you've had to say and I'm glad that you said it now before I would've actually kept doing this and wasting my time and ruining my life. I don't know why you keep coming around because I'll never be one of those girls that you just mess around with so stop coming around me because I have nothing to give you nor do I want too'' I spit then look him in the eye once more before I reach for the door.

I walk up the trail cold and alone with my wet hair and sand on my skin. I watch as he reverses then drives off from behind me. I can't go back to the tent like this covered in sand and wet hair, I need to take a shower. I remember Ms. Wilber each gave us a key to showers and said that they're not too far from here. I make my way inside the tent in about 5 minutes later. I slowly yet silently go inside the tent and retrieve the key along with the rest of my things that I need for the shower. I have no idea where the showers are all Ms. Wilber said was that they are nearby. I walk up the trail and as I turn the corner I see the sign saying showers this way. I follow the sign and walk for about 10 more minutes along the cold dark and noiseless trail of the forest at night.

As I push the key in the hole I look around to make sure my surroundings are clear. I close the door behind me and turn the light on. I head straight for the shower. I wash my hair, use my cucumber scented body wash and stay under the warm water for a bit longer. I try to just enjoy the shower and not think about today, well yesterday and part of today. It was amazing yet disheartening. I get out of the shower and wrap in my towel and make my way to the side near the door to get my blow dryer from my bag. I almost scream at the sight in front of me and my heart feels like it's about to race out of my chest.

''What the hell are you doing here!'' I shout at him as I keep my hands at my chest holding my towel in place.

''How did you get in here!'' I continue.

''It's not safe for you to be out here alone at this time'' he says.

''Oh please you're not trying to act like you care right?'' I laugh.

''I don't but I'm just saying''

''Were you looking at me in the shower?'' I ask, my eyes wide.

''No'' he says, but I wouldn't know because I've had my eyes closed for half the time.

''I waited here'' he continues.

''How did you even get in here?''

''You left the door open'' he says and I could've sworn I locked it but I didn't. God, someone could've come in here while I was in the shower.

''I told you to leave me alone'' I say and walk past him to get my bag.

''Why would you walk out here so late?''

''Because I had to take a shower''

I get my blow dryer out and rest it on the sink counter then look at him.

''Can you like leave or something because I need to get dressed'' I say and look him directly in the eye.

He doesn't say anything instead he just stares at me first before his eyes rake up and down my body in the towel causing me to shiver bit from his deep stare. He looks at me one more time before he finally leaves and closes the door behind him. I immediately lock the door and make my way back over to the sink. I blow dry my hair, brush my teeth, moisturize then change into my pajamas before putting on my robe.

I pack up my things and head for the door. Something tells me that he's waiting for me outside and I proved correct as I see him leaning against the wall. I walk straight past him and begin to walk down the trail. He follows me and calls for me multiple times but I ignore him and continue walking until he runs up to me and pulls me back by my arm.

''What!'' I shout at him.

''We need to talk'' he says.

''No, I told you to leave me alone'' I say and try to walk away but his grip holds me in place.

''Yes we do, now come'' he says and pulls me behind him as he now leads the way.

''No, I don't want to go anywhere with you now leave me alone'' I demand and pull my arm away then walk down the trail while he looks at my every step.

He runs up to me but this time he stands in front of me.

''Can we just talk about it?'' he says his voice much softer and less demanding.

''No'' I say and his nostrils flare a bit and I know he's mad.

''Yes we do''

''Okay fine, you wanna talk Hero, let's talk!'' I shout at him.

''I have nothing to say to you, you already humilated me and made me I looked like an idiot for you'' I say.

''Look I can explain it okay so just come over and we'll talk then I'll bring you back and you'll decide what you want to do'' he says and I nod grudgingly.

If I didn't agree to talk with him he would just keep on following me.

I follow him down the trail and he unlocks his car and I get in without a word. We drive for about five minutes before he parks his car.

We walk down the steps and arrive in the hallway, the place looks familiar from my last visit and I'm sure I can find it easier now, not that I'll ever be coming back here, this is the last time.

He hands me some of the food to hold as he gets out his keys from his pocket and opens the door then throws it on the kitchen counter. He takes the food from me then puts it on the kitchen counter. He heads straight for the bedroom and I remain in the living room, I just came here to hear what he has to say and that's it, I'm leaving after so I don't need to go into his bedroom nor do I want too. He looks back at me as he realizes I don't follow.

''You said you wanted to talk so we'll talk out here or I'm leaving'' I say with my arms folded across my chest.

He makes his way over to me and stands in front of me practically towering over me.

''I didn't mean the things that I said. I did mean some things like the fact that I don't date and I'm not your boyfriend, those things were true but the others weren't. You were clearly confused by what was going on between us, we're just friends that's all'' he says.

''I'm not gonna be one of your sex friends or something'' I clarify.

He needs to know that I will never be one of the girls that he just messes around with, I'm not going to be one of his sex friends and since he says that we're just friends I won't ever let him touch me like that nor kiss me nor will I ever come back here.

''I know you aren't, if you were I would've fucked you already'' he says and the words make me speechless, whenever he says things like that it always does.

''I didn't mean the hurtful things that I said. Look just forget about it okay? let's just be friends'' He says and rubs my arms up and down with his hands. I nod in response earning a small smile from him.

''Come on'' he says and leads us to the bedroom.

''Uhm no you said after we talked that you would take me back to the tent''

''No I said I will let you decide''

''Well I want to go back to the tent'' I tell him.

''Come on, it's already 2 in the morning just stay here and I'll drop you back in the morning. I'm tired'' he says.

''I know you slept away on the beach'' I say.

''I wasn't sleeping at first but when you stroked your fingers against my face like that it felt too good that it made me fall asleep, so it's technically your fault that I fell asleep there'' he says and I smile and blush hard then follow him into the bedroom.

''Wait, you're not gonna eat?'' I stop.

''We'll eat after'' he says and continues walking. What does he mean we? I'm not hungry I told him already and even if I was I would never eat this late that's unhealthy, eating late in the night was one of the many things my mother doesn't allow and never do I.

''I'm gonna go take a shower'' he says and makes his way into the bathroom.

As the shower starts running I look around his room, I smell the cologne on his dresser and they all smell so manly yet so heavenly. His phone begins to beep a few times in a row making me jump from looking around, to the other side of the room where his phone lies on the bedside table. There are 7 unread messages. Two from Axe, one from Stone, one from Brooke and the others from someone named Brent. I read the message from Brent first whose name unlike the others I've heard about.

*Will you be coming over on Friday?*

*Please let me know so that I can tell Claire to prepare*

*How's the job going?*

The texts read. I read previous texts from the person and the person has been asking him if he wants to come over or go out but Hero never responded to any of them. The person constantly tries to get his attention but he rejects it. I wonder who is this person and why do they keep trying to get his attention so badly? Just as I'm about to read the other messages I hear the water stop running and I immediately put his phone down and sit down on the couch and turn the tv on low.

He comes out wearing only black joggers and is rubbing a towel through his wet hair. I admire the way a few droplets of water from his hair fall onto his flawless back and glistens along his skin. He turns around and catches me staring at him and I focus my attention back to the tv. He walks into the living room then returns with his hands full with the food. He rests the food down on the side then continues to dry his hair with the towel as he stands at the side of me.

''What are you watching?'' he asks and I have no idea what to say as I turned the tv on any random channel to make him think that I was watching something.

''Uhm just a movie about fighting,'' I say as I see people fighting with weapons on the screen.

''You're watching Vikings, it's not a movie it's tv show about war'' He tells me.

''Oh''

''I didn't think you liked that kind of shows'' He says and sits down next to me.

''I don't really but I just like this one''

''So who do you think gonna win the battle for supremacy Ragnar or Earl?'' He asks and I think he's onto me.

I don't say anything instead I turn my face to his and stare at him and I see the corner of his lips forming a mischievous smile but after a second the smile disappears and now he looks mad. He knows that I don't know anything about this show and he's trying to embarrass me.

''What were you doing?'' He asks me.

''Nothing I was just lying on down on the bed first then I came here to wait for you'' I lie and he looks me dead in the eye and he knows I'm lying but he drops it.

He sits down even closer to me as he opens the box and pulls out the calzone. He takes a bite and I try not to stare at him as he chews and shallows. He offers me a bite but I say I'm not hungry for the tenth time but he insists that I take a bite. The calzone just has weird looking meat, some vegetables and is filled with cheese. I've never really eaten any meat besides chicken and fish.

''What kind of meat is this?'' I ask.

''Chicken, pork, beef, and ham'' he says and I shake my head no.

I actually wanted a piece but I'm not gonna eat something that's filled with all that type of meat that I've never eaten before. He opens it and takes out all the meat from the sandwich and puts it in the box then hands it to me.

''Eat this half'' He says and picks up the untouched half from the box then brings it to his mouth.

The calzone tastes surprisingly good but I feel a bit guilty eating this late knowing how upset my mother would be and I've never eaten this late before.

We both finish eating the calzone then he goes straight for the mashed potatoes. I decline which only makes him want to give it to me even more and a few seconds later he feeds me a spoon while I munch on the fries. The burger he ordered his huge, it's a double meat and cheeseburger. He eats half and offers me but I tell him that I'm full and he leaves the other half in the box. How can he eat so much?

It's a good thing he exercises and is muscular or else he would've been fat if he keeps up with this eating especially this late. Both drinks are empty and there is a mess all over the couch. I clean up everything and put the half untouched burger in the fridge then throw away everything in the bin. I wash the few dishes he has in the sink then throw away some wrappers he has on the counter. The bin is full so I push some of the garbage down and something catches my eye in the bag.

I look closely and it's strands of hair that's of bright blonde color with a few strands of hot pink wrapped around some blonde hair. I look closer and I see a wrapping paper with instructions on how to apply a tattoo. The pictures show to apply a heart tattoo on the upper cheek near the eye. So did he dye parts of his hair blonde and pink then cut it off? And did he put on a fake tattoo of a heart on his face? I look at the trash bag in confusion for some time then eventually come to the belief that he did because why else would they be in his bin? I tie the bag and walk back to the bedroom.

Why is there pink and blonde strands of hair and instructions on how to apply a girly heart tattoo?

I want to ask him about it but then he would know that I was snooping again then we will just end up fighting for the rest of the night so I decide not to mention anything and just let it go because maybe it really is nothing but it still has me concerned.

''Let's go to bed'' he suggests and gets up from the couch.

''You're going to sleep with your hair wet?'' I ask as I turn the tv off.

''No I'm gonna dry it now but you go to bed in the meantime'' he says and I do just that.

I take off my robe then get under the covers, warmth takes over my body as I lay in his bed, the bed is the most comfortable bed I've ever slept on, and it's much better than sleeping on the ground in the tent. His house is always cold and I'm always shivering but as soon as his body touches mine, I immediately warm up.

The covers smell just like him and I pull them up to my shoulder. The last time he slept on this side closer to the end while I slept on the other side, this time I take the end. I hear his blow dryer turn off and he quickly makes his way to me. He puts his knee near my arm on the bed as he begins to lift the covers.

''You gonna roll over or am I gonna have to push you over?'' He asks.

''Can I sleep on this side for tonight?'' I ask.

''No this is my side that's your side'' he points to the other side closer to the wall farthest away from the edge.

''So what there are sides now?'' I ask and he just stares at me for a moment before I shift to the other side.

He gets under the covers with me and we both turn on our side to face each other and he puts one of his arms on the pillow above my head. I put both of my hands together under my cheek as I turn on my side to face him. He pulls me a bit closer and our bodies are now inches apart.