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I get why he’s upset. The girl that he’s into doesn’t trust him. But he doesn’t understand that it’s not just a little thing I’m trying to keep from him. It’s a matter of life and death. And I can’t explain that to him.
“I’m sorry, Griffin,” I say, my voice much softer than before. “I want to be able to give you something more, but I can’t right now. I hope that you can understand and we can be friends.”
“Friends?” He flinches. “I was trying to make you my girlfriend, Cove. I wanted way more than friendship.”
I knew that he did. But hearing him say it hurts my heart.
Why can’t I like Griffin the way he likes me? Iwantto, but I can’t. I can’t give him my heart when it already belongs to somebody else. Maybe if I had met him before Hunter. Maybe if things were different. But they’re not. This is my life.
“I think I’m going to head back to my dorm for the night. I have some homework to finish up anyway.” Griffin moves to get up, but he pauses to look at me. “I guess I’ll see you Saturday?”
I nod, letting him know we are still on for homecoming. It’s better to go with him as friends than to go alone. Hunter thinks I’m pathetic enough as it is.
“Goodnight, Cove,” he says, then walks off, leaving me on the edge of the dock alone.
Phoenix and Sander.
I hear footsteps behind me. I don’t have to look to know it’s Hunter. I look out at the dark water for a moment before I push myself up from the deck, meeting Hunter half way.
“Where did Griffin go?” he asks.
I put my hands into the pocket of my hoodie. “He has some homework to do.”
Hunter huffs. “Then why did he invite you here in the first place? You guys barely hung out.”
I shrug, not bothering with a response.
I don’t want Hunter to know what happened with Griffin. Mostly because we talked about what wealwaystalk about—Hunter. The last thing I want is for Hunter to realize that there is some truth to what Griffin is saying. I will never like Griffin like I do Hunter.
“Since we’re here, there is somebody I want you to meet.” His face lights up and he grins widely.
“Okay.” I smile, excited for him to introduce me to some of his friends.
Hunter’s whole life is revolved around me. He’s in my world, but I barely ever get a glimpse of his world. It’s nice to feel like he wants to introduce me to his world.
Hunter holds on a hand toward me and I pull my hand from my pocket, letting him hold my hand.
“Your hands are cold,” he says.
It is getting pretty cold already. Maybe too cold for just a hoodie. Soon, I’ll need to bring a heavier jacket to hang out like this. Or maybe we will just have to hang out somewhere other than the clearing.
Hunter leads me toward a couple that is standing at the edge of the clearing. I recognize the first person right away as Sander, but I don’t know the girl standing next to him.
The girl is about my height with long brown hair. It’s wavy and beautiful. The girl is beautiful, actually. Her bright blue eyes sparkle as she looks at Sander.
This must be Phoenix, the girl Hunter helped protect last year. It gives me hope. This worked out for her, so maybe it will for me. But I’m nowhere near as pretty as her.
She and Sander both look at us as we approach.
Hunter puts his arm around my shoulder. “This is Cove. Cove this is Phoenix.”
“Hi.” I tuck a piece of hair behind my ear, feeling a little nervous. I really want Hunter’s friends to like me.
“Hey.” She grins widely. “It’s really nice to meet you.”
Sander grabs onto her hand. “You two haven’t killed each other yet.”
Yet being the keyword.
