Getting all the things in her list were more easier than she thought as she happily made her way out of the store. With difficulty, she carried the heavy bags but bumped into someone outside the store.
” Oh no! ” She whined as her bags fell and the contents scattered on the floor.
” I’m so sorry! ” She said apologetically and went about picking her things.
From her peripheral vision, she saw that the man had bent over to help her. She muttered several Thank Yous, not looking once. They both picked the last apple and Ava finally had the chance to look up at her helper when their hands brushed each other.
” Thank you so… ” Her words trailed off as she recognized the face immediately.
” Hunter? ” She asked, shocked as if she couldn’t believe her eyes.
His own expression was no different from hers ” Ava Adams?? ” His deep baritone got Ava even more excited. She nodded numerous times and flew into his arms.
” Oh My God, Ava! ” He said happily, his expression mirroring Ava’s own expression. He cradled her in his arms and they hugged.
Ava finally let go of him and placed her hands on his chest to steady herself from falling.
” Hey, careful ” He cautioned and he held her arms. Ava placed her palms on her mouth to prevent herself from screaming again. Hunter removed her hands from her mouth and held ’em in his warmly.
” How have you been? I looked for you everywhere! ” Hunter said, laughing and and Ava imitated him.
” I’ve been doing pretty good ” She replied excitedly and her expression turned into a hard one as she faked annoyance.
” Where on earth have you been?? ” She asked, glaring at him playfully.
” Where on earth have YOU been? ” Hunter threw back her question at her.
Ava rolled her eyes ” Coming from someone who abandoned me years ago, isn’t it? ”
Hunter’s laughter filled the air ” No no, it’s not what you think, kitten ”
Ava rolled her eyes the second time and hit Hime on the chest lightly.
” What have you been up to anyways? Where have you been all these years? ” She asked, sniffing. She could be mistaken for crying.
” Heyy ” Hunter called softly and put out a hand to stop her from displaying more drama.
” Let go of me! ” She snapped and yanked her arm out of his hold. Placing her hands on her hips, she pinned him with a hard stare.
” You’re yet to answer my question, Hunter ” She glared at him.
Hunter snapped out of what seemed to be a trance as he kept staring at her ” This is really not the time and place, Huh Sunshine? ” He smiled warmly and his voice held a tone of apology as though he had other pressing matters to attend to.
” Oh ” Ava said and her face fell in disappointment. She stared at her feet and she pouted her lips in which Hunter found really cute.
He pointed it out ” You’re cute, you know. You’ve always been ” He smiled and bumped her nose lightly with his index finger.
” Here ” He brought out his phone and handed it to her.
Ava smiled and punched in her number eagerly. She handed his phone back to him.
” Good girl ” He said, laughing and pressed a kiss on her forehead ” I’ll call you very soon . I’m fact, expect my call any minute from now. I’ll take you on a dinner date where we can have time to talk and catch up on good ol’ times, huh? ”
” Yayyyy! ” Ava rejoiced and did a little dance before Hunter caught her and engulfed her in a warm hug again.
” I’ll see you soon, okay? ” He said softly, his voice sounding muffled on her hair. The smile he gave her was tender as they said their byes and parted ways.
Ava smiled all the way back to the house, occupied with thoughts of Hunter. They’ve been friends since middle school and things were good between them until when Hunter’s dad got transferred all of a sudden. Knowing it would break her heart, Hunter refused to tell her anything and they continued to enjoy each other’s company right until the last minute when Hunter bade her good night one day and hugged her with tears in his eyes.
Ava had frown, asking him why he had tears in his eyes but he he quickly wiped away the tears and lied that something got in his eyes. Ava had gone inside her own house after he left, thinking about how odd it was for someone to cry over something which flew in their eyes. It was not until after two days that she finally realized his reason for crying last night they were together. She had cried her heart out and vowed never to forgive him for vanishing into thin air without giving her a heads up.
She sighed, jolting back into reality. Well, going down the memory lane was blissful, she thought and smiled. He grew up so well that she almost didn’t recognize her longtime friend. She was really pretty sure that by now, he had almost all the girls in the city by the hook. Well, she shouldn’t blame the girls, Hunter was too handsome for his own good. He had always been a playboy and a heartbreaker right from childhood. Again, she was roughly jolted back into presence but through a different way. A lady who sat beside her in the bus had sneezed randomly.
******************
” Come in ” Alex said in reply to the light knock on the door.
Shortly after, the door opened and a guy in black walked in briskly. He could be mistaken for a professional boxer judging from his heavy build. They exchanged greetings and Alex looked at him eagerly, hungry for the news of the woman he had been thinking about.