Uriel – The archangel who takes you out of the darkness and into the divine truth.
As soon as Hunter’s smirk faded from his face, we saw bright lights streak the skies, followed by the loud, booming sounds of thunder. A few seconds later, heaven let out its wrath and large drops of water soaked our skin.
I turned on my heel and headed back to the house. I tried to run. Unfortunately, the rain made the dock floor slippery and my slippers were not slip-proof. I took one step too quick and lost my balance. I shrieked, knowing well enough that I would fall flat on my ass in three, two…
But I felt arms wrap around me immediately, breaking my fall, catching me. I looked up above me and saw Hunter looking down at me with an amused expression on his face, his arms wrapped all around me.
He pulled me up and before I could settle both my feet on the ground to secure my balance, I felt his arms under my legs and the floor disappeared below me. I let out another shriek. Hunter had scooped up on his arms and started walking towards the house.
“Put me down,” I protested.
He shook his head. “No way. You’re clumsy, Allison.”
I bit my lip. My heart pounded inside my chest again. I couldn’t breathe and I was pretty sure my face was turning violet from my blush.
Allison… we make a dangerous pair. I’m blind and you’re clumsy.
I remember him saying those words to me like he just said them yesterday.
Does he remember saying them? Does he remember me? Does he want to remember me at all? Or was I just part of the nightmares he chose to leave behind?
We reached the house and he settled me down on my feet. We were both drenched from the rain. I refused to look at him and went into the bathroom to grab a towel for myself and another one for Hunter. I went back to the living room and handed it to him. He took it without a word, also refusing to look me in the eye.
I wrapped the towel around my shoulders to keep me warm. Hunter took off his drenched shirt and went to the fireplace. I watched him lit the fire. My thoughts were running wild and my nerves were going on a haywire.
What was I going to do here alone with Hunter? The house was not exactly huge for us to play hide and seek while we tried to avoid each other. It was almost impossible not to talk or even look at each other.
When he turned around, his perfect abs were exposed to my view once again. I quickly turned away from him. I would not be caught drooling over his body twice!
Without a word, he went to the bedroom. When he returned, he was already wearing a fresh white shirt.
“Are you not gonna change?” he asked. “You’re going to get sick.”
“I only brought one shirt from the main house,” I replied in a quiet voice.
He went back into the bedroom and, when he returned, he handed me a gray shirt.
“Borrow mine. Go change before you catch a cold.”
I didn’t argue with him. I took the shirt, murmuring my thanks before I headed to the bathroom. When I went back to the living room, Hunter was standing by the glass doors, watching the rain. Thunder continued to bellow and it didn’t look like the storm had any plans of stopping any minute.
I went in front of the fireplace to keep myself warm. There was a beautiful wood coffee table beside me. The sides were engraved with flowers and vines. The varnished table top had checkered patterns in the center. It took me a moment to realize that the patterns made up a chessboard.
I smiled. It was cleverly done. It was very well-fitting for the owner of the house who happened to be a chess master.
“You wanna play?” Hunter asked behind me. I turned around to look at him. He’d been watching me look at his chessboard coffee table.
“I don’t know,” was all I could say. And it was the only answer I had. I didn’t know if I wanted to play against the genius chess master in front of me. I didn’t know if I wanted to remember our first date. I didn’t know if I could sit in front of him for hours and pretend that we didn’t have a bomb hanging over our heads, ready to drop and blow everything out of proportion. I didn’t know if I could endure Hunter’s snide remarks and insulting glares. I didn’t know if I could be a hypocrite and pretend I could take any more of his refusal to acknowledge me... and our past.
He walked towards the coffee table, opened the drawer and took out the chess pieces. He quietly set the board up and then he sat on one of the couches. He raised a brow at me and waited for me to sit in front of him. When I didn’t budge, he frowned. “It’s not like you’re going anywhere,” he said dryly. “At this rate of the storm, it looks like we’ll be stuck here for an hour, maybe more.”
I sighed and sat on the chair opposite him. Playing chess would keep my head preoccupied with other things. It would be a challenge to beat him in this game, but it sure would be easier than trying to figure out what I had to do about him in real life.
I moved my pawn. He moved his. I moved my knight. He moved his bishop. I put my pawn as bait, he refused to take it. Instead, he took another move that took me on a crossroad. Take him down or take the higher road.
In a way, in real life, Hunter and I were playing chess. It was all mind games. Each of us trying to read the other, anticipating the other’s moves, strategizing how to save our pieces, refusing to give in to the other and trying our best to walk away broken but victorious.
Finally, I was down to my two pieces. Hunter with four. I reached for my bishop and hesitated. When I looked up, Hunter was looking me intensely. He was studying me. I couldn’t read the emotions on his face. In his eyes, I saw disbelief and admiration that I lasted this long. But we both knew the inevitable. Only one of us could win this game. Only one would walk away scathe-free.
And sadly, it wouldn’t be me.
I sighed and moved my piece. The only possible move I could make. Hunter never took his eyes away from me. He didn’t have to look where I put my piece. He reached forward and moved his queen. And in a soft whisper, he said, “Checkmate.”
I flicked my king gently in frustration. I leaned back on my seat and stared at the chessboard. I sat there for a whole minute, just staring at my fallen king. Realization crept through me like a treacherous friend waiting to stab me in the back. I would not win this.
When I raised my eyes to Hunter, I found that he was staring at me as intensely as I was staring at my fallen chess piece. His eyes were boring holes through my soul. His expression was a mixture of frustration, anger and sadness.
He won. But why was he staring at me like it wasn’t enough? Like he wasn’t done yet?
“Don’t you ever get tired of winning?” I asked in a weak voice.
He didn’t answer at first. Then in a sober voice, he replied, “Who said I ever win at all?” I thought there was anger in his voice again, but he was trying to control it.
Before I could open my mouth to say something, a booming sound interrupted us. Hunter finally took his eyes off me and stared at the glass doors outside where the rain was stronger than ever.
“I never said thank you,” I said. “You know… this afternoon. You saved me. What you did was dangerous for you… for your…” I trailed off.
It is true. He shouldn’t have jumped into the lake water without protection on his eyes. It was dangerous for his transplant.
When I looked up, I found that Hunter was studying my face again, as if he was trying to read the emotions behind my words. Then he sighed and said, “It doesn’t matter.” He paused for a while and added, “I don’t care anymore.”
“Why do you say that?” I asked, trying to control my voice. I remembered what he said when he left. He wanted to do the transplant so he could protect me.
He shook his head. “We do things for a reason. I did the transplant for a reason. But that reason is… gone.”}}}