Hunter watched as Arabella left and leaned on the back of the couch. He looked around the apartment. "What do I even do, now?" He asked himself quietly. When he was homeless, he would just move or look for a job. When he was at the beach house, he could just work on the house. Now that he was here, and Arabella was gone, he had no idea what to do. He sat on the couch and turned on the TV. "The Bachelor is still on? Ugh...They're not going to get married." He said quietly. He watched for a couple minutes before turning off the TV and standing up. He stood there for a second before deciding to put away his clothes. That took about 15 minutes and the only thing Hunter could do was pace around the apartment. He walked into the kitchen. He wasn't hungry, but he thought maybe there would be something to do. He looked at the counters. "I'll just clean. Everything." He said calmly as he dug under the sink for some cleaning supplies. He immediately went to work. He scrubbed down every surface, cleaned the sink, tightened and cleaned the pipes under the sink, threw out all of the expired food, and wrote out a set of instructions on how to use the dishwasher. He finally sat down at the table after putting everything away. "I wonder when she's going to get back." He said quietly as he checked his watch. "4:30. She left an hour and a half ago." He groaned as he put his head down on the table.
"What do I care? It's not like I sit by myself doing nothing, because I don't know what to do when she's not around." He said glancing around the kitchen. "I cleaned." He said quietly. "And I did plumbing. I plumbed. And..." He set his head back down on the table and sighed. "Why do I keep thinking about her?!" He muttered into the table as he flailed his arms. He finally stood up and walked to his room. He quickly changed into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt before walking back out. He paced around the living room. "I don't know what this is! Who would know...Who would know....OTHER than Arabella." He tapped his chin and continued pacing. "I could talk to-No, they live at camp. There's-At camp." He said with a sigh as he sat down on the couch. "I don't know anyone..." He said quietly. "Wait. What about Mike? No...He's only married out of boredom. That leaves..." He stood back up and calmly walked out the door after slipping on a hoodie. He climbed down all of the stairs to the ground floor and walked out, making sure to give a smile and a nod to Tom the Doorman.
Hunter walked quickly. He needed to figure this out and he wanted to be back before Arabella got home. He walked across Central Park and found a boarding house that seemed a little worse for wear. He took a deep breath and walked in. He started up the stairs.
"I'm sorry, do I know you?" A voice from behind Hunter came. He turned around to see Calvin, a college student who wasted most of his money on a girlfriend that left him and the proceeding heroin addiction. Hunter had met him a few times on the stairs. He had a job at the museum and was trying to turn his life around.
"It's me. Hu-" He started. Did Hunter really want Calvin to recognize him? He didn't have the time. "Umm...No. I don't think so. Never met you before." He lied before turning and continuing to climb the stairs.
"Well, hold on, friend." Calvin said, catching up with him and putting a hand on Hunter's shoulder. "I'm Calvin. Can I direct you to someone?" Hunter sighed.
"I'm...Bill." Hunter said shaking Calvin's hand. "I know where I'm going. I'm just visiting my...mother...in-law." He lied. "She lives on 8." He said pointing up the stairs. "I really need to get going though. I'll see you around, Calvin." Hunter said before sprinting up the stairs to the eighth floor. He walked to the 4th apartment and knocked gently. He heard shuffling and movement on the other side of the door. Finally, the door creaked open to reveal a shortish woman with white curly hair and big glasses. "Hi, Martha." Hunter said with a small smile. Martha adjusted her glasses and looked up at him.
"Hunter? Is that you? It doesn't look like you, but I'd recognize that voice of yours anywhere." She said giving him a smile and a wink. "Come in, dear. I'll let you make me some tea." Hunter chuckled and entered the apartment.
"How you doing, Martha?" Hunter said in a loud voice. He walked into the kitchen and worked on preparing some tea.
"Quiet down, Hunter. It's my eyes that are gone, not my ears. I'm doing alright. These old bones are going on me. I'm not the looker I once was." She said with a chuckle as she eased down into a armchair. Hunter walked in and sat down on one side of the couch.
"You're still as beautiful as always, Martha." Hunter said with a grin.
"Oh, you're too kind." She said with a scoff. "Look at you. Back to your former glory. I presume. You seem to be taking care of yourself." She said just as the teapot whistled. Hunter excused himself and walked back into the kitchen. After a few minutes, he returned with two cups of tea. "Thank you, dear. So, what brings you here?" She said before taking a sip of tea.
"I need your advice on something. I'm...a little confused, I think." He said setting his tea down on the coffee table. Martha raised her eyebrows at him. She scooted to the edge of her seat and set her tea down.
"Oh? Are you okay, dear? Is there something wrong with Arabella?" She asked offering him a friendly smile, but worried eyes. Hunter shook his head.
"No, nothing wrong, I guess. I'm just-" Something struck Hunter. He looked up at Martha and tilted his head. "Martha, how did you know about Arabella? I haven't been here for about 2 weeks." He said, eying her cautiously. Martha cleared her throat.
"You uh...You sent me a letter. Don't you remember?" She said quickly before standing up in her chair and shuffling quickly down the hallway. She came back after a moment with a piece of paper in hand. Hunter looked up at her and for a split-second he thought he saw...He thought he saw Arabella. She handed it to him. Hunter looked at it. It was his handwriting.
"Dear Martha, You have helped me so many times. I can't thank you enough for all that you've given me. I've been in many awful predicamants and you've gotten me out of them. I'm happy to tell you that I'll be living with a friend from camp named Arabella. She's beautiful and smart and kind and I love her. Thank you for the help. Love, Hutner." He read aloud. He blinked at the letter before looking up at a very nervous looking Martha. "I've never written a letter to anyone." He said quietly. "And even if I did, I probably wouldn't misspell predicaments or Hunter, my name. So, now that I know that you just materialized this letter, which god are you?" He said, standing up and walking to stand in front of Martha. Martha sighed and took a step back. Hunter watched as her glasses disappeared and her white hair grew into long blond hair that fell down around her shoulders. Her clothes, that were too big for her frail frame, transformed into a long slinky dress that hugged every curve of her body. He blinked as he thought he saw Arabella again. He focused on her again and immediately recognized her.
"You just have to be so smart, don't you, Hunter?" She said, with a pouting smile. She looked him up and down and gave him a wink. "My, my, my. Danny did a good job. It seems all of my kids have a thing for you, Hunter." She said giving him a devious smile. Hunter sighed and shook his head.
"Aphrodite."