Hunter shook his head. "So, are you Martha or did she die and you just took her spot?" He said coldly. Martha had become an important person to him. She was the mother figure that he never had growing up at camp. Now, that he found that she was a lie, part of him was sad. Even if she wasn't an old lady, she still saved his life, on more than one occasion. Overall, he was okay with it.
"I am Martha. I've always been Martha. Did you not notice all the times that you spoke of me and no one had any idea what you were talking about?" She said giving him a smile. She sat down on the couch and gingerly crossed her legs. She put one hand on her knee and another on the couch. She patted it lightly and smiled at Hunter. Hunter looked at her hand and then back at her. He blinked and sat down in the armchair. Aphrodite sighed, looking a little disappointed. "So," She said turning to look at him. "What's going on with my daughter?" She said with a devious smile on her face. "Did you guys make-out, yet, or what?"
"I uh...no." He said, his cheeks bright red. She looked at him with a look of disbelief.
"What are you? Gay? I can get Daniel, if you want me to." She said, shaking her head.
"NO! Uh...No, please, don't do that." He said, clearing his throat. "I've never liked a girl, like this before. I mean, I have, but I haven't been able to do anything about it."
"Right...Right...That pesky oath of celibacy thing." She said quietly before taking a deep breath. "So, what's stopping you, now? You're not under that oath anymore. Do you find Arabella unattractive? Does she not do it for you? I can tell you, she likes you plenty." She said, leaning back into the couch. Her words stung Hunter's ears and bounced around his head.
"No, no, no. Nothing like that. I think she's the most beautiful woman on the planet." He said quietly, studying his feet. Wait. "She likes me? She LIKES me? Why...Why didn't she tell me? Why did she have to get drunk to do anything about it?" He asked frantically. Aphrodite rolled her eyes.
"Wow. You really are new to this." She said with a sigh. She sat forward and looked into his eyes. "Don't take this the wrong way, but I feel it needs to be said. Ahem. HOW DID YOU NOT KNOW!?" She shouted at him. "I think that she did everything short of smoke signals and semaphore. Letting you live in her house. Complimenting everything you cooked and believe me, that pork was dry." She said pointing at him. Hunter nodded. "She bought you clothes. She flirted with you everyday. If that didn't tip you off, she tried to get you into bed. So, in summary, yes. She likes you. At this point, I'm having a hard time seeing why, but that's up to her." She said quietly. "That leaves one question. Do you like her?"
Hunter froze. Did he? He wasn't sure. "I don't know. I mean, when she's not around, I don't know what to do. Every time I see her, my day feels brighter. I started this not thinking that I would stay, but now, I can't think of leaving. I don't know." He said, studying the ground. He didn't know why he would just open up like this. Especially to Arabella's mother. Aphrodite leaned back in the couch again, a smile on her face.
"That pretty much sums it up." She said with a grin. "You are head over heels for her. It's about time, you knew." Hunter smiled. He liked her. She liked him. It was perfect. It was absolutely perfect and it was also 7:00. Hunter stood up quickly.
"I need to go. I want to be there when she gets back from work." He said quickly as he walked toward the door. He looked back at Aphrodite who stood up as well. She looked down and smoothed her dress. "Thank you, Aphrodite. You saved my life." He said with a smile. Aphrodite looked up at him. "Why didn't you just tell me you were Martha? That would have saved so much time."
"Well, where's the fun in that? Not to mention, I had you cook for me for a while. and to be honest I was hoping you'd figure it out on your own." She said with a smirk. "Obviously, that didn't happen. Once you leave, however, I'm not coming back to help you. Martha will be gone and this apartment will be empty." She said solemnly. Hunter sighed and nodded.
"Either way, thank you. You-" He said, before Aphrodite sprung her head up. She seemed to be reading something.
"You need to go. NOW. Arabella jut prayed to me. There's someone in the apartment. Go! Go!" She said, as she shoved him out the door.
"What?! Oh, crap!" Hunter said as he turned and sprinted down the stairs. He ran as fast he could and took the stairs 3 at a time. Be okay, Ellie. You have to be okay. He though to himself, tears starting to form in his eyes. He burst from the building and took off through the park. He ran as fast as his feet would carry him all the way back to Arabella's apartment. He found the door open and drew his bow. He crept inside and what he saw broke his heart. Arabella kissing Chad. His hands up her shirt. He put his bow away as the tears poured down his face. He was speechless. After all of this, he missed his chance. He wasn't sure what to do. Should he confront her? She made the mistake of trusting Chad before. Why did she do it this time? He was angry, sad, confused, and he just wanted to die. He felt broken. Everything that he had come to know and enjoy was taken from him in one second. He walked into the kitchen and grabbed a pen, a piece of paper, and an envelope. He wiped tears away, but more came. He bent over the paper and began to write, tears splashing the page. Dear Arabella, He froze. He had so much to say, but there wasn't enough time to say it in. I wanted to thank you for everything. You've given me so much and even though we're calling it even, I can't begin to thank you enough. I even started to think that I could stay around and maybe He let out a small sob and made a sloppy attempt at scratching that last sentence out. I intruded on you and Chad. I didn't want to interrupt. He obviously makes you happy and that makes me happy. More than anything, I just want to see you happy. You deserve it. I hoped that I would be the one to make you happy. I wanted to be wi- He scratched it out and wiped away more tears. I felt that I needed to be with you, but I will have to live without you. You deserve to live a good life, Ellie. I want that for you. I hope that you and Chad are really happy together. He stood up again and wiped his eyes in his shirt. Ellie, I don't want to live the rest of my life without you. He scratched it out as more tears fell onto the page. I can't He scratched it out. If there's any doubt. Please. I need to know. I don't want to sit through the rest of my life wondering what this could have been. Ellie, if there's any doubt, I'm going to be at the coffeeshop around the corner at 2 o clock. Please. Please. I love you. He stared at his words before scratching the last three out. Hunter. He signed before slipping it into the envelope and writing her name in big letters on the back. He left it on the table and let out a small sob before walking out of the kitchen, out of the apartment, and out of her life.