Hunter

"Jules isn't here, loverboy."

"I know," I said, as I leaned across the counter. "Hey, can you fix me two cups of Caramel Macchiato?"

"Oh, I see," Red said with a broad smile plastered across her face. "So you already know his favourite drink. Bonus points for you."

I grinned at her as she began to steam milk.

"Are you guys official now?" she asked over her shoulder.

I hesitated for a second. Jules and I hadn't really been able to talk about it yet, and I didn't know if he was comfortable with telling people. But Red had been one of the first people he had come out to, so that had to count for something, right? I settled on being casual about it and said: "I think so."

She raised a brow at me. "You think so? What's that supposed to mean? Do you like him or not?"

"Of course I do," I said.

"And he obviously likes you too," a deep voice suddenly said. I turned around to see Darryl, Jules' boss and apparently Red's boyfriend, leaning against the counter with his hands deep in his pockets. "The only question is: Are you up for something serious?"

I frowned slightly. Lately, everybody seemed to ask me that because for some reason, everyone was worried that I would suddenly change my mind and break Jules' heart. As if I could ever do that.

Before I could answer, Red chimed in. "I know you have kind of a... history of dumping people before a serious relationship can even begin. You won't do that to Jules, will you?"

"It'd be a little late for that now," I said honestly. "If this was only a temporary thing, I would've ditched him after the first week of him not seeming interested. I wouldn't have stuck around long enough to help him through struggling with his sexuality and I definitely wouldn't have limited everything to kissing and holding hands. This is different."

There was more I could've said; that I felt lightheaded every time I saw him even from afar, that only holding his hand felt better than anything else I had experienced with all those before him. That I would gladly trade one minute with him for every single night with a stranger in my bed. That I could barely sleep at night, knowing that he was only a few houses down the road.

Red and Darryl exchanged a victorious grin before Red schooled her features into a serious expression. "You better not hurt him, loverboy."

Darryl nodded. "Be careful with him."

I had to chuckle as I realized how overprotective of him they actually were. "Since when have you guys adopted Jules?"

"Since his actual parents turned out to be homophobic assholes," Red said and handed me the two cups of Jules' lifeblood.

The smile slid off my face and I thanked her quietly. Once I was in the car, I handed the two cups to Liam, who I was taking to school with me today.

"Why the sour face?" he asked worriedly as he studied me.

My friends were worried about me a lot these days. Since Victoria had started making Jules' life a living hell, they apparently thought I was in desperate need of emotional support. Which I was not; I was too busy worrying about Jules than my own pathetic problems.

Just imagining him alone in his room, with no one to talk to despite his homophobic parents, made me want to throw up. He had been well on the way to accept his sexuality and had started to gain confidence before they had found out. Now he was probably back to zero.

At least he was still willing to see me. After all it was my fault. If Victoria hadn't been so fixated on me, she wouldn't have done any of these things.

"It's just..." I began, tiredly rubbing a hand over my eyes. "I'm worried about Jules. Emily told me that Victoria was at his house last night."

Liam looked just as disgusted as I felt, though he had noticeably perked up at the mention of Emily. For the past few weeks, he had seemed to be nursing a secret crush for her. "What the hell? How can his parents not see how much of a snake she is?"

I shrugged, stopping at a red light. "Don't ask me. I just hope he's doing alright. Nate says he's still quieter than usual, but that he at least doesn't look like he's going to break down any moment."

Liam, who was absentmindedly sipping my coffee, nodded. "I noticed. He looks better since you started talking again."

"He's always looking good," I grinned, to which he rolled his eyes. "What, it's true! Have you seen his hair? And his eyes? His smile? Have you even looked at him?"

"Yes, of course I have, but I don't swing that way," he groaned. "He seems nice though."

"I suppose he does," I laughed. "So... when are you gonna ask Emily out?"

His eyes widened in horror. "How do you know I like her?"

"Well, first of all, you almost threw a party when Jules broke up with her-"

"I was just happy that he didn't lead her on any longer! She deserved better than that-"

"Then there's the fact that every time you see her, you look like you've never seen a girl before..."

"Oh come on, you have to admit she's... pretty."

I shrugged. "She's cute. Not really my type though."

Liam rolled his eyes again. "I know. You're type is slutty and conceited."

"Jules isn't like that though."

"Yeah, okay, but he's the first. All of the others were simply annoying," Liam said.

Looking back, I knew that he was right. Quite frankly, I had already known they weren't for me when I had invited them over, hoping for an easy lay and maybe a few breaks spent making out in the janitor's closet.

Jules was an entirely different thing. From the first moment I had met him, when he had spilled his coffee all over me, I had been strangely fascinated by him. Not by his body or the thought of getting him into bed, but him.

Deep in thought, I hadn't even realized how much time had passed and was surprised to see we were already pulling onto the school's parking lot. I instinctively looked out for the rusty green Peugeot and tried not to be too disappointed when I didn't find it anywhere.

Before I got out of the car, I asked Liam: "Hey, do you have a sharpie?"

Liam rummaged through his bag for a moment and handed me a marker. I took it gratefully and began scribbling a note on a napkin from Starbucks I had taken with me for this purpose.

Good morning junkie, here's some coffee to fuel your addiction. I'll pick you up at the gas station on 5th street after school. Emily agreed to tell your parents that you're with her today, so they don't get suspicious. I hesitated for a second before I added: P.S.: I dreamt about you last night.

When I looked up, I saw Liam grin. "Well, would you look at that. Hunter Adams is becoming a romantic."

I ignored his comment and got out of the car instead, finding myself getting tackled in a hug as soon as my feet hit the cracked pavement.

"Morning! How are you?" Alex asked cheerfully as she clung onto me.

I smiled down at her and hugged her back, careful not to spill any of the coffee. "Honeybee, you don't have to act so damn excited every time I'm around."

She shook her head and looked up at me. The wide smile slowly diminished into a worried curl of her lips. "I read somewhere that it's uplifting for someone going through a hard time to be with someone who acts happy."

"I'm not going through a hard time," I groaned, ignoring Liam's snort. "Jules is. I'm fine."

Alex let go of me and planted herself in front of me, her hands on her hips and a scolding look on her face. I struggled to stay serious as I looked at her; every time she was mad at me, I had to compare her to a yapping little chihuahua. "Hunter, just because someone else is having problems, doesn't mean that yours are less significant."

Here we go again. "The queen of self-care has spoken," I said sarcastically.

"Hey, this is serious! You need to talk to us about what's going on. Just refusing to acknowledge that you're not as fine and dandy as you like to pretend won't make anything better."

I bent down slightly so I could look her in the eyes. Then I slowly said: "I'm fine, Alex. I won't be any help to Jules if I'm a self-pitying mess."

"You won't be any help to him if you keep bottling things up until you explode either," Liam butted in.

Alexis nodded, sending him a grateful look. "Exactly. I just think it would do you good to deal with your feelings rather than deny them."

"But I have no right to complain! Alright, so I can't see my boyfriend and I miss him and it's a shitty feeling." I took a deep breath. "Jules is the one people should be worrying about. His parents... I don't even want to imagine what they're doing to him. Everything he's been trying to come to terms with, is now the reason for this shit." During my rant, my voice had gotten increasingly louder. Now I sighed and closed my eyes, remembering his breakdown in my kitchen as he had seen the Advil pills. "And I think there's more than that. Something must've happened to him in the past, but I have no idea what that is."

Alex's brows were furrowed as she listened to me. "After hearing about his parents, I'm not surprised to be honest."

I nodded silently and tried to shake the disquieting feeling that had crept up on me off. "Anyway. What I'm trying to say is: If you want to make a fuss about someone, make it about him. I'm okay if he is."

Only as Alex and Liam stared at me speechlessly, I noticed how much that sounded like a cheesy Nicholas Sparks book.

To escape their bewildered faces, I turned around and entered the school. I didn't have to turn around to know that they were following me. It took longer than it should have for me to get to Jules' locker because everywhere I went, people seemed to gather, shouting greetings and faking smiles for me. Since I wasn't with Jules in public anymore, they had started to assume we weren't together anymore. This week I had already gotten a couple messages, offers from people I knew briefly. I had deleted all of them without second thought. The chance of inviting them over had lost all its appeal. On my way to the locker, I met Adam, who followed us wordlessly.

Once I was there, I frantically looked around for Victoria and when I didn't see her anywhere, I opened the lock with the combination Nate had told me. After I had placed the coffee and the message inside, I made a bee-line to my own locker.

To say I was surprised to find Victoria and Sean there would be a lie, since recently they liked to follow me around.

Not sparing them a single glance, I opened my locker and made quick work of stuffing my books into my bag. But of course that didn't stop them from annoying me.

Victoria was leaning against the locker to my right, pushing her chest out and batting her eyelashes at me. "Hey, Hunter," she purred. "I thought maybe I could come over tonight?"

"You thought wrong," I said flatly. "I have other plans."

"Oh? And what are those? What is a guy like you doing at night when he's not in bed with someone?" Sean huffed.

"Oh, you know, the usual. Contemplating how to kill both of you and make it look like an accident, for example."

Victoria looked genuinely offended. "Just because we got rid of that annoying, inexperienced twat for you?"

"Sorry, I think you misspoke We destroyed your first healthy relationship," I retorted. "Seriously, Victoria, you don't want to annoy me or this could get ugly."

Alex immediately put a hand on my arm, as if to stop me from punching Victoria and said: "Victoria, you've done enough already. Leave him alone."

Liam nodded and stepped between us. "Why don't you just throw yourself at someone else? There are more than enough guys who wouldn't mind getting laid-"

"I don't care about any of them," Victoria snarled. "I want Hunter."

"Victoria, sweetheart," Adam suddenly said in his deep, gravelly voice and bent down a little so she could look him in the eye. "You're a fucking moron if you think that ruining Jules' family life will help you get Hunter back. Seriously, what kind of stupid idea is that? Of course he'll be pissed when you hurt his boyfriend."

Sean narrowed his eyes at him. "What's up with all of you lately? Since when are you the Jules Hatcher Fanclub?" He turned to look at me. "What's so special about him, anyway? How is he better than everyone you dated before?" Sean stepped even closer, until we were almost touching. "I hope his parents send him to Church Camp. Maybe that'll teach him to stay away from you."

Before he could finish his sentence, he suddenly stumbled away from me, howling in pain.

I grinned when I saw Adam standing behind him, one hand mercilessly dragging him away from me by his hair, and eventually slammed Sean face-forward into a locker. Sean gasped and turned around, fists raised and ready to punch Adam.

What he didn't know, was that Adam had been boxing in a sports club for the better half of his life. His punch was hard and precise: Sean was down in seconds, leaning limply against the wall with blood gushing out of his nose. He stared up at Adam with nothing but hatred written across his features, but instead of talking to him, he looked at me and sneered: "Letting your lap dog fight your battles, huh? You're so pathetic Hunter, I can't believe no one at this school can see what a fucking-"

Adam was back at his side in a heartbeat, gripping Sean's collar, one hand already raised to knock him out.

But Alexis was just as quick and put a hand around Adam's fist. I could faintly hear her saying: "He's had enough, Adam. C'mon, let go of him, the teachers will be here in a second..."

Surprisingly, Adam groaned and let Alex pull him away from the quietly cursing Sean.

I thanked him absentmindedly, but kept my eyes trained on Victoria as she kneeled down next to Sean and started to wipe the blood away with a handkerchief from her purse.

Alexis looked down at Victoria with narrowed eyes. "Did you plan on stepping in or were you just going to let him knock your friend unconscious?"

Victoria frowned and continued to clean up Sean's face with a disgusted expression, trying hard not to get any blood on her hands. "What was I supposed to do? Let them brawl. Boys will be boys."

I knew that Alex was going to get worked up over that last sentence even before she opened her mouth and said: "But they'll still be responsible for their own actions. How does their gender justify anything?"

The other girl looked taken aback for a moment. Then she shook her head and the scowl was back on her face. "Whatever. Get out of here."

We didn't need to be told twice. Adam and I strolled to the gym, where our next class was, while Alex and Liam went elsewhere. The first few minutes passed in silence, which wasn't exceptional. Adam and I usually didn't talk much and enjoyed the comfortable quiet between us.

But at some point, I just had to ask. "Adam... you know you didn't have to do that, right?"

Adam looked surprised. "But I wanted to. He has no right to talk like that."

"Since when do you care about Jules?" I asked.

"Since you started caring about him," he shot back, smiling faintly.

I laughed and bumped him with my shoulder, which he returned. "Thanks, man."

Afterwards we both dwelled on our own thoughts until we reached the boys' locker room, where we both went to change into our sports clothes.

My heart skipped a beat when I saw Jules standing at his locker right next to mine, his curly head bowed down as he laced his shoes. He wasn't wearing a shirt yet, which made it even harder not to stare at him.

"Hey," I whispered as I dropped my bag on the bench next to him, casually brushing his hand in the process.

Jules looked around nervously, but I didn't miss the faint blush that crept onto his cheeks as he quickly pulled a shirt over his head.

"Don't worry, I don't think Sean will come here anytime soon," I said.

Jules looked up in surprise, finally daring to glance at me. His cheeks turned even redder when he saw that I was currently topless. I made sure to flex a little more than necessary as I put my shirt on.

"Uhm..." Jules muttered as he tore his eyes away from my torso and looked at my face instead. "Thanks for the coffee."

"Anytime, sweetheart," I grinned. "So, do you think you can meet me there after school? We could hang out at mine or something."

Jules' face lit up at that. "Definitely."

I smiled back at him and grazed his cheek fleetingly with the back of my hand. "Okay. Can't wait."

"Yeah... I need to talk to you about something," Jules said and chewed on his lip.

It took all of my emotional strength to keep myself from pushing him against the lockers and bite his lip myself. Just looking at him was nearly too much for me to handle; why did he have to do stuff like that and make it even harder?

"We can talk about anything you want later," I promised before the shrill noise of the coach's whistle rang through the room and we went back to pretending we didn't even know each other.

+++

The next two periods felt like days, so I skipped the rest of class and went home instead. I spent the free time working out at home. The physical activity momentarily distracted me from thinking about Jules too much.

Afterwards, I had a quick shower before I got into the car and drove to the gas station. Jules was already waiting there, hands in his pockets and leaning against a wall. I pulled up right next to him and pushed the passenger door open for him to get in.

As soon as he was inside the warm comfort of my car, I took his face in both my hands and smothered his attempt of a greeting with my lips. A surprised noise escaped his throat, but only seconds later he edged closer and reached out to frame my face with his hands.

I chuckled quietly as I saw his expression when I backed away after only a few seconds; he didn't seem sure whether to glare or pout, so in the end he settled on frowning in disappointment.

"Don't worry, there's more of that to come," I muttered before I turned to face the street and started the engine.

Jules seemed somewhat satisfied with that promise and settled back into the leather seat, fiddling with a loose thread on the hem of his oversized shirt. "Why weren't you at school for the last few periods?"

I looked over at him, surprised that he had even noticed. "I'm the bad boy, remember?" I said jokingly. "I need at least a few hours of detention to keep my image up."

"I, uh... heard about what happened with Sean," he said while carefully studying his hands in his lap. "Can you thank Adam for me?"

"Why don't you thank him yourself?"

Jules grimaced a little. "I don't really think he likes me."

"He does," I said confidently. "If he wouldn't like you, you'd notice, trust me. Adam is the pettiest person I know when it comes to people he can't stand. I remember in fifth grade, when he cut Lindsey Smith's ponytail off just because she stole his granola bar two weeks earlier..."

Jules chuckled, leaning back in the passenger seat. I immediately had to smile; Jules' laugh was easily one of my favourite sounds in the entire world. It was gone too soon, as he said: "I can only stay with you until eight. Emily called my parents and told them we were spending the afternoon together. Of course they believed her, but they told me to come home for