Wingless and beautiful episode 19
đWINGLESS AND BEAUTIFULđ
đEPISODE NINETEENđ
We sat there for a while, locked in each otherâs embrace,smiling to ourselves as we enjoyed the illuminated viewaround us. More than that, we were savoring the momentthat we were finally together again⌠here in our gardenwhere we first met and fell in love.
We came a long way from the first day we sat on thisbench. I was just waking up from my nightmares then.Hunter couldnât even see the beauty of the world beforehim. But now⌠my nightmares were far from haunting me.And Hunter was wh0le again. He could see not just thelights that surrounded us⌠he could see me⌠and he loved
me the same way he did when he couldnât see how I reallylooked like.
âWill your transplant last forever?â I asked, worriedabout what his answer would be.
He sighed. âNothing lasts forever, angel,â he replied.Then he smiled at me. âWell, maybe except for us.â
âHow long then?â I asked again looking into his eyes.
He touched my cheek gently. âMaybe fifteen, twentyyears. Give or take.â
âIn twenty years you will only be thirty-eight.â I couldfeel panic creeping through me.
âI can do it again. I will do it again,â he said, squeezingmy hand, giving me reassurance. âI already signed up for it.I wouldnât want to miss seeing our children grow up, wouldI?â
I smiled at that thought. What he said was not just areply to my question; it was a statement that held so manypromises that I knew he would keep.
He tilted my chin up so I could look at him. âIâm notleaving you anymore, angel.â
I nodded, my chest felt heavy with intense emotionsâŚintense feelings of love for this boy.
âPromise?â I asked in a tearful voice.
He leaned forward and k-ssed my l-ips. âI promise,â hesaid. âNow, you have to make me a promise too.â
I nodded. âAnything.â
He took a deep breath. âSince Iâm a little bit short oftime in seeing the beauty of the life we will make together,will you promise to give us an early start?â
I drew my brows together. âWhat do you mean an earlystart?â
He smiled. âI mean start a life as early as possible. Youknow⌠get married, make a family, get pregnant⌠earlierthan the other couples would normally do.â
I looked at him thoughtfully. âIt depends. Whatâs yourtimeline?â
He smiled at me wistfully. âMaybe after college.â
âThat early?â
âEarlier if possible,â he said. âI was lucky this operationwas highly successful. I would do it again for sure. But justin case the second one doesnât work out⌠then itâs stillokay. I have seen your face and would remember it for aslong as I live. I would like to see and remember the faces ofour kids too. I would be there for them fully, completelyâŚfor as long as I could⌠before my world gets coated in
darkness again.â
âOh, HunterâŚâ
Tears welled up in my eyes. My heart felt heavy as Iimagined how that would feel like for him.
He hugged me. âSsshhâŚâ he whispered. âCornealtransplant operations are highly successful. During the firstyear and a couple of months after, rejection episodes mightoccur. I didnât immediately come back for you until I was sosure that this was a success.
âI wanted to be sure I could be with you, be capable oftaking care of you until the next transplant is necessary. Andeven if the second one does not work out the way we wantit to, I wouldnât care anymore. You would have alreadyshown me the best things in life. And I know even if Icouldnât see you, I would still get to hold you in my arms,k-ss you⌠love you. Weâve been there before, angel.Havenât I made you happy in the past? Back when I was stillblind?â
âVery,â I sobbed against his chest. âIt didnât matter thatyou couldnât see. You have always made me feel safe, mademe feel happy.â I wrapped my arms around his neck. âIpromise you⌠you would have the best memories of yourlife for the next twenty years, Hunter. If itâs Godâs will thatthe light switches off in your world again, I would make sureyou would have enough memories to keep you happy. Andeven then, I would never leave you. I would keep giving youhappy memories for as long as Iâm alive.â
âThank you, angel,â he whispered against my ear. âSo,is it a yes? Do you agree to start our life together earlythen?â
âYes, Hunter,â I said. âAs soon as you think weâre ready. Iwill say yes as soon as you ask me.â
He hugged me tightly. âDonât make promises you canâtkeep, angel. Because I am quite tempted to ask you rightnow.â
I laughed. I pulled away from him and stared into hiseyes. âI also said as soon as weâre ready, remember?ââAh, you said, as soon as I think weâre ready. Who saysweâre not ready now?â
âHunter⌠weâre only eighteen. We have to get jobs. Yes,weâll be great parents. But we need to find means tosupport the kids, remember? We have to make sure we cangive them a good life.â
He stared at me for a moment and then he chuckled,
âYou donât know me very well, do you?â
I blinked back at him, trying to understand what he wastrying to say. Then I remembered, Hunter Vaughn was a richkid. But that was not really the point, was it?I shook my head. âI know youâre loaded. But money runsout, Hunter.â
âDepends on how you manage it. When I turnedeighteen, I gained access to my trust funds and myinheritance. I already have a house hereâthe lake houseâand I have my motherâs estate in Jacksonville. I haveinvestments here and there that gains very lucrativeinterests.â
âThatâs not the point, Hunter,â I argued gently. âHow areyou going to teach your kids the value of money if you onlyknow how to spend it and not earn it?â
âWell, we are going to teach our kids how to earn andsave money from an early age. Theyâll be just fine.â
âThey ought to be,â I said. âI would never hesitate to tellthem how my life had been like, so theyâll know howprivileged they are.â
He smiled at me. âDo that. Make them proud.â Heleaned forward and k-ssed my l-ips again.
Then suddenly, he turned serious and nervous at thesame time.
âIs everything alright?â I asked.
He nodded. Then he pulled away from me and reachedout for the necklace he was wearing. He took it off and tookthe ring pendants out. I remembered seeing him wear thesependant rings when he carried me on the beach. I had beencurious about it but didnât want to ask.
âIâm not proposing now,â he said nervously. âBut I wantto give you this ring. To remind you that someday⌠Ipromise⌠I will.â
My mind went blank for a wh0le minute as I stared atthe ring in Hunterâs hand. It had a diamond in the center,surrounded by an intricate carving design that got mecurious the first time I saw it.
Hunter took my hand and slipped the ring on my finger.
It was only then that I recovered from my shock. I finallymade out the design of the ring. The two-carat diamondcenter was surrounded by smaller diamonds that make outthe shape of wingsâlike angel wings.Then he showed me the matching ring. It had a thicker
band. The pattern revealed a sword with a small rounddiamond on its hilt.
âThis ring is mine. A symbol of my promise to alwaysprotect you⌠take care of you⌠guard you,â he said in asolemn voice. He placed the ring on his finger and then heraised his eyes to look into mine and added, âLike aguardian angel.â
I bit my lower lip to keep from whimpering. The designon his ring was a sword, and it reminded me of the weaponsthe archangels carried in their hands.
âSay something, angel,â he said nervously.
âHunter⌠itâs…â
âBeautiful?â he supplied for me.
I leaned forward to k-ss him. And just when my l-ips werea breath away from his, I whispered, âEmpyreal.â And then Ik-ssed him.
He hugged me tighter as he deepened the k-ss. Then he
leaned his forehead against mine as he breathed in thescent of me. âEmpyreal. I like that word,â he whispered. âIlove you.â
âI love you too.â
He gently tore himself from me âCome on,â he said.âYou must be hungry. Itâs technically our first date since Icame back. I wouldnât want you to think that I was starvingyou.â
I laughed. âIâm not hungry. But since you asked, Iâmsuddenly craving for burgers.â
I stood up on my feet and pulled Hunter up. He put anarm around my shoulders and we headed out of the garden.When we reached the parking lot, he led me to theblack Porsche, which I first thought was Chaiseâs.
âThis is yours?âHe nodded.
I looked at the hood again and saw the long dent causedby a sharp army knife.
âYou didnât get it fixed.â
He shook his head. âIt reminded me of that night.Figured I may need proof someday that it was me whosaved you.â
âChaise had the same car, you know? He stoppeddriving it to school after that night. I figured it was becausehe was having it fixed.â
He opened the door of the passenger seat for me. âIâmreally beginning to hate the guyâs luck.â
I laughed. âWell, even with his luck, he didnât get me tofall for him, did he?â
Hunter grinned at me menacingly. âThat wasnât his luck.That was purely my charm.â
I rolled my eyes and laughed. âOh, there it is!â Pointinga finger at him.
He stared back at me blankly. âWhat?â
âYour inflated head. I was beginning to wonder if youlost it along the way.â
He laughed and couldnât help leaning forward to giveme a smack on the l-ips. âI almost forgot that one of thethings that attracted me to you was your sense of humor.â
âThatâs because you spent ninety-nine percent of yourtime being angry at me since you got back.â
âI wasnât just angry,â he admitted. âI was jealousâcrazyjealous!â
âNext time you decide to be jealous, get your factsstraight first, okay?â
He raised a hand to his side, swearing like a boy scout.
âMaâam, yes, maâam.â
Hunter drove around the city. It was only when heparked in front of Burger Inn that I realized where we were. Iwas reluctant to get down from the car and he noticed it.
âYou said you were craving for burgers,â he pointed out.
âYes, I did. But half of the population of Leighton High isprobably there,â I argued.
Hunter grinned. âThen thereâs no better place to makean announcement, is there?â
He rounded the car and opened the door for me. Thatwas new to me. I realized that I only had been in a car withChaise and he never opened the car door for me. Iâm notsaying somethingâs wrong with that. But I guess Hunter wasmore old-school than Chaise was. And I prefer old-schoolany day.
âWhat announcement?â I asked as soon as I got downfrom the car.
His eyes gleamed as he gave me a mischievous smile.
âThat the prettiest girl in the campus is now officially off-limits.â
âWho me? No, Iâm notâŚâ I started but he silenced mewith a k-ss.
âYou are,â he said. âWhy do you think I punched DonWinston in the first place?â
âBecause he poured ketchup all over me?â
âAnd he didnât just do that to embarrass you. Guys havedifferent ways of expressing a crush, angel. Winstonâs brainwas just tiny. He hadnât graduated from kindergarten tacticsyet.â
âSeriously?â I asked in shock.
âSeriously. And since you played in that concert, the listof guys I would threaten to stay away from you hasincreased ten-folds.â
âLie!â
âI wish it was,â he muttered under his breath.
He took my hand in his and intertwined our fingers. Ashe opened the doors to Burger Inn, he raised our hands to his l-ips and gave my fingers a k-ss, deliberately lettingeverybody see.I felt like the world literally stopped spinning. The placewent quiet except for the music that was playing. Apartfrom that, I felt like almost everybody in,side stopped talkingand just stared at us.
I was right. More than half of the diners were from ourschool. I should know. I used to work here and it was afavorite hangout during Friday nights.When I looked up at Hunter, he had a proud grin on his
face that he couldnât seem to wipe off. He lookedmischievous and carefree as he led me to an empty table inthe corner.I looked up into his eyes. They were dancing, and hewas obviously fighting the urge to laugh.I looked around us and found that many people were
looking at us. Some were trying not to make it obvious thatthey were watching us, others didnât care if they werecaught staring at all. As expected, many girls were staringat meâwith wide, furious glares on their faces.
âWhat the hell?â
âFirst, Chaise Anderson. Now, Hunter Vaughn?â
They also didnât care if we overheard them.I turned to Hunter. âIâm dead. These people are going topeg me as their number one target again on Monday.â
Hunter shook his head. âLet them try. Half of them aredumb anyway, they canât hurt you.â
I rolled my eyes. âAlone they are harmless. But Iâve beenin Leighton High long enough to learn not to underestimatethe power of stupid people putting their heads together.â
Hunter laughed. âTrue. But remember, people canât pullyou down if they werenât below you in the first place.â Hetook my hand in his, touching his ring on my finger. âTheythought you were with Anderson, thatâs why they werenâtscared to try. But now that youâre with me, I doubt any ofthem would even attempt to touch you.â
âHow do you know that?â
âIn case you didnât notice, Iâm slightly scarier than thelast guy who followed you around, angel.â He pulled myfingers to his l-ips to give it a k-ss. âAnd unlike Anderson, Iwalk the talk. No signs. No warnings. And Iâm never leavingyour side, remember?â
I raised a brow at him. âAre you my boyfriend or mybodyguard?âHe held his ring in front of me, my eyes weremagnetized by the intricate carvings on it. âGuardian angel,remember?â He straightened up on his seat, and in a louderthan necessary voice, he said, âAnd unlike the last one youhad, I have a sword, not a halo. And my wings are black, notwhite. Itâs time they realized who they will have a problemwith the next time they hurt even a single hair in yourbody!â
My eyes wÂĄdened at him. He took my hand in his again,and then he bent down to k-ss my fingers once again. âI loveyou, angel.â He didnât even whisper that. I was sure manypeople around us heard everything he said.Four⌠three⌠two⌠one.I turned around and everybody stopped staring at us.They turned back to their respective tables and startedminding their own businesses, as if they were afraid to look
at us again.Hunter took me home just before midnight. He walked
me up to the front porch.
âIs Meredith home?â he asked.
âShe texted me a while ago. Sheâs pulling an all-nighteron her job tonight.â
âSo, youâll be here alone?â he asked.
âWell, it wouldnât be the first time,â I replied.
âAre you sure youâre going to be okay?â
I smiled at him. âDonât worry about me, Hunter. Iâm notas fragile as you think I am, you know.â
âI know.â
He leaned forward and k-ssed me on the forehead.
âGood night.â
âGood night.â
He gave a serious smile and then slowly, he leanedforward and brushed his l-ips against mine.I closed my eyes, my heart pounding loudly in,side mychest. I k-ssed him back and wrapped my arms around hisneck. I felt his arms around my wa-ist as he pulled me
against his body.When the k-ss ended, we were both breathless. He
pulled me to him in a hug and I felt him inhale through myhair.
âYou smell nice,â he whispered. âAs always.â
âI thought I smell like burgers,â
He laughed. âNo, you donât. You smell like strawberries,honeys-ckle and freesia. I will never forget your scent, nomatter where I go.â
I pulled away from him. âItâs getting late.â
He pushed a lock of stray hair away from my face. âGiveme your phone.â
âWhy?â I asked, handing it to him.
He punched some numbers on the screen and thenclicked save.
âMy number,â he said, handing me back my phone.
I smiled when I saw the name he saved on my screen.My boyfriend.
âAre you not going to get my number?â
He grinned at me. âWhat makes you think I donât knowit already?â
âYou do?â
He nodded.
âHow?âHe smiled at me mischievously. âDonât tell her. ButDenise doesnât exactly guard her phone like a hawk. Halfthe time, she didnât even know where she left it around thehouse.â
âSheâs gonna kill you if she knew youâre prying aroundher phone.â
âI had to,â he said. âWe donât get along that well, but itâsmy duty to look out for her too. I had to make sure shedoesnât go overboard with her crush with Arthur Buckley.â
My eyes wÂĄdened. âYou knew?â
âOf course.â
âHow?â
âIâm observant. And overly suspicious. I trust myinstincts and I investigate if I need to. When she was actingweirdâI mean, weirderâI had to check out why.â He heaveda worried sigh. âIf she doesnât come to her senses soon, Iwould have to go up to Buckley, myself. I donât trust him.Denise can be naĂŻve sometimes. But sheâs trust-funded. Idonât want a sc-mbag like Buckley to take advantage ofher.â
I nodded. âIâm sure sheâll come out of her infatuationsoon.â
âAnyway, go in,side now. Iâll pick you up tomorrow.â
âFor what?â
He shrugged. âPicnic in the garden?â
âIâd love that. But I have a shift tomorrow at the libraryin CRC.â
âGood. Iâll take you there and come back after your shift,so we can spend some time in our garden.â
âCan you still go there?â
He nodded. âThe grounds are open to anyone. Thefacilities, though, can be used by anybody who used to gothere. CRC doesnât close their doors for you just becauseyou got better or decided to leave.â
âWow. Thatâs really nice.â I tiptoed to k-ss him. âGoodnight, Hunter.â
âGood night, angel.â
I was pretty sure I was smiling like an idiot as I closedthe door behind me. I couldnât seem to wipe the smile off my face even after I took a shower and got dressed in mypajamas.Before I went to bed, I took a peek at my window, justout of habit. I was shocked to see Hunterâs car still outsidethe house.I picked up my phone and called him. He answered inone ring.
âHunter?â
âYes, angel. Is something wrong?â he asked.
âWhat are you doing outside my house?â
âAhhh⌠Meredith isnât home,â he replied. âI didnât wantto leave you alone.â
âSeriously?â
âI can never be too sure. This neighborhood isnât reallywell-guarded.â
âAnd youâre just gonna sit there in your car untilmorning?â
âWell, it wouldnât be the first time. Donât worry aboutme.â
âHunterâŚâ
âAngel, Iâm okay. Go to bed. Good night.â
âI love you,â was all I could say.
âI love you, too.â
When I hung up the phone, I just didnât feel right,knowing he was out there, guarding me. It must be souncomfortable in the car.So, I wore a robe and got out of the house.Hunter stepped out of his car as soon as I opened thefront door.
I felt the chill of the cold night as I stepped on the frontporch. He started walking towards me.
âDo you realize that your car is probably moreexpensive than the contents of any house in thisneighborhood?â I asked.
âThe carâs insured, donât worry,â he replied. âWhat areyou doing out?â
âYouâre not going to change your mind about leaving,are you?â
âNo. What difference does it make? Iâve done this morethan a dozen times. You never complained before.â
I narrowed my eyes at him. âThatâs because I didnâtknow you were doing this before.â
He pulled me to him. âI went through an eye transplantso I could watch over you, remember?â
âI know. So, if youâre going to just stand guard, youbetter do it in,side the house where itâs warm.â
He faked a shocked expression on his face. âGoodness,are you inviting me to your bed?â
I gave him a playful jab on the stomach. âNo! The couchis perfectly warm and comfortable.â
âWell, I thought you planned to corrupt my innocence soearly in the relationshÂĄp,â he teased.
I pulled him towards the house. âDonât get any ideas inyour head, Hunter. Iâm only after your comfort. Our couchisnât fancy, but itâll keep you warm just fine.â
He pushed the remote on his car to lock it and then hewent in,side the house with me. He double-barred the doorbehind him.
âToiletâs over there. Most of the stuff there are mine.Meredith has her own bathroom in her room. There are newtoothbrushes on the cabinet. Feel free to take one.â Ipointed to a corner of the house where the bathroom was.
âIâll go get you a blanket and pillows.â
He simply nodded.
I took clean sheets, a blanket and pillows from mycabinet. Hunter was in the bathroom when I came back tothe living room. I placed the clean sheets over the couch,then I placed the blanket and pillows on it.I almost jumped when I felt Hunter snake his armsaround my wa-ist.
âJesus, you really do move like a ninja!â
âNinja?â he echoed, spinning me around so I could facehim.
I looked up at him. He had removed his jacket. He waswearing a white shirt, different from what he was wearingduring our date.
âYeah, Denise sometimes say that about you. We donâteven see you coming to class.â
âI take a lot of special classes. Itâs necessary if I want tograduate with you. No way, you will go to college withoutme,â he said.
âGood,â I said smiling up at him. I stared back at hisshirt. âThis wasnât the shirt you were wearing before.â
âI changed in the car,â he explained. âI always haveextra clothes there, just in case I wonât be able to comehome. Like tonight.â
I smiled up at him. My heart felt like it will burst withhappiness any minute.
âThank you,â I whispered.
He leaned his forehead against mine. âYou didnât haveto thank me. I love you, you know.â
âI know. Now, more than ever.â
âIs it okay with your aunt, if I stayed?â
âAs long as youâre not in my bed, sheâll be fine with it.â
He gro-ned playfully and I laughed, pulling away fromhim.
âGood night, Hunter.â
He pulled me back to him and gave me a gentle k-ss onthe l-ips before releasing me. âGood night, angel.â
I went to my room, closing my bedroom door behindme. I threw myself in bed. And because I couldnât containthe happiness that I felt in,side, I put my pillow over my headand literally scre-med on it. I didnât even care if Hunterheard me.