Chapter 35
CHAPTER 35
B lue, green, yellow, black. A pallet knife spread the colors across a patch of canvas. The colors muddled together like a bruise. Quick strokes arching across the canvas connected the bruised arm to a puddle of crimson. Taking the tip, I dug it into the oil paint and created deep lacerations on the porcelain skin. I threw the knife to the side where a small table sat with my other supplies.
Hunter kept himself busy behind me, tapping away on his phone. I tried to ignore him, but the sound of his thumbs on his screen drove me nuts.
“Hunt. I need you to go.” I swiveled to face him. The campus studio was small. It’s designed to have enough space for the artist to work, but not much more. The canvas I was cathartically working on took up most of the wall. A metal table sat directly to my right, littered with multiple paint tubes, brushes, turpentine, and cleaning rags. We’ve been here for a few hours and my progress slowed because of incessant tapping.
Hunter looked hurt at my outburst. “Sunshine, we talked about this, this morning.” He sat up from the small couch that was shoved near the door. It was odd that the university suppli ed one here. They were just asking for art students to have hookups on it. Which, thinking about it, Hunter should burn his clothes when we get home.
I extended my hand towards him. “You need to give me your phone.”
He looked at me like I’d grown a second head, but relented, placing it in my open palm. Smiling, I chucked it in the trash can.
“What the fuck?”
I spun around and picked up my paintbrush. “Your tapping is getting on my nerves.”
Before I could start, a cold glob of paint contacted the back of my head. My jaw dropped. Hunter just threw paint at me. That fucking turd.
Remaining silent, I willed my hand to be stealthy as I loaded it with paint. In one swift move, I swiveled and catapulted paint back at Hunter. He moved quickly, dodging the globe and making a break towards me. I squealed when he tackled me from my chair, nearly knocking over the easel I was working with.
I belly laughed as Hunter held me down with one hand and reached for more paint above us.
“No!” I yelped gleefully when he spread paint across my cheek. Every time I tried to squirm from his grasp, he answered my attempts with a deep, chest vibrating chuckle.
“Sunshine, did you just try to whip paint at me after throwing my phone away?” His eyes swirled with darkness and a shiver zipped down my spine.
“What are you going to do about it?” I challenged.
Hunter’s responding smile told more than words. I anticipated his move before it even happened. Deftly, he grabbed both my wrists with one hand and held them above my head. The almost painful stretch sent a delicious sensation down my spine. I fought the urge to arch into his hold.
“No response, baby girl?” Hunter’s eyes flicked down to where my shirt had ridden up in our tussle on the floor. With paint still on his fingers, he ran his digits across my midriff, the cool sensation combated with the twinge in my wrists. Hunter ducked his head and continued his ministrations. Furrowing my eyebrows, I realized he wasn’t moving towards my waistband.
Suddenly, he popped up, grabbed his phone, and threw himself back onto the couch, leaving me alone on the floor. Pushing myself up on my elbows, I watched as he resumed scrolling and tapping his phone screen. Looking down, Hunter’s handiwork sat on my stomach.
‘ Hunter’s’ spread across my abdomen with an arrow pointing towards my groin.
“Seriously?” I laughed.
“Don’t even think about washing it off, either.” He didn’t bother to look at me as he spoke.
Rolling my eyes, I scrambled from the floor and stood with my hands on my hips. “And if I did, hot-shot?”
Hunter paused, a smirk growing on his face as he slowly lowered his phone to his chest, “I’ll tie you up, blindfold you,” his eyes smoldered, “and baby girl, I can draw it out for hours. We can see how you feel when you lose all control.” His eyes flit back to his screen, leaving me to squirm.
Later that night, Hunter dropped me off before heading to his late class. Surprisingly, Kennedy waited for me in the kitchen. She sat on a barstool, grilling Axel on the difference between punk and pop punk, “Saying you like punk music and following it up with Blink-182 as your favorite punk band is like saying you like country music and George Strait.”
Axel looked uncomfortable in her crusade and bounced from foot to foot while she continued. Noticing me, he visibly sagged , “Oh thank fucking Christ, Maci, your lunatic is here.” He waved his hands towards Kennedy.
Laughing, I said, “How long has she been grilling you on music knowledge?”
“Fuck if I know. I was trying to be polite.”
Kennedy interjected, “Excuse me, wannabe G.I. Joe, it’s not my fault you lack a proper music education.”
“I didn’t ask for one!” Axel yelled, stomping out of the kitchen. Kennedy shrugged her shoulders and turned to me. “Alright girlie pop, I want all the details about this sex shop you’re living in.”
“Snacks first, stories after.”
“Excellent idea friendship,” She stood and helped me rummage through the cabinets. We weren’t successful in finding snacks that appeased us. In true college athlete fashion, the boys' fridge and cabinets adhered to the nutritionist plan given to them by the athletic department. Which was ironic, considering these idiots consumed more empty calories on a Saturday night than a few bags of chips.
Groaning, I turned towards Ken. “They have rabbit food and protein bars.”
She tsked, “That just means we have to go get ice cream!”
“I’m supposed to be under house arrest, remember?”
Kennedy crossed her arms over her chest and pouted, “Oh, come on, it’s ice cream. A quick trip to Uptown and back. Uptown is crawling with students at night. We will be fiiiine,” She grabbed my arm and dragged me from the house.
“Hunter is going to turn my ass red if he finds out,”
“Just bring him back a scoop and tell him he can eat it off your—oh!” She stopped mid-sentence, running into Cooper.
He put his hands on her shoulder, steadying her as she teetered off balance, “Holy gingerbread man, Batman!” She exclaimed, looking up at Cooper.
“You’ll have to excuse Kennedy. The psych ward just released her. ”
She smacked me playfully, “Bitch.”
“Where are you two going? Aren't we all supposed to bend over backward to keep you safe?” Cooper blocked the front door and didn’t move out of our way. I had a feeling he wouldn’t until we answered his question. Thankfully, Kennedy beat me to respond.
“Gingersnap, this is an emergency of the tampon variety.”
Cooper wrinkled his nose as if the thought of feminine hygiene would make him puke. He moved aside, “Whatever, don’t get scared by the breeze and come crying to Hunter, I get bitched at enough as is,” He stomped his way up the stairs grumbling as he went.
“What crawled up his booty-hole?” Kennedy tugged me out the front door without a care in the world. I admired Kennedy. She didn’t care what anyone thought of her. She constantly went to the beat of her own drum and was fiercely loyal. I was lucky to have met her. Between Kennedy and Hunter, they dragged me from the depths of my hell.
Quickly, we made our way to the uptown area of Bloomington. The nice thing about BU was that everything on campus was within a fifteen-minute walk. Students flocked to Main street for its slew of shops, restaurants, and bars. Besides Scoops, the ice cream parlor, there was a Mediterranean restaurant with the best falafel and french fries on the planet, a coffee shop, and a sandwich shop. The line at Scoops wasn’t surprising. We didn’t delay entering the queue, the sweet cream smell enveloping us. I hadn’t been to Scoops since last year. It was one of my favorite places to go in the summer when we were young. The nice thing about college towns in the summer is that they become ghost towns. Dad would bring us up to Scoops every Sunday and we wouldn’t have to wait longer than 10 minutes to be filled with sugary goodness.
The place hardly changed over the years. Funky purple paint covered the walls, along with quotes about ice cream and pi ctures of hockey leagues they sponsored. The store was small, with enough space for the main counter, the ice cream freezer, and a few sparse tables and chairs. Most patrons took their ice cream and sat on the patio next to the store. While contemplating which flavor I would order—Superman or Chocoholic—a prickle of awareness skittered down my neck. Kennedy talked about what she was ordering none the wiser to my sudden discomfort.
Covertly, I glanced over my shoulder to see if anyone was watching us. Nausea churned in my stomach from my unease. Scoops was filled wall-to-wall with people, realistically, anyone could be staring at us. However, this felt more sinister. Not like some mother glaring at my neck, hoping I’d make my decision faster. No, this was something more.
Flicking my eyes forward again, I discreetly tugged on Kennedy’s elbow and leaned in. “Ken, I think someone’s watching us.”
She didn’t attempt being covert, instead opting to whip her head around to evaluate the room. Her eyes narrowed at every male. Our turn to order came, and we both stepped up. We ordered, paying and shuffling to the right where the pickup counter was.
“Act normal,” Kennedy whispered while pretending to watch one of the Scoops' employees. “If someone is watching, they won’t make a move in a packed ice cream shop.”
She had a point, but I still didn’t like the feeling of eyes on us. It was unnerving. The thought to text Hunter crossed my mind, but I pushed it away. He had an exam tonight and the last thing he needed was his silly girlfriend whining about feeling unsafe. Especially since I was supposed to stay put. But damn it, I should be able to get a fucking ice cream cone with my best friend.
We grabbed our sweet treats and exited Scoops. Staying close to each other, we walked as quickly as we could back to the house. Entering, Hunter waited for us on the stairs, a scowl on his face. I gulped, thrusting my ice cream towards his face. “Ice cream?”
Hunter scowled, “Ken, mind letting Sunshine and I have a little chat? You can see yourself out, right?”
Kennedy looked flustered, agreed and waved before practically running out the front door. It left Hunter and me alone in the foyer together, the tension thick in the air. Hunter was pissed.
“Hope that ice cream was worth it, baby girl, because I am about to give you the punishment of a lifetime…. upstairs. Now. ” His tone brokered no argument, and I scrambled up the stairs towards his room. His dark laughter mocked me from behind .