Chapter 10 Hidden
Hidden
My eyes burned from the sudden brightness of the lights from the police cars the moment we stepped outside.
To the right was a severely intoxicated guy getting arrested on the hood of a car.
Meanwhile, dozens of partygoers filed to their vehicles with their heads down, hoping not to get singled out by the cops.
I stood still for a moment, stunned, until Grey tugged at my hand, forcing me to keep moving.
I tried to spot Piper in the craziness but saw no sign of her. And between the crowd, the cops, and the lights shining in my eyes, I didn’t think I stood much of a chance finding her at the moment.
“To the right,” Grey said in a low but firm voice.
It took me a moment to realize what he was talking about.
Then I made out a thick line of trees nearby.
We made a beeline for the woods, crouching below branches until we found a secluded place where the scene was still in view but we were well hidden.
We stayed there for a few minutes, watching as more people got arrested and a couple of fights broke out.
“They can’t all be underage,” I whispered.
“No, but public intoxication is a thing,” Grey replied. “My bet is they’re grabbing the drunkest-looking people from the crowd.”
I was still way too drunk to be comfortable walking past the cops at this point, so I had no plans to move anytime soon.
A shiver ran down my spine from the chill in the night air.
I hadn’t realized how cold it was until now.
Cursing myself for not having the foresight to bring a jacket, I sat and hugged my knees to my chest to keep warm.
Grey took notice. “Here.” He pulled off his jacket and wrapped it around my shoulders.
I opened my mouth to protest, but I was so instantly warm and it smelled so much like him that any argument died before it had even made it to my lips.
“Better?” he asked.
“Better.”
He made himself comfortable next to me. Wind rustled the leaves around us and caused me to shiver. I moved instinctually closer to Grey. He didn’t seem to mind. In fact, he took the opportunity to wrap an arm around me.
Pulled up tight against him, I didn’t dare move a muscle.
Maybe it was fear that he would realize what he was doing and pull away that kept me frozen in place.
Maybe I was just scared that I would force us apart if I so much as shifted an inch.
Whatever the case, I stayed there, warm in Grey’s arms while the rest of the party fled the scene.
“So, that girl…” Grey said after a prolonged silence.
“Her name’s Piper,” I said.
“Piper.” Grey said the name like it was a foreign word to him, like he was playing with it in his mouth to see if he liked saying it or not.
“What about her?” I demanded.
He shrugged. “Nothing. She seemed really into you.”
“Carina seemed really into you as well.”
Grey gave a dry laugh. “Were you trying to make me jealous tonight?”
“No. The kiss just happened.”
“Right.” Grey clearly didn’t believe me.
I pulled away from him. “Why would I try making you jealous?”
“Because you have a crush on me.”
“A crush is nothing,” I said. “I’ve gotten over crushes before. You’re not special.”
“Really.” He leaned his face closer, close enough that his breath tickled where it swept across my skin. “How do you plan to get over me?”
“Well, for starters”—I pulled away from him again—“by not being alone with you after this.”
“Why?” His fingers grazed my knee. “Do you think we’ll wind up making a mistake?”
“Probably not the mistake you have in mind.” I pointedly removed his hand from my leg. “Listen, we’re both involved with other people, so this isn’t happening.”
“Exactly. I’m glad we established that.”
Grey’s chuckle infuriated me.
“Is this some sort of game to you?” I demanded.
“What? Us?”
“Aren’t you listening? There is no ‘us.’ There can’t be.” I took a deep breath. “And that’s why I’m so confused. What are you getting out of playing with my emotions?”
“I’m not trying to play with anything,” Grey said, suddenly somber. “I just like being around you, and… I can’t help myself.”
“But you know what you’re doing,” I said. “It’s like you’re trying to hurt me.”
“What do you want me to do?” Grey asked. “What would the solution be?”
I blinked at him. He sounded like he genuinely meant that question.
Like he would actually do whatever it was that I suggested.
Part of me wondered if he would leave Carina for me.
If I asked him to dump her right now, could I have him all to myself?
There was no way I would do that, but the thought was there, tempting me to be selfish.
“You know, Carina and I…” Grey took a great, steadying breath before continuing. “We don’t have the relationship you think we do.”
“It’s a little hard to misinterpret her tongue down your throat.” I gave Grey a pointed look.
He grimaced. “I wish you would trust me.”
“Trust you with what?”
“My intentions. I’m not trying to hurt you.”
I frowned. “Intentions don’t always matter as much as your actions. You’re sitting here and telling me how much you like me when a few minutes ago, you were shoving your tongue down your girlfriend’s throat. That doesn’t seem like the actions of someone I should trust with my heart.”
Saying the words out loud—that it was my heart he was asking me to trust him with—was enough to suck the air from my lungs.
Under the cover of the shrubs, we might as well have been the only two people in the world, and I still couldn’t trust him with the potential to seriously hurt me.
I’d never been in love before, and I was pretty sure this wasn’t it now, but I could see another reality where I fell head over heels, madly, deeply in love with Grey Hyun and everything would be perfect.
It just wasn’t my reality. We both had too much baggage.
The cops started clearing out now that their tickets had been written, arrests had been made, and the partiers had left. The rustling leaves became the only real noise between us.
“Do you want me to leave you alone?” Grey asked. “I will if you want me to.”
I sighed. “I don’t want you to leave me alone.” I paused. “But I think it might be what I need. At least for now.”
Grey studied me with his wide brown eyes that looked almost gold in the strands of moonlight breaking through the trees. He seemed to be holding his breath as he processed my words.
“And if Carina weren’t in the picture?” he asked.
“Does it matter? I don’t want you to leave her for me. I can’t be the cause of you breaking up.”
“You wouldn’t be,” Grey said. “Like I said, it’s not what you think.”
“Sure, Grey,” I said. “If by some miracle, we were both actually single, I’d be okay with this… whatever this is.”
Grey was silent for a long, ponderous beat.
If he’d been about to say something, it didn’t matter, because at that exact second, his phone went off. He pulled it out and answered. I could hear a male voice talking very fast on the other end.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa, Dae,” Grey said. “Hold on. I’m fine. Is Carina still with you?”
More chatter across the phone. Grey nodded, though Dae—whoever that was—couldn’t see him.
“Okay the cops are gone, so you can make your way back here,” Grey said.
More talking from Dae.
“Okay. Okay. Bye.” Grey hung up.
“I guess your ride is on their way?” My mouth was still dry at the mention of Carina, but I did my best to sound playful.
“They’re leaving from a gas station right now.” Grey didn’t sound particularly thrilled, but he left it at that. “We can give you a ride home.”
“No, I have a rental car.” Then, as if mentioning the car summoned everything else I’d failed to consider in the past half hour, I remembered Piper. I had been her ride. I swore, my hand shooting to my pocket for my phone.
By the time I got there and looked at the screen, my sense of dread had peaked. There were seven missed calls from Piper and several texts. I swore again.
“What’s wrong?” Grey asked.
I groaned. “I might just be the biggest asshole in history.”
I opened my messages to see that Piper had sent her last text a couple of minutes ago. It just read, I made it home. I hope you’re safe.
Releasing a sigh of relief that she didn’t seem too upset, I sent a text back. I’m safe. Couldn’t find you, so I hid in the bushes from the cops. Glad you’re okay.
Headlights flashed across the trees, drawing my attention away from the phone.
“Looks like my ride’s here,” Grey said.
The black car came to a stop right next to the barn, and we climbed out from our hiding spot to meet them.
Approaching the vehicle, I noticed the driver was someone vaguely familiar, maybe someone from Grey’s band.
I’d stared at the Dreamscape posters enough that I should know, but I’d only ever really had eyes for one person on them.
Grey reached for the door only to pause and turn around. “Can I give you a hug goodbye?”
I hesitated, sensing a hidden meaning attached to his desire for a hug.
Unable to determine what that meaning could be, I nodded.
Grey pulled me into his arms. I could smell the scent that was so clearly him, felt the muscles under his shirt that flexed when he moved.
His arms felt like home already, and I hated it.
Because he was going to leave. And he would probably never talk to me again.
That was what I’d said I wanted. He held me for a beat too long for an audience then finally released me.
It felt as though he’d ripped out part of me and taken it with him.
Grey opened the door to the car and climbed inside. “I’ll see you around, Ethan.”
“Goodbye, Grey.” My eyes stung as tears formed at the words. Everything felt so final, like it would be our last goodbye. And it probably would be. What other option had I left us?
Grey closed the door on me, and the car drove off. I was left in the dust as the tears finally fell from my eyes.