Different as Night & Day Ch. 11
Keywords: Different, Ch., &, Night, Day, as, 11,
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*Chapter Eleven: Family*
It was earlier than Hunter was used to rising, but he could not sleep. His parents had taken up all his time the day before, wanting to know about how his life had been. He hadn"t gotten to speak to Autumn again, and although he"d intended to, something changed his mind. She had gone up to bed earlier than he, and when he did finally go to bed, he"d heard her crying. Hunter hadn"t thought Autumn had it in her to cry. There was more to her declaration that she was letting on, and he was reluctant to force those memories to the surface.
"Hunter?"
Startled, he glanced over at the bed. Autumn was sitting up. She ran her fingers through her hair, then stood, reaching for her bag. Hunter watched her, studying her as she dressed. He could tell by the stiff set of her shoulders that she was nervous. I can"t turn away from her, he thought, rising from his seat by the window. She listened to my most painful memory, and didn"t judge me. Hunter caught her from behind, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close.
"You don"t have to tell me until you"re ready," He murmured.
"I…it isn"t…what you think…" Autumn stammered.
"Hush," Hunter soothed. "I won"t pass judgment on you, Autumn. Wait
until you"re ready."
"Are you sure?" Autumn asked softly.
Hunter smiled and spun her to face him. "Autumn, if you were going to kill me, you would have done it already. You"ve certainly wanted to."
A smile curled the edges of her mouth. Some of the nervousness disappeared from her eyes, and Hunter sighed in relief. He drew her close and lowered his mouth to hers, kissing her tenderly. Autumn pulled back a little, her eyes wide in surprise.
"What are you doing?" She asked.
"Well, I figure if you"re supposed to be my girlfriend right now," Hunter answered. "I should take advantage of it before you change your
mind."
Autumn chuckled softly and stood up on her toes to press her mouth lightly to his. He closed his arms around her waist, holding her against him, his lips brushing tenderly against hers. The soft noise of someone clearing their throat caught his attention, and he stopped, glancing over at the door. Hunter"s mother stood there, with her hands on her hips and a smirk on her face.
"Breakfast is ready," She said, obviously holding back a delighted
giggle.
"Thanks, mum," Hunter sighed. "We"ll be down in a minute."
When she had left, Autumn lifted her head, her eyebrows raised. "Mum?"
Hunter shrugged. "I"ve called her that since she started read those damn Harry Potter books. She thinks it"s cute."
Autumn gave him a look that told him clearly she thought his mother was crazy. He didn"t really disagree with her. His mother had a habit of getting silly about things like that. He slid an arm around Autumn"s waist, and when she didn"t protest, lead her downstairs and into the kitchen. Breakfast was already laid out; crepes, scrambled eggs, the usually toast with jam or preserves, and slices of ham. Hunter had learned to cook from his mother, although he usually didn"t cook as much as she did.
"So, Autumn," His mother said, as she placed a plate in front of her. "I can see you don"t have much of a wardrobe left. How would you like to go shopping?"
"I uh…I don"t have any money," Autumn stammered, staring at her plate.
"Don"t worry about that, dear," Lucy told her. "You need clothing. And besides, it will be like having a daughter to buy for again."
"You can"t…" Autumn began, staring at her.
"She can," Hunter interrupted, grinning. "And she will."
"But…but I can"t pay you back," Autumn hedged, shooting a glare at Hunter.
"My dear," Lucy said, smiling warmly. "You already have."
Hunter felt a bit unsettled by that. He glanced at Autumn, and saw that she was intently interested in her food. Part of it might have been embarrassment, but he knew by now what an appetite she had. It made him smile. Maybe mom"s right, in a way, he thought. She must see something I can"t. Hunter paused, reflecting on that. When he thought about it, he realized he"d laughed and smiled more since he met Autumn than he had in years.
*****
Autumn stopped in the doorway of Macy"s, feeling so confused. This was a middle class store; she was used to Wal-Mart. Lucy hooked an arm around her waist and urged her forward, between mannequins wearing men"s clothing. She looked around, her head swiveling back and forth as they made their way through the store. I don"t belong in here, Autumn thought, feeling unusually aware of her off-white wifebeater and torn up shorts. She got looks from several slender, perfectly manicured teenagers as they passed into the Junior"s section.
"I don"t belong in here!" Autumn hissed.
"Yes, you do," Lucy shot back. "As much if not more than these girls!"
"I don"t wear this kind of clothing," Autumn insisted.
To strengthen her point, she fingered a tweed jacket that was on a rack. It had to be the ugliest thing she had ever seen. Honestly, who wears pink and orange tweed? she wondered, reaching for the price tag. When she saw it her eyes widened in shock and horror. She turned to Lucy, holding up the price tag.
"Who would pay three hundred dollars for this?" Autumn asked.
"Not us," Lucy answered dryly. "That thing is hideous."
Autumn giggled. "Well, I"m glad it"s not just me!"
They moved onward, among racks of clothing not so hideous. A lot of it was flowery and girly, something she would usually find unappealing. I only find it unappealing because I seem determined to not be female, Autumn thought, studying a spaghetti strap top. It was brown and cream, making the flowers on it seem less obtrusive. It gathered to form an empire waistline, then billowed out, and the hem was asymmetrical. After she had been studying it for a moment, Lucy pulled one off the rack.
"You a what…size five?" Lucy asked, wrinkling her nose.
"Just about," Autumn responded, smiling sheepishly.
"This is nice," Lucy said. "But we"ll need to find stuff that brings
out your eyes. And the color of your skin."
"What for?" Autumn griped, feeling the beginnings of a tantrum coming
on. She didn"t much like shopping.
"To impress Hunter, of course," Lucy responded cheerfully. "Come on, dear."
With Lucy"s help she found so much that fit her, although she was a little uncertain about a lot of it. Standing in the dressing room after nearly an hour of looking around, she studied herself critically in the mirror. It was just the top she had originally found, the brown and cream, and a pair of jean shorts, but Autumn felt odd.
"What do you think?" Lucy called from outside the girl.
"I look like a girl!" Autumn called back.
Lucy laughed. "You are a girl!"
Autumn stepped out of the dressing room long enough to show Lucy the outfit. By the time Lucy was done raving over her, her cheeks were bright red. She stepped back into the dressing room and reached for the next top. At least I managed to convince her that skirts aren"t… Her thoughts trailed off as she uncovered a jean skirt that Lucy had mixed up with the tops. Autumn scowled and pulled the door open, sticking her head out to find Lucy staring innocently in the other direction.
"No way!" Autumn growled.
"Oh, try it!" Lucy urged, turning back towards her. "Your tough girl image isn"t holding up well anymore, anyway."
"That"s not true!" Autumn snapped. "I am not some little girly…some little…"
She trailed off, chewing on her lower lip. Maybe I have changed, she thought, frowning. I don"t even think I"ve sworn since…since that first night me and Hunter… Autumn stopped that thought in its tracks when she felt her cheeks heat. She slipped back into the dressing room and turned to the mirror, holding the skirt. What could it hurt? she thought, shrugging. She slipped out of her shorts and pulled the skirt on, then straightened to study herself.
The top was wrong. She pulled it off and grabbed another, an off-the-shoulder blouse with slightly puffed, short sleeves and blue embroidered hemlines. Better, Autumn thought, turning to step out of the dressing room again. When she stepped out, Lucy"s eyes lit up and she clapped her hands together like a delighted child.
"Perfect!" She said, smiling. "Now all we have to do is do something about your hair!"
Autumn"s eyes narrowed. "I don"t think so."
"Come on!" Lucy chirped, cheerful as always. "Just trust me, dear!"
*****
Hunter patted the graying brown nose of the shaggy pony straining its head over the stall door. Pooka had been his pony to ride growing up, but at thirty he was much too old. Still has plenty of spunk for such an old fart, he thought, chuckling to himself as he scratched the pony"s ears. He pulled his hand away just in time, when the pony"s small head came up and his lips pulled back.
"No biting!" Hunter warned.
Pooka bobbed his head. His long ears swiveled forward suddenly, and a moment later Hunter heard the barn door open. He turned to see who had entered, figuring it was his father. It most certainly was not. Whoa, he thought, eyeing Autumn as she stepped beneath the light illuminating the barn. Her hair had been cut, shorter in the front so it framed her face, longer in the back. Her shoulders were bared by a white blouse with blue trim. Is she wearing a skirt? Hunter wondered, taking a step closer to her.
She was! It was a short, pleated jean skirt that bared most of her legs. And a pair of brown heeled boots, too. She looks so cute, he thought, fighting a smile. The last thing Hunter wanted was for her to think he was laughing at her. She already had her hands on her hips, and her cheeks were turning red.
"Stop staring!" Autumn growled, scowling at him.
"I can"t," Hunter said honestly. "You look amazing."
He was hoping honesty would keep her from hitting him. Amazingly, it did. A hint of a smile tugged at her lips. Hunter stepped forward, reaching out and taking her hands in his. He pulled her close to him and sighed heavily.
"This isn"t fair," Hunter murmured. "Here I was, thinking maybe we
should tell my parents the truth, and you come home looking like this.
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Keywords: Different, Ch., &, Night, Day, as, 11,