Diary of a Runaway (BOOK #3)

Out of the Woods

AVA's POV

         

            William and I stood on opposite ends of my bedroom. We stood there silent, not even looking at each other for what seemed like hours. But when I glanced at the clock, it had only been a minute.

            "You said you had something to say?" I asked him, arms crossed, eyes still avoiding. If I looked at him now, I would break all over again.

            It's over, I reminded myself. We're over.

            He wanted a break and that's exactly what he got. He couldn't easily get me back. I wouldn't let him. Maybe this was for the better. Maybe us taking a break meant finding out who we were. Maybe we didn't work together in the end.

            "I've done a lot of thinking," he finally said, his voice low. "I've thought about us and myself  and how I feel about everything going on right now and..."

            I took a step towards him, waiting. Just waiting like I had been for a week now. "And what?"

            He threw his hands up. "I don't know! I don't know what's going on with me or my emotions. Nothing feels right anymore, Ava. Don't you understand that? I want to look at you like I did only weeks ago. I want to look at you and feel something. But...it's all confusing now. I don't know what's wrong with me."

            I bit my lip and stayed back. This wasn't him. This wasn't the William I grew to knew. This wasn't even the William I first met--so broken and angry over his past. Now he transformed into a wild eyed man who was second from veering off the absolute edge of sanity.

            I believed him now. I believed he didn't know what to think anymore. He fell to pieces right in front of me.

            I stood in front of him now as he hung his head in complete defeat. I brought my hands to either side of his face and attempted to lift his head so that he looked at me. But he wouldn't budge so easily.  

            "Hey, William," I said to him. "Stop. You're going crazy in there. Just stop thinking, okay? Look at me and stop wondering what it may mean. Just look at me and admit that you need help. Stop running off. You had your time alone. Now you need someone to talk to."

            His eyes met mine and they shined with tears. It's the Hunter in him bringing out the human instinct. One rolled down his cheek. Not those out of complete sadness or anger. Those out of confusion.

             He was just as lost--if not even more--as the rest of us.

            "What do I do, Ava?" he whispered. "What do we do? I can't even look at the man who calls himself my father. He makes me so...angry. Every time I think about him, I just want to punch a hole through the wall. And you...you're so beautiful and so amazing. Maybe you don't feel the same way, but I love you, Ava Sumner. I can't get rid of that. But...it's not just that when I look at you anymore. There's so much more. Stuff I can't explain."

            I swallowed, running my thumb along his cheekbone. "You think it's the Hunter blood."

            He shrugged, pressing his cheek to my palm. "That's the only thing that makes sense anymore. Maybe that should be our next mission. Finding out what the hell being a Hunter turned vampire means. And how it's possible. It's not supposed to be. We both should have died."

            "Hunters can't turn into vampires, huh?" I raised an eyebrow. "It seems we break quite a few rules."

            He closed his eyes as I wiped away another tear. Seeing him cry broke me, too.  I didn't want to break. I wanted to stay strong for him. But that seemed impossible right now. There were so many unanswered questions standing right in front of us.