[ 2 ] 2014

Harley ended up skipping all of her classes after lunch that afternoon, and she texted Cindy informing her that she would not be attending practices. Cindy told her that she understood, and that she had talked to Billy. Harley's brother refused to budge when it came to Calum, but Cindy vowed that she would persuade him into talking to the school principal by any means necessary. She had also promised Harley that she would take a swing at Luke as soon as they got home that afternoon. She walked off school grounds and into the parking lot where Calum was already waiting to pick her up.

She leaned in to give him a kiss on the lips when she got into the passenger seat of his car. "Hey, how was school?" He asked her with a smirk touching his lips when he saw how frustrated she looked. Despite having many horrible days of the late, he had tried to lighten the mood, if only for her. 

A sigh escaped her lips and a hand ran through her faded electric blue colored hair. "I skipped every class after lunch." She didn't see the point in lying and pretend she had been a good student, since he would probably see right through her anyway. Calum knew Harley like the back of his hand, and when it came to Calum she was exactly the same. Months of knowing each other weren't for nothing.

"I thought I told you to behave." He bit down on his lower lip, displeased by her words. Prom, the twelfth year trip to the amusement park, and graduation were just around the corner, and though he had never cared about those things before, he wanted her to experience them like a regular teenager. She wouldn't be able to attend if she was skipping out on her classes and getting in trouble for his sake.

She gave a defiant shrug of her shoulders, but didn't say a word to him.

There was a silence in the car as he took off in the direction of where they lived. But that silence only lasted for about a minute before she told him, "Can you take me to my house?" She asked him after a moment. Normally, she went to his house first and spent the afternoon before returning to her own house. But this time she had something important to do. A confrontation that would take place between her and her brother. This was out of the ordinary for them, as they hadn't gotten into a fight since they were children. Billy had been an annoying older brother growing up, as was usual in most families. But as he became a teenager, he was more protective and sweet with her. 

Calum nodded his head slowly, ready to grant her every whim. Though he knew her wanting to go home so suddenly had everything to do with Billy Quinn, he didn't question it. That was for her and Billy to solve and he didn't want to get involved. While he waited for their argument to get over and done, he figured he would go visit Arthur and get a rundown of the hunters' association from Paul. Arthur didn't want him and Harley to get involved with the family business, but as his adoptive son, and step-nephew, Calum wanted to help.

He would also try to reason with Jack once more. Perhaps if Hazel wasn't around, he could get through to him. But for that, he would need to recruit Michael. The Canadian original was still hung up on the hunter. 

He stopped in her driveway and Harley leaned in to give him another kiss on the lips. "Thank you. I'll text you later. Love you." She said quickly, and opened the door to get out. Calum noticed there was a fire burning in her ice blue eyes and he knew an argument was about to ensue in the Quinn household. But that was what he loved about her. She wasn't afraid to speak up and fight back whenever she thought something was wrong. She wasn't afraid to give anyone a piece of her mind. She was the same even with him.

"I love you more." He told her and he watched as she smiled for him briefly before she walked up to the front door and disappeared inside the house.

-

calum: hey i know you hate me but...

michael: wait. who this??

calum: its calum, dipshit.

michael: how'd you get my cellphone number?? i've only had this phone like three days.

calum: i got it from harley

calum: enough small talk tho

calum: i need you to do something for me

michael: lol why would i??

calum: i'll pay you 2 grand to disappear for 2hrs and take harley #2 with u

michael: hm...

michael: deal

Calum went to his grandfather's house first and took money from his safe in the master bedroom, then he headed out to the old warehouse where Jack would likely be by himself. Calum assured Michael that the money would be there for him upon his return and Michael trusted him enough to leave and take Hazel out on a date with him. 

When Calum arrived, Jack was sitting on the one bed in the corner of the room he had been given, scrolling through social media on his phone. He was still young after all, even despite the powers he possessed and liked to spend time on social media. It was never something that really interested Calum, but he guessed that for some people it was a form of entertainment. Jack looked up from his phone and offered him a polite smile. Even though he had refused to help Arthur, he still considered Calum a friend and was hopeful that this was just a social visit. As Calum noticed this, he almost felt bad for Jack.

He didn't seem to have many friends, since he was on the run all the time. The only people he really had were Michael and Hazel, and now Calum and Harley. Calum almost felt like he would seem like he was only using Jack for his powers. But he genuinely liked Jack and considered him a friend. He was just preoccupied with other things to spend any time with him. After all their troubles were over, he resolved to make more time for the people he cared about. And he would even try to make peace with Ashton now that Harley had chosen him. He would show him that there were no hard feelings for their past relationship.

"Hey Calum." He greeted in his Canadian accent which was very noticeable in Australia.

"Jack, I know you already said you wouldn't help my uncle." Calum started and Jack's smile immediately dropped. Calum instantly felt bad for showing up to ask for his help, but he was the only one who could actually do something for Arthur. "But please consider it. He's Harley's dad and it would mean a lot to her."

Jack heaved a sigh. "It seems that you only remember we're friends when you need something."

The boy with raven hair took a step towards him, hoping to convince him. "I know I haven't been the best of friend's to you, even though I owe you my life. But I need you to please help me with this."

The original looked down onto his lap, his eyes downcast as he remembered something that brought him pain. "Sometimes people are meant to die and there's nothing I can do to help them." He explained with a shaking voice. "My father was killed by a hunter. He was shot by a Diamond Rose. I held him in my arms as he lay dying before my very eyes and I tried to heal him. But I couldn't and he died anyway. Lately I have been, but sometimes, I'm not strong enough to heal someone." Calum didn't know for sure, but it was a real possibility that it may have been Arthur who killed Jack's father. 

If that were true, why would he ever want to help him?

"If you could just try..." Calum insisted.

Jack took one look at him. Though the thought had come into his mind, a part of him told him that Calum truly considered him a friend. And there was a flicker in his blue eyes. He wanted to help. Not for Arthur, but for Calum and Harley.

-

Michael had left the warehouse with Hazel after getting a text from Calum. He had offered the hunter two thousand dollars to leave and take Hazel with him. Michael immediately knew that it was because Calum wanted to talk to Jack about Arthur. Though Michael was still resentful towards Arthur, he saw it as a win-win situation for him. He would get money out of it, but also Arthur might survive and that would in turn make Harley happy. 

He invited her to a movie first and then out to dinner. 

Hazel couldn't help but find it strange, but it was also a pleasant surprise for her when Michael Clifford finally asked her out. She was still interested in Michael and if he was going to show some interest in her, she was all up for starting a relationship with him.

After the movie they went to Iggy's Diner and sat together at one of the booths, side by side as they waited for their food to be brought out to them. Hazel saw the help wanted sign, and started making small talk about it. "I should probably start looking for a job around here so I can stop mooching off you and his money. It must be a huge burden on you--taking care of me and my brother too." She muttered the last part with disdain. When she thought about the help she was getting from Michael, she couldn't help but shudder at the thought that Michael's money came from Arthur Vega, a man who wanted her killed. But she had no way to sustain herself. 

When her father passed away, her mother got his pension and it was barely enough to cover her living expenses in Canada. Jack was always on the run and had no stable way of making money. The same was the case for Hazel Quimby. But if she could have a job, even a part time one in Australia, then maybe she could make enough to send a bit over to her mother.

The hunter gave a shake of his head. "You don't burden me at all. I don't know what would give you that idea."

Michael wasn't shy. If he really considered them a burden, he'd have said so long ago.

She heaved a sigh. "I just don't like the fact that its his money."

The green eyed hunter heaved a sigh of his own, knowing in his head that he agreed with her. Despite seeing his dad in the hospital, he still could not let go of his resentment towards him. He still blamed Arthur for the fact that his mother had been murdered. They were looking for him, and she paid the price for it. "That makes two of us. But please, let's not talk about him now. I'm so over that already. Let's just forget all the bullshit for tonight."

Hazel nodded her head in agreement. She needed to forget that she was on a hit list and wanted by all the hunters in Arthur's organization. She needed to forget that she had powers, and that she could hear the thoughts of everyone around her like the buzzing in a beehive. She wanted to forget that her father had been killed and that she and her brother had to continue running and hiding if they wanted to live. She might've had powers like the kind movies were made about, but what she wanted more than anything was to be normal. Just a normal girl with a normal family. But that wasn't the case and it never would be.

She would always be Hazel Quimby, one of the last two remaining members of the original family. That brought her so much anxiety and emotional stress.

Soon the waitress brought over their food and the two teenagers started to dig in hungrily. In the back of her mind, Hazel thought about getting some food for her brother as well, since they had gone out without him. Hazel slid closer to Michael and the hunter tried to crack some jokes to make her laugh and lighten the mood. They had their meal together and made conversation until suddenly over three hours had passed. They returned to his car and sat there in a silence that lasted less than a minute. 

Both turned and they reached for each other, lips clashing desperately, in what was something Hazel had been wanting for months now. The windows fogged up in the car with the heat of their breathing, but neither of them cared. Hands roaming each other's bodies, touching every inch of skin that became exposed as they went along.

"I've been waiting so long for you to kiss me like this." She said breathlessly against his lips.

He soon pulled away and trailed kisses down to her neck while her hands made their way into his hair. He said nothing to her, but in the heat of the moment she thought nothing of it.

The truth was he preferred to be silent over lying to her.

-

damn michael.

he won't tell her that he loves her, or even likes her as more than a friend. but he's all on board with getting into her pants.

anyway, the big harley/billy fight will be in the next chapter.

thank you all loads for reading!

qotd: do you all ship haze and michael? do you think jack will or should help calum? also, do you think billy will ask her about her powers? he kinda did witness her mind control luke. but she can also just mind control him into forgetting.

let me know what you think!

-clary