A Second Meeting

During lunch Hunter had eaten as fast as he could and ran off to the beach, practically tripping over his own two feet at the prospect of seeing Niamh again. He was giddy like a child on Christmas and couldn't sleep at all that night no matter how tired he was. God he felt like such a creep. In his cabin all his brothers and sisters were buzzing with life and energy, staying up all night playing cards or talking that it didn't add onto the amount of hours of sleep he got. Which was roughly about 5. For a growing boy that gave him some effects. Such as the constant drowsiness and at times he would fall in and out of consciousness, nearly making his head fall into his bowl at breakfast had it not been for a random thud at the table that shook him back awake.

Hunter stumbled onto the sand and sat down, looking around him to see if there were any sign of Niamh. Well she wasn't here now so he guessed he could rest his eyes for just a little bit. It wouldn't hurt to take a nap. After all, he finished lunch fifteen minutes in, she was probably still eating. Or was she? He didn't really know. He couldn't think at all except for the constant hunger for sleep. Sleep, sleep, sleep. His head fell back against the firm sand with a thud and he laid his arms against his face to block the shining sun. He was asleep for maybe five minutes max before he jolted himself upright, rubbing his eyes from the brightness. Niamh still wasn't here yet but he could wait. This time awake.

Hunter wasn't shocked when Niamh moved closer to him, laying her head on his shoulder, he felt that it was just natural so he laid his head atop of hers. He let out a soft laugh when she guessed that his second one was a lie, immediately taking a defense.

"What? You don't think I could've done it? That hurts my pride a little Niamh," He teased as he pressed a hand against his heart. "It's actually a truth just so you know. The lie was the first one. I crashed my mom's boyfriend's car when I was 7, thank you very much."

Hunter always had a knack for codes and puzzles ever since he was little. The mystery intrigued him to learn how to solve it plus the satisfaction in seeing things in encoded cracks or dots while barely anyone else could gave him a thrill. His curiosity pulled him in at the age of 5 and he mastered it not two years later where things like Morse code and Alphabet Backward was a second tongue to him. Along with the deciphering of coding and puzzles he learnt how to hack his way in the online world. Then it was when he was 10 that he intercepted the army's message but later after the incident he stopped the puzzles for a long time. He didn't pick the hobby back up until last year, four years later.

"Your turn." He murmured moving his head just a little to rest comfortably on her head. Her blond hair was just so soft and smooth like laying on silk or velvet.

"Really Hunter?" Niamh asked between giggles. Hunter had a large grin on his face and he nodded vigorously. His sister May was always a bossy little girl and despite being taller than her and bigger, she had always dragged him into wearing too tiny dresses that suited a 5 year old more than a 9 year old boy. He wondered how she was doing now. She'd be 12 and in middle school. He couldn't really imagine her as anything more than that little girl with big puppy dog eyes and a bunch of missing teeth staring wide eyed as he left.

"Of course! I wouldn't lie about something as embarrassing as that. Her favorite dress to put on me was one of her pink ones that had sleeves and had white frilly stuff and poofs all over it. Poofs! I looked like a grandma for Christs' sakes." He exclaimed swinging his hands. He glanced over at her and was glad to see that she looked more happier than before.

"What about you? Any embarrassing stories I ought to hear about you?" Hunter asked with a laugh, walking down the beach slowly. He stuffed his hands in his pockets since they felt a little out of place.