Exhaustion. That was all Hunter had felt for the past couple of days while he had single-handedly discussed the details of moving his shop to the west coast. He really had taken it for granted all the times he kept all of his stuff in his pick-up truck and never really had to pack up anything involving boxes, suitcases or unloading. And boy, were there a lot of boxes involved with shipping all the shop’s parts and equipment. He just hoped it was easier and more enjoyable to unpack than it had been to pack. Jasper not being in town really wasn’t a help either, but he couldn’t blame his friend for leaving to move Corio and himself into their new place.
Speaking of Jasper and Corio was actually a touchy subject nowadays since he still wasn’t used to not being able to see his best friends and his favorite couple every day or at least every week. Most of his new friends had moved on actually but he didn’t regret settling down for the past couple of months. And speaking of his friends, he had been pleasantly surprised to receive the text from Nikolina asking him to stop by whenever he was done with his packing for the day. He quickly replied back to let her know he would be over in an hour or so after he finished packing up the garage with the movers. Thankfully it took less than an hour and he managed to swing by his place and shower before heading over her way.
He had hardly waited ten seconds after knocking before he came face to face with the familiar beautiful brunette. He broke into a smile, his greeting having barely left his lips when she interrupted by just saying she needed to tell him something. His brow crinkled in confusion and slight concern as he stepped inside, sticking his hands in his pockets and turning to face her once she shut the door behind him. “Okay….what’s up? Something wrong?”
Nikolina closed the door behind him as soon as he stepped in the room. Her hands fiddled together as she glanced at him. "No—" She answered quickly before thinking about it. "Well, yes. Kind of." Nina stumbled over her words. She grabbed his hand and lead him into the living room. Nikolina dropped his hand when they reached the couch. "Sit." She instructed him before anxiously taking her own seat.
Nina was dreading telling him. She could feel the nerves mount with each moment that passed. "I—" Nikolina sighed. "Hunter, you're my only friend now. I mean, with Jasper and Westley and just everyone gone, you're probably the only person I have left." She glanced at her hands. "I've told you a lot about myself, more than I've told most people but," Nina paused. "I haven't been completely honest." The Bulgarian native pulled her lip between her teeth. "My real name isn't Nikolina Petrova."
Before he could speak, Nina shook her head. "Well it is— kind of. I mean, it was my name for like five days but I have another name. A name everyone in Europe knows me by." Nikolina fiddled with her bracelet. "It's Hazel, Hazel Beckham." She gave him a sad look. "I'm sorry. It's just that when I came here, everything was hazy and I was so confused. I mean, it was a new country and I was all alone. So when everyone asked my name, I panicked and said 'Nikolina'." Hazel gave him a slightly frightened look. "Are you mad?"