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chapter 76
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2025-04-17 08:35:01
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The Deal With Him chapter 77
There was this edge hidden behind the determination, this almost vulnerable undertone I half read and that torn my heart all the more. How was I supposed to remain strong in my demands when just hearing his slight distraught made me wanna give him whatever?Kimberly's words from earlier came back: 'Something truly in danger'.Were we 'in danger'? Was our relationship really pending on the edge? Considering our limits were colliding, we'd finally reached a point where no one seemed to want to bend, maybe we were indeed in danger. But most important, was it worth saving?We clearly wanted different things, and were bound to run this off at some point, but the idea of having reached that final point got my heart ragging. I didn't want this to end, but I didn't want to stay like this forever either. I was a hot mess, that's what I was."I don't know..." I muttered back, breathless knowing that this conversation would only lead to a break up -if you really could call it a break up consider
Last Updated : 2025-04-17The Deal With Him chapter 78
NateI parked Letty on the first free spot I found, killing the engine and feeling that bubble of anticipation getting larger in my chest.Okay, calm the fuck down. I thought to myself, reaching over to the bag at the passenger seat's feet, taking out the thick jersey stuffed in there and replaced my current one with it, and over it my coat. I swiftly brushed my hair carelessly using the rearview mirror before hopping out my baby and locking her behind me. The freezing air got me immediately shuddering as I zipped the coat and stuck my hands in the pockets, trying to keep with me as much warmth as I could.Ever since Christmas temperatures had decreased harshly and yesterday it had snowed massively, so now the whole town was all white, so beautiful and stuff but cold as hell... and I consumed most of Letty precarious heater last night, so if I couldn't fix it before tonight it would be one hell of a night. Yet this morning I looked around and the pieces I would be needed were far too
Last Updated : 2025-04-17The Deal With Him chapter 79
"I'm sorry..." I dropped my arm over the back of the bench and grazed her back... well the plastic. I fiddled with the hem of one of her soft strands instead founding a weird fascination in the texture."It's fine." Hailey lifted one shoulder, cheering up once more. "He stayed for the important dates, and that's what matters, right? It's been nice to see him even if was just for a few days." she fished a new chocolate and handed me another. "Shane told him about you, by the way."My heart did a little somersault. "W-what? Why?""Because he's a blabblermouth." she rolled her eyes. "He just loves to mess with us and decided that taunt me about it all the time would be fun. Also, since he's such a fanboy too, he would almost make you look like some kind of God or something. It was so embarrassing." she grimaced. "But at least he didn't tell mom, just my father."I couldn't help but smile even with the slightly unsettling in my chest. Shane was a fun kid, he was kinda cool and the times I
Last Updated : 2025-04-17The Deal With Him chapter 80
HaileyI was jolted awake by a sudden sharp sound, blinking the light as I grew aware of my surroundings and the way my pillow was stirring as well... What?My eyes snapped open, taking in the dim barn, the TV still on on the other side of the coffee table and Nate sleepy form under mine on the couch. I felt a dazed smile tugging my lips as I instinctively cuddled closer. I couldn't remember falling sleep; but I was laying over him, our legs intertwined and the bare heated skin of his chest against mine along with the thick blanket over my back was the only protection against the sudden wave of cold air from the opened door...Hold on.Opened door?"I fucking knew it."And just like that all my sleepiness vanished. My wide gaze snapped to Matt in horror as he glared from the barn door. The look he held as he stepped inside in a determined pace tightened my guts, shaking away my doze dizziness at once. In a moment I was on my feet, immediately missing Nate's heat, he groaned too at the
Last Updated : 2025-04-17The Deal With Him chapter 81
I made my way back to the couch, but as I reached him I found myself sliding into his lap instead, straddling him and leaning into his chest, shaking like a leaf and startling him. "Hey, what's up?""I'm cold." and it wasn't all a lie.His palms gently went under the thick blanket and brushed against the cold skin of my arms, frowning. "You're freezing. Here." He took off the jumper he just put on and slid it over my head, letting the huge cloth engulfed me. Him taking care of me after everything tugged some strings in my chest and somehow my eyes watered against my will, making his widened. "Hailey, I... I really didn't mean to cause trouble-""No, no. It's not that." I shook my head, wiping the stupid unleashed tears and cupped his face, my pulse ragging at the tender, concerned way he was eying me. My heart panged at the faint bruise under his eye. How could I'd been so blind? "You know I care about you, right?"He held my hand in his, leaning into the touch, but holding that worri
Last Updated : 2025-04-19The Deal With Him chapter 82
NateNerves crippled my stomach as I made my way out the class and to my locker. I was so not ready for this.I was glad high school was on once more, but at the same time as well as this provided a whole new lot of distractions and activities other than rot in my own self misery and sought for other's pity; this also brought a whole new kind of attention back upon me. I was once more in people's spotlight, I was once more pressured under their attention and whether it didn't bother me, it forced me to portray an image I had worked so hard hold on.Everything was going smoothly, tho. Ever since the very Matt Grace dropped us in the parking lot this morning. Even if everyone now knew I had a girlfriend. Even if most of my teachers decided to go extra hard on us because of the little break. Even if this weekend was the first match since before Christmas and I was sure the coach would go all maniac on us once more. I was doing pretty well even with those little extra pushes, but at the
Last Updated : 2025-04-19The Deal With Him chapter 83
I'd been a constant in her life the same way she had in mine, but this was an unspoken deal. I would have never expected for her to voice these things. I would have never expected for her to throw them at my face or using them as weapons or leverage. This was a low blow even for her that relish in swallow manipulations here and there.This was crossing a limit. Somehow, in her malicious remark there was more poison than I could or wanted to deal with right now.I pushed away from her, too shocked and hurt to fully manage a proper comeback. "Leave me alone.""Gladly." she scoffed, pushing her hair off her shoulder and tilting her chin upwards. "Let me know when you're done with your farmer girl's fantasy of fixing the broken boy."And with that final blow she spun around and left me there, watching her leave as my chest clenched achingly, her words echoing in my mind like an endless chant.This was me. I was messed up, fucked up and break everything I touch. This much I knew. But it wa
Last Updated : 2025-04-19The Deal With Him chapter 84
"I'm really sorry if this makes you uncomfortable Mr Herond but it's part of my job to make sure you're alright. And considering everything, I just want to make sure your situation at home is as smooth as you claim it to be."I fisted my hands. Once more, my own apprehension appeared as contained rage. "It is."But that didn't impress Mrs Grace in the slightest. "Is that why you've spent the night in the barn?" my eyes widened at her bluntness and her lips tugged in a small, half sarcastic smile. "You really thought I wouldn't see the truck?"I could feel my tongue drying. "We didn't mean to-""And you also thought just because I'm an adult I'm deaf to the rumors going around the center." she shook her head but didn't seem angered as realizations settled deeper in me. She knows. Her eyes met mine again. "How long did you think you two could actually date without me knowing?"I slouched lower in the chair, muttering to myself. "It's been several months and you just find out."Her head
Last Updated : 2025-04-19
Latest chapter
The Deal With Him chapter 118
"Hailey," he whined leaning forward almost instinctively, as if he couldn't help it and in awe I realized I was doing exactly the same. "I love you." he breathed against my lips and my lids fell, making me inched even closer. "But I can't rely my well-being only on you. It won't be fair for neither of us. There's a lot of things I need to figure out on my own, that I need to fix. And I need to do this by myself.""B-but t-this doesn't have to be a goodbye." I muttered resting my forehead against his. "Even with the distance, with the fight... I'm sorry. I am. And if you say nothing's happened with Trish, I believe you. We can still make this work...""Hailey." he sighed through his nose, his head tilting so our breaths mixed and it all felt all the more painful. It was as if he was slipping away when he was right there. Close enough to touch but impossible to keep. He was leaving me behind. Way behind. Where I couldn't reach him. "I don't want to hurt you. Trust me, that's the last th
The Deal With Him chapter 117
He let out a disbelief chuckle, dry and humorless. "Is that the only thing important for you? Maybe there's a major reason for me to need to use her place."My guts did a complicated turn. "Yeah, but you won't tell me. I won't keep prying in stuff that clearly upsets you and bring us to fight more, so I focus on the part where I still have a say on... or at least have the right to comment." I finally slid off my ankle boots and met his eyes again, fueled with this bubbling anger as I keep hearing Trish's voice and reliving what I'd felt this morning. "You were with her. Every time we have some problem you run back to her.""That's not true.""It is. She still wants something with you, she's made it pretty clear and you keep going back to her." his eyes darkened at each word passing my lips, but they were true and speaking them out loud only seemed to make them more real. Along with my unease and anger. "And it's completely unfair because you're extremely possessive over me with any gu
The Deal With Him chapter 116
HaileyI left Vickie's house after mid-afternoon, not finding more excuses to occupy my mind in things other than the huge mess with Nate. And also, I got a day full of other headaches either way so I didn't have time to overthink it. For starters, I had to go recognize Ryan, and that alone was nerve-cracking and stressful, but also in school people were all talking about the same two things: Kimmy fainting and Vickie's photoshopped pics.What an awful mess. The redhead didn't want to show up at school and convinced her parents to stay in the day. Olly and Bear had been suspended for yesterday's fight and Bear with a plus for distributing the horrible photoshopped picture. They were considering expelling him if there were any prove he was indeed the one spreading it. Shame the account that did was a fake one.But it was a matter of time, I was sure. Then Vickie would be able to forget about this and his vicious ways of getting her attention. Then the only problem would be them being n
The Deal With Him chapter 115
"This... Look, she's been calling since we fight, but I was mad and had my phone turned off, but this morning she called and..." I couldn't continue, it was as if the words refused to voice it. Fuck, why so guilty. Why? I hadn't actually done anything."Nate." Kimberly huffed unimpressed when I failed to proceed, even with her weak tone I sense the disapproval. "What on earth did you tell her?""Nothing.""Well, knowing how sensible Gracie is that 'nothing' might as well scar her.""Nothing, okay! Just..." I was feeling too altered to remain sitting so I stood, anxiously pacing in the white, clean room. "Trish took her call this morning and now she's the one avoiding me.""What?" even in her feeble state her disbelief was like a slap. "Are you stupid? What were you doing with the stuck-up bitch?"Where else? "I got nowhere to go." but it disappointed her and my already poking guilt shifted to a whole new level as Kimmy frowned."I'm sure that's not true. And now Gracie has to face the
The Deal With Him chapter 114
It was about time to accept that yesterday happened. As shitty as it was, it was. Everything on it. And now that the first shock and betrayal feeling I was able to go through everything again and nothing made sense.Maybe it was about time to stop this stupid childish lock out and talk to Hailey? Let her explain? I was still mad but I haven't talked to her since yesterday and now that my initial emotions were settling a little I couldn't stand the memory of her crying.And it was Hailey. I knew her. She must have had a reason not to tell me, as much as it hurt the lie.I slid on the jacket and picked up the phone, from the table. Had I left it there? Whatever. Yet the second red flag fluttered when I unlocked the screen, halting me in my tracks. "Trish.""Yeah?" she hummed cutting her apple in pieces, oblivious at all the emotions suddenly roaming aggressively in my chest, unsure yet of which one stood out from the others."Have you taken one of my calls?""Mhm? Oh yeah. Gracie called
The Deal With Him chapter 113
"Okay." she chuckled as I sat back in my spot, more cheerful now at the perspective of seeing Kimberly.I asked for them to keep me updated, but it shouldn't have surprised me when I got no notification. It hurt, but a part of me understood both Seth and Nate got more immediate things to worry about than to keep me up about it too.The mere reminder of his reaction and how he shut me out made my heart twitched painfully under my ribs.Almost as if sensing where my thoughts were going, my mother tilted her head, taking her cup of coffee. "What about Nate? Have you managed to talk to him?""He's ignoring me.""I'm sure he's not." she retorted instead brushing my hair off my shoulder. "He must be occupied and concerned about your friend too. It must have slipped his mind. He'll get over it.""No, mom, he's ignoring me. Kimmy's mother's just told me they were there until the visiting hours ended and still he didn't answer me at all. In all night. And I've been texting and calling..." my a
The Deal With Him chapter 112
Now it all make sense. Her exhaustion, how thin she was getting, the hair falling, her being kicked out the cheer squad, the whole stop hanging out with us... because if she did, we would notice something was off with her eating habits and we would have done something about it.But Hailey knew. And she did nothing. I knew Kimmy was hiding something, but why did Hailey have to lie?What the hell? How could had she allowed that?! I tugged at my hair for the umpteenth time today, but the buzzing in my ears didn't stop. My mind was going overdrive over every detail from the day, over every time my friend acted weird, every chance Hailey had of telling the trust...I didn't get it. Everything was spiraling down to a dark tornado and I saw myself falling and sinking more in the darkness as I lost more and more pillars that kept me sane.How did everything spin out of control from a good birthday to this?I couldn't even cope with everything. Somehow I just wanted to slid into my bed and dre
The Deal With Him chapter 111
HaileyMy hands were shaking with apprehension and fright as I talked to the ambulance's assistant as they all attended Kimmy. I hadn't stopped crying since she fainted some moments ago and despites our best chances she still hadn't wake up.I knew this would happen, I knew she wasn't holding up as good as she claimed to be, I knew she was getting worst and lying about it, but I didn't know what I was supposed to do. I didn't want to break her trust, but now seeing as they lifted the stretched to the back of the ambulance I wished I had instead of having to face how she'd fallen to this. And it was my fault. I should have seen this coming. I should have done more, tell someone... I was too focused on hanging in this little confidence Kimmy allowed me, so scared to lose it that I watched and let her fully fell on the abysm. And for the way Nate's been avoiding my gaze ever since he heard me telling the paramedics what was going on. The way he sat by the path with his head in his hands
The Deal With Him chapter 110
"Great, look at this." I pulled up my hand to show her the letters and she took them from me."What is that?" wondered Kimmy resting her head on her folded arms over the table, her lids closed. "Please do enlighten the rest of us.""It's- Nate!" cheered Hailey as I took my usual spot in the table and pulled her down with me to sit on the bench as well between my legs. "It's the scholarship."That successfully caught Kimmy's attention, making her straightened in her seat across from us. "They've accepted you?""Three of them have." grinned Hailey, genuinely proud of me and making me feel even lighter as she rewarded me with a proper kiss, for the first time not caring about PDA. "I knew you'll make it.""Yeah, yeah, which ones?" Kimberly took the papers from her quickly scrolling through them. Her brows rose. "Wow, Herond. Three of them. Now this is something to be proud of.""Thanks.""It is." Hailey's smile beamed, but cut my next kiss too short, turning to the table instead. "Here."
