Jake shrugged and waved away Hunter’s offer, “Shit, girl, like I don’t have enough cigarettes in my room to make the Surgeon General cry.” He dug his pack out and tossed them to the tall girl, “Here! Not your brand, but I like em’. They’ll hold you until you pick up another pack.”

He laughed, good-naturedly at her taunt; Hunter was one hell of a tall girl…Jake was 6 ft tall and she topped him just a bit. Jakob laughed loudly and admitted, “You are one big mountain of a woman, Hunt!”, he wiggled his eyebrows, “…but I’m sure you’re worth the climb!”

Her serious countenance took Jake by surprise and he wondered what he’d done now; unfortunately, it wasn’t uncommon for him to put his foot in his mouth. “Ohhh, no no no! Hey, Hunter…I think you and Gray make a really cute couple!”, he squeezed her shoulder, “he makes you happy and you make him happy…”, he smiled and held his hands up, “…can we really guarantee more?”

Jake studied Hunter’s face and wondered at all the subtle telltale signs of someone who feels the attachment of a significant other, the warmth, the lightness, the dreamy quality; he had never had that, because he was afraid of commitment to one person. He had never been someone’s split-apart, someone’s other half. What was he missing, he wondered, “How do you feel when you think of Gray?”, he asked, with an almost child-like quality to his voice.