Heart of the Huntress: The Blooming Second Chance

Today was yet another awful and dreary anniversary. Many would have thought that since it was such a special day, lovers would be having a hell of a good time celebrating. Well, apparently, love wasn’t all roses and champagne, and it certainly wasn’t chocolates and milkshakes either. Because if it were, I wouldn’t be sitting here alone, waiting for him in our nearly empty thirty-foot-square apartment for freaking five hours since sundown, while staring at the “Happy 5th Anniversary!” cake I made.

“He’s late.”

I’ve never heard my voice sound that cold my whole life.

Calvin made me a promise, and we were supposed to go on a trip to celebrate this year, but with our job as monster hunters, our schedules hardly matched. Over the years, we’ve been seeing each other less, and this year was even more scarce.

I planned this surprise for us to catch up, but now it turned out to be a waste of effort.

Hunters get called out anytime. Our duty to cull the monsters and save lives always came first. Still, he should have told me if something came up and he couldn’t make it!

I angrily called his number on my Codewatch, bent on giving him a piece of my mind. However, the second the call connected, the emergency siren wailed.

Then, before I could react, a humongous creature bulldozed through my window, tackling me like a mad bull. I was instantly sent flying and smashed against the wall.

My head felt wonky, and I was throwing up blood. I also broke a few bones and hardly got any strength to lift my head. I had been hit by a lot of monsters in the past, but this was by far the worst.

At times like this, I wished Calvin was here to back me up like I always did with him. I had hoped he was only running late and was now rushing to my rescue. But that sliver of hope was shattered by the most disgusting giggle I’ve ever heard.

I thought my call got cut off when I was attacked, but it was ongoing the whole time.

I didn't have to guess who it was. I knew from her fake high-pitched voice, that it was Cathy, Calvin's ex.

“Sounds like you’re having fun, Ava. Don't worry about Calvin, I’ll keep him busy for you.”

Then, from the background, I could hear Calvin grunting. “Ugh! Who the hell is calling me this late?”

Anger and helplessness choked me from the inside. I'm dying out here and he was messing around with his ex?

Regrets filled my mind as the thoughts of my inevitable end loomed over me. I wanted to scream and cry. I still wanted to live, even just for a day.

“Help…”

As I whispered that word, the monster started screaming in pain. I could hear some electricity zapping. Did someone come to save me?

Suddenly, there was silence, then the floor rumbled as it dropped dead.

I wasn't sure what was happening, but it made me feel so relieved that my consciousness began to fade.

Through it all, I felt a gentle hand lifting me, warmly carrying me in his arms.

“Hang in there. I'm gonna get you out of here,” he said.

I don't remember much of what happened after that. When I came to, I was lying on a hospital bed. If it wasn't for the soreness, I would've thought I just had a terrible nightmare, but I did not, and a week had already passed since the incident.

I spent three more days in the hospital for clearance, and during my entire stay, Calvin did not visit even once.

I lost count of how many times I cursed him while recuperating. We had five years together and this was how it all amounted to? He didn't even make an effort to call and check on me.

I left the hospital on discharge, feeling frustrated on top of being heartbroken. A junior hunter from my unit came to get me, and it was the first time I felt so lonely. I guess deep inside I still wanted to believe in Calvin despite his betrayal, but the sucker didn't even try to pick me up.

God, I felt so pathetic I could cry a river.

My junior was getting worried, and I just smiled and pretended everything was fine and dandy. I grabbed the new equipment he handed me and geared up while he drove us to the station. It was then that a final blow woke me up from the illusion of love.

Notifications from Flipper bombed my Codewatch. All of them were from Cathy, tagging Calvin on the posts. There were photos of them drinking and celebrating her birthday. In some angles, they were suspiciously close, with one photo captioned, “Thanks for the birthday gift, babe. I had a lot of fun.”