This was inspired by the 48 hour film festival (technically the 48 hour film project). You know, that thing that happens every year, that happened just two months ago. I included a few words from 1 song, 'Bleeding' by the Ready Set, so please remember I do not own those. They are italicized and it says where I included them.
Also, please, if my French is incorrect tellme. I'm a form one a.k.a a 13 year old. Our old school had French, yes, but the teachers didn't take it seriously. If our verbs were wrong or our articles they'd still mark it right, so technically i've only had eleven months of proper French.
Anyways, enjoy!
.
Percy entered the studio with his cousin, Annabeth, and his best friend, Grover.
They were here for the 48 hour film festival, a worldwide event that occurred every year.
This year, Annabeth had entered the film festival with her girlfriend, from a different school, and had asked Grover and Percy, a.k.a her best friends, to help.
Grover, for his skill on a computer and Percy for his incredible acting.
Reyna, Annabeth's girlfriend, was also bringing two friends, Leo and Nico.
They all gathered at the judges' table, along with five other teams.
"Now," said the head judge, "Remember. There is to be no plagiarism. All work and music must be hand crafted. Although covers, parodies, reworks, remixes or retellings are acceptable as long as you are the ones that compose it. Also, remember that your movie must be no longer than eight minutes, do I make myself clear?" A chorus of yeses were heard throughout the crowd, "Good. Now, we will take you to where you shall draw your movie prop and genre from a hat, come along."
They headed to a big auditorium.
They were each randomly assigned group numbers. They were group six.
"Group 1." Called the head judge.
A representative went up to draw a genre. As did the others and the results were:
Group 1. Comedy, a hat
Group 2. Horror, a book
Group 3. Angst, a guitar
Group 4. Black and White, a key
Group 5. Friendship, a flashlight
Group 6. Romance, a noose
They'd been really lucky that romance was the last one in there since it would be the easiest. Though confused about the noose, until they were reminded that each of the props were set for a genre in the hat and that noose belonged to hurt/comfort like the guitar belonged to romance.
They were then assigned their line of dialogue; they'd received, "Excuse me, where are the shops?"
A weird line of dialogue, but one they figured they could work in.
They were told that they had fifteen minutes to get ready, and then the countdown would start.
Annabeth and Reyna figured that the best way to spend those minutes would be to introduce their friends to each other.
"Percy, Nico."
"Nico, Percy."
"Percy, Leo."
"Leo, Percy."
"Grover, Nico."
"Nico, Grover."
"Grover, Leo."
"Leo, Grover."
"heh?" The boys blinked, confused.
The girls sighed in exasperation.
"You know what," said Annabeth, "Why don't you four mingle. Reyna and I will get some paper for the script."
The boys nodded.
The girls headed off.
"So, my name's Leo," greeted Leo, extending his hand to the two boys who shook, "And this," he jerked a thumb at Nico's direction, "Is Mr. Sourpuss. But you can call him Nico."
"Ha, ha, Valdez," replied Nico sourly, "very funny."
The Latino grinned, "Thanks, I thought so too!"
Percy grinned, he was going to get along very well with that guy.
"I'm Percy, and this is Grover," said Percy, extending his hand to shake the other twos.
"Well Percy," grinned Leo, "It's a pleasure to be doing business with you."
"Likewise, Leo."
The girls arrived with the paper. And just in time seeing as the countdown alarm had just went off.
"Now," said Annabeth, "Who's going to star…?"
Percy snorted, "Really? Who're the only two here in a relationship?"
"No," said Reyna, "I can't act. Like, at all."
"Neither can I," admitted Annabeth, "And besides, I'd serve a better purpose as set designer or something. You however can act."
Leo held up his arms, "As fun as it would be to star, I can't act either. Seriously, ask Reyna."
Reyna groaned, "He isn't lying. Two of my other friends who would be here if they weren't visiting family in Canada right now, Jason and Piper, once did a play with him. He was horrible."
Leo looked offended, "Hey! I was the best table on that set!"
"Tables don't move. Or sing songs."
"And how would you know?"
"Fine, what about that time you played the tree and-"
"Okay, so it's obviously not me," said Leo, desperate for said incident not to be revealed.
Grover shook his head, "I tried charades once. It did not end well, so that's a no go for me."
Reyna shrugged, "So it's Nico and Percy then. Hope you two have a happy future together."
The two glared at the laughing girl.
"Bog off," said Nico.
"Okay," said Annabeth, "Since you two are romantically involved in the film, I think it best that you guys leave. After we brainstorm, of course. You two should mingle.
The two nodded.
"So," Annabeth drew a big circle titled 'film' in the centre of the page, "Any ideas?"
"We need a name," said Reyna.
"Hmmm…" said Percy, "Wise Girl inc.?"
Annabeth shot Percy a look, that turned to a sinister grin, "How 'bout Seaweed Brain Industries?"
"Guys," Grover said, "leave nicknames out. Since it's romance why don't we go with… um… fifty shades of love?"
"hmmm," said Leo, "Not bad. But how about, instead of 'fifty shades of' we say '48 hours to fall in' that way it would be '48 hours to fall in love,' a mixture of the deadline and the genre?"
There were many nods to that suggestion.
"Wait," said Annabeth, "that would be perfect. But wouldn't that suit the movie's name better?"
They reconsidered it before realizing she was right.
"Let's just go with 'something smells fishy,' and wrap this up, shall we?" Asked Grover.
Percy glared but the others all nodded.
"So, any ideas?" Repeated Annabeth.
"I know," said Nico, "We could do something incorporating a different language," he suggested.
Annabeth nodded, "You're right. That would definitely get us bonus points," she said, noting it down.
"Only one problem," pointed out Reyna, "None of us speak the same second language."
"Well actually, Annabeth and I both speak French," said Percy.
"Italian's pretty close to French, the pronunciations wouldn't be too hard," shrugged Nico.
"So's Spanish," said Leo.
"Great, then we'll do it in French. Now, off you go lover boys, and try to get along, we don't need you twos fighting to add to the stress of the deadline," said Annabeth.
The two boys nodded and left.
They headed to an area under the stairs.
"So…" Percy trailed off awkwardly.
"So…" trailed off Nico.
Percy looked at him, the first time he'd fully taken him in.
He was taller than him, maybe a year or two older. He wasn't overly buff, he was actually quite lean, like Percy, but his muscles were notably bigger even if it wasn't by that much. He had the slightest bit of stubble tracing his jaw and his eyes…
They were a deep, dark brown, like an endless abyss. Almost black but in the brightest of lights you could see the brown.
He wore all black and had a few chains here and there as well as an ear piercing.
And He. Was. Hot.
"Ummm…" and the trailing off seemed to have no end.
Nico drank in the boy in front of him.
He was lean, had a swimmer's build but still had some visible muscle.
He was about 5ft 9" and wore a loose, white shirt and loose black jeans with some black shoes. He had messy black hair, as though he'd recently been in a wind storm. And his eyes…
They were green with a tinge of blue, like the ocean. And when he looked into them he felt like he was on the ocean. Weird how they seemed to move…
He couldn't help but being slightly elated that this was the boy playing his love interest. If it had been Valdez…
He shuddered. That was one line he would never cross.
But then, a thought hit him. A boy like this was surely taken, and why on earth would he settle for just plain old him? And his signature scowl graced his face once more.
"So," tried Percy once more, trying to break the ice, "What're your hobbies?"
"Um," it took Nico a while to register the comment, "Well, I like visiting museums, and, um, cemeteries," this was not a good conversation starter, "but I also like drinking coffee, you?" Said the eighteen year old.
"Ah," nodded the sixteen and three quarters year old, "I like swimming, the beach and horse riding," he said.
Nico nodded.
"Horse riding," Nico said, "That must be fun for you and your boyfriend."
"What?" Percy glared.
It had been two years since he and his first boyfriend had started going out. He was, dare he say it, enamoured with him, but then it happened.
*flashback*
Percy and Annabeth were heading to Percy's house to grab a snack when they saw it.
Percy's boyfriend, Mark, a seventeen year old ravenette with dark brown eyes, was kissing some blonde male with piercing azure blue eyes who Percy didn't know.
"Mark!" Yelled an enraged Annabeth.
Mark abruptly stopped kissing and turned his head, eye wide with shock.
"Percy, I-"
"No," Percy shook his head, tears spilling out, "Just no. Mark, I trusted you," his voice shook, "And now, I see you kissing some random guy on the street? Just, no. Okay. We're done."
Mark got up to try and follow Percy, but Percy'd ran off.
"I hope you're happy with yourself," Annabeth said, before slapping him and running after her cousin…
*end of flashback*
They'd broken up only two weeks ago and it still hurt Percy to just think about the guy.
Percy didn't reply to his texts- heck he didn't even read them, especially so seeing as Annabeth had 'borrowed' his phone-, avoided him at all costs during school. And honestly, Percy was happy when he found out that said boy had moved to Canada.
"Guys!" Leo called, "Come on, we're done with the script!"
The two boys ran, they only had 47:15 hours left.
"Okay," Annabeth handed one photocopied script to Percy, "Here you go," she handed another to Nico, "and there you go."
The two boys quickly read over it.
"Annabeth," said Percy, "Can I talk to you?"
"Sure," she said.
He switched to French.
Annabeth! Really!?
What?
Why would I- why would you-?
Percy, that's just it, it's not you!
But suicide. Really?
It was the best way to fit in the noose.
Percy sighed.
And the last part. Really?
It seemed a good way to end it. Grover pitched it.
I am going to kill him.
Oh come on, it's incredible, and besides, don't you think it's time you got over 'him'?
An awkward silence filled the air.
"Just so you know," said Nico, "Italian's pretty close to French."
"And so is Spanish," agreed Leo.
Then together they said, "We can hear what you're saying."
Percy and Annabeth both blushed having forgotten that detail.
"Alrighty, then," said Grover, "We ought to get started, we only have 47:00 left."
The others nodded and Percy and Annabeth shot grateful smiles at Grover who returned them with a smile of his own.
"Well, the first scene takes place in the streets, so let's go outside," said Reyna.
They went outside, Percy helping Grover carry all the camera things outside.
Reyna, Annabeth and Nico got into their positions, Percy standing behind them at a fruit stall they'd set up.
(Please note that the translations will be in the one shown on the movie night. Also, I made this up, so if it, or any other one for the premiere, I write is similar to anything, ignore it because I haven't watched it. As proven when I said I made these up. Thank you.)
A man walked in.
"Um, excuse me, hello," a raven haired Italian-looking guy said to two chattering girls.
"Do you know where the Feryetting hotel is?" He asked.
"Excusez moi?" Asked the blonde.
"Ummm… do you know where the Feryetting hotel is?" He said slowly and loudly, as though it would help.
"Quelle est il parle?" Asked the raven-haired female.
"Ummm, wait," he fished for something in his pocket and produced a notebook titled 'useful phrases'.
He opened it up, pronouncing everything wrong.
"Ew-est l otle?" He asked.
The raven haired female wrinkled her nose in disgust.
"Je m'en vais, il est très bête."
"Moi aussi," agreed the blonde haired female, the two walking off.
The Italian male sighed, before another raven haired male walked up to him.
"You're not from here, are you?" He asked.
The Italian straightened some, "You speak English?"
The other man nodded, "One of the few who do. My name's Paul, by the way, and what's yours?"
"Vinz," said the Italian, shaking Paul's extended hand.
Paul smiled, "Well come on then, I can lead you to your hotel."
And the two walked off.
"CUT!" Said Grover, as he switched the camera off.
"That was great guys! Excellent, really," said Leo.
They stepped off set.
"Okay, everybody you have five minutes to change clothes. We'll be shooting in the park next," announced Grover.
Everyone went to change.
Percy changed into one of the spare clothes Annabeth had made him bring.
He was now wearing some baggy 3/4 khaki shorts with a loose, white T worn under an open blue and white plaid shirt with a pair of machessas (converse).
Nico emerged wearing pretty much the same as what he'd been wearing before, but now his top held a R.I.P logo and he'd taken off his jacket.
His windswept hair made him look just plain sexy in Percy's opinion.
'No' Percy thought, 'look at him. Like a guy like him doesn't have a girl/boyfriend. And even if we did end up going out, he'd probably just cheat on me like Mark.'
The thought of his ex sent a wave of bitterness coursing through his body.
Nico looked at the ocean eyed beauty in front of him. No way did he not have a boyfriend. And the thought of some guy kissing him sent a bout of unprecedented jealousy coursing through his veins.
They headed over to the park to shoot the next scene…
"Thanks for offering to show me around," said Vinz.
"Any time," said Paul, sending the older a smile.
The two proceeded to walk through the park, babbling on about stuff (which will be in the final.)
Then, they came across a Latino.
Paul grew edgy, "I think we should go," he said.
Vinz frowned, confused, "Why?"
Paul looked at the Latino, "My ex-boyfriend."
Percy burst out laughing, alarming everybody else.
They gave him queer looks.
"Ummm…" trailed off Annabeth.
"Sorry, sorry," he said, "Just kinda funny."
"You have to admit," said Leo, shrugging, "It is kind of funny… maybe we should get some random guy," he looked across the park and saw a dark haired man, "How 'bout him?"
Percy, Grover, and Annabeth's faces all darkened.
"As realistic as that would be," growled Annabeth.
"No can do," growled Grover.
"You know him?" Asked Reyna.
Oh yeah. The three recognized the man perfectly.
Mark.
The jerk who'd broken Percy's heart and left them to pick up the pieces.
What is he doing here? Hissed Annabeth.
I don't know. Visiting his grandmother? Supplied Percy.
Annabeth caught sight of a mop of blonde hair.
Or his boyfriend said Annabeth.
"Yeah," said Grover, shooting a look at the two francophones, "Let's just say there're some… uncomfortable issues with that guy," he glared in Mark's direction.
"Well, ok then," said Leo.
Percy sighed as he and Annabeth turned back to the group.
They reshot the scene and this time Percy managed to stay in character and not blooperize it.
"Okay," said Annabeth, "our next scene is at the beach. Go get dressed and we'll head out to Long Island."
"Good job guys," Grover congratulated, "At this rate, we'll be halfway done by lunch!"
"Yeah," said Percy, "The next scenes, however… don't you think they'll take some time to set up?"
"Don't worry," said Reyna, "We've still got plenty of time. Besides, we know where all the locations are so it'll be a cinch."
The others nodded, accepting the answer.
Nico and Percy headed to the changing rooms to get ready.
"So, that guy," said Nico, tossing off his shirt.
Percy, using every ounce of willpower he had not to look, said, "Can we please not talk about him?"
Nico nodded.
An awkward silence ensued as the boys stripped down before putting on their trunks.
"Great acting, by the way," said Percy.
"Yeah, well," Nico rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, "You were pretty good yourself."
"You think so?" Contemplated Percy, "Well, at least you didn't cause a blooper."
"We can use that as later footage, you know. We can, we can call it something like… 'The Great Blooper of Percy Jackson, starring: Percy Jackson,'" he said.
Percy snorted, "Great name," he said dryly.
"Thanks," smirked Nico.
Percy rolled his eyes.
"So," said Nico, "The beach, huh. One of your favorite places. You must go there all the time with your boyfriend," he said the last part sourly and with a hint of venom.
Percy's body stiffened.
"We ought to go," he said, his voice strained.
Nico frowned a bit but shrugged and followed him to the van they'd been using to get around town. It'd been Annabeth's mother's, but when she passed away she'd left it in her will for Annabeth, and last summer when Annabeth'd gotten her driver's license, her father had given it to her, kissing her on the forehead and saying that her mother would have been proud.
They started driving to Long Island Sound.
Percy and Nico would be the only ones in the scene so the others would help Grover get a bunch of shots from different angles as per the norm.
Percy was wearing a loose, white tank top, which showed off his beautiful, lean, slight-but-visible muscles which Nico- and every girl/guy within 50 metres- couldn't help but admire, flip-flops, a mucky-green colored pair of 1/2 shorts and sunglasses which he kept attached to the top of his head rather than over his eyes.
Nico was wearing a grey sweatshirt, which showed off his, lean but bigger and apparently stronger muscles that Percy- and every girl within 50 metres- couldn't help but admire, with black 1/2 shorts and a pair of flip flops.
Nico whistled awkwardly.
"So," he finally said, "Your tattoo…" he trailed off, looking at the blue tattoo of a band around Percy's arm just under his left shoulder.
"Huh? Oh," said Percy, realizing what he was talking about.
"Yeah…"
"Meh, just something I thought would be cool."
"Oh… so, when'd ya get it?"
Percy smiled at his tattoo fondly, "When I was sixteen. So, when'd'ya get your piercing."
"My eighteenth birthday," said Nico, the right corner of his mouth twitching into a smile, "My sister thought I would look 'cute' with an earring," he chuckled dryly.
"You have a sister?"
"Yes."
"She coming to the showing?"
"Should be, with our other friends Jason, Piper and Frank."
Percy nodded.
"Alrighty you two," said Leo, "Time to shoot the next scene and, please, keep the PDA to a minimum."
Percy and Nico glared at the boy whilst blushing.
They shot the scene with minimum errors (It will be written at the end with all the other movies).
"That's great work you guys," said Grover, checking his watch, "Ok, well, I think the next scene would be best shot in the afternoon."
"Where to now then?" Asked Annabeth.
"Lunch," said all the boys at once.
"We can eat at my place," offered Percy, "Mom and Paul are out of town for the weekend so it's not like we'll be intruding on anything."
"Yes," said Grover and Annabeth immediately.
They received questioning glances from the other three.
"Oh, right," Annabeth said, "I forgot, you've never eaten anything cooked by a Jackson before."
"Rest assured," said Grover, "It is… is amazing a good enough word?" He asked Annabeth.
Annabeth stroked her chin, contemplating, "Divine, for lack of a better word."
Percy just hid his face in his hands to hide his embarrassment and growing blush.
"Guys," said Leo, in an attempt to save his new friend, "I'm hungry. Let's go eat," Percy shot him a thankful smile and Leo's face adopted a wicked grin, "Then we can rate Mr. Jackson's cooking skills," he said poshly, like one of the judges from the competition.
Percy groaned before turning to face Annabeth's van and repeatedly thunk his head against it.
"If you dent that," Annabeth said, "You know you'll have to pay, right?"
More head thunking followed.
"'ts what I thought," said Annabeth, "Come on guys, to my baby cuz's!"
They all followed her into the van, although Percy entered rather shakily due to the slight concussion he received from banging his head.
They headed back to Manhattan and entered the house that was, the Jackson-Blowfis residence.
It was a small, double story house with four bedrooms of decent-big size, the smallest being six metres squared. It had a kitchen big enough to fit at least ten people having a party. A pantry that was decently stocked with food. A living room and a dining room. Two offices. A rather big garage. A garden and a swimming pool. And a toilet, bathroom and en suite.
"Wow," said the newcomers as they entered.
The entrance was red with white panels and a marble floor.
There were mahogany tables filled with trinkets and pictures.
"How long have your parents been married?" Breathed Reyna, taking in the beautiful, well-decorated house.
Percy's eyes grew sad, "Actually. My parents were never married," he said, "But I don't mind. I've got Paul and i've had him as my father figure for ten years now*."
"Oh," said Reyna, "Well, if it makes you feel better, I never knew my mom either."
Percy stared at her, bewildered, "Why would that make me feel better?"
"More accepted," shrugged Leo, "I, for example, never knew my dad, lost my mom in a fire, got disowned by my family, but that doesn't mean life was that bad."
Percy, Annabeth and Grover gaped, "How is it not that bad?" They asked.
He shrugged, "If I'd never been disowned then Reyna's aunt would never have adopted me."
It seemed it was Nico's turn to fess up,
"i've never met my dad," he said, "My mom got struck by lightning. My older sister was killed when a bus slammed into a power line pole and the lines fell on her and electrocuted her one night when she was out with her friends," he shrugged, "But i've still got a younger sister, we live with our grandpa."
What he failed to mention was that she was his half-sister/cousin due to his father courting his mother's sister as well.
"And you already know about the story with my mom," said Annabeth.
"Yeah," said Percy, "Wow. What are we, the 'My family has issues' group?"
There was a dry chuckle passed around.
"I swear," said Percy, "The only one of us who knew both their parents was Grover. And now I feel sorry for him."
Said boy shrugged, "Don't be. I didn't know them that well, and i've still got my uncle Ferdinand."
"Oh, right," said Reyna, "That was the guy who went to jail because another guy laid the blame on him for a murder, right?"
Grover nodded, "That's the one."
Suddenly, a loud growl interrupted them.
They turned to face Leo, before their eyes lowered to his belly.
Leo blushed, "Sorry guys."
Percy laughed, "don't be. I'll go make… something."
He received puzzled looks for that.
"What? My parents left this morning. Do you really think I had time to check the food stock?"
They realized that he had a point and dropped the looks.
Percy headed to the kitchen to make his 'something'.
"So," said Reyna, "Is his food really that good?"
Grover sighed dreamily, "Uh huh. I hope he's making enchiladas," he said it loud, hoping Percy would hear, but in vain seeing as Percy had plugged in his ipod.
"So… on a scale of 1-10…?" Trailed of Leo.
"57 for sure," said Annabeth.
"But, that wasn't one of the numbers."
"Exactly."
"Oookay then."
Percy came back thirty minutes later with two pizzas.
Reyna, Leo and Nico almost fainted at the smell. Then they ate a slice and actually did faint.
"Think we should wake 'em up?" Asked Percy.
"Naah," said Annabeth and Grover together.
"So, about the music," said Grover.
"I know the piano and the guitar," said Percy.
"Violin and Flute," said Annabeth, "And I know Reyna plays the Saxaphone, Nico plays the guitar and Leo plays the Spanish guitar."
Percy frowned, confused, "What's the difference between that and a regular guitar?" He asked.
Annabeth shrugged, "I don't know. He just likes emphasizing the 'Spanish' part."
Percy nodded.
"Well, I could try come up with a score for it, but I'd need Annabeth's help," he said.
She shrugged, "Sure. Grover said the next scene would be best shot in the afternoon, so why don't we just compose till then?"
Percy nodded.
They went over the play, writing notes about what music they'd need.
They decided on a piano riff for the title, a gentle saxophone-piano melody for the fourth scene, a flute solo for the end and a guitar medley for the credits by the time the other three woke up.
"Had this dream," said Reyna, groggily rubbing her eyes.
"Incredible smell," yawned Nico, rubbing his eyes.
"The symbol on the gate to heaven is chicken pizza," Leo yawned, rubbing his eyes before they landed on the pizza, "Just like that."
He had a happy grin on his face as he passed out. Again.
"What're you guys doing?" Asked Reyna.
"Coming up with some scores," said Percy.
The others nodded.
"Well what've you got so far?"
Percy sat down at the small piano and played the song they'd made for the title.
Reyna nodded, "Ok, but you might have to repeat that."
"She's right," acknowledged Grover, "The title is a lot longer."
Percy nodded.
"We need you to come up with a sax part for scene four, i'll base the piano part for that on a complimenting background tune, and then Annabeth gets a flute solo for the end and the three of us," he indicated Leo, Nico and himself, "Need to come up with a guitar medley for the credits, clear?" He asked.
They nodded.
"Whatever we can't get done before it's time for the next scene we'll do tomorrow, got it?"
The others nodded.
They set to work.
The guitar medley was pretty easy for them to come up with, they used chords to come up with it, the song staying mostly on the C and E chords.
The flute part wasn't too hard to come up with, Annabeth just did did some soft blowing to imitate some bird's singing to each other.
The saxophone went along fairly easily, Reyna just getting into the mood and letting the music flow out of her.
And once he knew what the saxophone would be playing, Percy easily put the chords behind it on the piano to back it up and they were all set within two hours.
"Alright," said Grover, "We'll do the recordings tomorrow. It's time to shoot the next scene. Go change."
The others in the scene nodded and went to go change.
The scene was shot in the living room. It was where they used their line of dialogue.
"Great shot, guys," said Grover, high-fiving the two.
"One more shot for tonight and we can call it a night," said Grover.
"Ok, we're going to need to shoot this in the park," said Reyna, looking over the scene.
"To Central Park we go," shrugged Percy.
Nico frowned, re-reading the scene, "Actually I think that the scene would be better shot at Brooklyn Bridge."
Annabeth frowned, also re-reading the scene, "He's right, you know."
Grover also read over the scene, "Yeah. The rivers would be perfect to shoot it by."
"To Brooklyn Bridge we go," shrugged Reyna.
They hopped into Annabeth's van and started heading towards Brooklyn Bridge, where they shot the scene.
Just as the scene was ending, though, did something go wrong… with the two playing love interests…
Paul shivered at the cold breeze.
Vinz noticed this and took off his jacket.
"Here you go, Paul," he said, gently placing it on Paul's back.
Paul blushed, looking into those dark, brown orbs.
"CUT!" Said Grover.
Percy and Nico still hadn't broken gaze.
"I said CUT!" Yelled Grover again.
This time the two did break gaze.
Nico blushed, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.
"Ummm…" he trailed off, looking at Percy.
But Percy wouldn't meet his gaze.
"I have to go now," mumbled Percy.
Percy turned and ran.
"Percy!" Nico called.
But it was too late. The ravenette ran, tears in his eyes. He caught a taxi and headed back to the house.
He ran into his room and shut the door before collapsing on his bed and sobbing into his pillow.
Nico stood there, confused and slightly hurt.
Why had the younger male run away from him?
Annabeth marched over to him.
"Hey! Hey you! What did you do to him?" She demanded.
"I didn't-"
"Save it!" She barked, scaring him a bit.
"Annabeth!" Called Grover, holding up his phone, "i've tried reaching him but he isn't answering!"
Annabeth turned back and glared at Nico.
She gripped him by the collar and held him up,
"Listen here, Nico," she spat furiously, "If anything, I repeat anything happens to my cousin, I will personally beat the living crap out of you!" She shook him as he cringed.
By then Grover, Reyna and Leo had caught up to the duo.
Grover and Reyna managed to pull Annabeth off whilst Leo checked to see if Nico was alright.
"Alright," said Grover, "Since he isn't picking up his phone we should probably head to his house to see if he's there."
"That's a wrap everyone, tomorrow at eight we meet up at the studio!" Announced Reyna.
Leo and Nico nodded whilst Annabeth and Grover ran, with the already packed camera set to the van so they could get to Percy's.
The two rushed up the stairs and to Percy's room.
Annabeth knocked on the door before entering without waiting for a reply, Grover following her lead.
They found Percy hunched up on his bed holding a pillow to his chest.
He looked up, tear marks down his face,
"What do you want?" He asked, wiping his nose.
Annabeth wrapped her arms around her legs as she joined him on the bed.
"To know why you ran away," she said, laying a hand on his shoulder.
"Yeah," agreed Grover, joining the other two, placing his hand on Percy's other shoulder.
Percy sighed, laying back against the wall,
"I-I just don't get it," he admitted, "This whole movie. I thought it was going to be fine, that I'd gotten over him, that-"
"Is this about Mark?" Asked Annabeth, softly.
Percy sniffed and nodded.
"Oh Percy," she said, wrapping her arms around him, Grover following suit.
"That little B******!(this is rated T so I cannot say it)" Grover said through gritted teeth, "How could he just- and you just- urgh!" He groaned out, "All in favor of killing the B****** say 'I'!"
Annabeth said 'I' almost immediately.
"Guys," Percy sighed, "Really, it's nothing. And besides, you really shouldn't be going through all this trouble because of me."
Annabeth laughed humorlessly,
"What?" She asked, "Are we just supposed to sit back and relax while our best-friend suffers from heartbreak because of some douchebag?"
Percy contemplated a bit, "Well," he said, "It would be ideal," he couldn't keep the joking tone out of his voice and the three laughed.
After sobering up a bit, Grover asked the question the duo had came for,
"But, what does Nico have to do with this?" He asked.
Percy groaned, "Before I say, I want you to agree to abide by my terms."
The other two nodded.
"Good, there is to be no bloodshed, no intervention of any kind unless requested, nothing leaves this room and please guys, no interrupting."
The two nodded again.
"Good," he sighed, "I think I may be into him."
The responses from Annabeth and Grover were hilarious to say the least.
Grover opened and closed his mouth like a goldfish, in shock, not knowing what to say.
"You think you're WHAT!?" Annabeth shrieked.
Percy winced at the tone,
"Ummm…" Percy trailed off, rubbing the back of his head.
Grover, snapping out of his stupor, shook his head,
"No, no," he said, "It totally makes sense now. You're scared! You think that if you fall for him he's going to hurt you just like Mark did!"
Percy smiled grimly as he nodded once more.
"Oh, Percy," said Annabeth, pulling him in for another hug, "Don't you worry, we ain't letting some big, old idiot hurt you, are we Grover?"
Grover snorted, "Like hell we are. The day we see you suffer is the day I shave!"
The three chuckled at the proclamation.
"Thanks guys," smiled Percy, slinging an arm around each friend's neck, "It means a lot, really."
The two smiled back.
"Anytime," began Annabeth.
"Percy," finished Grover.
And the three hugged like the best-friend's they were…
.
.
Nico, Leo and Reyna had gone to a little café together for dinner.
"And I don't know what happened," exclaimed Nico, using his hands to emphasize, "One minute I'm just standing there, acting and following the lines, and the next it's like-it's like-"
"like what?" Asked Leo.
"Like magic, like heaven, like-like I never wanted it to end!" He sighed, frustrated.
"What are you saying?" Asked Reyna.
"Yeah, what are you- oh, oh," said Leo, finally getting it, before elbowing him playfully and smirking at him, "ickle Nico's got a cwush," he made kissy faces.
Nico scowled, "Bog off, Valdez, and you're younger than me, remember?"
Leo made a fist as he yelled to the sky, "Three months! You couldn't have made me three months earlier?!"
Reyna mock-shuddered, "Oh no, three more months of Leo Valdez on the planet, whatever shall we do!?" She gasped, fake-horrified.
Reyna and Nico laughed as Leo pouted.
"And you said you weren't an actor," laughed Nico, wiping a tear from his eyes.
"Who said I was acting?" Asked/laughed Reyna.
Leo pouted, "All DA LADIES LOVE LEO!" He said, throwing his arms up in the air.
Reyna shook her head, "Except for me," she said.
"Yes you do."
"No I don't."
"Yes, you do."
"No, I don't."
"Oh my god Reyna, will you just admit that I'm right!?" Gasped Leo, exasperated.
"Uh, no," she said, "Sorry Leo, I just don't swing that way, and even if I did I still wouldn't be interested."
Leo spluttered.
"Ouch, man," smirked Nico, "That's got to hurt."
Leo glared, "Off topic, now what is this about you having a crush on Percy?"
Nico sighed in frustration, "I don't even know if that's the right word. It feels… stronger, you know. Like the first time we met I couldn't take my eyes off him."
"Mh, yes," acknowledged Leo, "You have been doing rather a lot of staring lately."
Reyna snorted, "Staring? You call that staring? What he was doing doesn't even have a PG word."
Nico blushed a dark crimson red.
"Now," said Leo, "Can we please get back to the topic of Nico's first decent crush?"
"'First decent?'" squawked Nico.
"In your life you have had eight crushes and two boyfriends," Reyna lifted a brow as she knelt in on her elbows, "Two of those crushes ended up being criminals trying to mug you, one of your boyfriends/crushes was a stripper, the other was a prostitute, and the other four all ended up committing suicide due to bankruptcy."
Nico groaned, she was right, he had a knack for falling for the wrong people.
"But Percy on the other hand is decent," said Leo, "Well, remotely."
Reyna nodded, "He's right."
Nico sighed, "Ok, but what does this all mean?"
Leo snorted, "It means that you have a day to ask out the love of your life or you may never see him again."
Nico snorted, "that's a bit of an exaggeration, Leo. I've barely known him twelve hours, and besides, who says I won't see him again?"
Reyna raised an eyebrow, "Leo is actually right, you know? I mean, who's to say you'll ever see each other again. You live on opposite sides of town, and you've both got pretty full schedules if what Annabeth says about his life is anything to go by."
Nico groaned, "Great, just great. And how exactly do you propose I ask him? Hey, you, guy i've known a day, the one I made cry yesterday, yeah, i've got a question, will you go out with me? Or is that a no go because of your boyfriend."
Reyna frowned, "Percy doesn't have a boyfriend."
Nico did a double-take,
"WHAT!? SOMEONE LIKE HIM NOT HAVE A BOYFRIEND!?" He exclaimed.
Reyna had to cover her ears at the outburst, "Yeah. He and his boyfriend broke-up about two weeks ago, but Annabeth won't tell me why, and he is, therefore, single. Funny how ironic it is, fate practically throwing you together and being all, 'hey there, you two have 48 hours to fall in love… good luck!'"
Leo nodded, "She's right, you know?"
Nico groaned.
"So basically, if I don't ask him tomorrow, I might never get another chance?"
Leo clapped him on the shoulder, "No pressure, bro, just sit tight, you've got thirteen hours tomorrow."
"Yeah," agreed Reyna, "And don't forget, you two have some pretty heavy scenes tomorrow."
"Not heavy enough," muttered Nico under his breath, hoping for no one to hear him…
It didn't work.
Reyna gaped.
Leo clapped Nico on the shoulder after a moment's shock, "That's my boy!" He announced.
Reyna shook her head, "I'm just going to forget you ever said that."
"Good, because it was supposed to be a mutter, specifically the under-the-breath kind," grumbled Nico.
"Okay," yawned Leo, "Imma call it a night, see you two lovely ladies tomorrow," he winked.
Nico glared at him.
"Me too," agreed Reyna.
Nico sighed as he too left café.
.
.
The next day at eight saw the group of six at the studio.
"Okay," said Grover, "Annabeth and I edited the footage which we shall watch tonight. Now, the next scene doesn't take place till nighttime. And the scene after that also happens at nighttime. So, Annabeth and I booked a recording studio, we're heading there now to record tracks for the movie, let's go."
They packed their bags and headed to the van.
They reached the studio in under an hour.
"Grover Underwood," Grover told the secretary, "We booked studio 6."
The lady nodded and directed them to the room.
"You have five hours," she said.
He nodded.
They wasted no time getting to know the controls.
"Okay," said Grover, "According to the rules we can do covers, but we need to rewrite the score for them."
"No time," said Percy, "Let's just keep this vocal free, it's tons easier like that anyways."
"He's right," said Annabeth.
"Okay," Grover nodded, "That means no covers, then."
"Aye Aye, Captain!" Said Leo, saluting him.
"Oh," sang Percy, "who lives in a blueberry bush in the wild?"
"Grover Underwood," chimed in Annabeth, getting the drift.
"Who's hairy, and lanky and loves Juniper?" Sang Percy.
"Grover Underwood!" Sang Leo, swaying his arms.
"If shrubbery nonsense be something you wish," sang Percy.
"Grover Underwood!" Joined in Reyna.
"Then hop on the ground and bark like a bitch (female dog, not swearword)!" Sang Percy.
By now everyone but Grover was singing, the latter because he was too red in the face to even form coherent words.
"Not. Funny," he said through gritted teeth.
"Are you kidding?" Gasped Annabeth.
"That was hilarious!" Agreed Reyna.
"Best parody ever!" Gasped Nico.
The last comment brought a light blush on Percy's cheeks. Barely visible, but enough for Annabeth to send him a knowing smirk.
He glared at her.
In about three hours they'd finished recording everything.
"Okay," said Grover, "This next scene takes place at a restaurant. We've already asked one if they could host us and they said yes. Let's get a move on, then."
The others nodded.
After a brief lunch they headed out in the van.
"So, Percy," said Nico casually, "When'd you learn to play the piano?"
"When I was five," was the reply Percy gave, "When'd you learn to play the guitar?"
"When I was nine," was the reply.
Percy gave a nod at that.
They sat in silence for the rest of the car drive.
They hit Percy's house within the hour.
Percy went to go make lunch.
Both parties began conversing in hushed tones.
Annabeth turned to Grover,
"Ok, I know we promised not to interfere, but…"
"Annabeth," groaned Grover.
"I'm just saying, maybe all he needs is a… push?"
The look she got from Grover made her sigh in defeat.
"Fine," she huffed, rolling her eyes.
"Good," replied Grover.
Meanwhile, across the room…
"Nico, bruh, you're burning daylight man. Come on, it's been five hours of the day. You only have like eight hours left, Make. Your. Move!"
"I can't believe I'm saying this," said Reyna, "But I agree with Leo, the time is now. Do what must be done."
Nico sighed, "Why is this so important to you two?"
"Because you usually have them hanging off your shoulder by now," said Leo.
"But he's different, he's special."
"So? Just go in there and get him," said Reyna.
"But what if he isn't into me?" He whined.
Reyna raised an eyebrow skeptically, "Oh no, hun. You are not getting cold feet now. Do this right or I will do it for you, now get in there!" And with those words she flung him off the couch.
He stumbled back, regaining his footing, before throwing a look at the two.
Leo gave him a thumbs-up whilst Reyna's expression stayed stony.
Sighing, he headed into the kitchen.
He found Percy cutting up some vegetables, humming away to a song on the ipod.
The Ipod was on full blast and Nico could catch bits of the song,
'All I'm trynna to do is stop the bleeding
But I can't get through to you
What can I do?'
Nico smiled a bit as he recognized it, Bleeding by The Ready Set.
He decided to have a bit of fun with the humming boy.
"So I try, to be the better man," he sang, before gently pulling one of Percy's earphones off, joining in with where the artist was now at so Percy could hear,
"Is it working?"
"Gah!" Percy stumbled back, accidentally nicking a bit of his finger.
Nico winced, "Sorry," he blushed.
Percy, noticing the presence of the other boy, blushed too.
"No, no," he said, "It's okay, really. Is there a reason you're here?"
'Yes,' thought Nico, 'to ask you out.'
Instead he replied,
"I wanted to know if there was anything I could help with," he said coolly.
The simple statement seemed to take Percy aback.
"Um," he contemplated, "You could help… cut the chicken?" He shrugged.
To his surprise, the Italian nodded and got to work.
Percy wiped his finger on his shirt and pressed it to stop the bleeding (Omg I just realized there's a pun) so he could carry on with the work.
They chopped food in silence for a bit.
"So," started Nico, "Yesterday…"
Percy bit back a sigh, he knew that it'd come to this eventually.
"Yeah, sorry about that."
"Naw, it's okay. Didn't do anything wrong, did I?"
"No, chill. Its just- it was," he sighed, unable to think of the proper word.
"Complicated?" Supplied Nico.
Percy nodded.
"Well," said Nico, "You know, I'm a pretty good listener."
Percy snorted, amused, "Think so?"
"Know so," Nico smirked, "Try me."
"Well… what if I told you it was about flowers, and hearts, and other girly, mushy nonsense?" Dared Percy, a type of fire in his eyes that could only ever be ignited by a challenge.
Nico play shuddered, "Then I'd tell you that, as much hell as it sounds, I'm all ears."
Percy laughed,
"Look, Nico," he said, looking anywhere but at the boy he was by now facing's eyes, "I appreciate you trying to help, but it was nothing. Really."
"Really?" Nico stepped a bit towards Percy, "you know, you don't have to hide anything from me."
And then he closed the gap between him and Percy.
Percy's body stiffened a bit before he melted into it.
After about a minute, Percy began to lean his head back, signaling his need for air.
Nico noticed and withdrew.
"Okay then," said Percy, blushing a bit, his hair slightly more disheveled than usual, "Mind telling me what brought that on?"
"Um," Nico blushed, "I-uh, I-um, Ikindalikeyouandwaswonderingifyouwouldgooutwithme?" He rushed out.
Seeing Percy's confused face he resaid it, this time more calmly and a lot more blushingly.
"Um, I kinda like you, and was wondering if you would go out with me?" He asked again.
He was surprised when Percy's face broke out into a grin, albeit a slightly shy one, "Sounds great."
Nico nearly fainted with relief.
"Ya hear that everybody," said a voice they knew all too well, "they got together!"
"Leo! Shhh! They'll hear us," said another voice.
"Sorry Annabeth!" Replied the same voice that had started.
"Guys!" Called Percy, "We can hear you!"
"Is there no privacy?" Asked a voice that sounded suspiciously like Grover's
The two gaped.
"Excuse me!? Er- us!?" The two said at the same time.
"He said-ow! Seriously, Reyna?" Asked Leo.
The door to the kitchen burst open and they were attacked- er, hugged (to near death) by their friends.
"Oh, we're so happy for you guys!" Said Reyna.
"Speak for yourself," said Annabeth, before turning on Nico, "Let me get this straight, di Angelo, because I'm only saying this once:
If you hurt him I will triple your pain
If I so much as see you touching him I will castrate you
And if you force him into something then so help me I will-"
"Okay Annabeth," said Percy, as he and Grover held back a wild Annabeth, "I think he gets it."
Annabeth immediately straightened, "Good, because I was beginning to run out of threats."
Percy shot a glance at Nico who was trembling looking like he was about to have a heart attack.
"Sorry!" He said, "She's not usually like this!"
"Think I scared him enough? And be honest," she said to Percy.
He nodded his head at full force, "totally."
"Alright guys," said Grover, looking at his watch, "We need to shoot the scene. Now."
The others nodded.
The ones in the scene got changed and got in the van.
They finished the scenes for the night and got home to quickly.
Grover and Annabeth did the editing (with seven cups of coffee at their disposal) and they handed it in the next morning.
"So," said Percy, "See you at the premiere?"
"Ummm," said Nico nervously/adorably, "actually, I was wondering if, um, maybe you were kinda, sorta, maybe possibly free on Tuesday? We could catch a milkshake after school if you want…"
Percy, deciding to put the poor boy out of his misery, smiled and nodded at the cute (because the real word would require a change of rating) Italian,
"Sure," he said.
Nico nearly fainted with relief,
"Well, see you around then," said Percy.
Nico nodded.
.
.
The night of the premiere was black tie.
They were starting by showing the trailers to all the films before starting with the actual films.
Group 1. Why?, by we don't really care about a name inc.
A blonde girl appeared on the screen, wearing a fedora.
She was in a classroom with three other kids.
The teacher walked in, dressed formally with her grey hair tied back in a bun.
"Good morning, class," she said, "My name is Ms. Briggham, and I will be teaching- um, excuse me," she said to the blonde, "Who are you?"
"Kristie," she replied.
"Ah, Ms. May."
"Ms. May what?"
"Your title," said the teacher pointedly.
"Ohhhhhh…" she said.
"Ms. May, would you please take off your hat?"
"Why?"
"Because it is rude to wear a hat indoors."
"Why?"
"Because it is."
"But why?"
The teacher sighed in frustration,
"I don't know. Now take it off this instance or I shall put you in detention!"
"Fine," the blonde, Kristie, took off her hat.
"Now, class, today we'll be learning about lines of latitude," said the teacher, Ms. Briggham.
"Sorry, miss," said Kristie.
"Yes Kristie, what is it?" Asked Ms. Briggham.
"I was just wondering, miss, my boyfriend is outside, can I go give him a kiss?"
"No," was the sharp reply that Ms. Briggham gave.
"Why not?"
"Because this is class time."
"Geez, no wonder you're still a 'miss'."
The rest of the class 'ooed' while the teacher gasped, scandalized.
"I will have you know, young madam, that I choose to be single of my own accord!" Said Ms. Briggham.
Kristie snorted, "Whatever helps you sleep at night."
Ms. Briggham's nostrils flared, "Onto the lesson, then," she seethed, "and Ms. May, I'd advise you to keep your mouth shut, or you might just find yourself doing detention."
Kristie rolled her eyes, "Whatever."
"Now, we shall be starting with the Equator, so open your textbooks to page 52."
The class all turned their textbooks to the page.
Except for Kristie.
"Ms.?"
"The equator is the longest line of latitude-"
"Ms.?"
"above it is the tropic of cancer-"
"Ms.?"
"and below it is the tropic of Capricorn."
"MS.!?" Said Kristie.
Again.
"WHAT IS IT!?"
"What's a line of latitude?"
The teacher heaved a great, big sigh,
"A line of latitude is a line that runs the width of the globe, as opposed to longitude which runs the height, now, moving on-"
"Why's it called that?"
"I beg your pardon?"
"Why's it called that?"
"The equator?"
"Well duh," said Kristie, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world, "How are you even qualified to teach?"
Ms. Briggham looked appalled.
"Excuse me, young miss, but I earned my masters in teaching, and you, young madam, as far as your grades go, it's a wonder you made it out of pre-school!"
The students 'oohed'.
"You gonna take that 'ristie?" Asked the girl sitting next to Kristie.
Kristie's face turned a bright red, "Slim it!" She said to the girl.
The girl just held her hands back in defense, "Alright."
"Ms. May, will you please keep quiet, and you, Laura, will you-"
The teacher was interrupted as a phone rang… from Kristie's pocket.
"Oh, hang on," Kristie said, holding the receiver up to her ear.
"Oh hey, Jed," she smiled, "Nah, not doing anything important right now," the look on the teacher's face was priceless, "What? Cut class? Sure! I'll just tell her my tummy hurts. Okay. Love you. No I love you more. What? Okay. Bye!" She hung up, "Ms." She said, turning to face the teacher, clutching her stomach, "My tummy hurts! Can I go ring up my parents?"
The teacher stared at her in shock before a smirk played on her lips, "Of course you may go ring up your 'parents' if, little miss faker, you can answer this simple question. What does one plus one equal?"
"Um, okay, wow, that's easy. One plus one equals a window, and second of, that has absolutely nothing to do with geolograpaphy, I mean, like, seriously, hell-o?"
Ms. Briggham face-palmed, "Wrong and detention."
The bell rang.
"Goodbye, class," said Ms. Briggham, "oh, and Kristie, try not to get hit by any cars."
Red flashed across the screen reading: The End. And the credits rolled in.
The second film started. This genre was horror.
A scary soundtrack began to play as a spooky title that looked as though it were in blood with a night-themed background having willow trees came into view. It read: Scary calls and ghostly mauls, by Reapers inc.
The scene started out in a graveyard.
There stood two men by a grave, both wearing trenchcoats.
The one on the left said, "I don't know, Hank, it seems a little unnatural to me."
"Well, Bill," said the one on the right, Hank, "If it'll bring her back…"
He knelt by the grave and opened a book with cryptic writing,
"Saurum, Serum, Periculum*" he chanted.
They heard a scream and suddenly Hank doubled over, clutching his throat. His skin glowed green.
.
Some of the audience grimaced. The effects hadn't been done well, they'd obviously just used glow-in-the-dark sticks.
.
When he reopened his closed eyes, they were black.
He rose.
"Ah," he said, though his voice was completely different now, the sound of a girl's, "Much better…" she said.
"E-Elizabeth," gasped Bill.
"Well hello, Bill," said he/she in a sultry manner.
"What-what happened to Hank?" He asked, his voice quavering.
"He's in a… better place now," she giggled.
She did a hand gesture and he was dead.
"Hmmm," she contemplated, "I think i'll bring back Jonas, he was cuter than both of you."
Bill's lifeless body glowed green and 'his' eyes turned black as well.
He rose, "Elizabeth," he said, twirling Hank's body, "Oh how i've missed your embrace."
"Likewise, Jonas," he/she said, as 'Bill' leant down to give he/she a kiss
.
Some of the less mature members of the audience squealed or gagged. Some of the parents covered their kids eyes. But only like three or four seeing as the rest of the parents didn't feel like teaching their kids to discriminate.
.
Elizabeth/Hank turned to the graves, "Ascendus inferi!" He/she chanted.
About three grave mounds erupted, and from them came zombies.
.
Again the audience grimaced. The effects were terrible and quite unconvincing, as were the costumes. They definitely were not voting for this one.
.
"All rise, my slaves," said Elizabeth/Hank, "tonight we shall feast on human blood and grant you new bodies.
The 'undead' all wore happy, stupid grins on their faces, as they marched off to the city in the distance.
.
The scene changed and a dark room appeared, lit only by a few candles, with two people, a girl and a boy.
They were pale and wore all black. They both wore mascara and had black eyes and fangs.
.
Percy glared. He hated vampire movies. They should've done werewolves. He put a cross next to the movie's title.
.
"Bella," said the boy, "I feel a… stirring, wouldn't you say?"
"Hmmm…" contemplated the girl, "I feel that you are right, Chad, but what could it be?"
Suddenly the door burst down.
In walked the undead, lead by Elizabeth/Hank and Bill/Jonas.
"It is the inferi," hissed Chad, baring his fangs.
"It's a mutated rat," hissed Elizabeth/Hank, "Inferi…"
The inferi attacked.
The two were dead within minutes.
.
The adults covered their childrens eyes, the battle scenes were done pretty well…
.
"Now to downtown, we have some mutts to cage," said Elizabeth as two of the inferi placed themselves in new bodies.
.
The scene changed and an abandoned warehouse appeared.
Inside it was a werewolf.
The door was flung open, but this time it was not blown off it's hinges.
In walked Elizabeth/Hank with Bill/Jonas and 'Bella' and 'Chad'.
"Hello, Derek," said Elizabeth/Hank.
"Hello, meat," snarl-smirked Derek.
Before Elizabeth/Hank could ask what she meant, three werewolves descended from the roof and killed Bill/Jonas, 'Bella' and 'Chad'.
"W-what?" Gaped Elizabeth/Hank.
Derek smirked, "We smelled you coming from a mile away."
Now Elizabeth/Hank smirked, "Well, if I go down, I'm taking you with me. Marco!"
And with that, the last zombie took over Derek's body.
He spasmed.
One of the werewolves, a girl, slit Elizabeth/Hank's throat and rushed over to Derek.
"K-kill, me," he choked out, clutching his neck.
"B-but-" she cried.
"Do it!" He said, a hostile air in his voice, "Do it or i'll kill you!"
Sobbing, she slit his throat and he fell down, dead.
One taller than her, a boy, walked up to her, "Cheer up, Maia," he said, placing an arm on her, "He's in a better place now."
"I know, Dan," she said, "I-I just can't help but feel like this isn't the end.
Derek's head turned a bit on a close-up.
The credits rolled in.
.
Most of the crowd grimaced.
The plotline was… ok, but the animations mostly sucked and could've been done much better.
The third movie started. Angst.
The title rolled in on a black background. It was white in curly letters and read: Fifi Mogkobe, by reality .
Everything was black and white.
A girl sat by a tree, looking all depressed.
A guy came by with a guitar and slid down next to her.
He looked at her through his shades, "Hey… Fifi."
"Hey Jacque," she sniffed, rubbing her nose.
"Look," he sighed, "I know you're depressed about their deaths, but you have to get over it. It wasn't your fault."
"How!?" She shrieked, "I'm the one who left my hairdryer plugged in and that's what caused the fire."
"The firemen haven't delivered the results yet, it could've been something else."
Fifi laughed humorlessly, "I wish."
"Look," he sighed, "How 'bout I walk you home?"
She snorted, "I have no home. My father always looks at me in disgust and my mother yells about how it's my fault her parents are dead."
He gave her a sympathetic look, "Ok then."
.
The scene changed. They were at school, the only two in the hallways.
"So, listen," said Jacque, "There's something i've been meaning to tell you, and I-I figure it's best as a song, he strummed the first chord (I made this up.)
'Everyday is another life
'round you I feel like I have no strife
My body rotates around your eyes
And I'm singing to ask if you'll be mine.'
He looked at her, expecting an answer.
"Oh, Jacque," she cried, "Why-why would you want a murderer for a girlfriend?"
"Because you're not a murderer, Fifi," he said, disappointed, "And it doesn't matter anyways," he walked away, a heartbroken look on his face.
.
The scene changed.
Another was talking to Jacque outside a building. And from the looks of it, she was flirting with him too. She then turned to him and kissed his lips.
Fifi turned away, tears in her eyes and ran up some stairs.
Jacque, snapping out of his stupor, turned to Fifi's direction and shoved the other girl away and ran after her.
.
The scene changed and showed Fifi running up the stairs, sobbing.
She entered a room and slammed the door. She grabbed out a piece of paper and a pen and a voice began to speak which sounded like her doing a monologue,
'Dear reader. I, Fifi Mogkobe am writing to tell you I am killing myself. I am through with the guilt of causing my grandparent's deaths. Jacque, if you're reading this, it wasn't that I didn't love you, it was that I loved you too much. Goodbye, world.
Signed:
Fifi'
.
By now there was not a dry eye in the cinema.
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Fifi took a knife out from under her pillow and raised it to land a blow on her wrist when the door to her room opened and there stood Jacque.
"Fifi, no!" He said, diving at her.
The knife slipped and flew up and out of her grasp.
He pinned her wrists above her,
"Why?" He asked.
"I-I," she sobbed, "I just want it to be over, I wanna be done with the guilt, through with the lies."
She was full out bawling by now.
Jacque held her in his arms for a bit.
"The report came back," he said, "It was their stove that caused the fire."
Fifi sniffed, "R-really?"
He nodded, "You're innocent. And taken," he swooped down for a kiss and the colour came into the movie for the first time.
It slowly seeped in from the edges and was almost at Fifi and Jacque when a: THE END sign rolled in with the credits.
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The audience let out sounds of protest. It was a really good film.
Group 4's started.
The screen turned black and white and an old fashioned countdown started: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
A piano began playing a jazzy beat as the title: Mini-man gets powned, and the group's name: we couldn't really come up with one, appeared.
On the screen appeared a man with a moustache in a bowler hat wearing old fashioned clothes and holding a cane.
A bigger, burlier man came in from behind him, wearing a tanktop and holding a crowbar.
He began yelling something unintelligible at him, due to the lack of sound other than the piano.
The smaller man brought his arms up in defense, pleading his case before turning and running through the door.
He ran into a small pub.
There was a lady there, behind the counter.
The man made a bunch of gestures with his hands and the lady nodded gravely before handing him a glass.
The burlier man charged into the pub.
The smaller man jumped two feet in the air.
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The audience laughed. All the movements had been done abruptly so it was actually quite funny.
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The smaller man flung the glass at the bigger man. It missed.
The bigger man pounded his hands on his chest before running at the smaller man.
The smaller man ran outside and into the courtyard.
He looked up at the grey-washed sky and back down at the street.
He saw a mime and ran up to him.
He begun to make frantic gestures with his hands.
The mime put a hand to his chin and seemed to contemplate before squatting and rowing away with his imaginary oars.
The larger, burlier man spotted them began running towards them.
Jumping up, the smaller man ran and the mime saluted him before being toppled over by the burly man.
The small man stood in front of a row of lockers.
The larger man snorted as though the small man had just made it easy for him, before charging.
Just as he was within a hair's breadth of the smaller man, the smaller man dove to the side and shut the door behind the larger man before sprinting away. But not before making 'nyah, nyah' faces at the locker.
The smaller man disappeared off scene as a young, schoolboy entered.
The schoolboy looked at the shaking locker in confusion before pulling out his key and opening it.
Out barged the larger man who throttled the young, scared child before realizing he had the wrong person and setting the boy's cap right before exiting the scene as well.
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The smaller man dove into a shop and posed like a mannequin.
The larger man ran right past before walking backwards and realizing it was the one he was chasing.
He ran into the shop and the smaller man ran off the display and into the shop beyond viewpoint.
There were clothes thrown up and racks flipped in the air before the smaller man ran out in a bra and the larger man ran out with an inflate-o duck wrapped around him.
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The audience were gasping for breath. This was a good film.
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The man was now at the docks.
He rowed his boat as the piano music grew faster.
He made it to an abandoned island.
He sat on the sand and sighed in relief before a fist wrapped around his throat.
It was the larger man, grinning manically, his crooked teeth showing.
The smaller man gulped.
A fist was brought up to punch.
It went down.
BAM! Read the screen, with an animated page caption.
A jollier piano tune began to play as the old black background appeared with a: THE END and some credits.
.
The film received a standing ovation as well as many 'whoops'.
The fifth film began and Nico and Percy were biting their lips, their group was next.
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The title appeared on a faded blue-purple background: treasure hunt.
Two teens appeared, lounging on deck chairs.
Suddenly, a flyer flew in and hit one of them's face.
His friend peeled it off while he grimaced.
"Hey Bill, look at this," said the boy who'd peeled it off his face, a blonde boy with twinkling blue eyes.
"I don't want to, Charlie," said the brunette grumpily.
"It's a treasure map," said Charlie.
"Charlie," said Bill, "I told you. I don't want to-"
"The treasure is 50 million dollars."
That seemed to catch Bill's attention.
"Like I said, Charlie, I don't want to pass up on this great opportunity. Now, where do we start?"
"Ummm… it says we're supposed to start… here. Wow. Then we take four steps north."
The two hopped up and took for steps forward.
"Ummm… it says to go to the third entrance to the park on 4 east avenue," said Charlie.
The two exited the scene.
.
When they reappeared, they were at a park.
"It says to look for the big beech tree," said Charlie, tilting the map, "What could that mean?"
"Ummm… gee, I don't know, maybe the big beech tree in the middle of the park," said Bill, his voice oozing with sarcasm.
"Hmmm… I don't know…" said Charlie.
Bill groaned, grabbing Charlie's left arm with his arms, "Come on."
.
The scene changed and they were at a big beech tree in the middle of the park.
"Okay, now what?" Asked Bill.
"It says to climb the tree and-Bill? Bill!?" Called Charlie.
"Up here," said Bill from the top of the tree.
"Ummm… it says to spot the four-o'clock ice-cream guy. Hey, maybe we should-"
"Wait here till four? I was thinking the same thing!"
"Ummm… ok…" said Charlie, a bit unsure.
"Trust me, Charles," said Bill, smugly, "I know what I'm doing."
A clock appeared on the screen and the handle whirred fast, indicating a time jump.
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If Percy hadn't been so nervous about their film, which was next, he'd have fallen asleep. This movie was la-ame.
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The scene returned, and a zoom-in was done on Charlie's watch. 4:00.
The view was shot from Bill's view.
A man with an ice cream cart came into view.
Bill fist-pumped the air and, 'sadly', fell out of the tree.
He landed with a thud on the ground and groaned while Charlie was talking to the ice cream man.
"Ok," said Charlie, as Bill stumbled to them, "It says that we'll need cups to complete a map, I didn't know which cups, so I figured I'd buy each flavor," he produced 15 cups, "Let's get to eating."
Another fast forward, except this time they just moved in faster motions and every bit of dialogue had a high-squeaky voice.
When the fast-forwarding stopped, the two boys were on their backs, groaning.
"I think I have a headache," said Charlie.
"I know I have a headache," said Bill, "What do we do now?"
"Ummm… put the cups together in alphabetical order by flavor to create a map with a 3x5 widthxlength."
They placed all the cups in order of flavor.
"Look!" Said Bill, pointing to the top where something was spelled out, "Old man's graveyard, it's there!" He pointed to a red cross on the map.
"Ummm… I'm not sure that's such a good idea. Maybe we should forget this whole treasure hunt thingy and go home," said Charlie.
Bill laughed, "And what would we have gained? It would've been a waste of a day?"
"Friendship?"
Bill laughed harder, "You really are amusing, Charlie, now come on!"
.
They were at a graveyard searching for the treasure with their torches.
"It should be under this tree…" said Charlie warily, pointing to the large yew tree in the centre.
"Well then, let's a get digging!" Said Bill enthusiastically and began shoveling.
Another time skip and they were standing in the dug hole with a chest in front of them.
"Time to open it," said Charlie.
Bill was bouncing on the balls of his feet in anticipation.
Charlie walked over to open it and gasped, "I don't believe it. It- it's beautiful!"
"Ooh! Ooh! Lemme see it," said Bill, standing next to Charlie.
His jaw dropped.
"Rip-off," said Bill, picking up one of the bars, "It's a rip-off."
Inside the treasure chest lay 500 100,000 dollar bars.
"Isn't it great!?" Said Charlie.
"No. No it isn't," said Bill, "This entire day's been a waste."
"Oh, I wouldn't say all of it's been a waste," said Charlie, munching one of the bars.
Bill sighed, "I guess not. I mean, our friendship grew, right?"
Charlie chuckled, "I was actually talking about the free food. Now come on, grumpy, let's get back home."
Bill smiled and the two walked back home together.
The End, read the screen.
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This was it. The moment group 6'd been waiting for.
The title appeared: Quarante-huit heures tomber amoureux. (48 hours to fall in love) as well as their name: something smells fishy
An Italian man walked onto the scene.
"Um, excuse me, hello," a raven haired Italian-looking guy said to two chattering girls.
"Do you know where the Feryetting hotel is?" He asked.
"Excusez moi?" Asked the blonde.
Subtitles appeared: Excuse me?
"Ummm… do you know where the Feryetting hotel is?" He said slowly and loudly, as though it would help.
"Quelle est il parle?" Asked the raven-haired female.
'What's he saying?' read the subtitles.
"Ummm, wait," he fished for something in his pocket and produced a notebook titled 'useful phrases'.
He opened it up, pronouncing everything wrong.
"Ew-est l otle?" He asked.
The raven haired female wrinkled her nose in disgust.
"Je m'en vais, il est très bête."
'I'm leaving. He's very stupid.'-subtitles
"Moi aussi," agreed the blonde haired female, the two walking off.
'me too'- subtitles.
The Italian male sighed, before another raven haired male walked up to him.
"You're not from here, are you?" He asked.
The Italian straightened some, "You speak English?"
The other man nodded, "One of the few who do. My name's Paul, by the way, and what's yours?"
"Vinz," said the Italian, shaking Paul's extended hand.
Paul smiled, "Well come on then, I can lead you to your hotel."
And the two walked off.
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The scene changed and they were in a park.
"Thanks for offering to show me around," said Vinz.
"Any time," said Paul, sending the older a smile.
They continued along the path, chatting.
"So, how long you here for?" Asked Paul.
"Ummm… actually, I moved here," said Vinz, "I got a job offer."
Paul nodded, "So, found a place to stay yet?"
Vinz shook his head, "Not yet, but my real estate agent says she'll be in touch with me by next Tuesday."
Paul nodded.
Then, they came across a Latino.
Paul grew edgy, "I think we should go," he said.
Vinz frowned, confused, "Why?"
Paul looked at the Latino, "My ex-boyfriend," he said, looking down.
"Oh," said Vinz sympathetically, "Well, would you mind showing me the beach?"
"Huh?" Asked Paul, not quite sure he'd heard him right.
"Well, um, I mean," Vinz stuttered nervously.
Paul laughed, "Sure, come on."
.
The next scene showed them at the beach, walking along the sand.
"It's really nice here," said Vinz.
"Yeah," sighed Paul.
"Is there a… reason that this is your favorite spot?"
"I used to come here with my parents all the time before they, um…" Paul trailed off.
Vinz winced, "Sorry."
"It's okay," though the tone he held implied it was anything but.
An awkward silence ensued.
"So, listen, I was wondering if you'd mind teaching me some French," said Vinz, albeit a bit shyly.
"Sure," said Paul, smiling, "We could start today if you'd want."
"That'd be great," said Vinz, blushing under Paul's smile.
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Several girls were already 'awwing' and ticking their choice.
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They were in a bedroom, sitting cross-legged on the bed.
"Ok, now, let's try that again. Excuse me, where are the shops?" Said Paul.
"Excusez moi, où-est les magasins s'il vous plait?" Said Vinz.
Paul smiled, "You're a fast learner."
"Thanks," smiled Vinz.
"Well, those are the basics."
Vinz nodded, "Thanks. Hey, I was wondering- If you're not busy, would you like to come to the park with me. I-if you're free, that is…"
Paul smiled, though it appeared a bit forced, "Thank you, Vinz, I would love to come with."
Vinz let out a smile, "See you then."
.
The scene changed and they were at the park. It was nighttime and they were walking along a path.
Paul laughed, "Today was great."
Vinz chuckled, "Totally."
They walked along the path in silence, admiring the beauty.
Paul stared into the lake, "It really is beautiful here at night."
Vinz frowned, slightly confused, "You've never been at night?"
Paul shook his head, "Nah, never really thought about coming here."
Vinz nodded, excepting the answer.
The winds began to rustle, indicating a breeze.
Paul shivered at the cold breeze.
Vinz noticed this and took off his jacket.
"Here you go, Paul," he said, gently placing it on Paul's back.
Paul blushed, looking into those dark, brown orbs.
"Ummm…" Paul trailed off.
"Let me walk you home," smiled Vinz.
Paul found himself unable to object, so he settled for meekly nodding.
Vinz smiled, laying an arm on Paul's shoulder as they turned.
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Every girl in the audience decided on their vote at that exact minute. They were only allowed three, and they were definitely choosing this one…
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The scene changed and Paul was sitting at his dining room table with a blonde girl.
"So you tell me you think you like him?" She asked.
He nodded.
"Oh Paul," she hugged him, "Callum isn't worth losing a shot at love. He was a jerk who took your heart and tore it to pieces."
Paul sighed, "I-I know."
"Do you?" Asked the blonde girl.
He sighed, "I- ye-no," he sighed, "I can't even come up with an answer anymore."
"Hey," she said, brushing a hand through his hair, "It's okay, I get that you're scared of getting your heart broken."
He nodded, "Honestly, I don't think I could handle it again."
"What are you saying?" She asked, worry evident in her voice.
"I think you know," was his reply.
"Paul!"
"I'm sorry, Rosa."
"I cant believe you!"
"Rosa."
"No guy is worth that- you know what, I can't even stand to be around you right now," she said, storming out.
Paul sighed, maybe she was right, maybe it was a bit extreme. Sighing, he turned back to his meal.
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The scene changed and Paul and Vinz were in an appartment, a candle lighting their dinner table.
A voice that sounded like thoughts in the voice of Paul said: he's really cute, and really sweet. But so was Callum, and he cheated on me. I'm not letting it happen again. Never, ever.
Paul stood up abruptly, a few tears in his eyes, "I-I have to go," he stammered, his voice a bit croaky.
"Wait, Paul," Vinz stood up too, but it was too late, Paul had already dashed out the door.
Vinz ran out after him in time to see his disappearing figure.
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The scene reappeared in Paul's bedroom, he was holding a noose.
He attached it to his curtain post and stood on a chair, ready to end his life, when Vinz burst through the door.
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The scene changed and Paul was standing by his bed with Vinz next to him.
"Why'd you do it?" Croaked a teary-eyed Vinz, "Why?"
"I was afraid," mumbled Paul, sighing, "I was afraid that you'd hurt me."
Vinz sniffed and locked eyes with Paul, "I'd never hurt you, Paul. I love you, with everything I have, let me show you."
And then, Vinz laid a kiss on Paul's lips.
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The immature people in the room whooped*.
A girl, only eight, turned to her mother, "Mommy, why are there boys kissing?" She asked.
"Because they love each other, sweetheart."
"But they can't. They're both the same gender."
The mother gave her daughter a gentle, pitying glance, "Love is love, darling, gender makes no difference."
The little girl nodded, though still highly confused.
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Vinz landed kisses down Paul's neck, lifting a knee to push the smaller boy back, onto the bed.
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Some of the audience got knowing glances in their eyes.
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His hands travelled up the inside of Paul's shirt and-
The end, the message appeared on the screen as the two faded into black.
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Some of the girls got incredulous looks on their faces whilst other girls pouted. They wanted mo-ore!
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The credits rolled in, along with some bloopers.
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Percy was this close to killing Grover by this point.
"Alright," said the head judge, "That concludes the showings, now, could you please all hand in your slips with the three movies you chose and step outside for an hour. There are drinks being served. Then we can commence with the awards."
The crowd slowly headed towards the exit.
"Who do you think won?" Asked Grover, as they all stood outside.
Annabeth grimaced, "It's pretty hard to tell with all the great movies."
Leo snorted, "Then let's just eliminate the not-so-grate ones: that ghost one sucked, the comedy one wasn't really that funny, and the treasure hunt one was a bit confusing."
"But ones that are sure to get votes are the black and white one, 'm not too sure about that one with the girl, and maybe ours," said Percy.
"I think we did a great job," said Nico.
They saw the crowd disappear into the cinema hall again and took it as their cue to go for prize-giving.
All the groups gathered in front of the audience.
"Alright, alright," said the head judge, "Now, I'd like a representative from each group to come up."
Group six had a silent, mental debate amongst themselves, and then shoved Grover, who protested, forward.
"Alright," said the head judge, "Now, I'd like you to tell us a bit about your play/experience."
Group 1 started.
A red haired girl took the mic, "Well, we had to do comedy, and our prop was a hat. Our line of dialogue was 'why?' and since the first thing that came into our minds when we added those together was a schoolroom. So, yeah."
The next one took the mic, he was a dark-skinned boy with a buzz cut and rather lithe, "Well, we came up with the dead rising as soon as we found out our topic, because it seemed the most horror-induced. We sadly didn't manage to get our effects done right because of lack of timing, but, hey, we tried."
The next one to take the mic was a blonde haired female, "Our group had Angst and, you know what, I think we did a rather ok job fitting in our prop, which was a guitar, so, yeah."
The next one, a dark haired male took the mic, "Well, we had to do ours black and white, and I think we did well, so…"
The next person to take the mic was an albino child, "Ummm… well, I think we did ok, I mean, our genre was friendship, our prop was a flashlight, and we had a lot of fun doing it, so…"
And finally, Grover took the mic, "Well… um…" he stuttered, "We had romance, obviously, we fitted in our line of dialogue well, we fitted in our prop well. It really went great, not too much stress, perfect, really."
The crowd had been clapping after each of them and clapped louder at Grover's speech.
Prize giving commenced.
There were a lot of smaller prizes, many won by group 6.
"Now, the moment you've all been waiting for," said the judge, "The winner, of the 13th annual 48 hour film festival, and believe me, they deserved it, Group 6!"
The audience burst out cheering.
"They shall be heading over to Paris in a week for the 168 hour film festival*, and will be competing against the best from every country, come on up here, guys!" Said the head judge.
The six ascended the podium and were met by a lot of cheering.
"Now," said the head judge, "I think the question we've all been wanting to ask is, are the two lead characters," he indicated Nico and Percy, "romantically involved in any way?"
Nico nodded, smiling, "Yes, sir, I managed to be the lucky boyfriend of this man right here about a week ago."
Most of the crowd broke off shmoneying, singing the song by Jay Z. He should've been more careful with his choice of words.
Percy, blushing, nodded, "To answer your question, yes, we are in a relationship as of recently."
The head judge smirked, "Oh, and would you two like to, maybe, prove it?"
Nico shrugged nonchalantly and pulled a slightly blushing, but not-minding Percy into a kiss.
Many whoops were heard for that.
.
As they all left, Annabeth walked hurriedly after Nico.
"Hey! Hey!" She called.
"Yeah?" He said, turning around to face her, slightly confused.
She sighed, "Look, I want to say I'm sorry for yelling at you and blaming you at the park, it was wrong, and stupid, and I'm sorry."
She was expecting him to not accept her apology, to call her names, but she wasn't expecting his face to break out into a grin,
"Nah," he said, "I'm actually kinda happy you did that, it makes me feel great knowing there are others who'll watch out for Percy when I can't."
She smiled at him, "Nico di Angelo, you might just be the most worthy person to hold my cousin's heart that there is."
Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo
Done! Dam (lol) that took long (a month), anyways time for the *'s
* I figured that since Percy wasn't born a demigod Sally wouldn't marry Gabe since she did that to hide his smell and might have met Paul earlier.
*(2) so I went to google translate to see if my made up words (except periculum because I already knew what that meant) were real and apparently it's Latin for: above the chamber of late danger. Wow.
*(3) I feel so embarrassed to say that the whooping ones are usually my friends and me.
*(4) made up. Don't search it.
-httyd4eva
Peace out yo;P