The boy stood frozen in place with his mouth hanging open. Then, without explanation, he walked out of the room. Had he really been so offended by Thalia's refusal to hook up with him that he was going to ignore her in the most overly dramatic way possible? Thalia was about to storm out of the room and chase him down, when he returned with a video camera.
"Could you please say that bit about wanting to leave the island for me again?" Diana's boyfriend requested.
"Why on earth do you want me to do that?" Thalia wondered.
"I just want to remind you that you said that when you start acting like yourself again."
"Fine. Just tell me when."
The boy started recording and then pointed to Thalia.
"We need to get off of this stupid island."
"Now say, 'Caine Soren is always right about everything and I should do what he says more often.'"
"Caine Soren is always wrong about everything and he should really do what I say more often."
"Diana, you're back!" Caine said. Thalia couldn't tell if the excitement in his voice was genuine or sarcastic.
"Not exactly," Thalia said, "You might want to sit down again, because I've got a lot of explaining to do."
Caine ended the video and sat down on the bed.
"I'm not your girlfriend, Caine," Thalia said.
"What do you mean you're not my girlfriend? That's a pretty blunt way to dump somebody, even for you," Caine said.
"I'm not dumping you, I'm literally a completely different person from your girlfriend."
"I get it, you want to be a better person, but that hasn't changed the way you feel about me, has it? You told me you loved me, but now that-"
"Would you let me talk for five seconds? I'm trying to tell you that I am literally a different person whose brain is stuck in the body of your girlfriend! I know it sounds crazy, but I can't think of any other possibilities!"
Thalia expected the boy to break down laughing or call her insane, but instead he just looked somewhat irritated.
"Who are you and why did you take over Diana's body?"
"My name is Thalia Grace, but I didn't take over her body. We switched bodies! She's probably in my body right now, which is probably somewhere in the wilderness of northern Minnesota."
"Wait, so you're not from inside the FAYZ?"
"No, I'm a demigod."
"I don't know or care what that is. I just want Diana back."
"Well if you ever want to see her again, you're going to need to get me out of here," Thalia ordered.
"I don't do what you say!" Caine protested.
"I'm not planning on doing what you say either, but I want to get out of this body and away from you. You should help me out because you want your girlfriend back. Plus, you seem pretty excited about a chance to get off of this island."
"Oh, I am," Caine told her. He jumped off of the bed and slid the mattress off of his box spring with levitation. Then he grabbed a red five subject notebook that had been hidden within his bed like a copy of Playboy magazine.
"This notebook is full of plans to get off of here. Section 1 is plans that could work quickly, section 2 is plans that would work well, section 3 is plans that would work if we had something that we don't have, section 4 is fantasy plans that would never work, and section 5 is plans on how to take over town when I get back," Caine listed, proudly holding the notebook in front of his chest.
"You seriously need a hobby," Thalia replied.
"This counts as a hobby!"
"No, it counts as an obsession."
"I need something to do at night."
"What, Diana wasn't available?" Thalia joked.
"Exactly," Caine responded sincerely.
Thalia rolled her eyes.
"I'M HUNGRY!" Somebody shrieked from another room in the gigantic house.
"Who was that?" Thalia asked.
"Penny," Caine answered, "You have to feed her."
"Why? Can't she get her own food?"
"I wish. Her legs are broken. You have to feed her."
"Why can't you feed her?"
"Because I really don't care whether she lives or dies," Caine said casually.
"What's wrong with you!?"
"Hey, you won't care either once you actually meet her."
Thalia was trying to balance an overstuffed burrito, a glass of mountain dew, a sandwich bag full of tortilla chips, and a small bowl of possibly expired salsa in one arm while opening the bathroom door with another.
"Hello, beautiful," Penny teased.
"Hey, Penny," Thalia greeted uneasily.
The twelve year old lying on the bathroom floor may have once been good looking. She had a pretty face. Unfortunately, that face was covered in curtain of long, greasy, black hair that looked as though it hadn't been washed for at least a month. She was easily the skinniest person that Thalia had ever seen in her life. Looking at Penny reminded Thalia of picture of a girl with anorexia she had seen a health text book years ago. She looked a sort of like the main character from The Grudge, but with two broken legs that were wrapped up in homemade splints that would heal at all the wrong angles, if they ever healed at all. Thalia couldn't help but feel sorry for her.
"I tried to do Taco Bell for you today, but eat the salsa at your own risk. Also, there's no cheese or sour cream on the burrito. Just rice, beans, and some ground turkey," Thalia said.
"What, no sarcastic comment?" Penny asked.
"You want one?" Thalia wondered.
"No, I was just surprised. You're usually a total bitch."
"This is going to sound totally crazy, but I'm not Diana."
"Is this some sort of a sick joke?"
"No. My name is Thalia. I woke up in Diana's body this morning. Wow. That sounds weird."
"Weirder things have happened. Now leave. I hate looking at you."
"I will. I just wanted to tell you that Caine and I are gonna be leaving the island for a while."
"Ok, I believe you. You are definitely not Diana."
"Good to know. Apparently someone named Bug is going to be taking care of you while we're gone. I haven't seen him yet, myself."
"Of course you haven't. Good luck getting down the cliff!" Penny exclaimed. Her voice implied that she hoped Thalia would fall down said cliff and crack Diana's head open which was truly, Thalia's greatest fear.