EDIT: BEWARE OF SUPER LONG AUTHOR'S NOTE!

A/N. I must be crazily guilty. It's 2:16 AM, and I'm writing this author's note in advanced since I have not given you guys anything this whole week.

You'll get an update tomorrow, too, because my parents will be at work so I can use the computer all day. I'm so sorry again! But I need to give a sincerest apology to Curlscat because I am a lazy partner in writing. D: It's taking me so long to edit that snippet sort of thing you sent me, and to add to it, too! I promise I'll get something done with it this week!

Explanation time! As you know, I was in California for two weeks. Did a lot of things: I went to San Fran and ate a lot of barbecue and these desserts on a stick...forgot what they were called...mhmmm.

I went to Fairfield to see my Aunt (Tita) Chari and Uncle David (He's American :D I finally have an American Uncle!) who is a retired Air Force officer; they took us to Travis Air Force Base and let us sleep in this fancy hotel (you can only get reservations there if you have connections with someone who has been in or worked for the army in some way). We went to a museum all about the Air Force and everything -they had real planes and a lot of photos. They also showed the clothes that the pilots and flight attendants wore. Then we went to the JELLY BELLY FACTORY and went on the tour (dudes. There is a portrait of Harry Potter completely made of Jelly Beans...AMAZING!) and got these hats and free samples (of course, there was a Samples Bar downstairs, too...)!

Then we went back to San Fran for a bit, then headed for LA to meet up with my Uncle Ted (Filipino :3). We went to Hollywood (literally, haha) walked up and down the Walk of Fame...is that what it's called? The stars on the concrete with famous people's names?...took pictures with Superwoman and Batman (lol, ironic, right? Stupid people made us pay them a dollar each. Didn't say it costs anything at the beginning. Totally not gravy.) and almost jumped when a masked guy swung a fake knife at me and my 4 year old cousin (poor Belay!).

We headed for San Diego so my mom could reunite with her college classmate who she hasn't seen for +20 years. We went on the SS Midway (a museum on a gigantic ship) and took a bunch of videos and photos. There was a very interesting stop there...the navy showers. They had a mannequin inside the shower with only a towel around its waist. We got an audio tour so the guy said, "This is Cal. Even in a towel, he outranks you. You can only take a shower for two minutes and no more or else you can hear people banging on the door," something like that. :) Weird, but everything was very cool.

After that, we drove all the way back up to San Fran for two more days, watched Madagascar: Europe's Most Wanted on Tuesday (AFRO CIRCUS AFRO CIRCUS POLKA DOT POLKA DOT AFRO!) then we went on a plane to Phoenix, Arizona, on Wednesday.

Haha, it was surprising -I thought we were headed home to Florida, but my dad decided at the last minute we were going to say hi to my other relatives in Arizona. My aunt's (...my cousin? Whatever.) name is Marian and she's 16 -she was awesome. I love her -she's hilarious! And she's talented! She's like an older version of me -she can play piano, draw, and sing! She actually had a YouTube, too. Her name's Marian Escio if you want to check her out.

I thought we were going home now. Nope, we went to LA again (only the airport though) so we could fly on Spirit Airlines (we were flying on Southwest before, but SW doesn't have any flights to Ft. Lauderdale). Then we found out there were only four seats available on the plane (we flew on Standby) so my dad had to find another flight. My mom, my siblings, and I took a direct flight to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida while my dad flew to Detroit, then to Ft. Lauderdale. And that was it. Oh, and we went to rent a car since ours was at the Southwest Florida airport, two hours away, and went to the Outlet to buy some food from the Cheesecake Factory. Then we went home. But I was sort of sad; I didn't get to meet anyone from FanFiction or anything (Adya, or LLAMACORNRIDER, was close, but she went to San Francisco when I was in Fairfield. D:). Oh well. Maybe next time my family and I go on a trip I'll meet someone. :)

So, to conclude, I was too busy cooing over my cousins and traveling around to get the chapter ready. Excuse good? No? I'll make up for it with another chapter tomorrow. :) Sorry this was so long...you know how long my A/N's can be. :3 Enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 4: Recognizable

"Matt?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you know anything about the twins?" I inquired, turning my head slightly so I could see him. "Like, do you know them or anything?"

His grey eyes narrowed in confusion. "No, why?"

"No reason…"

I returned my attention back to the television where The Uninvited was playing. Mr. Firay shifted, causing me to shift as well since I was leaning back on him. Friday nights were movie nights for us. This week it was my choice. However, I couldn't focus on the movie. My thoughts were too preoccupied by the twins— more specifically Jackson. What did he want to ask me? Did it have something to do with the reason why he looked like he recognized me the first time we saw each other?

"There's something fishy about that Anna girl," Mr. Firay commented quietly. "No one ever speaks directly to her… What do you think?"

"I think Jackson might know us," I blurted out suddenly. "Anna too. They looked like the recognized me. What if they know something? What if they figured out we are dating? Or if somehow they know Bryant and—"

Mr. Firay put a hand to my mouth, effectively silencing me. "Daphne, calm down."

I stared at him, relaxing a little bit when I realized he looked completely calm. He pulled his hand away, offering me a small smile. "Bryant's in jail. We don't have to worry about him."

"But what if—"

"There are no what ifs, Daphne."

I frowned. "We have to consider everything though…"

Mr. Firay shook his head. "You can consider everything without Bryant. I've never seen Anna or Jackson in my life. There's no way they know us. Have you?"

"No," I responded, "but they gave me the same look you did when you first saw me."

Mr. Firay smirked. "They looked at you like you were the person they loved?"

I flushed. "No! But—"

"Listen, Daphne. There's no way they could know."

"But what if they did?" I demanded, giving him an impatient look.

He sighed lightly. "If they knew we were dating, we would probably have to break up."

"Break up?" I echoed, feeling my mouth grow dry.

"If they told someone, I would lose my job, and you could be expelled. I don't particularly care if I lose my job, but I don't want to see you expelled five months before you finish your senior year," Mr. Firay told me, his eyes smoldering into mine. "But since they don't know, we don't have to worry about it, okay?"

"I…"

Mr. Firay groaned, wrapping his arms around me, and pulling me tightly against his chest. After that, he fixed the blanket around me so that it was around both of us. "You worry too much," he commented, kissing the top of my head.

I blushed, but didn't move away. "I just don't want anything to happen..."

"Neither do I," he told me, "but if you're paranoid about it, it won't help anything."

He was right. Even if Anna and Jackson knew something, it didn't mean they knew everything. Anna didn't know we were dating— I knew that for sure. She just believed I have a crush on Mr. Firay. Which was okay. Jackson on the other hand… A frown flitted across my face again. It would be wise to be careful around him, at least.

"Why are girls in horror movies so stupid?" Mr. Firay commented in an annoyed tone. "You don't follow someone into the woods… Daphne."

I smiled sheepishly at him. "If I hadn't we wouldn't be here today like this."

"True," he responded with a frown. "I guess I should be happy you're stupid."

"Hey!"

Mr. Firay smirked at me. "Kidding. You're too cute when you get all defensive."

Pursing my lips at him, I turned my gaze back to the television. Just as something popped up, making me jump in surprise. Mr. Firay let out a shout of pain as my head smacked into his jaw with enough force to make me groan in pain as well.

"You always do that, Daphne," Mr. Firay protested. "Move your head so we both don't end up with a concussion."

Suddenly the apartment door burst open, cause me to start again. Mr. Firay glared at me as once again our heads knocked together. I grinned sheepishly back at him, moving my head so I could see who entered. Sage was by the door, frozen in place, staring at me with wide eyes.

"I burst in because I thought one of you had gotten hurt," he started, his eyes never leaving mine. "But I can see you guys are doing something completely different. Maybe I should leave…"

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes, giving Sage a flat look. "We're not doing anything, Sage."

"Really now?" Sage responded, coming closer to us. "So if I just ripped this blanket off you, you'd have clothes on?" Without warning, Sage yanked the blanket off of Mr. Firay and myself. "Oh god!" he shouted, turning his head away. "Geez you two! Cover up!"

Flushing, I moved away from Mr. Firay and glared at Sage. "Grow up."

He grinned back at me. "I'm just playing with you, Daphne. I've never even seen you making out with Matt, let alone anything else."

"Sage," Mr. Firay said warningly.

Sage raised the boxes in his hand. "I brought pizza."

"What kind?" I asked curiously, pushing myself off the couch. "I'm hungry."

Sage gave Mr. Firay a disapproving look. "You don't even feed your own girlfriend?"

"She didn't tell me she was hungry!"

"You should just know."

"How am I supposed to just know, Sage?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. Shouldn't it just be some kind of connection you two have?"

Rolling my eyes, I took one of the pizza boxes away from Sage. "We were watching a movie. I didn't want to interrupt it."

"You can interrupt if you're hungry, Daphne," Mr. Firay told me reproachfully. "I don't want you to starve."

"It's fine," I assured him, smiling slightly. "Let's eat in the kitchen."

The three of us trooped into the kitchen and took a seat at Mr. Firay's small, wooden kitchen table. Sage dropped the pizza box he was carrying onto the table and took a seat. "Okay, I got cheese for Daphne and hamburger and bacon for you Matt, your favorite."

Sitting down across from Sage, I furrowed my eyebrows, staring at the bacon and hamburger pizza he had just opened. "What? Matt, you told me you only liked plain cheese." I turned to him, frowning.

Mr. Firay quickly adverted his gaze. "That's because you only like cheese."

"But if you wanted something else I would have been fine—"

"Aww," Sage interjected, cutting me off. "You guys are so cute! I hope I can get a girlfriend like Daphne soon."

Mr. Firay looked at Sage with a quizzical look. "What do you mean?"

"Well I am in a high school full of girls. And let's face it: I'm hot. Someone's bound to fall for me."

Mr. Firay snorted. "Full of yourself much?"

"Like you're not, Matt," I pointed out.

He smiled smugly. "But at least there's truth to it."

"I know at least one person is interested in me already," Sage stated proudly, taking a slice of pizza out of the box. "Ow! Hot!" He dropped it onto the table, sticking his tongue out.

"I'll go get plates," Mr. Firay stated, moving over to one of the cabinets. "Sage, you're doing the dishes."

"Why can't Daphne?" he complained. "She's the housewife here."

"She's a guest," Mr. Firay snapped.

"So am I!"

"No, you're an annoyance."

"Ouch."

"Sage, who do you think is interested in you?" I asked curiously, not affected by his comment. Was he talking about Ariana?

Sage gained a smug expression. "Anna. She's cute too, so I'm all for it. She even said I was hot."

My heart dropped a little bit. Sage wanted to go after Anna? But what about Ariana…? I shook my head. I didn't even know whether Ariana liked Sage anyway. It was just my stupid idea that Sage and Ariana would make a cute couple… But they'd be so cute together. Not Anna and Sage.

"She called me hot, too," Mr. Firay told Sage, handing him a plate. "I wouldn't be so excited." He gave me a plate as well and finally took a seat next to me, pulling the pizza box towards him.

Sage frowned. "She did?"

"She also called Wendell handsome, and Bobby hot," I pitched in.

"Who's Bobby?"

"Some dude in my grade."

"Is he hot?"

I hesitated for a moment, briefly glancing at Mr. Firay. He shook his head at me, grinning. "Are you interested in younger men as well, Sage?" he asked, looking amused.

Sage scoffed. "No. But Bobby is just a boy. I'm a man. Chicks dig men."

"Mature men," Mr. Firay corrected him. "And I'm sorry to say you're not one of those, Sage."

"But you know who might be interested in you?" I said quickly before Mr. Firay and Sage could start bickering.

Sage looked interested. "Who?"

"Ariana."

"Daphne," Mr. Firay said with a sigh.

"What?" I responded defensively.

He pursed his lips at me. "Do you really think trying to get Sage and Ariana together is a good idea?"

"Yes!"

"Think about it. Sage times two…"

A grimace crossed my face when I realized what he meant. Would I be able to deal with double the teasing if they got together? It might be a little annoying, but I was sure I'd get used to it. "I think they'd be cute together."

"Ariana is really cute too," Sage mused, taking a bite of his pizza. "But I don't think she's interested in me. But if she was, I'd be all for it.

"Don't talk with your mouth full," Mr. Firay chided.

Sage smirked. "That's what she said."

Mr. Firay gave him a flat stare. "Ha. I still don't think you and Ariana getting together is a good idea. Think about it."

I picked up a piece of cheese pizza and took a bite, chewing slowly. Would it really be a good idea to get Sage and Ariana together? Did I want to put them through the same thing Mr. Firay and I had to go through? Not being able to go anywhere public in fear of being found out? They would have to stay holed up in Sage's house, or apartment, or wherever Sage lived just like Mr. Firay and I did. It was easy for me to do it, but would Ariana care? And what about her mom? I frowned slightly. My relationship with Mr. Firay was more complicated than I'd imagined. We were extremely lucky people.

"I don't see anything wrong with it," Sage finally commented, furrowing his eyebrows.

Mr. Firay sighed. "Never mind then, Sage."

Sage looked confused, but let it drop. I decided not to speak up. It really didn't bother me that Mr. Firay and I couldn't do what normal couples did. But I didn't want to let him know I knew we were missing out on a lot. Knowing him, he'd probably feel guilty about it, and I didn't want that.

"Sage, do you know Anna or Jackson from anywhere?" Mr. Firay suddenly asked, frowning slightly.

Sage furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "Not that I know of, why?"

"Daphne thinks they might know her."

I stared at Mr. Firay in surprise. "I thought you said not to worry about it? Does this mean you think something's going on too? What if—"

Mr. Firay shook his head. "No, you just got me curious. If they knew Daphne than that's why they might have been shocked to see you. I was thinking Sage might know whether they do or not since he's Daphne's cousin."

"Oh," I responded, calming down again. A blush set on my face. "S-sorry…"

He chuckled. "Don't worry about it, Daphne."

Sage frowned slightly. "You know, now that I'm thinking about it, I actually think I may have seen them before…"

"You have?" Mr. Firay and I chorused.

Sage nodded. "I've never met them per se, but I definitely remember seeing them somewhere. But I'm not sure where exactly."

Mr. Firay and I exchanged glances. I turned back to Sage, leaning over the table towards him. "Think carefully, Sage. Did you seem them with Daphne, or with me?"

"Daphne, definitely."

I fell back in my seat now, relief washing over me. So they must know the other Daphne. That made me feel a lot more comfortable. A small laugh left my lips. "Jeez, I was worried for nothing."

Sage raised an eyebrow. "What were you worried about?"

"I—"

"Daphne thought they were onto us," Mr. Firay informed him.

Sage laughed. "I wouldn't worry about that, Daphne. As long as you guys are discreet. I haven't heard one inkling towards you and Matt's relationship."

"You've only been there one day," I pointed out.

Sage shrugged. "Still. I'll keep an ear out."

"We won't have to worry about it," Mr. Firay said firmly. "No one will find out."

"I'm going to get to the bottom of this on Monday," I announced.

"I'll just talk to Jackson about it."

"Why not Anna?" Mr. Firay inquired, frowning.

"Jackson seems more suspicious. Anna just seems… girly."

Sage chuckled. "Well, she is a girl."

"I guess it would make sense that they knew Daphne," Mr. Firay commented thoughtfully. "They transferred here from the performing arts school."

"How do you know that?" I asked him.

He shrugged. "I looked through their file. They're an interesting case. Apparently Anna had a relationship with a teacher from her other school and both of them got in trouble. He was fired, and Anna was forced to transfer to our school."

I nearly choked on my pizza. "Wait, are you serious?"

He nodded, smirking at me. "How does it feel to know you're not alone when it comes to relationships with teachers?"

I didn't reply. If Anna had a relationship with a teacher before, why did she tell me it was impossible? Was she saying that because she had been caught? And if she had a relationship with a teacher before, did that mean she thought it was okay to have another? With either Sage or Mr. Firay?

"Daphne, what's wrong?" Mr. Firay asked, giving me a worried look.

I shook my head quickly. "Nothing…"

"Afraid she might try to steal you from me?" he guessed teasingly.

I blushed, glaring at him. "No!"

He laughed. "Don't worry, Daphne. She's not my type at all. Besides, I love you too much."

"I love you too," I responded out of habit, feeling a little more relaxed. Not that I ever doubted Mr. Firay. But Anna was a cute girl…

"Matt couldn't have her anyway," Sage commented with a complacent look. "She's interested in me."

Giving Sage a flat look, I picked up my pizza again and started eating it. Sage started talking to Mr. Firay about something all teachers had to attend next weekend. I zoned out, not really caring about some gathering of the teachers. It was weird Sage was attending though. I still found it hard to believe he was an actual teacher. Gym class was going to be harder than usual this year… Maybe I could tell Mr. Firay Sage was harassing me… I smirked. That wasn't actually a bad idea.

"Daphne, when you're finished eating I'll take you home," Mr. Firay started, snapping out of my thoughts. "It's almost ten."

Sage raised an eyebrow. "She's not spending the night?"

I flushed, glaring at Sage. "I don't always spend the night, Sage. Only when my mom goes out of town because she doesn't want me alone."

"Really?" Sage responded dubiously. "But it's a Friday night. Why can't she stay later, Matt? I want to stay too."

"You can stay," Mr. Firay told him, looking put out. "But Daphne has a curfew."

Sage snorted. "Wait, are you kidding me?"

"I didn't use to," I told him defensively. "My mom went psycho after I was stabbed. Now I'm not allowed to stay out later than ten o'clock… Especially at Matt's."

Mr. Firay smiled wryly. "She's kind of upset at me. Not that I can blame her. I did almost get her daughter killed."

"It was my fault—"

"No, Daphne. Stop saying that."

I huffed at him. "Same goes for you."

"An eighteen year old with a curfew," Sage snickered. "How lame."

Pursing my lips at him, I dropped my gaze to my pizza. He was right— it was lame. But it wasn't like I could just ignore my mom's orders. She was only doing it because she was worried about me. Even though the gang was now long gone. Maybe I could convince her to at least give me until midnight…

When the time of parting came, Sage swept me up in a gigantic bear hug, promising he'd see me Monday. Mr. Firay eventually had to force him away from me so we could leave and be on time for my curfew. It was a silent ride, aside from the rain that was pounding down on the roof the car. Mr. Firay's radio had broken a few weeks before.

"Is anyone here?" Mr. Firay inquired when we pulled up to my house twenty minutes later. "It seems a little dark."

I made a face, staring up at my black house. My mom set a curfew for me, but if she wasn't around to make sure I kept it, what was the point? Sighing, I unsnapped my belt buckle. "She must have had to work late…"

"Can I come in then?"

I turned to Mr. Firay in surprise. "What?"

He tilted his head to the side. "Is that a yes or no?"

"T-that's a yes!" I stuttered feeling flustered for some reason.

"It's just you've never asked me if you could come in before…"

He chuckled. "There's a first for everything, Daphne."

I stared from Mr. Firay, to my house, and back to Mr. Firay again. The last time we had been in my house alone together was when I first met him. Nervousness spread through me, but so did excitement.

"You ready to go in?" Mr. Firay asked, cutting the engine.

"Yeah."

A/N. I forgot to mention: in last chapter, "Sean" was actually supposed to be "Bryant". :3 Sean is actually Shawn and Shawn is from Jordan Lynde's real version of this story, if you get what I'm saying. :) Sorry for the confusion!

The answer to the RotW is R! And the original riddle is: I am in a river, but not in a lake, I am in computer, but not in a T.V, and I am in rain, but not in snow, what am I? The winners are...Puckabrina-Percabeth-Fax101, GrimmGirlLove, Kathie Says Hai, and Curlscat. Sorry if I forgot anyone! :3 Rushing this bottom A/N. here –was not written in advanced like the other one.

New QotW: Who's your favorite PJO character (if you have one) and why? And you can't just say, "HE'S HOT. A-durr." :D Even if it's true.

I'M BEHIND ON REVIEW REPLIES AGAIN! Will try to reply to most of them here (or at least, necessary ones):

PenguinLoverGurl: Yays! …British…Puck…yummy-yum…Dang. Big age gap. D: Lol. Thanks –glad you liked it! :D Hahaha. Sean is Bryant, aha. :3 Really? Thanks! Hahah, what you pointed out was fine. It's not like you said that my writing sucked so much that you were going to rape me (believe me, I got that message during FTFT -shudder). Farewell! MTLSOYAYLO!

Miss Astoria: Hey hey! :D Aww, I'm glad you liked the chapter! :D I'm glad school's over, but I go back soon. :3 TRUE DAT! Well, I dunno about eigth grade…lol. :D Jackson and Anna will be fun to write about… True that. I was in CA! Amazing, right? Jk –I've gone there countless times because my relatives live there. GOOO PJO! It does rhyme!

Killer bunnies: PJO FANS UNITE! Sage as my teacher for eighth grade…I'd fail all my tests to stay back so I could stay in his classes. :D Or he would flunk all of us because he wouldn't actually teach us, lol. Lol, space invaders! My SS teacher once showed us a video on ninjas with a lego ninja narrating the whole thing. :D OMG! YOU LOVE 5th GRADE, TOO? That sounds awesome! In my 5th grade, our teacher gave us mints before every test (said it helps your brain) and had a prize day every month! And it was the year that I had more than one friend love SG. (I had like, five. :DDD) That's iCarly, isn't it? :D I'm not afraid of spoons –it's the sporks I'm afraid of.

So…have a good day! ^^ See you guys tomorrow!

~Lara