A/N: Well well well. Okay I know, I know, this is so late! I've been taking review classes this summer and it's been taking all my time recently so I'm really sorry! Thank you to Givala, SeaCatt, MsAssumness, danyisawesome, LazyHero, Gossip Girl, Iziz00, Ilys47, luvu11, Footlose Tenshi for reviewing my last chapter! Replying to reviews BELOW after this chapter!

Okay guys, enjoy!

PS: Add me on mycandylove : lostconcoctions

Nine: Halloween

It was here! It was really here! My favorite event of the year, Halloween, was finally here. Back in San Diego, the house would be insanely busy, being three girls in the family including my mom. She would be jumping around, trying to get Bridgette and I to look perfect. Then Bridgette would have all her friends pick her up and they would stroll around the city in their flashy outfits or spooky get ups. For me, I normally would be waiting for Mason, Beck, or Ann to come swing by and we'd do the same; walk out into the night, trick or treating and scaring some kids. But with Riley, Halloween was his favorite occasion too, and he didn't like to wait.

Before one of our dates in the summer, he called me up and told me to put on the scariest costume I had. I went with a zombie one, and when Riley picked me up at 8 the next evening, he was a zombie too, except he had a picnic basket in his hand. We drove to the local cemetery and found a spot, and had a picnic. We scared a few people, hearing shrieks all night whenever they'd catch a glimpse of us, and in the end, we were shooed away by the night watch man and his bottle of Holy Water that he kept squirting all over us.

Now, I sat on my bed, flipping through my copy of The Masque of the Red Death by Edgar Allan Poe as I waited for Rosalya to finish taking her shower. When she emerged in a towel, her skin dripping along with her silver hair, she sighed exaggeratedly.

"God, I'm so excited. Aren't you?"

I looked up and shut the book, "Yeah, why wouldn't I be? Have you seen the costume Leigh gave you yet?"

"I haven't had a look actually," she admitted, chewing on her lip, "I think that's a sign I should be putting it on now!"

I laughed and handed her the black zip-up for dresses that Leigh had given. She peeked inside it excitedly before trotting back into my bathroom.

My phone sounded; Lysander sent me a text.

I do hope the costume doesn't disappoint, I can honestly say it suits you.

I smiled and texted back, You chose it. How can anything disappoint when you put Lysander Callixto and fashion together?

Lysander was quick to reply, 'When you get my brother's opinion involved, that's when.'

'He made it! He can't go wrong.'

'But I designed it. You're not afraid of showing some skin, are you?'

'Oh God…you'd like that wouldn't you, you sleaze.'

'Ha sure, keep telling yourself that. But I do look forward to seeing you in it later.'

'Can't wait to see you guys either :)' , I replied.

'Just warning you, it's very simple.'

'I'm a very simple person,' I said.

Lysander replied, 'You might want to believe that, but you're much more complicated than you think, Skylar.'

'Oh you're an expert on me now, huh?'

'Don't deny it,'

'Hush up Mr. More-Complicated-Than-Anyone-Like-Ever'

'I like the sound of that.'

I chuckled and tossed my phone down on my bed, when I heard the bathroom door creak open. Rosalya stepped out slowly, and then right before my eyes, my self-esteem dropped. Her perfect silver hair was tied in a low ponytail to the right, which made the icy locks cascade down in front of her right shoulder. Her golden eyes looked bright and alert as thick mascara framed them perfectly, while the rest of her face was a nice even olive complexion. Her outfit, courtesy of her boyfriend Leigh, was just as beautiful as she was. Black and body hugging, it had long tight sleeves that flared slightly at the wrists, intricate golden patterns ran up and down the dress like hieroglyphics and while the base dress stopped way up her thighs, a canopy-like material flowed onto the ground; she was sexy and mysterious and I was instantly jealous of her perfect and very-much-there curves.

"Rosa…that dress was made for you." I gushed, taking her in.

"It really was!" she giggled to herself, twirling around in it, "Leave it to Leigh to make the perfect outfit. Now, it's your turn! Go, get up. I heard my baby's the one who designed your dress." She winked at me mischievously.

"Y-Your, who?" I stammered. There goes another blow about Lysander and I.

"Lysie-baby!" she clarified my nervous thoughts, "He really cares about you."

"I care about him too." I smiled, trying not to sound shaken up as I crossed to my bathroom and grabbed the dress zip-up hanging on my closet. Did everyone think Lysander and I were in love or something? No, I mean. Like. Like.

"Do you love him?" Rosa asked before I shut the door.

I poked my head out because the answer was simple, "Yes."

"Oh my God, I knew you were in love!" She gushed, her excited words filling my cheeks with a crimson color.

"Those are very different things Rosa!"

"Shut it. Love, in love, what's the difference?"

"A lot of things." I groaned when I realized the grave I dug for myself. I did love Lysander. I really did, with everything I've got. And while I found it totally cool to just love someone and have nothing more than that pure kind of love just going on, everyone else found the topic exciting while there wasn't anything exciting about it. As I tossed the thought around in my head and tried to figure out how things really seemed like with Lysander, I let the water and shampoo do its work. What did we seem like to everyone else? To my, he was my best friend here. Was it because he was kind of gorgeous? Because Lysander was. Best friend or not, I knew I was never really going to get over his eyes, or his unique hair color, just like how I was amazed at Rosalya's. When I dried myself off, I made for the zip-up dress bag. Hesitant, I finally rounded the courage to just look at it. Lysander said it showed a bit of skin, and I took it more of as a warning than just a heads-up. I zipped down the bag, closing my eyes nervously. It took a little time to get everything on and make sure it wasn't the other way around but when I turned to the mirror, even I was shocked.

I was a gladiator, but definitely a different kind. The mostly jet-black outfit hugged me from everywhere, accenting curves where I didn't usually have, and hid the hip bones usually stuck out awkwardly with the belt with a silver and black emblem of a serpent at the center, which, attached to it, were perfectly cut strips of black leather that fell over and barely covered the silver chainmail under that was extremely short and gave nothing to the imagination when it came to my thighs. The top was a tight crimson bustier that sculpted my chest perfectly with thick black appliqués and was cropped right below my breasts to show off my stomach, which was thankfully flat since I was starving and hadn't eaten all day. On top of that, I slid a 3/4ths-sleeve, jacket-like material of black chainmail onto my arms, which had silver plates on the shoulders, and black and silver gauntlets to cover my hands. I strapped on the silver sandals that ran up below my knees that Lysander had thrown in and stepped out of the bathroom. When I did, Rosalya's head whipped to face me and her gaze just popped open. Her golden eyes looked at me from head to toe, making me suddenly self-conscious and naked. Instinctively, I straightened my spine and crossed my arms in an attempt to look stronger, and also cover my exposed stomach.

"Skye Whitman, you are on fire." Rosa gasped, jumping to her feet and walking over to me, her train pooling around her smooth legs like she was floating. Even though my sandals gave me some height, Rosalya had her own killer heels that had me looking up to her. She ruffled my hair and frowned, eyeing me with an interesting look on her face.

"What is it?" I asked nervously.

"Extensions." She said. "You'd look so good in them."

"Are you sure?" I asked, "It's been forever since I had long hair."

"Trust me. Black and wavy, what could be sexier?" Rosalya winked, grabbing over to her make up kit. Out of nowhere, she produced the locks of hair and made her way to me, then did her work. She even did my make up quickly since she was all done with hers. When I turned to the mirror, I looked like a whole different person. Dark black waves fell over my chest, giving a feminine touch to my gladiator costume other than the blood red top. I was glad they weren't curls, since honestly, my awkward repulse to resemble Bridgette still there at the back of my mind. For my make up, Rosa had done a smoky eye effect on me, and light pink on my lips to keep the not-so-girly look of everything. For the first time, looking at myself made me happy.

"Lysander is a god." I breathed as I looked over at myself from head to toe. Suddenly, I heard the doorbell ring and my phone simultaneously.

"And that god of yours is here!" Rosa winked at me mischievously. I rolled my eyes and shook my head as we both exited my room. I checked on Bridgette quickly, who was in her room getting ready. She waved me off, but not before singing out a tease about a certain silver-haired friend of mine, and it wasn't Rosalya. When the door opened, Lysander was the first to step in and get ambushed by Rosalya's hug.

"Happy Halloween Lysie!" she cooed, squeezing her arms around his neck. Lysander chuckled and embraced her back. I bit my lip and toyed with my waves that fell over my eyes before catching Lysander's colorful gaze over Rosalya's shoulder.

'You look amazing.' He mouthed. I smiled and him and waited for Rosa to step aside to see his outfit. Lysander, ever faithful to his trademark teal color, was dressed mostly in black, with a three-piece black suit with golden accents. He had a black cape on his back that was tied together by a thin teal rope, and you could see that the inside of the cape was that color too. Lysander flashed me a grin and tilted his hands upward, signaling that he was open now. The fangs in his teeth gave him away, just like the trickle of fake blood I hadn't noticed before. Lysander; a Dracula. For some reason, it fit him; his ghostly appearance, his surreal eyes and his cool demeanor screamed mysterious. I never thought of Lysander as a dark person though, so this was different. But whatever. He looked more than amazing. He looked beautiful. I walked over to him and threw my arms over his shoulders as he wrapped his arms around my torso and carried me off my feet. I squealed quietly as I bent my legs and inhaled Lysander's heavenly scent before he finally dropped me back on my heels.

"You look great, Skylar." Lysander murmured, giving my hand a nice squeeze. I squeezed his back and didn't mind that he didn't even let go. "You too, Rosa. I'm sure Leigh would be rendered silent once he sees how good you look in one of his creations."

"Hey, how come you didn't life me up like that?" Rosalya said in a teasing tone, ignoring Lysander's compliment.

"Because your heels make you way too tall, Ms. Rosa." Lysander replied calmly.

"Sure, whatever you say, baby brother." Rosa murmured. "I can't believe Leigh's going to be busy all night. This dress he made is absolutely gorgeous."

"I'll be sure to tell him how much you like it." Lysander grinned at Rosa, obviously proud of his brother. "But you know him. Halloween's a good time to promote the store, especially to the kids. He'll join us later though."

"Good. I want him to see me in this." Rosa said.

I tapped Lysander on the shoulder. "Thanks Lys. For the compliment and this whole costume. You have no idea how…" I trailed off then just turned to him, "You look really good too."

"Just really good?" He joked, cocking his head to me.

"Okay, great."

"Just great?"

"Fine. You look fucking fantastic, are you happy?"

"Very much so." Lysander smiled again, his colorful gaze meeting mine. I rolled my eyes again, a stupid smile spreading all over me. I wanted to hide my face. Everything Lysander said made me smile and laugh, and I was just glad to have him with me through everything. I remembered in my head a time when we were just sitting in my room, exchanging stories about boys (for me) and girls (for Lys) trying to hit on us. By the end of the day, Lysander and I just lay on my bed, worn out from laughter, and smiling stupidly at each other for reasons even we weren't sure of.

"Where's Cas?" I finally broke our strong eye contact, glancing towards his black Camaro in the driveway.

"Oh he's out there." Lysander said, waving his hand, "Probably having a smoke."

"It's going to bite him in the ass someday." I muttered.

"Tell me about it." Lys agreed, "He stopped for a while. This year though, I don't know what triggered him to get back into it. Usually, he only smokes when he's nervous. Oh but don't tell him I said that."

"My lips are sealed." I said, making my way outside. The weather was perfect tonight, a steady chill in the air, but no strong gusts of wind to shake me or send goose bumps all over my skin. The stars were out and the streets were still empty. Soon, they would be flocking with people of all ages. When I stepped out, I found Castiel. He leaning against the neighbor's tree, smoking the cigarette. His outfit was completely black, and he still had his bomber jacket on, but the different thing was, under his jacket was a black long sleeved shirt with the print of the human skeleton. Then, I realized his black jeans had the continuing print too, only cut off by a black belt. Then, he turned to me and sent me gasping. His whole face was painted like a human skull, intricately and perfectly, grinning teeth over his frowning lips, contours of cheekbones, the empty nose. What struck me the most were his eyes, hollowed black like there was nothing there, and you would've thought so, if his gray eyes weren't so bright and steely. Even then, almost completely dressed as if he was meant to blend in with the night, he looked beautiful. His cheekbones were more defined in the night, as was his smooth, sloping jaw. Yeah, he definitely looked beautiful. The familiar shiver ran through my whole body, even in the chainmail I was in. Memories of last week were still fresh, and I wasn't sure why I was still thinking of them…Shit, Skye, get it together. You don't seriously want to be on Castiel's lap again, do you?

Yes I—

Ah fuck I need a smoke. Or better yet, a drink.

Our eyes locked and I was stuck to my spot. Castiel's gaze wandered over my costume. I swallowed. His jaw dropped open and the cigarette that was hanging on his lips dropped to the ground. I wasn't sure if he even noticed.

"Sup Statham." I arched my brow, smirking. "Bones, huh." Ever since that night we had escaped to drive around town, thoughts of me holding onto his taut stomach had roamed through my mind even when we were in school. Seeing him in this skeleton suit made me wonder what really was under all Castiel's layers.

Of course I mean layers in personality.

Not like, clothing or whatever.

I don't think of that kind of stuff. Or at least, don't like to admit that I do.

Shit.

"Chainmail." He nodded at me. "Get ready to sweat."

"S-Sweat?" I stammered.

"Yeah, it's hot."

"What's hot?"

"You." Castiel deadpanned, and I knew he was being sarcastic. I rolled my eyes and frowned. "The chainmail you're wearing, duh Whitman. What's gotten into you?"

I walked up to him, and joined his as he leaned back against the tree.

"Nothing." I moaned. I would've popped a snide remark about his costume too, but all I could think of with a skeleton outfit and bones had something to do with boners, and I would hit myself before I pulled that card this early in the night.

And knowing Castiel, he could turn any joke into a dirty one with just one look.

We all walked around the village, not even stopping in any of the houses or stores for candy. Bridgette was probably at a party downtown, getting wasted already. I didn't get these people. No candy on Halloween? Really?

"Where are we going?" I finally asked Lysander, squeezing between him and Castiel. Lysander swung an arm around my shoulders, making my outfit clink.

"Why, the only place worth going to on Halloween. The Blidley House. Then we can do whatever." He answered me, running his hand up my arm.

"Blidley House?" I repeated, glancing over at everyone for answers.

"Ooh, last year, I heard Capuccine peed her pants!" Rosalya clapped gleefully.

"What got her?" Castiel asked Rosa excitedly, though I couldn't really tell with all the paint on his face. "Let me guess, it was the dead body hanging in the bathroom!"

"The eyeless baby in the crib?" Lysander suggested.

"No!" Rosalya could barely contain her laughter, "Get this, it was the creepy piano music!"

"BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

The three of them guffawed over Capuccine's misfortunes. Poor girl. Then again, she had it out for me ever since Amber decided she didn't like me, so I laughed at the thought of her peeing herself over scary music.

"The—The Blidley house," Lysander chuckled, showing off his pearly white fangs, "Is the haunted house of Wesgrove. No one lives there, and it's abandoned all year until Halloween, where everyone, really, everyone, comes and try out their extent of fear."

My brow creased, "But if it's abandoned all year, then who makes it scarier? Puts up any pranks and all?"

"The house is already naturally spooky. The piano really does play sometimes, doors open and close out of no where, lights turn on and off, you can hear singing in the night…" Castiel said, stubbing out his cigarette on the fence of a house we were walking past, "But they say that it's the graduates of Sweet Amoris, the now-in-college freshmen that take over the tradition to make it just a bit more scary."

"We're almost there." Rosalya sighed. "After this year, we'll just have our senior one and we're out."

"But we'll be part of the tradition, so whatever." Castiel clucked his tongue.

"That's one day of the fun!" Rosa countered, "Then we go off back to our college lives."

"Think of it as a reunion then," Castiel rolled his stormy eyes.

"Even if it's a reunion we—"

"We're here." Lysander cut in with his solemn but final tone.

When I raised my eyes, we were standing in front of a black wrought iron gate that encased an eerie looking house. It looked to be bending slightly to the side, made of unsteady planks. Mildew and mold crept up all over the exterior, and vines had pushed through the breaks in the planks, deteriorating the house even more. The front door swung open once to let in a couple of other kids that had beat us there then slammed shut. The only light there was the melting candle beside the front door.

"Don't shit yourself, Whitman." Castiel whispered in my ear, the sound of his rough voice making me shiver. I would've screamed if I had it in me, but for some reason, whenever I was scared, I tended to be frozen instead of reacting. Bridgette was the shrieking-my-ass-off one.

"Please." I huffed, folding my arms and turning to him. "Don't ask me to help you out when you do."

We all followed Lysander through the gates and up the walkway to the porch. The slim path had cracks in the concrete, and the grass along both sides of us was long and untouched. If there were a snake in there, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised. When Lysander realized I was at his side, he offered his arm for me to take, which I did, before he stood in front of the dark wood door. With Castiel and Lysander both at my sides, and with their towering height over Rosalya and I, I couldn't have felt safer. The door creaked open, revealing a dark foyer where a broken chandelier sat on the floor, shattered in front of us.

"Five bucks a head." A little girl said, behing a podium and the drop box that had a sign leaning on it saying '$5 per person. Enjoy your evening.' I almost jumped right out of my skin when I saw her. How the hell did they get a little girl that that to stand in this house?

"Midgey Maggie." Castiel greeted, crouching and holding his hand up for a high five. The midget tried to keep on a serious face, but soon rolled her eyes and gave in to the Castiel's greeting, smacking his palm.

"I'm supposed to be in fucking character, Cassie." She grunted.

"Happy Halloween to you too." Casitel snickered. Lysander gave the girl a wave too, and so did Rosalya, who blew the girl a kiss.

"Oh, Mags," Lysander said, his hands landing on my shoulders, "By the way, this is Skylar. She moved in this year from California."

"Finally reeled in a girl, eh Callixto?" she giggled. Her long brown hair fell down to her thighs and was held by a white—or maybe pink, it was too dark to tell—headband. The dress she was in looked like for someone in kindergarten, with tiny flowers at the hem. Lysander winked and shook his head while Castiel threw him and me a dirty look, muttering something about paying the fee already.

"Damn, I didn't think of bringing a bag today." Rosa sighed, waving her phone.

"Me either." I murmured. "I thought we were getting candy."

"Why the hell didn't you bring a bag then if you thought you were getting candy?" Castiel said snidely at me.

"Well I usually eat it all on the way to the next house." I admitted sheepishly.

"That's adorable." Lysander smirked, poking at my cheek. I swatted his hand away only to get a firm pinch from him.

"Still adorable even if you're going to have to pay for me?" I batted my eyelashes at Lysander.

"Alright fine—"

"Me too!" Rosa peeped.

"Ah crap—"

"I'll cover Whitman." Castiel cut in, dropping in ten bucks in the box for him and I. Lysander did the same and thanked Castiel for saving him five bucks. I bumped Castiel's shoulder in thanks.

"Pairs only." Maggie cut in. "Split up in two. One pair can start upstairs, and another down."

"So how are we doing this?" Lysander asked, looking over at me. I would've been fine with either of the guys, except I definitely would've been more comfortable with Lysander if I was going to scream my head off randomly. Then again, even I knew a part of me should be—or wanted to be—going with Castiel.

"Dibs on Lys," Rosa linked her arm around Lysander's. "If I can't have Leigh here, I'll take the closest I've got."

"Nice to know you actually want to be with me." Lysander shrugged.

"You know I'm just playing, baby boy." Rosa smiled, squeezing his arm. "Come on, let's check out the kitchen first."

"Don't get too scared, Cas," Lysander said, brushing his lips on my forehead. I sucked in a breath. "This girl can be a handful."

Then the silver-haired pair disappeared behind the wide, waiting staircase in front of us.

I turned to Castiel, my palms suddenly sweating in their gauntlets. Castiel gave me a lopsided smile, still looking badass and scary all at once, offered his arm, and silently led us upstairs.

Before we entered our first room, Castiel paused outside the door. We both agreed to make a bet that the first one to scream owed the other anything of their choice, as long as it wasn't over twenty dollars and didn't take long to get by the end of the night. So I braced myself and bit my lip all the way.

The first couple of rooms were actually pretty bad, and that's saying a lot since I had a pretty big stomach for scary things. Music box tunes playing in a little girl's room, doodles of a family all over the floor, all with their faces blotched out with black ink, a bloody bed in the center of the son's, and in the master's room, there was a lady sleeping on the bed, though under further inspection, she wasn't asleep at all and was strapped to the bed, writhing and jerking around like a demon possessed her. When she growled in my face, eyes black and hollow, teeth bared and everything, and snapped to face me, that was when I yelped and hid behind Castiel, shoving him out of the room first and to the hall. But nope. No scream. I slumped and rested my forehead on his shoulder blade.

"Little girl, don't be scared." He said soothingly and teasingly at the same time. How did he do that? I closed my eyes.

"Did you see her face?" I asked him, breathing in his familiar scent off his jacket before leaning against a creaky wall now.

"I did." Castiel turned around to look at me. He brushed my fringe away from my eyes with his thumb, and when I met his gaze, I was oddly not even more creeped out by the skeleton make up. In fact, his steely eyes were warm, like coals, bringing me back. I finally let out a shaky breath before accepting his arm again to weave around the house. We went downstairs once we finished everything there was to see up, and equally had moments that we were nearly scared out of our skin (neither of us gave in to actually screaming our heads off) as we shuffled through the different rooms, ignoring the random screams in our faces, the other kids shrieking from different parts of the house, or the figures that stared at us with completely blank irises. I shuddered at the sight of the house, especially when Castiel pointed out little things like which dried bloodstains were actually real, what was under the floorboards, who died in what room, why there was a noose over the living room, etc.

"I still don't get why you're not freaked out over that girl." I mumbled as Castiel led us into the study, where bloody body parts were strewn everywhere. I couldn't shake the look in her eyes and her twisted face as she thrashed around in her chains.

"That's because I know her." Castiel said, kicking aside a pile of fake intestines as he inspected the room. "Sweet Amoris graduates remember?"

"How do you know her then?"

"We hooked up once."

"Oh."

I frowned and loosened my grip on his arm.

"Nah, I'm just playing." Castiel said, reaching for my hand. He locked our fingers and smirked. Suddenly, I wasn't so sure what we were talking about. My brain was clogged with thoughts like—

YOU AND CASTIEL ARE HOLDING HANDS.

WHY ARE YOU HOLDING HIS HAND

LET GO

HE'S JUST TEASING STOP OVER THINKING THIS

NOT LIKE THERE ARE FEELINGS HERE RIGHT?

Well two can play at this game.

I smiled at him under my lashes, let go of his hand and took him by his arm to the library.

"This is the only untouched room of the house. Pranks not allowed in here. Probably the only library I can stand." Castiel said, dragging his fingers across the books. The room was wide, and rose very high, probably the biggest in the house. It was lit by a few candles on the walls that cast an eerie glow over everything inside.

"Why?" I asked. I was forever fascinated by libraries and old books. Lysander should be

"Because they say this was where the real Blidley family all killed themselves." Castiel took my gauntlet-armored wrist and led me to the window. It was broken open, like someone had punched right through the glass, leaving bloody shards still attached to the panes. "Mrs. Blidley stuck her head right through this."

"She head-butted the window?" I asked.

"No she broke a hole here," Castiel drew out the outline of the jagged pattern, "Then kind of stuck her chin into the glass."

"Ew!" I laughed, shoving him slightly.

"It's true!" Castiel said; his eyes were bright and interested, like he was explaining a theory he discovered himself. So this was what got him riled up? Paranormal things?

"Over here," he walked over to a desk and picked up a stained gold letter opener. He poked at the sharp tip. "Mr. Blidley gave this to his kids to slit their—"

"Okay, okay!" I held up my hand, joining him at the desk. "Tell me more about it when I'm not so shaken up about that girl in the bed."

Castiel smirked.

"Are you scared yet?" he teased, leaning over the other side of the desk on his stomach so we stood across each other. I leaned forward and propped my chin on both my knuckles.

"No." I replied, raising an eyebrow. "Are you?"

"I wouldn't be scared of this house even if it tried to eat me alive." Castiel remarked, chuckling under his breath.

His gray eyes looked hooded under his long sweeping lashes. The desk between us separated our bodies, but our noses were already brushing, sending sparks rushing through out me. We were physically far apart, but the electricity and tension in the room was suffocating. And I was scared. I was actually scared. Not of anything in the house, not even of that girl, or the creaky planks, or the candlelight. I was scared of myself, because once again I was alone with Castiel. Really alone. And I wasn't sure if I would have the control not to cave in and fuck things up in our slowly developing friendship.

"Um…" I started shyly, instinctively reaching to scratch the back of my neck until my fingers tangled with black waves. My face was hot, hotter than the rest of my chainmail-covered body.

Castiel frowned, straightened up, and took long strides to meet me. I stood up too, confused and scared and watching his every move, and he was too, with his stormy gray eyes through his skeleton face. I tried not to give away that I was shaking, my hands and my feet, as he reached over to cup my jaw with his hand, stroking my cheek with his thumb. I wondered if he was blushing under his make up, and suddenly I wished I had that on too, so he wouldn't see. He licked his lips once, twice; I breathed in and caught myself glancing down at them, and the feeling kicked in. The feeling in my gut, and in my chest, and in my lungs, that I wanted him. I wanted him to kiss me, and I wanted to kiss him. I wanted him to press his lips to mine, deliberately messing up his mask work. And I didn't know why I wanted all of that. Because Castiel and I were just friends. In fact, we were still finding our footing there. Slowly.

But then his gaze ripped away from my mouth and found my eyes again, and I remembered. Because he was just beautiful, and dark, and there was something deeper that I couldn't see, like the bottom of the ocean. And though him and Lysander kept their secrets, Castiel was the one I couldn't break into whenever I tried. And there was that part where he was just…beautiful. And angry. And I was so, so, extremely attracted to him, even when there were so many other attractive people. More than attracted. I was just pulled. And I didn't know what it was. It wasn't love, or a crush, or anything I could place my finger on. It was just wanting that person.

I tilted my head upwards to try and meet him, pushing my hand into his blood red hair. He had to feel it too. This. Whatever this was. And I felt his hips pin me to the back of the desk, my chainmail clinking, and his warm breath on my cheekbones. He looked different, open, vulnerable, and not the closed off Castiel I saw everyday. My heart pounded and pounded in my chest, and when I felt his against mine, and the rate it was going, I thought I was going to have a heart attack. Then the last thing I saw before I closed my eyes was his mouth parted and his steely eyes slowly fluttering shut before—

"HOLY SHIT—"

I snapped my eyes open and suddenly Castiel's heat was gone and he had stepped back and was stomping at something wildly on the ground.

"OH MY GOD HOLY FUCK WHAT THE FUCK—" He was shouting and shouting and I creased my brow, trying to figure out what was going on and why I was in a daze, and why I felt extremely light-headed. "FUCKING SPIDER-"

Then I burst out laughing when I saw that he, Castiel Statham, was freaking out over a freaking insect.

"Statham!" I said, shoving him from his spot. "You've jumped on it enough!"

Castiel panted, running his hands into his hair as he stared at the ground where a mashed up spider lay.

"Fuck… What the fuck almost…" he breathed, then stormed out of the library while I tried catching up with him.

I found him outside the gate, smoking another cigarette and looking flustered and mad.

"You lose." I said, patting him on the shoulder.

Castiel rolled his eyes and exhaled the smoke. He had his walls up again, I could see it in his eyes.

"You owe me." I continued.

"What do you want?" He asked, reaching into his pocket.

"Surprise me."

"Here." Castiel shoved a twenty-dollar bill into my palm. "Surprise yourself." Then he started walking off in the opposite direction. Furious, I stomped over to his side.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" I asked. "One second we're having a fucking normal time, the next—"

"What happens between us isn't fucking normal!" Castiel exploded. "I just know it."

"What the hell are you talking about?" I asked, even though I knew exactly what he was talking about. The tension, the need, the closeness.

"Don't tell me you…Forget it."

"I'm not going to let you just walk away like this and leave me here alone." I said, meeting his gaze.

"Why not?" He scowled. And we were both unable to stop staring into each other.

"Because…" Um… "It's dangerous out in the night."

In a second, Castiel made for me again, pining me against the hedge behind me. The leaves poked into my back but I didn't care. All I felt was Castiel, Castiel, Castiel. But he didn't kiss me. And his eyes didn't look glassy, or warm, or soft.

"I think it's more dangerous for you to be around me than for you to be alone."

When he detached himself, I was breathing hard. And I could tell he was too.

"I'll take the risk." I said, handing him his twenty dollars. "Now, buy me some ice cream. And then I'll decide whether I want to be alone or not."

A/N: How did that go? Leave me a review! I'm dying to know your opinions! Thank you!

Check out One Thing On My Mind for Bridgette's POV!

Answering reviews for Chapter 8 time!

1. Givala- Omg right? I'm so glad you know the song cause there's really some pure sadness going on in Creep, yknow? I'm glad you think they're cute! Haha! But I'm definitely curious what you think of them after this chapter too. Leave another review? ;)

2. SeaCatt- Yay I'm so glad the last chapter was good enough! I was scared it wouldn't measure up to the first time Cas and Skye go out. I know right ugh the song choices made me depressed just writing the lyrics down. I'd die for a friendship like Lys and Skye (even if I am the one that wrote it UGH) Stay updated! And thanks for the review!

3. MsAssumness- Yeah I definitely tried to channel the awkwardness of their love. You know the not-best-friends-yet so they're not trying to ruin things, but they've just got this thing going on? Yeah I don't know if you get me but that's what I tried! Ahh it's such an honor to even have someone fangirl over my stories! Thank you!

4. danyisawesome- Thank you so much! And yeah I love Kellin's version! Heartbreaking and adorable all at once 3

5. LazyHero- Yes, she definitely does! haha thank you!

6. Gossip Girl- please bless me with another review

7. Iziz00- Yes it definitely does! I love Ed Sheeran! Haha! Aw I'm so glad you've been following this story, thank you! Yes, Bridgette's POV is One Thing On My Mind, but it's a whole different side of things compared to Skye. I'm glad this story's been giving you dreams (good ones I hope)

8. Ilys47- Mhmm somethin about Lys and Skye going alone all the time has Castiel pretty mad... though I think we all know why after this chapter. Thank for the review btw!

9. luvu11- Yes they were about to kiss! Ahh if only :( Stay tuned! And tell me what you think about this chapter!

10. Footloose Tenshi- No way! Thank you so much, you have no idea how flattering your reviews are! Best of luck with your fanfic, I'll be sure to check it out!

Thank you all for your reviews! Leave some more, I reply to pretty much all of them!