Skadoosh! On'y one more chapter after this one! :D

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For several days I watched Danny swim joyously in the water, and for several days the water slowly receded. Cyril remained at the food pavilion the entire time. Danny said it was because he was afraid of water, for the other half-monster didn't know how to swim because he thought he was too heavy to stay afloat. I was okay with it, of course, because it meant he wouldn't be able to hurt Danny. Danny didn't know I was worrying about him so much, and I didn't want to tell him I was worrying about him because he would tell me to stop.

"What's the story of that one?" Danny asked, pointing to the star chart that I had found inside the Big House. He was taking a break from swimming to talk and spend time with me, and though I didn't want him to stop having fun in order to keep me company, I wasn't about to protest. I mean, he had thought of me. Why would I protest against that?

I looked over to the chart to see which one he was pointing at. I blinked. "I don't think that Virgo even has a story."

The half-hippocampus looked confused. "But you told me that everything has a story."

I chuckled. "That's not what I meant." I said, succeeding in making him even more confused. "What I meant was that I don't think that Virgo is anything special except for being the first woman to successfully resist Zeus' charms and being a zodiac."

"What's a Zodiac?"

I gave him a weird look, about to ask him how he didn't know what the Zodiacs were, until I remembered that he had been traveling with the other half-monsters for most of his life. He probably hadn't been able to find the time to pick up a book and read about this stuff. It also explained why he was so eager to listen to the stories I told him, why he always asked for one every day before he fell asleep.

I sat there in thought, trying to figure out how to explain the Zodiacs to Danny. But he took my silent mulling as me not willing to tell him about them, and he looked hesitant.

"…Ty?"

"…The Zodiacs… Um… How to explain, how to explain…" I said quietly in thought. Danny chuckled and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. The gesture distracted me from my thoughts, and he distracted me more when he smiled.

"Take all the time you need." He told me. He went back to looking at the star chart, keeping his arm draped across my shoulders. The way his deep blue eyes flitted around, trying to memorize the positions, names, and shapes of each constellation was distracting.

"Have you figured out how to explain it to me yet?"

I jumped when he spoke, and quickly averted my gaze from his hypnotizing eyes, cheeks heating up. Danny glanced up from the star chart and looked at me with those deep blue eyes that I had been staring at just a few seconds ago.

"Everything okay?" He asked.

"Y-yeah." I stuttered, hiding my reddening cheeks being my curly black hair. I had been wearing it down more recently instead of pulled back in its usual pony tail because Danny had once told me he liked it more when it was down. At that point, I was glad I was so eager to please him, because then, at that moment, it gave me a way to hide my embarrassed face. "Y-you just startled me, th-that's all."

Danny chuckled. "That deep in thought, huh?"

I peered at him through my hair, though I still hid my red cheeks. "Y-yeah. S-something to that effect."

"Hey…" Danny said softly. He reached up with the hand that wasn't around my shoulders and cupped the side of my face. I went rigid at the touch, heart pounding dangerously in my chest. How could he not hear my heart race at his simple touch, hear the words that I've been so restlessly thinking since that very first day I met him? "I didn't mean to startle you, okay?"

I turned my head and looked at him. That innocent look on his face, like he couldn't feel my pulse quicken beneath his gentle touch. The smile he wore so loosely, stopping every breath I took short before they could fill my lungs. The way his brown hair spiked up front, adding a pleasant compliment to his chin stubble and warm personality. I loved everything about him, and he didn't know. And if he did, then he didn't care, or he acted like he didn't care.

I swallowed nervously and nodded hesitantly. The small smile that was already on his face broadened itself into a small grin. He moved the hand that was on my cheek and began to brush the hair out of my face with gentle care.

"There," he said once all of the hair was out of my face, a small smile on his own. "Beautiful."

My face grew terribly warm at the word. Beautiful? "Y-you think I'm beautiful?"

"Not think, Ty," Danny corrected. "I know."

I went silent for a few moments, thinking of what to say or do in response to that. Was there anything to say in response? Was I supposed to say something in response to that? I didn't know. I didn't know what to say or do, and it was bugging me.

"Ty?" Danny asked, breaking me from my thoughts again. "Did I say something wrong?"

I shook my head vigorously. "No. No, it was… I don't know what to call it. I just loved it."

The smile that had fallen from his face returned. "So are you going to tell me about those Zodiacs?" Danny asked, changing the subject.

But I didn't hear him. I was too busy thinking. Should I…? I thought silently. I looked into his eyes, and I decided to stop thinking and just do, even if it meant heart break.

"Danny?"

"Yes, Ty?"

At my name, all thoughts were pushed aside and out of my mind.

Danny was different than the other guys at camp, and I loved him for that. He was perfect, and I was desperately in love with his perfectness. I didn't care if he loved me back or not. I loved him, and that fact would never change, no matter what happened.

Closing the distance between us, I gently placed my parted lips on his heart-stopping, breath-taking smile.