A/N. Sorry for such a long wait, you guys! I had a three day weekend, and I used it to relax for the most part, and fangirl over the House of Hades. Yes, I have the book (got it two days after squealing about the release), and I'm trying to control myself to be more professional (you can find my unprofessional-ness on my profile) so that's why I'm not squealing like a little girl. Yet. I have yet to actually read the book since there's just no time right now. -_- But I will squee one thing: OHMYGOSHSOMEONE'SGONNADIE! But you guys already knew that from the start. :( Hopefully you guys already knew that. I don't know who exactly, though, but the book has narrowed it down to two...and they've been through enough as it is. :,( Okay, SHUSSH LARA! SHUSH. Shhh.
Anyways, Wattpad Recommendation: The Normals by EstrangeloEdessa (yes, The Edessa from our own Sisters Grimm Fandom -I demand you all read her other works; she is quite the popular in our fairy tale section and more popular than me in general ;D):
Superheroes have all the fun.
Supervillains have even more.
But if you're a Normal, you don't get to have any fun at all. And that's not the life that Marianne Averrige is going to lead. She knows how the world works. She knows how to get what she wants. She's been waiting for this all her life.
Enjoy! (Long chapter for you guys! Twenty-two pages to be exact.) And if you find any errors, don't hesitate to point them out!
Chapter 52: A Game of Manhunt [Turned into Couple's Night]
"Sleeping bag?"
"Check."
"Flash light?"
"Check."
"Snack foods?"
"Check."
"Extra clothing?"
"Check."
Matt peered at all the bags in my trembling arms. "Pajamas?"
I gasped. "Pajamas! I knew I was forgetting something!"
"Here, give me that stuff. I'll take it to the car," he offered, holding out his arms.
Heaving a sigh of relief, I dumped the heavy load into his arms. A little jealousy bubbled up in me when he didn't even make a face. Just how strong was he? That had to be at least twenty pounds… I blinked when I realized that actually wasn't heavy at all. The real question was; just how weak was I?
He chuckled quietly before turning on his heel and heading out to his car. "Hurry up, Daphne. I have to be that earlier than everyone else."
"Then why can't I just drive myself?" I mumbled.
"Because tomorrow morning I'm bringing you back to my house," he called back, catching my muttered words.
I sighed lightly. Tonight was the senior lock-in. Honestly, I didn't want to participate, but since Matt had to go, I decided to go… Or rather, he had basically blackmailed me into going. The worst part of it was you had to leave the school at seven in the morning. We had the day off, but then we had to be at the school again for three four the hiking trip. Matt had said senior week was going to be busy, but I hadn't realized just how busy it was going to be.
"Daphne?" my dad called from the living room as I started up the stairs. He and Basil were lying on the couch watching TV. (I think Basil was waiting for his girlfriend that came over last Christmas –so cute!)
I paused, "Yeah?"
"I thought you were leaving?"
"Gotta grab pajamas."
"Ooh, that means I can have a chat with Matt!" My mom's head popped out of the kitchen.
I groaned inwardly, hastening up the rest of the steps. My mom talking to Matt was never a good thing. After locating my pajamas, I grabbed them, and hurried back to the front door where my mom was now chatting with Matt. She flipped her dark hair over her shoulder as she laughed, giving me the impression that she was flirting with him. Trying to be a bother, I decided to force my way between her right side and the door instead of her left, which left a lot more room.
Matt noticed this and smirked. "Ready now, Daphne?"
"Yep," I responded, holding up my pajamas. "Let's head out."
"You two have fun!" my mom chirped happily, leaning forward to kiss me on the cheek. "Don't do anything too risky! And if I don't see you tomorrow, stay safe on your hike! Matt, Daphne isn't as active as she used to be, so—"
"Mom," I interjected, sending her a warning look. "Stop talking. Now."
She smiled bashfully. "Did I say too much?"
Chuckling, Matt wrapped an arm around my waist. "Don't worry. I'll be a sweeper, that way she won't fall too far behind."
"Will you carry her if you have to?"
"Matt. Let's go."
He grinned at my mom before nodding. "Sure, Daphne."
"Bye, you two," my mom said, her smile so wide it almost reached across her face. "Drink plenty of water!"
"Bye, Mom," we chorused.
My mom looked like she was going to have a heart attack. "He called me mom," she cried dramatically. "I have a son!"
"Hey!" I heard Basil shout.
"I have another son! There, happy Basil?"
Rolling my eyes, I forced Matt down the driveway. "Careful, Matt, you might give her a heart attack one day."
"One day she'll be my mom, though," he pointed out seriously. "At least if all goes well."
"I hope all goes well."
"So do I," he told me, opening the passenger door for me. "Hopefully from now until then, she'll grow accustomed to the idea… I hate to see how she'll react on our wedding day."
I smiled wryly, waiting until Matt climbed into the driver's side before speaking. "Well she's got plenty of years to get used to it then."
"Five tops, Daphne."
"You're giving me a time limit to marry you by?"
"You may be young, but I'm old," he countered easily. "In five years you'll be twenty-three and I'll be twenty-eight."
I frowned at him. "That's not old."
He shrugged. "To me it is."
"I won't argue with you about this. Just drive," I ordered, leaning back in my seat. "I want to get this over as soon as possible."
"You wanna ditch?"
I glanced at him in alarm. "What?"
"We could just do a no show."
"No! Matt, you're a chaperone. You have responsibility!"
"I don't want responsibility," he complained, shifting the car into reverse. "I just want to go home and cuddle on the couch with my girlfriend."
I tried to suppress the smile on my lips. "You sound like such a girl."
He grunted. "Whatever."
"Tonight will be fun," I assured him, grabbing his free hand with my left hand. "There will be lots of games and stuff."
"You're forgetting to remember since I'm a chaperone, I don't get to participate. As you said, I have responsibility."
I smiled slyly at him. "Chaperones have to play too when they're not on corridor duty."
"They do?"
"Yep."
"Great," he muttered. "What kind of games will we be playing?"
"You'll see," I responded vaguely. "Just make sure to partner up with Sage for every game."
He glanced at me curiously. "Why?"
"Tonight will be the night we get Sage and Ariana together!"
"I should've known you were planning this," he sighed, shaking his head. "You know how I feel about this—"
"And you know how I feel and how they feel. Stop being so selfish," I retorted, crossing my arms. "Shouldn't they have a happily ever after too?"
He sighed once again. "Okay, okay. I'll do my best."
I blinked at him. "Huh? You're giving up just like that?"
"Yes, because I don't want you to be upset," he responded.
A smile appeared on my face. "I love you."
"I love you too. So about these games…"
"I'm still not telling you," I said with a laugh. "You'll see, you'll see…"
\\ ||/Let's Gather 'Round the Campfire and Sing the Campfire Song, The C-A-M-P-F-I-R-E-S-O-N-G Song! \\|| /
A surprising small amount of students showed up for the senior lock-in. We were all gathered in the cafeteria at seven o'clock sharp, ready to set up our groups. There were fifty students and ten chaperones, meaning five groups of ten students with two chaperones. Of course, everyone and their brother wanted Matt and Sage to be their chaperones, so the other teachers had to resort to drawing from a hat. After spending twenty minutes writing down all our names and putting them into a hat, Mrs. Hernandez gave it to Matt to choose from. He smirked as he took it from her. "I get to choose?"
"Do you not want to?" she responded, frowning. "I can do it—"
"Not it's okay. I'll choose then…" He stuck his hand into the hat and pulled out the first slip of paper. "Wendell Piper."
My heart skipped a beat. What if he didn't pull my name? That meant we'd be sleeping in two totally different places and barely being able to see each other. I silently prayed my name would be called.
"Ariana Hernandez," he called next. "Daniel Criss. Anna Tomber. Josh Hutcherson*."
From next to me, Ariana let out a quiet groan. "Figures."
I patted her shoulder sympathetically. "Sage will be the other chaperone."
"That makes it worse. My ex-boyfriend and my crush?" she whispered.
"Jackson Tomber," Matt called, crinkling the white paper up and stuffing it in his pocket.
I stared at him, my chest tightening. What number was he at now? Seven? I had to be one of that last four!
"Annabeth Chase*," he said and my eyes shot to the blonde girl standing with her friends. She looked a little surprised to have her named called.
"Percy Jackson*," Matt continued and my eyes switched to the tall and rather handsome boy next to her.
I turned to Ariana with a frown. "Who's Percy?"
She cocked an eyebrow at me. "He transferred here like three months ago, Daphne. Do you pay attention to anything?"
"Er—"
"Oh that's right," she interjected, smiling slyly, "you're way too focused on your teacher."
I blushed, shooting her a dirty look. "Shut up, Ariana."
She giggled. "Sure."
"Leo Valdez*," Matt announced, glancing in my direction.
I stared back at him, my mouth going dry. There was only one name left. It had to be me. If it wasn't me, I'd lock the other person in the closest and take on their identity.
I shook my head. I was turning into a lunatic.
Matt pulled the last slip of paper out. Dramatically slowly, he unwrinkled it and spread it out so he could read it. The expression on his face made my heart stop. It definitely wasn't me. There was no way it was me. He'd probably pulled out Natalie's** name, or Bella's…
"Daphne Grimm."
"Yay!" Ariana cheered loudly, pumping her first up into the air. "Woo hoo!"
Sage, who was standing next to Matt, laughed at her outburst while I let out a huge sigh of relief. "I was going to cry if I didn't get chosen," I admitted quietly to Ariana.
"No need to now!" she said cheerily, clapping me on the back. "Now we get to spend the whole night together!"
A few of the students around me grumbled about how they weren't chosen to be in the group. I pitied them a little bit, but only because the other teachers who were chaperoning were old— except my history teacher, Ms. Peterson, but she wasn't as handsome as Matt and Sage [for obvious reasons being that she is a woman].
The rest of the groups were divided without the hat because Matt had accidentally dropped it and scattered all the names. After everyone was organized in their groups, we learned where we would set up camp. Unsurprisingly, my group was setting up in Matt's classroom. We were first to go there and drop off our stuff before heading up to the gym to get the games started. After gathering our effects, my group trudged to the science wing.
"So Mr. Firay," Ariana started, getting the older man's attention. "The last name you pulled out…"
"What about it?"
"It definitely said Serena van der Woodsen," she told him quietly, her eyes flashing in amusement. "And the first one definitely said Nate Archibald. And two other ones said Natalie Beast and Alex Pettyfer."***
He shot her a frown. "Why do you think that?"
She held up for slips of paper. "These fell out of your pocket."
"Oh," he responded, grinning at her. "Shh."
My eyes widened in surprise. "What? You didn't follow the rules—"
"Calm down, Daphne," Sage said, appearing at my side so fast I wouldn't have been surprised to find out he was a ninja. "It's better than being in an uncomfortable group with people you aren't friends with, right?"
"I never said I wasn't happy he did it," I replied quietly. "But…" My eyes shot behind me for a brief second, where Leo, Percy, and Annabeth were slowly tagging after us. Behind them were Anna and Wendell, hand-in-hand, looking all happy and couple-y, and even further behind were Jackson, Josh, and Daniel. "Aren't those three kind of random?" I questioned, referring to Annabeth's group.
Matt shrugged. "I really did pull their names out of the hat. And I don't have a problem with any of them. They're not in any of my classes."
I shot another glance back at them and the one named Leo caught me staring. He grinned and winked suggestively. Forcing a smile back at him, I returned my attention to in front of me, turning my smile into a grimace. Somehow that guy already reminded me of Sage.
When we reached Matt's room, he unlocked the door and ushered us inside. "Okay. Most of you already know, but the supply closet is off limits."
"Even to me?" Sage questioned.
"Especially to you."
Annabeth laughed at that. "Shot down," I heard her murmur to her friends.
I stared at her for a moment and smiled when our gazes met. She was in my math class, but I sat in the front and she sat in the back so I never really talked to her. "So, umm, didn't Mrs. Hernandez say we had to pair off?" I asked, turning back to Matt. "Should we just do that now?"
"Sure," he responded with a nod. "You guys can choose your own partner."
Immediately Ariana and I grabbed hands. Anna and Wendell grabbed each other, as well as Annabeth and Percy. Or more like, Percy grabbed Annabeth, and Annabeth rolled his eyes. I couldn't figure out if they were dating, or if he just had an obvious crush on her. They both looked cute together, nevertheless. Daniel, Josh, Jackson, and Leo were the last four not in pairs yet. After a few moments of debating it was decided it would be Daniel with Josh and Leo with Jackson. Apparently Leo and Jackson had art together.
"Okay, let's head to the gymnasium then," Matt suggested, holding open the door to his classroom. "Or we could stay here," he muttered as I passed him.
"No," I said flatly.
He huffed, acting like a teenaged girl. "Whatever."
The gymnasium was brightly lit, unlike the rest of the school, and caused me to squint as my eyes adjusted. Everyone was talking loudly and excitedly, their partners by their sides. The chaperones were all standing further off from the students, talking amongst themselves. Matt and Sage went off to join them as I turned to Ariana. "Sometimes, I think Matt is still a high schooler at heart."
"Well with Sage around, I don't blame him," she laughed. "Sage's still a college kid. Mr. Firay is still as old as one. And I'm sure you know how college kids act…"
I smirked. "You know, not all college guys act like the college guys you see on T.V. or reality shows."
"And Sage?"
"…is a bit different," I finished, glancing at the brunette. "He probably has ADD or something."
As her mind processed my words, her eyes widened. "Actually, that would explain a lot…"
"Does that make you like him less?"
"Nope!" she responded cheerfully. "I like him a lot—"
"Shh, not so loud!" I shushed her, glancing around to make sure no one heard her. As I looked around I caught Leo gazing at us. He winked at me again and I made a face, turning away from him. Definitely Sage.
Ariana gave me a curious look. "What?"
"Do you want everyone to know you like Sage?"
"I don't care," she responded easily. "It's not like I will be a student here for much longer anyways. Besides, I'm not ashamed to like Sage."
Her words made my heart warm. I threw my arms around her and hugged her tightly. "You're so cute!"
She squirmed around, trying to make me release her. "Come on, Daphne, knock it off. The chaperones are coming over."
True to her words, all the teachers were heading over to us. Mrs. Hernandez called for attention and the whole gym fell silent. "Attention please! Silence!"
"It is silent, prat," Wendell muttered, causing Ariana and Anna to smirk.
I rolled my eyes. Wendell didn't like Mrs. Hernandez. At all. Funny since…
"Be nice, you prat. That's my mom," Ariana said smirking. Wendell rolled his eyes, but half-smiled.
"We have decided the first activity will be Man Hunt," Mrs. Hernandez declared and a few guys behind me whooped. "Please find your partner and get into your groups and we'll split you all into hunters and hiders. They'll be three different groups, so one group will have to have five and five."
Ariana looped her arm through mine. "I hope we're hiding first."
"Why?"
"I know the perfect hiding spot."
Mrs. Hernandez started splitting us all up. My group was the one split directly down the middle. Since that left us with five and five, Sage and Matt joined my side and let Daniel stay partners with Josh on the other. Now it was Ariana, Wendell, Anna, Sage, Matt, and myself against Jackson, Daniel, Josh, Annabeth, Percy, and Leo.
"We'll search first," Percy volunteered. "You guys can hide… Just be warned I'm really good at finding people. And so is Annabeth because—"
"Because of nothing," Annabeth interjected, elbowing Percy in the side gently. "We'll give you five minutes to hide."
Daniel frowned, staring at me. "I wanted to be on Daphne's side…"
"Ah, so your name is Daphne!" Leo said, snapping his fingers.
I grimaced. He didn't know my name? Well, now I didn't feel as bad for not paying attention to him. "Yes my name is Daphne—"
"You're cute!"
"Thanks, but—"
"You should be my girlfriend!"
Matt, who was standing right behind me, sighed lightly. I awkwardly smiled at Leo who was staring at me expectantly. "I kind of have a boyfriend…"
"Aw, no fair! Who?!"
"Leo!" Annabeth snapped, elbowing him. "That's none of your business. Cut it out."
"But—"
"Go hit on Rachel or something."
His eyes lit up. "The redhead? Good idea!"
"Right…" I glanced at Ariana, who was snickering to herself. "Well I'm sure you guys heard, but the roof and basement are off limits."
"Yes, we know. We're not deaf," Jackson told me, smirking at me. "Your group better run along. Time is running out."
Shooting a scowl at him, I turned and began marching out of the gym. The rest of my group followed along after me. Anna and Wendell split from us right away, going down the hallway toward the science room. Ariana called a suggestive mark after them in which Wendell waved in return. She pulled on my hand, leading me toward the stairs. "Come on, I know the perfect hiding place."
"Where would that be?" Sage questioned.
She glanced back at him, smiling smugly. "The basement."
"What? But that's off limits—"
"Exactly," she cut me off, giving me a duh look. "Nobody will go down there to look for us. Stop being such a stickler for rules, Daphne. This way you and you-know-who can spend some time together— and don't make a Harry Potter reference."
I turned back to look at Matt, who seemed impressed with Ariana. "This is new. Ariana having a smart idea and not making a Harry Potter reference?" he spoke.
She shrugged. "If you're going to be with Daphne for a long time, I might as well get on your good side, right, Mr. Firay?"
"Call me Matt," he told her.
"Nope."
He shook his head, letting out a small sigh. "Do you plan to call me Mr. Firay for my whole life?"
She smiled slyly. "Maaaybe."
I frowned a tiny bit. We were all going to stay in the basement? If Matt was there, I had a feeling Ariana and Sage wouldn't act like they would if he wasn't around. That would be counterproductive to my plan of getting Sage and Ariana together. I had to do something…
"There's the sport supply room in the cellar we could hide in," Ariana continued. "We could like, play have you ever or something."
I wasn't going to say anything, but that was the worst idea ever if she wanted to get closer to Sage. How was I going to split us up? Could I feign sickness? Or maybe an injury? It was worth a shot… "Ugh," I groaned, falling to one knee.
"What's wrong?" the trio standing around me chorused, coming to a dead halt.
"Umm, stomach cramp," I moaned, hopefully convincingly. "Ow…"
Ariana peered at me worriedly. "Are you okay?"
I shook my head. "I need to stop moving."
"Should we just hide in a classroom?"
"No," I told her, shaking my head again, "you should keep going. I'll just hide somewhere around here."
"You're not staying alone," Matt responded, eyeing me suspiciously and crossing his arms.
"I'll stay," Ariana volunteered.
"I-I don't think I can walk," I stated, faking a grimace of pain. "Do you think you'll be able to carry me?"
She bit her lip. "Maybe…"
"I'll do it then," Sage said brightly. "I've always wanted to carry Daphne like a princess—"
"I'll do it," Matt snapped. "I'm her boyfriend. You guys go hide and we'll meet you there… after I figure out what her problem is."
I grinned sheepishly at him. It was either amazing how smart he was, or how stupid Ariana and Sage were. I knew my acting was bad, but it couldn't be that bad if Ariana hadn't noticed anything…
With a wink at me, Ariana turned and looped arms with Sage. "Well then I guess it's me and you, Sage."
"Sure," he responded, throwing a glance at me over his shoulder. "Bye Daphne… I hope you act better."
Both he and Ariana snickered while I blanked, staring after them dumbly. Was I really that transparent? Turning to Matt, I realized he was grinning in amusement as well. "I thought the only person I couldn't lie to was you," I mumbled moodily.
"Well I guess if you add your lying skills and your acting skills, it doesn't work in your favor," he told me, wrapping his hand around mine and pulling me off the ground. "But now where are we going to hide?"
"You're interested in playing?" I said, surprised.
He snorted. "No, of course not."
"Oh," I responded, smiling wryly. "Then why are you asking?"
"If we hide, we have a reason to be alone together. I hate to admit it, but the basement was the best place."
"We're not going down there though because I want to give Sage and Ariana alone time."
He hummed, tapping his chin. "I could lock us up in my classroom."
"What if someone in our group needs something from their backpack?"
"Oh, that's true. We could still be interrupted."
"How about… Oh!" I gasped, my eyes widening. "The roof! Mrs. Hernandez said that was off limits too!"
Matt raised an eyebrow. "You want to go on the roof?"
"Yeah! Let's do it! I've never been up there before," I said excitedly, tugging on his hand. "Come on!"
Chuckling at my excitement, he planted his feet on the ground firmly so I couldn't move him. "Wait, Daphne."
"What?" I said impatiently.
"You're going the wrong way," he enlightened me. "The roof is this way. How long have you been going to this school for?"
Feeling a small blush on my cheeks, I allowed him to lead the way. "Four years… I told you, I've never been on the roof before. It's off-limits."
"Wouldn't have stopped me."
"Were you a bad student?"
He glanced at me. "What do you think?"
"Yes?"
"Even though I graduated early?"
"Oh, I forgot," I replied, blinking. "But you were also a gang member…"
He laughed quietly. "You're just figuring out the irony of that situation now? After nine months of knowing me?"
"I never really thought about it before— hey isn't this the back entrance to the gym?"
"We gotta go across the gym balcony and then up the stairs."
"But some of the chaperones and students could be in there! I know there's at least some chaperones in there!"
He pressed his finger to my lips. "That's why we stay silent…"
Peeling his finger from my face, I pursed my lips at him. "You're crazy."
"Just move," he ordered, pushing on my shoulders. "Stay low and silent."
"But—"
"Go," he urged, opening the gym door quietly.
Biting my lip, I bent down so I couldn't be seen over the edge of the balcony. From below I could hear a few people chatting, but couldn't figure out how many. In order to not be seen by anyone, I basically had to crawl. Peeping behind me, I realized Matt's head was only a few inches away from my butt. And he was staring at it. "Matt!" I hissed at him.
His eyes snapped to mine. "Yes?"
"Stop staring at my butt!"
"I need to look in front of me to see where I'm going."
"But not at my butt!"
He smirked. "If the situation was reversed you'd be doing the same."
"I would not—"
"Shh!"
Flushing, I glared at him one last time before turning my head around. "Pervert," I muttered.
When we reached the door, he moved in front of me so he could pick the lock on it (with what, I had no clue) and open it. While it opened it creaked loudly, causing us both to freeze. After a few moments of hearing the uninterrupted chattering below, he moved the rest of the door opened and we hastened through it. The stairwell we were on turned pitch black as he shut the door behind us. Holding my shoulders, he made me go up first, spotting me. I grabbed the handrail and slowly started climbing them. Eventually we made it safely to the top and I pushed open the door that led to the outside. The moon was bright, lighting up the area efficiently. I smiled widely, looking around the flat rooftop. "This is pretty cool."
"I've seen better."
"Matt."
He chuckled, wrapping an arm around my shoulder. "Just kidding, Daphne. We got lucky. It seems like it's a full moon."
"As you turn into a werewolf…"
Cupping his free hand to his mouth, he began to howl. "Ah-oooh!"
I laughed, shoving him gently. "Stop that! Someone might hear you!"
"Daphne?"
"What?"
"Can I say something cheesy?"
Doing my best to suppress a smile, I gave him an innocent look. "Are you saying your whole drunk off my love thing wasn't cheesy?"
His eyes narrowed. "Don't bring that up."
"Why? Embarrassed?" I drawled.
"Sure, just like you were embarrassed when I told everyone your bra size. Oh, and the time you pulled off your pants in order to save yourself from Bryant…"
"Matt!" I cried, feeling my cheeks flame. "Y-you know I had to do that to save us!"
He spread his arms out, palms up. "Did I?"
"What did you want to say?" I huffed at him.
"That you look beautiful in this moonlight," he said, bringing his hand to my cheek and caressing it with his thumb.
It was a good thing I was already blushing, because I would've again. "You look pretty good too."
"I know."
I smiled dryly. "You really know how to ruin the mood."
"I can recreate it, Daphne," he told me, bringing his head down to my level and brushing his lips against mine softly.
My heart thudded in my chest and I wrapped my arms around him. "Do you ever think there'll be a day when my heart doesn't beat faster around you?"
"When you're dead," he deadpanned.
"That's romantic," I said sarcastically, resting my chin on his shoulder. "But I bet if we're together throughout all my life, it'll be true."
He squeezed me. "I love that your heart beats faster around me. Just like I love how you blush easily."
"Funny how you love the things I hate."
"I just love you, Daphne. Everything about you."
"Everything?"
"Everything," he reiterated.
Smiling, I pulled back so I could kiss him. "I love everything about you too."
"Even my devil personality?"
"You're never going to let me live that down, are you?"
He laughed. "I don't think so."
"Fine then… Eugene."
All expression was wiped from his face. "Don't call me that."
"Why not, Eugene?"
"Daphne."
I slipped out of his arms, taking a step away from him and scrutinizing his face. "Hmm, you really do look like a Eugene."
"Come here," he ordered, reaching out to grab my arm.
Moving to the side, I avoided his hand. "Don't think so, Eugene."
"Daphne!"
Laughing, I took off running across the roof, being careful to avoid all the small structures popping up from it. The pounding of feet from behind me told me Matt was chasing after me. "Catch me if you can, Eugene!"
"Stop calling me that!"
"Stop calling me that, Eugene!"
"Daphne!"
"Eugene!"
Suddenly I came to a halt, feeling him grab the back of my shirt. "Do you really think you can out run me?"
I pivoted on the spot, smiling. "Not really."
"I think some punishment is in order…"
"Matt, someone will definitely notice—"
"I'm sure Daniel won't mind if you say he's the one who did it," Matt told me, pressing his lips to my neck and making me shudder.
"I really don't think- ah!" I cringed, feeling tingles run down my spine as Matt kissed the hollow spot under my ear. "D-don't do that!"
He brushed my hair away from my neck, kissing it again. "With the way you act, I wonder if you're ready for prom night."
"I am!"
"You are? I'm going to do all sorts of things to you, you know."
My stomach clenched in anticipation. "I'm ready."
"Good," he said in an undertone.
I sighed, forcing his head away from my neck so I could kiss his lips. "We'll have to go back soon," I grumbled.
"Ten more minutes," he requested, taking my hand and leading me to the edge of the roof where he dropped onto his butt. "Let's just watch the moon for a little bit."
Smiling for the millionth time, I sat down between his legs, resting my back against his chest. He wrapped his arms around me, holding me tight. The warmth from his body put me at a very comfortable temperature and I yawned. "I wish we could sleep out here."
"It'll be colder later on."
"And everyone will notice we're missing."
"Right."
"On the camping trip we should sleep under the moon," I proposed, leaning my head back so it was on his shoulder and I was gazing up at his face.
He glanced down at me, his eyes flickering in irritation. "I almost forgot about that stupid trip. I don't want to go."
"I want you to go," I told him earnestly. "I hate camping. The woods at night scare me."
Amusement crossed his face. "Ohh, I get it. You want me around to protect you, right?"
"I wouldn't use the word protect…"
"How do you think we are going to get away with sleeping together though, Daphne? It'll probably be two people to a tent and the tents will be close together. Someone will notice."
I raised an eyebrow at him. "Strange. Usually you don't care about unimportant things like that."
"I know I sound like a broken record, but you're so close to graduating. I'm not going to take any more chances of us getting caught."
"Aren't you right now?"
"How can I say no to being up here alone with you when you look so beautiful right now?"
My cheeks warmed and I lowered my gaze. "That was cheesy."
He chuckled, the sound reverberating through his chest. "I actually tried that time," he confessed. "But it's partially true. We're not in any danger of being caught."
"After I receive my diploma, what would you do if I kissed you in front of everyone?"
"I'd be angry because you could still get me in trouble."
My eyes widened the slightest bit. "What? You could?"
"Well, I guess only if the administration thought something was going on between us. They might just think you kissed me because you've had a crush on me all year though. But since it's you… I don't think any teacher would expect that from you."
"How would you know?"
"Teachers talk, you know."
"About me?"
He nodded. "You'd be surprised to find out how much they're just like the students. People have these perceptions of adults, like me, but in reality we talk with our friends the same way as you do."
"Even Mrs. Hernandez? She's like fifty!"
"Her too," he responded with a laugh. "You should come to a teacher meeting. It's like a pep rally sometimes."
"Huh," I said, frowning. I never really thought of it like that. Matt always seemed a little bit more mature than the boys in my grade… but I guess that was a given. The way he acted aside from that was actually rather similar. "This is strange to think about," I admitted.
He laughed again. "One day you'll live it."
"You seem to be in a good mood," I commented, turning to smile up at him. "I like when you laugh this much and this freely."
He pressed me a little harder into his chest. "That's because I'm just with you and it's easy to be myself around you."
"Not around Sage?"
"Well, how I act around Sage is also myself, but my more…"
"Jerkish?" I offered.
He half-shrugged. "I guess you could say that. It's just so hard to be nice to him when he acts like such an idiot all the time."
I pinched his arm lightly. "That's not nice."
"I'd like to see him in class," he muttered. "Then maybe I'll take him seriously."
"I hope I get into WNEU. Then I'll tell you."
"Good," he replied, resting his chin on the top of my head.
We lapsed into a comfortable silence, just enjoying the feeling of being so close to each other. With each breath he took his chest would rise and fall, causing me to rock gently. After a few more moments of the quiet, I decided to speak again. "What do you think Ariana and Sage are doing right now?"
He paused for a moment. "What I really think they're doing?"
"Yeah."
After another brief minute of silence, his lips were at my cheek. I turned my head a little bit so he could reach my mouth. "This," he breathed, before kissing me again.
For the next ten minutes we kissed under the moonlight, but eventually we decided it was time to head back. Hand in hand, we snuck back down the stairwell, past the balcony (with Matt in front this time), and into the main hallway again. Before heading to the gym, we decided to go find Ariana and Sage. On the way to the basement, we ran into Jackson, who was running down the hallway.
"Where are you going?" I called after him.
"I caught Anna and Wendell kissing and now she's mad at me!" he shouted back at me. "She's dangerous!"
I glanced at Matt who looked amused. "Tonight's the night for couples, I guess."
"Are you surprised?" he questioned. "It gives them all excuses to be with their boyfriend or girlfriend all night long… With basically no parent supervision. And not all parents are like your mom, who want grandchildren from their eighteen year old daughters."
I scratched the back of my neck. "You know she's not serious, right? …Well, kind of not serious."
"That's why she put you on birth control?"
"Well— hey! How did you know that?"
"Your mom and I talk," he told me, starting down the hall again. "The basement door is right around the corner, right?"
I hurried to keep at his side. "How often do you talk without me knowing?"
"Not often. Don't worry about it Daphne."
"How can I not? She's probably trying to give you crazy ideas."
The corners of his lips twitched. "Actually… Never mind."
"No, not never mind! Don't you—"
Suddenly he clapped a hand to my mouth, pushing me against the wall and holding me there. Surprised, I gaped at him, not sure whether to speak or not. After a few seconds I heard the sound of a door opening and giggling. Ariana's giggling.
"Sage, I don't think Matt will be jealous of me if we date," she started.
Matt's jaw set and I saw a flicker of annoyance in his eyes. It was a good thing his hand was covering my mouth, because I would've burst out laughing and given us away.
"You're okay with dating me then?"
"If I wasn't, would I have kissed you?"
My heart jumped in my chest. They'd kissed! The happiness that came over me was almost overwhelming. I was a badass cupid. Matt noticed my expression and rolled his eyes. I could almost guess what he was thinking. Daphne, you're not cupid…
"You sure your parents won't care?"
"Sage, you don't seem like the type of guy who would be worried about things like that."
"Of course I worry. I don't want your parents to dislike me."
"I probably won't tell them you're my gym teacher, but I'll let them know you're in college."
"When can I meet them?"
She laughed again. "You're not afraid to?"
"Of course not! I'm going to be the best boyfriend you ever had."
"You think you can manage it? I was with Josh for a pretty long time."
"We'll be together longer."
This time Matt snorted.
Sage, who was just turning the corner, paused, squinting into the corner where we were. "Matt? What are you doing?"
"Who me? Just being the best boyfriend ever."
I elbowed him in the gut, causing him to uncover my mouth. "Don't be a donkey's buttuchkey."
Ariana peered around Sage and beamed at me. "Daphne! Hi! Where did you two go?"
"Roof," I told her.
"That's romantic."
"Yeah," I agreed. "Better than a basement… I should've sent you two up there."
Sage grinned at me. "The basement was fine. It got the job done."
"What job?"
He thrust his hips at me.
My jaw dropped. "You didn't! You guys! Oh my god!"
Ariana and Sage both burst out laughing at my reaction. "I'm kidding," he told me. "Geez, you're so innocent…"
"Problem?" Matt questioned, wrapping his arm around my waist. "I think it's cute."
"I think you're cute," Sage responded flirtatiously.
Matt ignored him, returning his attention to me. "Okay, we found them. Let's head back before it looks too suspicious."
"That's cold!" Sage complained. "I was just going to confess my feelings!"
"And cheat on Ariana?"
"Ah, no!"
I chuckled, entwining Matt's fingers with mine. "I guess I was right. Tonight really is the night for couples…"
"The best part is, it isn't over yet," he replied, winking at me. "And then we have all tomorrow to be together."
"You're lucky I don't get tired of you."
"I could say the same thing."
I mocked an offended look. "Jerk!"
He mussed with my hair. "You know it."
"Matt used to do that to my head too," Sage whispered loudly to Ariana, walking right behind us. "Before he turned cold and left me… Ow!"
"Oops," Matt said simply. "Sometimes my arm has a mind of its own and punches people."
"You should probably get that checked out," Sage groaned.
"And you should probably get your head checked out."
"Like I haven't heard that one before."
"Can't say I'm surprised."
Ariana caught my gaze and grinned. "Sometimes I feel like they're an old married couple."
Sage gasped. "Really?"
"I want to die," Matt stated, rubbing his forehead with his free hand. "Daphne, do you know how to break a neck?"
"No…?"
"Damn."
I bumped my hip against his. "Don't worry, I'm here for you."
"Thanks," he muttered.
"Tonight we should make a four person bed and all sleep together!" Sage suggested happily.
"No," Matt said immediately, shooting him down.
"No fun!" he complained.
Matt ignored him.
"Hey!" a familiar voice called. "I found four of them!"
Matt immediately dropped my hand and took a step away from me. I frowned. Couldn't we just have a few more moments together?
Out of nowhere Leo appeared, his dark hair falling in his face. "Wow! You guys are really good at hiding! I had no idea where you were at all! Not even when—"
"Leo, shut up," Percy ordered, also appearing suddenly. "Let's just head back to the gym."
Annabeth showed up as well now. "Can't you guys walk?"
"I found the rest of our group!" Leo chirped brightly.
She half-smiled. "Congratulations…"
"Let's just head back," Matt suggested, putting a little more space between us. "Hopefully a new game will start."
I held back my smile. A new game meant more time with Matt. I liked that. And apparently he did too.
A/N. * Josh Hutcherson and the PJO/HoO gang. -I honestly had no idea what to do with the last names of characters I hadn't given a last name to. So there.***
**I'm aware Natalie and Bella aka Rumplestiltskin's (did I spell that right?) children are still in FPL, but I didn't want to put in random unrelated names, so SG based, Natalia and Bella fit. So there.***
*** That was a mix of everything. Serena and Nate are from Gossip Girl (Nate's actor is actually how I imagined Chris Heywood aka Jordan's version of Matt, if that maketh sense), Natalie, of course, Sisters Grimm, and Alex Pettyfer is a British actor/model who I've loved since I saw him in Alex Rider. (He plays Jeremy, aka Sage, in Jordan's version, too.) So there.***
***I'm aware I say so there a lot. So there. (I won't even put asterisks on that last one.)
YAY SARIANA FINALLY! WHOOP WHOOP! I've finally gotten through that part, thank goodness. I hope you guys are as happy as I am about that.
One day I'm going to go back and reply to every single review I've missed -just not today. :( But you guys have no idea how much your reviews have made me happy. Seriously. I sometimes cry because I'm so thankful for all of you. You guys brightened up my day and just -you all are so awesome. One thing that hasn't changed in the past four years is the awesomeness of reviewers. Hasn't changed one bit. Maybe the people who review have changed, but the reviews themselves haven't. :) They're all filled with that awesome-sauciness that just makes you think, 'These guys are the reason I love writing and want to keep getting better.' So, thanks. I'll hopefully return the favor before this story ends. :)
See you guys!
-Lara
