Hey everybody! So, this is the sixth chapter (obviously) and I will warn you that it has references to sex...nothing lemon-ish, so you can relax. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own the Covenant. I do own Astaire and the story plot and such.

Splash!

Astaire turned her head to the right just in time to see Pogue dive into the pool to warm-up before the meet. His body moved powerfully and lithely through the water, just like she remembered. She glanced at the record wall. He also still held the record, just like she remembered. That probably made him extremely happy.

Astaire personally wasn't a big fan of swimming in pools. The ocean? Sure, she was up for that. But a pool with that overwhelming chlorine smell and potentially grimy tiles? No thanks. She was perfectly content to sit in the stands. She headed over to the seats, spotting Sarah. She was sitting near the end of the middle row of the bleachers.

" Hey," she greeted Sarah, taking off her uniform jacket. " It's really hot in here." She wiped her hair off her face.

" Yeah, it's really stuffy in here today for some reason…but I guess we'll just have to grin and bear it." Sarah had taken off her Mary Jane's and knee socks and traded them for a pair of navy flip-flops. She wiggled her toes. " I can't wait for the meet to start. I love watching them swim, and win I guess. Though sometimes I'm not sure if they use their powers or not."

Astaire, who had been about to sit down, missed the end of the row completely and fell flat on her butt on the cold floor. She was much too in shock to wince at her now aching tailbone. Sarah rushed over, concerned.

"You okay? What happened?"

Astaire nodded, still looking at Sarah in surprise.

"You know?"

Sarah stared at her with a confused expression.

" Uh-huh. You didn't know I knew?"

Astaire shook her head, getting up. " No, I had no clue." She fixed her skirt and brushed off the back. " But now I know. I just didn't expect them to tell anyone." Astaire laughed slightly, grimacing. " But I would have preferred I found out when I was standing somewhere a little less hard. I think I bruised my tailbone."

Sarah gasped, putting her hand on Astaire's arm. " Do you need me to take you to the nurse? Oh my god! I forgot that you're a dancer…are you still going to be able to dance? I'm so sorry! I just thought you knew!"

Astaire laughed openly now, sitting down and gently pulling the blonde haired girl down next to her. She found Sarah's panic touching, but also hilarious and unnecessary.

" I'm fine. Calm down, please. It's not your fault I have cartoon character-esque reactions to unexpected news."

Sarah sighed, relaxing. " Okay. But you'll be fine, right?"

"Yes."

"Good."

After a second or so of comfortable silence, Astaire opened her mouth to speak. However, her mood was slightly less jovial than before.

"I guess since you know the Sons' secret, it would only make sense to tell you mine."

Sarah turned her head to look at her new friend. She looked purely intrigued instead of frightened, and it encouraged Astaire to continue.

" I have powers too."

Sarah raised her eyebrows.

" Are they exactly like the boys'? Are you part of the Ipswich legend too?"

Astaire shook her head.

"I'm mainly telekinetic. I can only move things with my mind. I can't form energy spheres or anything. Unlike with the guys, I can't really do everything. I don't Ascend, but my powers do mature. When thy do, I have to be able to handle it, or else I could end up brain dead."

Sarah sat for a moment, taking it all in. She had suspected something was different about Astaire. In Sarah's mind, it was only natural for there to be. Astaire had known the Sons since birth and she obviously knew all about the Covenant. But what Sarah didn't know yet was why Astaire was so close to the boys in the first place. And what did she mean when she said her power was "mainly" telekinesis?

" What's your other power?" Sarah asked curiously, "You said your power was 'mainly' telekinesis. Does that mean there's something else?"

Astaire nodded, trying to conceal her surprise. She hadn't expected Sarah to pay that close attention to her phrasing.

" I can also stop time…or at least pause it for a while. I haven't completely mastered it yet. Plus, the guys don't know about it. I've only been able to do it for the past year."

Sarah nodded, tucking a blond piece of hair behind her ear.

" I guess you don't want me to tell them, right?"

Astaire looked away for a moment before turning back to her friend. It was a hard question to answer. The Sons had a right to know, of course, they were still her friends. But, something just told her it would be a big hassle if she did. Be loyal to friends or avoid a hassle? Astaire sighed. The choice was obvious.

"No, I don't want you to tell them," she said slowly, "Because I'm going to tell them tonight."

Caleb's girlfriend looked relieved, and let out a huge breath.

" Good," Sarah burst out, " Because I'm really bad at keeping secrets from Caleb. Keeping secrets for him, I'm good at. But withholding them is a lot harder."

Astaire chuckled, pulling out a notebook.

" I understand. Besides, I'm glad you don't keep secrets from Caleb. It means you two have an honest and open relationship. You guys are perfect for each other."

Sarah smiled, blushing slightly, and muttered a small "thank you."

Seemingly satisfied with what had just transpired, Astaire turned her attention down to the notebook in her lap. It was time to start her English essay. Taking a pencil out of the pocket of her uniform jacket, she began to read the prompt:

In a concise four-page essay, write about your opinion on this topic: Is it better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all? Support your opinion with details from various texts we have studied in the past.

Astaire sighed when she finished reading, placing her thin fingers on her forehead.

Talk about a loaded question…

She looked up to see Pogue leaning casually against the wall as he took a break before the meet. His towel hung around his shoulders, catching the water dripping from his hair. Astaire couldn't help but notice how insanely muscular he was, how sexy he looked just standing there. He was, after all, wearing nothing but a tiny Speedo. Pogue stretched all of a sudden, unintentionally drawing attention to not only his perfect arms, but also his toned stomach. Astaire sucked in a small breath, suddenly feeling a little taken away. He was like a perfect sculpture…an Adonis in a swimsuit. There was no argument that the boy was stop-you-in-your-tracks gorgeous.

He turned all of a sudden in her direction, scanning the stands. His eyes met hers questioningly, and she looked down at her notebook quickly. There was no denying the physical attraction she felt, but she was still a little embarrassed.

Thank god I don't blush.

She looked up a few seconds later to see Sarah staring at her with a Cheshire cat grin.

" See something you like?" she asked, a laugh in her voice.

Astaire felt like a kid who had been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. Nervously pushing her hair back, she shook her head.

" I've no idea what you mean. I was just…umm…"

"Staring starry-eyed at a certain Mr. Parry? Yeah, I noticed."

The brown-skinned girl sighed in defeat, throwing her hands up.

"I can't help it."

Sarah smiled softly looking between Astaire and Pogue.

"Maybe your feelings for him aren't as past-tense as you thought."

Astaire shrugged nonchalantly, but not without a bit of sadness in her eyes.

"He just broke up with Kate. The fact that he was even with her in the first place meant he was over me. Besides, rumor has it that they have a tumultuous relationship anyway. They'll be back together soon enough." She started to do her homework, trying to drop the subject.

Sarah noticed Astaire's forced preoccupation and decided not to take the hint. She shook her head in disagreement to the statement.

"Nope. It's safe to say that they're over for good. They don't fit together. It's safe to say his mind is on someone else. He is looking right at you, and I think he's checking you out."

Astaire slowly raised her head to see that Pogue was, indeed, staring at her. He smiled a little and waved, playing off his ogling carelessly. She waved back, flashing him a grin of her own through her surprise.

Hmm…curiouser and curiouser.

Pogue stared at Astaire a few seconds longer. He didn't know that she was going to come. He was glad she did, albeit now he was going to be a little distracted. The smile she had given him had given him a confidence boost, but it had also made him feel a little lightheaded. Pogue couldn't pretend that she didn't affect him. He just had to figure out what to do about it.

Nothing for now, I guess. Too soon and too unsure.

"Hey! Pogue!"

He looked to his right to see Reid coming towards him. The blonde had a towel covering his hair and was soaking wet. Mentally slapping himself, Pogue realised belatedly that Reid had already practiced. The actual meet was about to start.

Time flies when you're checking out your ex-girlfriend.

Reid clapped Pogue on the shoulder and grinned smugly. He had absolutely dominated during his practice run and was more than eager to actually win.

"Ready to kick some ass?"

Pogue laughed, pulling on his swim cap. As soon as it snapped into place, he felt his confidence reach its peak. He was completely ready to lose himself in the moment and show the opponent why he was the best.

" Yeah, man. Always."

Doing their handshake, the boys glared tauntingly at their rivals. Nobody said the Sons of Ipswich weren't competitive.

Two hours later, the gang was at Nicky's. For once, they all sat and ate together, laughing about some mishaps at the meet.

" Did you see when that pretty boy got tangled up in the lane divider? I swear to God I thought that sucker was going to strangle himself!" Reid took a few French fries and put them in his mouth. " I mean, I almost drowned I was laughing so hard."

Astaire raised an eyebrow playfully.

" I find that highly unlikely. You didn't even know what happened until after you had already won."

Reid leaned back and grinned. "Well if you want to get all technical about it, go ahead. He was still caught in the thing when I climbed out the pool anyway."

Sarah shook her head. "But that wasn't as funny as the announcer belching his way through the entire second race."

Tyler raised his glass high, chuckling. " I second that. That was friggin' hilarious."

Caleb nodded in agreement. " That was by far the most interesting swim meet we've ever had."

" Hear, hear." Pogue said, taking a sip of his Coke. He was happy with the way things were going tonight. Everybody seemed to be in a good mood, especially Astaire. He figured that it was because she was just glad to be home. Unfortunately, Pogue still had to tell her about Diana. He knew he had to tell her now, before he backed out. Maybe her great demeanor would help her take the news better. Pogue took a deep breath. "Hey Astaire, can I talk to you?"

She looked at him in confusion before nodding and following him out the back of the bar. He looked a little tense, and she didn't know if it had anything to do with her. Pulling her jacket tighter, she stopped behind him as he stood idly in the middle of the alley.

"What's up? You look a little stressed."

He turned around and looked at her. He seemed to be searching her face for something.

" I'm not stressed, just nervous. I have to tell you something and I'm not quite sure how you'll take it. But I want us to still be…friends after I tell you this."

Astaire smiled a little, shrugging a shoulder.

"I'm sure we will. It can't be that bad."

Pogue took a tentative step closer to her and looked her right in the eyes. She didn't know how wrong she was.

" The summer of the year you left, I went to Boston with my dad to help him check on a patient. I figured that since I was considering being a doctor I should spend some time observing my old man. When we got to the guy's manor, I saw that his niece was in town, and staying at the estate. His niece was Diana, the girl from lunch today." Pogue sighed and ran a hand through his hair, forcing himself to continue. " I recognized her immediately from school, 'cause Reid was always flirting with her. But I didn't really pay that much attention to her. She wasn't my type. She was too flashy and too flirty. I pretty much stayed away from her. But then, her uncle's condition got worse, and my dad had to take him to some special hospital in New York. So it was just she and I at the house. One day, I was just about to leave to go get my bike checked when I heard her calling me from the house. She sounded a little upset, so I ran in to check on her." Pogue took a deep breath, knowing he was reaching the awful apex of the story.

" But when I got there, she wasn't in trouble or anything. She was lying on her bed with barely anything on and she was waving me towards her. I was so distracted that I actually came to her. When I got there, she just pulled me down onto the bed and started kissing me. At first, I wanted to pull away, but then I thought, ' Why? You're lonely, and she's offering. So what? It's not going to go any further than this.' But it did. Before I knew it, we were really getting into it and one thing lead to another. We ended up sleeping together." Pogue chuckled humorlessly, still looking at Astaire even though he desperately wanted to turn away. " I thought it was a one time thing, but every time from then on that she offered, I said yes, like a fucking idiot. I was so damn lonely that I didn't care. I wasn't over you, and she was…filler. She was just there."

Astaire stood there, looking right back at him, holding his gaze with her own. He looked ashamed and upset, and it pained her to see him that way. She reached out and touched his arm comfortingly, but she was at a loss on what to say. A part of her understood why he was telling her this. She knew that he wanted to tell her before she found out from somebody else, probably Diana. Astaire appreciated that he told her.

However, she also regretted hearing this. It was bad enough knowing that he had dated Kate. Now she had to hear that he had sex with some other girl? Astaire had always thought that…never mind. It didn't matter. She wasn't involved with Pogue anymore. She shouldn't be that upset over this. All she had to do was convince herself that it wasn't a big deal. That she didn't feel like she had just been hit with a ton of bricks. She was actress, damn it. Hiding her emotions when she wanted to was supposed to be easy.

Pogue watched all the different emotions flit across Astaire's face. He could tell that she was trying very hard not to take it personally, not to get upset. But Pogue could see it wasn't working. Astaire always wore her heart on her sleeve, much like he did, and her real emotions were winning over the ones she was trying to show. So Pogue did the only thing he could think of: he hugged her.

As soon as her body met his, she began to cry. The tears were cascading down her face as she clung onto Pogue for dear life. She wasn't mad at him. She knew she should've been, but she wasn't. Astaire knew that common sense dictated that she push him away, but she couldn't. She just wanted him to keep holding her.

Pogue felt her body shudder with sobs, and he held her tighter. He rested his chin on her head and stroked her hair.

" I'm sorry," he whispered, almost crying himself, " I'm so sorry."

Astaire sniffled and nodded barely, keeping her head on his chest. Then she uttered three words that made him hold onto her all the more:

" I forgive you."

Pogue and Astaire walked back into Nicky's a little while later, after she had calmed down a bit. Avoiding the cocerned and inquisitive looks of their friends, they both sat down at the table. Astaire decided to change the subject with some news of her own.

Why the hell not? The night's full of surprises all around.

" I have something to confess," she stated, looking around at the boys. " I haven't been completely honest with you about my powers."

They looked at her, confused.

"About a year ago, I found out that I could stop time."

To say they looked shocked would have been an understatement. Taking advantage of their stunned silence, she began to explain.

" I was just in class one day feeling extremely hurried, and I found myself wishing that I could just stop time so I could just relax for a few seconds. And that's what happened. Everything around me stopped. Everyone stopped moving, stopped talking, stopped breathing…it was creepy. For a while, I had no clue what was going on. It was like being caught in a dream. After a while, another teacher came in and figured out what had happened, and she reversed it. Turns out I had only stopped time in that one classroom. Ever since then, I've been trying to learn more about this new power, but I try not to use it too much. Sometimes, though, I accidentally stop time when I feel really stressed like I did that one day."

Caleb was the first one to respond. He sucked in a breath and let it out slowly.

"Well, that's definitely interesting."

Suddenly, Reid burst out laughing, clutching his sides with his signature fingerless gloves. Tyler soon followed after, unable to hold it in. Then, the whole table was laughing, having been spurred on by the first two. They weren't sure what was so funny, but laughing sure beat sitting around in the gloom like they had been doing previously. Astaire raised an eyebrow in slight amusement.

"That wasn't exactly the reaction I was expecting."

" Always expect the unexpected." Reid managed to choke out through his minor hysteria.

Pogue looked down, no longer cracking up but thinking about Reid's words. Then he looked straight at Astaire, a small smile finding its way onto his face.

"Yeah," he said absentmindedly, agreeing with Reid, "That sounds right." Because he had been granted the one thing from Astaire that he never thought he'd get, and that he knew he didn't fully deserve: forgiveness.

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