Oh my gods. Has it been four months since I updated? I feel like a terrible person. Time goes by too fast. (Is it seriously April?) Please excuse my absence. I kind of stumbled willingly back into the Lord of the Rings/Hobbit fandom... (It was one of my first. Yes, I was a seven year-old LotR nerd. In case you were wondering).
Oh! And I was introduced to Tumblr! So that sort of... took up a lot of my time too. I'm back in PJO for the time being. And don't worry about Rick Riordan' s Jeyna tweet. Just because they weren't together doesn't mean they won't have any cute scenes/flashbacks in the House of Hades.
"Have you ever had a girlfriend?" Reyna asks. The question just sort of slips out.
Reyna blushes and looks out over the dark countryside. New Rome glistens with lights so it looks like a city made of stars. The Little Tiber sparkles with tiny droplets of silver from the moon as it snakes through the camp.
She shifts awkwardly on the marble bench in the Garden of Bacchus. The statue of a wine god in a tutu spouts water that changes color every few seconds. Throwing a multicolored glow on the surrounding flowers and grapevine trellises.
Jason's eyebrows crease and he gives her a questioning glance. The glow from the fountain washes one side of his face with luminous colors that change and meld together like the surface of a diamond. He looks iridescent.
"Not exactly. I mean... THere are girls I've kissed. Girls that I've gone on a few dates with and girls that have professed their undying love for me. But I don't think I need a girlfriend right now. I'm fine being single."
Jealousy burns through her. There are girls I've kissed. He'd said. This sentence bugs her to no end.
"How many have you kissed?" She asks suddenly. Her voice is filled with acidity. Reyna's eyes bore into his. Jason flinches.
"I don't really know. I've kissed quite a few people. I had my first kiss when I was... Nine? But it was on the cheek, so..."
"Who... Who was it?" Reyna asks. She tries her best not to sound annoyed or maybe even- fine. Maybe a little jealous.
"Gwen." He smiles.
"G-Gwen?" Reyna stammers.
"Yeah. I came back from my first quest. And Gwen was in guard duty that day. I was so tired that I sort of... Collapsed into her arms. And she picked me up and kissed me on the cheek. She was so excited to see me. So glad that I was safe."
Reyna relaxes and feels the anger begin to ebb.
"That's sweet." Reyna murmurs.
Jason nods and looks out at the city sadly. His voice is filled with pain and nostalgia, "She's like a mom to me. Always giving me advice and telling me what to do when I'm upset or confused. She always has been. She's the older sister I never got to know. The older sister I'll never get to know."
Jason clenches his jaw and Reyna thinks she sees tears glaze over his eyes.
She can't imagine a life without her sister. Only having a vague memory of her and occasional dreams. It would be hell.
They're silent for a few moments. Listening to the sound of the fountain gurgling and the bugs buzzing in the garden. The silence begins to grow long and awkward. She waits for Jason to say something, but he doesn't. Eventually, Reyna can't stand the silence any longer.
"So... Who was your first real kiss?" Reyna asks, trying to change the subject and break the silence between them.
Jason snorts, "I don't remember. I was thirteen. It was nice, though."
Reyna bristles with annoyance and gives a huff of disgruntlement, "Figures."
"What?" Jason sounds offended.
Good. He should be.
"Like father, like son. What else should I have suspected?" Reyna stands up and leans against the railing.
Of course Jason wouldn't remember the first girl, or how many girls, he'd kissed. Just like his dad. Who probably couldn't remember how many women he banged.
The cool wind plays with her hair and calms her down. She breathes in slowly and tries to quell her anger. The smell of the flowers and the grapes are overwhelmingly sweet.
"I didn't kiss her. She kissed me." Jason retorts.
He comes to stand beside her. His hand touches hers on the railing. Reyna yanks her hand away.
"Besides, I'm nothing like my dad. In fact, he's the last person I want to turn out to be."
Reyna analyzes his face carefully. He looks guilty, if not a little afraid.
"Then don't be." Reyna mutters.
Jason shakes his head. His hands grip the marble railing and he looks out over the moonlit valley.
"It's not that easy. I can feel it in my blood. That I want power. And I have it. I mean, we're praetors aren't we? But... Sometimes I want more. Sometimes I feel like being praetor isn't enough."
Reyna's heart stammers. He'd never told her this before.
"And what stops you from getting that power?"
They both know that if he truly wanted power that badly then he would have it already. Sons of Jupiter were no small force to be dealt with when it came to getting what they wanted. Most of the time they were stubborn. But for some reason, Jason wasn't. He was different than the others.
"Octavian. That kid who hosted Saturn. They're good examples of what happens when you get that power. Once you get a bit of it, you want more and more until greed and anger have... changed you into a power vacum. I just don't want that to happen to me. I don't want to turn into a monster."
Her hand inches closer to his on the railing.
"I'm sorry you feel that way."
Jason's sky blue eyes meet her obsidian ones.
"So... What about you," Jason asks slowly. "Have you ever kissed or been kissed by anyone?"
"Yeah... I- I have. Many times." Reyna lies cooly.
Aurum and Argentum, who are laying somewhere among the jasmine flowers and succulent plants, growl in disapproval.
"The greyhounds don't seem to agree with you. You wouldn't happen to be lying, would you Reyna?" Jason inquires.
She smiles coyly,"Of course not! I'd never lie to you, my fellow praetor."
The automatons growl even louder than before. Reyna snaps her fingers and they shut up immediately. She rolls her eyes at the dogs for blowing her cover.
"And my point is made," Jason chuckles and gestures to the dogs. "Seriously, though. Have you ever been kissed before?"
Reyna flushes again and crosses her arms. "What's it to you?"
Jason cocks his head to the side. A disgustingly adorable smile forms on his face. Reyna feels like her feet are melting through her shoes. Her knees quiver and suddenly don't seem able to support her weight. She turns away from Jason and goes to sit down on the cold bench. This doesn't help the trembling of her knees at all.
"You've never been kissed before." He realizes, plopping down next to her.
"No, Jason. I haven't. Is it really that surprising? I mean I was one of Circe's attendants for a few years. I hated boys. You know that."
"Well, yeah. It's just that you're so pretty, and-"
Reyna tries to hide the smile that breaks across her face.
"You- You think I'm pretty?"
"Uhh... I mean you're alright. You're pretty but you're not really pretty. Oh crap that came out wrong," Jason sighs and slaps his forehead in frustration. "What I meant to say was that you're pretty but you're naturally pretty. You don't try to be pretty because you just sort of are."
Reyna grins sheepishly. The air seems warmer and the moon brighter.
"Really?"
"Reyna," Jason takes her hands in his and smiles brightly. "Do you hear the dogs growling? I sure don't. I wouldn't lie to you. I won't ever lie to you."
The wind rustles his golden hair. Jason's tan skin glows from the multicolored water in the fountain. The colors dance off his eyes, which sparkle like sapphires.
"Would you like to be kissed?" He whispers seductively.
Reyna's tongue feels numb. She's unable to form words. She spurts out something along the lines of, "Guh... Nuh... I dunno."
He puts his hand under her chin and leans in slowly until she can feel his breath against her lips.
Her heart is beating way too fast and the night air is too hot around her. The smell of the flowers are dizzying. The bubbling of the fountain and the hissing of the bugs die away slowly until she can hear nothing but her own heartbeat.
Jason pauses. He doesn't pull away or move any closer.
"Hmm... No. I don't think you want to be kissed." Jason decides. He pulls away from her.
Reyna blinks a few times. The world turns back to normal. The night air is cool and refreshing again, and the fountain gurgles in her ears. The smell of the flowers suddenly aren't as strong as they once were.
"Stop that!" Reyna breathes.
"What? This?" Jason asks, leaning closer to her again.
His cheek brushes hers as he whispers enticingly in her ear,"You love it don't you? Admit it."
Jason purrs suggestively. Palms sweating, Reyna shoves him away from her. Her face feels like it's on fire.
He looks like he's trying hard not to laugh. Reyna scowls. He clears his throat and apologizes.
"I was only joking."
"Were you?" Reyna arches an eyebrow.
Jason shrugs,"I'm an excellent actor."
"That I can believe." Reyna rolled her eyes.
He drops his gaze and looks out over the city again. She continues to look at him.
Maybe it's the beauty of the garden or the stillness of the night. Or maybe it's the boy sitting next to her. Looking like an angel with the wind running its fingers through his hair. But, for some reason, she suddenly feels very sorry that she did not accept his invitation to kiss her.
You are so afraid of love. She tells herself. So afraid of getting hurt. He has not dated anyone. Maybe he si waiting for you. Maybe it's you who has to make the first move.
So she does.
Reyna leans in to passionately kiss his cheek. Jason turns to look at her at the same time.
Their lips touch for a split second. Reyna can swear an electric current sparks on her mouth and then passes through her whole body. Every single nerve tingles. She feels like someone has restarted her heart with a defibrillator.
Their noses slam into each other. Eyes watering, Reyna pulls away and gingerly touches her lips.
"I'm sorry." She murmurs softly.
Jason stares at her in shock, his hand touching his nose. She notices his eyes are watering in pain, too.
"No, no. I turned my head. It was, uh..."
"Maybe not the best idea." Reyna agrees and looks down in embarrassment.
"No. It, uh..." Jason stammers. "There was this... this tingling sort of feeling. It was neat."
"Oh," Reyna's heart skips a beat. "You felt it too?"
"Yeah it was like this electric... Sort of pulse I guess."
Reyna swallows hard. Her stomach churns uneasily.
"I was aiming for your cheek."
"Were you," Jason jokes. "Because it seemed like you wanted me to turn my head."
"Yes," Reyna pauses and teases with a smile. "I guess I'm just an excellent actor."
"Well that, I can believe." Jason agrees softly.
They both end up laughing.
This makes Reyna feel a little calmer about the whole situation. Even if there are butterflies still swirling around in her stomach.
She feels different now, though. That electric shock that jolted through her when their lips touched might as well have restarted her heart. The world seems smaller than it had when she woke up this morning. She feels lighter. Freer. But also a little sad.
Reyna expected the first time that a boy's lips touched hers it would be a deep and passionate kiss filled with fireworks and euphoria. Not an accidental and split second brush on her mouth. Reyna decides it didn't really count as a kiss anyway. Their lips only touched. There wasn't really any actual kissing involved.
"I should go. It's getting late."
Reyna stands up and calls for the dogs, who pick up their heads from underneath a nearby lavender bush. Standing up, they stretch their slender metal bodies and yawn widely. Then they wag their tails and happily trot up to her.
"Yeah, me too." Jason nods. He stands up and starts to walk with her out of the garden.
When they get to her house on the via praetoria, Jason walks her up to her door. Then he stops her.
"Reyna, I..."
"Yes?"
He hesitates and shakes his head, "Never mind. I just wanted to say that I'm glad I have you in my life. I don't know where I'd be without you."
"I'm glad you're in my life, too."
Jason shrugs and scuffs his shoe against the ground,"So... Do you still want that kiss?"
Reyna opens the door to her house and takes his hand in hers, stepping across the threshold. She turns to him and stands on the tips of her toes so they're nearly the same height.
Wrapping her arms around his neck, she stares deeply into his pretty blue eyes.
She smirks and presses her forehead to his.
Softly, Reyna whispers, "You'll never know."
She steps away from him and closes the door in his face, laughing as she does so.