Lpov
The next few weeks went by in a blur as my life seemed to be nothing but flashes between the clinic, the library, and camp.
I'd stopped trying to monitor my caffeine intake over the last few days, deciding it was probably better I didn't know what it was.
Between scouring through books and old scrolls, and obsessively updating a web document all four of us working at the library contributed to, I was thrilled to be able to start putting my own pins in the map Lucy and James had tacked up on the living room wall. A ferry ticket from San Diego where a report of something odd spotted off the shore by a group of merpeople had reached Lucy on one of their visits. A receipt from a street vendor in Peru that had the best yuca fries I'd ever tasted in my life.
James and Lucy had been right. We had found griffins in the Andes as well as in the Snowy Mountains down in Australia. Today we were in the Rockies, a rare opening in the library's schedule lining up with mine to allow for a two day trip, so after a long day of hiking up ridiculously steep mountains, in thin air with stunning views, we'd set up camp a bit away from the nesting ground we'd found higher in the cliffs, intending to get up early and spend as much of the day as possible observing them.
James, as it turned out, had a fair amount of camping gear and Harper had let me borrow a few things like a sleeping bag and thermal gear. Even though it was summer, we were high enough up that it got cold in the night time, snow still on the peaks even this time of year. He'd started a fire and was looking over the sketches he'd made during the day, comparing it to the ones he'd done in Australia and Peru.
He really could draw quite well, and I was glad I'd thought to suggest it. My phone's camera wasn't great, and there were distinct differences between the subspecies of griffins we'd come across.
It really did look as if they were adapting to their environments independently of each other, which was fascinating to me, and I was glad James was here to capture the variations we were seeing.
As he flipped through the pages, I laid back and looked up at the sky, grateful that there was no moon tonight, both because I thought it might be a bit awkward seeing what had happened the last time I'd seen my aunt, but also, because without it's light, I could see so much of the sky.
"I don't think I've ever seen so many stars." I said quietly and James looked up.
"Yeah." He agreed sparing the sky a glance before going back to his sketches, with the air of someone who'd seen something many times before. "It's pretty."
"Pretty?" I asked indignantly, sitting up and looking at him. "It's gorgeous, amazing, one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen!"
He shook his head, but didn't look up from his illustrations, grinning a little as he said.
"Ok Libby."
I laid back down still looking up at the stars, glancing over at him when he laughed, and I saw he was looking at his phone.
My curiosity must have shown in my expression because he said.
"Harper isn't exactly appreciating the talking to her mother gave her about letting Medusa into the library. It happens every time."
"Ah." I said intending to glance back at the stars, but hesitating when I saw that he was grinning as he replied.
Harper had been on some of our excursions. It had surprised me at first, that she'd wanted to go. I didn't exactly take her for the outdoorsy type and to be honest, I'd been right. She could handle herself in the wilderness, but I had a feeling it was more out of necessity than anything. She didn't seem to particularly enjoy things like hiking, but didn't complain about it either. And while I liked Harper, I could tell through the years she and James had gotten their routine down to a sort of casual rhythm when doing things like this, that made it seem as if they could read each others minds. Things like offering water or snacks, without the other needing to ask. Knowing when the other would be hungry or would find something interesting.
If a stream was too wide for Harper to jump across, James already knew to help her. If James finished his trail mix, she was already tossing him hers before he'd even put away the bag. I didn't like to admit it, but it made me feel a bit like a third wheel, and I sort of preferred it when it was just the two of us.
James was more relaxed on these sorts of trips without her. Less goal oriented, and more likely to stop and look at things like a picturesque opening in the woods over a river, or a wood pecker in one of the trees. Things Harper tended to walk passed without a second thought.
It had taken a bit to reconcile with myself, even if I'd known from the first time I'd seen them on the trails together that I was jealous. I was jealous and I didn't want to be.
"James?"
"Yes Libby?"
"Can I ask you something?"
"I think it's been well established by this point that you can." he said sounding amused and I turned my head to look at him again, his eyes reflecting the fire light as they met mine.
I looked away.
"Yeah, well, it's kind of a personal question." I said quietly, anxiety knotting in my stomach.
'You're being stupid.' I thought.
This was such a dumb thing to ask…
"What is it?"
"Are you in love with Harper?"
I had all but forced myself to get it out but the moment I did I wished I hadn't. Whether because I felt like an idiot for asking, or that I wasn't certain I wanted the answer, I wasn't sure. Maybe it was both, and when he didn't answer at first, I felt my heart give a slow, painful thud.
People whispered about it at camp. That they spent so much time together. That it didn't make sense why someone like James would stick around her so much. I hadn't thought that much about it at first. It hadn't affected me after all and it certainly wasn't my business. Okay, maybe I had wondered about it a bit when I first saw them interacting, but the more I got to know them, the less likely it seemed.
But then there were moments like this, where she'd say or send him something that made him laugh. The way they seemed to be able to communicate without speaking. How they always seemed to know exactly what the other would need from them.
I didn't know how Ashton could stand it.
And the way he'd looked when she'd gotten hurt down in South America... Like someone had died. And what he'd said, about their lives being so tangled together. That he didn't even know how to begin to separate from her.
I'd been thinking about it for a while now, wondering if he'd met it as literally as it sounded, that the survival for each was dependent on the other, and I knew to some degree it was. But it could have been more, and James didn't seem like the kind of person to openly pine and be miserable if he cared about someone who was unavailable.
He was so good at hiding what he was feeling, and when I turned to look at him, while his gaze was thoughtful, his expression was totally blank. I couldn't read a single thing in it.
"What do you think?" he asked calmly.
I didn't expect that. A part of me thought he'd be offended or embarrassed by the question. Would get defensive or maybe even laugh at me. I really couldn't tell, but the fact he hadn't actually answered the question was driving me crazy.
But when I really thought about it… If I was honest with myself…
"No." I answered shaking my head and turning my gaze back to the sky in front of me.
He didn't ask why I'd asked. Maybe it was obvious, but really, I wasn't even sure why I'd asked myself and while a part of me expected me to be embarrassed, I wasn't.
I had no idea how I was supposed to feel at this point.
"Are you familiar with the Isles of the blessed?" he asked and I looked at him, frowning.
"In Elysium?" I asked and he nodded.
"Yeah." I continued wondering why on Olympus he was bringing this up.
"You know it's conditions, right? To gain entrance?"
"You have to live three lives, and earn your way into Elysium each time."
He nodded again leaning forward so his arms were resting on his knees and for the second time, I noticed how the fire light seemed to glitter in his eyes.
"Obviously, I can't know if I've had a previous life. But if I did, and I was anything like the person I am now. It does seem like something I'd try."
"To be reborn?"
Another nod.
"You know the Greeks had this really bizarre idea about soulmates. People with extra limbs who were split in half, spending their entire lives trying to find that other part of themselves. That other person who makes them happier than they could possibly be without them, who makes their life feel complete."
"You don't need someone to make you happy." I said frowning.
"True." He agreed. "But Harper did find that person." He continued quietly. "I don't believe Zeus went around splitting people in half just to make them miserable. Even he doesn't care about punishing mortals that much. But I don't see why if two people loved each other, and they both choose to be reborn, why they couldn't find each other again. And I don't see why the same thing couldn't apply to friends."
"You think you and Harper were friends in a past life?" I asked a jolt of shock going through me at the realization.
"And that, if that life did happen, she loved Ashton in it too." He said quietly. "I know it sounds kind of insane-"
"No." I said shaking my head and cutting him off. "No actually it doesn't."
It actually sounded quite nice. To have a friendship or a love so significant, it could extend passed more than one life time. Not to mention having both.
"So if Harper has Ashton, who's your soul mate?" I asked grinning and he shrugged.
"Haven't the foggiest Lib. Maybe in my previous life she wasn't around."
"You really believe that, don't you?" I asked. "That you chose to be born again?"
"It seems likely."
"Why's that?"
"Because life's a very interesting thing. They say you only get one of them, but even if you get up to three, I can't find myself ever being bored of finding new things to do. There's a lot to do in the world, and a lot to see. Why not try to see as much of it as possible?"
"Yeah, but does it really matter if you can't remember any of it?" I asked and he shrugged.
That was an interesting question. Did you regain your old memories once you died after your current life?
"Imagine how awkward it must be if you chose to get reborn and got married three times." I said frowning. "Do they all just sort of show up in the afterlife? Or do you get to pick a favorite?"
This seemed to catch him off guard because he burst out laughing.
"A favorite?" he asked between chuckles and I grinned.
"Yeah well, if there's a bunch of heroes running around living multiple lives, at least one of those spouses has to suck. That's just statistics."
"Libby, you might be my favorite." He said with a grin and shaking his head. "Statistics…"
"Don't laugh at me. I'm right." I said.
"What if you got to keep them all?" he asked.
"Even more awkward, what if you could keep them all and only choose one or two."
"Or none."
"Ouch." I said, uncertain if I was amused, or horrified at this thought. "If my partner did that to me, I think I'd force them to live a fourth life just so I can kill them again."
"I don't think you're going to have that problem Libby." He said quietly. "I can't imagine anyone choosing to leave you behind. Even in the afterlife."
I glanced at him, but he was looking at the fire, apparently lost in thought and I hesitated for a moment, but his reasons justifying why he thought he'd choose to be reborn were turning over in my mind as I considered them.
He had a point, life was limited whereas the afterlife was eternal. There was a sort of logic in his explanation, maximize your time on earth while you could and try to set yourself up for the best situation for eternity. Still, despite all of this, I wasn't sure I would choose to be reborn.
And if that was the case, I only had one life, right?
"James?"
"Yeah?"
"Could you do me a favor?"
…..
This was how I found myself a few days later in a hotel bar with several of my professors and the rest of the interns at the clinic along with what I assumed must be university donors, nervously sipping on a mock-tail that had been provided for the students that were under twenty-one, wishing I could have a real drink. It was basically just a Shirley Temple and the sugar wasn't helping my nerves.
Dr. Mendoza spotted me and smiled, nodding to me and I returned the gesture before she turned back to her conversation. She looked stunning outside of her usual scrubs, long black hair piled into an artistic knot at the top of her head, just a few streaks of gray shooting through it. Her lab coat was replaced with a deep blue dress that fit her perfectly and matched her husband's tie.
I smiled as he put his hand on her back and offered her a drink. She beamed at him.
Mr. Mendoza ran the animal shelter the clinic worked with. They'd been married for almost twenty years and still looked insanely happy. Honestly, they were relationship goals.
Just then, Hunter and Kelly walked in, her arm in his. He looked extremely uncomfortable in a suit while Kelly, of course, looked gorgeous in a light pink dress that fluttered attractively as she walked, like some pastel goddess of spring.
I'd tried to dress up, but I suddenly found myself wishing I'd had Charlie's girlfriend to help me today, or Anna was home to give me a pep talk before I left and approve my outfit. The impression wasn't helped when she spotted me, standing alone and smirked, her eyes giving me a once over before looking away dismissively.
My heart sank.
I'd thought I looked ok. Sure I knew green wasn't the best color on me, but the dress was nice. The nicest I had and it was comfortable. It even had pocket hidden in the seam of the skirt… True I didn't have a daughter of Aphrodite doing my hair and make-up, but I'd thought I'd done an alright job. At the very least my eyeliner hadn't been uneven.
But maybe it was because she'd seen I'd been standing alone. It was clear over the last few days from the comments she'd made she didn't really believe someone as good looking as James would have agreed to come with me tonight, no matter what Hunter said. And it didn't help that it was already almost six…
'It isn't fair.' I thought irritably as Kelly, ever the opportunist had joined a conversation with the program director and one of the investors, tossing her hair back as she laughed looking as if she was posing for a photo shoot. 'No one that awful, should look that pretty.'
I looked away, trying to force Kelly from my thoughts knowing at this point I was only making myself miserable. I grabbed another drink, probably not helping matters at all and glanced anxiously at the door only to feel a surge of relief go through me.
James was walking through it, looking, if anything, even more uncomfortable than Hunter in a dark suit that frankly, put Kelly and her glamour model posing to shame.
"Hey." I said grinning and walking over to him. "Thanks for coming."
"No problem." He said grinning. "Sorry I'm late. There was an incident with a hekatonkheire, got like ten of his hands stuck in one of the vending machines reaching for a snack. Took forever to untangle."
"You're joking." I said and he shook his head.
"I wish I was." He said with a sigh. "Hopefully I haven't caused you to miss anything important."
"Actually." I said glancing at the clock behind the bar. Six PM. Right on the dot. "You're right on time."
"That's a relief." He said and it sounded genuine, he rolled his shoulders still looking a bit stiff and I frowned.
"How many weapons do you have under that jacket?"
"Enough." He said glancing at me with half a smile. "Couldn't bring my preferred blade."
"Yeah I'd imagine not." I said picturing James's massive broad sword and figuring even with the Mist, the mortals were bound to notice something eventually after a while. "Please don't attack anyone and get me kicked out of school."
He grinned, then adopted a wounded expression.
"I'm offended you'd even think to mention it Lib, I am a gentleman and a scholar with the keenest sense of social awareness."
"You're also paranoid." I pointed out.
"Relax Libby." He said looking around at the room, something calculated in his gaze. "I'm a good actor. Give me ten minutes and I'll know exactly who all these people will want me to be."
He looked like a man on a mission, but I felt my heart constrict, a surge of anxiety going through me as well as a stab of pity.
'Is that what he thought?' I worried.
Did James think I wanted him here to make me look good?
"James." I said incredulously. "I don't want you to be anyone." I said emphasizing the word.
I didn't want James to pretend to be anything for me. Not the sinister attack dog personality he projected to the gods, or the reluctant jackass both he and my brother seemed to think was necessary to be when the other was around. And I didn't want him to lie just because he thought it would get people to like me.
"I want you to be yourself."
"No one, wants that Libby." He said quietly and I frowned.
"I do."
I wanted James to be the person he was when he wasn't so guarded. The smart, funny guy who cared about his sister and teased his friend. Who did things like bought pizza and bubble tea for his friends, and read people to sleep. Who sat through Disney movies because it made his sister happy, and, when she was about to hurtle out of the Interrealm and into a lake, was always there to catch his best friend.
"Myself?" He asked raising an eyebrow.
"Well don't go out of your way to actively insult people." I said rolling my eyes and he grinned. "Even Harper says you can be charming."
"Libby, I cannot possibly be both." He said frowning.
"Yes you can." I said in exasperation. "You just don't want to admit it James, but you're actually pretty nice."
His mouth quirked up into half a smile and when his gaze met mine, I felt my heart give a powerful thud sending adrenaline into my system, and a restless buzzing energy all throughout me.
It left me a bit breathless as he said.
"Alright." Quietly. "I can be charming." He continued. "Only because it's you."
I smiled and I felt a shock of sensation go through me when he put his hand on my lower back and guided me towards the others and almost immediately was recognized by Dr. Mendoza who waved us over to her conversation and greeted James with enthusiasm. Apparently, whatever impression he'd made when explaining my absence from work must have been a good one.
Harper was right. James was extremely sociable when motivated, but he was also far more relaxed in this situation than I expected him to be. James didn't really seem to like being around mortals usually, and the only other times I saw him outside the library was at camp, where most people either hated or were afraid of him, or when there were visitors there, usually monsters or gods who again, hated him. James was almost always on his guard to some degree, unless he and his friends were alone, and even then half the time it seemed like Harper was stressing him out enough to give him a heart attack.
Here he was laughing though, talking easily over awkward breaks in conversations between strangers and showing photos of animals he'd seen all over the world on his phone. Dr. Mendoza, in particular seemed to be thrilled with him. I was glad. I kind of idolized her and I wanted her to like James, though why…
I knew why, but I also knew I couldn't look at the feeling too closely.
"Did your boyfriend download a new personality or something?" Hunter asked glancing over at James who'd gone to get me a drink, his eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"No." I said frowning at him my tone reproving.
I didn't blame Hunter for not being the biggest fan of James, James had after all, been quite rude to him the first time they'd met, even still, I didn't like the way Hunter was scowling at him.
"Does he really work in a library?" he asked skeptically.
"Yes." I said getting a little annoyed at this point. "Why would he lie about something like that?"
He didn't answer, just shot me an 'are you serious?' kind of look.
It was clear that over the evening Hunter had dialed in to the fact that there was something different about James. I hadn't thought of him as particularly observant as a mortal, but he seemed to be the only one. Everyone else seemed to love James. Even on the way to the bar, several people had stopped mid conversation to smile or nod at him, and Dr. Mendoza's husband broke away from the group he was at to walk with James to the bar.
There was one person however, James didn't seem to be bothering with.
Kelly, who'd been standing by the bar tried to greet him, but as he had for most of the night, James seemed not to hear her.
A flash of irritation crossed her features at this. She'd been trying to get him to talk to her for most of the evening with no success her attempts getting more frequent and far more blatant the more he ignored her.
She tried again and he gave her a brief glance of acknowledgement, his expression blank before turning back to Mr. Mendoza, clearly uninterested in her attempt to join the conversation and being the sweetheart that he was, Mr. Mendoza turned to Kelly, appearing to ask her a question and she took the opening, beaming at the pair. James took the drink he'd ordered off the counter, smiled at Dr. Mendoza's husband, nodded stiffly to Kelly and made his way back in our direction.
I was startled, and almost felt sorry for Kelly when an undeniable look of hurt darted across her expression, but she quickly smoothed her features and smiled as Dr. Mendoza joined her and her husband, and I looked at Hunter, wondering how he felt about the situation and his dates behavior.
He didn't look happy about it, but he also looked somewhat resigned.
James had made it back to us at this point and handed me my drink.
"Thanks." I said and he winked at me.
Hunter, who seemed annoyed about this for some reason said.
"So, you're a librarian?"
James, who couldn't have missed the hostility even if he was being gored by the Manticore, raised an eyebrow.
"And?" he asked coolly.
"No offense dude, but you don't really look like you read." Hunter said sarcastically and I was surprised at the resentment in his tone.
"I rather think the offense was intended." James said mildly, but grinning at me as if Hunter couldn't hear him which only seemed to incense him further.
"What, do you do pushups between check outs?" Hunter asked his tone somehow managing to make this sound like an insult.
"Books are heavy." James pointed out and while his tone was still polite, I could tell by the mischievous look in his eyes he was having fun driving Hunter up the wall.
"C'mon James." I said taking his arm and pulling him towards the exit. It was almost seven and people were heading towards the room in which dinner would take place. "People are heading out. Let's go find a table."
He shot Hunter one last amused grin, but let me pull him away and I frowned at him.
"You are having way too much fun."
"I know." He said clearly suppressing a laugh. "I can't help it. He makes it too easy. I do believe he thinks I'm a himbo."
I let out a surprised laugh and hastily had to stifle it as several people in the hotel lobby shot me alarmed looks as we crossed it, following the party to the event space on the far side of the hotel.
He grinned.
"I wonder if people think I paid you to be here." I said glancing around surreptitiously.
"Don't be ridiculous Libby." He said with dignity. "You could never afford me."
"Not even with a friends and family discount?"
"You are getting the discount. It's called free."
"Hmm… probably not the best way to describe yourself." I said thoughtfully, pretending to frown and it was his turn to laugh.
"That is extremely inappropriate." He said sounding thrilled about it and I shrugged.
"You said it. Not me."
"I can't believe you just said that." He muttered still chuckling. "You really are my favorite Libby."
I smiled, my heart skipping a beat, absolutely ecstatic when Dr. Mendoza waved me over and gestured to an empty space next to her at her table.
"C'mon." I said taking his hand and pulling him towards the chairs.
In the end, the dinner was a lot more fun than I expected it to be, usually, when networking, I was a total nightmare, and I'd expected this evening to go by in sort of a slow torturous train wreck that I was doomed to see through until the very end. But having James in the conversation as backup had been a huge help. I was less nervous, far less awkward than usual, and even if I did make a joke that didn't quite land, it was nice to have someone understand it and laugh. Quite often when he started, others did as well. It was nice to be funny for once. And I didn't think it would happen without him.
When it was finally over and I was saying my good byes, I saw Dr. Mendoza shoot me an expressive look, glance pointedly at James, then back at me and smile.
It was clear just how much she liked him, and by her expectant expression, I had a feeling I'd be facing a fair amount of questions in the clinic tomorrow.
"Thanks for coming today." I said as we walked towards the front doors of the hotel.
I'd said it a million times over the course of tonight and I was pretty sure I'd keep saying it until the end of time.
"Libby, you don't have to keep thanking me." He insisted. "I had a good time tonight. Your boss is lovely. I had fun."
"Yeah she's pretty great." I agreed wondering if his use of 'fun' had been a coincidence or intentional. "I still can't believe Hunter's face when you told him Narwhals do in fact exist."
"In his defense, they do sound made up." He said charitably. "Whales swimming about with a giant horn protruding from their heads."
He and Kelly had ended up at our table with the Mendozas along with the internship director, and Hunter had laughed rather unkindly in the middle of a story James had been telling, thinking he'd caught James in a lie because 'obviously Narwhal's aren't real.'
It had led to an extremely awkward silence and several minutes of discussion in which the entire table had to insist that Narwhals were in fact, real creatures, and not something out of mythology. Kelly had looked humiliated, but not nearly as mortified as Hunter when he'd realized his mistake.
We passed by Kelly who seemed to be waiting for a ride, and while it was clear James was prepared to continue to ignore her, it looked as if she'd worked out a strategy for it.
"Hey girl." She said brightly jogging over to us, surprising me completely by addressing me rather than James and shooting me a bright smile. "God there was so much going on tonight I feel like we barely got to talk at all."
"Um." I said completely thrown.
She was right, we hadn't said a word to each other all evening, but I'd thought that had been intentional on both our parts. And, taking advantage of my confusion, she turned to James.
"Who's your friend?"
Her smile was radiant and if she'd turned it on Hunter, I was pretty sure he would have evaporated on the spot, but James simply looked irritated she'd found a way to an introduction. As much as I disliked her, I wouldn't just ignore someone who was talking to me and I figured she must have been banking on that.
"Kelly." I said unable to keep the impatience out of my tone. "This is my friend James."
"The hunky librarian everyone was so excited about." She said flirtatiously still smiling at James who seemed less than impressed.
"Hello." James said neutrally clearly wanting to get out of the situation.
"Kelly and I work together at the clinic."
"I love your accent," she gushed. "You know I actually studied abroad in Lon-"
But when she reached out to put a hand on his arm, it seemed to trigger something.
His expression shut down completely as he jerked away, and I felt a jolt of unease go through me at the way his eyes narrowed.
'Uh oh.' I thought.
"James-" I started warning in my tone, but it was too late.
"I'm going to stop you right there." He said coldly. "I don't care. And I honestly have no interest in speaking with you."
Her face fell.
"I know how you treat Libby." He said darkly. "I know you're not friends. And the only reason I didn't mention it earlier was because I knew she wouldn't want me to embarrass you. She's kind like that, but I'm not." He said his gaze cutting. "Stop trying to talk to me, it's pathetic. And do you own work in the clinic." He continued and while his voice hadn't changed in volume, she looked as if he'd screamed at her. "Stop leaving it to Libby, and leave me alone."
Her cheeks had gone as pink as her dress.
"I-" she started but James didn't seem to want to wait for her stammering to subside.
"Let's go." He said gently taking me by the elbow and dragging me away from Kelly who was gaping after us.
"What was that?" I asked looking up at him after we'd reached the end of the block and his jaw tightened.
"I've been wanting to tell her off all evening."
"Tell her off?" I asked indignantly. "You demolished her."
"Believe me, I had a fair bit more to say but I figured you probably wouldn't appreciate it."
"James."
"Libby, you can't expect me not to say anything with the way she treats you."
"If I can then so can you."
"No, I really can't." he said quietly, but his tone was seething at this point. "What do you really think I would have let someone treat Harper that way, or Lucy, without doing something about it?"
"That's different." I said in exasperation. "Lucy's your little sister. And Harper-"
"She's my friend Libby, and so are you." He said something significant in his tone. "No one I care about is going to be treated like that without me saying something. That's just how it is."
I wanted to be annoyed at this. To tell him to back off and I could fight my own battles, but hesitated.
Hadn't I done the same thing with Artemis? Stuck up for James when she'd insulted him, and when Hypnos had been pushing Harper's boundaries, the girl whose emotions James himself had described as 'freakishly' compartmentalized, taunting her about James, hadn't she freaked out?
That's what you did for friends, you stuck up for them to other people and even though I was a little annoyed about everything James had said, I wasn't sure he'd been wrong to do any of it.
"Well, thanks." I said begrudgingly and he nodded.
"You're welcome."
He still looked irritated though, and like he was ready to hit something and without really meaning to I took his hand.
He seemed surprised at the gesture and glanced down at me and while his face was impossible to read, he didn't let it go. A few steps later, his fingers threaded through mine.
We walked in silence for a bit and while my apartment wasn't exactly close to the hotel, I didn't suggest we try and call a ride service. It was a nice night and even if we weren't talking, I was glad James was here. Even if he was in a bad mood, I'd rather it be him than anyone else.
We'd just passed the local burger joint signaling to me we were only about half way back to the apartment when I grinned and pulled James to a stop.
"Wait a second."
He frowned and looked around.
"What's wrong?"
"This is one of my favorite places on campus." I said nodding not at the restaurant but the grocery store across the street from it and the cars lined in front of it. Being a college town, the lot was always packed, even this late at night.
"A car park?" he asked giving me a funny look.
"Just watch." I said with a grin.
The store was on the most irritating hill, causing the entire parking lot to be at a slant. I scanned the rows for a likely looking subject, the spotted a guy in his twenties about to leave the store, talking on his phone in the middle of what looked like an argument.
"Watch that guy." I said eagerly, nodding to the man and James's gaze lingered on me for just a moment, before turning it in the direction I'd indicated.
Distracted by his conversation, the man didn't notice his cart slowly but surely inching away.
"Oh no." James said but he was grinning.
The cart was picking up steam at this point, rolling faster as the angle of the hill increased. Almost as if it could sense freedom, it wheeled determinedly forward.
"Absolute panic in three… two…" I pointed at the guy who'd noticed his cart escaping and went tearing after it like something out of a cartoon and both James and I watched, highly entertained as he flailed after his cart, swearing at impressive volume.
"I could sit here and watch that all day." I said grinning as the guy finally reached his cart and managed to stop it before it hits a Mercedes.
"That would have been an expensive lesson." James agreed before looking down at me again. "You notice the strangest things."
I shrugged.
"It's funny." I said for some reason feeling defensive and he shook his head.
"I absolutely adore it. It's one of my favorite things about you." he said glancing at the lot again. "Look there goes another one."
A girl went flying through the row of cars and I smiled, very aware James's hand was still in mine.
She passed by a car whose trunk was open, and I saw a woman trying to wrangle her shopping cart on the incline, a small child in the seat, and the little medical scooter on which her knee was resting, her leg wrapped up in a cast.
"Libby, what are you-" James said sounding confused as I let go of his hand and made my way towards the woman.
"She needs help." I said gesturing pointing in her direction.
"Libby, it's late, we should-"
"It'll take two seconds." I said jogging towards the car, and I was glad I did.
When I was about three feet from her, she lost her grip on the cart and it started rolling. I darted forward to catch it and the child and the woman turned, wide eyed before giving me a grateful smile.
"Oh my god thank you." she said securing the cart from the other end and I returned her smile, hoping to put her at ease.
"Do you need help?"
I helped the woman put her groceries away and get into the car, returning the cart for her and waving as she drove away.
I walked back to James who was watching me, his expression blank.
"That was longer than two seconds." He pointed out and I rolled my eyes. "But it was nice of you."
He glanced at the store.
"A part of me is tempted to suggest we buy snacks and watch people struggle all night, but it's dark out." He continued looking up at the sky. "We should probably get you home."
"Afraid we're going to run into a big scary monster that's going to try and eat me?" I asked with a smirk and he scowled.
"Yes, and with my luck it will be a hybrid. Or a narwhal." He added thoughtfully. "Those legendary bastards."
I laughed and he took my hand, pulling me away from the lot, his fingers once again interlacing with mine.
I didn't draw attention to it knowing if I did he would stop and I didn't want that.
Instead I continued to walk with him, talking about random things thinking up half-hearted attempt to invite him up to my apartment or extend the evening. It all seemed much too obvious though and I knew he would see through it. James wasn't an idiot, but we were friends. And friends hung out, didn't they?
I was just on the point of asking if he wanted to watch a movie or something when his phone buzzed.
"What's up?" He asked and by his tone, I figured it was probably Harper on the other end of the line.
His expression shifted as she spoke, his mouth drawing down at the corners in something not quite a frown, but not nearly as light hearted as he'd been for most of the evening.
"You can't be serious."
More silence in which I assumed Harper explained something.
"Alright, I'm heading back." He said quickly, his tone a bit sharper which, now that I knew him better, showed me he was definitely concerned.
"What's going on?" I asked nervously.
"Apparently, Harper got into it with Olympus and Zeus is throwing a tantrum."
"Is she ok?" I asked.
He nodded.
"She's fine but I've got to go." He said distractedly.
"Ok." I said feeling disappointed but trying not to let it show.
Whatever it was really must have been bad because there was a flash of gold and he vanished. Harper had pulled him directly out of the mortal world. She didn't often do that.
I stared at the spot he'd vanished from for a moment, then made my way up for once taking the stairs instead of the elevator.
When I'd reached my floor, I was glad I did. Hunter's door was just closing as I'd stepped into the hall and I let out a breath, glad to avoid what might have been an awkward encounter, but unable to help smiling as I remembered the evening.
James had said he'd had fun.
It didn't seem like the kind of thing he'd usually enjoy, I knew it certainly wasn't my kind of scene, but a part of me couldn't help hoping James hadn't had fun tonight because of what he'd been doing, but because he'd been spending time with me.