Chapter Thirty Four

I sat alone in my room, all of my new school clothes piled around me. My FaceTime tone began chiming, and Gaia's contact photo popped up on my screen. The moment I answered I was met with the image of two outfits laid out.

"I'm going on a date! Which one! Quick!" Her panic was evident, and her dilemma was true, because I was staring at two of her favorite outfits. "Should I look like a fairy that just came out of the woods for the first time in a thousand years or a water dryad that has only a mild disdain for humans?"

I immediately understood the dilemma, and came up with a solution. "Which outfit will you put your hair up for? It's hot out today and your hair is too thick to leave it down. You hate it when your neck is sweaty."

"Oh my god you're right." She grabbed at the outfit she referenced as the fairy, then flipped the camera and smiled brightly. "You're a godsend, do you want to stay on FaceTime with me while I do my makeup and hair?"

"Absolutely! I'm just preparing my back to school stuff."

"We have two weeks until we go back?"

"Yeah I know! This should have been done a month ago!" I set my phone down against one of my bedposts, then began sorting and pulling tags.

"Stop being such a Virgo." Gaia teased as she placed her own phone down before stepping out of view to change her clothes. "But at the same time, don't forget to pack your emergency kit. You were a lifesaver last year for me."

"Same tampons and pads?" I asked as I grabbed the little bag I kept in the bottom of my book bag.

"Yes! And if you still have your midol that would be great too, I don't understand why the nurse won't give us ibuprofen for cramps." I could hear the eye roll in her voice as she spoke.

"Because that one kid didn't know she was allergic!" I started to assemble the emergency kit.

"It still just doesn't make sense to me." She huffed and entered the view of the camera again. She looked absolutely stunning, and was in the act of braiding her long hair back. The green she had placed in her hair months ago had been touched up and now intertwined in the braid with her natural brown.

"So… who's the date with?" I raised my eyebrows and smirked at the camera as I shoved the now finished first aid kit into the bottom of my bookbag.

"Well… you see…" Gaia's face blushed hard as he finished off her hair and began her makeup. "It may or may not be with one of the guys from the Rez."

"Oh my god who!" I sat up quickly, immediately running through all the age appropriate options.

"Paul…"

I froze, fear filling my heart as I considered the idea of my best friend entering the world I had only just partially escaped. Another part of me became hopeful that I would no longer have to keep that secret from her. I was caught in the dilemma but all the while Gaia waited for a reaction. I pulled myself together externally for the sake of my friend, and gave a huge smile. "I had no idea you liked each other!" This was true, never once had Paul mentioned he even knew Gaia, let alone that he had feelings for her.

"So we met at that bonfire you took me to, the one for Father's Day." She smiled sweetly. The Black's always held one large fathers day celebration, Gaia had gotten to know Jake in the months preceding the event, and it felt only natural to invite her. I hadn't paid close attention to who Gaia was speaking to, we were in safe company after all; though of course she would find the danger in the safety. Gaia continued with her explanation as she blended the concealer in. "At first I wasn't really drawn to him, he kinda threw me off, but when I went to get my phone from the car, he walked me. I know he's not exactly my age, but I really like him."

"He's what? A '97 baby? It's not that far off. Just a year." I shrugged, playing it simple and trusting that she knew what she was doing, though I would personally kill Paul if he broke her heart or hurt her in any way.

"Yeah but he's early '97 and we are late '98 so that makes it feel so much bigger than it is." Gaia sighed as she started defining her already dark eyebrows.

"Okay? And Jake is early '99?" I shrugged and began sorting the clothing on my bed again.

"Oh my god he's a freshman this year!?" She nearly dropped her eyebrow pencil as she turned her attention from the mirror to the camera.

"I know, I feel like he's still such a kid in my eyes." I sighed and stacked the clothes to carry it to my dresser.

"No, that means the 2000's babies are gonna be freshman our junior year!" The mixture of Gaia's shocked expression and half done makeup cracked me up, she looked more than half crazed; she was at least three quarters.

"Wait but they are like literal children!" I laughed, leaning forward to the phone to scoop it up.

"I know!" She burst into a fit of laughter, the mood between us easy and familiar.

"I really hope Paul and I work out. Something feels different about him." I bit my tongue, knowing just how different he really was.

"I Hope you do too."

"And what about you and Angela?" She resumed with her makeup, though her tone told me all that her face didn't.

"Ahhh! I should have never told you about that." I felt my face redden, and the tiny screen in the corner confirmed my suspicions.

"Smoochy smooch on the pier and then nothing for a week and a half!? I'm glad you told me!" Her eyeliner appeared in her hand, her now finished eyebrows raised, and I knew at that moment I wasn't getting away from this discussion.

"I don't know what to do next!" I sighed as I pulled myself off the bed and carried the folded stack of clothes to my dresser.

"The same thing you did with Edward!" She spoke through her teeth as she expertly painted her wings.

"So panic? Because I think I have that one covered."

"Plan a date you dingbat!" She rolled her eyes and then promptly continued her makeup.

"But what if she doesn't like me!?" The words fell from my mouth before I was even aware they would.

Disbelief struck Gaia's face, and her words burst from her mouth with a head shake. "She kissed you!"

"That means nothing!" I was already too far down the rabbit hole, there was no turning back, so I didn't hold back either.

"Arabella Viviana Jacks if you say one more stupid ass thing I'm going to beat you up."

"So we are threatening people now?" I joked as I shoved more clothes in my dresser.

"Only stupid people!" Her tone was playful, and her only saving grace in that moment.

"Oh so now I'm stupid?"

"Honestly Ari, you act like you've never been on a date before." Realization struck, and Gaia's face dropped. "Oh my god. You've never been on a date."

"Edward and I went to the Halloween dance!" I piped into my defense, I couldn't very well tell her we had flounced off to Alaska together to figure out my mysterious powers.

"That wasn't a school function!" She sighed and began the finishing touches on her makeup.

"Uhm…." I began drawing blanks, the memories of Edward and I were so hard to pin down anymore, but I realized now that we had never had a tried and true date. We never just went to the movies together, or got milkshakes, or even hung out outside of either of our houses. "Oh my god I've never been on a real date." My heart ached as I thought of my reality.

"Calm down Ari, you've got this." Gaia finished her makeup promptly, showing off her winning smile (and the new braces she had gotten to fix a couple of teeth I had honestly never noticed for being crooked.)

"Do I? How do I even ask her out?"

"Just ask her to Donnie's, maybe watch a movie." She smiled encouragingly. "Just ask her before it's too late. You're already pushing it big time." I nodded my head as I listened, knowing I would follow these instructions to the best of my ability. I was going to text her tonight, there was no getting out of it. "Okay, I love you, I need to go. Text her. Bye!"

"Bye! Love you!" Beep beep beep. I was alone, and the only thing I could think about was how badly I wanted to text Angela.

Okay yall, I said I was gonna give you a real authors note when I was less chaotic, and I wasn't lying.

First of all, thank you so much to all my readers (on all the platforms) that said such kind things to me when I came back from Hiatus. It was really needed, as for everything else, I have one more chapter for the month of september and that will be on 9/21 to round off the posting schedule.

I really enjoy this posting schedule, and I hope it works for all of you as well. I will post 3 times a month. One on the 1st, one on the 11th, and one on the 21st. IF there is a special chapter (say for Halloween, thanksgiving, or xmas) I will post two chapters on one of those days (typically that will be the 21st since most of the time the holiday is at the end of the month) BUT you are not garunteed a holiday chapter for every holiday, seeing as i cant fit that into the flow of the story perfectly every time. I will not drag it out unless it actually needs to be dragged out whether thats for character development or for the general fluff that is required of me.

I am also looking into putting out applications for a beta reader for this story among some others that are in my works. Im still only thinking about it, but if I decide yall will be the first to know.

as always, thank you

-Ash