Hi all! Hope you like the new chapter. As always, thanks for the positive support.

Enjoy!

~SHB

Dpov

"It's so cool you know how to do stuff like this." Lorelei said bending to inspect the flash grenade on the work bench between us, her eyes darting up to me and she grinned. "Can I blow it up?"

"You should be wearing these." I said ignoring the request, reaching over the space and tapping the tinted safety glasses she'd pushed to the top of her head.

She let out a stubborn huff as she stood.

"But if I'm wearing them, how can I bat my eye lashes and flirt with you when I want attention?" she asked as if the question should have been obvious, rounding the bench, and hopping up on it to sit, facing me.

If it had been anyone other than Lorelei, I would have been annoyed. Snapped and told them to stop messing around in the shop. Instead, I grinned.

"You know you could just say you want attention." I pointed out and her smile grew.

"I want attention, Dex."

"Really?" I asked with a laugh stepping closer wrapping an arm around her waist and she nodded, her expression expectant. "I hadn't noticed."

"It's because I didn't bat my eye lashes, isn't it?" she asked immediately fluttering them and I narrowed my eyes.

"I probably shouldn't encourage this behavior." I said and she smirked.

"You know you want to."

"You're right." I said and she laughed as I pulled down the safety glasses obscuring her gaze, but it was cut short as I kissed her and she slid her arms around my neck.

Tempting as it was to spend the rest of the day kissing my girlfriend, we only had an hour of free time before the next round of activities and there were several things I wanted to show her in the bunker.

"He's so cute." Lorelei said brightly, walking around the platform on which stood the robot Priya and I had been working on for the last three years during our breaks.

"He is what got me into MIT." I said grinning, tapping a series of commands into the computer next to the display and the dog sat, and tilted its head as if it was listening to our conversation. "I'm pretty sure that's where Priya is headed too when she graduates."

"First Interface Defense Operative." She said reading the sign next to the platform and shot me a look. "FIDO?"

I grinned.

"You know, you're the first person to notice that."

"Really?" she asked sounding surprised and I nodded.

"Yeah, it was kind of a joke at first. A working title that Priya came up with." I shrugged. "Then it just stuck."

"I like it." she said with approval reaching out to pat the build's head. "Very scary guard dog name." She glanced up sounding a little amused. "What did Heather think of your K-9 friend?"

"Dunno." I said with a shrug. She looked a little confused and I felt a bit awkward as I continued. "Heather wasn't really a dog person, and we never really talked about this sort of thing."

"Your projects?" she asked and it was hard to explain the look she was giving me. It was almost incredulous, but also a little guilty. Despite this, even if I couldn't explain the expression, I knew why it was there. This was a project I'd been working on for pretty much my entire relationship with Heather. Lorelei was clearly surprised she hadn't known about it.

"I've never actually brought someone to the bunker before." I admitted scratching the back of my head feeling a bit sheepish and her eyes went a fraction wider.

"Really?" she asked quietly then looked around at all of the projects, appearing a little uncertain. "Am I supposed to be here, Dex?"

"Probably not." I admitted, glancing around as well before looking back at her. "But perks of being the only fire wielder in the cabin." I shrugged. "Sort of get to do whatever you want. As long as you're useful."

At this she smiled, her eyes glittering with an emotion that was hard to identify, but had my heart rate skyrocketing.

"I feel so exclusive." She said eagerly as she stepped closer to me, putting a hand on my chest causing my pulse to hit the stratosphere.

"Good to know." I said feeling strangely… elated. "Believe it or not Lore, but I'm starting to think you might be a person with some pretty high standards."

She raised an eyebrow.

"You think so?"

"Yes." I said with a laugh and she smirked.

"Maybe in more ways than one."

Her tone was significant, as was her gaze which held mine briefly, before she walked away and I watched for a moment in which it felt as if time around me had slowed down.

She must have known I was staring, because when she looked over her shoulder, she was smiling.

'You have lost your entire damn mind.' A voice said stubbornly in the back of my mind, but it was drowned out by my heartbeat as Lorelei winked and looked back ahead.

I was moving before I'd even been aware I'd made the decision, jogging after her, well aware that I was no better than every other idiot demigod chasing after a child of Aphrodite, convinced that even if Tartarus was where she was headed, I'd follow.

"You know you're better at flirting than I am." I said taking her hand and walking through the work spaces with her.

She laughed.

"At least you're smart. And good looking. That makes up for a lot."

"Really?" I asked and she nodded.

"And you're tall."

"Anything else?" I asked amused, a little surprised when she stopped, apparently having dropped the flirty pretense as she looked up at me, her expression genuine as she said.

"You're stubborn as hell."

"Thank you?" I said not entirely sure this last observation of Lorelei's was a compliment, but to my surprise, she smiled before looking down, apparently embarrassed.

"It's actually kind of my favorite thing about you." she said quietly. "You never give up on anything. Projects or your friends. Not even when Jake's trying to kill you on the lacrosse field."

"He's nuts." I said and she let out a brief laugh.

"Yeah, I know." She agreed shaking her head. "But you put up with him anyways. It doesn't even seem to bother you."

She hesitated for a moment, before saying.

"You don't give up on anything that's important to you Dex, no matter what we might put you through. And I don't think enough people recognize what that means. To be important enough to be taken care of by someone like you, who everyone wants fixing everything."

She shook her head again, but looked up this time, her eyes searching as they met mine.

"My whole life, all anyone has ever wanted to do is manage me. My father, his agent, my teachers, especially my siblings, and in some ways, even Jake. For so long it feels like all everyone around me was so focused on mitigating damage, but not you." She hesitated. "You were never afraid to fight with me. Or to challenge me. But after it was over, you actually tried to help figure out what had gone wrong. And when you try to fix things between us, you listen. Always try to fix the problem. Not me."

"That's because you're not broken, Lore." I said looking at her as if she was crazy. "Besides, you can't fix people. They are who they are. And I like who you are."

"I don't think you realize how rare that is in my life. Someone liking the actual me. Or what that means to me.

Her eyes darted across my face as if she was trying to memorize it, commit every feature and every expression permanently into her mind before she continued.

"I told you Dex, I'm selfish." She said quietly. "If I could take every moment of your attention and keep it for myself I would."

At this I laughed.

"Lore, I'm pretty sure you could have anyone's-" I started, but she cut me off.

"I don't want just anyone's attention." She said flatly and while I expected her to smile, her tone to turn playful, it didn't. "You said it yourself. I have high standards. I want attention from someone that makes that actually mean something."

I considered this for a moment, trying to figure out what the hell it meant before saying.

"You are so spoiled."

She rolled her eyes but couldn't completely hold back a laugh and I added.

"And I have no idea what you're talking about Lore."

"Of course you don't." she said quietly, shaking her head and looking away. "Because Heather treated you like shit, and made you feel like the best things about you are worthless."

I felt my stomach drop at the mention of my ex. I wasn't sure if Lorelei could tell, but she made an angry sound and crossed her arms over her chest, her expression upset before, unprompted, she said.

"I hate her. I hate her so much."

I felt myself frown, accompanied by a surge of anxiety as I asked.

"Because of Caleb?"

She scoffed.

"Not because of Caleb, she can keep him for all I care." She said and it sounded genuine, but when her eyes darted back to me, the blue that had grown so familiar to me over the last few months had gone icy. "I hate her because of you. What she did to you."

"They did it to both of us." I pointed out and something shifted in her expression. While it was clear Lorelei was still upset, she didn't look quite as angry anymore. Just… exhausted.

"Look, I know they're both cheaters, and yeah I think Caleb is a pig for what he did. But what Heather did to you…" she shook her head and let out a sigh. "What she did to you was so much worse."

Her eyes met mine, and when they did, they were full of concern.

"She made you feel bad about yourself, Dex." She said quietly. "And she must have been pretty determined to do it, because you're a pretty impressive guy."

"I'm really n-" I started, but she cut me off.

"Yes, you are." She said stubbornly. "Do you really think I'd be saying all this if I didn't mean it? Gods even my Dad and Jake like you. And Jake hates everyone."

"He seems to like Celeste alright." I pointed out, trying to disarm the tension what she was saying had caused within me.

She ignored it.

"Do you even realize how exceptional you are, Dex?" She asked incredulously. "Because the whole camp seems to know it." she continued gesturing towards the bunker around her. "I'm sure your siblings know it."

"People just want me to fix things for them." I scoffed and she threw her hands in the air in exasperation.

"Because they know you're the best! You don't think that's something people value? That you should?"

I didn't answer this and she continued to stare at me in plain disbelief.

"You really don't, do you?"

"It's not like I'm getting sent on missions or winning any tournaments in the arena Lore."

"And you think because of that, that means you aren't something special?" she asked, incensed. "Who cares if you're not rolling around smacking heads together in the arena like Jake and his siblings? You have other things to think about, better things to do."

Her eyes met mine and her expression softened

"I love watching you think Dex." She said quietly. "I could do it all day. Do you know what people would give to be as smart as you are? To be able to do what you can?"

"Fix things?" I asked skeptically.

"Yes!" she said in indignation. "Not just fixing things, but improving them. Innovating. No one in the camp can come anywhere close to keeping up with you in the forge and you know that. And yet, you still don't seem to think it's that big of a deal."

I remembered what Cole had said. That me 'of all people' wouldn't understand, and his comment about pretty girls. I'd brushed it off at first, figuring he was just upset about not being noticed by his crush, but only now, listening to what Lorelei was saying did I realize that maybe I shouldn't have. I hadn't known why Heather had agreed to go out with me when I'd asked her out years ago, and had been totally oblivious about Jenny's feelings, until Lorelei had pointed them out. And deep down, a part of me was still utterly baffled as to why someone like her even talked to me at all.

But why?

Yeah her father was famous, but it wasn't as if we didn't have anything in common. She was gorgeous, it was true, but really, when it came to our relationship, looks hardly mattered. We got along with eachothers friends. Had similar interests.

'Was she right?' I thought feeling a bit stunned as I considered the question.

Was it really that hard to believe that the girl in front of me could honestly like the things she said she did about me, because of the one before her? Because Heather had made me afraid other people thought they were useless?

"I love that you can look at an engine and know how to fix it. That you're the sort of person who looks at someone's schematics and immediately sees all the design flaws. The person who, when we first met, didn't trust when I was smiling at him, because he knew I was full of it. Someone so talented, and so intelligent, that the second something is interesting enough for him, he won't stop until he understands it. Even if no one else around him does."

I'd never heard anyone describe me like this. My stubbornness, bluntness, irritability and inability not to get lost in a project, all of the things that had driven people crazy about me, especially Heather, was valuable to Lorelei. What she wanted. It made no sense.

It almost sounded as if, in her mind, the nerdy gear head who couldn't figure out how to talk to people, was the prize.

"You're talking about me sort of like you would a rockstar Lore." I said amused.

"Dex." She said incredulously, as if unable to believe I still didn't understand her. "You kind of are."

It reminded me of when she first approached me at camp, before we'd really gotten to know each other. When she'd said she'd come to me, not just because of who are exes were, but because just 'any guy' wasn't what she wanted.

I hadn't thought she'd meant it at the time, but now…

Now I did.

"Lore, you're talking about my attention as if you don't already have it. All of it." I said incredulously. "I think about you all damn day. Every day. It drives me crazy. I can't stop."

At this her smile grew, her expression unrepentant as I brushed her hair back and asked.

"You're not even sorry, are you?"

"No." she said shaking her head sounding delighted as she added. "I'm not."

I paused for a moment as she tilted her head into my palm, beaming up at me. It felt as if the world around us in that moment had ceased to exist. Almost instantly I forgot that we were at camp, in the bunker, were surrounded on the planet by mortals, monsters, and other demigods. None of it felt real. The only thing that really existed was the space between me and her.

It was starting to sink in lately, what Jake had meant when he'd said that Lorelei could destroy me, and only when it was too late did I realize that he was completely right.

Lorelei shouldn't have even been in the bunker, and yet, I couldn't wait until we got back to camp so I could show it to her. She knew about my ability to control fire, something that until now, only my family had ever known about me. After knowing her, really, only for a few months, I'd shown her projects almost no one knew anything about. Not even a girlfriend of several years.

And yet, it had all felt so easy.

I'd opened up my entire life for her to walk into. All but handed my heart to the most complicated person I'd ever met, hoping she decided not to shatter it. The person her best friend himself said didn't know how to be careful with the people she cared about.

But it was obvious she was trying.

"I want to show you something." I said and she shot me a curious look, allowing me to take her hand and pull her towards a work space by the furnace.

"This is my favorite place to work." I said opening one of the doors and her eyes lingered on me before darting to equipment. "It's one of the few places someone like me can do the really fun stuff."

I held my hand in front of the furnace and let out a jet of flames, watching the gauges light up and she smiled.

"What is the really fun stuff?" she asked curiously and I grinned.

"Weapons."

She looked interested and I hesitated for just a second before I continued.

"Actually, I just finished one, if you want to see it." I said and her expression went eager.

"Really?"

"Yeah." I said nervously walking towards a safe under the bench and entering the code. "I actually think it's my best work yet."

I pulled out the coil of metal, Lorelei's eyes darting towards it then back at me in confusion.

"Is this a joke?" she asked her gaze drifting over the miniature metal scales, blue gem stones set into a tiny pointed head.

The metal was blackened in the forge, dark coils elongated in a spiral about the size and shape of a drink coaster.

"Pick it up." I said nodding towards it and she shot me an uncertain look before reaching towards the snake, letting out a cry of surprise when, in a flash of gold, it transformed.

She staggered, caught off guard by the shift in weight but quickly steadied herself.

"What-" she started, her eyes going wide and darted toward the weapon in her hand, currents of celestial bronze shimmering through the blade, creating patterns of petals and thorns against the dark metal. Ebony wings flared from the cross guard, a glittering sapphire set into the pommel, catching the light as she turned the sword, examining it from different angles.

"What do you think?" I asked curiously as she continued to inspect the blade.

"It's gorgeous." She said quietly and I felt a surge of relief go through me as she smiled.

"Yeah, well." I said trying not to sound awkward, watching her testing the weight of the sword, feeling a surge of relief seeing it appeared balanced. "I'd never actually been caught in capture the flag before." I said and she shot me a curious look. "I figured the first person to do it deserved a decent weapon."

"Seems a bit light for Jake." She said with an experimental swing, her expression a little skeptical.

"I wasn't talking about Jake."

This must have caught her off guard because she nearly dropped the weapon in surprise, the blade reverting back into a band which she fumbled for a second before, once it was secure, she looked at me.

"You're kidding."

"Why would I be kidding?"

"B-Because this is gorgeous." She said looking down at the weapon as it reappeared in her palm. "Do you know what people would pay-"

"I didn't make it for them, Lore." I said and when her gaze met mine, I could see that she knew I wouldn't be convinced. That I wouldn't change my mind.

She hesitated for a moment, before looking back at the blade, starting to smile as she asked.

"Does it have a name?"

"That's up to you." I said as she continued to inspect the weapon, her eyes snagging on the cross guard. "But I did have an idea. If you wanted to mess with your siblings."

Her smile grew and she shot me an amused look before holding the sword between us.

"Cygne Noir."

It had been a while at this point, since I'd learned the direct translation, and while I wanted to ask her why her siblings teased her with the name, I didn't. She was still smiling, eyes shining as she looked at the sword, almost as if she couldn't quite believe what she was holding.

"It's so pretty." She said as with a flash, the blade vanished. The metal snake wound up and around her wrist before settling coiled around her forearm and she stared at it, almost as if in wonder.

"I know you're probably used to nicer jewelry." I said scratching the back of my head awkwardly but she shook her head.

"It's perfect." She said still looking at the metal appearing a bit stunned. "No one's given me a weapon before, not a real one. Let alone something like this. I love it."

Her eyes met mine, her smile glowing brighter than any of the forges here in the bunker.

"Thank you."

I wasn't sure who moved first, or if it was both at once, all I knew was that the sound of metal screeching as the door to the bunker opened, couldn't have been worse timing.

"DEX! MARIA TOLD ME TO TELL YOU YOU'RE GOING TO BE LATE FOR YOUR NEXT ACTIVITY!" Priya's voice shouted, echoing off the metal around us, she halted however, when she seemed to realize I wasn't alone.

"Oh, hi Lorelei." She said cheerfully, giving her a wave before throwing a shrewd look at me. "Really Dex?" She asked, her tone disapproving. "Making out in front of FIDO?"

She gestured towards our project and I glowered at her.

"Go away Pri."

"You wouldn't even have a girlfriend if it wasn't for me." She huffed shooting Lorelei a look that clearly said 'can you believe him?'

To my surprise, Lorelei seemed to agree with her.

"You know, she has a point." She said glancing at me and I scoweled.

"I'm feeling a bit ganged up on here." I muttered and Priya cackled.

"Let's go love birds." She said turning on her heel, making her way out of Bunker 9 and back to the camp.

I shook my head after my sister, but took Lorelei's hand and followed after Priya.

"I like your sister." Lorelei said amused and I let out a humorless laugh.

"I think she likes you more than she likes me."

"That's because I do!" Priya called from over her shoulder.

"See what I mean." I said taking Lorelei's hand but following after my sister.

"Well," she said lacing her fingers with mine as we walked through benches. "If it helps, I like you. I like you more than I like pretty much anyone."

Unable to help myself I smiled.

"I like you too, Lore." I answered trying to ignore the little voice in the back of my head that whispered.

'Probably more than you should.'