Chapter 19

It took Silena to read it twice to comprehend the letter. Three, in fact, to make sure she wasn't delirious. She unintentionally skimmed the letter the first time out of sheer nervousness. The second time, she only read the first paragraph. Still, that was enough for her to scream out of surprise and pure delight. The third time around, she composed herself (as the dignified Homecoming Queen that she was during October for the Homecoming Dance) and scrutinize every word, making sure she wasn't dreaming. She wasn't. Her advanced reading skills didn't abandon her at the moment as she read her college acceptance letter. Happy as she was, the first thing Silena did was to call the person that came to her mind. Charlie Beckendorf.

"Charlie!" Silena screamed. Usually, she would have practiced her dialogue and predict how the conversation would go when she called Charlie in the past. But she was so happy to be nervous at the moment. "I got in?"

"Got in?" Beckendorf sounded confused. Charlie was silent for a brief moment until the date finally hit him. He seemed to have remembered the conversation they had in the past. The day was when her college released early acceptance letters. The moments where she gushed about the prestigious program in Brown University that included the chance for students to study abroad in Paris. Her eyes glittered every time she explained to Charlie her dreams of getting accepted into the college, how could he possibly forget about that? "No way! Congratulations, I'm so proud of you!"

"Thank you so much!" She was on the verge of crying. She instinctively called for him and the rush of joy was too much for her. Oh, high school senior experiences. "We need to meet up right now! I'm just so happy at the moment, can we meet up at Isis Café?"

"Of course, I'll be there as soon as possible."

It's a date, she realized after she hung up. She didn't think to much about what she was saying because she was too happy to think things through. But she remembered how she basically called him for a date. She fell on her knees in embarrassment thinking how the dialogue went. After the rush of emotions left her, she felt numb and very aware of how she acted when she called him. She tried to bury herself in her arms as her mean brain kept rewinding the conversation. Rewinding the embarrassing parts over and over again.

It's too late now, she thought. She already asked him to meet up with her. There's no going back. She thought about the outfit she needed to wear. As stylish as she was, she always struggled to think when it came to Charlie. Was this a casual date? Wait, she stopped herself. If they were celebrating her acceptance, then surely she should go for something elegant. But this was at the café! How casual was she suppose to be?

There, she was spiraling into the chaos of overthinking and overfretting. Oh, high school senior experience. The clasped her cheeks to stop herself from overloading. Whatever I wear, Charlie's going to appreciate it, she decided. Panicking won't do. She hoped.

She put some clothing that seemed pretty, but not too much to a point where it's screaming to the world that she was trying to be. Despite popular belief, she was never a huge fan of makeup (in her opinion, make up is only fun when you put it on someone else). She hastily put some basic make up (brows, lashes, and lips. She's a fan of being simple) and hurried her way outside. Her dad was at his chocolate workshop, and she's planning on tell him the good news when he comes home.

She got in. The idea of getting into her dream college didn't seem to hit her until she was walking to the cafe. But not the good part, not yet. She didn't think enough about the fact to see the possibilities. All she could think about was the fact that her life is going to be radically different. That idea seemed to scare her. What was she going to do by herself, in PARIS? She was going to be in Europe, a thousand miles away from everyone. She was going to be away from Charlie. Oh, gods, she realized. She was going to be away from everything she grew up in. She realized that she was going to have to live in her future alone for a while. That wasn't something that she was excited about.

She never thought about fear when she applied. She never thought about the consequence of the program when she applied. Unfortunately, there was a small part of her that seemed to say that maybe it was a mistake. Perhaps, she was better off going to a college here instead. Yes, that seemed right. After all, home is good. Right?

Silena was too busy worrying to notice Charlie was waiting for her at the café with a huge grin on his face. She wasn't aware until he practically screamed at her in public to catch your attention.

"Silena, congratulations! I'm so proud that you got in!"

An old lady, who happened to be sitting nearby turned toward Charlie and gave him a gentle smile. She said, "Young man, I'm happy that you're happy for your girlfriend, but please keep in mind this is public property."

Charlie blushed at her gentle scolding. "Yes, ma'am. I'm sorry about that. Also she's not my- erm. She's not my girl- never mind."

Unaware of the last segment of his comment, Silena laughed at the interaction that happened. "Charlie," she teased. "What did I say about public adequacy?"

"Hey, hey," he warned with a smile. "You're the one who always screams when you see a dog in public."

"It's a puppy, how can you not!"

He laughed at her outburst and she good willingly rolled her eyes at him. She grabbed his hand (on purpose, mind you) and walked toward the café's entrance. "Come on, I'm craving for those heavenly fruit tarts that Isis makes."

They settled inside after they bought Isis' rainbow fruit tarts. They sat facing each other nearby the window, having a wonderful view of the park (the same park that Percy met with Annabeth) and watching Autumn happen to the trees.

"Congratulations," Charlie started the conversation. "You made it."

Silena winced. The idea of her going to Paris seemed daunting to her. The more she thought about it, the bigger her fear seemed to get. "Yeah," she said weakly, "I made it."

Charlie noticed of course. He was an observant fellow. "Hey," he asked. "What's wrong?"

Silena took a small bite out of her fruit tart and placed it back down to her plate. She stared down at it. "Maybe," she said so gently that it almost came off as a whisper. "Maybe, I shouldn't go." She said it with lack of confidence, appearing as if she's asking permission to decline her acceptance.

Charlie frowned. He knew how much of the Paris Program meant to her when she applied. "Silena, you've been dreaming about this ever since we started high school. What do you mean you're not sure about it?"

"I…" Silena hesitated. Too many reasons, she guessed. Too many reasons, yet none of them made sense. She felt silly. "No, never mind," she muttered weakly, with a soft smile. "I was just joking, of course I'm going to go!"

Charlie didn't buy it. He knew her too well to know how she felt. "Silena," he said gently and reached out to touch her hand in reassurance. When their hands met, Silena flinched a bit. Surprised, to say the least. The warmness made her cheek flush. "You're scared," he noted. "You're scared about going."

"I'm not ready for it!" she confessed. "Paris? My French sucks, Charlie! What am I going to do across the world, all by myself? I can't go, Charlie. I just can't. Besides…" she whispered the last part so softly that he couldn't hear it.
"What was the last part?" He asked.

"Besides, you're going to be far away," she admitted softly, cheeks flushed and staring at the table with her head down.

Charlie threw his head back and laughed. He laughed. The audacity of his action seemed to make Silena mad. "Charlie!"

"Sorry, sorry. It's just that you're really cute right now."

"Flattery won't help you now," she warned, but clearly, the compliment did the trick as she couldn't help but smile a tiny bit.

"Silena," Charlie said with fully sincerity, making direct eye contact with her. She tried to look away in embarrassment, but he would just make her face him again. "I have full faith in you."

That seemed to have done it. Somehow, that phrase made her relax.

"This is a wonderful opportunity for you," he continued. "This a chance for you to explore and grow."

"But, what about you?"

"Pardon?"

"I said, what about you? It's not fair for me to leave you here."

"Well, I already found my college," he laughed embarrassingly, scratching the back of his neck.

"Where?"

"M.I.T"

"Charlie!" she screamed. "Why didn't you tell me."

"Cause it wasn't something worth telling you, I would rather much listen to what you have to say."

"I can't believe it. Charlie!"

Charlie shrugged it off. "Leo's dad gave me an excellent recommendation, I wouldn't consider too much about it after that. Point is, I'm always here. So you don't have to worry about a thing."

She bit her lips. "Okay, I have full faith in you."

He had a deep, rich laugh. "You should."

They talked a bit more, trying to enjoy the date that they had. Sooner or later, they were going to go to college, and they were going to painstakingly going to have to say goodbye. But for now, they were at the café, enjoying each other's presence and happy for each other's success, knowing full well that they were going to be a part of the other's future.

Hey guys, it's me again. Midterms are hard (Just trying to state the obvious here and hopefully that's a good excuse for not posting this sooner). But get excited! Because I have a new idea for my next story and it's going to be a wee-bt intense. Thanks for reading and make sure to review!