Arabella let out a giggle as Brett dropped a marshmallow on the ground, letting out a little groan. "You know...maybe you should just give up the whole...s'more making thing"
"I don't give up. I will never give up" Brett said with a grin and he took a s'more from Arabella that she just cooked. She smiled up at him and gave him a little nudge. It had been a few days since he first spoke to her on the beach, telling her that he was the one who had saved her. They had been together as much as possible ever since. Brett was funny and he was sweet. Arabella had a good time with him. They hadn't really taken their friendship to the next level but there was a ton of flirting and he was beyond good looking. Arabella took a bite out of another s'more and looked around as people started to arrive at the camp fire. Hunter walked in and Arabella bit her lip. She hadn't talked to him too much and she was starting to miss hi a little bit.
"Are you sure?" Hunter said with a little frown to Brooke. She yawned a little and leaned up to kiss him.
"Mmmm...Yeah. I think so. I don't want to fall asleep on you." She laughed and stretched a little before pulling out of his arms. "Good night, Hunter." She said before kissing him on the chin. "Night, Jake." She smiled at him before heading into her cabin. Hunter sighed happily and then looked over at Jake who rolled his eyes.
"I'm starting to hate you,, you know that?" He said before turning toward the campfire.
"That's okay. I'm alright with that." Hunter said with a laugh before taking a spot near the Hermes kids. As he looked around his eyes locked with Arabella for a moment and it made him a little bitter. She had to know at this point that he didn't do anything, but she was just too prideful to forgive him. "I'm sorry, Jake." Hunter said with a nod.
"For what this time?"
"Well, I feel like I ruined your chances with Arabella and I just...wanted to apologize."
"Don't worry about it, man. I'm over it."
Arabella took a breath and looked down at her lap for a moment. Maybe she should talk to him. She was getting sick of awkwardly walking past him and trying to avoid his eye. She was getting sick of hearing Brooke talk to him outside of the cabin before bed. She just wanted to be able to smile and wave at a friendly face. Someone who she could talk to a little bit. "Would you excuse me?" She said softly turning toward Brett and he grinned at her.
"You're not allowed to leave until you kiss me" He said and Arabella rolled her eyes. He was always trying to get her to kiss him but she never did. She leaned forwards a little with a smile on her lips and then placed a quick kiss on the tip of his nose, like she always did. "Not fair"
"Too bad" Arabella giggled and she stood up, tugging on the hem of her shorts to straighten them out. She took a deep breath and started walking towards Hunter, a little bit nervous. Arabella was finally standing in front of him and Jake and she looked down at him with a little smile. "Hi, Jake" She said softly then turned to Hunter. "Hunter..can I talk to you?"
Hunter was a little surprised to see Arabella standing in front of him. He didn't really look up at her immediately, but after a second he looked up at her and sighed. "Why?" He asked plainly. "Did you want to insult my integrity again or was there some other aspect of my being that you wanted to degrade?" He wanted to talk to her, but she doesn't realize how much it really bothered Hunter.
Arabella looked down at him with wide, emotional eyes. She took a small breath and looked down, her cheeks pink. After a moment, she looked up at Hunter and she locked eyes with him. "Please, Hunter...can we talk for a minute? Alone?" She asked him in a soft voice, almost a whisper.
Hunter sighed and stood up, looking down at her for a moment before motioning for her to lead the way. She lead him away from the campfire by the cabins. They finally stopped near the minor cabins and Hunter turned to her. "What is it?" He said quietly, folding his arms in front of himself.
"I..." Arabella started and she looked up at him. He was upset with her and he was pissed off. There was no denying it. Arabella cleared her throat, trying to figure out how to go about it. "How have you been?" She asked, putting a little smile on her face and looking up at him. She wanted him to forgive her and she wanted to get past all of this but she was nervous.
Hunter opened his mouth to speak, but her question surprised him. "I'm doing okay, I suppose." He said, cocking his head a little. "I've been better, but Brooke and I have been doing pretty well." He looked over her shoulder at Brett who was watching intently. "I see that you've been doing well, unfortunately."
Arabella turned around and looked at Brett for a moment before turning back to Hunter. "Yeah, Brett's a good guy. A good friend" She said with a little nod. "Look...Hunter...I might have, maybe, possibly jumped to a bit of a conclusion" Arabella muttered, biting her bottom lip. She wanted him to forgive her and she wanted to be his friend again. He was with Brooke and Arabella was flirting with Brett. They could have a really good friendship.
"Might have?" Hunter said, leaning forward and raising an eyebrow. "You said I needed to get a little bit of respect. And that trusting me was a mistake." Hunter leaned back and rubbed his face. "That's not maybe might have possibly. That is jumping to a conclusion. Honestly, are you this mistrusting of everyone you meet or is it just guys? You trust Brett though, so it must just be me. As little sense as that makes..." He said, letting his voice trail off. He hated the fact that she was being lied to and he wanted to tell her that Brett was lying to her, he had no right to jump in. She doesn't trust him anyway, so why would she if he told her that Brett was lying to her?
"Hunter. I'm sorry" Arabella said simply, giving him a little shrug. She took a deep breath and shoved her hands in her pockets. "I couldn't tell you how many times I've walked in to see some of my sisters in bed, half naked and upset because some guy took advantage of them. And then I saw her in bed, half naked and you had been alone with her and I'm sorry" She said, all in one breath.
Hunter took a deep breath and rubbed his eyes a second. "I know." He said quietly, his hands muffling his voice a little. "I know. I'm sorry for yelling at you." He sighed and finally looked up at her. "I just...I was really starting to get used to hanging out with you and Danny and I felt like I disappointed Jake even thought I didn't do anything and it was just a really big mess." He stepped forward and opened his arms for a hug when he saw an arm drape around Arabella's shoulder.
"Everything okay over here?" Brett said with his smile of perfectly white and straight teeth, looking Hunter up and down.
Arabella smiled up at Brett, gingerly moving out from under his arm. "Yeah, everything's great" She said, feeling so much better and lighter. Hunter had forgiven her and they could go back to being friends. "Hunter..have you met Brett?"
"No, we haven't met" Brett said, with a smile on his face and sticking out his hand to shake Hunter's. Arabella didn't notice the way that Brett gripped Hunter's hand, like he was trying to make a point. Arabella was just happy that they were talking and Hunter had spoken to her.
"So, how's Brooke doing? I didn't see her down at the fire" Arabella said, turning to look up at Hunter.
Hunter didn't really want to play the game of mercy that his handshake with Brett became, so he retracted his hand fairly quickly. "She's okay. She said she was just tired. And notice I didn't go and help her into bed." He said with a teasing laugh. "I wouldn't want there to be any misunderstandings." He laughed a little then ran his hand through his hair. "I saw Danny with some new guy. What's that about?" Hunter said, trying to make small talk. He didn't like Brett. Especially because he knew the truth. That's why he wanted to talk. He wouldn't be tempted to reveal the truth.
Arabella laughed a little bit and shrugged. "Oh...he's the new love of Daniel's life" She said, rolling her eyes lightly. "I guess he met him at the party and he's just head over heels"
"Hey, did you want to come back to the fire with me?" Brett asked her, snaking an arm around her waist and leaning into her a little bit. "I need you to help me make s'mores"
"I think I'd like to spend some time with Hunter, actually" Arabella said, turning her eyes from Brett to Hunter and giving him a little smile. "I mean, if he wants to join us at the fire that would be great"
"Umm...Sure." Hunter said, cursing to himself. "Let me just...Let me grab Jake or something." He said, pointing over to the Hermes kids. He waved awkwardly as they headed back over to where they were sitting then hurried over to Jake. "Dude, come on. We're going to go sit by Arabella and Brett. No complaints. I need you there."
"What? I'm assuming everything is okay with you and her then?" Jake said, looking up at him a second then pushing himself to his feet. "I don't really want to sit with my ex-crush and her newest selection of arm candy."
"Shut it. You need to be there." Hunter said quickly. He knew that if there was a silence then Jake would break it. He was famous for it. Hunter would break it, but more than likely it would involve him making an ass out of himself.
"Fine. If it means that much to you..." He said, dusting himself off then heading over to Arabella and Brett with Hunter. "Hi, I'm not sure we've met. I'm Jake." He said, extending his hand to Arabella. "What's your name? Andrea or something?"
"Yep. Andrea" Arabella said with a little laugh and she shook Jake's hand, really hoping that he wasn't mad at her for what she had done to Hunter. Arabella felt a little guilty about it all and she just kind of wanted to forget about it.
"I'm Brett" Brett said, sticking out his hand to shake Jake's. Arabella looked around and scooting a little bit closer to Hunter.
"I'm glad to hear that things are going well for you and Brooke" She told him, a little smile on her face. "You're happy with her and everything?"
Hunter thought for a second, sporting his thinking face, and then nodded. "I really have fun with her. I mean, she's not much of one for deep conversations, but...I don't know. I don't know what the sudden change of heart was with her, but I really don't mind it." He said with a laugh. There was a silence and Hunter turned to Jake to break it, but he wasn't paying attention. "How's things with your uh...knight in shining...Hollister?" He said, nodding to Brett.
Arabella laughed a little bit, looking over to Brett then looked back at Hunter, shrugging a little bit. "He's a nice guy. So, I guess that things are going well" She said and she giggled a little bit when Hunter raised an eyebrow. "With Brett...it's kind of complicated. I mean, he's the guy who saved me and he's incredible to look at and he's a sweet guy. He's always trying to take our friendship to the next level of like...dating. But I guess I'm just testing the waters a little bit before I do that." She told him with a little nod. "And he doesn't have a great thinking face like you do, so that's a major drawback" Arabella giggled.
Throughout Arabella's comments on Brett, Hunter could barely speak. He's lying to you! Don't trust him! He's just trying to get into your pants! When she changed topics it took him a second before noticing. Hunter laughed a little then stretched his face. "I didn't even realize I had done that. Brooke doesn't like it, so I try not to do it." He said quietly. "Well, uh...Be careful." He said, clearing his throat a little. "You never know who you can tr-"
"What are you guys talking about?" Brett said, slipping his arms around Arabella's waist and putting his chin on her shoulder. "Anything I should know about? He said, being sure to glare at Hunter.
"None of your business, Wilcox" Arabella said, nudging him with her elbow a little but still smiling. She yawned a little bit, automatically leaning back into Brett a little bit even though she didn't really mean too. But then she felt his arms tighten around her a little bit and she didn't bother pulling away because she was just too darn comfy. "Any plans for the fall, Hunter? Do you go home or stay here?"
Hunter just stared at Brett and Arabella and almost snapped. He could almost feel his eye twitching in rage, but he took a deep breath and cleared his throat. "Well, my aunt only wants me around during Thanksgiving and Christmas, so no plans, really." He sighed a little and started picking at the grass. "How about you? Going back home?"
Arabella shook her head, tugging at a loose string on her cut off shorts. "No, not really. I mean, I go home for Christmas and birthdays and all of that but I like to stick around here" She told him with a little shrug. She spent a lot of time at the camp but she didn't mind. Arabella was good with where she was.
"I'll be going home to see my mom. I don't usually spend the whole year here" Brett said and Arabella nodded a little bit, feeling slightly disappointed.
"Where does your mom live?" She asked him.
"She's in Buffalo" Brett told her and Arabella nodded before looking over to Hunter.
"Where is your family from?" She asked him, leaning toward him a little bit.
"England. We come from a long line of English royalty." Hunter got up on one knee and leaned forward for more of a dramatic telling. "A tale of intrigue, action, romance, and treachery. It all started in the Noble district of--"
"She's talking about here." Brett interrupted, looking a little annoyed. Hunter sat back down and cleared his throat.
"Uh...I was born in Connecticut, but my aunt lives in Long Island. Not too far from here." He said with a nod. A lot of people in the Hermes cabin knew not to talk about Hunter's family, so Hunter didn't have to talk about it. It hurt to talk about it.
"Oh, well...I'd love to hear the story from England" Arabella said with a little smile. She took a little breath before looking into the fire. There was a small moment of silence and Arabella was fine with it, but Brett was kind of glaring at Hunter and holding Arabella in a protective way, which she didn't notice. "I'm looking forward to capture the flag this week" she said, breaking the silence.
"Mmm..yeah, it should be good" Brett said softly to her, leaning a bit into her and going to place a kiss on her cheek but she didn't see what he was doing and she sat up a little bit, leaning towards Hunter with a grin on her face.
"Yep. I promised Hunter that I would kick his butt in this game" Arabella said, wiggling her eyebrows "And I always keep my promises" She added in a mock serious voice.
"I don't remember that." Hunter said, laughing a little bit. "I distinctly remember that you needed some guy to save you from a...Jake!" Hunter shouted over to Jake who turned his head toward him. "What was it that we heard Brett saved Arabella from?"
"Oh, it was a band of roving Cyclops savages." Jake said with a laugh. Hunter looked up at Brett and smiled a little.
"Now, what actually happened?" He said, tilting his head to the right a little.
Brett took a breath, giving Arabella a squeeze and holding her closer to him. "Well, there weren't any Cyclops savages" He said with a chuckle and Arabella laughed.
"Really though...some people really know how to spin a story. They make you seem like some mega-hero or something" Arabella giggled, placing a hand on his knee. Even though she was taking it slow with Brett, she was still amazed by him. He had saved her from those two kids and she was thankful for that.
"I had seen Arabella in the woods, and-" Brett started but Arabella got excited and cut him off.
"I was in the woods and these two kids just jumped out at me. I was totally stunned and I had no idea what to do but Brett just jumps in out of nowhere and takes them out, even though they're his brothers. He checks to see if I'm okay and then leaves" Arabella said, a smile on her face.
Hunter raised an eyebrow. "Is that right, Brett?" Hunter said, a small smile on his face. Brett looked at Arabella then nodded.
"Yeah. Arabella tells the story so well." He said, giving her a squeeze.
"Well, it's interesting because I talked to a child of Athena that said that her and her brother had Arabella when someone came out of nowhere and took them out." Hunter said before clearing his throat. "Not to say you're lying, but I'm just curious what you think about that."
Arabella looked over at Brett with a confused look on her face. She hadn't really been sure who had attacked her but Brett had told her that it was his brothers. Was he lying to her? Brett kept his calm smile on his face and shrugged. He looked fine with all of this. "My mistake. It was so dark in the woods, it's hard to believe that I saw Arabella at all" He chuckled and looked down at Arabella. Her eyes locked with his and she smiled softly.
"Yeah, I'm sure that it's all just a misunderstanding. I mean, I didn't see him at all. I had no clue that it was him" Arabella shrugged.
"Of course. Of course." Hunter said with a nod. "It was pretty dark. I mean, what if you actually saved someone else or something." He said with a laugh. "Wouldn't that be a strange coincidence?"
"What are we laughing about?" Jake asked, leaning into the conversation.
"I was just laughing about if Brett saved someone else, but they just weren't as popular. Or what if he didn't save anyone at all and he just saw a good opportunity? Wouldn't that be hilarious?" Jake raised an eyebrow at him and cleared his throat.
"Umm...Yeah. I guess." Jake said with a nervous laugh before looking over at Arabella and shrugging.
Arabella looked at Jake with the slightly confused look back on her face. Hunter was acting weird and she had no clue why. It was almost like he was trying to make Brett confess that he was lying or something, which would be totally crazy. "I don't think it would be hilarious" She said softly.
Brett was looking at Hunter with a death glare. He took a breath and shook himself back into his usual, sunny self. "It makes me sick to think of someone lying about that and taking advantage of someone as great as Arabella."
"You're making me blush" She yawned.
Hunter stared at the two of them a second. He had crossed the line and he felt bad. It wasn't his place to get in the way of that. He looked over at Jake and sighed.
"I'm getting a little tired. I think uh...I uh...I'm going to go to bed. Have a good night, you guys." He stood quickly and then left toward the Hermes cabin. As he walked he rubbed his eyes and took a deep breath trying to calm himself down.
"Dude, what is with you?" Jake said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You kind of went crazy right there."
"Sorry. It's just a little..bothersome."
"What is?"
"Nothing. I'm just really tired. I'll talk to you tomorrow, Jake." Hunter said before turning toward his cabin.
"Dude, stop. Tell me. What in the world is bothering you so much?" Jake said, blocking his way to the cabin. "Do you have something against Brett or something?"
"Yeah! Yeah, I do!" Hunter said finally. Jake looked at him a second then stepped backward, leaning on the railing.
"You're jealous of him. You like Arabella and that's why you're angry at Brett."
"No, I'm angry at Brett because I'm the one who saved Arabella last Friday!"
"Mmm..bed sounds really good" Arabella said in a low voice, closing her eyes for a few moments. She took a deep breath, happy to be where she was. Hunter was talking to her again and she really like the guy who had his arms around her. "Walk me to my cabin?"
"Of course" Brett said, standing up and helping Arabella stand up. She brushed her hands off on her shorts before she started to walk back to the Aphrodite cabin. They walked in silence for a few moments and then Arabella felt Brett take her hand, holding it gently. She looked up at him and smiled but she didn't let go.
"I had a good day" She said softly and Brett smiled, nodding.
"Yeah, so did I" Brett said and he took a deep breath when they got to her cabin, turning to look at her. He got a little goofy grin and he leaned down towards her a little bit. "Do I get a goodnight kiss?"
"Hmm.." Arabella looked up at him with a thoughtful face then leaned towards him, placing a little kiss on his nose. "Good night" She said with a giggle and waved at him before turning and walking into her cabin.
"What do you mean, you're the one who saved Arabella?" Jake asked in disbelief.
"I was in a tree, watching her walk through. Then two Athena kids charged her. She fell. I took the two kids out and saved her then got nervous and ran off." Hunter said quietly, burying his face in his hands.
"Dude...I don't believe you." Hunter rolled his eyes.
"Think about it. I know all the details. I can give you everything that was said. I can give you every single detail. And do you really think Brett would get nervous and run away?" Hunter said, pointing over to the campfire. "It was me. I'm not lying."
"Why don't you tell her then?" Jake said, leaning forward. "The longer she sticks with that douche, the more it's going to hurt when she finds out he's been lying."
"And say what? 'So, Brett wasn't the one who saved you. How do I know? Oh, uh...I was in the vicinity.'" Hunter rolled his eyes. "I can't tell her without letting her know it was me and if I do that, things with Brooke and I are absolutely over. I can't let her know it was me, but she needs to know that it wasn't Brett. I don't know what to do, Jake. I have no clue."