Once she was far enough away from the camp fire, Arabella slowly walked towards her cabin, twisting her fingers together. Hearing Brooke say what she had said about her was pretty embarrassing and Arabella didn't really want to be around people anymore. At least she could just say that she was tired and head off to bed. It wasn't a stretch, seeing as they had just finished playing capture the flag.
She walked up to the porch of the Aphrodite cabin and she sat down, looking up at the stars. With a heavy sigh, she started to pick at was left of the mud on her legs, the dirt falling off easily. Arabella was sick of having to deal with people like Brooke and all of the other kids at camp. They all thought that she was shallow and easy and it broke her heart. However, she didn't really know how to stop them and the thought of being open and letting people see the real her, scared the crap out of her. The last time that she let someone in, they hurt her pretty bad and Arabella wasn't ready for that again.
Stop it. Stop thinking about that. Arabella shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut, focusing on other things. Thankfully, she was alone and the cabin again and everyone was down at the campfire. She could hear the songs that they were singing and she smiled a little bit to herself, looking around. As bad as she felt in that moment, Arabella was happy there. Camp Half Blood was her home and she couldn't think of a better place to be.
After a moment, Arabella stood up, walked back into the cabin and moved towards her bed. She peeled off her dirty clothes and tossed them into the hamper. As she changed into her pajamas and crawled into bed, Arabella thought about the guy that had saved her. She thought about all the possibilities and she let her mind wander, closing her eyes. Maybe he was somewhere, thinking about her as well. Arabella imagined him to be someone amazing. He would respect her and he would listen to her. They would sit together on the beach for hours at a time, having deep and meaningful conversations. But then they would let loose and laugh with each other all night. He would kiss her good night and tell her that he loves her. He would make her feel beautiful.
Arabella had to find him.
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In the morning, Arabella rolled out of bed early. She needed a bit more time alone before she could put on a smile and act like nothing was bothering her at all. She got dressed quickly and left the cabin, pulling on a pair of sneakers. As she walked down to the mess hall, she pulled her messy curls into a ponytail. She sat down at the Aphrodite table just as everyone started to spill out of their cabins and walk towards the mess hall. Arabella leaned forward and looked at her glass, asking for her normal coffee.
"You left early today" Arabella looked up and smiled a little bit when she saw her brother, Lucas, sitting down across from her at the table. She gave him a little smile and took a sip of her coffee.
"I couldn't sleep and I was excited for the day to begin" Arabella giggled and she narrowed her eyes at him. "You're one to talk, how long were you awake before you heard me sneak out?"
"Oh...just an hour or so" Lucas said with a chuckle. He asked his glass for coffee then leaned back a little bit, looking over at Arabella. He was a good friend of hers and she was glad that he was her brother. Lucas was probably the most masculine man to ever grace the Aphrodite cabin. He had a serious girlfriend, he played sports, he didn't really care about his looks and he didn't gossip. It was nice for Arabella to sit with Lucas. They never really had a deep connection or shared their deepest secrets, but it was wonderful to be around someone who didn't want to talk about clothes or Arabella's sexual history.
"You couldn't sleep either?" Arabella asked, looking around and taking another sip of her coffee. She saw Hunter walking into the mess hall and she was about to wave at him when she saw Brooke walk up to him and kiss him tightly. Brooke was never Arabella's favorite person and after what she said last night, Arabella wasn't really interested in talking to her.
"No...I was busy thinking.." Lucas said, his voice trailing off and he looked over his shoulder to where Arabella was looking. "What are you looking at?" He asked.
"Oh..I uhm..I was just looking at.." Arabella started and she pointed when she saw Daniel walking up to them. "I was looking at Daniel" She told him and waved at Daniel as he walked over and sat down beside her.
Breakfast went quickly and Arabella avoided Brooke the whole time. She ate her food, listening to Daniel and Lucas talk for a little while but her mind drifted back to the guy from yesterday. Arabella was going to tell Daniel about him. She would tell everyone it took for her to find him. She was going to find him. She needed to find him.
Before she knew it, Arabella and Daniel were walking away from the mess hall and she had her hands shoved in her pockets. Daniel was talking about a boy from the Apollo cabin. He had a habit of falling head over heels in love with people very easily. That was one thing that Arabella respected about Daniel; he might sleep with someone after only knowing them for a day or so but he was never with anyone that he didn't have strong feelings for.
"I think he's the one" Daniel said with a little sigh, putting his hand on his heart. Arabella rolled her eyes a little, smiling to herself.
"That's great, Danny" She told him and looked at him with a big smile. He smiled back at her and took a deep breath.
"So, it's Saturday and we have a full day. What are your plans?" Daniel asked her, looking around the camp. Arabella shrugged.
"I don't know. I was thinking that I would just...kind of relax today" Arabella told him. "Get some sun on the beach or something like that."
"That would be nice. Your pasty ass needs some sun" Daniel teased and Arabella smacked his arm.
"Don't be mean, Danny" Arabella huffed and the two of them automatically turned and headed towards the beach. They walked in silence for a little bit, looking around at the camp as they moved.
"Oh, look...there's Brooke's new boy" Daniel said, pointing towards Hunter, who looked like he was walking to the arena. Arabella looked over at him then around.
"Huh. That's weird" Arabella muttered and Daniel looked at her with a slightly confused face.
"What's weird?" He asked her, looking at her like she had lost her mind.
"He doesn't have a bitch attached to his hip. It's weird" Arabella said but just when she said it, she watched as Brooke ran over to Hunter and threw her arms around his neck. Arabella rolled her eyes and looked the other way, headed towards the beach.
"What Brooke said last night was mean but she's not a total bitch" Daniel reasoned and Arabella shrugged, kicking off her sneakers when they reached the sand.
"He just seems like a really nice guy and I know what Brooke is like." Arabella told him simply, tugging her shorts down to reveal her purple bikini bottoms. "She can be really sweet and kind but she can also be manipulative and mean" She added and took her tanktop off then sat down in the sand.
"You're one to talk about being manipulative, Miss Charmspeak" Daniel teased as he took his shirt off and sat down beside her.
"I don't know why you like to tease me so much. You're so mean" Arabella huffed and Daniel laughed, putting an arm around her and hugging her briefly.
"Because I love you so much" Daniel giggled and he laid back down in the sand, putting his hands behind his head and closing his eyes. Arabella looked over at him and she let out a sigh before she slowly laid down, slipping her sunglasses on her face. Laying in the sun like that was relaxing. Arabella wasn't really in it for the tan but more for the heat and the vitamin D.
"I need to tell you something, Danny..." Arabella started and she felt him freeze up beside her, waiting anxiously for what she had to say. "During capture the flag last night, I had a couple kids from the other team jump out at me and I fell. It would have been pretty ugly, to be honest. I had hit my head and I couldn't really get up. But before I could do anything, this guy just jumps in out of nowhere and kicks everyone's ass, helps me up then leaves"
"Who was it?" Daniel gasped, sitting up and looking down at her with big eyes. Arabella looked up at him and she shrugged. She pushed herself to sit up and she let out an annoyed huff.
"I have no idea!" Arabella looked over at Daniel and bit her lip. "It was dark so I couldn't see his face and he left before I could get his name." She told him and Daniel let out a little gasp.
"We have to find him" Daniel said in an urgent voice, like this was a life or death situation. He pulled his shirt on and stood up, rubbing the sand off his his legs.
"What are you talking about, Danny?" Arabella asked, getting a worried knot in her stomach. He grinned down at her and gave her a wink.
"I'm going to find your hero and he'll sweep you off of your feet and you'll fall in love and it will be perfect!" Daniel squeaked and he started walking away from the beach. "I've got to get working on this. You just relax!" He turned and ran away with a giggled.
"Oh...what have I gotten myself into?" Arabella muttered to herself and she flopped back in the sand, closing her eyes. Knowing that Daniel was going to do everything in his power to find this guy for her made her really nervous but a little excited too. Maybe he would find him and who know what would happen after that. Smiling a little to herself, Arabella yawned, thinking of all the good things that could be coming her way.