From Another Place (A Zodiac Story)

~15~

Charles pushed her against the wall and kissed her hard. He could hear her breathy gasp as his lips caressed hers. Suddenly, the doors opened and Terri walked in.

"Woah!" she cringed, "I was in the bathroom for 2 minutes and I come out seeing you doing this." The servant girl blushed hard and readjusted her outfit before running away. She must've been one of the maids assigned to the mansion.

"I got bored waiting for your slow ass," Charles yawned and lay down on the balcony floor.

"You're such an ass," Terri replied and plopped down next to him, "Can't believe you're not joining the party. You usually love parties."

"Are you joking?" he responded with a scoff, "Even if we act all civilized with the royals, we're still their enemies. Deep inside, we'll never like each other."

"Aren't you a pessimist," Terri laughed. Suddenly, Anton came out into the balcony with an annoyed expression on his face.

"Dude, where were you?" Charles asked him with a raised eyebrow.

"In my room," Anton responded irritably, "Apparently, I'm now engaged to Alice's daughter." Charles mumbled 'I knew it' under his breath and shook his head.

"How did that happen?" Terri asked in confusion.

"Obviously my mom decided to step in and try to find a bride for me, so she contacted all the noble families in Wonderland. We found out that Alice got pregnant with Angelina and her father is a Marquis. Angelina is the only high-ranked lady my age," Anton rolled his eyes.

"Did Alice get married to the Marquis?" Terri asked him.

"No she didn't," Anton answered as he shook his head, "Technically, Angelina is an illegitimate child, but considering that my mom was excited enough to tell me about the engagement herself, I don't think she's following the rules of how the future ruling monarch has to be a legitimate child."

"Well shit bro," Charles chuckled humorlessly.

"Shit indeed," he responded with an eye roll.

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Andrew blushed hard when he remembered what happened in the car. Liliana was reaching back to get a bottle of water but when she turned back around, she fell onto his lap.

He watched as she carried one of the cola boxes inside the mansion. His mouth curved into a small smile as he lifted the other cola box inside.

He walked down to the back kitchen, where there was an open glass door leading to the large, outdoor pool. He placed the cola box on the island of the back kitchen and made his way outside. The place already looked nice and decorated. The rest of the Zodiacs must have finished when they were still at the store.

"Did you get Gatorade?" Serpent, who just walked into the room, asked.

"I'm not sure, go ask Simon," Andrew answered in boredom.

"What about alcohol?" Serpent asked again while going through the fridge, "Never mind, we already have alcohol."

"You're getting drunk today?" Andrew asked with a raised eyebrow, "We have school tomorrow."

"Yeah whatever," was all he said before opening a beer bottle. Andrew sighed and walked outside into the pool area. Liliana was blowing some balloons on the patio. He watched as she sprinkled some confetti inside the balloon before using the machine to blow it.

"Need some help?" he asked, approaching the patio.

"Nope, I'm almost done anyway," she replied, gesturing to the pile of balloons behind her.

"That's pretty fast," he grinned, pretty impressed, "We just got home."

"What can I say? I'm an efficient person," Liliana shrugged. She attached a streamer to the balloon and throws it behind her toward the pile.

"Why are you doing that anyway? Isn't the other group supposed to be doing this?" he asked her.

"There's nothing wrong with helping," Liliana shook her head at him, "I like planning and preparing stuff, so it's not a big deal." He smiled and sat down next to her.

"That's my favorite trait of yours," he admitted. Why did his ears feel hot? Are they red?

"Oh... really?" she said softly and quietly; her cheeks turning bright red. He nodded and stared at her. She glanced back at him. His gaze lowered to her rosy red lips. Did she get that from her mother?

He noticed as she gulped, so he glanced up into her eyes. Her eyes were a dark shade of brown, specifically onyx. How can one not get lost in her eyes?

"Lina!" Liam's voice made them look away from each other. He was walking towards him with a dark expression on his face.

"Liam?" Liliana smiled, "What's up?"

"I need you to come with me," he said, grabbing her hand and taking her away.

"Jeez, I'm coming," she huffed and followed him away. Look back. Please just look back once. Andrew's prayers were heard since the daughter of Snow White glanced back and smiled at him.

Andrew's heart started pounding and he buried his face in his hands, mumbling, "I must be going crazy."

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"I've got gadgets and gizmos a plenty," Phoebe sang as she tried on her 2nd bikini, "I've got whozits and whatzits galore."

"You want thingamabobs? I've got twenty!" Coraline continued the song with a smile on her face.

"But who cares? No big deal, I want more!" Phoebe sang loudly.

"Your mom is so fabulous," Coraline sighed, "Ooh go with the green bikini. It makes your hair pop."

"Yep! I'm planning to," Phoebe grinned, "What are you wearing?"

Coraline stood up and brought out 2 bathing suits, "Should I go with the pink one-piece? It's cutesy and definitely my style or should I go with the orange bikini?"

"Are you feeling comfortable or 'out of your comfort zone'?" Phoebe asked her.

"I'm not sure," she sighed, "I'm feeling both."

"Then you should go with the orange bikini," Phoebe grinned, "You're never out of your comfort zone, and I love the halter top."

"Okay," Coraline sang. They both got changed into their bikinis and wore matching blue T-shirts with shorts before walking to the pool.

As they walked out the back door, they noticed that people were there already. Gianna and Liliana were taking photos by the pool. Liam and Simon were taking the food out from plastic bags and putting them on the table. Vincent and Serpent were sitting on pool chairs with their eyes glued to their phones.

"Hey, guys!" Phoebe exclaimed as she approached Vincent and Serpent.

Vincent looked up from his phone and looked at her. His expression was blank as usual. His hair was tied up into a man bun, half up half down style (Just imagine Eren Yeager's hair). He was shirtless and wore a pair of chino shorts. After looking at her up and down, he mumbled a 'hey' and turned his attention back to his phone.

Phoebe narrowed her eyes and looked over to Coraline, who was taking off her shirt and shorts to jump into the pool.

"Wait for me, Coral!" Phoebe cried and started taking off her clothes too.