Love the Impossible

Chapter 17 - Rachel's P.O.V.

He- he loves me?!

I must be dreaming... I slapped my face, quite hard I must add, which end in a pain groan from me. Looks like I'm awake...

"I love you..."

I stared down at Augustus, still in my arms, not able to restrain the growing smile in my lips. I was totally aware that I liked him, that I cared for him a lot... But, for him to love me?

"I love you..."

Wait, I must misunderstood his words... No one would ever fall for a girl like me! I mean, I'm a handful, I can't keep my opinions to myself, I do everything that I'm told not to, I go to protests all the time and I can't behave! I'm a mess!!

"I love you..."

And, besides, I'm not what you call perfect girl material... I'm short, probably 5'... I can't get a tan to save my mortal soul and I'm so skinny and freckly that people confuse me with a much younger me!! My hair is a mess, all curly and frizzy and untamable...

"I love you..."

But, what if it is something like Stockholm Syndrome or something like it? That he thinks he likes me because I've been nice to him, but only to realize he doesn't...

"Urgh!!" I snapped myself out of the pity trance. I couldn't be thinking like that! What if he had genuine feelings for me? What if... what if those feelings were the reason he left? I gasped, understanding everything clearer now... He left because I hugged Percy! He was jealous!! I started to laugh under the rain, not caring I was catching a cold later, but I decided to get to a warmer place.

I headed back to my cave, thinking about the words I told him. It was true, he made me wanna strangle him everytime we argued and he was so infuriating that I wanted to pull my hair out. More or less like what Annabeth feels everytime she argues with Percy.. That thought made smile and feel warmer inside.

When I got to the cave, I quickly got into the shower, a smile adorning my face. I just couldn't take it off even if I wanted. When I finished my shower, I got out, and noticed some clothes in my bathroom floor. Frowning, because I didn't remember leaving clothes on the floor, I picked them up. I gasped when I saw them, because the clothes weren't mine.

They were Octavian's.

The clothes he was wearing when I found him, that night in the woods, being attacked by hellhounds. Though the moment was itself terrifying, the thought of having his clothes made me giddy inside. I looked at them, and deciding that, even with a little bit of dirt, the clothes were OK, so I put them on. The T-shirt was kind of baggy on me, and with the shorts I had to use the last hole in my belt, but I couldn't care less. Those were his clothes and they were on me. It marked me as his, right? Well, that's what all those werewolves fictions say about when a girl is wearing her guy's clothes. I wonder if Octavian minds it...

I plopped down at my bed, before jumping up again. I forgot to dry out Augustus. I quickly started to dry it with a towel (because, I might leave in a high-tech cave, but that doesn't mean I have electricity for a blowdried), leaving all his 'fur' kind of sticky or something like that.

"I love you..."

I went to sleep with a smile on my face and a dry teddy bear. I woke up the next day, very excited and very anxious. I knew that Octavian wasn't gonna appear out of the blue in less than ten hours. He also needs some time to sleep. But, I knew that he was gonna come back anytime soon. So, I started to do something I never ever thought I would do:

I actually paid attention to my apperance.

I would normally throw on some old, tattered T-shirt with doodles and paint with some comfy short, which are also doodled and painted. But, today was different. Today was an important day. I jumped out of bed and started to ransack my closet. I huffed when I noticed that all my clothes were the same: doodled and painted. It was either that or... asking clothes to cabin 10.

I shuddered at the thought of Drew borrowing me some clothes. And it made me gag the thought of Drew prying into the reasons behind my sudden 'change of heart' respecting clothes. No, not a chance!! I resigned and I chose some of my best shirts and a pair of jean shorts and some sandals. I did had some of them, because Chiron never allowed me to get into Capture The Flag games, so I didn't need tattered sneakers.

I walked out of the cave, almost skipping, towards the pavilion. The rain had gone away, which only improved my good mood. I reached the tables and my arrival was greeted by a dead silence. Weird... Some guys looked at me, while some girls whispered while glancing at me. The funny thing is that they weren't smiling. Actually, they were serious. I shrugged it off, sitting down at the table where Chiron was.

"Good morning, Chiron" I greeted him, sitting down. The old centaur gave me a tight smile and nodded, placing a hand on my shoulder "What's wrong?"

"Come with me, child" I frowned, but got up and followed him towards the Infirmary. Probably, someone with a cryptic message that I need to interpret... Chiron kept quiet all the way, until he reached the door "He came during dawn. He was attacked by hellhounds..." Poor guy... "Before falling unconscious, he did mention one word..."

"Which word?" Chiron pursed his lips, like he didn't want to tell me.

"Your name" I paled at him. And only one person came to mind.

Please, not him... Anyone but him...

Chiron opened the door and my fears got confirmed.

The guy in the Infirmary was Octavian.

I didn't think it. I didn't care. I ran to his side and broke down in his chest.