𝐁𝐔𝐓 𝐃𝐀𝐃𝐃𝐘 𝐈 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐇𝐈𝐌, luke castellan

𝐗𝐗𝐈.

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐗𝐗𝐈.
i'll be here, we could share a lifeline

ᯓᡣ𐭩

𝐀 𝐅𝐄𝐖 𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐊𝐒 𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑 Maisie committed to the mortal life, she finally got a job. She worked as a server at a local restaurant, so she could finally understand what people meant when they talked about the hell of working in costumer service. Still, she was committed to the actual adult life, even if it meant dealing with entitled people every day.

She was working in the afternoon one day, so she made it home after ten. The walk to get to her neighbourhood could get creepy, seeing as half the street lights didn't work properly. Because of that, she made sure to hide one of her daggers deep in her bag, just in case.

As she walked, she started hearing snickers coming from far behind her, as well as whispers. She ignored it, assuming it was teens being teens.

The closer she got to her house, though, the closer the voices sounded. Maisie picked up her pace, wanting to get the hell out of there as soon as possible.

"Hey," she heard someone shout. She rolled her eyes, but kept walking. Her house was almost visible now.

"Can't you hear me?" the voice, a male one, spoke again, some irritation laced in his voice.

Keep walking.

"Hey," he repeated, this time right behind her. She was forcefully turned around when the man grabbed hold of her wrist.

"What the fuck do you want?" she asked, disguising her fear with anger.

She'd fought many kinds of monsters before, but, sometimes, creepy men were the worst monsters.

"That's not a nice way to talk to someone."

"Aw, did I wound your ego? Go cry me a river," Maisie spat, not caring about what he could do. He didn't know it, but she was more dangerous.

"Who do you think you are, bitch?" the man asked, his face pulling into an ugly, angry expression, as he tugged at her wrist.

Maisie brought her free hand up, punching his forearm with all her strength, leaving him wincing. Her wrist was free now.

The man quickly recovered from the initial pain and made a move on her again, aiming to grab her biceps, but she blocked him with ease.

That was when the panic kicked in. The other man who was with him, came up to her, attempting to grab her too.

Right as she was digging in her bag for her dagger, her movements sloppy due to her slightly shaky hands, the first man was shoved far away from her, giving her the opportunity to finally pull out her weapon, pointing it at the second man. He didn't dare make another move, probably sensing that a wrong one would send him to the hospital.

Maisie finally looked in front of her, seeing the man who had grabbed her being attacked by none other than Luke. He had punched him off her and now he had him on the ground, with Backbiter pointed at him. The man looked ready to cry.

"Get out of here," was all Luke needed to snarl for the two men to leave running.

Once they were out of sight, Maisie let out a breath, and walked up to Luke.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're here," she said, engulfing him in a tight hug.

"Are you okay? Did they hurt you?" Luke asked, his voice concerned.

"No. I'm fine. I mean, I was gonna fight them off alone just fine," she said, giving him a smug grin as she pulled slightly away from him. "But, still. I'm glad you showed up."

"I was happy to smash their faces for you," he said, caressing her cheek, before he pulled her head forward to press a kiss to her forehead. "I was at your house just now," he explained when he pulled away, making Maisie raise her eyebrows. "I wanted to see you."

"So did I. Please, feel free to visit me more often. I'm really fond of your face."

A smile. "I'm really fond of your everything."

His words made her smile too, until her cheeks hurt and turned red. She was grateful for him, no matter the circumstances.

"Do you want to come inside?" she suggested. "My dad isn't here these days."

"Yes, ma'am."

Maisie led him inside, quickly showing him the house, before they made their way to her room.

"Wow," Luke said lowly, once he entered.

"I hope it's not scaring you off."

"Nothing of yours could ever scare me off, Maise. You're stuck with me forever," he said, shooting her a wink, before returning his gaze to the things she kept in her room.

His eyes trailed the walls, before settling on the photos above her desk.

"These your friends?"

"Yup. Till, like, middle school. After that, the demigodness hit me like a brick."

That earned a laugh out of him. "You can say that again. No kid ever understood me before Thalia. Well, I guess she doesn't understand me now, either."

"You can't blame her. Actually, you can't blame anyone. Nobody really understands you." She winced. "Sorry. That sounds harsh. But, you know what I mean."

Luke sighed. "Yeah, I know. It's fine. They're not necessary."

Maisie contemplated that, turning the sentence over in her head. "What about me?" she ended up asking.

That made Luke turn to face her where she was standing at the doorway.

"What about you?" he wondered, his voice soft and patient.

"Am I necessary?" she asked cautiously.

Luke took a few steps, closing the distance between them, now standing directly in front of her.

"Not to this," he said. "You're necessary to me."

Her heart warmed. He spoke of war and recruitments and the enemy side, yet he regarded her like she was the most delicate thing he had, like she was the fire that kept him warm, like she was his lifeline.

Maisie had long stopped caring about sides in this war. All she knew was she wasn't going to let anybody or anything separate her from the one she loved, no matter what.

I don't want to lose you.

He wasn't going to. Not now and not anytime soon.

They kissed in her childhood bedroom, three words left unspoken, although neither of them needed to utter them.

They knew.

───────

dear reader!

the beginning of this chapter really reminded me of 'prison for life' by olivia rodrigo

anyway i don't love this one but it's fine cuz we're finally done with act three, everybody cheer