Bound by Fates (ABO PJO AU)

Chapter 8: Oh baby, this is not an illusion (there's magic between you and me)

A/N: I don't own PJO. Uncle Rick does. I just play with the characters.

The chapter title is a reference to One Direction song 'Illusion' . There's also a lyric reference in the text. ;)

" Speech"

Thoughts,dreams,visions

' Flashback '

After dinner Spencer tried to focus on the book in her hands, but her gaze kept drifting over to Louis. He was seated across the pavilion, talking to one of the other campers, his easy grin in place as he leaned against the table, chatting and laughing like he didn't have a single care in the world.

A knot twisted in her stomach, one she couldn't shake. She'd grown close to Louis over the past few weeks, closer than she'd ever let herself get to anyone. But the more she opened up to him, the more vulnerable she felt, and a small voice at the back of her mind whispered doubts she couldn't ignore. What if, despite everything he'd said, this isn't as real as it feels? What if he's just saying that because he'd think that it's something I want to hear? What if ...

As doubts continued to run around her head Louis turned to look in her direction, catching her gaze, and the smile that spread across his face was so warm and genuine that it almost undid her. She barely managed a slight smile back, then immediately looked away, feeling a pang of guilt at her own thoughts. But even as she tried to shake it, the feeling lingered, a stubborn doubt that she couldn't quite suppress.

Moments later, she felt him come up beside her, his presence familiar and comforting in a way that only made her feel worse. He took a seat next to her, being his usual easygoing self, , giving a warm greeting to the rest of the Athena kids before glancing over at her with a playful smirk.

"Hey, you look deep in thought. Anything on your mind?"

She hesitated, unsure of what to say. "It's nothing... important," she replied, a bit too quickly. Oh, great... He's going to suspect somethin' ,isn't he?

He raised an eyebrow at her comment, catching the strain in her voice. "Spence, what's going on? You seem... off."

Spencer looked down, her fingers tracing the edge of her book. Part of her wanted to brush it off, to avoid the conversation altogether, but the bond gave a gentle nudge, as if encouraging her to be honest. Finally, after felt like forever,but in reality must have been only a few seconds,she sighed, letting the words spill out of her mouth like a cascading waterfall.

"It's just... I don't know," she started, her voice quiet. "Sometimes... sometimes it feels like this is all too good to be true. Like maybe... maybe you're just telling me what I want to hear instead of how you truly feel." Ugh, great... He probably thinks that I've lost my marbles because of rambling...

The silence that followed felt heavy, and she couldn't bring herself to look at him. But then he shifted, reaching over to gently take her hand in his, his thumb brushing over her knuckles lightly , causing her to almost .

"Spencer, look at me," he said softly, and the warmth in his voice made her glance up despite herself. His expression was serious, his bright blue eyes locked onto hers with a sincerity that was hard to deny.

"Why would I ever do that? Mislead you, I mean?" he asked gently. "Do you really think I'd... I'd want to hurt you like that?"

She swallowed, the guilt rising again. "I don't know," she admitted, her voice barely a whisper. "I guess... I guess it's hard for me to believe that someone could really care about me like that. Especially someone like you."

His expression softened, and he shook his head, a trace of sadness in his gaze. "Spence, you're not giving yourself enough credit. And... you're not giving me enough credit, either." His hand tightened around hers slightly,yet his tone was steady but gentle. "I'm here because I want to be. Because you're worth it."