Austin Cooper 1: Son of Athena

Everything's pretty good

Weeks go by.

Sam and I contact Chiron about how we think Bella is the power source. I don't understand how she has not been attacked by monsters yet, but Chiron insist that crazy miracles can sometimes occur like this, and now that she is beginning to find her powers her trouble with monsters will certainly cover the time she lost.

But besides all the worrying about monster attacks and Bella finding her powers, school has been really good.

   I'm on the football team and have made a lot of good mortal friends, something I rarely have the luxury to make.

It's always good to have some normal friends to remind yourself that there actually is a normal world.

Also, homecoming is this week... so I have been thinking about asking Bella to come with me to the dance.

I just don't know how.

  Since school started Bella and I have become good friends. My stepmom and dad love Bella's mom, and since Bella is a cheerleader and I'm a football player we hang out a lot after games. I always try to stay in close range of her, just in case a monster may decide to attack.

   I woke from my thoughts to see Sam approaching me. "Hey! Have you asked Kate to the dance yet?" I ask him.

He has been wanting to ask one of Bella's friends to the dance for weeks now and hasn't even come close to asking her.

  He frowns. "No, have you asked Bella?"

"Um. No."

"We need to ask them before it's too late!" Sam declares, though I have pointed this out to him several times before.

We look over and watch Bella as she opens her locker.

She was surrounded by girls- all talking and laughing. Most I recognize from the cheer squad, but Bella was friends with everyone at our school. Partly because the school is so small everyone knows each other and partly because people just can't help but not like Bella.

I see almost every guy across the room looking at her.

It's hard not to.

"You're right," I admitted which made Sam smile smugly. "I heard Drue wants to ask her," I add with a annoyed look.

Drue is probably one of the most annoying people at the school. He's a football player, tall with buzz cut brown hair. He's cocky, rude, and stupid enough to eat gum off the road if you told him to. He's the kind of guy that even the Ares cabin hates.

"Go ahead!" Sam said pushing me toward Bella. "Ask her!" He adds as if needing to clarify, leaning on me as I stopped him by putting my heals on the ground.

"Ok, ok I will!" I say with a nervous smile.

I take a deep breath and walk over to Bella.

I try to act cool and stride over to her, so naturally I trip walking across the hallway.

  "Hey Bella," I say with a nervous glance at Sam. He gives me a thumbs up and I clench my teeth and shoot him a glare.

"Hey Austin, what's up?" She replies as she took a blue textbook out of her locker.

I looked into her sea green eyes and take a deep breath. I run my fingers through my hair. "Will you go to the homecoming dance with me?" I ask quicker than I intended to.

Bella's face lit up immediately. "I would love to!" She replied with a smile.

I grin like an idiot and almost bounce with excitement. "Awesome! Is six o'clock ok?"

   "It's perfect!" With that we walked to class together and I try desperately to think of anything other than Bella and fail miserably.

-------------------------------------------------------

Tomorrow is homecoming.

I dazed off as I attempt to do my math homework. I don't mind the subject, but I kept wondering about the dance. What will Bella and I talk about? I wonder if I should bring an extra tie?

My step-mom worked in the kitchen as she prepared dinner. Even though she is not my real mother, I say she is.

   She has a warm smile and strawberry blonde hair always pulled back into a ponytail so it's out of her face. Her blue eyes are as clear as a summer day.

   She even looks like me a little so to make things less complicated, I say she's my real mom.

She glances over at me and smiles.

  "Are you ready for your date tomorrow?"

"Mom!" I reply as my cheeks turn red. "it's not a date."

"Well, you did ask her to the dance, and you are going to eat together at the dance," she said with a small smile as she finished chopping carrots for a salad.

"Mom, it's Bella!"

Christy, my half-sister looks at me, with her big blue eyes. Her shoulder length blonde hair fell in wisps around her small face.

"Austin you have a girlfriend!" She said  laughing.

She is only seven so I look at her silly smile and start to tickle her. "No, I don't!" I say playfully as she laughs.

Little did I know that tomorrow is not going to go at all how I planed it.