Down in Flames [OC Demigod Fic]

Chapter Two: "You Should Probably Keep Your Pretty Mouth Shut"

Xander grins smugly as he saunters over. "Sabine," he responds. "Lovely seeing you here."

I keep my mouth shut, as I've been told, 'If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all.'

Ah, Xander. The one person who consistently gets on my nerves, no matter how much I try to ignore him. The son of Aphrodite is the definition of arrogant, whose favorite hobbies include pushing my buttons and assuming I have a crush on him with no logic behind it.

He's good looking for sure, with gorgeous green eyes and perfect golden hair, but his personality is, to be polite, trash. It seems as if we're meant to be enemies; a daughter of Hephaestus and a son of Aphrodite who, to make matters worse, has been given a blessing by Ares.

"What are you two doing here at the lake?" He directs his next statement to Amaryllis and Truett. "You're missing out on all the fun!"

"We aren't interested," Truett glares at him.

"Oh, I'd forgotten. You'd rather be spending 'quality' time with the insane girl. Be careful, she might burn the Monopoly board if she loses."

"I'm not insane—" I retort, fuming.

Xander laughs. "You don't know it, doll? Well, no one would expect you to realize. You sure are cute when you're mad, though."

I take a step forward, but Amaryllis stops me in my tracks, laying a hand on my shoulder. "Don't let him get to you," She says in a calm voice. "Xander, leave and come back when you have something kind to say. In other words, leave and never come back."

"Ooooh that burn," Xander puts a hand on his hip and studies his nails nonchalantly. "I feel like a dryad after Sabine's infamous Capture the Flag tantrum."

It was clear Xander wouldn't drop the subject I'd been trying to hard to forget: the reason why so many campers are afraid of me.

A few weeks ago during Capture the Flag, I set part of the North Woods on fire. I'll admit, I'm a sore loser. The other team hadn't exactly been humble winners, either. When someone placed the blame on me, saying I lost it for the team, my temper got a little out of hand. Not only did I earn the title of Dryads' Most Wanted, my best friend told me she never wanted to speak to me again.

"Just go away," I growl.

"I was about to leave, anyway," he says nonchalantly. Turning toward Amaryllis, pausing before telling her, "The party's just started, in case you and Truett wanted show up."

I look over at her, confused. Her face grows pale and her blue eyes fill with worry.

Hoping that she doesn't know the answer, though I have the feeling she does, I ask, "What party?"

Xander answers for her. "You haven't heard? It's Karysta's sweet sixteen birthday bash at the amphitheater. Huge deal," he takes a mint green invitation out of his pocket as proof. "Everyone at camp is there, except you three."

I feel a pang in my heart as he mentions Karysta, my former best friend. The daughter of Demeter and I were partners in crime. We did everything together; weapon-making, picking strawberries, and even archery, which I'm terrible at. But after one too many mistakes, she's made it clear she wants nothing to do with me anymore.

"We didn't want you to be upset," Amaryllis tries to explain as Xander feigns a look of shock.

"Wait, they haven't told you, Sabine?" He gives me a look of sympathy. "You were the only one not invited."

I turn to Truett and Amaryllis, who are looking anywhere but my direction. "How could I be so stupid..." I mumble, feeling hot with embarrassment. This whole night has been a set up to keep me from finding out about Karysta's party.

It's best for everyone this way, I remember hearing Amaryllis say. Like everyone else, my friends were afraid I'd have a meltdown and ruin the party. They had a good reason to keep the party a secret; I feel like I'm going to explode any minute.

Without hesitation, I walk towards the woods that Xander came from.

"Sabine, we're sorry," Truett calls out, his voice wavering. "Please don't be mad..."

"Too late," I say. "I'm going to that party whether anyone wants me to or not."

And with that, I take off running through the forest.