As a Roman (Prequel to The Lost Hero)

5: Celebration

A/N: umm...

I kinda skipped the whole war games part. Sorry. I'm bad at action scenes.

Enjoy! It's really dramatic and just a bit depressing, and it probably sucks, but I still hope y'all enjoy!

And, dedicated to @Directioner3671 'cause she is AWESOME!

Cato smiled as he tagged the last opponent. "We win!"

Sophia smiled. "Yes, we have."

The rest of their cohort ran forward, and there was a big group hug. Then the leaders, a black-haired girl named Annie and her brother Finn, walked forward to congratulate them. "Well, we won," Annie said. "Good job, everyone!"

Sophia grinned triumphantly, and Cato smiled back. They'd won. He couldn't believe it. He'd never helped to win one of the War Games. The feeling he got from it was amazing. He had a sudden urge to hug someone. And since Sophia was the closest person to him...

He grabbed her and pulled her into a tight embrace. A second after he'd done it, he worried he'd done something wrong-but she hugged back as hard as he did, and rested her head on his shoulder. "This is nice," she whispered into his ear.

Cato blushed, but he couldn't bring himself to let go.

Sophia was the one who pulled away first. She grinned at him, her hands still resting lightly on his shoulders. "What was that?" she asked with her clear, musical voice with its Irish accent.

"I-I, um . . ." he began.

"I understand," she murmured. She grinned, and walked off to join the rest of their cohort.

Cato beamed, not really knowing why, but feeling happy all the same.

He followed her and joined in with the celebration, smiling broadly. This was the best he'd felt since . . . since his twelfth birthday, when his family was still alive. He had spent the day with his mother, father, little sister, and his two best friends. They'd gone out for lunch, and then they went to an amusement park. It had been great.

And then, six months later, the entire town was flooded. Everyone but Cato. And no one knew why.

Cato's smile faded as he remember how horrible it all had been.

But he needed to push that all behind him now. Live in the present, not the past.

***

"Cato?" came a voice. "Are you awake?"

Cato pushed himself up on one elbow. He'd been drifting off into sleep when he'd heard the voice.

It was later, in late evening, and Cato had opted to go to bed early instead of celebrate with the rest of his cohort. He usually avoided celebrations. He never seemed to fit in them.

"Yeah, I am now," he replied.

"Sorry." He recognized the voice now. It was Sophia. Of course.

His face heated at the thought of being alone in a bedroom with her. He tried to ignore that. There was nothing between them, nothing that should make this awkward.

"It's alright. What do you want?" he wondered.

"I just . . . I dunno. I felt lonely, and I can't sleep. Why aren't you going to the celebration?"

"I don't like them," he admitted.

"I don't either," she said. "You could call me antisocial, but . . . I never was a party animal."

In the weak light of the moon, he could see Sophia looking at him, her hair undone from its braid that it was in earlier and falling over her face. Cato looked over at her. "Tell me about yourself. What's it like in Ireland? What was, or is, your family like?"

"I love it in Ireland, but it rains too much for me. I can't stand it. And shamrocks infuriate me," she added, chuckling.

"Really?" He grinned. "That's hilarious."

"Yes. It is." After a moment, she said, "and, you asked me about my family. They're all gone."

"What happened?"

"It was a cruise. And the boat crashed." Cato was sure he saw her wipe away a tear.

"I never saw them again. I miss them every day. I had three older sisters. The oldest was an aspiring actress. She could have been huge. She certainly had the talent.

"And the middle one was top in her year, and the all ones below, and two ahead as well. She could've gotten into Cambridge, easily. But..." she took a deep breath, probably trying to stifle a sob.

"And the oldest . . . I loved her more than anyone else in the world. She was handicapped, but she was still a talented artist. She was incredibly kind and patient with me, and I know I wasn't always easy to be around. And of course, I adoredy parents. They were delightful. They could always cheer me up." She took another breath, seeming to attempt to keep calm, but then she started to cry.

Cato reached out to her and took her hand. "I know how you feel," he said. "I lost my family, too."

She looked up at him. "You did?"

"Yeah. Everyone in my town perished in a flood. My mother, my father, my sister . . ." a tear slipped down his cheek as he said it.

Sophia half-laughed, half-cried. "Look at the two of us, crying when we're supposed to be happy."

"Never satisfied, are we?" he joked.

Sophia came over and sat down beside him. Cato felt hot where their bodies almost touched-his chest (he was still lying down), and her side.

"No. At least, I'm not," she said, smiling down at him through her tears.

He sat up, because it probably wasn't polite-or something-to stay lying down. "What's that supposed to mean?"

She answered by saying something totally unrelated to his question. "You know, Cato, I've felt . . . familiar, almost, with you, ever since we met. Ever since I saw you for the first time. I'm not sure I like it, but I think that this, us meeting one another, wasn't just random."

"Nothing ever is, though."

She squeezed his hand. "But this most of all. I think we met in a past life or something, perhaps. Whatever it was, I'm meant to meet you, and you me. I know how cliché this sounds, but trust me, I can tell with these things."

"Okay, I'll take your word for it," he said lightly, but deep down, the . . . intimacy of her words warmed him. But in a good way.

"By the way, that hug you gave me earlier today . . . that was a nice break from all those awkward silences you've been irritating me with."

He laughed. "You're . . . confusing. Sometimes, I didn't know what to say. But, you do annoy me."

"Am I annoying you now?" she asked seriously.

"Maybe a bit, considering you woke me up," he teased.

"I apologized already!" she whined.

"I'm not serious. I'm enjoying this, to be honest."

"Really?"

"Yes. Really. I understand what you mean by how we're made for each other or whatever."

She smacked his arm. "Not that, idiot." Then she grinned. "Are you flirting with me?"

"No," he said. "But I'd consider it."

Footsteps sounded through the hallway.

"I'd better go back to my bed, or whoever it is'll get the wrong idea," Sophia whispered, patting his head slightly and moving away.

Without her there, he felt cold.