Apart Of The Same Ocean (PJO Fanfiction)

Chapter 3: Last Day

Osa's pov

I almost forgot to feed Fluffy as Troy texted me that he was here. I was so excited to go on this date. Troy refused to tell me, so it was a complete surprise. When he unlocked my door I rushed into the living room. We paused to soak in each other's appearances. He wore a navy blue button-down shirt with jeans and converses. I noticed he wore blue a lot. It always looked best on him.

"You look amazing," I commented.

"And you are stunning as usual," he said.

I was in a loose fitting, red dress with matching flat shoes. The red popped against my brown skin. I didn't bother to put on a lot of makeup either.

Fluffy meowed, breaking us out of our trance. "Shall we go?" Troy asked.

I took his outstretched hand as he led me out the door. "Be aware, Fluffy," I told her on my way out.

Troy chuckled beside me as I locked the door. "You are such a cat lady," he said.

"Fluffy and I have been through a lot together," I defended.

"She doesn't like me though."

"She only likes two people," I said without thinking.

"And the other?"

"Don't worry about it."

He couldn't question me further since I slipped into his car. Like everything, Troy owned his car is blue. Luckily, it wasn't a bright blue. "You should tell me where we're going," I said.

"That takes the fun away." A smirk appeared on his face as he drove out of the apartment's parking lot. He took my hand in his and I squeezed it. Troy thought nothing of it. Little did he know how scared I am for him. The quest was more dangerous than he believed. Willa contacted me immediately after hearing the prophecy. It only confirmed that our worst nightmare was coming for us. I looked over at Troy, who was tapping his fingers lightly on my hand. I doubted he even realized he was doing it. He did that often. That cute, hyperactive white boy was all mine. And I won't let Troy be punished for my past.

"You're quiet," Troy said. "It's killing my mood."

"I've got a lot on my mind," I said.

"Well, we know that has to be fixed."

Knowing what he meant, I grabbed his phone and turned on our playlist of Beyonce songs. Troy made the playlist especially for me whenever I was feeling down. It was hard not to laugh when your boyfriend was singing Single Ladies off-key. He was having the time of his life. His hand was pulling mine trying to get me to join him, but it was more entertaining to watch.

By the time we got to our destination he had successfully ruined three songs. We were still laughing as we stepped out of the car. We had arrived on a beach. From the somewhat good view of the Golden Gate Bridge, I knew it was China Beach. I would always talk to him about going there on a date. It was a place more locally known. Most people came to China Beach for swimming because of its calm surf.

"C'mon. The night is young," Troy said.

I took his hand again after taking our shoes off as we made our way onto the sand. In his other hand was a picnic basket. There were other people on the beach, but not too many to feel crowded. They were probably there to watch the sun set in another twenty minutes. We set up in a secluded area in the picnic space with a purple blanket. I tried to reach for the food and Troy stopped my hands.

I pouted up at him. He simply chuckled. "Not yet. I want to go swimming."

Troy picked me up bridal style to carry me to the shoreline. "I did a lot to look good tonight," I complained.

"And you'll still look great after our swim," he said.

It did little to comfort me when he continued further into the ocean. He kept walking until we were chest deep. "See, it's not that bad," he said. He finally let me stand on my own.

Troy was right. The water was warm and didn't have big waves. My dress had already gotten soaked, but I'll think about that later. The sun began to set, making the sky turn orange. We both watched in awe at the beautiful sight. Moments like that needed to be cherished when you were someone with my life. All my memories of my family had begun to fade over the years. What the looked, sounded, and acted like was getting harder and harder to recall. To keep myself from dwelling too much in the past, I splashed Troy. It surprised him so much I was able to swim away. For some reason the more I tried to run the more the water pushed me in his direction. It was fairly easy for him to capture me. Darn him and his water powers.

"Trying to get away?" He teased into my ear. "You should know that nothing will stop me from being with you."

He leaned in for a kiss but I pulled away last second. "No one can stop death," I said in a matter of fact.

"Well, I guess you're stuck with me in the afterlife too."

That time I didn't stop his kiss. We played in the water for a little bit before going in. I ended up more soaked than he was. Troy found it wonderful since he could now have an excuse to cuddle. He had brought blankets for us to dry off with and keep warm. I was glad to get some food finally. Troy wasn't quick enough to stop my hands from traveling into the basket. My finger brushed through until it contacted with something metal. I picked up the small object and bring it to my face. Troy didn't react when he heard my gasp.

"What's this?" I asked.

"It was a surprise until you had to ruin it," he said, taking the ring into his hand.

"Tell me why you have a ring hidden in our picnic basket."

"Relax. I'm not proposing. It's a promise ring." I couldn't have said I would've been disappointed if he had proposed, but a promise ring was almost as nice. "One day I'll be down on one knee. Just not today. So please take this ring until I do."

Instead of answering, I held out my right hand. The aquamarine stone shined under the moonlight. "You want to get married?" I asked in a small voice.

Troy pulled my back to his chest to speak right above my ear. "Don't dwell on it too much. We're supposed to be enjoying each other's company before I leave." I let the matter go and pulled the blanket over us.

***

It was near midnight by the time Troy dropped me off. Our steps slowed as we got closer to my door. He hated to leave just as much I didn't want him to go. "I'll be back before you know it," he says.

There was a high possibility that he wouldn't come back at all. I couldn't even express my concern. "Text me when you get the chance," I say, kissing his cheek. "Bye Troy."

"Bye Osa."

I didn't open my door until Troy was out of sight. Fluffy's absence was the first alarm. She never hid from me. The second alarm was the light coming from my bedroom. I had turned off all my lights before I left. Through the darkness, I tiptoed to my stash of weapons underneath the cushion on my couch. With two knives I headed towards the light. The door was wide open and the room was....empty. Nothing was different. Everything was where I left it.

Fluffy was sleeping soundly on my bed. I set her on my lap as I sat down. She immediately woke up and stretched. I followed her movement to the closet where the door was open. Fluffy meowed. Since I'm a cat whisperer I knew she meant for me to look inside. Someone had pulled out an outfit I wish I never put on. Only a select few knew anything about the suit before me. A note was pinned to it. Written in black marker it read:

It's not safe anymore. You need to move or prepare for a battle. Your call, kitten. I'd prefer you did the latter.

~ M