United As The Ten- Part One Of The Conclusion To The United Series

Chapter Twenty Eight

Max's POV:

Eventually, everyone starts smiling, then chuckling, and soon enough we're all laughing like the funniest joke ever was just told. Watching everyone smile and laugh with me, I know that it's time.

"Guys, I need to tell you something." I announce and I must look nervous cause everyone looks at me with a concerned expression. I glance at Nine, who also looks concerned. When he sees me glancing at him he knows exactly what I'm talking about. He nods his head and I turn back to everyone else.

And I tell them everything. Everything- how my eyes changed color, the experiment the Mogs did on me, Octavian torturing me with fire, and everything about Remo. I look down the whole time. I don't want to see the looks on their faces.

But I force myself to. With my head still hanging down, I look up at my family and friends, and my fears come true in front of me. They look absolutely shocked, terrified, and extremely worried. I look at each of them individually, awkwardly shifting from one foot to another.

"O-Oh..." Percy trails off, his sea green eyes wide.

"S-Sorry," I apologize, nervously fiddling with a bright red curl. Now everyone seems even more confused.

"Sorry for what?" Frank asks me and I shrug.

"Keeping this from you guys for so long," I answer. Everyone seems to relax a bit for some reason and John steps up.

"Alright, get away from her. Give her some space," he tells everyone and most of them clear out of the mess hall, leaving only Percy, Leo, Nine, Reyna, Nico, and Conrad. I give them all shy, sheepish smiles.

"Hi."

Leo leaps towards me and pulls me into a tight hug and I bury my head into his neck. He's breathing heavily, wrapping his arms around my waist lovingly. I wrap my arms around his neck and give him a kiss on the cheek.

"How about you sleep with me tonight?" Leo asks me, smiling warmly at me. I smile back at him and nod my head. I glance at Percy, who's looking at Leo with his eyebrows raised and his arms folded across his chest while Nine is silently laughing at him. Conrad looks confused while Reyna and Nico shake their heads at Nine and Percy. Leo looks back at Percy and his face drops.

"N-Not like that, I swear!" He exclaims and Percy chuckles at Leo then looks at me with a warm expression.

"Goodnight, Max," he tells me, giving me a warm kiss on my head before heading out of the mess hall with Conrad, Reyna, Nine, and Nico trailing behind him.

Leo looks back at me with straight-up heart eyes, which melts my heart. Without another word he softly grabs my hand and leads me out of the mess hall and to his room. He hands me a pair of pajama shorts and a t-shirt to change into and I mutter a quick 'Don't look'. He covers his eyes with his hands, which would be sweet if he wasn't peeking through his fingers.

"Valdez!" I scold him, smacking his arm with the t-shirt he let me borrow. He laughs and turns away, this time really not looking. I sigh in exasperation but I can't help but laugh with him. I quickly change into his pajamas and he does the same. When we're done we both climb into his bed, automatically snuggling up next to each other. He looks at me with a look no guy or girl has ever given me before. It makes me feel like the only girl in the world. It makes me feel special.

"I'm sorry about not telling you about all that before. I was just so worried..." I start but Leo cuts me off.

"It's okay, Max. I still love you, and I always will," Leo says and I can't help myself. I lean in closer to him and kiss him. He automatically kisses me back, placing his warm hand on my cheek. After a few seconds we both pull away, staring lovingly into each other's eyes.