Faking It

New Faking It Chapter: 11

It has been a three days since the party and I am ready to go to war with myself. I find myself getting really excited for when me and Travis meet in the strawberry fields each morning, I catch myself stealing glances at him throughout the day, missing his presence whenever we have to leave when it's time to eat, and even sometimes, I wish there were more hours of daytime before we have to go and leave each other for the night.

Me, myself, and I are going to war, and it's not going to look pretty.

Walking to the dining hall, I pull Travis' sweater tighter around my shoulders. It smells like him and I find myself smiling. I should push down my feelings and regret even thinking about having a crush on him, but its too hard. Since admitting to myself that I am attracted to him, the crush has only grown deeper.

"Hey Katie," Travis smiles and falls into step with me.

"Hey," I take his hand. I love that I can hold his hand and Travis will think that I'm playing the role of girlfriend, instead of knowing that I really do like him. "Where were you earlier?" I ask.

"We'll a certain daughter of Apollo started talking to me," Travis brags. It feels like a punch to the gut when he adds, "soon she'll be mine."

I look away from him as he waves to Myra. She wears a sweater that's a couple sizes too big. "You have her your sweater?

Travis makes a face at me. "Yeah?"

I know it's just a stupid, polyester sweater and that he likes her, not me, but it makes squashes all the butterflies in my stomach.

He likes her better. Than me.

"Why? Is that a big deal?" He questions.

I purse my lips in a line and bite my tongue to keep from saying something I'll probably regret. "No, it's not."

We arrive at the dining hall and we part ways to go sit with our cabins.

After eating I realize that I forgot to tell Travis I couldn't meet him in the strawberry fields. It's my week for kitchen duty. Since being in trouble with Chiron over my prank, we switch weeks on who cleans the kitchen.

I grab a sponge, get soap on it, and grab a dirty dish. I start scrubbing and after ten minutes I'm already exhausted. There's still plenary of dishes and cups and silverware to be cleaned, thanks to the rising number of campers.

"Knock knock," I hear behind me and I don't have to turn to know that it's Travis, himself.

"What are you doing here?" I sigh, glaring after the plate in my hands. I cant push down my irrational anger from earlier. I wipe stray hairs off of my forehead and out of my face.

"Well, you didn't show up at the strawberry fields."

"Yeah," I feel my face redden as he comes up and wraps his arms around me from behind. "I forgot it's my turn for kitchen duty."

"Don't be sorry," he nuzzles his face in my neck. "I forgot too."

"Why aren't you with Connor?" I push him away.

"He's hanging out with Miranda," He rolls his eyes.

I rinse off a cleaned plate and set it in the rack to be dried. "What about Jake?"

"He's working on making something, you know how Hephaestus children are."

"Don't be so sad," I grab another plate, "when I'm finished we can—"

Travis kisses the back of my neck. I can feel goosebumps rising on my skin as I loose my train of thought.

"Travis," I mutter. I almost drop the dish in my hand. He continues and works his way to my jaw.

"Travis what do you think you're doing," I set down the soapy dish and lean into him.

"I just want to kiss you," He says.

Give Myra your sweater, make me feel special—what's going on in his head? "You are going to give me whiplash." I tell him.

He places multiple kisses on my cheek. "Do you want me to stop?"

My stomach fills with butterflies and I close my eyes. He shouldn't have this effect on me. This shouldn't be okay. I want it to be okay.

"No," I tell him. I hate myself.

He puts his hands on my hips and gently turns me around. I face him and he brushes a line of bubbles off my forehead, chuckling to himself as I frown. He leans down and presses a kiss to my lips.

Our lips move in sync together and my heart rate quickens. I pour my anger into the kiss. I make up a story that maybe he can be mine, maybe our relationship can be real.

He pulls me close and I tangle my hands in his hair. Oh gods, this shouldn't be happening, no one is around to watch us. No one to witness our acting in this fake relationship, we don't have to be doing this.

But I want to. And we don't stop.

His tongue meets my lower lip, begging a silent question. I never kissed Travis with tongue before, and I've never kissed anyone before Travis. A lot of firsts are going into him.

I let his tongue slip into my mouth and our kiss heats up even more. He puts his hands on the back of my thighs and lifts me up, I wrap my legs around him and pull him closer to me.

Neither of us heard Railynn walking into the kitchen.

"AH!" She screams.

"Shit!" Travis curses and and I try to get my feet on solid ground.

"Put me down!" I shout and he obliges.

"AAAAHHH!" Railynn continues to scream. "Now I know what you guys do during your kitchen clean up punishment!"

"Shut up, Rai!" I cup a hand over her mouth.

"Get you hand off of me, I have no idea what the two of you were doing with them before I walked in—Oh gods, my eyes need bleach!"

"Sh! Sh! Sh!" I urge. I look up at Travis for help but his ruffled hair and swollen lips dont do much. Neither does his loose lopsided smile. "Railynn, Rai, please, please don't tell anyone, okay?"

"I was gonna ask if you wanted to hang out but I think you're all good." She whines. "I won't tell anyone."

"Thank you," I sigh. Railynn gives me a look. "Can we please just talk later?"

"Fine—ah gods—" she shudders as she walks away.

When she's gone I shoot Travis a look. "Thanks for the help!"

He bursts out laughing.

"Stop laughing! What if that was Chiron!"

"Then he'd be happy that we're getting along, magnificently."

I groan as he wiggles his eyebrows at me. I throw a rag at him.

"Get out, I still need to finish the dishes." I tell him.

"I'll help." He says.

"No," I object. "You've done enough."

He ignores me and holds the rag I threw at him as he kisses the top of my head. My face reddens. "Come on, you wash, I dry."

I stare into his blue eyes that Aphrodite knows Im a sucker for. I feel embarrassed, angry, stupid...but happy. Giddy. He kissed me. We made out.

"Fine." I let him.