Crap, I'm a girl.

Cleo is settled in, it seems. I glimpse Jake’s dreamy face as he turns away from her vanished bunk. Yes, I was peeking. But only a little bit! That kid is going to have to watch out, she’s gonna get hit on from so many desperate guys, because, gods, she’s beautiful. Jason was right when he said she could have been one of the Aphrodite girls, but that doesn’t change the way he looked at her. Jason is mine.
“Hey Pipes,” says a voice behind me.
Talk of the devil, I think. “Hey Jace ❤,” I say, reaching up to kiss him. “Cleo’s all settled in.”
“Is she? Good.” He seems distracted, gazing towards the Hestaphus Cabin. “Guess she’s sleeping now, huh? I’ll check on her later then.”
I freeze. Check on her? What is that supposed to mean? He doesn’t fancy- oh gods.
“Jason, look at me,” I say, forcing his eyes to meet mine. I sigh. Why do guys have weaknesses for cute girls? Even if they want nothing to do with guys? Especially if they want nothing to do with guys. I stare at Jason and he blushes beet red.
“Sorry,” he mutters. “I don’t know what happened,” he admitted. “She seems so familiar, and I guess I’m drawn to her. She reminds me of Leo.”
I nod. That occurred to me too. “But then, she is a child of Hestaphus.”
“I guess.” He seems satisfied. “But I’m curious. Why did she come here so late? She should have been claimed years ago. And she was certain her dad was Hestaphus.”
“And she’s not as freaked out as most of the kids are.” I pause. There’s something strange about Cleo, but I can’t quite place my finger on it. “We should look after her. If she’s not careful, she’s going to get all sorts of attention from the guys- I mean, imagine if Leo was here! She wouldn’t survive a day.”
Jason nods. “I also want to find out why she seems so familiar to me- I just don’t get it. It feels like I’ve known her for years.”
“So it’s agreed.”
“Yeah. We’ll take care of her. I’m sure Annabeth and the others will help too.”
“Yeah, but first, Annabeth and I have got to find her some decent clothes and make her look presentable for dinner. Guess I’ll see you later, hero,” I stretch up to kiss him again, curling my fingers into his blond hair. He lifts me up, and I feel his lips smiling against mine.
“You do that,” he whispers. “See you at lunch, beautiful.”

Notes

Sorry it's so short, but I think it's important! As always, thanks for reading, voting, subscribing and commenting!