The Lake

I take my walk around the camp after my nap. I find the gorgeous lake closest to me. Pushing my light brown waves out of my eyes, I feel the sun warming my tear streaked face. I walk to the edge and sit in the grass, pulling at a few blades. I see a boy a little ways down laying in the grass. His lack of movement and sound makes me guess he's sleeping.

David mutters in his sleep. "Mom...horses.....weathervane....barn door." He mutters other nonsense farm like words until he finally wakes up. He sits up and rubs his eyes. He notices a girl near him.
"Oh, hi." He holds out his long hand for her to shake. "I'm David."
The girl has wavy brown hair, and it reminds him of his mom. He instantly thinks she's a pretty girl, and chides himself for noticing it because now he's going to make a fool of himself.

I jump, a little suprised by the tan guy next to me. I see his outreached hand and shake it lightly. I clear my throat so my words wouldn't mutter together. "Emmerson, or some call me Rose." I try to keep my deposition and wipe my eyes again.

"Rose is a nice name."
David sees her wipe her eyes. He thinks nothing of it, however, because he had seen his mom do it multiple times because of her contacts.
"Where are you from? I'm from Illinois. I live in the middle of nowhere with my grandparents and my mom and my brother."

"Here." I stay strongly. "I really don't have a place anymore. I use to live in the UK for like 2 years, then moved to Florida."

"Oh..." David wasn't quite sure what to say. They way she said she really didn't have a place anymore..it made David sad. He couldn't imagine not having a home to go back to.
"Do you have any siblings?" David decided not to say parent. He found that many kids didn't even have a parent, and most of them were quiet about it, too.

"Yes. 3 brothers. Two step and 1 half." I smiled remembering them. "I lived with them my dad and step-mom." David seemed like a nice kid. He seemed to care. "How old is your brother? Is he a half blood too?" I smiled.

I nodded. "Yeah. One of my step brothers is a couple months older than me. So I know how you feel, sort of. And my step-mom, Angela, had always taken care of me and my dad, when my mom left. She was our neighbor. They didn't get married until I was 10 though."

I smiled. "That's really sweet. And you know, that would be nice, she could have a little freedom and movement. At least your mom cares about you though." I started tearing up again. "My dad sent me away because we were attacked by a monster, that almost killed my brother." Another couple of tears ran down my face and I wiped them away. "Sorry. I hate being all emotional in front of people."

"Its fine. My brother told me holding in emotions causes cancer, but I think he is full of crap."
Her sad face troubles David. He hates seeing sad people.
"If you ever need someone to talk to, my mom says I'm a good listener." David smiled to lighten the mood.

"You are a really good listener." I smile and nodded. "It's just that I was kind of scarred from being banished from my brothers. They were everything to me." I pulled on the sleeve of my Lynn Haven Soccer sweatshirt.

"It will all work out, Rose. I promise."
David is quiet for a moment, not quite sure what to say, but he soon notices her sweat shirt. "I guess you're sporty, right? All of the soccer girls at my school were real jocks." David teases her. "I prefer basketball and baseball, though."

I glance down at my sweatshirt and smile. "Yeah. Not likely for an Aphrodite girl, right? I play 'em all: soccer, basketball, baseball, hockey, even some football." I played right back at him.

"Impressive. I wouldn't have guessed you were a daughter of Aphrodite, but you have that look. Like, you're really pretty, prettier than the average."
David blushed when he realized his slip. That happened to him often, especially around daughter of Aphrodite. But then, his brother would say something to save his from totally embarrassing himself. Now he was alone with this girl, and has absolutely no idea what to say next.

I noticed his embarrassment and tried to pick him up, "Thanks. Most people don't. I normally don't mention it too people." I leaned in closer and whispered, "I hate those Aphroditz. You should've seen their faces when I walked in." I smiled matter-of-factly.

"I don't think they even know what dirt is. My bag was covered in it. They looked at me like I was from a foreign country." I laughed remembering their suprised faces. "Oh and go ahead and borrow it. I would like that term to get around." I crickled my nose annoyed by my goddess-like sibliings.

David decided to change the subject. Talking about Aphroditz didn't hold his attention for long. "So you play football?"

"Uh huh." I kicked a pebble into the lake. "The step-brothers, Jacob and Tommy, taught me. I was about 12."

"Cool. I tried out for football, but they said my arms were strong but the rest of my body was too skinny. I told him he should see me during Christmas week, but he still didn't put me on the team. Oh well, I guess it doesn't matter now."

"I'm fast and apparently a good kicker. I couldn't play the whole game, though. Jacob said I would be crushed like a twig. Soccer, swimming, and Baseball are my favorites." I smiled.

"We should play baseball together sometime." David was an extremely good baseball player. People would travel from nearby counties to watch him play. David planned to get a scholarship for baseball went he went to college, but that wasn't exactly an option now. David was still going to college, but he planned to transfer because living in once place for too long wasn't a great idea for a halfblood.