I choose you. And I'll choose you over and over and over. Without a pause, without a doubt, in a heartbeat. I'll keep choosing you.

-Unknown

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'Gavin! I was so worried.' Adriana gasped when he walked back into the house.

'I'm fine Ria. I just needed to blow off some steam.' He said.

'Well you just up and left. I thought the ghost might have done something to you.' She stressed.

'You told her?' Gavin asked glaring at his best friends.

'Well after the dramatic diva cat fight what exactly were you expecting us to do?' Tom replied.

'I don't know. Make something up. Something that isn't the truth.' He snarled.

'Well its a lot harder to cover up a full blown Madonna outburst than it looks.' Leo shrugged.

'I did not have a Madonna outburst.' Gavin said petulantly.

'Yeah sure.' Leo muttered condescendingly. Gavin glared at him.

'I don't want to be the spoilsport here but how do you know she's not out to hurt you? Or something?' Adriana piped.

'Oh, she's definitely out to hurt me.' He replied.

'What?! Then you have to stop! Stop it. All of it.' She shrieked.

'Oh. When I said she wanted to hurt me, I didn't mean hurt me permanently. I think she would be satisfied with something temporary and excruciatingly painful.' He said thoughtfully, scratching his jaw.

Adriana's mouth fell open.

'Gavin, you're not exactly helping my case here even though I may settle for something temporary as long as it's extremely painful and it leaves a scar that you'll have for the rest of your life.' I piped.

'Please tell me I'm not the only one that sees all that is wrong with this.' Adriana said. She looked just about ready to yank her hair out of her scalp in frustration.

'I gave up trying to rationalize their relationship weeks ago. Or even understand it.' Tom shrugged.

'He's right.' Leo seconded. 'The less you know, the easier it is to accept.'

'Are you all out of your minds?' Adriana's glare swept over everyone in the room, including where she thought I was standing which was at least ten feet from where I was actually standing so needless to say, the glare wasn't as effective in my case as it was for Gavin and the rest.

'Even though she's hating on me, I have to say, I'm impressed. She's managed to shut all four of you up with one look. Takes skill.' I commented.

'I'd be more concerned if I were you.' Gavin piped.

'You'd be a sad lonely depressed bitter wimp if you were me.' I countered with a sickly sweet smile.

'First, I can't be you because I'm not stupid enough to get cursed especially not by someone who didn't even try to hide that she was evil and secondly even if by some miracle it happens, I would be the smart, awesome version.' He stated. Laughter bubbled out of my throat and before long, I was doubled over, laughing.

He arched a brow.

'Oh! You were serious!' I gaped.

He rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to Adriana.

'Look Ria, I know you're worried and uh... Thanks. I think?' He frowned. 'Anyway, the point is I'm fine, okay? I'm good. She needs me so she can't hurt me. Not if she wants to get uncursed.'

'Are you even listening to yourself right now?!' She cried. 'Gavin, you're basing your safety on the maybe that she may need you?'

'Well when you put it like that, it sounds a little reckless.' Gavin said sheepishly.

'A little?' She glared and everyone took a step back, out of the line of fire. She was just about ready to incinerate everything and everyone in her path.

Gavin flashed her his megawatt get-out-of-jail-free smile.

'Don't you dare Gavin Benjamin Connor.' She narrowed her eyes. 'A smile, no matter how beautiful it is, isn't going to get you out of this one.'

'Benjamin isn't my middle name.' He frowned. 'Not in this universe at least.'

'That is so not the point!' She growled. 'Gavin, you're spending time with a potential murderer or maybe an actual murderer. I mean who's to say she hasn't killed before?'

'Have you killed before?' He asked, glancing at me.

'Your lack of faith in me is honestly endearing.' I smiled. 'To answer your question, no, I haven't killed anyone before and I have no plans of doing so in the near future but I guess no one really knows what can happen. I did have murder tabled for Friday but I had to cancel due to unforeseen circumstances. Who knows, maybe I'll reschedule someday soon.'

He rolled his eyes at my antics. 'No, she hasn't killed anyone.' He said to Adriana. 'And I'm pretty sure she won't be killing anyone in the near or distant future. 78% sure.' He added the last part as an afterthought.

'Is that supposed to reassure me?' She hissed.

'Uhhh...' He looked to Leo and Tom for help. 'Yes?'

'Your life is at stake here! Can you just think rationally and clearly for one second?!'

'I thought that's what I've been doing my entire life but I guess not.' He muttered under his breath. I giggled.

'What was that?' She narrowed her eyes.

'Nothing.' He smiled charmingly.

'Better.' She growled.

He rolled his eyes. Tom and Kelsey opened up a bag of potato chips and sat back, enjoying the show. Leo shook his head lightly before joining them.

'So you're going to stop whatever arrangement it is that you have with this ghost.' Adriana said.

'I don't remember agreeing to that.' Gavin calmly replied.

'Gavin Connor have you fully lost your mind?! You can't possibly mean that despite knowing that she intends to hurt you, you're still gonna help her. That's not an option. Its out of the question.' She glared.

'You know you don't have to call my full name all the time. It doesn't really add or take away from the emphasis.' He nonchalantly stated.

An unfortunately timed doorbell interrupted what in my opinion would have been the beautifully wicked murder of Gavin Connor.

Couldn't the bell have waited five more seconds to ring? Is that too much to ask?

Adriana stormed off on a huff of anger to get the door. Gavin whirled to face me.

'You realize you need me alive to break your curse right?' He asked, folding his arms.

'Oh! Sorry, I didn't realize I was gloating about your death out loud.' I said sheepishly.

'You weren't. Not with words anyway but I know you well enough by now to know the cloud nine expression that goes over your face when you think someone, by someone I mean me, is about to get hurt.' He scowled.

'I don't have a cloud nine expression.' I replied, indignantly.

'You were wearing it five seconds ago.' He said in a bored tone. I turned away from him scowling only to smile at the memory of his almost death at Adriana's hands.

I would've paid good money to watch that. And even better money to be the one enacting it.

'Stop fantasizing about my death will you!' He growled seconds before Adriana and the first party guest shuffled into the room. Muttering something mildly insulting about senseless teenage boys under her breath, Adriana stuffed the newcomer's ten dollar bill into her bag.

Gavin took a step back, out of her line of fire. While she might not bring up the topic in the presence of a stranger, he didn't trust her not to find another fight she just had to pick with him.

'I'll go get some more drinks.' He excused. Not wanting to be left alone in the tense formal silence with Kelsey and the rest, I followed him.

'So...' I began

'So...'

For some reason, our failed attempt at beginning a conversation made me laugh. Gavin joined in and very soon we were doubled over, clutching our stomachs trying to stop our illogical laughter.

'Why are you laughing?' I choked out.

'No frigging clue.' He replied. When our laughter finally subsided, an uncomfortable silence filled the space around us.

'You invited Asia, right?' I asked, chewing on my lower lip.

'Yeah, I did.' He replied.

'Good.'

'Good? That's it?' He asked. I raised one perfectly arched eyebrow. He's a guy for heaven's sake.

'What?'

'Nothing. Its just... You usually tend to have more of an opinion than "good". Normally I can't get you to shut up.' He shrugged.

'Okay, I'm not that bad.' I protested.

'You are that bad.' He refuted.

'Don't you have some imaginary drinks you need to get?' I arched one eyebrow.

'Right! You're still awful at comebacks.' He rolled his eyes.

'Like you're so much better.'

'Compared to you, yes I am.'

'How's it going with those drinks chatty Cathy?'

'Like I said, you're awful at comebacks.' He stated.

'Hey!' I protested. 'That was a good one.'

'Yeah, for a retarded ninety year old with Alzheimer's disease.'

'Well I'm two hundred years old so...'

'You're seventeen.'

'Well, I've been around for two hundred years.'

'Oh so you're seventeen when it suits you and two hundred when it doesn't.'

'Yeah, pretty much. You see, that's the benefit of having different ages. I can easily switch between both depending on which suits my purpose.'

'You're incorrigible.'

'Alzheimer's and incorrigible. Two big words in one day. Who are you and what have you done with the original Gavin Connor who happens to be as stupid as a rock.'

'Haha.' He muttered sarcastically, hefting two packs of canned soda.

I rolled my eyes and followed him back to the kitchen where he proceeded to deposit one pack on the kitchen table and another in the already fully stocked fridge. He had to wrestle the door shut. You don't need to ask. Of course I laughed.

'Do you need to go get another unneeded pack of drinks?' I teased.

'Shut up.' He muttered.

'No?' I goaded. 'Well I can't say I'm surprised. With the way you've been getting all handsy with the fridge, I guess you don't want to share her with anyone.'

'I wasn't getting handsy. I was trying to shut the damn thing.' He groaned at my gleeful expression.

'Not what it looked like from where I'm standing.' I chirped.

'Oh yeah?' He asked with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.

'Yeah.' I replied suspiciously.

He slowly stalked toward me with a dangerous glint in his eyes. For every step he took forward, I took two backward.

'So what did it look like from where you were standing?' He whispered, his voice taking on a dark husky quality.

'What are you doing?' I asked apprehensively.

'Answer the question Starlight.' He calmly replied. Too calmly. 'What does it look like from where you're standing?'

He leveled me with a heated dark gaze.

'Uh... Well.. It looked like the beginnings of a uh... a uhm romantic relationship.' I cleared my throat trying to free the ball of anxiety that had lodged itself there.

'What are you doing?' My voice was barely above a whisper. He had me backed into a corner with nowhere to run to. The triumphant gleam in his demeanour didn't help matters much.

What the hell is he up to?

Author's Note:

I had a lecture-free day today so I wrote you guys a chapter to say thanks for everything. Especially for not being impatient about my loose updating schedule these past few weeks. I'll be updating at least once a week.

Silent readers please please vote and comment. Especially comment. Let me know your thoughts.

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