Let’s move on shall we? :)

Chapter Quote:

“Letting go means to come to the realization that some people are a part of your history, but not a part of your destiny.”

~Steve Maraboli

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Chapter 16: Johnny Depp Speaks To Me

Shiloh 

I groaned from the pain my headache was giving me.  Opening my eyes, I saw Chiron sitting beside me.

“Miss Carter?” his calming voice asked. “You need to drink some nectar.  It will help with your concussion.  You hit your head incredibly hard.  It’s amazing worse damage wasn’t done.”

I nodded and took the glass from him, sipping the liquid carefully.  My mind was spinning, and not just from my injury.  A lot of it was from what happened, particularly after I’d fallen on the tower.  I’d felt someone cup my face in their hands and they whispered for me to come back for my brother, for Annabeth, for Grey, for Camp, and for someone else, and if my mind deciphered the voice correctly, it had been Luke who said that.  I didn’t understand why it would be him though.  I don’t even know why he said it, but he must’ve hit his head too in order for him to say something like that.  Luke didn’t care about me, at least not in the way I thought he had.  He had used me to get what he wanted: to stay on earth again.  Then I was useless to him.

“Shiloh?” Chiron interrupted my thoughts.

“Hmm?”

“I want you on bed rest for the next couple of days.  No strenuous activities.  Understood?”

“Yes, sir… Chiron?”

“Yes?”

“I need to talk to you about something.”

“Of course, what is it?”

I took a deep breath. “It’s about me staying at camp.”

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Luke 

Thalia followed me into my cabin.  Thankfully there was no one else in there because I could sense the anger radiating off of her.  She shut the door behind her and followed me to my bed.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“Yeah… shaken up, but fine,” I admitted.  There was no use in lying to her.  Thalia knew me too well; she’d know if I was telling the truth or not.

“You just watched a girl get swallowed by a sea monster.  We’re all shaken up.”

“She shouldn’t have gotten swallowed in the first place!  I should’ve gotten my shoes to work earlier so I could fight right next to her.  This is my fault.  If I’m not there with her, she gets in trouble.  If I am there with her, I cause the trouble.  I don’t know what to do.”

“Why is Shiloh so important to you?  She told me she hung out with you when you came back but she didn’t go into detail,” Thalia said.  I detected the hidden meaning in her question.  She didn’t want to know just why Shi was so important to me, she wanted to know how close we had gotten.

“We did more than just hang out.  Shiloh was the first person to show me kindness, she helped me assimilate back into camp life, she helped me get clothes, she sword-fought with me because she understood how afraid I was that I was going to hurt another camper.  She was there for me whenever I needed her.  I miss her to put it simply, and the way we were.”

Thalia sat down. “So why did she start ignoring you?”

“She pushed me away after I kissed her in the Underworld and-”

“You what?!” My girlfriend practically squeaked. “Oh my gods Luke, no wonder she’s pissed at you.”

“I-I’m confused.  She told me it was because I started ignoring her when you came around.”

“Well that’s weird, considering she’s the reason I’m here.”

“Oh, and I also said my ignoring her was her fault.”

“You’re an idiot.”

“Tell me something I don’t know.”

“Give me the truth, if I hadn’t shown up, would you have asked her to be your girlfriend?”

“Yes.  I mean, I would’ve given her time to calm down from that kissed.  It really wigged her out.  I don’t know why.”

“Then there’s your answer.”

“Answer to what?” I gave Thalia a curious glance, wondering where she was going with this.

“Luke, I always wondered why you and I never ended up together.  Aphrodite typically makes sure soul mates get together, right?  I mean someone would have to do something majorly wrong to piss her off and not end up with their soul mate.  There’s a reason Shiloh found you and helped you.  There’s a reason that after all these years, you were the first one to kiss her.”

“I’m what?!” I exclaimed.

“You didn’t know that?”

“Uh, no.  How do you?”

“Shiloh, from what I heard, never dated anyone before we came to camp because, hello, she was too young.  After that, she was too focused on training, and then she was too focused on the war.  She’s never had a boyfriend, and judging from her reaction to your kiss, she’s never been kissed.”

“Okay… so what’s your point?”

“I’m thinking that whatever curse she had on her, it was something to do with love.  I heard things from the Stolls about her past… relationships.  For some reason, none of them ever work out.  I don’t know for sure, but that’s what I’m guessing.  And my point is, you fell in love with her, meaning you’re not as in love with me as you thought.”

“But I do love you, Thalia.  And I love her too.  I don’t know what to do because I feel like no matter what choice I make, I’m going to lose one of you again,” I confessed.

“You will never lose me.  Not again.  But you love Shiloh more.  How do I know?  Because if you loved me like you think you do, you wouldn’t have fallen in love with her.  Does that make sense?”

“Yeah… since when did you become an expert in this subject?”

Thalia grinned. “Johnny Depp quotes speak to me.  Don’t ask.  I’ll make this easier for you.  I’ll break up with you.”

I whipped my head to face her. “Thalia-”

“Stop, Luke.  I’m okay with it.  To be honest, I miss being a Huntress.  Yes, it hurts.  We’ve been through so much.  But it’s time for a new chapter, for both of us.  I will never be far from your reach if you ever need me.  I broke my vow to Artemis.  I’m going to see if I can get it back.  Keep me updated.  And some advice, wait until Shiloh’s better from that fall.  It was nasty.  I love you, Luke.” Thalia kissed me on the cheek.

“I love you too, Thals.”

“I’ll say bye to Annabeth and make sure she doesn’t kill you because she believes you ran me off.  Good luck.” She winked at me and left the cabin, allowing me to be alone with my thoughts and wondering how in Hermes’ name I was going to get on Shiloh’s good side again.

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How do you think Luke is going to pull this off?? Review :)