Chapter 30
Frances's POV
It was painful really. Being in the darkness, that knife in your stomach, everything is spinning inside your head.
Before Circe almost cursed me, she stabbed me with something. I felt it go through my stomach, it really hurt. I think it was a knife, an invisible one. So after Dianne reflected the curse, everything went black.
-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-
I woke up in a boat. A rowboat. A rowboat that was burning on fire.
"Help!" I shouted as I looked around, finding no one. "Somebody, help me! Please!"
For a while, nobody answered my call. Then in a distance, I saw a silhouette of a woman.
"Only love can burn that fine, Only love can be divine," the woman said. "Only love can save you from there, Especially if burning love you bear."
Then the silhouette began to fade.
"Wait, wait!" I shouted. "Who are you? Please help me!"
But nothing happened. The woman did not respond and disappeared. The boat continued on burning.
I began to panic.
"Aaaaahhhhhh!" I shouted out from the top of my lungs.
Then from out of nowhere, Leo appeared at my side.
"Leo! Thank goodness you're here! Where are the others?" I asked him.
"They're at the ship right now," he replied. "And now, we're here, at the burning boat."
"We need to get out of here," I told him. "You have fire powers, please use them to get both of us out."
"Frances," he began to say. "I can't get both of us out."
"What do you mean you can't?"
"Well, I can get YOU out, but I can only get you out if I stay here," he said.
"But-" he stopped me from speaking. He stretched out his hand and the fire parted.
"Go," he said. "I care about you Frances, even if you don't do the same about me, I love you."
"Leo Burning Valdez," I cried. "Don't say that I don't care about you. I do too. In fact, I love you too, so I won't leave you here."
"Really?" he said with a smile as he neared me. "Good to know."
And he kissed me. And together, we stood at the burning boat, burning together, with burning love.
-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-
I woke up in a bed with white sheets and a crying Dianne on the corner.
"Dianne," I called her. "Dianne!"
"Frances," she immediately hugged me. "What have you done? You know I've been worried sick about you! We almost thought you were dead."
She then cried and hugged me tightly. I was taken aback by what she said.
"Me? Dead? Pssh... Nah," I told her and remembered Leo. "Is Leo okay?"
"He's worrying about you!" Dianne cried out.
"So, he hasn't burned?" I asked.
"Burned? Frances, what are you talking about?" Dianne looked at me weirdly.
Guess, all that was a dream. That burning boat. That drama. That kiss.
"Nothing. Anyway, how long have I been out? It musn't be that long," I asked her casually.
Dianne stared at me weirdly.
"You've been out for 4 days, nearly 5," she said. "I tried to heal you, but failed. We almost-"
"Dianne," I interrupted her. "Stop crying."
I looked at my surroundings. Everything was white. The beds, the walls, the ceiling...
"Where are we?" I asked. "Wait - am I dreaming or is this real?"
"Frances, we never left Circe's territory since you blacked out," she said. "Now, you're in the ship's clinic. And Frances, this is real."
"Okay, at least, I know," I said.
"Oh Frances, you don't know how everyone was worried!" Dianne cried out. "But now, I could tell them..."
"No," I smiled thinking of a typical yet perfect prank. "Tell them my heart is not beating anymore and when they come in, I'll surprise them!"
"Frances, I hate to spoil the fun, but they've been pretty worried about you," she explained. "Especially Leo. He wouldn't come out of his room and Nico says that Leo just stares at the corner and tears would come out of his eyes. Just the news that your heart isn't beating-"
"Don't worry I get it now," I told her, smiling about the fact that Leo cares for me. "Just tell them that I'm fine and tell them to hurry up because we're a bit behind schedule."
"Okay Frances," Dianne said.
"But wait, Dianne, mind if I ask you,"I called her before she left. "Did you get over Leo?"
"Yes, Frances," she replied with a smile. "And please remind me later to fill you up with details, okay?"
She then left the room.
I remembered that dream. That kiss. It felt so real. It made me realize that I was indeed falling for Leo and that nothing would stop me from doing so.
And now, since Dianne got over him, it would be fine for Leo to get near me. But not TOO near, if you know what I mean.
After a minute, Clarisse, Nico, Jonsen, and Dianne entered the clinic.
"Frances!" Nico and Clarisse called out. "Thank goodness you're okay."
"Hey, guys! I'm sorry if I was the reason why the quest slowed down," I told them.
"It's okay," Clarisse said. "We wouldn‘t have gone this far without you."
I smiled at him. Then I noticed something.
"We seem to be missing one person - where's Leo?" I asked.
"Oh, so you suddenly decide to talk about him?" asked Nico, which earned him a punch from Dianne. "Sorry. Well, he's in his room, and all of us decided that YOU must surprise him."
"Um, okay?" I managed to say, since I don't know how to properly surprise and interact with him because I WAS avoiding him unless it was necessary to talk to him.
After a moment of explaining to all of them what really happened to me and what I felt, they explained what happened during the past four days, which was very full of sadness, despair, and grief, and they also properly introduced me to Jonsen, who turns out is a descendant of a demigod. His grandmother was a daughter of Nike, Greek Goddess of Victory.
"And that's why he is so victorious," said Dianne with a wide smile as she looked at Jonsen.
"Not always," said Jonsen, looking at Dianne in the same way.
Then I realized something.
Is there something going on between the two of you? I asked Dianne telepathically, pointing at her and later on at Jonsen.
I'll explain later, she told me with her eyes.
"So, when can I surprise Leo?" I asked with a glimmer in my eyes thinking of something, yet that involves a heart-to-heart talk with him.
：--：--：--：--：--：--：--：
I knocked at the door of Leo's room.
"Leave me alone!" I heard him cry out.
"If I did, I cannot surprise you," I said with a smile.
"Frances?" I hear him say. Next thing I knew was that he was hugging me.
"Frances!" he cried out. "Thank goodness you're alive! I didn't know what to do without you."
"Don't worry Leo, I'm okay now," I told him. "And if you don't mind, could we have a little heart to heart talk on the deck?"
"Sure," he said with a smile.
When we were on deck, it was in time for sunset.
"So, Leo, I'm sorry if I was avoiding you before," I began. "I was only doing it for Dianne, because as you know, she likes you. And now, I could see that she got over you, no offense, and went for Jonsen, so I am sorry if that offended or hurted you. I now realize that what I did was wrong."
"Honestly, Paris," he called me with the nickname he made. "I'm also sorry if I caused the conflict between you and your sister and if I confused you with my feelings for you. But now, since everything is okay, I guess we can start from scratch? No crushes, no conflicts, and no love - just friends. Especially since we've all been hurt because of love."
So he's telling me that he doesn't love me anymore, just when I was falling for him...
"Okay," I said with a smile, even though deep inside, I was hurt. I was hurt that he only wanted to be friends with me. I was hurt that he didn't love me just when I was the one falling for him.
Is this the way Dianne felt when Leo rejected her?
"So, now, as friends, we could watch the beautiful sunset," he told me as he put his arm around me.
Even though it felt comfortable that way, I can't get my mind off the fact that he doesn't love me anymore.
But what did happen?
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Hello everyone! I'm sorry for this not-that-good chapter. But if you think that this chapter is worth of giving a vote, do it. I also appreciate comments and stuff.
So, now, Frances is in love with Leo, but does Leo still love her?
Read and Rock on,
Lea V.