Rotten To The Touch; Luke Castellan

I was wondering if you could write a needy Luke trying to get readers attention but the reader is just trying to read a book and he’s placing kiss on her face just trying to get her attention. I love your writing by the way 🫶🏽

yes captain 🫡

this is adorable i’m ON IT

Marauders! *everyone claps*

TEEHEE ! 🤭

you never disappointed me - part five

part one part two part three four

➻ synopsis: luke castellan x aphrodite!reader ; luke tries to apologise for the party, but it takes you a while to forgive him (10 things I about you AU)

➻ word count: 3753

➻ warnings: ooc/kind of loser!luke, ooc silena, she/her pronouns used for reader, swearing

➻ did this take a month? yes. am I sorry? yes. will it happen again? absolutely

TAGLIST: @myxticmoon @wicca-void @leeknows-wife @thekittyxo-blog @number-onekidqueen @instabull @slaybestieslay946 @sflame15-blog @yourfavmiki @ivory-sage @caramelandvenus @chasebeth @maraudersmyloves losergirlcrowley amortencjja wisecrownpaper iammightsadyall odeasforyou rlqfpdl

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You were humiliated. You’d spent all night crying, mortification setting in thick over your body as you lay on your bed. However, despite how embarrassed you were, you were mostly angry. Angry at Luke for acting so affectionate, for making you believe that he really liked you then pulling away at the last second. Angry at yourself. Angry that after all these years, all it took was one stupid boy to bring down all your walls; angry that you let yourself be led into this situation.

And so that morning, instead of letting yourself mope around about it anymore, you picked yourself up with a new determination. You were angry, and everyone was going to know about it. Your braids were pulled extra tight, not in the mood to deal with flyaways or gentleness, and the smudged eyeliner around your eyes served as a reminder of the tears you’d wasted.

There was a much shorter line at the Lava Wall than usual. Although skipping out on activities could earn you some shitty chores or revoked dessert privileges, your bad mood had seeped into the whole area, practically lowering the temperature around you. You only had a few newer campers dare to enter your territory, and it took a Herculean effort to not snap at them for even coming near you.

Luke watched you from afar, hidden away in one of his typically safe smoking spots. He was trying to gauge your mood, see if anything was fixable. His prospects currently looked grim. He watched in anticipation as a young girl made a dumb mistake. Luke thought it wouldn’t have been her fault — Chiron had made him tour her around camp only a few weeks ago and she’d been pretty beat up before she got to camp. He watched you yank her off the Lava Wall moments before disaster, and held his breath as you both seemed to falter. The girl looked like she was going to burst into tears, and your face was unreadable, which was usually not a good thing. Just as he thought you were going to take out all your feelings on the scared kid, you crouched down to her level, thumb wiping away her spilled tears. You spoke softly to her, bringing her down from an impending breakdown with a gentleness that didn’t often emerge at camp.

The interaction gave Luke some hope, maybe your heart hadn’t totally closed off. That thought was quashed, however, when minutes later you ripped Travis Stoll a new one for being an ‘egotistical dickhead’ as he fooled around on the wall. Luke was genuinely shocked at the volume which came from your body, he could have mistaken it for a conch horn. Even Travis seemed a little taken aback at your outburst. Usually your bad moods were pretty easy to avoid — stay out of your way and you stayed away from others. Clearly today, though, you had anger to get out of your system, and you weren’t hesitant in expressing it.

You were still upset by lunchtime, and your day only got worse.

“Dance for me, cowboy,” Katy Gardener yelled, evil grin shining across the Dining Pavilion. You kept your head down and ignored it, hurrying to your table. A body popped up in front of you, blocking your path.

“What do we owe you for the table dance, babe?” Ethan crooned, and if you were in a slightly more private setting you would have decked him. You grumbled out a “Fuck you,” and shoved past him towards Drew, knowing that at least she wouldn’t reproach you in public. Ethan clearly wasn’t done with you yet, though, and began an all too innocent conversation with Mr D.

“Why don’t you ask how her weekend was, Mr D?” He said, throwing a casual glance over to you.

“Unless she kicked the crap out of your dumb ass, Elton, I don’t wanna hear it.” You could have kissed Mr D, and then immediately recoiled at the thought. Ethan’s embarrassed expression was enough to please you though, and you sunk into your meal silently, but at least not active with anger.

After lunch Luke tried to apologise to you, or explain himself at least. He knew you were upset, but he was still feeling good about himself. He had noble intentions, and was doing objectively the right thing by not taking advantage of you when you were drunk. None of these sentiments were expressed, though, when you stormed right past him, making sure to land an extra aggressive stomp on his foot as you went. Chris couldn’t hold back his loud laugh, clapping Luke on the back in semi-sympathy as he headed to his own next activity. Luke stood dumbly in his spot for a few minutes, unsure of how exactly to proceed. Clearly you were more upset than he thought.

Your own next activity was Ancient Greek with Mr D. You didn’t know why he taught it at all given you personally thought he was hardly fluent, but it was one activity you actually didn’t mind, especially as you got older. Whilst the younger kids had lessons focused on getting used to the alphabet and language, the elder campers who were more fluent had more traditional ‘english’ classes — learning about texts and languages, only in Ancient Greek so the dyslexia didn’t slow you down as much.

You shot Mr D a tightlipped smile as you walked into the pavilion, hoping to get by the lesson unscathed, though you didn’t have much hope. Both Ethan and Luke were in this class, and you really didn’t want to see either (though Luke usually skipped, so he wasn’t such a pressing issue).

Just your luck, Ethan was already in his unassigned assigned seat behind you, filling in the campers who didn’t attend the party about your escapades. You just rolled your eyes, trying to seem somewhat graceful about your own actions, but the leering eyes of your peers was making it supremely difficult. For once you did regret not making many friends at camp — if you had, maybe your humiliation wouldn’t be such a hot topic, but the very presence of your class reminded you why you had no interest in being friends with them.

The room thankfully quietened down when Mr D walked in, the whole camp somewhat wary of his temper. He started the lesson: Shakespeare. You perked up a bit from your slouched position in the chair. Whilst school wasn’t exactly your strong point with the ADHD and dyslexia, Shakespeare was something you actually kind of understood. When you were younger your Dad had taken you and Silena to a production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and you’d loved it ever since. Shakespeare translated into Greek was maybe your dream.

Mr D started talking about sonnets, and you got the distinct impression that he didn’t totally know what he was talking about — or just didn’t care enough to go into any detail. You figured that was more correct since he was the god of theatre, but you could never be totally sure with Dionysus. Regardless, he’d moved on from explaining the basic form of a sonnet and had set you a project: write your own version of Shakespeare’s sonnet 141. You sat straighter in your seat, unable to hide the small smile that had crept onto your face. You raised your hand, slightly offended by Mr D’s eye roll.

“Yes, Miss I-have-an-opinion-about-everything?” He sighed, but you persevered nonetheless.

“Do you want it in iambic pentameter?” You asked.

“You’re not going to fight me on this?” He hesitated, and you revelled in the fact that you could still surprise him after all these years.

“No, I think it’s a really good assignment.”

“You’re just messing with me, right Barton?”

“Beauregard,” You corrected for the thousandth time, “But no. I’m really excited to write it.” You picked uncomfortably at your cargos as the class watched your exchange.

“Go see Chiron.”

“What?”

“Get out!” He yelled, not quite angry but you weren’t going to be the one to test him. There were rumours of previous campers who’d been turned into dolphins and you did not want to continue that legacy. You wandered out of Greek class, still slightly confused at what had just happened, and headed back to your cabin, not bothering to go see Chiron. With the cabin to yourself you tried to get a start on Mr D’s project, but inspiration was lacking and you resorted to taking a nap instead.

The rift between you and Luke became public knowledge at that night’s campfire. Without even realising it you’d started sitting with him most nights (or rather he sat with you, bothering you until you submitted to a conversation). Then suddenly you were avoiding him like the plague, spitting out a harsh “Get fucked, Castellan,” when he called your name softly, almost begging you to talk to him. You were never one to back down from your decisions though, and left him in the dust, taking a seat next to Clarisse. You could tell even Chris could see something was seriously wrong as he pressed a kiss to Clarisse’s hand and disappeared somewhere, presumably to sit with Luke.

You didn’t even really know why you were at the campfire in the first place. You’d been only a handful of times before you knew Luke, and now you didn’t want to know him yet here you were. Clarisse tried to keep you entertained with her quiet comments — which did admittedly make you snort a laugh once or twice, but you were otherwise miserable. You sure as hell weren’t going to participate or chat to anyone, and you were really regretting not just pursuing your usual routine of getting to the top of the Aphrodite cabin for stargazing. Plus, you could feel Luke’s eyes following your every move, and you were getting fed up with the kicked puppy act.

Your final straw was the singing — why was everyone in Camp Half-Blood so obsessed with singing? The second some douchebag from Apollo brought out a guitar you were done, launching yourself out of your seat and stomping back towards your cabin for some peace and quiet. Just as you were crossing the threshold out of the amphitheatre a hand grabbed your arm and you whirled around to face the culprit, ripping your arm out of his embrace.

“Touch me again, Castellan, and I swear to the Gods I will make sure you have no hands to use.”

“Look, I just wanted—”

“I don’t care, Castellan. We don’t always get what we want, do we?” You knew you were being mean, but you frankly didn’t care. When Luke was shocked into silence, mouth slightly open as he searched for anything to say, you took the opportunity to leave him in the dust, trying to keep your confident walk even as your legs were shaking slightly.

“Bro, what did you do to her?” Beckendorf approached Luke up near the exit of the amphitheatre.

“I didn’t do anything,” Luke snapped, before taking a beat to calm himself down, “She would’ve been too drunk to remember.”

“But the plan was working!”

“What do you care? I thought you wanted out.” A slight blush crept on Beckendorf’s face, accompanying the dumb grin.

“Yeah, well I did, but, um, that was until she kissed me.” Despite his own bad luck, Luke couldn’t help but be happy for Beckendorf, slightly hating the fact that the lame younger boy had grown on him significantly. He let Charles ramble about the kiss for a bit despite his decreasing interest in the conversation, very glad when Percy joined them.

“So I talked to Clarisse,” He said, and Luke knew by his tone the news wasn’t going to be good. Beckendorf was still hopeful (or just naive) though, and pestered him for more details. “’Hates him with the fire of a thousand suns’ is the direct quote.” All three of them grimaced, yet Beckendorf persisted.

“Hey, we don’t know. She might just need a day to cool off.” Luke thought back to the bruise you’d left on his foot earlier in the day.

“Maybe two.”

The Aphrodite kids were all in archery except you, who’d claimed to be sick to get out of it. So, Silena was on her own and vulnerable to Ethan approaching.

“Hey there, Cupid.” He popped up behind her, not noticing the grimace creeping onto Silena’s face.

“Hi, Ethan.” She refused to look at him, focusing instead on aiming her arrow.

“I want to talk about the end of summer dance.” Silena rolled her eyes as the rest of her siblings pretended to mind their own business despite their innate need to know what was going on.

“Look, you know the deal. I can’t go if my sister doesn’t.” The end of summer dance was exactly what it sounded like; a big party for all the kids at camp to celebrate the three months they’d spent together and send off the kids who weren’t staying all year round. Though the actual dance was supervised, it was a well known secret that all of the older campers stayed out through the night drinking and dancing, and most of the folk around camp turned a blind eye for the night. Usually, your dad would pick you up just before the party started, which would inevitably result in a fight between you and Silena. Now though, Silena wasn’t quite so against leaving early, wanting out of the boy drama she’d found herself in.

“Your sister is going,” Ethan said, puffing out his chest as if it made him look more manly. Silena’s surprise was genuine.

“Since when?”

“Let’s just say I’m taking care of it,” Was all Ethan said before walking away, confident swagger in his step as he passed in front of your siblings, and Silena wondered how many of them were holding back the urge to let go of their arrow as he crossed them.

Still, Ethan had to make good on his word, so he found himself approaching Luke again. Rummaging around in his pockets, Ethan presented him with 200 dollars in cash. Luke raised an eyebrow, not bothering with words.

“This should take care of everything for the dance. I’m sure you don’t own anything presentable so this is for a new outfit, flowers for her, whatever. As long as she comes to the dance.” Luke stared at him, and was disgusted at what he was feeling. He might’ve been growing a conscience, something that would be greatly inconvenient for his life as the scary, unsociable older guy at camp.

“I’m sick of your game,” He said finally, pushing the cash back towards Ethan, who frowned. Luke got the distinct feeling he’d never been told no before — except by you, of course. Ethan exaggerated a huff and reached back into his pocket, pulling out one more hundred dollar bill. Luke faltered. He was sick of hurting you, but three hundred dollars was a lot of money. And without any way of making income as a year-rounder it was only more attractive. So Luke swallowed his pride and his morals and took the money. Though, getting you to ever consider going out with him again was basically a hopeless case.

So Luke began his new quest of getting you to speak to him again. He’d shown up to the Lava Wall full of audacity and enthusiasm, and waited patiently in line as you helped the other kids, pretending you couldn’t see him. When it was clear he wasn’t going to leave — or have his turn on the climbing wall — until you acknowledged him, you rolled your eyes aggressively.

“What are you doing here?” You snapped, gesturing for the Athena kid standing behind Luke to have her turn.

“I want to improve my time,” He smiled, and you could tell he thought he was being cute. You only partly secretly agreed.

“You’re so…” You trailed off, unable to find a word appropriate for your audience of children.

“Charming?” He asked, and there was that smile again. “Wholesome?”

“Unwelcome,” You settled on, turning back to your duties.

“You’re not as mean as you think you are, you know that?” You froze for a second, then told the kid waiting to start to hold on until you could get rid of him.

“And you’re not as badass as you think you are.”

“Ohh, someone still has their panties in a twist!”

“Don’t for one minute think that you had any effect whatsoever on my panties,” You scoffed, subconsciously adjusting your denim shorts.

“Then what did I have an effect on?” Despite the two of you clearly arguing, there was a surprisingly vulnerable look in his eyes. You ignored it.

“Other than my upchuck reflex? Nothing.” You turned on your heel, making it clear the conversation was over.

You were absent from that night’s campfire, which Luke was grateful for since Percy and Beckendorf had much to say about the plan, none good.

“So she’s still majorly pissed,” Percy started and Luke snorted.

“Yeah, got that, genius.”

“Well the question is, how do you stop a girl from being mad?” Beckendorf asked, and Luke could only cringe at how they sounded. With the way the three of them were talking, any passerby would surely think they were three prepubescent virgins. From next to them, Annabeth sighed harshly.

“Look, Luke. You embarrassed her, her ego’s taken a hit. Devastating for any girl, especially damaging for a daughter of Aphrodite. You need to get on her level; even the score and embarrass yourself for her.” The boys sat back, stunned. One by one they processed the instructions, nodding slowly. Thank the Gods for Annabeth Chase was the only thing Luke could think.

With much planning and a little bit of outside involvement (Luke swapped some of his chores with Clarisse’s to get her to agree), the plan was set in motion.

“C’mon, it’ll be fun. We can make fun of the little kids singing Disney songs?” Clarisse lay on your bed as you cleaned your bunk area and you looked at her skeptically.

“Why tonight? We never go to the sing alongs.”

“Dunno,” She shrugged, “Something to do. Plus, summer’s almost over and soon we won’t get to spend any time together.” You grinned, reaching over to pinch her cheek lightly.

“Aw,” You cooed, “I knew you liked me deep down.” Clarisse swatted your hand away but smiled nonetheless, and the two of you stayed huddled up on your bunk gossiping until dinner.

Swayed by Clarisse’s begging, the two of you ended up at the sing along, much too close to the front for your liking. You struggled through the karaoke songs, only staying to commentate to Clarisse. You’d heard one too many awful renditions of classic childhood pop songs when the amphitheatre went quiet, no one knowing who was meant to be leading the next song.

“You’re just too good to be true,” The voice rang out into the night, unaccompanied voice making you gasp immediately in recognition. This was your favourite song, but hardly anyone knew that. It was the song you used to dance to with your dad when you were a kid, before you even knew you were a demigod.

“Can’t take my eyes off of you.” People were murmuring now, trying to figure out where the voice was coming from and who it belonged to — no one who’d sung before for sure.

“You feel like heaven to touch, I wanna hold you so much,” You gasped again as you saw the figure emerge from the darkness. Luke Castellan was singing at the camp sing along. You couldn’t hold in your giggle as he continued to sing a cappella, coming into the light of the stage. He seemed to be searching for something though, eyes roving over the audience.

“Can’t take my eyes off of you.” His eyes locked with yours; he found what he was looking for. Before you could dwell on the incredibly cheesy act, music swelled to life, the Apollo musicians seemingly having learnt the piece beforehand. You wondered how much planning went into this. Your joy only increased as Luke began to dance; dorky, outdated moves that made you laugh out loud — a sound so unfamiliar that a few campers had to look back to check it was really you. You laughed and clapped along with everyone else, thoroughly enjoying Luke embarrassing himself in front of the whole camp.

The performance had to end at some point though, and you found yourself rising out of your seat to give a standing ovation, whooping and cheering along with everyone else. By chance you caught a glance of Clarisse’s face to see her already watching you, a satisfied look evident on her face. You were confused for a second before a memory struck you — a late night on the roof trading drunk secrets and stories where you told her about your childhood connection to Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You. You were floored, and also kind of flattered. You knew it would have taken a lot for Luke to go to Clarisse for help — she was scary when she was pissed, and she was definitely pissed at Luke after the party.

You felt that little ball of light start to flicker in your chest again, and you were scared. But more than that you were excited. Despite everything else about you, you were a daughter of Aphrodite and a teenage girl, and the most romantic thing to ever happen at camp just happened to you. You guessed Luke had probably grovelled enough, and you would’ve told him that immediately if he hadn’t been swarmed by campers congratulating or laughing at him. Deciding you couldn’t put yourself in the middle of that crowd, you settled on telling him in the morning.

we when when i when i when i when when

🥩🗡️

“august”

regulus black x reader

-friends with benefits turns south when a certain slytherin realises he’s risked it all for someone who can’t give her all.

warnings: guys this is sad 😋 #angst and the reader is an arse 🫶. mostly from regulus’ pov, a bit suggestive, so 16+ probably

a/n: guys regulus black brain rot is real and it is destroying my life. i love this man!! i wish he was real!! listen to august by taylor swift while reading this

back when i was living for the hope of it all

scattered pieces of paper, short candles- melted to their base, muggle poetry books and ‘tiny dancer’ by elton john. this is what regulus thought of when anybody so much as muttered the name ‘y/n l/n’.

y/n was his best friend, his only friend for that matter. they were often found pacing libraries and the school grounds late at night- then detention or the headmasters office after school for lurking around after hours. they would read the same books and listen to the same songs, gushing about things that their respective families would deem ‘wrong’ due to the muggle nature of the content they were discussing.

despite their friendship, regulus had always yearned for something more. between playful smiles and withheld glances, he wanted to say something reminiscent of the romance parts in the muggle books that they read- but that sentiment was much more than words could ever communicate.

instead, it was communicated late at night as they tiptoed through the corridors in heavy sweaters and hushed whispers. regulus had lightly pushed y/n against a wall and kissed her passionately, the action being returned by y/n mere seconds later.

but this didn’t mean anything, not to y/n at least.

the next morning the two went back to normal, sitting next to each other in the grand hall and gossiping about other students. when regulus tried to talk to her about it, he was simply brushed off.

later that night they found themselves in y/n’s dorm room- tip toeing around without heavy sweaters but still hushed whispers.

regulus didn’t mind, or at least he pretended that he didn’t mind. but the summer was finally arriving and their families had a few balls planned out, so they wouldn’t be completely deprived of one another.

“i can’t believe we won’t get to see each other everyday!” y/n cried dramatically, jumping into regulus’s uniform as they packed their bags.

“it’s only 2 weeks until your family’s ball, don’t worry!” he laughed, pushing y/n off playfully.

y/n shook her head. “you best not forget about me in those 2 weeks” she said. regulus gasped, with his hand in his heart. “i would never!” he claimed.

those long two weeks finally came to an end on a warm friday night. y/n was spotted by regulus mere moments after guests were being invited in, as she laid back on a wall in a silk dress with a glass of wine in her hand. “who said you’re old enough to drink?” he asked, hands on his hips as he walked over.

“calm down! it’s only juice. i added vodka though,” she chuckled, bringing in regulus for a hug. “i missed you” she whispered in his ear, sending shivers down his spine. regulus gulped, taking a step back as his cheeks turned red.

“where can i get myself some of that juice vodka?” he asked.

“see that table over there? pour half of whatever and come back to me for the flask, i have two just in case” she gestured over to a king dining table, filled with drinks of every kind.

late into the ball, the two were nowhere to be found. hidden in an abandoned guest room, extremely intoxicated and underdressed, regulus and y/n sat against a grey-painted wall and on top of a carpet with a sinister pattern. consumed by fear of the war and a pure yearning for one another, they continued the sullen tradition of their previous year at hogwarts.

“do you like me?” regulus asked, lighting a cigarette from his suit pocket. y/n crawled over, grabbing one out from his pocket as well and holding it out for him to light it. regulus acknowledged the gesture and lit the cigarette, laying back into the frame of the bed they were sitting on.

“of course i do, reggie” y/n smiled, taking in the smoke. “if i didn’t, i wouldn’t be here post-shag smoking in bed with you” she laughed, resting her head on his shoulder.

“but what type of like?” he asked, inverting his legs towards his torso slightly. y/n shook her head. “that’s a pretty loaded question” she remarked, closing her eyes.

regulus shook his head confusedly. he blew out the smoke and extended his arm around y/n. “i don’t think it’s loaded. i like you more than anyone i’ve ever met, that’s the type of like i like you as… if that makes any sense” he muttered.

“i like you more than anyone else too”

a few weeks pass and the noble house of black was hosting their own little gathering, and the l/n family was obviously invited.

the two embraced passionately upon y/n’s arrival, spinning her around like a ballerina in the process. after a shared dance or two, regulus and y/n scurried off to regulus’s bedroom for the rest of the night.

“where’s sirius?” y/n asked, tracing her fingers over his bookcase.

“he left. my parents well… you can kind of guess what happened but he’s gone. dick move not saving me either but, whatever” regulus sighed, laying back into his bed.

“is he staying with james?” y/n asked, laying back with him.

“yeah. i’m guessing he’s happy there. i wish he’d at least write or let me know he’s safe, but he definitely thinks i’m a devout death eater or something”

“i don’t think you’re a devout death eater”

“i don’t think i am either”

the two shared a train carriage upon the beginning of the school year. from the outside of their almost empty room, they could see james and his friends skipping about, sirius catching a glance of his younger brother for the first time in weeks.

he was consumed by his lonliness and pressure from his parents, y/n was the only person who could relieve that. he didn’t mind if their relationship was barley a relationship and merely friends with benefits.

he stared at her hair and the way her eyes glisten in the morning sun. he wondered what she was thinking or what she was going to say. he wanted to hear something reassuring for the first time after only hearing screams and shouts from his parents.

“do you think we should stop fooling around this year?” y/n asked, breaking regulus out of his spell.

“why?”

“we need to start getting serious about our studies and i need to find a suitor” she said plainly, nestles against the walls of the train carriage.

regulus looked at her, dumbfounded. what did she mean by that?

“is what we have really that disposable?” he asked, trying to find the right words.

“i don’t know. i still want to be friends, you’re my favourite person”

“if i was your favourite person, why are you calling this off right now of all times? why not last year when you knew i was in love with you and you kept me around for whatever sick reasons you have? why now?” regulus whisper-shouted, sitting up straight.

y/n shook her head, placing down the book she was previously reading. “love? we weren’t even in a relationship, regulus”

“but we were close enough to snog 5 times a day?”

r/n sighed, standing up. “i knew you’d get like this, you’re far too dependant. i can’t handle giant commitments and you know that! why would you do this to me?”

“fuck off, have a good year” regulus said as he grabbed his bags and pushed past y/n.

burning toast, stolen glances, venomous stares and obvious avoidance. these are the things that regulus thought of when he heard y/n l/n’s name. as much as he wishes he could hate her, there was no end to his eternal love.

— how to get a girl’s attention

luke castellan x fem!daughter of demeter!reader

warnings: near-drowning experience…

summary: as the daughter of demeter, you’re the first person that everyone turns to when injuries need to be tended too, questions need to be asked, and any type of advice is required, however what’s going to happen when you’re the one in need?

a/n: this one’s quite lengthy guys! i really just got derailed like ten times and love adding details and the ending is kind of basic but whatever; don’t mind me making up random camper names btw lol 👼👼

waking up to the sound of constant bickering was just a normal tuesday morning as your younger half-siblings were already at each other’s throats about some stupid thing. yesterday it was borrowing boots and the day before it was who had to take the trash out.

you groaned, wishing that you could still sleep in peace and quiet but your cabin clearly suggested otherwise. so you gradually got up and put on your little slippers, approaching the main fighters who continued to argue with each other.

“hey hey hey, what’s going on now.” you had to physically get between the two children, separating them with your arms.

“he slipped paint all over my skirt and now it’s ruined!” the young girl cried, holding up her stained skirt to prove it. you took the clothing in your hands and knelt down to face her.

“why don’t i go to the river later today and try to get the stain out myself. it seems washable to me, what do you think?”

with a slight frown, she nodded her head to comply. you were relieved to say the least before turning to the boy, “how about you apologize and come with me to the river after breakfast?”

the boy stayed silent with his arms crossed, trying to avoid your insisting stare. but intimidated enough, he looked to the floor and whispered a small “fine, i’m sorry” with a glare.

you smiled as the situation was deescalated and told the rest of the kids surrounding the pair to hurry and make their beds in order to head to breakfast.

holding hands with the now puffy-faced girl, you tried to tell her about all the fun activities she could do today to forget about the unfortunate morning incident.

before reaching mess hall, the child already had a a bright smile just thinking about the bracelet making and embroidery you promised for the later evening. pleased with your peace-making skills, you sat with the rest of your campers and half-siblings that you were in charge of.

as the eldest sibling and one of the camp counselors, you took on the responsibility of looking after the young ones and caring for almost everyone at camp.

thus, when most of the camp half-blood children had troubles or dilemmas of any sort, they would disregard their own counselors and go straight to you. your kindhearted, yet sociable personality rooted from your mother: demeter.

you were often found laying around in the fruit fields or by the river listening to the water flow through the ground and hit the rocks. like your mother, nature was where you felt at peace, especially with the lack of quiet in your own cabin.

but you still loved your fellow campers and half-siblings, except for one boy who would not leave you alone.

luke castellan.

he liked to push your buttons and see how far he could take you until you’d explode. of course, you always kept your calm until either you just left the conversation or it would be interrupted by a camper in need who was like a knight in shining armor.

it wasn’t that you didn’t like the guy. you liked everyone at camp, including mr. d for gods sake! but something about luke was different. you occasionally saw him with his campers or his friends, he would joke around but never act like he does with you.

when you least expect it, he sneaks up behind you and gets close enough to whisper something in your ear. it could be just a random comment or sentence started but in an alluring voice as if you were friends or even more.

he knows what he’s doing. the moment he finishes, you flinch and get flustered, cheeks heating up and instantly standing up to avoid making eye contact. as you walk away, luke only watches and smiles to himself.

he knows how much power he holds over you, as with just a few words he can make you nervous.

“okay so once everyone’s done, we’ll first go to the archery range and you’ll stay there with counselor clarisse while damien and i go to the river to get that nasty stain out.” you explained and first looked at the boy who begrudgingly agreed to helping you earlier and then winked at the little girl you promised to help.

“counselor clarisse…!” one of the boys exclaimed.

“oh no she’s the mean one!” “yeah, she’s a bully!” your campers all started to agree and mutter remarks about their fear in staying with clarisse.

you couldn’t help but chuckle at their scared little faces, “clarisse? oh gods no! clarisse is not scary, she loves you guys and she’ll take good care of you.”

the children stared at you in disbelief while chowing down their eggs and bacon. “why can’t we just come with you to the river?!” one of the girls begged and began to pout alongside the other ten kids beside her.

you sighed and pursed your lips into a thin line, trying to come up with a compromise but you couldn’t.

“please it’s only for a couple of hours and then i’ll be back for the rock wall and some capture the flag!” you persuaded, trying to lighten up the mood.

but the kids still looked dissatisfied, now poking their breakfast around with their utensils in objection.

“well—” before you could plead another case why clarisse is a perfectly reasonable and responsible counselor and guardian, you were cut off by the one and only.

“aw don’t worry guys, you should listen to your counselor. plus i’ll be there too so if counselor clarisse gets even just a little too scary, you can come and hang with awesome counselor luke!” a voice announced from behind you.

you nearly choked on your food, startled in the surprise voice cutting you off. but the campers were overjoyed to see their second favorite counselor appear. there were an overwhelming amount of comments from the once so silent children, mostly regarding “luke!” and “yay!”

you whipped your head around to face the boy, standing right behind you with nothing but a smug grin on his face. then he leaned in just as he always does and whispered a quick, “you’re welcome” and turned to leave just as fast as he came.

“can we please hang out with counselor luke instead of clarisse?!” all the campers plead with their hands put together and lower lip puckered. left with no other choice by that damn castellan again, you inhaled deeply and slightly nodded which was shortly followed by an array of cheers and excitement.

after dropping off all of the campers in the hands of luke, you put a hand on damien’s back and led him to the river. but before leaving, you had to make sure luke would actually clock in as a responsible counselor.

“so i can count on you to keep them safe for the next couple of hours?”

“wow you sound like you doubt me!” luke said and took a step back with his hands up in fake surrender.

“enough with the games, castellan. are you going to make sure they don’t kill each other and stay unharmed until i return?” you asked again, ignoring his previous comment.

luke tried to hold back his smile after you called him by his last name. most of the time, his sparring partners or other counselors would use his last name rather his first. however, when the way you let the ‘n’ slightly my drag after saying it sent chills throughout his entire body.

to hide his delight, he lightly scoffed and crossed his arms at your hesitation. “i assure you that i will protect them with my life. i mean i am the best swordsman at camp,” he added as the corners of his lips just couldn’t help themselves to lift a little.

you rolled your eyes at his self-confidence and how he kept complimenting himself. luke only did it to impress you though, something that hasn’t been very successful.

“okay well alissa has a nut allergy, georgie has a bee allergy, and please keep thomas and will away from the poison ivy. i do not want to spend another summer knee deep in tomato juice.”

luke could only watch and admire as you kept expressing your deep concern for all the kids. he loved how much you cared. but a few more seconds and you would be driving yourself crazy over all the possibilities of something going wrong.

that’s when luke stepped in and softly grabbed your right arm.

“hey, it’s fine. go do whatever you have to do and i’ll come running down to the river if anything goes wrong but i doubt it, i’m pretty responsible y’know.” he reassured and stared straight into your eyes, indicating his sincerity. his smile wasn’t conceited or to drive his ego but rather held a tender emotion.

you looked up into his hazel eyes and suddenly the worries stopped and your nerves were calmed, other than the ones beginning to stir in your stomach. but this was far from the regard about the kids.

this feeling was something else. something new.

“are we going to go already?” the young boy you almost forgot about, whined and rugged on your orange camp t-shirt.

snapping out of your trance and back to reality you answered, “o-oh yeah, i think counselor luke’s got it from here.”

with that you turned away from luke and immediately headed for the river alongside damien but the paint-stained skirt was farthest from your mind now. you tried to shake the new feelings and thoughts out of your body and replace them with your past ones of the kids.

until, “is that guy your boyfriend?”

you quickly looked down to the boy asking the question, with such seriousness in his eyes.

“counselor luke? gods no! i wouldn’t even call him a friend!” you answered swiftly, picking up your pace and hurrying damien in front of you.

“geez…i was just asking!”

as soon as you two got to the river, settling on a few rocks by the edge, you started rubbing the blue-stained skirt with the clear water. damien sat next to you, fiddling his thumbs and staring at the water’s constant movement.

“so are you going to tell me why you did this or not?” you began, keeping your eyes on the skirt.

“i just wanted to.”

“damien.” you urged and this time, you stared directly at him with your eyebrows raised.

he sighed in defeat and gave up on lying to you.

“okay…well i just didn’t know how else to get clara’s attention,” the boy admitted and refused to look at you.

his response warned your heart and prompted your to smile to yourself.

“so you did this, just to get clara’s attention?”

you held up the now drenched skirt and demanded damien to look at you. for a moment, he did and nodded quickly before instantly going back to staring at the rock he was sitting on.

you stifled your laughter at how adorable the young boy you were with was being.

“damien…there are a lot of different and more efficient ways to get clara’s attention. may a suggest one that doesn’t destroy her belongings and ends up with her being angry?” you insisted and squeezed the excess water out of the skirt.

he looked up and nodded again but this time he continued.

“what should i do?”

“why don’t you make her a bracelet when we go back and sincerely apologize.” you suggested while laying out the wet skirt on the rock to dry.

he smiled at your suggestion as you went to sit closer by him. before speaking again, he pulled out a small daisy from his pant pocket and presented it to you.

your eyes focused on the blooming flower that lost a few of its petals due to being stuck in the boy’s pocket for a while now. but the remaining petals still standing were enough to maintain the flower’s beauty.

“when did you become such a gentlemen?” you nudged his shoulder and took the flower from his hands.

“oh, i’ve been giving him some lessons.”

alarmed, you turned to see the familiar face that had been surprising you all day.

“what are you doing here?! how about the kids—who’s watching them?!” you immediately stood up and marched towards the too calm figure standing amongst the trees. but he caught you with both arms, preventing you with ease.

“woah woah, take a breather, they’re with clarisse.” he said and stopped you before you ran back to the mess hall.

reading your expression, luke could tell you were not convinced nor pleased so he had to fix his answer.

“—and annabeth and chris.”

with that you stopped fighting against his grasp and stepped back, finally exhaling.

“you haven’t answered my first question.”

“oh! i just uh wanted to um come and tell you that they’re asking for damien back at camp. they were practically begging me to come over here and get him!”

you narrowed your eyes after he finished, easily indicating the lie.

“okay…you can go damien but remember what i said,” you smiled and patted his shoulder before sending him off back to camp.

the young boy ran off without a care and ready to make that bracelet with a formal apology. luke stood there, quite surprised that his lie that chris helped him think of in fact worked.

“soooo do you need help with whatever that is?” luke pointed at the skirt laid out on the rock.

“no.” you shortly responded and walked back to your rock but luke followed like a lost puppy.

“are you sure? i mean as head counselor for cabin 11, i can cook up a mean batch of laundry,” he insisted and trailed behind you.

unbeknownst to him, you rolled your eyes and cringed at his wording.

“your words don’t even make sense.”

caught in a lie, luke decided actions spoke louder than words and walked past you to the skirt. you furrowed your eyebrows in confusion as he picked it up and crouched down near the water before dunking it back into the water.

shocked and a little annoyed, you hurriedly ran to him.

“what the hell are you doing?! i just washed that! i’m waiting for it to dry dumbass!”

“oh she curses!” he exclaimed, finally getting a real response from you.

you reached for it until luke raised it a little higher, just out of your reach. using his height as an advantage, he held out the clothing as far as he could and to the river.

fed up and exhausted, you went on your tippy-toes and lunged for the skirt. swiftly, luke pulled it close to his body just as you reached leading you to accidentally lean too far.

with a splash, you fell straight into the freezing cold water, unknown to how deep the river was. luke’s eyes widened, he thought you falling in would be funny but once you hadn’t resurfaced within a few seconds he became worried.

without a second thought, he dropped the skirt, pulled off his camp shirt, and dove into the biting waves. as soon as he saw your bright orange t-shirt in contrast to the clear water, he put his arm around your waist and swim towards the surface.

pulling you out to the rocks and laying your body on the ground, he waited for you to gain consciousness. luckily, you started to gasp for air and spit out gulps of water as you sat up.

luke sighed in relief at once. you wiped your face of water and blinked repeatedly until your sight returned to normal. then your eyes were fixated on something else, rather someone. his bare chest stood directly in front of your face, it wasn’t like you were trying to stare!

“i’m sorry, y/n. I’m so sorry, i didn’t mean to do that and i’m really sorry.” luke recited.

“i-it’s okay.” you stuttered, the cold water chilling your body.

“here take off the wet one and take mine.”

luke grabbed his discarded camp shirt and handed it to you. if you weren’t on the verge of frostbite you would’ve refused, but without another word you agreed and luke turned to face the trees as you pulled the wet shirt over your head and put on luke’s.

“thanks. for saving me and the shirt.”

luke turned back to face you and smiled, “i mean i was the one to make you fall into the water in the first place, it’s the least i can do.”

“aren’t you cold?” you signaled to his bare chest.

“no, i’m okay don’t worry. but your jeans are still wet so let’s head back to camp.” he reassured and helped you get up.

you nodded and let him take the lead. with your wet shirt and skirt in one hand and the other grabbing onto luke’s arm, you two finally made it back to camp. before dropping you off at your cabin, you had to ask.

“why did you come to the river anyway?”

luke awkwardly put his hand on the back of his neck and looked away.

“oh. i just uh wanted to spend time with you.” he admitted, ultimately facing you.

you stopped attending to your dripping pants and looked up at him. he had a genuine smile, now with both hands shoved into his pockets.

how was it that you had never noticed the golden flecks in his deep brown eyes? or the way the orange hues of the sunset highlighted the amber shade his eyes would turn?

“y’know, there are a lot of other ways to get my attention in the first place, that doesn’t involve us falling into freezing cold water.”

luke laughed at your comment which eased the awkward air.

“i had this almost exact same conversation with a little boy of about seven years, and gave him some valuable advice.”

“what was the advice..?” he carefully asked.

“to make her a bracelet and apologize, one of…you’ve already done profusely.” you raised your eyebrow to imply his previous attempt in apologizing nonstop.

“ah, a bracelet you say, okay got it,” luke said and nodded his head.

with that, he bid you a good day and you asked to meet him later at the campfire to return his shirt.

“alright you two sit there, i don’t want to see anymore fighting over the dinosaurs, you can sit here with him, and you three over there—” guiding the campers for the campfire that was just about to begin, you made your way to an empty bench.

smiling to yourself, you watched as your campers finally calmed down and enjoyed the music, giving up on fighting and arguing with one another. someone jumped over the bench and leaned back to sit right next to you, and you had a feeling who it may be.

“luke?”

“yes ma’am.” he replied with a tilt towards you and two fingers from his head.

the campfire lit up his face and highlighted his sharp features that you had somehow missed until this moment. his charming smile urging his dimples alongside his dark curls freshly washed with a new scented shampoo was enough to make you realize you were hooked. damn.

“oh i have a little something for you, give me your arm and close your eyes,” he spoke up and put his hand in his pocket.

raised eyebrow, you reluctantly closed your eyes and gave him your right arm. suddenly in fear of some bug or scary animal on your hand, you slowly retracted it back to yourself until he gently got a hold of it.

he pulled your arm towards him slightly and slipped something on around your wrist. waiting for his approval, you sat questioning what the mystery item could be.

“okay, open.” luke did a little ‘ta-da’ motion once you flickered your eyes open, adjusting to the dark yet orangish lit surrounding.

you looked down at the intricate, handsome bracelet that appeared on your wrist. it was similar to the camp necklaces but the beads were translucent with flowers imbedded into them. except for one bead that was painted a heavenly green, your favorite color.

astonished and at a loss for words, you observed the bracelet, moving around the small beads on the string.

“i’m sorry.”

snapping out of your trance, you instantly stared up at luke after his words in confusion.

“what?”

“you said earlier, ‘there are a lot of other ways to spend time with you that don’t involve us falling into freezing cold water, for starters make a bracelet and apologize.’” he repeated your words from back by your cabin. he remembered.

“so you made me a bracelet and apologize just like i said?” double-checking, you glanced once at the bracelet and back to the dashing boy who looked as if he had stars in his eyes, waiting for your reaction.

“not only for you, i also helped damien make one for that girl he’s got a crush on,” he continued and looked over to the little boy doing the exact same hold-out-your-arm-and-close-your-eyes trick on the girl sobbing about her stained skirt earlier.

she opened her eyes to a freshly washed skirt and matching bracelet, along with a smiling boy who was apologizing and waiting for her reaction. she leapt into his arms with a bunch of ‘thank yous.’ the boy then briefly peered at luke who proceeded to wink and give an approving nod.

happily surprised, you sat gaping at the boy you thought was so infuriating just a couple of hours before. luke knew exactly what he was doing. he knew how much you cared for the campers and your half-siblings, how you would always chose their safety and happiness at the expense of your very own.

it was one of the traits he admired the most about you. even when in a bad mood or not feeling your best, you would put on a brave face and make sure to put their needs in front of you own.

he witnessed it first-hand last week when your campers wanted to go rock climbing but there were dozens of poison ivy already there. thus, to not disappoint the kids, you stayed up all night removing the dangerous plant and relocating them to another area deep in the forest for them to grow.

even with your plant manipulation abilities, with the large amount of the poisonous plant, it took you quite a while. afterwards, you went as far to replace them with lovely daisies you summoned from the gardens in front of your cabin.

during the move from the rock climbing course to the forest, luke had spotted you while some late-night sword practicing because he couldn’t sleep due to apollo cabin next door.

he debated approaching you and settled on only admiring you from afar after you almost finished anyway. he didn’t want to disturb you or aggravate you further than you already were. but leaving you here in the forest during midnight would be wrong.

what if a monster were to come? how were you to defend yourself if you were distracted! therefore, it was just common sense that luke had to keep watch, i mean he even had his sword with him after all.

but once the sun peeped from the tall mountains, he came to a realization that he had just sat and watched you for more than a couple hours. so in order to not get caught, he ran off back to his cabin before anyone would wake up.

only a little after luke headed to bed, morning arrived and you were the first one to break the happy news to your campers that today would be the day for rock climbing. greatly proud and feeling accomplished, you even invited other cabins to join and have a spin at it. including luke’s.

now he was the one to show you how much he cared for the campers as well, focusing on a feature you had great respects for. your shocked expression softened and now leapt into his arms.

“thank you, castellan. really.”

blood rushed to his cheeks and he tried to hide his excitement, but you felt his genuine smile on your shoulder. before pulling away, he stopped by your ear and whispered.

“do i have permission to kiss you, counselor?”

you could’ve giggled at his words and how close his lips were to your ear. without wasting another breath, you pulled his face closer to you and put your lips on his.

feeling the warmth of his breath, you could taste the sweet taste of strawberries he must’ve eaten earlier. only centimeters away, your bodies were attracted to each other almost pressing. the kiss wasn’t long but not short either, somewhat leaving a lasting impression on the other.

yet again you felt a small grin of his lips during the kiss, making you pull away for air. but your eyes were still glued to his, moments away from repeating the act but you both realized where you were and how irresponsible it would look as counselors. so instead he grabbed your hand, now giving you the absolute cutest puppy dog eyes before asking.

“do i have your attention now?”

beckondorf is soooo european/aus. ‘methinks’??? ‘git’???? ok english boy…

AKSO OMG ONG ONG THIS CHAPTER,??!

⋆· ༘* so american !

pairing ★ jock!luke castellan x drum major!reader

synopsis ★ the one where things start wrapping up too fast. the seasons change, and suddenly everyone knows something that you don’t. (3.4k)

content ★ no reader pronouns, cliches ie PROMM, major actually kinda knows but dismisses it as being delulu, s-tier clownery, will they won’t they? - i think they will !!

notes ★ double take dhruv carried this so hard bless that genius man for making thee song abt falling in love w ur friend

series masterlist

Sports | Castellan flys high into final season, speaks about future

Heralds Vol. 77, Issue 10

[ IMAGE: a shot from a low down-up angle. Castellan’s jersey is black and orange, his surname and jersey number 11 in white block lettering. His back is silhouetted, arms stretched for a spike, the gym lights haloing his outline in a fuzzy white. ]

It’s all thunderous cheers when senior and varsity vice-captain Luke Castellan nails his final spike through the blockade. Zeus City High School played its final game of regionals against Kane Academy—famous for its strong blockers and—won 3-2 last Thursday.

“It’s a really great feeling,” said Castellan. “Spiking through that block was tough, but getting the points is all that matters.”

Castellan is an outside hitter and has been doing sports since he was a child, passing a volleyball to his mom at three. He also participates in football, and capped off his last season with an unprecedented win.

“I’ll definitely miss football,” Castellan commented, and joked that he while he will miss his teammates, he will not miss practicing. “The team spirit was really good, we really had synergy this year. I’m glad that we did our best in the championship, and I hope we do good with volleyball too.”

The team will advance to the state championship, and perhaps junior nationals, where they can fully showcase their athletic abilities to recruiting colleges. Castellan does not plan to attend a higher institute of education on a sports scholarship, citing that he would like to explore other interests.

“I’m gunning for engineering,” he shared. “It’s been an interest of mine since I started watching motorsports, which is like—forever. I’ll still play, but not on a super competitive level because I’d like to focus on my education.”

You aren’t quite sure how you ended up sandwiched between Luke and the door of your locker.

‘Cause the thing is, you’ve got your back facing the open maw of your locker, and Luke’s nearly chest-to-chest with you, saying something about Silena and Charles. Your shoes are side by side, faces hidden by the door.

Your locker is located next to a wall—a lucky assignment for privacy so—to the average passerby, well, it looks like he’s very close to you. Maybe even kissing, although you blink that thought away in a fluster.

“You okay?” Luke asks, touching his knuckles to your forehead. “You look like you’re getting dizzy.”

Becoming ‘friends’—the context of which you use extremely loosely—with Luke comes with some lessons on his character. Lesson one: he enjoys football, likes volleyball, and loves motorsports. Two: he wants to be an engineer and a photographer and also a full-time couch potato gamer-slash-F1 commentator. Three: he’s naturally touchy because him and his mom’s love language is physical touch, and it is a constant of which can never be changed.

( You’d stopped by the Castellan residence every day after school during last semester’s final project for stats. She’d greeted you with a hug each time. )

“I’m fine,” you grit, hands tightening around your dusty textbooks. They’d been in your locker for the entire year, and now you’re about to be late for returns. You take a breath—oh, now his cologne is invading your senses. “I just—uh, I have an appointment at the library for these.”

You lift your books. Luke’s mouth parts in an oh and he steps back, holding his arm out dramatically. “After you.”

You slam the locker shut.

[ IMAGE: two pairs of beat-up sneakers peeking out from under the door of a locker. Luke Castellan is unmistakable, curly hair and tall frame half-obscured, one arm bent to hold the door. The tag on the metal is hard to see, but if you went to the school, you’d know exactly who that locker belonged to. ]

Liked by tankadreww and 715 others

centaurlookout 😮

“You going to prom, major?”

You look at Travis, eyes narrowing. There’s something incredibly off about his question, something suspicious in his too-wide eyes and smile.

You pinch your lips together, regarding him. “Maybe….”

The junior beams, eyes glittering. You squint suspiciously at him with a sidelong glance when he doesn’t leave.

“Need anything else or…?”

Travis shakes his head adamantly, curls bouncing. “Nah, just wondering.”

You nod slowly, drawing out the syllables. “Right.”

“G’day, major.” Travis begins to slink backwards, keeping his eyes on you.

“Uh-huh, yea.”

You recount this to Luke during lunch, gravel crunching under your feet as you walk to one of the fields.

Now that football isn’t in season, the practice field behind the bleachers is empty and overgrown with clovers. You sit in the plush greenery and pick at a blade of grass that still has some remnant of white paint on it.

Luke agrees with you as he unwraps his sandwich. “That’s so weird. I mean, the only interest he’d have in prom—”

“—would be to pull pranks, yea,” you finish, peeling back the plastic of the instant noodles. Luke nods, repositioning himself to lay on his stomach, elbows pressing into the grass. “I dunno, everyone’s been weird now. Percy called me major last week, like actually major and not sarge.”

“Maybe they’re sad that you’re leaving?”

“Nah,” you tell him, uncapping your bottle and pouring water into the noodle cup. “Connor uninvited me to his sixteenth birthday party after I ran him off the platform in Smash. I thought it was a joke until I showed up and he slammed the door on my face.”

Luke grimaces mid-swallow, mouth twisting. “Wait,” he says, propping himself higher on his elbows. The sun’s barely out, hidden behind a wall of grey clouds that shouldn’t even be there because it’s mid-May. “Are you actually going to prom, though?”

You shrug and stab a spork into your noodles.

“I already have tickets,” you confess, fiddling with the handle of your flimsy spork. Luke inclines his head, taking another bite of his lunch. “On-duty discount for Heralds.”

“You’re working on prom night?” He says like less of a question and more of a what the fuck, major, I thought we’ve gone over this before.

“For like, a few hours,” you say. Luke frowns and rolls over onto his back, thigh dangerously close to your kneecap. “What? It’s the last issue of the year.”

“It’s prom.”

“It’s an expensive party with free food and bad DJs. Gradnite’s more worth it.”

Luke shrugs and sits up; his nose almost runs into yours, the point of it sliding a hair’s breadth from your cheek. Here, you can see every individual eyelash of his and the flecks in his irises.

You can’t breathe. “Uh—I’m….”

Luke leans back a little. “Going to have fun during your last months as a senior, right?”

“Yea,” you say, the words sounds decidedly stupid, “course. I’ll have fun for you.”

Oh god, what are you getting into?

He smiles, the curve of his mouth small and real enough to snap you out of it. You rip your gaze away from his mouth—why were you even looking there in the first place?—and gnaw at the inside of your cheek, waiting for something to happen.

Luke sits back on his elbows, gazing up at you. It makes something thrill along your spine. “So,” he draws out the vowel, licks his lips, “you have a date or—”

He’s cut off by a long, echoing blare—saved by the bell, literally. You dump your spork into your now empty cup of noodles and stand, slinging your backpack over your shoulders.

“Office hours,” you excuse, jabbing an awkward thumb in a vague direction towards the buildings. “Need help on—er, my stats final.”

You scream inwardly, because you’re both in stats and it’s a terrible excuse because you likely don’t have a stats final after the AP test and you’re such a bad liar that—

“Okay? Have fun.” He’s unbothered, gazing at the thin clouds.

Bless Luke Castellan and his all-around obliviousness.

TO: becky g

(12:50) what do i do (12:51) bc methinks that luke tried talking abt (12:51) prom dates infront of me 🤢

FROM: becky g

(12:53) oh so jts luke now?? (12:53) awfully interested for a frenemy 🤨🤨

TO: becky g

(12:54) ew what frenemy i still think hes stoopid

FROM: becky g

(12:55) uh u git called him ur friend last week

TO: becky g

(12:55) FREUDIAN SLIP 😭

FROM: becky g

(12:56) freudians r subconscious feelings yk 💀

TO: becky g

(12:59) STFU GO MAKE OUT SLOPPY UR GF OR SMTH 🖕

♫ Dhruv ・ double take

[ IMAGE 1: a 0.5x picture with the flash on. The camera is angled towards your forehead and you’re looking up at it with an exasperated expression.

IMAGE 2: a zoomed-in picture from far-off, most likely across the dance hall. You’re standing in formal clothes—black shirt and wide leg slacks, sleeves rolled up to your elbows, like all the other staff and volunteers—and holding a camera slung around your neck. The lights in the ballroom paint over your frame mesmerizingly, not unlike the time you had been in the Ferris wheel watching fireworks. ]

Liked by luvvbeaus and 528 others

lukestellans (the real) your highness of prom

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majmajmaj sorry i thought that I was the official photographer. what r u even doing on ur phone at prom.

↳ lukestellans what r u doing on duty at prom. ↳ luvvbeaus i’ll do u one better: why aren’t u two dancing together at prom??

“Come on, major,” and Luke’s got his fingers wrapped around your index, tugging, “you only get one prom.”

He’s in a pair of fitted slacks and a white shirt, the jacket of his suit long discarded at one of the tables, glasses reflecting prismatic party lights. You try not to pay attention to the exposed parts of his arms, where his sleeves have been rolled to his elbows like yours. Is it just you, or is it getting kind of warm in here? It must be all the dancing bodies crammed together on the floor.

( Why is he even wearing computer glasses to prom? Not that you’re complaining—they look rather nice on him. )

You tug back, insistent. “I just need a few more pictures.”

Luke groans and lets your finger slip from his hand. You’re about to give in to his demands when he begins to stride furiously across the ballroom, towards—ah, right, Hermes is chaperoning the dance.

They exchange words, Luke gesturing passionately with his hands and his dad looking so fucking lost that you almost have to laugh. Luke and Hermes must have come to some agreement, because the jock—well, he’s a lot more than that now—is crossing the ballroom with an insane speed, legs working overtime to reach you.

He smiles, face all soft under the party lights. “You’re welcome, I just got you released from duty.”

“You’re fucking with me.”

“Why would I talk to my dad willingly?” Luke laughs, warm hands coming up to cover yours. You’re holding the camera together now, and he finds the off switch easily because you’ve learned that he has a Sony like yours but prefers the navigable interface of Nikons and the quality of a Canon.

You frown and look at anything else but him. “I’m serious, I wanted to be on duty. There’s more fun in pictures than dancing.”

It’s half truth buried in a full lie. You like taking good pictures, and the lighting here challenges you, and you did want to be on duty, if no one else signing up for photographer meant that. And really, you’re not comfortable with dancing, but the way Luke’s looking at you with full, glassy eyes and a pleading upturn of his brows makes you want to.

Not that you’ll admit that.

“Listen,” he starts, pulling the camera strap up and off your neck, “remember when I cornered you in the hallway? That was like, a so long ago.”

You nod dumbly, confused as to where he’s going.

Luke continues, “Point is, life’s short. I want you to have fun while you can, so if you aren’t gonna do it for yourself then you should do it for me.” He holds out his hand expectantly, beckoning. “Come on, I know you want to.”

You laugh in defeat, handing over your camera bag. “You win, Castellan.”

His smile at that is so bright that it almost hurts. Hell, he’s so pretty under the soft, colorful lights that it shreds something in your chest to a bloody pulp—that might be your heart. Of all the ways you thought your senior year could go, this was definitely not one of them, though the surprise is welcome.

“One more thing,” and he’s looping your index fingers together, and you have to hold back the urge to take his hand fully in yours. Luke leads you to the tables, weaving around deflated balloons and crumpled streamers until he stops at a chair with a jacket slung over the back.

He sets down your camera bag gently on the seat, kneeling to rifle around his suit pockets. When Luke stands, he’s got a bunch of flowers wrapped around his wrist and—oh, he’s attaching a boutonnière to your breast pocket with a pair of safety pins.

You laugh awkwardly, face burgeoning with a warm blush because it’s starting to get really hot in the ballroom.

( Right? Right? )

“Y’know, usually girls wear the corsage,” you tell him, and he shrugs, puts a palm on your shoulder.

“So what? I think it’s pretty,” Luke responds, looking at the flowers on his wrist. “Plus, it just means that everyone’s gonna know I’m here with you.”

( It sounds like he’s asking you out on the lowdown, but alas, you try not to read too far into things even though the thought of you and him is…well. )

“Funny,” you manage through the fluttering of your pulse, “if I didn’t know better, I’d think you were flirting with me, Castellan.”

He laughs airily, tilts his head in suggestion. He still hasn’t moved his hand away, fingers moving cautiously to graze against your nape.

“Maybe you shouldn’t know better, major.”

( Oh, what the fuck, what the fuck. )

You’re in the dark area of the ballroom, haloed in pink and shadowing Luke from disco lights. Somewhere far off—you hear it muted by the rush in your head—plays slow music for the prom queen and king, except you can’t find it in yourself to care, because it’s just you and Luke here.

On that brilliantly bright field, in his car nerd room, in that lit-up Ferris car, and here too, some nowhere dark corner in a ballroom with a stupid bawdy love song playing in the background and pink-blue-purple lights all around.

“Your laces are loose,” Luke mumbles, averting his eyes. His head is bowed, and if you strain hard enough, you can see his eyelashes. He’s so close. “You’re gonna trip when we go dance—”

You lift his head—oh, he’s closer than you thought and—mumble shut up against his mouth. In the back of your head, you think that this is such an American cliché, first kiss at prom, but it’s in the back of your head for a reason. So.

Luke tilts his head and suddenly you find yourself very, very deep in this whole…you don’t even know what it is. His glasses are slipping down his nose, pressing against your skin and he’s pulling away, ripping them off, and reeling you back in, hungry.

You think that your teeth clack together, feeling that blunt blow and you crane away to let out a laugh—Luke’s already chasing your lips, pecking senselessly until you grab him by the waist and pull him flush against you.

You register faintly that he’s stepping back and hitting the wall, his hands grasping at the front of your dress shirt and yours in his hair and you’re sucking face at prom and it’s all fireworks and polaroids and stadium lights in the space between your lungs because you don’t give a damn.

FROM: becky g

(22:42) what happened to hanging out w my best friend at prom where r u 😭😭 (23:15) silena said u might be at the back tables?? i think i see u w luke (23:15) OH NAH NVM 😨‼️ (23:15) goin home early i’ve seen ENUFF

Some tongue and no more teeth—he’s a fast learner and—soft fingers tracing shapes on your waist and hands tangled in his hair. Half-leisure, no fucks given and maybe-oohs in the background, some money passed between palms.

Everything, nothing, something. Tangible and free-falling at incredible speed and oh, Luke’s hugging you close and hiding his warm face in the juncture of your neck. He smells like curl products and Sprite. You can taste the soda bubbling in your mouth too as you catch your breath.

Luke smiles against your skin, reverent. You throw back a glance, checking your surroundings with a grin that freezes when you make eye contact with Charles, standing bewildered—eyes wide and open mouth wider—in the middle of the tables with his phone in hand.

( Oh—fuck! If there were an emoji depicting your mortified face as you stare at your best friend who just caught you making out with your rival turned friend turned friend whom you kissed passionately with tongue at prom, it would probably be 😃. )

“Uh,” you manage, and Charles starts doing a double take in disbelief, “maybe we should go?”

Luke kisses you full-force. It’s brief and hard and knocks your breath away and when he pulls back, his pupils are blown to black hole proportions.

He grins, “Dancing, yea?” The sugar-kiss-drunk flush of his face keeps your gaze captive as he twines your fingers together and tugs you towards the dance floor.

You turn to look at Charles one more time. He’s going through the five stages of grief with his head in his hands.

At least Silena’s there to comfort him. Except, she’s jumping up and down in celebration.

Well. You don’t look each other in the eye for the rest of the night.

FROM: Castellan (Maybe)

(23:59) text me when u get home (23:59) also u up for 3am taiwan popcorn chicken after gradnite 😛

TO: Castellan (Maybe)

(00:01) ur paying for it right (00:20) im home hbu??

FROM: Castellan (Maybe)

(00:21) yea jst took a shower

TO: Castellan (Maybe)

(00:21) wayyy too much info mate 😨😨

FROM: Castellan (Maybe)

(00:22) we’re splitting the snack bill bc equality (00:22) and i think we’re more than mates now?? ur a good kisser btw 😮‍💨

[2 updates]

Maj. Major changed Castellan (Maybe)’s name to suzuka boy

suzuka boy changed Maj. Major’s name to monza baby

♫ PONCHET・ I Like You The Most

[ IMAGE: Luke’s corsage-adorned hand braced against your sternum, on the side where he’s pinned the boutonnière against your black dress shirt. The flowers match, baby’s breath and pale orange roses, the lights a pink-purple-blue, everything grainy and dim to give the appearance of a nostalgic, Y2K digital camera photo. ]

Liked by perciusjakcsn, lukestellans and 357 others

majmajmaj guess who 🫱🫲

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lukestellans where my hug at 🗣️‼️

↳ luvvbeaus need me to walk u to class 😏😩 ↳ beckydwarf STOP IM TRAUMATIZED 😭😭😭 ↳ perciusjakcsn SUPER SENIOR AHH POST

conmanstole i just dont think hes good for u

↳ travstole how do u know whats good for major ?!?! ↳ conmanstole THATS MY OPINION 🗣️🤬👺‼️😡😾😾🤡🤡🤡

p.s. ★ rip luke 'tryna strike a chord' castellan, u wouldve loved where my hug at. but honestly that book scene was so icky and tho i enjoy luke as a complex character i will NOT defend him like some ppl ive seen. anyways one more chapter left >:)

sharing is caring, so pls rb and also lmk ur thoughts ₍⑅ᐢ..ᐢ₎ ᡣ𐭩

luke tags; @melllinaa @amortencjja @arsonnaire @ma1dita @m00ng4z3r @saltair-and-palemoonlight @witch-lemon @ahh-chickens @spiderbeam @jennapancake @traumatrios @omg--bluexx @dangelnleif @apolloscastellan @hiraethavis @lukecastellandefender @bookshelfminstrel @cherr-y-eji @solangelotus @liviessun @thaliagracesgf @ddarling-ddearest-ddead @l1a-pjosversion

© klineinie 2024 — do not plagiarize, translate, or use ANY works to train ai

#he really said we cope through humor

guys guys guys guys ‼️🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌😡😡🤣😢🥹🇳🇱😭😭😭😭😡😡🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🥹🥹🥹🥹

— trickentine જ⁀➴♡ pt.2

pairing: luke castellan x aphrodite!reader

summary: after lord eros' silly little trick, you're now forced to deal with the consequences— more specifically, in the form of a lovestruck luke castellan.

warnings: tons of corny pick-up lines

genre: still very much a romcom

part 1

note: thank you, thank you! all your support for pt.1 means the world to me! really, i couldn't be more grateful 𖹭 i hope you think this brings justice to the first half 𖹭

─── ° ᡣ𐭩 . ° . ───

“What do you mean you can’t do anything?” You suppressed the urge to shriek, settling for gritted emphasis instead. You crossed your arms across your chest, your foot tapping impatiently against the wooden floorboards of the Big House.

“Exactly what it means.” Chiron responded, looking at Luke with more amusement rather than concern.

“But he's under a spell,” You reasoned in disbelief. You might have spilled over your words while you explained the rundown to Chiron, but they were coherent enough to at least get that point across.

“It’ll wear off eventually, kid.” Mr. D downed an entire can of diet coke in one go before procuring another one in his outstretched hand. He snickered at the intent puppy eyes Luke was giving you. “That type of love magic won’t last long. Best to let it run its course than tamper with it.”

“But–” You wanted to argue before Mr. D stopped you. He pushed his feet up on his desk.

“Look, at least this proves that your boyfriend actually loves you.” He gave you a pointed look. What does that even mean? “Now, leave.”

You huffed indignantly, but decided against speaking further. You begrudgingly turned around and pulled Luke up by his arm, guiding him towards the narrow hallway that led to the foyer.

“When did I become your boyfriend?” Luke huddled closer to you, whispering as you made your way to the front door.

“You didn’t.” You told him plainly. You shook your head. “You aren’t.”

“Yet.” He responded, his tone a bit mischievous but his gaze sure and determined.

─── ° ᡣ𐭩 . ° . ───

You leaned your elbows against the table of the crowded Arts and Crafts Center, your chin resting against the pad of your thumbs. You studied Luke with a contemplating gaze.

“I hit you with one of Eros’ arrows.” You told him. This was hardly the proper place to have this conversation, but the rest of the Aphrodite cabin practically hauled you to the building to begin Valentinkering? Valenmaking? (whatever in Tartarus they decided to call it this year).

“Well, I guess you could say I’ve been lovestruck by you.” He said, giving you a stupid little wink as he mirrored your posture.

“You make me want to disown you with how corny that joke was.” You flushed almost as crimson as the container of beads in front of you. “Also, I’m serious.”

“And who said I wasn’t?” He challenged. He smirked against his fist, wiggling his eyebrows.

You snorted. “The fact that you’re under some valentine voodoo makes all your intentions questionable.”

“You wound me.” He feigned offense, pouting as he clutched at the fabric of his shirt above his chest. “To be fair, my train of thought has always been questionable when it comes to you.”

“Again: unimpressed.” You buried your face into your hands. It was difficult not to react when he looked at you so intently, like he was trying to memorize every minute detail of you.

“On a more serious note, I do remember the whole arrow thing.” He told you, his lips pursed. “I don’t blame you; it was a complete accident. It just feels… odd.”

Your ears perked up, worried. “You feel odd?”

“No,” He shook his head. His expression was perplexed, maybe a bit incredulous too. “That’s the thing. I feel completely normal.”

“That is weird.” You agree. You wrap the string in between your fingers around his wrist, measuring it to his size.

“If anything, it’s more like I can’t hold my tongue.” He shrugs. “I can’t help but say what I think.”

“Would that explain the flirting?” You tease. All cheeky, but with a hint of curiosity hidden beneath the humor.

He leaned in, smirking. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

You stare at him, tilting your head. He returns your gaze just as intensely, brown eyes fixed onto yours. He raises an eyebrow as if to question your silence. There was something magnetic between the two of you, pulsing and pulling you closer— maybe not physically, but definitely in other ways unbeknownst to you.

“Woah!” Percy exclaimed with an accusatory edge to his tone, his eyebrows furrowed in disbelief and his palms raised as if to distance himself from you. “Respect for the children, maybe? Consider shielding my young impressionable eyes from this trauma?”

“Percy!” You squeaked rather uncharacteristically. Annabeth trailed behind closely, pushing a leg over the bench to sit beside you. You smiled at her, tugging her closer by placing your arm around her shoulders.

“Annabeth,” Luke called. “Trade places with me.”

Annabeth furrowed her eyebrows in confusion before narrowing her eyes in suspicion. “No.”

“Come on.” He persisted. “You know, the Stoll brothers apparently have that Rem Koolhaas book you’ve been raving about in their archives.”

Annabeth stopped to consider the offer before ultimately conceding. She stood up from her seat. “That’s a big bribe for a small favor.”

“Know what prices to pay to win your battles.” Luke muttered as he sidled up next to you, grinning triumphantly. His fingers played with the hem of your weathered camp shirt. “Sacrifices aren’t much in the face of victory.”

─── ° ᡣ𐭩 . ° . ───

“Did you just use a bad battle strategy as a flirting tactic?” Annabeth scrunched her nose in distaste. “Gross.”

"Done." You finish tying up the ends, letting the red bracelet dangle in Luke's line of vision.

"It looks so pretty, baby." He compliments you, holding out his wrist. You proudly put it on for him. "Not as pretty as you though."

You scoff. Both Annabeth and Percy imitate gagging noises.

The only time you ever truly left each other’s side were the few moments of reprieve before dinner where you’d returned to your cabins. The older campers insisted on making the meal a whole affair, complete with a romantic candlelit set-up and a string quartet to serenade everyone. Chiron decided to indulge the request and sent everyone back to freshen up.

“Have fun with your boyfriend?”

“Christ!” You jumped in your spot, turning around to see Eros laying on one of the bunks. His arms were tucked underneath his head, his smile suggestive and knowing.

“Lord Eros,” You bowed.

“That is not your shade.” He tutted, pointing to the tinted gloss in your hand. “Too summery for your complexion this time of year. Go for the pink one. He’ll go berserk.”

“Thanks.” You muttered, facing your vanity once more. You dabbed the product against your lips. You sighed as you inspected your make-up. Once more, he was right.

“You didn’t answer my question.” He shifted to his side, looking at you expectantly.

“Yeah, I guess.” You grumbled. You looked down, pretending to look for something in your drawer so he wouldn’t notice the blush creeping up your cheeks. Luke refused to leave your side the entire day— his fingers hooked around the belt hoops of your skirt in one way or another. He made a whole spectacle of it too: his big brown eyes tender, his wistful sighs, his shy grins, his playful winks.

“Good.” He clapped his hands. “Gods, the boy has had a crush on you for forever, you know. It was torture watching him pine over you. I can only take so much longing.”

You froze, staring at him through the mirror. He stared back at you.

“What?”

“Don’t tell me you didn’t know,” He sounded shocked; he was shocked. “You’re a daughter of Aphrodite, how could you not know?! That's like our thing!”

“Well, he hasn’t been obvious, has he?” You rebutted, flicking your wrist.

“Sis, I don’t know what reality you’re living in,” He sat up on the bed, “But that boy wouldn’t know subtle even if it hit him in the face.”

“But surely it’s just because of the arrows.” You rationalized.

“Nuh uh.” He wiggles a finger in the air to deny the accusation. “The arrows you used just accentuate pre-existing feelings. Not make new ones.”

A knock interrupts your conversation. You hurry to fix your hair, brushing it out of the way. Your hands begin to shake with giddy excitement. You feel your heart thrum strongly against your chest, almost wanting to burst out from the confines of your body and find its other half in Luke. Your smile eventually becomes hard to contain.

Eros beams at you, his pupils dilating into hearts again like it did this morning. He opens the door for you and pushes you out. “Have fun with lover boy. Mother sends her regards.”

Luke spins around at the sound of the squeaky hinges. He can't help but pull a hand out of his pocket, his palm lightly grazing his chest. He whistles. “Call me favored by the gods because I think I’ve just entered Elysium.”

“You’ve been with me the whole day.” You responded pointedly, breathless and in love.

“And yet you still manage to take my breath away.” He gasps when you rush into him, wrapping your arms around his nape.

“This is new.” He looks down at you, your noses touching. His hands fall naturally to your hips, his thumbs rubbing against the fabric of your dress. “But definitely welcome.”

You gaze into his eyes before pressing your lips against his. They felt pleasant and pliant against your own. You tugged Luke closer, your fingers twirling through his curls. His hands squeezed your skin. The kiss burned sweetly, almost as if it’s been waiting in anticipation to happen.

When you both separate for air, Luke gently grabs your hands from behind him. He wraps his fists around yours, placing soft kisses on your knuckles. “I’ve been waiting so long for that.”

“So I’ve been told.” You hum. “I figured I might take the first step.”

“Don’t worry.” He presses another kiss against your lips, short and sweet. “I promise to match your pace the rest of the way.”

˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺

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