Thinking Out Loud - Clarisse La Rue

𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓹𝓽𝓮𝓻 𝓔𝓵𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓷

"Risse! I'm very glad you're here," Alana grinned, sitting down next to her.

Clarisse smiled. She couldn't help it. Alana always made her smile. "Really? Why?"

"I made these," the daughter of Artemis held up two bracelets. One was dark green with a red heart in the middle with an "A" next to it. The other was dark red with a green heart in the middle and a "C" next to it. "There's one for me and one for you!"

"Oh," Clarisse looked at the bracelets intensely, as if they might attack her. "Why?"

Alana flicked her in the head. "They're friendship bracelets dumbass."

"That doesn't answer my question."

"Because we're friends, duh," Alana nudged her lightly, but the other girl continued to stare at her like something bad would happen if she agreed. "You're my best friend Clar."

"I dunno Starshine... I'm not a huge-" Clarisse looked over and saw the huntress looking at her with the widest eyes ever as she slid the green bracelet onto her own wrist. She knew Alana was manipulating her into taking the bracelet, but that didn't change anything. Clarisse snatched the red bracelet from her and put it on. "Nevermind."

"Yay!"

Clarisse sat on her bed and sulked. The head of the Ares cabin was sulking. She looked at her wrist and messed with the only bracelet on it. The only thing of jewelry she ever wore.

"Yo, Clarisse," one of her brothers, James, called. "What's your deal?"

Clarisse sent her brother a glare. "Deal? I don't have a deal."

James sent her a look then sent their other siblings a look. "Mhm sure."

"Oohh I think someone misses her girlfriend," her sister, Cassandra teased.

The curly haired girl blushed and sent another glare. "She's not my girlfriend."

The Ares children all smirked to each other. "I never said who."

"Well- I- ugh! Stop it," Clarisse threw a pillow at them.

"You wish she was your girlfriend though," James teased, sharpening a knife.

"Be for real, I heard their call on the training field earlier," Marcus told the rest of the cabin. Clarisse turned bright red as her eye started twitching. Her cabin was never able, or had the guts to, make fun of her like this. " Alana said she loves her."

A chorus of 'Oooooo's' went around the cabin.

"How'd that make you feel?" Sophia asked.

Clarisse grumbled and broke an apple in half to prevent other violence. "Since when do we talk about our feelings?"

"Since it came to you," Cassandra answered. "It embarrasses you, and you don't get embarrassed."

"I hate every single one of you!" Clarisse stormed out of her cabin and slammed the door.

Clarisse sat at the pond in the woods and threw rocks into the water. Looking back, this wasn't the smartest spot for her to come to. It only made her think of Alana more.

Did she like Alana? Clarisse had never really liked anyone before, how could she like her best friend? Sure, Alana was pretty, smart, talented, kind, funny, brave, and- oh gods.

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Banging on the Aphrodite cabin door caused Silena to get up and answer it. She opened the door to a panting Clarisse and raised an eyebrow. "Clarisse?"

"I think I have a crush on Alana."

The screaming and squealing was so loud Clarisse thought her eardrums might burst. She was yanked into the cabin and pushed onto a dark red heart-shaped chair. "It's about time you come to your senses!"

"Keep it down!" The daughter of Ares hissed. Maybe it was a mistake coming over here. "Or I'm just gonna leave and pretend I've never had feelings."

"No no no! Don't!" Joelle said as she pushed to the front of the group with Silena. She was one of Alana's best friends after all. "We're sorry!"

"Before you start asking anything you're all going to keep this a secret right?" Clarisse asked, pointing an accusing finger at all of them. These kids were the most blabbermouthed people of the whole camp, but unfortunately they were like sisters to Alana. "Not for me, but for Lana."

"Of course," Silena smiled, "We promise."

"Soo," Joella grinned at the other girl, who looked at her in disgust. "Are you gonna ask her out?"

The curly haired girl barely thought about her answer, she didn't have to. "No way, she's on a quest and I can't distract her from that."

"Green flag tbh," one of the tween girls, August, smiled.

All of them giggled like toddlers. "You can ask her out when she gets back though."

"No. She probably doesn't even like me," Clarisse's eyes darted around, not making eye contact with a single one of them.

Joella and Silena looked at each other then back to Clarisse. "You've got to be kidding," Joella deadpanned. Silena grabbed Joella's arm and whispered something that Clarisse couldn't hear. They separated and looked back at the daughter of Ares. "Well if you don't wanna ask her out, why are you even here?"

"I don't know!" Clarisse stood up out of the chair they sat her in. She didn't feel like she had enough power sitting while most of them were standing. "I panicked."

A chorus of "awww"'s were heard, making the curly haired girl blush. "She cares about Allie so much she panicked," Chloe mused.

Her face turned more red as she glared at the group. "Can you all not! I only came here because- I- just nevermind. I'm leaving."

Some of them went to protest, but Silena stopped them. "She'll be back," she told her cabin mates.

Clarisse stormed over to the training field. She beat the shit out of a punching bag for two hours straight, trying to get her heart to stop racing. Alana's her best friend. How could she possibly like her? Not to mention she's on a quest and there's a possibility she doesn't come back? Clarisse doesn't know what to do without Alana.

And now she had to hide it all or ruin everything.

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A/N: I told y'all Clarisse would realize her feelings soon 🤭

OH ALSO SOMEONE GUESS WHERE I GOT ALL OF THE NAMES FOR THESE CHARACTERS FROM