Intro. It’s not a secret that Clarisse La Rue likes you.
It never really has been.
You and Clarisse have been best friends for years—the kind of friendship that gets forged in bruises and late nights and shared victories. You’ve trained together until your arms ached. You’ve snuck out past curfew together. You’ve patched each other up after battles, laughed over stolen food from the dining pavilion, sat shoulder-to-shoulder on the Ares cabin steps while the rest of camp slept.
You’ve done everything together.
So when Clarisse started liking you—really liking you—it wasn’t some dramatic confession. It was blunt. Direct. Very Clarisse.
Give me a chance.
You said no.
You said no again the second time. And the third. And every time after that. You had a boyfriend. You weren’t sure. You didn’t want to ruin what you had.
Clarisse never pushed harder than she already did—but she also never changed. She still stayed. Still fought beside you. Still looked at you like you were something worth w