Chapter 5: H.M. for Hail Mary

It's Friday and the buses have arrived. The school is practically empty and the sun was giving off this beautiful orange glow. Wayne's eyes look Amber in this lighting and Percy's hair looks almost blonde. We watch as the girls and boys file out of the bus with feathers and ribbons in their hair, finally, I see her, I let out a breath of relief. My body wanted to scoop her up and keep her close for the rest of the year, but I stood my ground and leaned against the car with others.

Wayne walks around and honks the horn causing most of the people to look our way but Marilyn caught my eye. She was in a tropical shirt and black jeans shorts; her hair was now red and in French braids.

She picked up a bag and began walking toward us. Percy and Tony ran up to her and began hugging her, I got angry for a second but Tony looked in my direction, I knew he wouldn't try anything with her.

"Hey, beautiful!"...Wayne on the other hand might.

"Hey, stud!" She walks over and hugs him. Throwing her arms around his neck. Percy takes her bag and we begin to get in the car. Tony is behind the wheel, Marilyn in the middle seat.

" Take us to my house, my good sir.". Marylin put her phone in the slot and proceeded to give tony directions. Percy and I sat in the back; Percy bounced in his seat.

"So how was it?" Percy slides forward.

"Um good…very refreshing. Moon bathing is best this time of the year.

"Moon bathing?" I asked, feeling like an idiot for not knowing much about Witch culture.

"It's like regeneration. Kind of like a power-up. Like you guys, the moon is important in some cultures of magic.". She turns and smiles.

We finally stopped at an apartment complex, which didn't look bad but wasn't what I expected.

"I thought you lived with Dracula?" Wayne pulls her bag out of the trunk.

"Dracula?... Lestat?". She begins to walk upstairs and we follow.

"Yeah, isn't the blood daddy?" Wayne continues and both Percy and Tony smack him.

"No, he is supposed to be my betrothed...well, him and Author.".

We all stopped dead in our tracks.

"Mary baby, we are not gonna pretend that you didn't say that" Tony did this head swivel and put his hands on his hips.

"Which part?" She turns her head to us as she unlocks the door.

"All of it... literally all of it." Percy begins to walk in, as do the rest of us.

"You...and author….so y'all are a thing?" I walk in and begin looking around. With my hands in my pocket. I felt guilty and conflicted. I didn't want another lady's problem.

"No...not really. Author had Gwen and...I guess that left me and Lestat.". She began to put her stuff down and Tony patted her arm, almost signaling that she said something wrong. "Oh...sorry."

"It's...fine." I began to look around again. Her apartment was very open. Her bed was in the living room area covered in many blankets and pillows. The walls were covered in different tapestries and fairy lights. Her kitchen was neat and clean and covered in vases full of dead Roses. This whole room smelt of sage and lavender.

"Nice um...nice apartment."

"Why is there a bed in the living room?" Percy stepped on the wooden crates that the bed lay on facing the TV.

"And what's up with the crates?" Tony kicked the crate with his boot and looked at her. She took off her shoes and went to her bed and proceeded to plop down face first into her pile of pillows.

"Because why not?" She looked at Tony as she cuddled a pillow.

"This…. I like this." Wayne points at Marilyn and smiles at the rest of us.

"Also, I use what's supposed to be the bedroom as a closet slash art room. Wanna see?"

"Most definitely." Percy jumps up. She opens a door into a room full of clothes and art.

Most of the more expensive-looking dresses were on mannequins.

"Oh my God...these are beautiful!" Percy was in wonderland. Bouncing up and down and practically fangirling.

"Lestat likes to dress me up.". Marylin pushes dresses out of the way.

"That sounds dirty." Wayne looked at the art. "What's this sword lookin' painting?"

" I'm not sure...I saw it in a dream...maybe?" Marylin walks over to him. I couldn't look away from her. I wanted to hold her. She was small compared to me. I had to dig my nails into my own hand to stop myself.

I wish they weren't here. I wish it was just us. I saw her mouth moving but I couldn't hear a word until she turned to me and all of my senses came back all at once.

"I'm sorry...what?"

"Pizza? Or...we can order something else." Marylin pulls at her braids only hair way undoing it before tying it back...like pigtails.

"Definitely pizza." I nod.

"Great. I'll pull out more blankets for you guys." She walks out and I turn to the guys.

"What?" I whisper-yell at them.

"We're staying over. You would've heard if you weren't eye fuckin' her." Tony crossed his arms.

"Wait what?! No, no, no I didn't agree to this," I said knowing full well I wanted to and Tony would convince me one way or another.

"Well, we are and if you don't want to then you can tell her yourself, apologize then walk your simple ass home, "Tony said leaning his rear against the wall.

"Alright fine but I get the last two slices and if she doesn't want to sleep alone then I'm sleeping with her, deal?" I said to Tony and company.

"Deal," said Tony

"Fine by me," said Percy

"Hell no, what are u out of your mind like look at her. If I got the chance to get inside the chambers of secrets then best believe I'm doin it Weasley and that's on Slytherin homie" said the idiot *cough cough* Wayne.

"Dammit Wayne" Snapped Percy and Tony.

"Frickin cockblocks, fine, but you owe me cupcake" Wayne complained.

"Yea yea whatever just name it and I'll do it, I gotcha," I said calmly.

"Everything alright? I heard silent screaming and somethin about a cockblocking cupcake??" Marilyn said as she came in wearing short shorts and an oversized sports jersey holding blankets and pillows

"Yea we're all good. We were just seeing who dressed the best." Tony said lying as Marilyn probably saw through it like glass as he laughed nervously but we all knew that he could make up a lie on the dime if he had to.

"O.K., well I've got board games and soda in the fridge and I just ordered the pizza so I hope everyone is ok cheese, pepperoni, and sausage," Marilyn said as she laid down the sleeping things

"Haha sausage," Me and Percy said as we started chuckling.

"I don't get it, "Marilyn said cluelessly.

"Somehow I find that hard to believe"

"Well, that explains a lot," Wayne said as Percy pinned on behind him making comedic gold.

"Wait you guys me…. oh my god, idiots! all of you!" She said while trying not to smile and shaking her as she saw Percy, Wayne, and I laugh so hard on the floor we damn near piss ourselves and Tony on the table trying not to laugh but starts laughing eventually as he cries tears of joy on the table.

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.

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Hours later, it was around 2:30 in the morning and it felt like everyone passed out except me, Percy, and Marilyn.

"Ok that was fun but I think I'm gonna go to bed, Perc I'm gonna be in my room so feel free to join when you're ready, and also, we're cuddling bestie" She winked at Percy as she got up and walked out.

"I'll be there in a sec Lynnie" Percy shouted

"Lennie?" I asked as I slowly turned my head to Percy to let the shame and guilt sink in.

Okay, foreclosure, I'm not a petty person but when I feel played, disrespected, and downright Bamboozled ooooh…. I get low and petty like that one white chick who was the antagonist in Mean Girls.

"I know but how about this, I'll give you a few and you can go in and have that conversation you were asking for that one time and I'll swoop in when you're done so everybody wins," Percy said like he was trying to sell me a Lexus with a flat tire.

Five minutes later, we were all on and around her bed, watching one of the many old black and white movies that Marylin owned, the pizza box on the floor, empty.

Wayne and Tony lean against the bed, sitting on the floor. Percy was curled up with Marilyn next to me. I was leaning against the wall that the bed was against. Marylin had fallen asleep a while ago.

It was pretty late but that's when most wolves are up. All of a sudden Marylin shifted and turned her body towards me. We all stared at her silently, as soon as she stopped moving, we all slowly shifted back to the movies. Marylin was laying on top of the blanket, her baggy shirt and basketball Shorts hung loosely on her body.

All of a sudden it was like her body was being pulled up by an invisible rope tied around her waist. Percy practically rolled off the bed.

"Bitch what the fuck," Wayne whispered yelling.

"I…. I don't even have a clever line for this." Tony put his hand on his mouth.

I stood up from my spot in bed in awe.

"She floats." I chuckled.

"Why am I expecting a clown to be chanting "you'll float too" right now?" Percy moves his body behind Wayne.

"What do you think will happen if we touch her?" Wayne looks at me in question. I shrugged, completely in awe of her. Her hair hung and her limbs lose in the air. She really did look like she was being held up by her waist alone.

Wayne tapped her toe and her eyes shot open to meet my eyes. She fell out of the air and went onto the bed with a soft thud. As fast as lighting Tony was by her side making sure she was okay.

"You, okay?" Tony sat her up.

"Yeah, I'm fine. God's, I haven't done that in years…" she nervously chuckled. "I'll be right back.". She swiftly made her way to the bathroom and I followed.

"What are you doing? She's going to the bathroom.". Wayne asked as he watched us.

"No, it's fine." Marylin pulled me into the bathroom with her and I could hear them mumbling.

"Are you okay?" I look at her through the mirror. She brushes her hair.

"What?... oh, I'm fine. I do that sometimes." She puts the brush down and turns to me.

"Often?" I get closer to her. She's leaning against the sink.

"N… not as often as I used to.". She looks me in the eye. We were so close together.

I was staring at her lips, not sure if I should. I want to...dear God I want to. I felt a hand slowly creep up from my chest to the back of my neck, I looked into her eyes and she was staring at my lips.

"Please." Marylin pulls me towards her and I put my hands on the sink behind her as I slowly lean in. I slowly slid my hand into her hair, just holding her there. As our lips touched nothing felt rushed just that I wanted more, she felt so warm and soft. I knew if this went any further, we'd probably regret it. I slowly pulled away; her eyes still closed as she pulled her hands off me.

"You...you are good at that.". She finally opens her eyes and smiles.

I nodded, too afraid to use my voice at the moment.