Lunch time is normal...

Jonathan Wyatt Adams
Son of Aphrodite

---

The day hadn't been going well for Jonathan. He had slept through the whole morning and missed lunch. Then just after he woke up, he had to break up a fight between two of his sisters back in the cabin. It also took him quite some time to take a shower, seeing that the water was running low today for some strange reason. Now terribly hungry and annoyed at how his day started, Jonathan made his way towards the mess hall in a regular orange camp shirt and a pair of khaki shorts. His hair was all messy, sticking up in random places as he tried to flatten it. No such luck, as his hair just seemed to want to stay that way.

Dropping to one of the seats, Jonathan didn't care if he was in the Aphrodite table or not. It looked to him like it was already past lunch anyway and so not a lot of people were around to enforce the 'sit-by-your-siblings' rule. Blinking in uneven spaces, he turned to focus on his plate where a tuna sandwich suddenly popped up. Just as he was about to take a huge bite, he noticed a girl seated in front of him picking up a chip. He stilled in surprise. He thought the table was empty! Where were his manners? How had he not noticed that someone was already seated at this table? He must have been so lost in thought.

Jonathan swallowed hard and shot the girl an apologetic look. "I'm so sorry. I didn't see you there," he admitted with a nervous smile. "Just woke up, see. Hope you don't mind me sitting here... but if you do, I'll just go move..." he trailed off in embarrassment, already in the process of standing up.

Jonathan Wyatt Adams
Son of Aphrodite

---

Jonathan followed the girl's gaze to Apollo's symbol on the table. He should really just stick to the Aphrodite table to avoid these kinds of embarrassing scenes. Scratching the back of his head awkwardly, Jonathan managed to return her smile with one of his own. "Thanks."

He slowly sat back down, watching her face for signs of disagreement. When it looked like she really didn't mind his sudden intrusion, Jonathan bit into his sandwich as he couldn't take the hunger anymore. Chewing slowly, he kept his eyes on his plate. He still felt a little ashamed of himself. Gods, how had he really not seen the girl? Not like she was as small as ant for him to miss her. Swallowing thickly, Jonathan became vaguely aware of the short awkward silence that took over and looked up. He should probably strike up a conversation... Wasn't it the nice thing to do?

"Er... hi," he started, the corner of his lips twitching up in a half-smile. "I'm Jonathan, son of Aphrodite. My friends call me Athan." Typical demigod introduction. Not like he had anything else in mind to say.

Jonathan Wyatt Adams
Son of Aphrodite

---

"Thanks," Jonathan said gratefully as he popped the dorito in his mouth. Listening to it crunch in his mouth seemed to soothe him a little, though he really didn't know why. Perhaps it was the same with all crunchy things. Well, in any case, he should stop thinking about doritos and concentrate on the conversation. It wasn't nice to keep people waiting, especially people who offered you food.

"So how long have you been here?" he asked. He had seen her around before, like majority of the people in camp. Maybe she had been here longer than him. It certainly was a possibility.

Jonathan Wyatt Adams
Son of Aphrodite

---

Jonathan bit into his sandwich, savoring the taste of tuna on his tongue. He was almost halfway done, he realized. His stomach was even beginning to calm down but still craving for more food. Ah well, he'd remedy that later. For now, his eyes swept over the necklace Ronnie pulled out and noticed that she had indeed been here longer than he.

"Quite a collection of beads you have there," he said, chuckling slightly. His hand subconsciously went to his own necklace where three beads hung right beside his dove pendant. "Three, going on four. And yeah, maybe you have. Can't blame you though, there are so many people here that it's hard to keep track."

Jonathan Wyatt Adams
Son of Aphrodite

---

Jonathan laughed along with her. "It's also summer, hence double the number of campers. Five years... whoa, that's a lot. But I know someone who's been here ever since she was born so... I guess that's more than a decade."

He looked at the pendant in his hand, sliding his fingers through the dove symbol embedded on its surface. "Yep," he said with a slight nod. "The dove's her sacred animal, I think," he paused, hesitating. "This is actually my sword. I'd show you, but I don't think people will react kindly to a sword drawn out in a place like this," he told her, grinning widely.

Jonathan Wyatt Adams
Son of Aphrodite

---

A sword that was disguised as a mascara bottle? Jonathan had yet to see something like that. Well, it didn't come as a surprise to him to know that it belonged to one of sisters. Aphrodite girls and make-up tools go together like bread and butter. "Lucky her. I've yet to receive a gift from mom. Grace, huh? Don't think I've talked to her before. Well, I think it'd be nice to talk to a sister of mine that's not into a lot of make-up and whatever else most of my sisters like to talk about."

Returning her gaze, Jonathan smiled back. "Yeah, same here. The gods are busy though. You can't expect them to buy us birthday gifts... though it would've been nice."

Jonathan Wyatt Adams
Son of Aphrodite

---

This Grace person sounded like someone he'd enjoy talking to back in the cabin. Making a mental note to seek her out later, Jonathan let his fingers drum along the edges of the table as he listened to the girl in front of him. He definitely saw where Ronnie was coming from. "Same. I sit out Capture the Flag too. I just don't like fighting... only do if it's against monsters or stuff."

He shrugged, before letting his eyes drift over to her bandaged wrist. He gave an involuntary shudder. "Yikes, that gotta hurt. How'd you get it?"

Jonathan Wyatt Adams
Son of Aphrodite

---

Jonathan smiled, agreeing with her. He never really heard someone say something like that before. Most people in camp, especially the boys, rejoice in the thought of fighting. Just another thing that made him stand out from the other guys--his reluctance when it came to fighting. Some had even started to question his sexuality because of that, but he didn't really let it bother him.

Raising his eyebrows at her when she said that she had gone wall-climbing, Jonathan laughed slightly. "Well at least it was just your wrist. It could've been more."

Jonathan Wyatt Adams
Son of Aphrodite

---

Ronnie had spunk, that much was obvious to the son of Aphrodite. He smiled, finding girls like that rather likable. Though most of them looked like they can kick his butt quite easily in a battle (well, that was expected as he would let them win), Jonathan liked talking to those kinds of girls. Anyone who wasn't his sister would make a nice change. At least he won't have to nod at the correct moments and zone out as they discussed fashion and shopping.

"I guess there's an odd one out in every group. I'm not like majority of my siblings, actually." He hesitated a little, smiling nervously before adding. "I don't think I can flirt. People expect me to be a natural with that area because I'm a son of Aphrodite, but honestly I suck. No joke. I'd be better off not trying." He laughed, mostly at himself and this weird inability of his.

Jonathan Wyatt Adams
Son of Aphrodite

---

Jonathan managed to retain a poker face, but in all honesty he was a little surprised. Ronnie looked like she was his age, and just by that he assumed that she had some experience in relationships. After all, during these modern times they lived in, people younger than him were already engaging in these kinds of things. He didn't know if it bothered him or not, but he found it easier not to think about it.

"Really? You seem good to me," he admitted with a small smile, leaning back on his seat. He laughed when she mentioned his siblings' great talent. "Exactly. They're more than enough to cover up for everyone else who has a problem with flirting. You should try listening to some of my older sisters. They're even a little... gah, I don't even know how to describe them anymore." He shrugged, shaking his head.

Jonathan Wyatt Adams
Son of Aphrodite

---

"You're talking to someone who spent most of the previous three years in that cabin. I think I've grown used to things like that happening in there," Jonathan said, nodding. He studied her closely, just trying to get a reading on this girl. She sure didn't look like a geek, let alone act like one. Honestly, it looked like she had no problem talking to him when she got started. He could still remember how shy she was just a few minutes before, and now they were talking like they had known each other for a long time.

"You don't look like a geek. Seriously. You lack the glasses," he added, a wide grin playing on his lips. Ha, what a lame attempt at a joke, he thought to himself with a mental chuckle.

Jonathan Wyatt Adams
Son of Aphrodite

---

"I didn't know Apollo had something to do with mind-reading... or something of the sort. What if I suddenly decided to eat your sandwich at right about... now?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow at her. "Purely hypothetical question."

Smiling, Jonathan ruffled his already messy hair, making it stick up in even more directions than before. Now he guessed that he looked like he just got out of bed. No matter, not like anyone cared a lot about appearances here. Maybe except his siblings, but it wasn't as if he had anything to worry about them. He then realized how indecent he probably looked in front of Ronnie with his hair messed up. "Do I look like I just got out of bed?" he suddenly blurted out, the ADHD getting the better of him. Color flooded his cheeks when he realized that he had just said that out loud. "Ahh... forget that. Now let's get back to my previous question about your sandwich."