" Adius had squinted over his phone for the rest of the day. He had slacked off in creative writing, novel composition, digital media, and his second drama class. Then when he had made it to lunch, he had finally begun to think. "Maybe she gave me some sort of hint and I just haven't realized it yet," He had pondered out loud.

"Anybody know what he's talking about?" Someone in his inner circle had asked while biting into his soggy chicken sandwich. Everyone at his round table proceeded to shrug and continue on with what they were originally doing.

Adius paid them no mind.

"Adius?"

He started playing with the buttons on the side of his phone while he thought.

"Adius?"

He ran his hand over his head. "Maybe it was something she said..." He had whispered.

"Adius!" Finally having enough of being ignored, Sam, a close female friend, flicked him on his neck and ignited an understanding in the boy. His eyes had widened and a smile had made it's way to his face.

"Adonis..." He had said out loud as he turned his screen back on. He pulled the top part of his screen down to see his notifications. A Book of Myths, a novel composed by Jeanie Lang, a book he would have never had any interest in, had been downloaded on his phone.

The Amazon notification had been on his notification bar for a while and he hadn't paid it any mind. He clicked on it while Sam clicked her tongue in irritation. She was being ignored again. After he opened it up a tip about highlighting passages in the book popped up and he figured he'd start there.

He read the names of every chapter until he found The Death Of Adonis, a title that was more than a little eerie considering it was what Hope had called him. ""The fairest youth that ever maiden's dream conceived."" He had read to himself.

It was highlighted and tagged with a note. 'You actually listened to me' Then her number was typed right after that. With a grin that could only be described as one of pure victory, he copied the number into his contacts and immediately sent her a text.

A: ARE YOU DOING ANYTHING TODAY?

He couldn't even wait for a response. He had started looking all around the lunchroom in search of Hope so that he could witness her reaction to the message. It took maybe three minutes before he finally spotted her, and when he did, she was looking right at him with her signature bright smile.

H: NOT REALLY. WHAT DO YOU HAVE IN MIND?

They went on to text the rest of the lunch period. Anyone with eyes could see that they were truly invested in the conversation. Their peers opted to leave them be, even as the lunch bell rung.

Hope skipped over to him and gave him a hug. "We'll meet after the last class, right?" The tight feeling in Adius' chest expanded at the sight of the curly haired beauty clinging to his side. He had nodded and tried to play it cool, but on the inside he was panicking like no other.

He was a good looking guy, but he was never really been anyone's first choice. That wasn't to say that he hadn't dated at all. Because he had.

He had just never dated anyone on the same level as Hope. She was everything that girls and women alike aspired to be. And Adius had a chance with her, like a real chance. He didn't want to mess it up, so he figured the best plan of approach was to act like this was something he did every day.

"Yeah, then we can go from there." He had actually mustered up the bravery to kiss her on the forehead that day, and the expression on her face after made him think that he had just showed her a diamond ring the size of Texas with her name engraved on the band.

"Okay." She was suddenly shy. Her cheeks had reddened and her hands had gone to mess with the faux flower crown. It was almost like she was thinking of a way to end the encounter when she heard, "HOPE! Come on already."

Her tight knit group of three were waiting for her by the entrance of the lunchroom. When Hope left to meet them with a wave to Adius, they looked like nothing less than a group of celebrities. And that had less to do with the fact that they were and more to do with the fact that they all had a certain presence that made people want to watch them.

Hope was the darling sweetheart that just so happened to be a little less innocent than people thought. Sinthea was the scalding princess with eyes that could melt even the coldest of beings in seconds. That jerk Jeffrey was the pretentious all American boy that happened to be perfect at everything. And Kia, the final group member was a mystery to all but his three friends.

No one quite knew how he fit in with the two princess and prince, but he did so effortlessly. And so no one questioned it. Jeffery laid his arm across Hope's shoulder as soon as she got close and the group left, leaving an anxious and excited Adius in the lunchroom with nothing but the janitors.

Adius went to the rest of his classes with a nervous smile on his face and thoughts of the evening on his mind. "