Work Text:
It was Capture the Flag day, and Cody intended to win no matter what.
He had been chosen as a Team Captain the day before, much to his own excitement, so now he was standing before the pool of participants and waiting for the other Captain to show up.
To be fair, Cody had shown up ten minutes early, but he was still impatiently tapping his foot on the ground.
A few more people wandered into the gathered group, among them Maxx and Zach. Maxx grinned wickedly— never a good thing when it comes to a child of Hermes— and slid over to talk to Cody. Zach cast a glance over in their direction, but shrugged and took his place among the other participants.
”You remember the bet, right?” Maxx asked. Oh fuck, that’s right. He had totally forgotten about the bet Maxx had proposed last night.
”I do now.”
”You’re not gonna chicken out, are you?”
”No way, dude. That $50 is mine,” Cody scoffed.
How hard was it to ask Awsten Knight out, anyway? He practically already had the money in his pocket. Besides, Maxx didn’t say that Awsten had to say yes for Cody to win, so Cody could pass it off as a prank when Awsten said no and they could each go their own separate ways.
Maxx’s grin widened, reminding Cody of some sort of trickster god or something, before mock-saluting Cody and returning to Zach’s side.
Cody sighed, shaking his head. Maxx definitely lived up to the stereotypical idea of a Hermes kid, and he was hell-bent on causing chaos whenever possible.
The sound of a sword being sheathed drew Cody’s attention to none other than Awsten Knight, who was walking towards Cody with a smirk on his face. His red hair stood out against the green of the grass and the leaves around them; it would be all too easy to spot him in the wilderness.
”Hope you’re ready to get your ass beaten, Carson,” Awsten challenged. Cody snorted, moving his hands to his waist.
”In your dreams, hotshot.” Cody then turned to the other campers, eyes roaming over everyone to see who he had to pick from. Awsten and Cody had drawn lots the night before, and Cody had been picked to choose first.
”Zach.” Zach moved forward to stand next to Cody, taking the blue bandanna from one of the buckets in front of the two Captains. Cody turned to look at Awsten, who was already staring at someone in the crowd.
”Otto.” Of course he’d pick Otto, the fucker, Cody thought. Otto had a reputation for being the strongest and craftiest of the Hecate kids, and Cody was sure that Awsten was going to use his magic to their team’s advantage somehow.
Otto grabbed a red bandanna from the other bucket, and Cody turned back to the throng of people.
”Geoff.” Cody smirked at Awsten’s shocked face as Geoff came forward and fist-bumped Cody.
”You little…”
”Something wrong, Knight?”
Awsten didn’t reply verbally, only glaring at Cody for several more seconds. When he turned back to the gathered crowd of campers, there was a hardened glint in his different colored eyes as he roamed over the assembled heads.
”Maxx,” he called. Cody felt a twinge of irritation, but he didn’t show it as Maxx snatched up a red bandanna. Maxx caught Cody’s eyes, and the emotion played out in them was drastically different from his half-brother’s. Cody childishly stuck out his tongue at Maxx.
After several more minutes all of the campers had been recruited to one side or the other, and almost all of the bandannas were tied around wrists and foreheads or tucked into waistbands, flapping in the light breeze as the Captains turned towards each other.
”Alright, you all know the rules by now. The dryads—” Cody gestured to Taylor and Hayley, waving from the sidelines and sitting on top of a section of a long line of bushes, “—have set up the line. The first team to bring the opposing team’s flag across the line wins. Almost anything goes, but don’t draw blood or cause any serious harm.”
Awsten reached into one of the buckets and pulled out two folded-up flags. He tossed one to Cody before speaking. “The bases were set up last night. Taylor will blow the horn to signal the start of the game. Let’s go.” He turned away and led his team to the south, and Cody made a sweeping motion with his arm and headed north.
The horn rang out, loud and clear and rolling over the tops of the trees. Hayley stood on the forest floor, looking up to the canopy of leaves as she watched Taylor shimmy down from the tree he had climbed up.
”Who do you think is gonna win?” Hayley asked as her fellow dryad dropped to the ground next to her.
”It’s hard to say. Cody picked the strategizers and the powerhouses, but Awsten’s got several tricks up his sleeve. I’d say it’s a pretty fair game,” Taylor responded.
”I meant the bet, idiot.”
”Oh.”
It was Capture the Flag day, and Awsten intended to win no matter what.
The leaves under his feet did not dare make any sound as he crept through the thick forest. He had left Otto and a few others in charge of defending the base, and now he and Maxx were acting as scouts. Maxx, however, had decided to search another part of the forest, so now Awsten was alone. A green hoodie helped to hide his flaming hair from view.
Cody Carson, however, did not think to employ the same camouflage tactic, because Awsten spotted his bright blue hair sticking out like a sore thumb among the plant life. Quickly Awsten hunkered down behind a bush as he watched Cody move through the forest.
For someone who was apparently just as determined to win as he was, Cody was being pretty fucking oblivious; he kept loudly crashing through bushes and shrubbery, and he made no effort to conceal any sound he made or anything else that would give away his position. It was almost like he wanted to get caught, which meant that he did, and that he had a plan in place.
”What’s your plan, Carson?” Awsten whispered. He was perplexed, and he watched Cody blunder around for a few more moments before stepping out from behind the bush.
”Oh, Awsten. Uh… fancy meeting you here,” Cody said once he caught sight of Awsten. Awsten rolled his eyes.
”Cut the shit, dude. What are you planning?”
”Excuse me?”
”I’ve been watching you make as much fucking noise as humanly possible, all while walking around in the same fucking circle, so either you’re up to something or you’re just really really stupid.”
Cody began to speak, but his eyes widened as they fixed on something just behind Awsten. “Look out!”
”What?” Awsten turned around to see what had freaked Cody out, but while his back was turned Cody tackled him around the waist and pushed him into a pile of leaves that Awsten really should have noticed sooner. Before Awsten could cry out in shock or surprise or whatever, he was suspended in the air via a giant net, anchored by a tree branch.
”Are you fucking kidding me?” Awsten turned around to glare at where he assumed Cody was still standing on the ground, but to his shock he realized that Cody was in the net with him, and now that he had turned around they were squished chest-to-chest.
”What… Did you mean to—”
“Don’t tell Maxx. He will never let me live this down.”
Awsten sighed, averting his glare so that he didn’t have to make direct contact with Cody’s bright blue eyes. He was irritated at being caught in a trap, yes, and he had no way of reaching out to any of his other teammates for help, but he felt oddly comfortable, and he could feel a blush rising on his checks and neck.
It really wasn’t a secret that Cody Carson was one of, if not the most attractive demigod in the entire camp, and Awsten was only (half) human. Otto had jokingly asked Awsten when the wedding was whenever he stared at Cody for too long (which, if Awsten was being honest, was happening more and more frequently). And if Cody was a regular star in his dreams, that was nobody’s business was his.
”So, how long do you think we’re gonna be stuck here?” Cody asked. Great, was he trying to start up small talk? Awsten might have to resort to chewing off his own limbs.
”Don’t know. Maxx is out there looking for your base, but he’s on the opposite end of the woods, so if you have any guys patrolling the area—”
“I don’t.”
”Great, thank you.” The two demigods were silent for a few seconds after that exchange until Cody cleared his throat again.
”There’s, uh… There’s something I wanted to ask you, actually.”
”I’m not telling you where our flag is.”
”That’s not what I was going to ask.”
”Spit it out, then.”
Cody, for once, actually looked nervous, and this only made Awsten curious and concerned about the upcoming question. Cody was always cool, calm, and collected, and seeing him nervous was unsettling.
”Will you, uh… Do you want to go out sometime? Like, with me? On a date?”
... What?
”What?”
”Please don’t make me repeat myself,” Cody answered. Awsten could clearly see the blush on his cheeks, and he refused to meet Awsten’s eyes as he waited for an answer.
”Are you only asking me because we’re caught in a net together, or-”
”No! No, uh, I’ve been meaning to ask you for a while now, it’s just… You’re really cute and funny, and I… Yeah, it’s not just because we’re caught in a net together.”
Awsten was shocked beyond belief, but a small smile still crept onto his face.
”Yes.”
”W… What? What did you s-”
”I said yes, you fucking idiot. I’d love to go on a date with you.”
Cody’s eyes finally met his, but they were filled with panic for a brief moment before the panic was replaced by joy.
”Really?”
”Yes, really. Would I joke around about this?”
Cody’s smile widened a bit, and Awsten couldn’t help himself as he leaned in and kissed the corner of that infectious smile. When he pulled back, Cody’s fingers went up to touch where Awsten had kissed, and Awsten felt his stomach drop.
”I’m so sorry, I didn’t m-” Cody cut off his rambling almost immediately with a proper kiss, with his hands reaching up to hold Awsten’s face to keep him in place.
”Don’t apologize,” the son of Poseidon said as he pulled away. Awsten’s face broke out into a stupid, giddy grin as he leaned back in.
When Geoff finally found them and got them out of the trap, both of their lips were swollen from kissing, and Awsten’s eyes weren’t focusing.
”Uh, you guys do know the game is still going, right?” Geoff asked.
”It’s not like we could have gotten out ourselves,” Cody defended. Geoff sighed and held up his hands in defense.
”We need to get back to base, Cody. We’ve been looking all over for you.” Cody nodded and began to walk away, but at the last second he turned and kissed Awsten again.
”I’ll see you after the game, yeah?” Awsten nodded, still smiling as Geoff led Cody into the foliage of the forest. Not ten seconds later Maxx appeared, grabbing his half-brother by the hand and dragging him away.
Awsten’s team ended up losing, but he was smiling the entire time anyway.
Maxx was waiting for Cody outside of the Poseidon cabin after dinner. He had been trying to catch Cody’s eye the entire time, but Cody was too busy holding hands with Awsten under the table to care about it.
”So, you did it?”
”Yeah, I did. Fork it over, loser.”
Maxx sighed but pulled out a wad of cash anyway.
”I’m guessing he said yes, then?”
Cody nodded, and Maxx laughed.
”Oh man, that’s hilarious. You told him it was a prank, right?”
”No, I didn’t.”
“When are you gonna break up with him then?”
”I… I’m not.”
”What do you mean?”
”I mean I’m actually going to try and have a relationship with him. He’s sweet.”
”You’re not serious, are you?” Maxx asked.
”What’s your problem with it?”
”Dude, Awsten has two of the most powerful demigods in camp as his best friends. If you break his heart or if they find out that this entire thing was only a prank, there won’t be anything left of you to burn at your funeral.”
”Whatever. I’m not going to hurt him.”
”You say that now…” With that, Maxx walked away, leaving Cody to glare at him in the darkness before he entered his cabin.
Both of them had failed to notice the pair of blue eyes watching them from the Zeus cabin next door.