Oh My Stars! {A Zodiac Story}

Chapter IV: A Park and a Pursuit

Sagittarius threw her backpack sloppily onto her bed, quickly flinging herself down as well. She reclined against the headboard and opened her phone to find no new messages.

'That's weird,' she thought. 'Usually I have at least a couple from the group chat.'

She decided to change that by taking the initiative and being the first to send a message. It said:

Party at my house tomorrow @7. Bring food.

Almost instantly, she got some replies.

Libra: It's a little short notice, but I'll be there!

Aries: Alright, it's about time we did something fun!

Capricorn: I might be a little late but I can go.

Cancer: Sounds good!! :)

Taurus: I don't mean to be stereotypical, but heck yeah food!!!!

Aquarius: I am a big poo head.

Aquarius: Ignore that last message it was from Gemini.

Gemini: No it wasn't.

Aquarius: Shut up.

Sagittarius laughed to herself about those two. It was a good thing they didn't like each other, otherwise it would be double the trouble. She shook her head and went to go meet up with her friends at the park.

An hour or two later, Aquarius and Cancer were wandering around the woods behind Cancer's house. This was something that the two often did. Aquarius loved to adventure and Cancer just enjoyed being in nature. Their unexpected routine started about a year prior. They were both wandering separately about the woods that sat between River Drive (Cancer's street) and Hurricane Boulevard (Aquarius's street), when they happened to run into each other. Ever since, they have been going on forest expeditions with one another because it was much more fun than doing it by their lonesome.

Currently, the air and water sign were jumping on the stones half-buried along the path. It was a common game they played, almost like a version of "the floor is lava". Birds chirped overhead in the tall trees and rays of sun poked through the leaves as they hopped about. Aiming for the same rock, they both jumped on it, only to bump into each other and fall down laughing.

"Darn it I thought I was finally going to beat you for once!" Aquarius giggled, picking herself up and brushing off the dirt clinging to her backside.

"You'll never defeat the master!" Cancer hollered to the sky, raising his fists in the air. Aqua rolled her eyes and threw a small stone at his chest, causing him to snap his head in her direction. "Oh you're going to get it now!"

Aquarius laughed loudly as she took off deeper into the forest. "You'll have to catch me first!"

Cancer bounded after her, careful not to trip on any tree roots or stones. He knew exactly where she was headed - there was a small creek down an incline up ahead. It was their favorite part of the woods. An old treehouse lay hidden in the canopy on the banks, adding an air of mystery to the place.

Turning a sharp corner, Cancer suddenly ran into someone's back. He sighed, relieved that it was just Aquarius. Aqua's head whipped around as she put a finger to her lips, signaling him to be silent. He gave the girl a confused looked, wondering what was going on. She then pointed ahead of her, giving away why she wanted him to be quiet. Sitting on a large rock by the river sat two figures - a boy and a girl. They were a distance away, far enough that he couldn't see their faces, but close enough so that he could hear their words.