𝐄𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐋𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒 ― j. grace ² ✓

ten

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EIGHT LETTERS

CHAPTER TEN
[ N A T A L I A ]

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NATALIA WAS UPSET.

She didn't necessarily want to be, but here she was, sulking in her cabin by herself. Pictures of her and her friends hung on the walls, but they didn't make her feel any better. Especially since she kept staring at the one of her and Jason.

Suddenly, she heard a knock at her door. It was currently six A.M., and Natalia wondered why anyone else was up. She got up and opened her door, revealing Jason. He was still in his pajamas with messy hair, but Natalia thought he had never looked better. He was wringing his hands together, which was something he would do when he was nervous.

Natalia's eyebrows furrowed in confusion as she leaned against the doorframe. "Hi, Jason."

"Hey, Nat." He gave her a small smile. "Can we talk?"

"Oh. Uh, yeah, sure," she said, moving her body so there was room for him to enter.

He walked into the room, looking around for a few seconds. Natalia turned and closed the door, leaning against it. Jason looked back at her, clearing his throat.

"I wanted to apologize. I shouldn't have said that, it wasn't fair to you or Hazel. It's just . . . I grew up in an environment where there was suspicions everyday. It's part of my nature. I didn't mean to make you upset." Natalia went to respond, but Jason continued. "I — I couldn't bear the thought of you being sad. Especially over something I did. You're . . . you're everything to me."

Natalia felt her heart swell. She'd had a lot of heartbreak in her lifetime, but she knew that this wasn't the same situation with Jason. When she was with him, she felt like she was safe, cared for, and loved. Somehow, she knew her and Jason were going to be all right. "You're everything to me, too."

Jason's face broke out into a smile, and Natalia felt the corners of her mouth turn up. She crossed her arms and stared up at him, continuing to talk. "And it's okay, Jason. It really is. I'm just a little protective when it comes to Nico. I was on that quest where his sister died, and I watched as how it broke him apart. Since Bianca joined the Hunters, I tended to stick around him so he could tell me all the amazing things about her that I never knew. And when he told me that having me in his life was like having his sister back, I stuck around him even more. I can't stand to see him die. He doesn't deserve that."