Leaving Harvey's parking lot, Ariel stayed quiet the whole drive back to her house. "Are you sure you don't want me to come in with you?" Orion asked.

"No, I'll be fine, my sisters should be home," Ariel replied.

"Okay, I'll see you tomorrow," Orion said, pulling up in front of her house.

Ariel smiled and opened the car door. "Hey, no goodbye kiss?" Orion teased.

Ariel couldn't help but laugh at Orion's joke. She gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Good enough," she giggled.

Orion waited for Ariel to get into her house. As soon as she opened the front door, she waved at Orion, who waved back before driving off.

Once inside, Ariel closed the door behind her and leaned her back against it, closing her eyes. "Ariel, you're home," Arcee called from the top of the stairs.

Ariel opened her eyes to see Arcee. "How was the movie?"

"It was actually really good, and I thought the first one was good too," Ariel replied.

"What movie did you go see?"

"Avatar 2."

"Wait, there's a second one?"

"Yeah," Ariel confirmed. "I will definitely go watch it. Anyway, did Orion drop you off?"

"Yeah, he did," Arcee said. "Does he know about your power?"

"No, he doesn't. The only people who know about my power are you, Chromia, and Skylar."

"Wait, you told Skylar? You know Mom and Dad don't want anyone knowing," Arcee reminded her.

"I didn't tell her, she found out," Ariel explained. "I guess she saw me use it two years ago to save you from that thug. Anyway, I'm heading upstairs to get ready for bed."

"Okay, just don't use up all the hot water," Arcee joked.

Ariel laughed and headed upstairs. As she climbed, she received a text message from Skylar.

SSkylar: Hey, I had a lot of fun tonight. We should plan something again soon, but this time without the guys.

Ariel: Sounds like a good idea. I'll check my school and work schedules.

Skylar: 😂 You do know we go to the same school, right?

Ariel: Of course, I'm just messing with you.

Skylar: Haha, very funny.

Ariel: Anyway, I have to get ready for bed. I'll see you at school on Monday.

Skylar: Yeah, see you at school.

After turning off her phone, she walked into her room to gather everything she needed. Then, she stepped into her connected bathroom to remove her makeup and brush her teeth. Once finished, she returned to her room, slipped into bed, and reached for her phone on the nightstand. Turning it on, she noticed a message from Orion.

Orion: Hey babe, I had a great time tonight.

Ariel: Yeah, me too.

Orion: What time are you working tomorrow?

Ariel: 9-12. Why?

Orion: I can pick you up after your shift, and we can go out for lunch if you want.

Ariel: I think I would like that.

Orion: Okay, so I'll pick you up after your shift.

Ariel: Okay, see you tomorrow.

After replying to Orion's message, she exited the messaging app and opened Instagram to check for any new likes on her latest post. Satisfied, she switched to Netflix, scrolling through her "Continue Watching" list until she settled on watching Attack on Titan. The episode featured Eren joining the Scouts. Engrossed in the storyline, she watched for a while before turning off her phone and placing it back on her nightstand.

Grabbing her book, she opened it to the page she had left off earlier, indulging in a few more chapters before placing it back on the nightstand. With her covers pulled up, she settled into bed, eventually drifting off to sleep. Little did she know, things were about to change.

At Skylar's house, David had just dropped her off. "Do you want to come in for a bit?" Skylar asked.

"Sure, I've got nothing else to do," David replied.

"Of course you don't," Skylar teased. As they walked up to the front door, Skylar noticed her car was missing. She knew exactly who took it. Unlocking the door, she found Alex sitting on the couch watching TV.

"Alex, have you seen Gunnar?" Skylar inquired.

Alex tore his gaze away from the screen. "When did you get home?"

"About a minute ago."

"Hey, David," Alex acknowledged.

"Hey, Alex, how's it going?" David greeted.

"Pretty good," Alex replied. "Did you not hear my question, Alex?" Skylar pressed.

"No, what did you ask?"

"I asked if you knew where Gunnar was," Skylar clarified.

"Last I saw him, he and Bambi went upstairs. Why?" Alex responded.

"My car is not in the driveway," Skylar stated.

"I don't think Gunnar took it," Alex replied.

"Then who did?" Skylar asked.

"I think it was Mom," Alex replied.

"Wait, Mom came home? I thought she had to work late," Skylar remarked.

"Her car broke down, so Dad had to pick her up and drive her home to get your car," Alex explained.

"Oh, that makes sense. Anyway, David and I are going upstairs," Skylar said.

"Don't do anything crazy," Alex warned.

"You know we won't," Skylar assured him. "You do know that Gunnar will beat the crap out of both of you if you do," Alex reminded.

"Yeah, I know. Don't worry, I'll make sure this one doesn't go all crazy," Skylar joked. David chuckled at Skylar's comment.

"What are you watching anyway?" Skylar asked Alex.

"Outer Banks season 3 just came out," Alex replied.

"What? You're watching it without me?" Skylar exclaimed.

"Sorry, you're still on season 1," Alex explained.

"We agreed to watch season 3 together," Skylar reminded him.

"You know what, I'm going to binge-watch seasons 1 and 2," Skylar declared.

"Just don't stay up too late. You know how much Mom and Dad hate it when we pull all-nighters," Alex warned.

"That's their problem," Skylar retorted, earning laughter from Alex and David.

Skylar left the TV room with David following behind her. "Is Gunnar asleep?" she asked.

"I don't think so. He usually goes to bed late, knowing him," Alex replied.

"Does he always go to bed late?" David inquired.

"Yeah, pretty much. He plays hockey almost every night, and his coach is really hard on him and the rest of the team," Skylar explained.

"Oh, really? I had no idea," David said.

"It's fine. I don't really tell people for his sake," Skylar said.

"Sky, is that you? When did you get home?" Gunnar called from another room.

"Like 10 minutes ago," Skylar replied.

"How was the movie?" Gunnar asked.

"It was better than the first one, that's for sure," Skylar replied.

"Hey, David," Gunnar greeted.

"Hey, how's it going?" David asked.

"Honestly, I've been better," Gunnar replied.

"Gunnar, you promised you wouldn't talk about hockey when I'm around," Skylar reminded him.

"Right, sorry, sis," Gunnar replied.

"It's okay," Skylar said. "Is Bambi still here?" she asked.

"Yeah, she just stepped out for a minute to answer a phone call," Gunnar replied.

Just as Gunnar said that, Bambi walked into the room. "Hey, Gunnar, what did I miss?" she asked.

"Well, Skylar just came back from the movies," Gunnar replied.

"Oh, what movie did you go see?" Bambi inquired.

"Avatar 2. Honestly, it was way better than the first one," Skylar replied.

"I haven't seen it yet, but I do know that the quality is better," Bambi said.

"Hey, are we invisible to you guys?" Gunnar joked.

Skylar and Bambi couldn't help but laugh. "Bro, you really have to come up with some better jokes," Skylar teased.

All of them burst out laughing. "Anyway, what were you and Alex talking about?" Gunnar asked.

"I was asking her if you took my car," Skylar replied.

"Yeah, I didn't take it," Gunnar confirmed.

"I know that now, but seriously, Mom has to take better care of her car," Skylar remarked.

"You got that right," Gunnar agreed.

Skylar left Gunnar's room, with David following closely behind. She closed her bedroom door and sat on her bed while David took a seat on the desk chair.

"Hey babe, did you notice Ariel acting a little weird at the movies?" David asked.

Skylar gasped, momentarily thinking that David had found out Ariel's secret. "She probably has a lot on her mind."

"Yeah, you might be right. Anyway, what do you feel like doing?" David asked.

"We could finish watching Sword Art Online," Skylar suggested.

"Sounds good," David agreed.

Skylar retrieved her laptop from its hiding place when a thought crossed her mind. "Do you want to sleep over since it's the weekend?"

"I'm sure it would be fine, I just have to ask my parents," David replied. He pulled out his phone, opened the messaging app, and pulled up the group chat he had with his parents.

David: Would it be okay if I sleep over at Skylar's house tonight?

Mom: Of course, as long as her parents are okay with it.

David: She's messaging them now.

Mom: Do you have a change of clothes with you?

David: I always leave a change of clothes at her house just in case.

Dad: How did you come up with an idea like that?

David: Um, Dad, wasn't it your idea?

Dad: Oh, right, I did. I must be getting old.

David: 😂 Seriously, Dad, knock off the jokes.

Mom: He's right, hon, your jokes are not that funny.

Dad: What do you mean not funny?

David: Anyway, thank you guys.

Mom: Don't worry about it. Good night.

Dad: Good night.

David: Good night.

After his conversation with his parents, David tucked his phone away and settled onto the bed beside Skylar. "All good?" she asked, her gaze shifting from him to the screen. "Yep, all good," David affirmed with a nod. "Then what are we waiting for?" Skylar inquired eagerly.

She swiftly accessed the Netflix app, navigating to her profile, and resumed scrolling through her list until she found Sword Art Online. They picked up from where Kirito and Asuna first met Yui, immersing themselves in the storyline. Eventually, Skylar decided it was time to prepare for bed.

"Where are you off to?" David queried as she rose from the bed.

"To get ready for bed," Skylar replied with a smile, disappearing into the connected bathroom. Once finished, she returned to her room where David remained engrossed in his phone.

"The bathroom's all yours," she informed him.

"Great, thanks," David responded, glancing up briefly. "Just don't take too long; sometimes Alex likes to use my bathroom," Skylar added playfully.

"I'll keep that in mind," David assured her with a grin. Skylar chuckled softly before retreating into the bathroom. After a while, David emerged, settling back onto Skylar's bed.

"So, am I sleeping in your bed or on the floor?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Skylar burst into laughter. "No silly, my bed is a trundle bed, so there's a mattress under it," she explained.

"Oh, that makes more sense," David chuckled, relaxing into the comfortable arrangement.

David offered to assist Skylar in pulling the mattress from under her bed. "Okay, there are pillows and extra blankets in the closet," Skylar mentioned, preparing to head to her closet.

Before she could move, David intercepted her. "It's okay, I'll get them. You just relax," he insisted kindly.

"Okay, thanks," Skylar replied gratefully, yielding to his gesture. With a nod, she made her way to her bed, slipping under the covers and soon drifting off to sleep.

Meanwhile, David returned with the blankets and pillows. He neatly arranged them on the mattress, ensuring comfort for the night ahead. As he settled onto the makeshift bed, he pulled up the covers and gradually succumbed to sleep.

Little did they know, events were soon to take an unexpected turn, setting the stage for an unforeseen series of events.