Friends with "Benefits" [Kendal]

His heart races as she hugs him back and he smiles. "I am happy to see you too" Gracie said. "I basically left the house today without being noticed" He was impressed, few people he knew could leave their house without being noticed but then again, Gracie did come from a family that was always focused on her sister so he kind of wasn't surprised. "I'm surprised you agreed to get up this early to come hang out" He said, letting go of her. He knew that she had a rough life at home, with the only person who told her she was beautiful was her brother. He personally thought she was beautiful, with dark hair and pretty eyes. He'd liked her since the moment he'd met her, they'd clicked instantly and had since then gotten along.

"So, what shall we do, we have a few options; we can either go for a walk around the park, go for lunch at the cafe down the road, or we can just hang out, I'm fine with any of them" He said, looking at her with a smile playing at the corners of his lips. She was so beautiful in the dress she wore, it was a real shame no one ever saw how pretty she was. I'll make sure she knows she's beautiful he vowed, looking at his watch. It was almost noon and his stomach growled, he laughed a bit in embarassment. "Perhaps we should go for lunch first" He said, training his brown eyes on her.

He grinned at the sound his stomach made as Gracie laughed. He loved her laugh. He watched as she played with the hem of her skirt nervously before she said "Yeah let's eat, I skipped breakfast at my house." He couldn't really blame her, she'd wanted to get out of the house. He smiled and led her towards one of the restaurants he liked quite a bit. As they took a seat, he looked at the menu. "What do you feel like eating? I think I'll get a burger" He said, looking up at her from the menu. He liked looking at her, she was pretty in her own way, even though her hair was cut short, it made her look better. He decided to make some mischief, kicking her playfully under the table. He looked at her with his dark eyes and grinned.

He smiled, looking at her. "I am going to be classic and get chicken fingers" Gracie said, smiling to herself. He liked her smile. It lit up her face in ways that he'd never seen someone's face light up. She looked down as she felt his eyes on her and He smiles when she smiles as he kicks her under the table. "You are such a flirt Mason" She said, giggling and kicking him back. He laughed. "Don't hate on me, I was born this way. And besides, it's hard not to flirt with a pretty girl like you" He said, winking at her. He knew it was dangerous to get into a relationship this close to the games but he didn't really care, he was tired of always being single, since Saphire had broken up with him, he'd been single.

The waitress came by to take their orders and they sat looking at each other before he broke the silence. "So, Gracie, after we eat, What do you feel like doing?" He asked, smiling and looking around the cafe. It was quite busy for that time of day but he suspected that it was because the reapings were almost here. The people of the district, especially those from the training center, were probably relaxing after a very long time of training their rears off to get ready for the games. He himself had also been part of the trainee's who'd spent the last few weeks training. He smiled as his dark eyes rested once again on Gracie. He pushed his dark hair out of his eyes and smiled his famous smile.

"Whatever you like. Preferably nothing to do with the games" She replied, laughing. He loved her laugh, it was so free sounding, as if she hadn't a care in the world. He didn't want to do training, at least not for a while. He thought for a few moments, trying to think about what they could do. Now that he'd had something to eat, he had a lot of energy and felt like he could do anything. The weather outside was hot, maybe a swim at the pool would be a good idea, help them cool off.

"We could go swimming, if you would like. I could use a swim to cool off" He said, looking at her with his dark eyes. He felt thankful that the cafe they sat in had air conditioning because otherwise it would be way too warm in there for him. He felt the cool wind blow through his dark hair and closed his eyes for a moment before opening them again when he felt something bite him. He swatted at his arm and found a dead mosquito on his arm. stupid bugs he thought before turning his attention back to Gracie. He chuckled to himself. "Sorry, silly bugs, why on earth they're even in here I don't know but whatever. Shall we go?" He asked, as the waitress came by with the bill. He paid and they left the cafe.

He smiled as he looked down at her, remembering that she was slightly shorter than he was. He looked down at his hand and wanted to take her hand. Used to following through with what he felt like doing, he did just that and took her hand in his. "Come on, let's go for a swim" He said, leading her towards the pool.

Once they arrived at the pool, he showed his pass that all the people at the academy got and went to get changed. "I'll see you in the pool" He said, releasing her hand. He knew he made her blush and he smiled his signature smile. He went into the change room and noticed that it was very crowded. The smell of sweat in the guys change room was almost nauseating and he quickly changed, wanting to be out of there as fast as he could so that he could see Gracie again. He would admit that he liked her a lot and maybe, he wanted them to be more than friends.

As soon as he'd finished changing into his swim trunks, he walked out of the change room with his head up like he owned the place. Mason, naturally, was confident, especially when it came to himself. He smiled as his dark eyes scanned for Gracie and he spotted her. He made his way over to her and, before she knew what had happened, he playfully pushed her into the pool. "hey, Gracie" He called

He smiled down at her as she put out her hand to be helped out, at least that was what he thought. Instead, he was caught off guard and pulled into the pool. He fell into the water and felt a shock as the cold water hit him. It felt nice, after the stifling heat outside, to be in the cool water. "You really think that's a good idea?" He said, picking her up out of the water. He laughed, teasing her. He liked the feel of her in his arms but he knew he should probably get back at her. Even though he'd technically deserved what he got. He threw her into the water, watching with a grin. "Okay, I think we are even" He said, smirking. He liked Gracie a lot and seeing her here, soaked and smiling at him, he felt his heart swell with happiness. He knew he should tell her he liked her although, right now, while they were in the middle of a water fight probably wasn't the best time. He waited for her to retaliate, knowing she probably would. "Okay, maybe not even" He said,looking at her.