Celebrating Christmas without Jason for the first time was a little weird. At least, Reyna found it weird. She didn't know about her sister. Hylla never really opened up much to Reyna and she didn't really know what her sister was thinking most of the time. That was the problem, though. Hylla didn't seem to lighten up the mood unlike Jason who always found a way to have Christmas spirit and crack corny jokes.

Maybe living without a mother for five years had affected her. Especially since their mother had died around the same time- during Christmas. Reyna had just been twelve years old then- too young and naive. Hylla was sixteen. The death of their mother had taken a huge toll on them. Without a father or a mother, Hylla was forced to take care of Reyna on her own. They didn't even consider going to an orphanage for they would be separated. Hylla had to work two jobs a day and had to be a parental figure for Reyna.

Life was hard until Jason came along a few months later. He literally ran into her life and somehow made it tolerable. He was so infuriating at first but as time passed his antics became endearing to Reyna. Before she knew it, she had developed a crush on the blonde haired, blue eyed boy.

His departure for the Christmas holidays was to say the least, a little disappointing. This Christmas would be the first one without Jason after Reyna's mother passed away. Reyna kept telling herself that he would be back in a week. Heck, she even counted the days and hours until he came back.

When Jason told her that they wouldn't be spending Christmas together, she felt like he had slapped her. She thought that he finally saw her for what she was- a lonesome freak and decided that it was best not to associate with her.

"W-What?" she choked out.

"I'm sorry, Reyna," he said. "I really am. My dad is not letting me back out this time. I have to go and see my sister. Life hasn't exactly been fair to her and I haven't seen her in almost two years. Her mother has gone to rehab and we have to check on her too."

There it was- her mother. Jason and his sister, Thalia has the same mother but for some reason Jason never called her as his own. It was always Thalia's mother or sometimes Beryl. Whenever Reyna asked him about his mother he would always change the topic. He usually avoided it and Reyna, getting the hint, rarely brought it up in conversation unless it was absolutely necessary. Jason was suspiciously evasive about his family. Reyna knew Jason but she didn't know him. His family life was still a puzzle that was yet to be solved.

"You know what? It's okay. It'll be different for a change." Reyna smiled at him.

He smiled back at her and said, "Thanks, Reyna. You're the best." Her heart fluttered at that last part and she hugged him.

"Tell Thalia I said hi." Reyna had never actually met Thalia but she knew enough about her. She didn't know why Thalia lived with Beryl but Jason had shared some memories shared by him and Thalia before they were separated. From what she knew, Thalia was two years older than them- a sophomore in college and was currently studying in UCLA.

"I sure will." Jason smiled at her and she felt warm and fuzzy inside. She tried to ignore that feeling. Sure, Jason and she were very close but she didn't want her feelings to ruin their friendship. But then, she couldn't help but thinking what if he did like her back.

Jason being away for the holidays gave Reyna some extra time to prepare for college. She had applied to several colleges but hadn't received any acceptance letter yet. She had applied to Berkeley- her dream college and was hoping to get accepted there. She also had some time to catch up with her other best friend Annabeth. They had been in the same classes since kindergarten and they never got along until two years ago when they were both part of the student council. They both shared an interest for volleyball and had they both had an ambition to go to Berkeley.

Reyna's phone beeped.

Annabeth: Hey do you want to come over for dinner? You must be bored since Jason isn't there. Why don't you join Percy and me for tonight?

She got another message from Annabeth.

Annabeth: I'll understand if you don't want to join us. You might want to celebrate with don't you both come over?

"Hey, Hylla," Reyna said. "Annabeth wants to know if we could come over for dinner. Do you want to come?"

"Will Malcolm be there?" Hylla asked.

"Let me check," Reyna texted Annabeth and immediately got a reply. "Yeah. He's going to be there."

"Okay. I'll come."

Hylla and Annabeth's elder brother had been friends for a while and they dated in their senior year. Malcolm decided to go to the other side of the country for college while Hylla had to go to a community college and take care of Reyna. Their long distance relationship didn't work out so they decided to remain friends.

Reyna: Hylla agreed to come. When should we come over?

Annabeth: Probably around 6:30

Reyna: Okay

"You know," Hylla said. "I found a letter for you in the mail today."

"Really," Reyna said. She secretly hoped it was her acceptance letter from Berkeley. She couldn't let herself hope too much though. Maybe she wasn't good enough to go to Berkeley. Maybe they needed someone with a higher GPA.

She clenched her fists under the table and tightly closed her eyes. Hylla threw down the letter in front of her. Reyna could feel herself panicking. A bitter taste filled her mouth.

"It's going to be fine. It's just Dartmouth." Hylla said.

Dartmouth. Reyna instantly relaxed. She picked up the letter and read it.

She got accepted. It wasn't as satisfying as being accepted into Berkeley. Dartmouth was also a college which she wanted to get accepted to but what worried her was the fact that she won't be able to make visits often to her home in San Francisco. It would especially devastate her if she was separated from Jason and Annabeth.

"Cheer up," Hylla encouraged. "You got accepted, right?"

"But . . ." Reyna trailed off.

"Rey, I know it's not the same as Berkeley but Dartmouth is an option. You could get a good scholarship there with your 4.0GPA.

"Keep hoping. You haven't got your Berkeley acceptance letter yet. There is still a chance."Hylla glanced at the clock. "And there is also a chance that I may be late for work today. See you later, Reyna. I'll come by Annabeth's house after I'm done with work."

Hylla grabbed her bag and literally ran out the door, leaving Reyna on her own to contemplate her options for college.

~o0o~

"I got my acceptance to Stanford today," Annabeth said.

Reyna decided to spend the day with Annabeth since she had absolutely nothing to do. It was evening now and Percy, Annabeth's boyfriend was coming over soon with his mom and stepdad. Reyna was worried about Hylla. Her shift at work should have been over almost an hour ago and she didn't receive any text from Hylla yet.

"That's cool," Reyna replied. "I got my acceptance to Dartmouth. I'm still waiting for Berkeley."

"Yeah . . ." Annabeth hesitated.

"What is it?" Reyna asked.

"It's just . . . I don't know if I want to go. I know I've been dreaming of this college my entire life but I don't know if I can fit in there."

Reyna saw something else in Annabeth's eyes. She knew that wasn't the entire reason. There was more to it than her friend was letting out.

"Is this about Percy?"

"Uh . . ." Annabeth paused for a second. "No."

"You hesitated."

Annabeth huffed. "He tried, okay. He tried to get into a couple of colleges near Berkeley but he didn't get accepted. He got accepted to some colleges which have some good sports scholarships nearby but . . . long distance relationships don't always work out, you know and the seaweed brain only recently came to his senses and said he loves me. . ."

"He said he loves you?" Reyna's eyes widened. She knew it was coming. Ever since Percy and Annabeth started dating when they were sixteen, they seemed to be like no other couple she had seen before. They always looked at each other like the other was their entire world. They seemed to be happier around each other. Annabeth was smart and organised and Percy was laid back and an out-going guy. They were polar opposites and yet they still worked together.

"Yeah," Annabeth grinned and had a gleam in her eyes. She seemed to be reminiscing the moment in her head.

The doorbell rang and Mrs Chase, Annabeth's stepmother, ran to go and get it. It turned out to be Percy and his family.

"Speak of the devil," Reyna muttered as Percy came to sit beside them on the couch.

Annabeth's cheeks became a tinted pink. "Oh, shut up."

"You two were talking about me?" Percy asked with smug smirk on his face. "Let me guess. Were you talking about my irresistibly hot six pack abs?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "In your dreams, Seaweed Brain."

"I bet all that's under there are flabs," Reyna chuckled.

Percy frowned with feigned hurt and placed a hand on his heart. "You wound me, Rey-Rey."

"Do not call me Rey-Rey you fatuous, petulant, imbecilic, cretin."

He blinked. "What?"

"Nice!" Annabeth held her hand up for a high five and Reyna obliged.

"It's not nice for both of you to team up against me, you know," He complained. "I thought you were supposed to be my girlfriend, Annabeth."

"No way," Annabeth said. "Chicks before dicks." He rolled his eyes.

"But still. You should be on my side. Rey-Rey here wouldn't take my side even if it were the end of the world."

"For once," Reyna said. "You're actually correct, Barnacle Breath. Oh, and call me Rey-Rey one more time, you won't be alive when you wake up." She glared at him. Her absolutely menacing death glare which could penetrate anything and make even the bravest man quiver.

He gulped. "Yes, Re- I mean, ma'am."

"Good."

"Honestly," Annabeth said to Reyna. "You're better at controlling my boyfriend than I am. Whenever I yell at him, it just ends up in a make out session."

"Hey," he protested. "It's your fault you can't resist my amazing body." He snaked his arm around Annabeth's waist and pulled her to his side.

"Says the person who can't keep his hands off mine even for a second," Annabeth retorted.

"Ew," Reyna interrupted. She had an expression of distaste on her face. "Stop with the disgusting personal stuff, both of you. Honestly I don't understand how you two are all over each other all the time."

"You should get a boyfriend, Reyna," he suggested. "Then you would understand why we can't keep our hands to ourselves."

"What if I don't want a boyfriend?" she said.

"What? Are you gay then?"

She snorted and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right."

"You are?" he didn't seem to catch the sarcasm in her voice so he had a confused expression on his face. He turned to Annabeth. "Why didn't you tell me your best friend was a lesbian?"

His girlfriend rolled her eyes,"I didn't tell you because she isn't, you idiot. Besides, she likes Jason."

His eyes widened, "Jason? My buddy Jason Grace?" He turned to Reyna. "Really?"

She blushed a little. She didn't want Percy, Jason's best guy friend, to know that she had a crush on Jason. Despite getting her secret revealed, she still managed a stern expression on her face. Oh, was she going to kill Annabeth for blurting out her crush.

"Yes, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth said exasperated. "Stop acting so surprised. They've been best friends for a while. Haven't you seen the way she looks at him? Actually, never mind that. You'll forever be oblivious to other people's feelings."

"Hey! I didn't know about your feelings for me because you always looked like you wanted to punch me or something."

"Oh my gods, Seaweed Brain. Didn't you catch any of those hints?"

"Uh . . . what hints?" She glared at him. His eyes widened. "But still, it was just you, wasn't it?"

"Oh yeah? What do you call Nico, then? A skeleton zombie?"

"Well he sort of is a skeleton zombie you know . . ."

Reyna zoned out from the couple's bickering and checked her phone. Honestly, Percy and Annabeth were the perfect couple no matter how much they argued. And that's what disturbed Reyna. No matter how much they insult each other, by the end of the day, they end up confessing their love for each other. They never broke up and neither of the seemed to have even the very thought of cheating. Reyna didn't believe in love until she saw Percy and Annabeth. She knew that she can never be in such a secure relationship like them. It hurt her sometimes. And it hurt to be around them too.

She scrolled through her messages and found no texts from Hylla but a few from Jason. There was a text from him saying 'Merry Christmas!' and a picture of him in a silly selfie with a dark haired girl with Jason's electrifying blue eyes. Reyna was intrigued by the girl. She found the girl's eyes distracting. She guessed that the dark haired girl was Thalia, Jason's sister.

The girl didn't seem anything like Jason. You couldn't even guess that they were siblings unless you looked really close at both of them and compared their features. Reyna studied the picture. Thalia had a punk look on her. She seemed to have a side shave and side swept hair. The eyeliner around her eyes made her eyes look more intimidating than Jason's whose eyes were behind a pair of wire rimmed spectacles. The only other feature the siblings had in common were their strong jaw-line which made both of them look rugged.

Reyna was broken from her train of thought by the doorbell ringing. She got up to go and get it.

She didn't expect to see Hylla at the door smelling of alcohol and a tear stained face.