Zoe Jackson was late to school again, as she rushed to throw on a t-shirt and jeans. It was 8:30AM, and first period started in ten minutes. Not that it mattered, considering she'd been late every day this week. Ever since Annabeth had gone back to Camp Half-Blood in hopes of re-creating the camps infrastructure, given she had received a degree in architecture while living at Camp Jupiter after the war with Gaea, she had no one to wake her up. Her brother Lucas was shuffled to school with her father, who had become a teacher, and she was all alone in the house.

She rushed out of the house finally, after ten minutes of trying to find her Yankee cap that her mother gave her, to hide her fray of messy brown hair. With her backpack slapping against her as she ran, she made it to school at almost 9AM, almost half the period wasted and her history teacher giving her a scolding look before she plopped into her seat, luckily, near the front of the class.

After the bell rang to dismiss the class, Mr. Enoch called her up to his desk. She sighed profusely, already knowing what their discussion would be about. "Miss Jackson, have you been aware of your lateness this week?" He eyed her wearily. She boiled underneath his stare. He was her least favorite teacher.

"Yes, sir. Everyday, sir." She exclaimed with a huff, eyeing the clock. She knew she'd already be late for english, and Enoch would make sure not to send her to class with a late pass. Zoe tapped her shoe against the tile.

"I'm glad you're aware." He clicked something on his computer, and then she seen her name – and her grades. Oh, her sweet grades. Zoe almost choked, staring at her fifty average, sitting there, all in red. "Every day I deduct points for being late. The quarter ends on Friday, and frankly, there is no possible way you're going to pass."

Zoe trembled. She couldn't believe her failing grades were because of lateness. Every day. Annabeth would be very disappointed. But she didn't have to know, did she? Zoe could wait to spill the terrible news when her mother returned, which could be months from now. Some type of relief swept over her, but then Mr. Enoch spoke again. "It's not just your lateness, Miss Jackson. But your test scores aren't very exquisite either. I'd recommend a tutor."

The bell had rung twice. She was officially late for English, and was blasted with such bad news that all Zoe wanted to do was go home and sleep under her sheets with a good book. "A tutor?" she gulped, looking from Mr. Enoch to the clock on top of the door.

"I could ask one of my students to help you. One of my best students," at this, Mr. Enoch actually smiled, which was the most emotion Zoe had seen him express. Her history teacher pulled up a sticky note and wrote down the students email, sliding it towards Zoe. She took it in irritation, shoving it into her jean pocket. "His name is August. I'm sure he'll be a help."

Mr. Enoch didn't turn around again, and she walked out of the classroom without asking for a pass, knowing she'd go home after this. This was too much to handle. Failing classes, her mom gone on a trip for who knows how long, taking care of her brother – everything was overwhelming. It seemed as if all her responsibilities fell on top of each other, and suddenly Zoe was crushed.

Zoe left school that morning burning, and as she headed home, she slipped into her bed, and it was unknown to her what time she awoke. Her dad and brother luckily hadn't arrived home yet, and she cleaned herself up to make it seem like she'd been working hard at school and was exhausted, like usual.

In the midst of grabbing lunch – she hadn't eaten breakfast, yet again – her phone rang. The fast rhythm of Paramore strutted out, and she picked up her phone realizing her father was calling. Rolling her eyes, wondering what he wanted now, she pressed ACCEPT on her keypad, pulling the phone up to her ear. "What now, dad?"

He only laughed on the other end, amused by her attitude. "She's a teenager," he had said to her mother when she answered her the same way, "she had a lot on her back." He had been right about that. "I need you to pick up Lucas at school. I have business to deal with after work."

It wasn't even like Zoe had a choice. Her father thought she was at school, and now she'd have to lug herself all the way to Jupiter Elementary to pick up Lucas. She sighed into the phone, muttering a quick, "Sure" before hanging up. She didn't give her father any time to respond. Before leaving, she crushed an apple into her mouth and headed out the door, making sure it was locked twice before stepping outside.

The walk to her brothers school wasn't as far as she made it out to be, but the weather was sweltering this time in the year, even though Zoe was still persistent on wearing jeans in any type of weather. The cap didn't do much either, as her hair soon became a puffy mess, thanks to the humidity and sweat collecting behind her neck.

Jupiter Elementary was large enough to be a high-school, with six floors and a bustling amount of children. Many parents came to pick up the kids, but some who didn't live on the other side of the camp tended to walk home alone. But her brother was only seven, and was not trusted. Zoe made her way through the lines of children, knowing that her brother usually waited at the far west corner of the school. He always sported a yellow backpack, his favorite color, but on this day, she hadn't spotted him. She waited for the kids to clear, and as they did, Zoe still could not seek her brother. She was about to call her father to ask if Lucas had had a playdate, because he was nowhere to be found.

"Lucas!" she called, worry, then dread began to fill her. Where could he have gone? Camp Jupiter was the safest place to live, there was borders protecting them everywhere. It was not like he was taken. Or could he have been? She looked between the now empty streets and the other end of the school. She didn't see any little boy with a yellow backpack.

Before she could call her father, she seen him coming towards her. She ran to him, arms outstretched, his face warm and happy, hers worried and sickened. She suddenly felt relieved, closing tight around his small figure before letting him go. Her dismayed face allowed him to become nervous. "Where have you been?"

"I was talking to the shadow-man," he said, bending down to tie his shoe laces. Zoe rolled her eyes, knowing fairly well that her brother was too caught up into his imaginary friends. She had told her father this, but like everything else, he laughed it off. Angry, but still relieved that her brother was fine, she took his hand and headed home, forgetting about the shadow-man and her worries.

During dinner, her father was looking at her with a knowing look, and Zoe wasn't sure what she was in trouble for: skipping school, failing a class, or both. She waited for her brother to head to the bathroom to wash up for the night before she turned to her father. "Is there something I'm in trouble for?"

Her father sighed. Percy, unlike Annabeth, wasn't hard on his children about their grades, considering their ADHD and dyslexia, which only went away when reading Greek. Her teacher had called him earlier, because he couldn't get in touch with Annabeth. "I don't want to lecture you. I know you try. But your mother, when she hears about this . . . knowing I didn't do anything. She'll kill both of us."

He smiled. She sighed.

"Enoch told me get a tutor, so I did. Doesn't mean I won't fail," she exclaimed, slamming her hands onto the table, almost knocking over the glass. "Its just too much, y'know? Mom gone, you're always at work, school overwhelming. I didn't even realize my grades were slipping until last minute."

Her father didn't know what else to say, so Zoe left it at that. She headed to her room, locking the door and blasting music that her mother didn't like. Her father reminded her of the email address Mr. Enoch slipped her earlier in the day, and she pulled up her laptop. Did she really want this help? You need it, she reminded herself with a sneer, mom might not punish you now, but she will punish you later. With an exhausted sigh, she opened up her email and typed in his address and then sent him a message.

Dear August,

Enoch said I need to be tutored in history, and he said your his best student to do the job. (You should be pleased). Anyway, considering I don't want to fail next quarter, I was wondering when we could meet. Just e-mail back when you have the time, and i'll let you know if I have the energy.

XX Zoe Jackson.

She pressed send, and then jumped into a deep sleep, exhausted by everything.