Claustrophobia (A Percy Jackson Oneshot)
Beep beep, beep beep.
Percy groaned, shifting in his bed. What was going on? And why the Hades won't that annoying sound turn off?
Beep beep, beep beep.
Percy turned away from the nuisance, placing his pillow over his head; but unsurprisingly to no avail, the makeshift barrier did little against the alarm that was on the brink of driving him insane.
He brought a hand over to where a device was standing innocently on his nightstand and slammed the button on the object.
The sound turned off, thank the gods.
Beep beep, beep beep.
Percy sighed and fell back asleep.
Five minutes later, the sound returned.
Frustrated, Percy sat up in his bed and glared at the object that was at the fault for waking him up. It was then that Percy realized what he had pressed.
He pressed the "snooze" button.
Percy turned the alarm off and sighed, running a hand through his messy hair trying to remember his dream. It was fuzzy, but he was pretty sure that it wasn't a nightmare this time around. He thought that he should at least get some quiet dreams every now and then.
Just then, there was someone knocking on his door.
"Percy," his mom called out. "You awake?"
"Yeah, Mom." Percy replied, laying back own in his bed and closing his eyes.
"Okay," his mother answered. "Just making sure that you were up. Don't want to miss your meet today."
Percy's eyes snapped open. The meet? What meet?
"You know, the swim meet," his mom explained, as if she read his thoughts. "The one where you and your team compete against other schools to see who swims faster."
Percy's eyes widen at that. Oh crap, he totally forgot about the swim meet today!
"I'm up." Percy jumped out of his bed and began searching for his stuff that he needed for today.
"There's breakfast downstairs when you're ready." Even with her standing behind the door, Percy could just hear the smile in his mother's voice.
Percy already found his goggles, his swim cap, and his towel. But where the Hades were his swim trunks?
"Your trunks are downstairs in the living room, on the couch." His mother said, as her footsteps began to walk away.
Percy gave a sheepish smile, knowing his mother couldn't see it. "Thanks, Mom."
He grabbed the rest of his stuff, shoving it into his backpack, and headed downstairs for breakfast.
Percy entered the kitchen and sat down by the plate of blue waffles that were waiting on the table. He began to eat somewhat like a normal person until he saw what time it was, then started to stuff his face with them. It was 6:45. He was supposed to be at the school by 7:00.
Well, crap.
At least the meet is at Goode, Percy thought to himself, trying to see some hope in this situation. And not at someplace that's two hours away, like Lincoln.
But Percy's stomach was turning into mush. He couldn't believe he agreed to do this.
"So, Percy," his mother began, putting up the dishes. "Are you ready?"
Percy briefly glanced up from his blue waffles then back down to eat again. "Yeah."
He tried to sound convincing, but his voice faltered, making him sound…smaller is a word that comes to mind.
His mother turned away, frowning at him. Apparently, she heard the quiet distressed in his answer. "What's wrong, honey?"
Percy looked up at her and gave her a forced smile. "Nothing's wrong, Mom. I promise."
His mom seemed like she wanted to protest, but before she could open her mouth the clock chimed.
7:00.
Saved by the bell, Percy thought.
"Time for me to go." Percy got up from his seat to place his plate in the sink.
Percy stopped by the living room to pick up his trunks and shoved them into his pack with the rest of his stuff and headed for the door.
"Paul and I will be there at 8," his mom called out to him when Percy was at the door. "Have fun!"
"Okay, Mom." Percy replied, shutting the door. "Hopefully," he muttered, turning around and headed to Goode High School.
When the Seven returned from their quest, it took a while to settle back into their normal routines. When the new school year came around, Percy had gone back to Goode, along with most of his friends. Percy had seen Paul standing outside his classroom, waiting for him.
Paul had handed him a flyer for the Goode swim team and try-outs were going on throughout the week after school.
"Sally and I thought that it might be good for you," Paul had explained. "Especially after…you know."
Percy had the hardest time adjusting than the rest of the Seven. Everything that happened in Tartarus and the Battle of the Giants (the Giants' War, whichever. Percy doesn't really care what they named it, they still fought with giants.), Percy never gave himself time to grief over his losses. He always found something to do, whether it be at camp helping the new heroes or at school where he focused on his human side of life. He couldn't bring himself to grieve. He had to remain strong for his friends and family.
Percy shook his head, clearing his thoughts. He can't think about the past right now. He needed to be focused for the meet. Today was the first swim tournament that Goode ever went to in ten years. Percy needed to concentrate on beating the other teams.
Percy entered the natatorium that was beside the high school and went to his locker. He opened it up and shoved his backpack in there, taking out his goggles, cap, and towel.
He closed it and went to change into his trunks, then walked out to the pool. At the pool, there were other teams getting ready for the meet. Some of them were diving off the board, others were doing laps in the practice pool or stretching. Percy's team were in the middle of stretching as he made his way over to them. There were twelve of them in all, including Percy. Six boys and six girls.
Percy joined his team, stretching out his arms and legs, standing beside two of the boys and one girl.
"Oh, would you look at that!" One of the boys, a tall, lanky African American teen, struck up a conversation with him. "Decided to finally show up, huh Percy?"
Percy grinned. "At least I showed up before the meet started, Isaiah."
Isaiah laughed. "Yeah, cause if you didn't, we'd be dead."
Isaiah was about Percy's age and his height. He had short black hair and brown eyes that lit up every time the kid smiled. He had the body for swimming and he was fairly good at it too. He and Percy were tied for the best swimmer in Goode High School.
"Hey Percy!" Another boy, a skinny kid with crazy red hair and light green eyes, called out. "Are you ready to beat some Sharks?"
The Sharks were one of the teams that the Goode Stingrays were up against. The kids on the Sharks were quite competitive and annoying as Hades, thinking that they were better than everyone else. You know, just your typical everyday people that you read in books or see on tv.
"Oh, don't worry, Peter!" Percy replied back. "They won't even know what hit them."
Peter gave Percy a goofy grin in reply, as he stretched out his calf muscles. Peter was a nice kid, but whatever you do, don't talk about conspiracy theories around him. He'll go on and on about it. Percy learned that the hard way.
"I think Percy has good chance of beating the Sharks," a small, pale, red-headed girl with green eyes, Caitlyn, said. "Especially that jerk, Jack Simmons."
Jack Simmons was pretty much the VIP for the Sharks. He was actually a pretty good kid when he's not competing, but during the swimming season, Jack is quite the competition. He could either be a sore loser or a sore winner, depending on the results.
"Alright, kids. Gather 'round!" Coach Hardy yelled out five minutes later. The twelve kids went over to the coach, ready to hear his meet speech.
Hardy was a lean, mean, fighting machine. At least, that's how he put it. Coach was a well-built man, with curly brunette hair and beady hazel eyes, but don't let the angry look fool you. Underneath all of that, Coach is just a big old giant teddy bear.
"Everyone here?" Hardy called. There were instant replies to the question.
"Great," Hardy continued. "Now listen up, Stingrays, this is how it's going down: we have three teamed relay races, six teamed medleys, twelve individuals, and twelve medleys. With all of us pushing as hard as we can, and Jackson on our side, we will advance to the next level."
There were cheers at that. Percy gave a small smile, not wanting to let the team down. But there was a small part of him that was apprehensive about the meet. Ever since the muskeg fiasco in Alaska and then the giant fish bowl with Phorcys and his sister Keto at the Georgia Aquarium, Percy's claustrophobia had risen to great heights. He couldn't go a few minutes without wanting to get out of the room and get some fresh air.
Thankfully, Annabeth and his mother had talked to him about his fear and Percy was determined not to let some stupid fear of his get the best of him. He was the son of Poseidon, for Olympus' sakes! If need be, Percy could just breathe underwater while he was competing.
The meet didn't start until eight fifteen, which meant that Percy had about thirty minutes before he had to be prepared for his first event. He peered up at the stands to see if any one of his friends had showed up yet-and they did.
His friends were sitting near the top of the bleachers, talking to one another. Annabeth was sitting between Hazel and Piper; Frank and Jason next to their girlfriends; Nico, Will, and Leo were sitting below them. Percy was quite surprised to see the son of Hades here at the meet. He didn't usually come to school sponsored events. Or anything, really.
Will must have persuaded him to come. Percy smiled at the thought of the son of Apollo forcing the son of Hades to come and support his cousin. Will can be quite manipulative to Nico after the war was finished. But that's another story. Don't ask about it.
Seriously, don't.
Hazel was the first to spot him walking over to the group. She smiled and waved at him before nudging Annabeth and pointed to Percy. Percy waved once Annabeth had seen him, his girlfriend getting up and coming towards him. Soon, the others saw him and made their way to him.
When Annabeth got to Percy, she embraced him before giving him a swift kiss. "How's my favorite Seaweed Brain today?"
"I'm your only Seaweed Brain, Wise Girl." Percy chuckled. He nodded to the others. "Hey, guys."
"Oh, I see how it is," Leo complained. "You get to hug and kiss Annabeth, but all we get is a "Hey guys'?"
"I mean, if you want a kiss, Leo," Percy grinned. "All you have to do is ask."
Annabeth slapped his arm, but when Percy looked down at her, she was smiling. It's been awhile since he's seen his girl smile like that.
The rest of his friends laughed at Leo's fanatics.
"What would Calypso think, Leo?" Piper asked, grinning in return.
"I think she would slap him upside the head." Frank smiled.
"No, she wouldn't!" Leo protested.
"Man, Frank stole my answer!" Jason replied, still chuckling. "I was going to say that she would punch him."
"Why are guys making her out to be violent with me?" Leo asked.
"Because, that's what you told us," Hazel laughed. "You said that when you first arrived at Ogygia, Calypso hit you."
"No," Leo shook his head. "I said that she yelled at me. Then after we got to know each other a little better, that's when she hit me."
"Well, she still hit you," Will spoke up, smiling at everyone.
Leo stuck his tongue out at the son of Apollo, making everyone laugh.
Percy shook his head at his friend. "It's nice to see you guys caring about each other."
Once the demigods had better control of themselves, they greeted Percy; Hazel and Piper giving him a hug, along with Frank, Jason shook Percy's hand then giving him a hug after Percy had pulled him into one, and Will gave Percy a high-five. Nico just waved him hello. Then, Will nudged him and Nico rolled his eyes, giving out a long-suffering sigh.
"Hey, Percy."
"Incredible!" Leo gasped. "He does talk."
Nico gave him a half-hearted glare, the tips of his mouth curving up slightly, the others chuckling. "Shut up, Valdez."
Percy nodded, biting back a grin. "Hey Nico. How's it going?"
The son of Hades shrugged. "Good."
Just then, Coach Hardy called out to him. "Jackson! Get yer butt over here!"
"I guess that's my cue," Percy said, turning to his friends. "I'll see you guys later."
His friends wished him luck before returning to their seats, leaving him alone with Annabeth.
"Good luck, Seaweed Brain," she quietly said. She hesitated as if she wanted to say something else but she shook her head and gave Percy a quick kiss on the cheek instead. "Go show those schools what Percy Jackson is made of."
"Yes ma'am." Percy gave Annabeth a mock salute, making her laugh and pushing him towards his team.
"Jackson!"
"Gotta go," Percy sighed, before walking away.
"You got this, Percy!" He heard Annabeth call out to him.
He smiled to himself. He's lucky to have someone like Annabeth in his life. She's always supportive of him (depending on the situation) and loves him and much as he loves her.
"It's about time, Jackson," Hardy said to Percy as he finally reached the team. "I thought that I was going to have to go over there and break up that little session of yours."
His teammates chuckled while Percy blushed. He didn't mean to take that long.
"Alright, guppies," Coach circled the wagon. "You all know your events?"
The team nodded their heads.
"Then you remember the rules: whenever you hear a number that is close to yours, make sure to leave at that time so that you won't miss your event. And have a good time. Alright, hands in everyone."
The team huddled together, placing their hands on top of one another's.
"Stingrays on three," Hardy said. "One, two, three-"
"Stingrays!" The team shouted and broke apart, getting ready for their events.
"Jackson!" Hardy called Percy's name. Percy turned and saw his coach make a gesture for him to hang back.
"Yeah, Coach?" Percy asked once the team had disappeared.
Coach Hardy leaned in to make sure no one else was listening to their conversation. "Did you have any…episodes yet?"
Percy grimaced. He didn't like talking about his so-called "episodes". He didn't' know what else to call them, so he just went with episodes or incidents, depending on who he was speaking to. But the only person who had witness this was Coach Hardy. And that was by accident.
One day, after practice, Percy had decided to stay a little longer to practice his diving and flipping, which Coach was fine with. Percy had just finished his first twenty-five meters and was in the process of flipping when he swallowed some water.
Now, normally, Percy wouldn't care for something as small as that and even with his powers, it wouldn't harm him or anything. But after Alaska, Percy's brain did the only thing it could do, making Percy fearful.
He panicked.
All common sense fled from him, leaving him helpless and, more importantly, drowning. He knew then that he was fine and that he wouldn't drown, but it was a little hard concentrating at the time. Percy distinctively remembered hearing a voice calling out to him, but the detail was a little fuzzy. All he could think about was how trapped he felt, how alone he was. He couldn't tell which way was up or down. He was terrified.
Suddenly, he was out of the water, and lying on his back, a couple of feet away from the pool. He heard someone saying his name, but he chose that moment to cough up his lungs. He felt his body move onto his side and a hand patting his back, not saying anything.
Once Percy had finished repelling the water from his system, he closed his eyes and shuddered violently. Only then he realized that someone was still saying his name.
"…ackson! Can…hear…? Percy!"
Percy's eyes shot open. He glanced around him only to see that he wasn't at the pool. He wasn't even in the school. Oh no, Percy was back at that stupid muskeg in Alaska, not able to breath. His lungs felt like they were about to explode! He needed air! Why isn't he getting any air? He tried breathing but-
"Jackson!"
A hand had firmly slapped his back, making Percy gulp some air. "W-what?"
"Are you alright, Percy?" Coach Hardy's voice fluttered through Percy's foggy mind.
Percy nodded, unable to trust his voice at the moment.
Coach sighed in relief. "That's good." He then took Percy's chin gently and looked him in his eyes.
Percy quickly caught on to what the coach was looking for.
"I don't have a concussion," Percy cleared his throat.
"I know," Hardy replied. "I'm just making sure." He released Percy's chin and sat back on his heels. "So…"
"So, what?" Percy asked, confused.
His coach sighed. "Is there something you want to tell me?" He didn't sound angry, it was more like…concern.
Percy had his eyes looking at everything except for Hardy. "No, sir?" Percy mentally winced. Yeah, that sounded really convincing.
Percy didn't need to look at his coach to know that Coach didn't believe him.
Percy sighed. "Actually, I'm not…alright." Percy paused, unsure of what to say next. He can't exactly tell his coach that he's claustrophobia.
Well, he probably could, he just can't explain how it happened.
Percy slowly raised his eyes to meet Hardy's. "I went on this…trip," Percy began to explain. "With a couple of my friends. We went to Alaska, and I…"
Percy bit his lip before clearing his throat again. "I fell into a muskeg." He fell silent after revealing that.
Coach slowly nodded. "And now you fear small spaces," he finished.
Percy nodded in reply.
The pair fell into a silence for a few minutes, Percy's trembling finally slowing down when Coach Hardy decided to break the quiet.
"You know, it's okay, right Percy?" Hardy gently asked. Percy looked at his coach in confusion.
"You being scared of small spaces," Hardy answered his player's unasked question. "Because you are overcoming those fears by joining the swim team. That incident you had in Alaska, yes, it is a terrifying experience, but that experience only made you stronger."
Percy thought about what his coach said, and he appreciated the effort.
He smiled. "Thanks, Coach."
Hardy winked. "No problem, kiddo."
Percy shook the memory away and focused on Coach Hardy, who was still staring at him, waiting for an answer.
"No, Coach." Percy replied. "I haven't."
Hardy nodded. "Well, that's good, right?"
Percy shrugged. "I guess."
The whistle sounded, starting the meet.
Coach clapped Percy on the shoulder. "You better get going."
"Right." Percy hurried to meet up with the rest of his relay team.
"And Jackson?"
"Yeah?" Percy turned around to face his coach.
"Remember what I taught you." For a split second, Coach Hardy looked like a completely different person, his hair turning black and his hazel eyes becoming a sea-green with crinkle lines that said the man smiled a lot. He looked like-
Percy blinked hard. When he saw Hardy with his stone-like face, his beady hazel eyes, and his curly brown hair that was covered by his Yankees cap, Percy brushed it off as nervousness. But deep down, he was touched that his father was here to support him.
"Yes, sir," Percy replied, hiding his smile.
When Percy met his team, they were already getting prepared for the first relay race.
"Where have you been? Caitlyn hissed at him. "We're about to start!"
"Oh, relax Cake," Kris, a slightly big girl with dirty-blonde hair and deep brown eyes, said. "We still got, like, a minute left."
Peter turned to Percy and rolled his eyes, then receiving a slap on his arm from Caitlyn. "Ow!"
"Shut up, Adams," Caitlyn said.
"Make me, Sulak." Peter shot back.
Kris faced Percy and shook her head. Percy smiled at his team's fanatics.
Finally, it was their turn for the relay. Which was good for Percy, since Caitlyn took the liberty of switching topics and going on a rant about people not throwing their trash away.
"I mean, come on," she went on. You are walking out of the cafeteria. It is literally right by the freaking door! You don't even have to walk that far!"
"We're up," Percy interrupted when Caitlyn was taking a breath after finishing her speech.
Percy and his teammates went with the next group, then split up with Peter going with Kris to one end of the pool and Percy and Caitlyn going to the other end.
Percy and Caitlyn didn't talk much (at least not about rant from earlier, Percy thanked the gods), just concentrated on this event. Mostly, Percy was just hoping that nothing would happen during the race.
But then again, Percy thought as he and Caitlyn were getting set up, their other half opposite of them. When doesn't my luck go sour?
Percy was vaguely aware of Caitlyn jumping into the water with the other competitors who were doing the backstroke. He dimly heard the buzzer going off, initiating the race. He saw Peter coming down fast with the butterfly, then Caitlyn was off.
Percy helped Peter climb out of the pool.
"Nice job," Percy complimented.
"Thanks." Peter grinned. He slapped Percy on the back, noticing Kris approaching. "Go get 'em, tiger."
Percy nodded once and got ready to dive.
As soon as Kris touched the wall, Percy was off. He was swimming as fast as he could. You know, without using any of his powers and whatnot.
Percy was halfway to the other side, alternating every other stroke to breathe.
That was his big mistake.
Percy decided not to take a breath, thinking that he could survive that long. Then suddenly, he wasn't in the pool anymore. He was back in Alaska, sinking in the muskeg, unable to breathe. Percy clutched his throat, desperate to get some air into his lungs. He was dimly aware of someone taking his hand and pulling him up.
Hazel, Percy thought. Hazel and Frank were with him when he fell, they're pulling him up out of the earth.
Yet, Percy fought off the hands that were trying to pin him down. He needed air! Didn't they know that? His lungs felt like they could burst at any moment.
Percy.
Percy heard someone call his name from the distance. But that was impossible, right? He was still in the muskeg, still sinking, still drowning.
Percy!
He heard a different voice that time, but this person sounded closer than the last one.
Percy!
Percy!
"Percy!"
Percy coughed up the water that had caused this mess in the first place, keeping his eyes shut as he did so. He felt like he had drunk an entire pool of water with the rate that this was going.
"Give him some space, guys," a voice called out above him. Percy was too tired and on edge to think of the person who had spoken, just focused on expelling the water out of him.
Once Percy had the water out of his lungs, he slowly opened his eyes and found himself on his side, with grey eyes staring back at him in concern and worry.
"Are you okay, Percy?" Annabeth softly asked.
Percy pushed himself up just enough to where he could turn onto his back. He closed his eyes and took in deep breaths, coughing up water every now and then.
"Okay, boys, let's see if we can get him up and onto his feet." Coach Hardy.
"Percy." Someone was tapping his cheek to make sure he was awake. "The guys are about to help you stand. You need to open your eyes."
"No," Percy muttered softly, his voice aching from all the coughing that he did.
"Did he just say something?"
There were too many voices and too many people crowding him that he couldn't help but whimper in pain and fear. Everything was closing in on him and he couldn't breathe. Why couldn't he breathe?
A hand was placed on his shoulder and another one gently cupped his cheek. He felt his head turning to face whoever had him.
"Percy," Annabeth's voice whispered. "Look at me. Can you look at me?"
Percy's breathing hitched and he couldn't get any air. He needed air.
"You can breathe just fine, Percy." Annabeth's voice soothed him. "Now just look at me."
Percy slowly opened his eyes to meet Annabeth's grey eyes. She smiled softly at him.
"It's okay, Percy," she gently comforted. "It's just you and me, okay? Just us."
Percy was still hyperventilating, but thankfully not as much as before. He looked around to see where he was. Somehow, he had gotten to the locker room and he was currently lying on a stretcher, Annabeth sitting by his side.
"W-what-?" Percy croaked.
"You were in the middle of a race when you just suddenly grabbed your throat and started to thrash around in the pool," Annabeth explained, taking his hand in hers. She took a deep breath. "It was honestly the scariest thing in my life."
Annabeth gave him a scrutinizing look, making Percy squirm uncomfortably.
"Is there something you forgot to mention, Percy?" Annabeth asked, her tone gentle but her look judging.
Percy shook his head, avoiding his girlfriend's hard look.
"Are you sure about that?" Annabeth's voice had a hint of a hard edge to it.
Percy sighed and looked back up at his girlfriend, his face full of fear and his eyes watery.
"I-I thought that I could get over it," Percy whispered, only because his throat still ached. "My fear."
Annabeth scrunched her eyebrows together. "What fear?"
"My fear of small spaces," Percy softly replied.
Annabeth got a look of understanding on her face and closed her eyes.
She sighed. "Why did you join the swim team if you knew that you had claustrophobia?"
"I didn't know it would be this bad," Percy croaked, protesting. "I mean, there was that one time when I was practicing and it came about, but-"
"Wait, hold up." Annabeth interrupted. "This happened before?"
Percy winced. "Yes?"
"Percy!" Annabeth scolded gently. "Why didn't you say anything?"
"Because I thought that that would be the only time," Percy honestly said. "I didn't think that it would come up again."
"Percy, it's a fear," Annabeth softly countered. "Of course, it's going to come back when you're about to do something that scares you."
Percy shook his head, keeping his tears at bay. "This is stupid," he laughed bitterly. "I'm the son of the sea god, for Zeus' sakes! Why am I scared of a little water?"
Annabeth gave him a sad look. "I wish I could tell you the answer to that, Percy."
Percy gave out a shuddering breath. "What now?"
"Now?" Annabeth replied. "Now, you're going to rest."
"What?" Percy protested. "No, I'm not."
"Yes, you are." Annabeth replied. "No argument. Your coach and everyone else agreed that you should and will be resting."
Percy was going to argue, but he saw the look on Annabeth's face that clearly stated that he shouldn't push it. He sighed and settled back down on the stretcher.
"This is stupid." Percy muttered.
"So you've said," Annabeth commented. She made a move to get up.
Percy's heart picked up. He didn't want to be by himself. He wanted to have someone by his side so he knows that he's not alone.
He took Annabeth's hand. "Please don't leave."
Annabeth looked at him in confusion then looked and realized right away what he thought. He thought that she was leaving him.
"I'm not going anywhere, Percy," Annabeth promised. "I'm just going to tell your coach and your mom that you're awake and I promise that I'll be right back."
Percy was persistent. He shook his head. "No, just stay with me. Please."
Annabeth sighed and nodded, sitting back down by his side. "Alright."
Percy's heart slowed down and he released the tension that he didn't know he was holding. He closed his eyes and went to sleep, Annabeth still holding his hand.
As long as he had Annabeth by his side, Percy felt like he had someone he could lean on. And for that, he was grateful.