A/N: Wow! Thank you so much for all the reviews and follows, I love hearing what you think of it and am glad you like it! I will be posting regularly on Fridays, sorry for this one being a day late (not the best way to start I know, but I'll endeavour to improve!). Thank you for the support ~ Emma and Sarah
The hangover he had the next day was killer, but he still made it to class and crawled through the day. At lunch he sat with the guys he'd met the night before, some were from the basketball team others from the swim team, or from any sports team really, as long as they were one of the best. All he'd had to say last night was that he was the best swimmer in California and he was in, though the multiple keg stands helped.
Though he really didn't want to, he knew he had to train tonight. He had two more nights before the trails and had to be on top form. He pushed through the session hating every moment of it.
The next day passed without much consequence, some more flirting from Betty whatever her name was and Jackson practically puffed out his chest every time he walked by. He didn't mind, he had his friends now. He got on well with the captain of the basketball team, a guy name Austin Riley, but everyone just called him Riley. The guy was crazy built and the tallest of them, but he was hilarious. Whilst sitting at lunch, Riley would crack a joke about almost anyone in the room and it would have you in fits of laughter.
"So what do you know about that Jackson Kid?" he asked, stabbing his pasta with a plastic fork,
"Oh that freak?" Riley slumped back in his chair, "kicked out of every school he's been to before this one. I reckon he's got his step-dad pulling strings,"
"Is the guy someone special?"
"Nah, just the english teacher, Mr Blofis,"
"Why'd het get kicked out?" curiosity drove him as much as a need to find a weakness,
"Behavioural issues, hurting other kids, breaking stuff,"
"Huh, better to not get on his bad side then," Rory said with a laugh,
"What, you think I can't take him?" Riley said with a confident grin,
"That's a fight I'd like to see"
"You know I'd win, he's all speed, no real strength,"
"See him fight often then do you?" he said with a laugh,
"No," Riley said, but something about it sounded off, "I mean, you can just tell from that fact I play Basketball, and he swims. Anyway you coming to the game on Friday?"
He didn't like how quickly Riley changed the subject but decided not to press it,
"'Course I am."
Trials swung round before he knew it. He took a moment before heading in, taking in long deep breaths while looking in the mirror. His cool blue eyes held all the anticipation and nerves that came with important events. He'd done state competitions, but this was important. He had to prove himself.
Once he got out there, he completed his usual warm up and got ready to go. His first few heats were easy enough, he beat the others by quite a distance but that was heats. In the second round he was up against some better people, but no one like he was used to at the state competitions, he took it slow, not wanting to waste his energy, but making sure he still had a good lead. Balance was key.
The atmosphere was strange. There was still the wild rush of voices, people moving about to get to their positions, but the voices were shouting to one another, not to the swimmers in the pool, and everyone knew each other. Everyone but Rory, of course.
"Okay boys," the coach said after blowing his whistle, and waving his clipboard around as if to make his gestures even broader, "here is the final. Everyone on the final is in the squad, but we just do this for captain purposes and for fun."
The coach smiled broadly, leaning back, which was not the most pleasant sight, some guys really did let themselves go after a lifetime of exercise.
"So lane one Beasley, lane two Halter, lane three Jackson, lane four McKenzie, lane five Nixon and lane six Wilson, step up to the block boys,"
Great, the lane next to Jackson. Just damn perfect. He took a deep breath in and let the world fade out, this would be it, his chance to show Jackson who's boss. His toes curled over the edge of the block and he lent his weight back into his arms. He focused on his breathing and on that whistle, waiting, waiting, waiting…
A sharp screech came from the whistle and he was off, cutting through the water. He could hear the crowd roaring each time he broke the surface, but took no notice. He schooled his body into perfect strokes, exact movements, precision and power. It was the best he'd ever swum, he thought he might get a new personal best, but he didn't have time to think about that now.
The extra training had really paid off, his heart was beating in his chest and every muscle in his body hurt, he just kept pushing, not paying any attention to what was going on around him, no matter the temptation.
He was close to the wall, he could feel it somehow, he just had to keep pushing, but then he felt something dragging him back, slowing him down. As quickly as it had come, it was gone. It was as if it had just disappeared. When he hit the wall he jerked his head around trying to see what had happened. He sucked in quick breaths as coach read out the times. He was two seconds off his personal best, and five off Jackson. It took everything in him not to punch the edge of the pool.
How the hell could he let that happen. Now Jackson was captain and he didn't even do his best. He knew he could go that fast, he knew he was going that fast. Until he wasn't,
"Congrats on making the team, McKenzie," Jackson's voice drifted over his shoulder, he whipped his head around, "Maybe work on your stamina,"
The smirk on Jackson's face made it so damn punchable. His adrenaline was pumping enough, but something told him getting in a fight with Jackson was a bad idea, and not just because it would make swim practice awkward. So he did what everyone in his family had told him to do, he walked away.
He walked out of the changing rooms, still rubbing his head with a towel. He had been conflicted, wanting to shower and get out as soon as possible to get away from Jackson, but he was in no rush to get to the 'family' dinner his father had told him to be home for. He would skip it, but he needed to be on his dad's good side after not making captain.
He made his way toward the exit of the sports building and saw blondie arguing with someone in hushed tones. As he got closer he saw that, surprise-surprise, it was Jackson himself. He stormed past as quickly as he could, catching a few words.
"That was stupid, immature and reckless,"
"Come on wise girl, he had it coming to him,"
"You think he won't notice?" she said before seeing him walk past.
Their conversation stopped abruptly but he took no notice. He just kept his head down and kept on walking. He let his feet guide him, but something bumped his shoulder, or more someone.
"Hey, watch where you're going," he shouted to the back of her brown haired head.
She didn't even look back.
The dinner table was quiet, not that that was different to normal. Well that was on the rare occasion his Dad was home for dinner. Rory shoveled food into his mouth as quickly as possible so that he could be free of unpleasant company.
"So, Rory," the blonde woman at the table plastered on a fake smile, "your Father tells me you had swim trials today, how did that go?"
She took a sip of her white wine, her hands perfectly manicured matching her perfect dyed hair.
"I made the team," he said quickly, wound tight as a spring,
"But not captain?" his Father's disapproval was not expertly hidden,
"No Dad, not captain,"
"Son-"
"I can't lead people I don't know, I'm new to the team and I'm pretty sure this guy is the best swimmer in America, so no, I'm not captain,"
"Well at least you made the team and that's all that matters," she beamed again awkwardly,
"Jesus, you really don't get it do you," Rory dropped his fork and glared at her,
"Don't talk to your Mom like that," his father snapped,
"She is not my Mom," he shouted back,
"No Rory, you're right," he looked evenly at the boy, "your Mother is drinking herself into her grave on the other side of the country without a care in the world for you, now Linda here-"
"Maybe she wouldn't be an alcoholic if you didn't cheat on her with some bimbo," his voice was quiet and as cold as ice, "Sorry, I mean Linda,"
"Go to your room," how easily his father became bored of him, "now,"
"My pleasure,"
His PS4 was a convenient distraction. Shooting people in the head was a convenient distraction from his anger at his family. All of them. Everyone trying to make him choose a side, he was done with it. With all of them. He couldn't wait till college. Two more years.
There was a loud knock at the door which he chose to ignore, pretending he couldn't hear it. Maybe his dad would go away. The knock came again, louder and longer and he knew the next step would be to take away his best distraction, so he took of the headset and paused the game.
"What?" he said not even bothering to turn around,
He heard a loud sigh as his dad came around between him and the TV.
"You know you can't talk to her like that," he rubbed the bridge of his nose,
"I eat the food she cooks, isn't that enough?" Rory said looking away,
"Why don't you let her drive you to school? Or pick you up, or both?"
"Well I mean it would amount to more contact time than I've ever had with you,"
"Rory," he knew that warning tone, it was the only thing he remembered about his Dad from his childhood,
"Look, I don't want to be here, anymore than you want me to be here. Can we just agree to stay out of each other's way? Like we always have,"
He met his Father's gaze, he had his business face one, he didn't have a parenting face, just a look of weighing up how valuable any more investment of his time would be. Not very, it seemed.
"Fine," his father crossed his arms, "just talk to my PA about cars and sort yourself out,"
"Thank you," Rory said, but there was no warmth in his words,
When he heard the door shut, behind him he threw his headphone back on and kept shooting until he couldn't keep his eyes open any longer.
Percy stood in front of a very angry Annabeth. He tried not to smile or laugh at her while she shouted at him, he didn't do it cos she was adorable or anything, quite the reverse. She was terrifying. Something about that always made him laugh, how she could make him more scared than a hoard of a hundred hell hounds. He nervously fidgeted with his pen that he hadn't realised he'd taken out of his pocket. People always complained about his relentless fighting but that was all part of the ADHD. It helped him focus. Not that he wanted to focus on his girlfriend chastising him.
"Jesus, seaweed brain, anyone would think an extra ocean of testosterone is growing!" She hissed angrily,
"I didn't even do anything wrong," he countered, rubbing the back of his neck,
"Nothing wrong? You used your powers in front of everyone!" was he imagining her face going a little red?
"They won't notice, the mist will do it's work, no big deal," he said waving his hand in the air,
"You stopped another student breaking his PB," she said, catching herself as she noticed her voice raising, "yes I was timing from the sides, yes I looked up his PB before hand, and you stopped him getting captain for your own personal gain, you can't do that Percy," she crossed her arms,
"If I didn't know better I'd say you liked him," Percy said narrowing his eyes,
"Oh for Hades sake, don't be ridiculous," she snapped, "you're breaking the rules Percy,"
"Okay, okay, I won't," he said raising his hands in surrender,
"You better not, tampering with humans lives is not part of-" she stopped in her tracks as her eyes drifted over his shoulder. With a glance back to where she looked he saw the one and only Rory McKenzie, hood up and charging for the door.
"Part of what we do," Annabeth finished whacking him on the arm less than softly,
He glanced back at her with a wince, looking back in time to see Rory bump into someone angrily.
"Okay, I get it, no powers at school," he said meeting her eyes. He slid his hand down her arm until his fingers held hers, "Now are we gonna catch that movie or what?"
He showed her his best grin and cracked a smile out of her scowl,
"Fine," she said softening, "but this one better not be awful."
