I'm glad to see people seem to really like the idea. It was something I'd been tossing around for awhile, but I was scared no one would like it. Seems to get support so far. Hope you like the new chapter.

…

"Come, sit," Jason instructed, sitting cross-legged on Percy's desk. Giggling, Percy made her way over, sitting in her desk chair. She turned so she was facing her bed, where Nico sat. Jason invited the dark-haired boy over, though the brunette honestly wasn't sure why. But, he made her somewhat happy, so she wouldn't complain too much. "So Nico, tell us a little about yourself," Jason said, beginning to mess with Percy's hair. She kept it a little long, because, well, she wanted to. "Sweetie, you need to make sure you brush this lion's mane you call your hair. It's hard to work when it's messy."

"Yeah, yeah," Percy said with a roll of her eyes. But she was grateful for her friend nonetheless. He had learned how to braid and style hair so he could keep her happy. Percy wasn't sure what she'd do without Jason around.

"You know how to do hair?" Nico asked. "Man, I wish I would've learned. It would've made Ash so happy if I could style her hair when she was Ashley." Percy beamed at him. He would never want to date Jason, but same concept really. "Wanna teach me sometime?" the dark-haired boy asked.

"Course," Jason replied, scooting over. "We can practice while you tell us about yourself." Nico moved from his place on the bed and sat next to Jason on the desk. Percy glanced over her shoulder. This new boy really was too good to be true. "Well, I we moved cross country, from Cali," Nico began, watching as Jason twisted Percy's hair into a braid. "I was out as gay when I met Ash, and at first I had no idea he was gender fluid. He just seemed more…girly some days. I asked him out a few times, but he always said no. But one day, I'm assuming while he was Ashton, he said yes."

"Really?" Percy asked, wincing when Jason tugged her hair a little too forcefully. "Easy Jay," she scolded gently.

"Yep," Nico replied, nudging Jason over. It didn't look very complicated, so he took over. "Poor thing was scared to death when I showed up at his doorstep. Except, he wasn't him. She was Ashley at the time. She was wearing this adorable bright pink sweater and pale jeans. She was practically shaking when she told me that she couldn't go out because…well, she wasn't a boy that day. But I didn't care. When he was Ashton, I had a handsome boyfriend. But, when she was Ashley, I had a pretty girlfriend. It was a little difficult to accept at first, sure, and I always messed up on the pronouns. But, he was patient with me."

"This one still messes up too," Percy said, jerking her thumb towards Jason, who grinned sheepishly. He was trying. He'd looked up proper steps for weeks trying to figure out how to adjust when Percy first told him. He was mostly used to her by now, but some things still took him by surprise. "It's okay though. The point is he's trying." Jason did grin at that, because he was. Percy was still his friend, no matter her gender.

"She texts me her outfits in the morning," Jason explained. "So I know the gender. Did you remove your nail polish?" Percy looked down at her nails, nodding slowly. Ethan made a comment at lunch, so she went to the bathroom (the boys' because they wouldn't let her use the girls) and scrubbed it off. "Why? Your nails are so pretty painted. Was Daxter making fun of you again?" At that, his voice hardened some.

"Not Daxter, Ethan," Percy spoke up, because she did not want Jason fighting Dax again. She hated it when Jason fought on her behalf. "He said…he said I looked ridiculous with my nails painted and that was the reason no one liked me." Jason sighed inwardly. One of these days, he was going to deck Ethan. He was the quietest out of the bunch, but just barely.

"Sweetie, there is nothing wrong with painting your nails," Jason said, searching Percy's dresser top. She had lots of colors. He looked at her outfit again (which was still adorable). "Let's repaint them, okay? I'm sure it'll make you feel better. I have something to go with them."

"Oh?" Percy inquired, a tiny grin forming on her face. Jason also knew how to do her nails. Jason nodded, getting something from his bag. He'd meant to give them to her earlier, but he forgot after their encounter with Dax that morning. Jason retrieved the bottle of lilac nail polish, pulling the folding chair from its hiding place behind the desk. Nico had just finished doing her hair, tying it off with a pink hair tie.

"Is there nothing you can't do?" the dark-haired boy asked, aiming the question at Jason. The blonde looked up briefly from his work, gave him a smile, and set back to work. Nico shook his head, smiling himself. He'd never seen a friendship quite like this. If he didn't know any better (and he honestly didn't) then he would assume that Jason and Percy were dating. But they'd made no indication that their relationship was anything more than friends. Boyfriends kissed and held hands and things, as far as Nico could tell. "When did you learn to do nails?"

"Last year," the blonde replied. "I asked my sister if I could practice on her. She was sort of taken aback, but when I flat out told her I was doing it for Percy, she was all for it. She loves this one." He reached out and ruffled the brunette's hair. She giggled. "I just want her to be happy…" No one said anything for a long time, because neither Percy nor Nico knew what to say. Percy had heard that many times over, but she was still shocked that, after all this time, Jason still wanted to be friends with her. She would've thought the blonde would turn tail and run.

"You're a really good friend," Nico said at last. He wished Ash had a friend like that (other than him, because your partner didn't count). "I've never seen a friendship quite like yours before. But, I'm glad I ran into you guys today."

"That would make you the first," Percy mumbled under her breath, watching Jason work. The blonde looked sharply at her, but she just cast her eyes downward, and Jason didn't have the heart to say anything. He finished applying the base coat, so he released the brunette's hands. Nico studied both of them curiously. They were those friends that could communicate without even saying anything. He enjoyed being around friends like that. He wasn't one that had many, so seeing such good friends always made him happy.

"Look what I got you," Jason said softly, and Percy looked up. The blonde pulled something from his pocket, and Percy's eyes lit up. Nail art pens! "I know you've been wanting a couple," the blonde said with a shrug. "I wasn't sure what colors you wanted though." At that, he frowned. He was disappointed with himself. He always tried to know exactly what his friend wanted. "So I got white, pink, blue, and black." Percy wrapped her arms around his neck, being careful of her still wet nails.

"Thank you so much!" she gushed. Jason smiled softly. He did alright. "Can we use the white one today?" she asked shyly. Jason laughed and kissed her cheek.

"Course sweetie," he replied. "Gotta wait for the paint to dry fully though." Percy nodded, glancing back at Nico. He had this gigantic smile plastered on his face, which in turn caused the brunette to smile. In truth, Nico felt like he was intruding on their friendship a small bit. These two were obviously very close. "What do you want to do?" Jason asked his general audience. Percy turned to look at him.

"Why don't we tell Nico about ourselves a bit," she suggested. "After all, he's told us a bit about himself." She bit her lip, which was usually her cue she didn't want to speak first. Jason smiled softly.

"I'll go first," he volunteered, noticing the look of relief flash through her sea green eyes. "Well, there isn't much to know. I live with my mom and my sister. My dad vanished when I was a baby, so I don't know him. We've lived in the same house since I was born, so I've grown up here. It's been nice, I guess. People are close-minded though." He briefly glanced at Percy, who hung her head. He wanted to scream. This adorable little flower shouldn't have felt guilty for being the way she was. "Despite my reputation, and you might hear some things, I'm actually very sweet. Just don't push my buttons or make this one sad. I am worse than any mother you'll come across." Percy giggled. "Your turn sweetie," he said softly to the brunette. "Why don't you tell Nico what you told me when we first met."

"I'll get to that," Percy replied, turning so she was facing the dark-haired boy. "Unlike Jason, I haven't lived here my whole life. We moved when I was in fifth grade, and that was when we first met. We were fast friends. But, even back then I knew there was something different about me. I always kept to myself, because people like Dax existed back then." Nico nodded. He knew that. Not everyone was accepting of him being gay. People were less accepting when they realized he was dating someone who was gender fluid. "I…I liked dressing up and putting on make-up and looking pretty, even back then," Percy continued, looking at her newly painted nails. "And it didn't get me a lot of friends."

"Except for me, of course," Jason interrupted, smiling. He'd always liked Percy. There was never a reason not to. Percy gave him a smile of her own.

"Except for this idiot, I guess," she said, giggling when he stuck his tongue out at her. "Anyway, a few months after we met, I told Jason I was different, and he might want to stay away from me, because back home, I was branded a freak." Nico winced. At that young? This adorable thing had gone through too much. "He didn't care. I'm glad for that. He'd probably my only friend."

"I'm your friend," Nico pointed out, noticing the way Percy's entire mood seemed to shift. She gave him this brilliant smile. Jason nodded, giving the dark-haired boy a smile of his own. "Interesting life so far Percy." The brunette nodded, examining her nails.

"Yep," she replied. "Think they're dry enough now?" Jason chuckled. She had so much enthusiasm when she was happy. He hoped that Dax and his crew wouldn't permanently destroy that.

…

Percy swiveled in her chair, examining her nails. She sighed contently. He friends left hours ago, but she was so grateful for them both. Jason had learned how to do nail designs just for her. She smiled, liking the way the white dots and stripes stood out on her lilac nails. Then her phone buzzed, and her smile dropped.

Hey freak. Bet you wonder how I got this number. You can't hide from us forever. No one likes you, not even your weird boyfriend. Can't you see he's just pretending? Percy's eyes watered. Why? Why would Dax voice her one fear with the blonde? He doesn't like you. Not even a little. He'll dump you soon enough.

That's not true! Percy countered, praying to her lucky stars that she was right. He cares about me very much. Why else would he beat you up? She thought she had it for a moment, until her phone buzzed again.

Yeah right! It's called an act, Perseus. Percy winced. She hated her full name, even when she identified as male. And that new kid, what's his name, Nico? He doesn't like you either. They're just pretending. They pity you. How could anyone like a freak? Percy felt the tears falling. Daxter had a point. How could anyone like her? She didn't want to tell her mom about this encounter, so she deleted the messages, hoping he wouldn't text her again tonight. She punched in Jason's number, cradling the phone to her ear.

"Sweetie, what's up?" Jason asked when he picked up. But Percy didn't say anything for a minute. Why did she call anyway? "What's wrong Percy?" Jason asked softly.

"You…you like me, right?" Percy stammered. "You…you're my friend? You don't just pity me?"

"Percy, where would you get a silly idea like that?" Jason asked, horrified. "Of course I like you. You're my adorable little flower. And I don't just pity you. It's sad to see what you've gone through, yes, but I don't just pity you. I'm not pretending to be your friend. I am you friend. Who put that idea in your head anyway?"

"Daxter," the brunette said softly. "He was texting me." She heard Jason sigh.

"I'm going to beat him, I swear," he mumbled. Then; "Don't listen to him, okay sweetie? You're my best friend. And Nico is your new friend. We both like you, yeah?" Percy tried for a smile, even though Jason couldn't see it. But it felt fake, even to her.

"Yeah," she said softly. "Gotta go Jay. I'll see you at school tomorrow, yeah?" She hung up before the blonde could say anything. Her forced smile dropped. Some days, no amount of reassurance made her feel better. Was Jason just saying those things because he knew that's what she wanted her to hear? Maybe he never liked her. Maybe he thought she was freak too. "No," she said softly, examining her nails again. "He does like me. He's my best friend."

"You okay in there hun?" her mom asked, causing her to jump. She debating telling her all her doubts, but she cast the idea aside. She didn't want her mom to worry.

"I'm fine mom," she replied at last, rising. "Is it dinner time?"

"Sure is hun," her mom responded as she emerged. "I ordered pizza for us, and I rented some movies to watch." Percy smiled. Most kids would be horrified with that idea, but Percy loved spending time with her mom. "And I got cookies and cream ice cream."

"Really?" the brunette asked. "Alright!" She skipped ahead to the living room. A quiet night with her mom sounded like a good idea to her.

…

This chapter is slightly shorter than the last. I hope you like the friendship development. Percy's nickname is adorable flower I guess, lol. So far as Jason is concerned, anyway.