I woke up in the stolen car many hours later. Or at least, I assumed it was many hours later because it was really dark outside now. "What happened," I said aloud. My voice sounded like a frog and I had a headache. How did I get here? I couldn't remember anything since… since when? I had talked to Annabeth this morning and then after school I went home. Jaden came running in. Jaden? I had a bad feeling something awful happened, but I couldn't remember anything. I felt as if I'd been drugged. I groaned and started the car. All I wanted to do was flop down on my bed and pass out.

The next day, Jaden wasn't at school. I needed to talk to him about what happened. My memory was failing me. The entire afternoon was a complete blank other than the occasional unclear image. I remember blood and feeling fear. I knew I felt like I needed to get help, but why?

Additionally, I had a growing concern about the car that he'd took. I parked it on a side street somewhere and quickly ditched it, but I was still worried the police would find a way to find me. Why had I ever gotten in a stolen vehicle with Jaden? That had to be one of the stupidest things I've done. I am a rule follower; I don't do stuff like that. I only wish I could remember what'd happened, but everything seemed foggy.

"You look like crap," Alaina teased me at lunch.

"Gee, thanks," I said.

"Rough night?"

I hesitated. I wondered if I should tell her. I was almost sure that I could trust her, but a little part of me warned against it. "Yeah."

"Something happen?" she said concerned. She grabbed my hand in a comforting way.

"I think so. I-I don't remember," I pulled away. "Jaden and I, we- um…"

"You don't remember?" She sounded skeptical.

I shook my head, "Jaden came over last night and somehow talked me into doing some stuff. I don't exactly remember the details, but I'm worried since Jaden isn't at school. We were running from something and then I woke up in a car…" My voice faded out. I was not making this sound very good. Wait, a thought crossed my mind, could we have been running from the police? That would make since given the car, but something about it didn't sound right. I feared that we were running from something much worse than that and Jaden had gotten caught.

"Brice? You okay? Did you take something? Why don't you remember?"

I shook my head. I didn't know. "Alaina, you have to help me. You're the only person I can trust to help me right now." Something about those words sounded familiar. I looked at her practically begging her to help me. I was afraid that something really bad had happened.

"Don't worry, whatever you need," she nodded reassuringly. I was relieved. After all she has done to help me with Annabeth, I knew I could count on her with this.

After school, we stopped by Jaden's apartment. I sincerely hoped he was home. Maybe he was just sick or felt like skipping school today. We rang the doorbell and a woman in her mid-forties. She had frizzy ashen blonde hair and looked stressed. "Yes?" she said opening the door only a crack.

"Um, hi, we were wanting to see Jaden," I said.

"We're friends from school," Alaina added.

Jaden's mom looked at us warily, "He's not home." She started to shut the door.

"Wait!" I shouted, "Um if you don't mind, do you have any idea where he might be?"

"Why? Have you seen him? He didn't come home last night and…" Her voice was desperate and she was visibly upset.

"No ma'am. I'm sorry. I thought you would know." I spoke softly, my voice coming out small.

"Why would I know? He's probably-" she shook her head as her eyes began to water, "You guys should just go home. There's nothing you can do," she slammed the door shut.

"Well that was intense," Alaina said. She looks at me expectantly.

"He didn't come home last night," I whisper mostly too myself. A flash of him yelling at me to get help with blood gushing down his face popped into my head. "Oh no…"

"What is it?"

"Jaden, I think he was injured. We- we were attacked. I went to get help." Memories came back to me, although they didn't exactly make sense to me. We had been looking for an address his dad gave him, when we were attacked by something ( A gang?), then I went to get help, but passed out before I got there. "I think I know where he might be."

We took a taxi to Half-Blood Hill and managed to reach it by dusk. I was starting to remember things more clearly now, but it would come and go in flashes. Our attackers kept changing and once I remembered them getting run over with the car, but that was impossible. They would have died from that, not keep chasing us. When we got to the bottom of the hill, the taxi driver dropped us off. On the hill, there were traces of blood, but nobody was in sight. As we marched up the hill, I began to have that nagging feeling again, along with it growing more physically demanding. Alaina was already out of breath.

"Hey, why don't we stop and rest for a minute," she said.

"Yeah, okay," I said.

We laid on the hill resting for a moment, when I saw two figures approaching from the bottom of the hill holding hands. It was too dark to tell who it was exactly, which made me nervous, especially with all the events of late. I nudged Alaina and whispered "Hide."

We hid behind the bushes and watched the two figures stroll easily up the hill. When they got within earshot, I head a familiar voice say, "I don't understand why Chiron called me here. I mean he gets new campers all the time. What's so special about this one?"

The other voice, a male's, said "I just hope it's not another prophecy. I'm sick of prophecies."

The girl laughed. By now they were close enough to make out some features.

"Annabeth?" Alaina said recognizing them before I did. She stood up and stepped out of our hiding spot, which pretty much forced me to reveal myself as well.

"Alaina? And Brice? What are you doing here?" Annabeth asked.

"I should be asking you two the same thing," Alaina said defiantly. I noticed how she averted her eyes from Percy and focused solely on Annabeth.

"Look, I don't really know what's going on here, but we were called here by the camp director to help with something," Percy said.

I decided it would be best to concede. Although I would hate to ally with Percy, I was willing to if he could help me find my friend. If he knew the camp director, then it was my best bet of getting in. "We were looking for Jaden. He came here last night."

"Jaden? What was he doing here?" Annabeth asked skeptically.

"There… were some people chasing him I think. He found a letter from his dad telling him to come here. It didn't really make sense, but I helped him anyways."

Annabeth and Percy looked at each other, having a silent conversation. They both nodded in agreement before Annabeth started speaking. "Okay. We will help you look for him. He might have made it to camp, so we will look there. You guys continue searching here."

I wanted to go with them, but they left before I could say anymore. Plus, I couldn't seem to make it up that cursed hill! Disappointed in myself, I sat back down again and covered my face in my hands.

"Hey, it's going to be okay," Alaina comforted me, "They're going to find him."

"I know- it's just… I feel like I failed him. I was supposed to go get help last night, but I couldn't. I can't even help find him now. I feel so useless."

Alaina remained silent, but she sat down beside me and wrapped her arm around my shoulder in a comforting manner.

"Sorry, I'm acting like this," I sniffed, "I'm the guy, I'm supposed to be the strong one."

"You don't have to pretend to be strong for me," She smiled softly, "You can save that for Annabeth."

"Annabeth?"

"Yeah. There's always a chance. It will just take more time." She said, not meeting my eyes.

"Oh, yeah. I guess." I wasn't sure if that was what I wanted anymore. My emotions were all over the place right now.

We sat there together for what felt like over an hour. I was beginning to worry that something had happened to Annabeth and Percy. Me? Worrying about Percy? Something must be wrong with me today. Alaina was falling asleep on my shoulder by the time I saw figures coming down the hill. There were more than I expected. I nudged Alaina awake and pointed towards the approaching figures.

There looked to be five people coming down the hill. Two looked to be Annabeth and Percy and another one looked like one of Annabeth's friends. The other two I couldn't recognize. One was an older man in wheelchair and another small, porky man that resembled a cherub. When they got closer, I was able to make out their conversation.

"I still don't understand why I have to go," said the cherub looking man with a loud Hawaiian shirt on.

"Nobody really wants you here either," Percy muttered.

"Might I remind you Peter Johnson, I am still not opposed to turning you into an Atlantic Bottlenose," the man scoffed.

"Now, Mr. D, Percy. You know we need a god to let a mortal enter camp," the man in the wheelchair rebukes them.

Alaina and I stand up and walk towards them. "Did you find him?" I asked.

"Yes," Annabeth answers simply.

"Where is he? Is he okay? Can I see him?"

Annabeth didn't answer me and instead looked pointedly at the man in the wheelchair.

"My name is Chiron. You must be Brice," he said reaching out to shake my hand, "And you Alaina."

"Nice to meet you," Alaina said politely.

"Explain what's going on!" I nearly shouted. I was tired of these antics; I wanted answers.

"Don't worry. Your friend is safe. He is sleeping at the infirmary. I just needed to confirm a few things for myself before I let you in. Grover?"

"A-ah, yes sir! They are both human. Brice is simply worried about his friend. I don't feel any ulterior motives," Grover said.

"Very well then. Mr. D?"

"Argh, why must I do everything for you people?" He grunted. Then, suddenly, he snapped his fingers and we were in a house. Did I black out for a minute? How'd I get here? Beside me, Alaina gripped my arm. The look on her face told me that she was terrified by what just happened.

"You must be shocked." Chiron said.

"Shocked is a bit of an understatement." I scoffed. My stomach churned and I felt queasy from the unexpected teleportation, and from the looks of it, so did Alaina.

He sat us down and explained everything. Many times, I wanted to think that these people were crazy believing the Greek gods were real, but they also showed me so many things that I couldn't explain. They told me about the mist and how it affects how people perceive things. Percy told me that it wasn't him that beat me up, but actually a monster. That was also the reason for Annabeth's scars. My whole perspective on the world had changed. Annabeth and Percy being half gods, saving the world, monsters existing, gods existing! It all seemed so surreal. How was I supposed to live normally knowing all this?

"You'll probably forget it all as soon as you leave," Grover said.

"What?" How'd he know what I was thinking?

"The mist doesn't really affect people inside camp, but when you leave, I can't say what you will think happened here tonight," Grover answered.

"Then, I will forget all of this?" I asked.

"The mist works in strange ways. Mortals see what they want to see. That could mean just about anything for you," Annabeth said. "Most likely you will forget about most of this. You might remember pieces, but your mind will make up stuff to fill in the blanks."

"Enough. There is no way we can predict what will happen. Let the kids go see their friend now," Chiron interrupted, "Annabeth, show them to the infirmary. Percy I would like to speak with you privately."

Alaina and I were still feeling the effects of shock after what we just heard as we followed Annabeth down to the infirmary. Inside, Jaden was resting on a bed. He was awake and sitting with a pillow behind his back, but he looked in pretty bad shape. He had many bruise and cuts and was sipping on some odd golden looking drink. He looked up at us when we came in and grinned.

"Looks like you finally decided to show up. You looked pretty pathetic passed out on that hill," he joked.

"Good to see you Jaden," I smiled, glad that he was safe.

"Alaina, what are you doing here? Don't tell me you're a demigod too?!" Jaden said.

"No no, I just came here with Brice," Alaina answered defensively.

Jaden looked from me to Alaina to Annabeth and back. A big grin broke across his face, and he wiggled his eyebrows at me. I could practically hear him now, "Oooh, never pegged you for a player, Brice."

I shook my head at him, "Alaina only came to help me find you. We were worried."

"Really? You came to find me?" he asked Alaina.

"Brice asked me to," Alaina shrugged trying to act casual, but her face was tinted red. I guess I wasn't the only one capable of reading Jaden's expressions.

"Ahem," Annabeth interrupted, "I'm going to give you guys some space. I need to go talk to Chiron."

"Annabeth wait," I said as she turned to leave. She looked back at me.

"What is it?"

"I-I wanted to apologize to you for all the accusations I made against Percy and for trying to interfere in with your life. Even if I didn't know, it wasn't my place. I should have trusted you more," I rubbed the back of my neck awaiting her reply.

"Me too! What I did was so wrong, and I've regretted it every second since. Even if I had good intentions, I never should have done what I did. As your friend I should have been there for you if your relationship ended, not try to force it to end because I disapproved. Please forgive me! I want to go back to being your friend!" Alaina pleaded.

Annabeth looked at us in disbelief. I was afraid that she wasn't going to accept our apologies, that she hated us after all. Instead, she gave us a faint smile, "I would like that. You guys don't need to apologize. I know it is the mists fault, not yours. You were only trying to protect me. Although I was really mad about what you did, I think that from now on, things will be better. It'll still take some time though"

Several Weeks Later

Jaden was coming back to school today, and I was excited to see him. Lunch with only Eli and me just wasn't the same. Of course, Annabeth and Alaina would come sit with us occasionally. Annabeth knows some people at the camp Jaden has been staying at the past few weeks, so she has been keeping us informed of how he's doing. Annabeth was still dating Percy, but for some reason, it didn't bother me like it used to. Apparently it was all a big misunderstanding. Although I can't seem to recall what the misunderstanding was, I remember both Alaina and I apologizing for everything. I truly meant it too. Looking at them now, I don't know how I ever thought anything bad about Percy.

"Long time no see."

I turned around to see Jaden standing behind me, "Jaden!" I called out.

Jaden smiled when he saw my face.

"Dude, I haven't seen you in forever. How was camp?"

"Actually, camp was awesome. I, uh, found out some things about my family that I didn't know before."

He was acting strange, but I let it go. I'd been several weeks since I'd seen him last. "That's great!"

"Hey, um… how much do you remember about the night you visited camp?" Jaden asked me.

"I never visited you at camp. I saw you at a hospital near camp. Is that what you mean?" I said confused.

"Oh yeah, that right," he laughed tensely, "Um.. I never got to tell you last time I saw you, but I wanted to say thank you. You probably don't remember, but it was because of you that other members of the camp found me. If you hadn't of been there calling for help, I don't think I would have made it. Everyone was actually really impressed. No mortal should have been able to reach the top of the hill, but you were so determined that night. You saved me, so thank you."

"What are you even talking about?" I laughed.

"It's nothing. Forget it," he sounded a bit disappointed, but he shortly livened up. "Hey, Annabeth and Percy and their friends from camp are going to the pizza place tonight. You should join us!" he said enthusiastically.

"Sorry, as much as I would like that, I've already got plans for tonight."

"Haha, you? Plans?" Jaden teased.

"Yes, actually," I said proudly, "I've got a date."

Jaden's expression was priceless. "With a girl?!"

I smiled, Jaden's teasing wouldn't bother me this time. "Yes, with Alaina actually. It will be our first official date."

"Congratulations, man. Who would've thought? Brice and Alaina." Jaden teased..

I couldn't help but feel happy inside. I imagined Alaina and I's first date. Her pretty flirtatious smile, the way she would hold my hand, and perhaps, if I was lucky enough, the way her lips would feel on mine as I kissed her. I could imagine everything. Maybe if the gods were on our side, it would progress into something far more and we would live a wonderful, happy life together.

THE END

I hope you guys enjoyed the story. I know I didn't go into detail about what was really going on at camp, but I wanted that to be left to your imagination since this is told from the mortal's perspective. Also, in case it wasn't clear, Jaden's godly parent is supposed to be Hermes, god of thieves and travelers. I was originally considering doing a second part with Jaden and a quest, but I am not going to at this point, but if anyone would like to write it then feel free. Personally, I don't think this is good enough for a second part, and that wasn't really what interests me. (I just like cliché misunderstandings and secrets).

Please review and let me know what you thought (just don't be too hard on me, this is still the first story I've written).