disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters

The girl sat by herself outside of the clichè Paris cafè, drinking a cup of hot chocolate. She never had a knack for coffee, or anything caffeine related, really. Although, she was occasionally okay with tea. She wore a cream crochet top, smiling at her glowing phone. She drank her hot chocolate with one hand, scrolling down her phone with the other.

A waiter approached her, placing down a plate that held a dish called Bruschetta de Flageolets. The girl put her phone face down, getting an extra tip from her black purse for the waiter, who had been nice to her.

"Piper?" a voice called out to the girl, who had just given the tip to the waiter.

"I'm sorry, do I know you?" the brunette looked up at the girl who had just oddly sad her name. She was dressed in a blue and navy striped t-shirt dress, her hair pulled up into a ponytail, a good few inches on her black heels, and she wore black cat-eye sunglasses.

The girl chuckled and entered the gateway that separated the outdoor cafe with the outside world. She sat across from the confused girl, who had been pondering calling her dad immediately. Piper didn't know why a random girl would just know her name and felt the inclination to just sit across from her.

Piper calmed down right away, once the stranger had raised her sunglasses up to her brown hair, showing Piper her familiar green eyes.

"Katie?" Piper looked at her puzzled. "What are you doing here in Paris?!"

The girl smiled warmly at her, "I could ask you the same thing." The seemingly native girl waved over a waiter and spoke in perfect french for her regular order. "I transferred over here for school. My mom came with me, she runs that flower shop across the street," she switched to English and she pointed, showing Piper the store.

"Wow, I didn't know you knew perfect french. Your mom's flower shop looks beautiful," Piper gushed, her gaze focused on it.

Katie shrugged her shoulders, "You get used to the french language once you live here for a few months, plus I had a good friend who taught me a few things." She winked at Piper, "And what can I say? My mom's known for her green thumb."

Piper nodded, pulling her gaze away from the mesmerizing shop. It was overflowing with what seemed like thousands of colors and types of flowers. Many people were milling around it, taking in the beauty that was Katie's mom's flower shop.

"So," Katie said once the waiter had brought her order in. "Wait are you doing in lovely Paris during the school year?"

"Oh," Piper took her fork and played around with the tomatoes, placed strategically on her plate. "My, mom, um, is in the hospital."

Katie stopped cutting her meat with her knife and fork, "Oh my gosh. I'm so sorry, Piper. That must suck."

Piper chuckled, "Yeah, it really does. Well, I'm here for one more week with her, then it's back to NY. My dad's with the doctors right now. I just kind of wanted to get out of the stuffy room, get my mind off of it, you know?"

The other girl nodded, "Totally."

The two fell into a comfortable silence, their cutlery making the occasional jingle.

"So," Piper broke the silence. "What gave me away to you?"

"Your aura," Katie joked. "The purse," she smiled widely at Piper. "I can't believe you kept it all this time."

Piper smiled a genuine smile back, "How could I not? Seriously, thank you for it."

"Anytime," Katie paused. "Are those your new friends?" she motioned towards Piper's phone case.

Piper grinned, looking down at her friends that were waiting for her back in New York. "Yeah, they are."

Katie looked at her, her expression sad. "They seem really great."

"Yeah," Piper couldn't help but smile even more, if that was physically possible. "They really are."

The other girl smiled widely, then a sly grin replaced it. "Is that your boyfriend?"

"What? Who, the latino guy?" Piper looked down at her photo. It had been Percy, Annabeth, Calypso, Leo, Piper, Jason, and Reyna in that order for the picture.

Katie looked at her confused and laughed, "Gosh no, the blonde."

"Jason? Are you being serious?" Piper laughed confusedly.

The brunette looked at her seriously. "Yes! Are you guys a thing or what?"

"Or what. Can you not see the girl next to him?!"

"YES, you! You know, you can stop lying to me now," Katie crossed her her arms against her chest.

"No," Piper said seriously, "He's actually dating the other girl next to him."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. I even helped him get her."

"Hm," Katie continued to eat her meal.

"What made you think that we were a thing?"

She stopped, mid bite then looked up at Piper, a glint in her green eyes. "The way he looked at you."

"Welcome back!" Jason gave a bear hug to Reyna. "How was your trip?"

"Lonely. My mom and sister kept on going off without me, which meant I had to take care of my cousins."

Jason slung his arm around her, "Hey, it couldn't have all been that bad."

"Oh, it was," the two walked out of the airport, the rest of the group outside, waiting for her.

Annabeth and Calypso ran up and took her away from Jason. They hugged and started complaining at how miserable they both were without Piper and her.

"Yeah," Percy said, while he swung his arms around Leo and the now abandoned Jason. "But they got the company of the most awesomest guys in the world. I honestly don't know how Reyna could survive without us."

"Mhm," Annabeth said unimpressed.

Percy shrugged and they all filed into Annabeth's mini-van, which had been the only vehicle of the group's that could fit all of them. Percy and Jason were in the front, leaving Leo with the girls who were catching up, already cracking jokes about the guys.

"Guys!" Leo complained. "Do I have to be the one that hears all of their insults of us? They're insulting my new haircut! OH DON'T YOU DARE OFFEND FREDDY THE SUSPENDERS! HE IS MY CHILD! AND WHAT DID YOU SAY ABOUT CHARLES THE JACKET?! CALYPSO YOU WERE WEARING CHARLES THE OTHER NIGHT! STOP INSULTING BUFORD THE TABLE I MADE HIM WITH MY BARE HANDS. CALYPSO STOP MOCKING ME." Leo leaned in the middle of Jason's and Percy's seats, "Guys I am being TORTURED! Can I switch with you, Percy?"

"No," Jason and Percy said in unison.

"The things I do for you two to have your alone time. Dibs on Jasey-Wasey when we get back!" Leo said, ruffling the hair of the two guys, before curling into a ball in his seat to take a nap. The drive was a long one from the airport to Jason's house, where the group had decorated it for Reyna coming back.

Reyna had been in a good mood ever since she was able to talk with the girls. It made Jason smile. It almost made him forget about the conversation he had had with Percy the day before. Almost. He couldn't help but stay up for a few extra hours, questioning whether or not what Percy had said was true, but how could it be? After all, Piper was the one to help Jason get Reyna to go to the dance with him. It just didn't make sense.

Percy noticed Jason as he drove, he worried about his friend. "Hey, you okay?"

Jason took a side glance at him, covering his confused face with a fake smile. "Yeah, it's all good."

"Dude," Percy started. "I'm sorry about, you know, yesterday. But, I couldn't help but remember oh so long ago when you had the exact conversation with me about breaking up with Annabeth. And you know what?" Percy turned around, looking at the girls who had all been filed in the back, talking non-stop. "You were actually right this time." The sea green-eyed boy smiled a genuine smile at his girlfriend before turning around and watching the same road that Jason had been watching.

Jason shrugged and continued to watch the road as he drove, seeming to not want to pay attention to Percy.

"Just, I don't know, hear me out just this once. I've made some stupid mistakes in my life. Don't make the same as I did and just skip to the happy ending. It's a lot better, trust me."

Jason shrugged again.

Percy sighed, "I tried."

•••

Reyna's party had been a success, full of food, jokes, and, most importantly, games.

The group had first played Twister, Leo becoming the victor in the end. The latino boy knew how to worm his way around people and was still able to hold his balance. He owed his victoriousness to Jason, who had taught him how to touch his toes at the young age of 12. The next game they had played was couples' Pictionary. Annabeth, proving to her already very competitive self, that she could still win, even though half the time she would be yelling, punching, or doing both to Percy. Afterward was the intense game of heads up, Jason and Reyna finishing at the top by one more against Annabeth and Percy.

Percy wouldn't be able to hug Annabeth for a solid week because of that loss.

Calypso and Leo had one in the hula hoop contest, they proved to be very great hula hoopers with Leo being able to touch his toes and Calypso able to touch Leo's head. At least that's what Leo said during their acceptance speech. Then it was Monopoly, in which Annabeth and Reyna were extremely competitive during it. What was different, though, was that the guys and girls were split up. Percy, Jason, and Leo proved to be excellent businessmen, beating the other girls who were devastated.

The most important game, though, was the dance contest. Reyna, Annabeth, and Calypso had choreographed a full number from hand movements to kicking in unison, but the real highlight was when Leo started to strip and made Percy join in as well. Jason had gone to the bathroom, but when he came back out he walked into a room of Leo jumping up and down on the sectional, singing Hannah Montana in nothing but underwear and socks. Percy had been on the floor doing the worm and break dancing in the same outfit as well, but he was singing High School Musical.

Jason missed all the fun.

The group had fun, but Jason couldn't help but know that there was a missing piece in the group. Piper.

He quickly forgot about it, though, when he and Reyna went to grab a late-afternoon coffee after the party. The two walked along the snow melted sidewalk, winter proving to almost be officially over.

The couple held hands, making the usual small talk: Reyna talking about what she was planning to do in student government and Jason stressing about college. Of course, Reyna told him he had nothing to worry about, but she had already been planning to go to a summer program at one of the amazing colleges that would most likely accept her. Jason, though, he didn't even know what he wanted to do.

The subject had been changed when Reyna started to talk about Puerto Rico and how much she had loved it there, even though her company was terrible. She had gotten so much inspiration from being there, she surprised herself when she never wanted to leave.

"So what should I do?" Reyna asked as they entered the coffee shop and fell in line.

"You can always go over the summer, spend it there, embrace the heritage and culture it has to offer," Jason said as they got to the front and paid for the two coffees he ordered.

Reyna nodded thoughtfully, "Yeah, but, what if I fall out of love with it if I wait too long?"

"Do you want to go now? Before we even finish this year?" Jason didn't sound offended, but truly curious. He didn't know what it felt like to want to do something so much that he couldn't wait.

The two took a seat across from each other in a booth by the window. It looked out to the local park, kids swinging and laughing.

"I really do," Reyna nodded earnestly; she took a gulp of her coffee.

Jason nodded, trying to understand what she was saying. "Have you talked to your mom about this?"

Reyna looked down at her cup of coffee, her fingers moved in a synchronized pattern. "Yeah, she's actually all for it. She thinks it would look great for future jobs and colleges, you know, doing service and stuff like that over there."

"Wait, you mean she's alright with you just leaving before our junior year is over?" Again, Jason didn't seem angry, but he just seemed genuinely confused.

Reyna took another gulp of her coffee, "I know, it's really out of character for her, but at least it's a good out of character than a bad, right? Anyway, I'll be only gone for a month and when I come back you can always help me to catch up."

"Yeah," Jason smiled at her. She seemed really happy, he should be happy for her too. "So, are you going to do it?"

"Well, I mean, I have family over there, so I'll always have a place to stay. I still haven't told Annabeth, Calypso, or Piper yet. Also Leo and Percy."

"So I'm the only one you told?" Jason felt honored.

"Course," Reyna smiled at him. "You're my boyfriend."

Jason had almost completely forgotten that. The two used to always go and grab a coffee casually, even before they were dating. He didn't know why, but it felt weird hearing her say that. Percy's conversation started to come back in his head, but he quickly shook it away, leaning in to kiss Reyna. He didn't know why, but Jason felt the need to prove to himself why he was doing this. He was going to win the game.

"Hello?" the girl had picked up her phone. She was walking along the many sidewalks of Paris after she had had lunch with one of her old friends.

The voice on the other line sounded panicked, flustered. It made the girl feel obligated to calm the person at the other end. She reminded him to breathe in deeply; in and out, in and out. The voice calmed down on the other end.

The girl walked into one of the sidewalk stores, a flower shop that was blooming with thousands of beautiful flowers. It reminded the girl of New York; the overcrowded sidewalk stores, but it also gave character to Paris. She liked places that didn't sell over-priced souvenirs, they were too touristy for her. Although, she did come from New York City.

She picked up a full daisy, she brought it up to her nose to smell it.

The voice on the other end started to talk again, but now in a calmed down voice. "Piper, it's your mom. You need to come back, quickly."