Percy's POV
The first thing Percy did when he came to was choke.
There was some sort of tube down his throat, and, feeling panicked, started gasping for air. The monitors surrounding him started beeping erratically, and a nurse ran into the room.
"Hold still, hon, I'll take this out," the nurse said, coming to stand by his head. Percy complied, and the nurse removed the intubation tube from him throat. Percy coughed heavily and the nurse attached a nasal cannula to him.
"I'll send the doctor in to explain things to you as soon as he has time," the nurse said, after adjusting his oxygen. "Do you need anything meanwhile?"
Percy shook his head.
"Drink this," the nurse instructed, pouring him a glass of water from the pitcher beside his bed. She held the straw up to his lips, and he took a sip. Walking to the end of his bedside, she grabbed his chart.
"I know your name's not John Doe," she said, smiling at him. "My name's Angela. What name can I put on your record?"
"Percy Jackson," he rasped, surprised at how gravelly his voice sounded.
"Okay, Percy," Angela said, making a note. "Is there anyone I can call for you?"
"I-I don't think so," Percy said after a short pause in which he thought of first Jason, then Annabeth, then Rachel, and not thinking any of them would visit him even if he asked.
"Alright, then I'll go get the doctor," Angela said. "Oh, also, there's a woman here to see you, she said it's urgent. Can you speak with her now, or should I tell her to wait a little longer?"
Percy shrugged. "Send her in, I guess."
Angela nodded, then headed out of the room.
Percy then tried to assess the damage to his body. From what he could see, as only his arms and chest were not covered by the hospital sheets, approximately fifty percent of him was covered in bandages. He felt dizzy and lightheaded, and took another sip of water as he observed the many tubes attached to his body.
A sharp succession of taps was heard, and Percy looked up to see a woman dressed in a business suit standing in the doorway. She was average height, with straight brown hair and green eyes, yet seemed vaguely familiar. She gasped when he made eye contact.
"Oh my God," she said. "You're the kid I hit with my car a while back."
Percy flashed back to a vague memory of pushing Rosie out of the way of a green sedan.
"I thought I recognized your name," Percy said, remembering the business card she had given him. "Come in?" he invited, gesturing to a chair in the corner.
"Hi Percy," the woman said, nodding at him. "I'm Nikole Themis. We spoke on the phone, but I had no idea it was you."
"Oh, uh, right," Percy said, thinking back to his phone call. "We're supposed to meet on Sunday."
"Yesterday," Nikole corrected. "Today is Monday. You've been out for over twenty-four hours."
"Have I really?" Percy asked, mildly surprised. "The doctor hasn't spoken with me yet. Sorry I missed our meeting."
"That's not the issue," Nikole said, sighing heavily and gently lowering herself onto the edge of the chair.
"Well, what's wrong?" Percy asked, feeling his stomach tightening as he tried to sit up straighter.
"Percy, Mr. Tasia, the man you allegedly attacked in the store, died today," Nikole said bluntly.
"What?" Percy asked incredulously. "How?"
"There were complications," she explained. "The man had a stroke as a result of the head injury, and he passed away early this morning."
"How is this going to affect the case?" Percy asked nervously.
Nikole looked him in the eyes with a serious expression. "Percy, this case isn't just about robbery anymore. The state is charging you with second-degree murder."
"What does that mean?" Percy asked in disbelief. "I could go to jail for life?"
"I don't know about that," Nikole sighed. "It depends how the case turns out. There's not a lot of evidence to counter the fact that you were found at the scene of the crime, with your pockets full of stolen jewelry, and your fingerprints all over the murder weapon. And it doesn't help that you were supposedly drinking the other night, but nothing can be confirmed until we get your lab results back. Oh, and you're under house arrest until further notice."
"But why am I being charged with murder now?" Percy questioned. "Not only did I not do anything wrong, but now I'm getting in trouble for the complications caused by something I didn't do?"
"Percy, no jury is going to say of a hoodlum, 'We think he's guilty, but not very.' It's either prison or acquittal, nothing in between."
"Anything more bad news?" Percy groaned.
"Actually, yes," Nikole shook her head sadly. "The police need to talk to you about a rape allegation."
"What!?" Percy exclaimed. "No way. Is that what Drew's saying happened?"
"Well, yes," Nikole said. "Did you?"
"Did I what?" Percy asked.
"Rape her."
"No! Why would you even ask?"
"I just need to get the story straight before—"
"Look," Percy said angrily. "That is the opposite of what happened. She drugged me, drove me out to some sketchy place, then took off my clothes. I didn't want to. She's a liar!"
"I'm not sure if you're aware of the amount of influence the Tanakas have on this town," Nikole said. "I believe you when you say you didn't. But I would be very careful if I were you about turning the allegations on her."
"Whatever," Percy scowled. "She has to drop the charges though. I did nothing wrong."
Just then, a doctor in a white lab coat stepped in through the doorway.
"Good morning," he nodded to Nikole. "Could you give us a moment of privacy please?"
"Of course," Nikole said, gathering up her things.
"I'll be back later, Percy," she said, nodding at her client. "As soon as the lab work comes through, I'll have the hospital call me. Good luck, kid. And, for the record, I'm apologizing again for the, uh, incident."
"Don't worry about it," Percy shrugged.
Nikole turned and closed the door behind her as the doctor started speaking.
"I'm Doctor Reed," he said, flipping through a chart. "It looks like you sustained some pretty serious injuries, Mr. Jackson."
"Could you tell me what exactly happened?" Percy asked.
"Certainly," Dr. Reed nodded. "At around ten o'clock on Saturday night, you were in a car with another young lady. She ran a red light, and your car collided with a semi-truck, killing the other driver. The young lady was in critical condition, but thanks to the young man who called 911, rescuers were able to get the two of you out in time. You sustained injuries to your entire body because you weren't wearing a seatbelt, and you flew into the windshield. Due to your major concussion and some swelling around your brain, you had a grand mal seizure, but we rushed you into surgery to alleviate the pressure. You shattered several ribs and fractured your clavicle and sternum, which caused a pneumothorax, and when we re-inflated your lung there appeared to be some scar tissue, which could have been caused by pneumonia. We started you on antibiotics to make sure you don't get another lung infection. But, aside from the rest of the lacerations, avulsions, and abrasions, I would say you're a lucky man."
Percy was silent for a long moment. "That sounds really expensive," he said finally.
"Surgery isn't cheap," the doctor agreed. "Your insurance covered some, but not all, of the expenses. But right now, you just need to focus on getting better."
"Look, I don't think you understand," Percy said, trying to sit up. "I really can't afford this, I need to get home and—"
"You're in no shape to go anywhere," Dr. Reed cut him off gently. "We need to keep you here until we're sure you're not at risk for developing an infection."
"Look, I can't afford this," Percy said flatly. "I'm leaving, take this stuff off me."
"I am highly recommending you stay here at least one more night—" Dr. Reed started, but Percy shook his head.
"Just give me drugs or whatever, I'll be fine.
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Against the Doctor's better judgement, Percy was discharged from the hospital with a paper bag full of prescription meds and a detailed list of when and how to take each one. As his legs were about the only things not damaged in the crash, he was able to walk to the front of the hospital.
After meeting with a police officer who told him that he would need to be escorted straight home, and only be allowed to leave his house to go to school due to the terms of his house arrest, Percy was waiting in the lobby for his escort.
"You okay?"
Percy looked up to see a familiar face.
"Is that a serious question?" Percy scowled. "Do I look okay?"
"Not really," Officer Poseidon said, shaking his head. "Just thought I'd ask though."
"Thanks a lot," Percy rolled his eyes. "Just do your job and take me home."
"Whatever you say," Poseidon said, gesturing for Percy to follow him.
They headed into the parking lot where they got in a police car, and Poseidon drove off.
"So, I heard about Mr. Tasia," Poseidon said. "Really unfortunate."
"Unfortunate?" Percy scoffed. "That doesn't even begin to describe it."
"Can I ask you a question?" Poseidon asked. "What with everything going on, why the hell were you with that girl the other night?"
"Why do you care?" Percy demanded. "So you can testify against me in court? So you can treat me like a criminal like everyone else who thinks I'm a liar?"
"No, not at all," Poseidon said quickly. "I'm trying to help you, Percy. Everyone wants to know the truth. I understand how difficult this must be for you, and—"
"You don't understand how difficult this is!" Percy shouted at the officer. "Nobody believes me!"
"I believe you!" Poseidon shouted back.
Percy stared at him in shock. Several long moments passed in silence, before Percy was able to speak.
"Y-you do?" He stuttered out, and Poseidon rubbed his brow and sighed.
"Yes, I do. You had no reason to steal that jewelry. It was a stupid crime, and you're not a stupid kid."
"Yes I am," Percy said immediately, thinking of all the times Gabe had insisted he was.
"No you're not," Poseidon said firmly. "And don't let me hear you say that again. You're a bright kid. I've seen your school records, and before your mom went to the hospital you were in all the honors classes making straight A's."
"That was like, sixth grade—" Percy protested, but Poseidon cut him off.
"That's irrelevant. The point is, I know you're smart, and you better act like it, or else when it's time for you to testify we won't be able to get the jury on our side," Poseidon said matter-of-factly as they pulled up to Percy's house.
"Well, we're here," the officer said, putting the brake on. "Good luck, kid."
"Thanks for the ride," Percy said, pushing the door open then slamming it shut.
However, before Poseidon could put the car back into drive, the door opened again.
"Forget something?" Poseidon asked, glancing at the floorboards for a bag or wallet.
"No- well, kind of," Percy muttered. "I just wanted to say, uh, thanks. For, you know... Believing in me, I guess. No one else really is right now.
Poseidon was slightly taken aback, but he smiled at Percy. "Anytime, kid. Now, go stay out of trouble, and I'll see you next week for the trial."
"Yessir," Percy said, then shut the door for the last time.
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Jason's POV
For this first time in his life, Jason was seriously considering skipping class.
How important is Pre-Calc to my future success, anyway? he thought to himself as he anxiously drummed his fingers on the side of his leg, staring at the door to the classroom. What if Percy wakes up and there's no one there for him?
"Jason!"
Jason turned to see a familiar blonde girl walking briskly towards him.
"Are you gonna go visit Percy?" Annabeth asked. "If so, can you take me with you?"
"I dunno," Jason shrugged. "He might not want to see me."
"Why not?" Annabeth asked.
"We . . . had a fight," Jason said lamely, and Annabeth frowned.
"I heard you didn't believe him" she stated. "I heard that Percy Jackson got arrested, and not even his best friend believed he was innocent. I didn't think that was possible when I heard, but let me ask you myself: were you on his side?"
Jason hung his head, ashamed. "No."
"Why not?"
"I was mad at him," he tried to explain. "I had a lot of stuff going on and, I dunno, he'd been lying to me before and . . ."
"Look, I haven't known him a long time, but I do know he wouldn't do something like that," Annabeth said. "The guy who stood up to Luke for me, who loved his mom like crazy, who came to my piano recital without me asking him to—that guy wouldn't kill someone and rob a jewelry store. That's ridiculous. Your best friend almost died this weekend thinking you hated him. You need to go to the hospital and talk to him."
"I can't. I have nothing to say except 'I'm sorry,'" Jason said desperately.
"What makes you think that's not enough?" Annabeth challenged. "Let's go."
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A/N
Reviews remind me to write, so thank you to all who have reviewed:) Can we get to 900 reviews? 9,000 people have read this story since my last update, so if just one in every 10 people reviewed that would be fantastic3
You're the best.
Summer classes start tomorrow for me, so I'm not sure how much writing I'll get done, but we'll see.
Also, to the guest reviewer jen, that's awesome! Good luck in nursing school:)
Don't forget to wish your moms a Happy Mother's Day!
Xoxoxo,
EmMarie