"I already hate this," Frank whispered. A small smirk came to Reyna's face, and she nodded her agreement. Frank's heart felt like it was going to beat out of his chest as he looked around the room they were in. A crowd of people swarmed in front of the stage. The front row was filled with reporters and leering cameras, ready to air this conference on television for all to see.

Frank had done this only once before. The face-offs were something that he hated. Why did he have to stand across from his opponent and try to look intimidating? Why did they have to do weigh-ins? It just caused the reporters to speculate on his weight loss and if he was using steroids. Which he wasn't.

Frank glanced at the audience. Annabeth and Hazel were sitting in the second row. On the stage, Lupa was on Frank's left, and on Reyna's right was Octavian. Frank leaned forward and looked at Micheal Kahale. He studied the two men that sat next to future opponent. Frank wasn't sure which one was his trainer and which was his manager,

They had already done the weigh-ins. Frank came in at thirty pounds less than his opponent. It wasn't the death kneel that a few analysts said it would be, as Frank didn't think he would get into a grappling match with Kahale at the beginning of their fight. It was going to be a boxing match with Frank trying to weaken Kahale's legs.

After the weigh-in, Frank had stood face to face with Kahale. Instead of talking any kind of trash, Kahale held out his hand. Frank shook it, and they both gave each other nods. Frank returned to his table and watched Reyna do her weigh-in.

In her face off, Reyna said something quietly to Silena, but Frank knew it was nothing but respect. With a single exception, Reyna didn't insult her opponents. She treated them with respect. The last weigh-in was between Lavina and Leila, and Frank could practically feel Annabeth's analyzing gaze from the crowd.

The next part was for the reporters to ask their questions. They started with questions for Leila and Lavinia, and it was mostly questions about how they felt going into a contenders fight and their strategies. Truthfully, Frank zoned out. It wasn't that he didn't care, but his mind was so full of what he might be asked and what he would say.

Sure, Octavian was sitting next to him, but Octavian wasn't going to say a word to help him. Frank had to speak for himself. It did make him feel better that Lupa was by his side as well, and everyone had told him to be himself. He didn't need to give the reporters a soundbite. All he needed was to get through the questions and treat his opponent with respect.

Frank had learned that respect was something Lupa liked to hammer into them, and he understood it. If you disrespected your opponent, it would only fuel them, and you would look like a fool if they beat you. It was also just the right thing to do. The person who respected their opponent wasn't always going to be the most popular. If you want to be the most popular, you were fighting for the wrong reason.

Frank wanted to be one of the best in the world, just like the rest of the Wolves. He was lucky enough to be the only male at the moment, as he didn't want to have to compete with any of the others for the title of the best male. He knew that he wasn't going to win the award for best fighter regardless of gender when compared to Reyna or Annabeth.

As Leila and Lavinia finished their questions, Frank decided to tune back in. He wondered what his questions would be about, but he could guess the first topic: steroids. All he wanted was for the reporters to stop trying to making a story out of something that wasn't happening. If he had ever been caught using steroids, he would understand, but he had never used any drugs.

Frank wasn't sure if he or Reyna would be questioned next, and his gut started to twist. All he needed to do was calm down and breathe. Reyna gently squeezed his forearm and shot him a warning glance. Frank relaxed and gave her a small nod.

"Does anyone have any questions for Miss Ramirez-Arellano?" the presenter asked. Frank watched a few reporters start to raise their hands. He glanced to his side and saw that Reyna was sitting up straight. She looked confident, but her hand drifted near her elbow. Everyone knew that the first few questions asked would be about Reyna's injury.

"I have a question!" a voice called. Frank's attention shot back to the crowd, and he tensed as he saw the woman stand from the audience. Clarisse La Rue pushed past the reporters and stepped onto the stage. "I just want to know why you're such a coward."

"Reyna, do not," Lupa warned. Frank risked a glance at Reyna and saw that all of her attention was laser-focused on Clarisse. "Do not let her get to you. Just ignore her."

"I think it's a question everyone is wondering," Clarisse mockingly called to everyone in the room. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw security inching forward. They looked hesitant to interfere, and Frank knew they wouldn't unless punches were thrown. He also knew how bad Reyna's temper was.

Clarisse walked right towards their table and pressed her fists against it. Reyna glared up at her but didn't move. Frank could see her hands were on her lap, but they were shaking. Clarisse leaned forward into Reyna's microphone and spoke, "You're too scared to fight me again. That's why you want to fight my best friend."

Reyna's hand clenched into a fist, and Lupa grabbed her arm tightly. Clarisse smirked and covered the microphone in her hand. She whispered, "I enjoyed hearing you scream, and I can't wait to hear it again."

Two hands suddenly grabbed Clarisse, and she was pulled backward. Silena said something to her, and Clarisse just smirked. As Clarisse turned back to the table, Reyna stood and slammed her fists down on the table. The two stared each other down, and at any moment, Frank expected Reyna to lunge to action.

"Is that why your mother didn't want you?" Clarisse asked, and this time it was loud enough for the microphone to pick up. Frank saw the murderous look in Reyna's eyes, and he stood. He wasn't just going to sit by and let Clarisse get away with insulting his teammate.

"Why don't you leave her the hell alone?" Frank demanded. Clarisse turned towards him.

"You want to fight me, big boy?" Clarisse teased.

"No. I want you to leave Reyna alone," Frank answered. "You're so insecure in yourself and your skills that you have to cheat. You had to break Reyna's arm to get the fight thrown out because the entire world knew you had lost. Now, you can't stand that Reyna doesn't want to waste her time on you, so you have to interfere in her press conference to stay relevant."

The rage that came to Clarisse's face scared Frank a little. Then, Silena pulled Clarisse backward again and seemed to argue with her. Lupa stood and spoke, "This press conference is over."

Octavian stood and hesitantly grabbed Reyna's shoulder. She didn't fight him. Instead, she allowed Octavian to lead her away. Frank quickly followed behind while Lupa stayed out there. As they made it backstage, Reyna pulled away from Octavian and raised her fist to punch the concrete wall.

Instead, she pressed her fist against it and then her forehead. The Spanish words that left her mouth were enough to cause Frank to tense because he knew the English translation would not be good.

"She's just trying to rattle you," Octavian attempted to quell Reyna's building fury.

"It worked," Reyna snapped as she turned on him. She brought both hands to her head and seemed to be fighting a losing battle with her temper. She finally lost the battle as she turned and punched the wall as hard as she could. Frank tensed as he heard a bone crack, but to her credit, Reyna didn't yell. She just buried her face against the wall and let out angry, pained breaths.

"What are you doing?" Octavian demanded. Reyna didn't answer. She just slowly turned around and sat against the wall. Her gaze moved to her shaking hand. Frank knelt by her and examined her bloody and bruised knuckles.

Lupa finally joined them at their side a moment later and let out a soft curse. She shook her head, sighing at her pupil's foolish outburst. Reyna could only stare at the ground, but it looked like she was lost in deep thought.

"Come on. We need to get you to a hospital. You know this is exactly what Clarisse wanted, don't you?" Lupa chastised.

"I know," Reyna muttered. She stood and wrapped her fist in her jacket. Lupa grabbed Reyna's shoulder and led her away. Octavian cursed under his breath and started to frustratingly pace back and forth. Frank felt his gut twist as he stared at the small cracks where Reyna had punched. He knew that the wall did more damage to Reyna than she did to it.

A few silent moments passed before Annabeth and Hazel met with them. Hazel gasped, "What happened?"

"Reyna punched the wall," Frank answered bluntly. He saw movement out of the corner of his eye and watched Clarisse walk towards them, led by Silena. Clarisse looked right at them and smirked. Then, her gaze moved to the wall.

"Hopefully, she'll get cleared," Clarisse taunted.

"Clarisse, that's enough," Silena said. Clarisse shook her head and turned her attention as she marched on Annabeth.

"Better keep your title, champ. After I knock your teammate unconscious, I'm coming for you," Clarisse promised.

"Reyna will beat you," Annabeth said, raising her chin in defiance. Clarisse glared her down and then stormed away. Instead of following, Silena looked at them.

"I'm sorry," Silena began. "Can you tell Reyna that I'm sorry for Clarisse? We can postpone the fight if we need to. That's fine with me."

"I can bring the suggestion to Reyna, but I doubt she will go for it," Octavian replied. Silena nodded and turned away to chase down her bull-headed friend. Octavian sighed tiredly and started to pace again. He nervously chewed on one of his fingernails.

"Reyna will be okay, right?" Hazel questioned. Frank looked back at the wall and winced.

"She will," Annabeth promised. "Broken hand or not, Reyna will want to fight on Friday."

Frank nodded his agreement. He was worried about Reyna, but at the same time, he had to push it out of his mind. He needed to focus on his own fight. Frank closed his eyes and took a deep breath. In less than a week, he would fight Kahale and prove to himself and the world that he was ready for anyone.