Percy POV

"I couldn't hold it in any longer. I'm sorry," Leo expressed with a red face.

My attention turned towards the sudden commotion that originated near the locker room doorway. Rachel, Drew, and Leo were arguing. Drew had a towel wrapped around her body, and her hair was still wet.

"Guys, what is going on?" Thalia intervened.

"This pervert decided to waltz into the bathroom while we were getting ready," Drew snapped dramatically.

"I'm not a pervert. I really had to use the restroom," Leo explained himself.

I sighed. I was expecting a problem like this to arise at some point. We had decided that the girls had control of the bathroom in the morning while the boys got to shower at night. During those hours, the other gender couldn't come into the bathroom.

However, if someone had to pee or poop, they'd obviously have to break the rules. Leo was the first one to do so.

"Okay, Drew, it's not that big of a deal. Leo really had to use the restroom. Can you please let it slide?" I asked as I approached them.

Leo looked at me with gratitude in his eyes. I doubted that Leo did this on purpose. He joked around a lot, but he wasn't that kind of guy. Drew's eyes sparkled with mischief and shock as she turned towards me.

"Percy, I'd let it slide if it were you, not him," Drew commented slyly. She twirled her finger around a strand of hair.

I rolled my eyes at her flirtations. Did she have no shame? She was making a scene and flirting while standing publically in a towel. Like, what?

"Wow, that was a blow," Leo said with a frown.

I sighed as I rubbed my forehead. I was not in the mood for any of this. It was bad enough to be stuck in a sick game, and I didn't want to deal with any drama. I patted Leo's shoulder before we walked away from the group.

"Sorry about that, Leo. How about we go to the pool room?" I asked.

Leo smiled as he nodded. It was true that girls generally were attracted to me. I've managed many experiences with girls due to my appearance and personality. Regardless, I hated when individuals tried to compare people with each other.

Everyone is their own person. No one is superior to anyone else (that is unless you're talking about criminals or jerks or something).

As Leo and I walked through the Sector 3 hallway, a question arose.

"Leo, you're one of the smartest people here, and you're great with technology. Do you see anything that could help us out of here?" I asked.

"The technology in this place is beyond advanced. The whole building is fortified. It's astonishing how Elysium build all these games and puzzles without us being able to find them until they want us to," Leo explained.

"I wish you had a better answer," I said quietly.

We finally came towards the pool room. I had spent some time in here already. I loved swimming and being in the water. It reminded me of good times. When I was little, my mom and I would spend our vacations in a cabin near Montauk Beach.

The pool room was the busiest of the rooms that we had access to. There was a 25-meter pool with lane dividers. Beach chairs and tables rested on one side of the room. A lot of pool equipment, toys, and boxes were on the far side. The walls had many posters and metals. Overall, it looked like a high school swim team's pool.

However, I knew that this room was home to a very dangerous game.

"Percy, when do you think our next phase will start?" Leo asked as we walked towards the pool. I just wanted to relax in the water.

"I don't know, Leo," I said quietly.

To be honest, I was happy with not having phases. Phase 1 resulted in 16 deaths. Ethan died a few feet away from me in our last puzzle.

I certainly didn't want to have the same fate.

I quickly stripped off my clothes and set them on a table. Leo wasn't getting in the water, so he layed down on a nearby pool chair.

I walked to the pool and dove in. Water always soothed my body physically and mentally. Swimming was refreshing and relaxing at the same time. My blood pumped rhythmically to the smooth motion of my muscles propelling to the water.

I don't know how long I spend in the water. However, by the time I got out, Leo was gone.

I quickly dried myself using the mechanical body dryer in the corner of the pool area before getting dressed.

I paused at the exit, and my eyes scanned the pool area. I already knew that there were probably dozens of hidden cameras watching me.

The feeling of being watched elicited great fear and paranoia. I hated it, and I wanted it all to end.

However, there was no end in sight.

...

"This is so weird. It's been 4 days of quiet. I don't get it," Annabeth said quietly.

We were sitting at a beach table in the pool area. Annabeth and I decided to bring our food here rather than sit in the cafeteria. For some reason, Annabeth disliked the cafeteria. I didn't know why, but she always looked uncomfortable in that room.

I watched as Annabeth took another frustrated bite of her pasta.

"Annabeth, look on the bright side. We didn't have to worry about our immediate survival for the past four days," I expressed.

"You think that's a good thing. We're stuck in this cage with no way out. We have no clue how many phases there are or how long we're stuck here," Annabeth exclaimed.

"Annie, calm down-"

"Don't call me Annie," she snapped. Her voice was slick and dangerous. Her gaze practically turned me to stone. Her fork was aimed right at me.

I held my hands up in surrender. "Okay, um, Wise Girl, why don't you calm down?" I tried again.

Her face converted from anger into confusion. She set her utensils down before fixing her gaze on me. Annabeth nodded before taking a deep breath.

"What did you call me?" I asked with a small chuckle.

"Wise Girl, because you're so smart. It's like you never shut your brain off even when it's good for you to stop thinking and relax," I said with a smile.

"You know that any organism will die if they shut their brains off," Annabeth said slyly.

"See, exactly my point," I stated victoriously.

I took another spoonful of pasta. However, Annabeth shoved my arm causing me to choke on my food. "Oh my god, why?" I expressed as Wise Girl laughed.

Annabeth had a melodious laugh. For some reason, I felt as though Annabeth doesn't laugh very often, so I liked that I could make her laugh and relax. Over the past week, Annabeth and I had gotten closer.

We were almost done with dinner when she looked at me. Our gazes locked as she leaned forward slightly.

"Percy, um, I want to tell you something about myself," she said quietly. Her gaze flitted away hesitantly before returning to my eyes.

"Wise Girl, you can share anything with me. We got each other," I stated.

I reached forward and held her hand to show my support. Her skin was smooth and warm in mine. It felt nice. It felt like it belonged there. My grip tightened around her hand.

Annabeth's eyes sparkled as tears clouded her vision.

"Wise Girl, whatever you're feeling- Whatever your secret is, you can trust me with it," I expressed.

I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around her. We were still sitting, but we were a lot closer to each other now. Her face was buried into my chest as I held her. I realized that Annabeth was hiding something big, and it was greatly distressing her.

Annabeth shook her head against my shoulder before pulling back. Tears bristled in her beautiful gray eyes.

"I can't tell you. I just can't," Annabeth stated as she stood.

"Wise Girl, wait," I said as I caught her hand. I held her firmly as I stood up as well. I turned her around to face me.

"You don't need to tell me anything. Whenever you're ready, I'm here. Annabeth, I want you to know that I won't judge you or hate you. I promise," I expressed.

She shook her head in disapproval. "Percy, you're an extremely loyal person. Please don't make promises you can't keep," Annabeth said sadly before walking away.

I simply stood there in utter confusion.

My mind was lost in thought as I turned around to clean up our food. I had no idea what was going on with Annabeth. I stacked the plates and utensils on the lunch tray before receding towards the cafeteria. I couldn't stop thinking about what just happened.

Wise Girl was so close to telling me something, but she backed away. Whatever she was hiding was a big deal.

Technically, none of us knew each other. We were all strangers who unfortunately got kidnapped together. I wondered who Annabeth was in real life.

I absent-mindedly walked down the hallway towards the cafeteria. The tray, plates, and utensils had to be set back on the shelf. Otherwise, we wouldn't get food tomorrow.

However, my body froze as soon as I walked into the cafe.

My eyes widened as I stared at them. All other thoughts were knocked out of my head due to the sudden shock in front of me.

"WHOA, what the hell?" I exclaimed as I averted my gaze.

"Oh my gods. Oh no-"

"Percy, shit."

Jason and Piper immediately pulled away from each other. They had been kissing in the middle of the cafeteria. At least, they were alone.

"Um, I'm just here to return Annabeth's and my stuff," I said quickly. I rushed over to the steel shelf and deposited our dishes.

Piper and Jason immediately ran towards me and blocked me from leaving. Jason's face was bright red as he gripped my shoulder. Both of them looked surprised and guilty.

"Bro, wait, please don't tell anyone," Jason expressed.

"You both were kissing. While I'm not judging, didn't you guys just meet? Like, what the hell is going on today?" I exclaimed.

"No, Percy, we didn't just meet. We lied to everyone," Piper said quickly.

Piper and Jason both pulled me towards the table where they sat me down. They sat across from me with serious expressions on their faces.

"Look, Percy, please don't tell anyone. It would be awful if they found out this way. Jason and I have been dating for two years now. We were walking on campus together when Elysium snatched us," Piper explained.

I simply stared at the two of them. I hadn't seen this coming. I noticed the chemistry and bond between them, but I didn't think that this was the explanation.

"Why did you guys lie?" I asked. For once, I asked the right question.

They looked at each other before turning to me again. "Bro, everyone here is a stranger. We all simply decided that this was random, and none of us knew each other. Piper and I didn't want to be the odd ones out."

Honestly, Jason had a point. It would've made them different from the group if they were the only two that knew each other.

"Okay, um, any other secrets that I should keep?" I asked cautiously.

Piper smiled as she ran around the table and hugged me. She was extremely grateful that I'm keeping their secret. I accepted and returned her a friendly embrace.

"Thank you so much, Percy, and no more secrets," Jason said with a smile.

I nodded with a smile of my own. I understood their dilemma, and I didn't see anything wrong with keeping their relationship a secret. It was their personal life.

However, I realized one thing that night.

There were a lot of secrets in this place: some deeper than others. And, I was seemingly getting wrapped up in them.

Why me?

I had no idea.

...