"Oooohhhhh, Percy is late," Thalia teased as she leaned against the door of her office. Percy was walking by, head dropped and gaze downwards. Probably in shame. "Late by thirty minutes. What kind of store manager are you?"
"Not today, Thalia. I'm tired," Percy groaned. He looked up with an annoyed look on his face. An angry look too. Thalia lost her grin and studied her cousin. He averted his gaze.
"What happened?" Thalia asked. Percy sighed and rubbed his forehead. He had a morning shadow, which meant that he had yet to shave. Thalia still didn't believe that Percy could grow facial hair. He always had such a baby face, so he probably used a marker or something to make it look like he could grow hair.
"You know how I told Annabeth that I would pick her up last night?" Percy questioned. Thalia nodded. She wanted to joke about it, but Percy did not seem to be in the mood to laugh. "We ran into Luke."
"Did that bastard hurt her?" Thalia demanded. She felt her muscles tensing up, and she was going to find Luke and strangle him. "I'll kick his ass."
"He didn't hurt her, but he did tell Annabeth that she needed to take him back. He apologized for cheating on her but kept saying that she had to take him back and had to forgive him. Like she didn't have a choice in what she could do," Percy explained. "He grabbed her arm, and I told him to leave her alone."
"He didn't throw a punch, did he?" Thalia asked. She had been friends with Luke and Annabeth for the longest time. The two had been like family, until Luke cheated on Annabeth. Even if Luke hadn't cheated on Annabeth, Thalia still wouldn't take his side against Percy. As annoying as Percy was, he was family, and he had been with her through everything.
Thalia didn't remember anything from her coma, but she had talked to Jason about it. He visited her as much as he could and never gave up on her. Then, there was Luke. After the first few weeks, Luke just stopped showing up. He didn't ask about her and didn't visit.
But, Percy didn't give up on her. He visited Thalia once a week, spending an hour or more with her. Thalia asked him about it, and he admitted that he would just talk to her. Whether it was talking out his problems or just telling her a funny story, he would take time out of his day to go to her hospital room and spend time with her. He was one of the first people there when she woke up.
Thalia would never forget that. She would always be with Percy through thick and thin because he was there for her.
"No," Percy said. A tired smile came to his face. "I almost wished he did. Annabeth would have knocked him flat."
"She would have," Thalia agreed with a chuckle. She quickly grew serious. "What has you so bothered?"
Percy took a deep breath. He leaned on the opposite wall and rested his head back. Percy spoke, "I told Annabeth that I had a crush on her."
Thalia felt her jaw drop open. She stared at Percy and ran those words through her head. This was great. They had been waiting so long for this moment. Thalia just wanted Percy to admit his feelings and go out with Annabeth. And, it finally happened.
So why wasn't Percy happy?
"I said a lot," Percy added. He closed his eyes. "I don't even remember half of it. I just kept rambling, so she wouldn't interrupt me."
"What did Annabeth say?" Thalia questioned. She felt her gut twist, and she was nervous about the answer.
"That she needed time," Percy replied. "I told her that I knew that, and it hurts. She ended up crying in my arms. After she calmed down, we sat down and watched TV. I'm not quite sure when I fell asleep, but she was making breakfast when I woke up."
"You didn't do anything else?" Thalia began.
"She's not ready, Thalia. I have to respect her wishes," Percy said. Thalia nodded her agreement. "We promised to not let things be awkward, and she thanked me for staying. Luke visiting really shook her up."
"I'll have a talk with him," Thalia promised. If there was anyone who could get something through Luke's thick head, it had to be Thalia.
"Be careful," Percy warned.
"I will," Thalia stated. She frowned and looked down. "Do you regret telling her?"
"I don't know," Percy admitted. "It still hurts, but I am relieved a little bit. I think I just need a few more days, and as long as things don't become awkward and she doesn't shut me out, I'll be okay."
Thalia gripped Percy's shoulder and squeezed it, "I'm proud of you for telling her. Sorry that it didn't turn out how you wanted."
"We don't know if it did or didn't," Percy muttered.
"You're right," Thalia agreed with a nod. "It will all work out."
Percy nodded and rubbed his eyes again. There were bags underneath his eyes, and it looked like he needed a power nap. Thalia spoke, "I'll get coffee for you. My treat."
"Thank you," Percy said. "I'm going to put my stuff away."
Thalia nodded and watched Percy walk away. He headed into his office. Thalia looked at the office across from his and steeled herself. She walked towards it and stopped halfway there as she heard talking.
"I still think you should go, Octavian. It helps to let it all out," Reyna said. Thalia stopped outside of Octavian's office and tried to find the courage to knock.
"I guess. I just don't know where to start," Octavian said in a soft voice. Thalia heard a chair move, and she backed a few feet away.
"Here's the number for my therapist," Reyna said. "Just think about going there. It will help with the nightmares."
"Thank you," Octavian whispered. If Reyna said anything in response, it was too quiet for Thalia to hear. Reyna stepped out of the office a moment later. She walked towards her office, and Thalia tried to find her courage.
"Reyna," Thalia began. Her manager stopped walking and slowly turned towards her.
"I should get to work," Reyna said.
"This is work related. I got an email from my boss," Thalia lied. She started to walk towards Reyna's office with her. Reyna slowly followed behind her and didn't say anything. "About some people stealing."
Reyna remained quiet. She had done a rather impressive job of completely and utterly avoiding Thalia throughout that entire week. Thalia couldn't let her do that anymore, though. She needed to apologize for what she said. As they made it to Reyna's office, Thalia looked at her manager.
"I didn't get an email, but please do not walk away," Thalia said quickly. "I am sorry about what I said. I shouldn't have, and it was my fault. I was just mad. Not at you. Just the world. I'm sorry."
Reyna did not flinch. She didn't even blink. Thalia felt seconds tick by as Reyna did her best impression of a statue. Thalia continued, "I took my anger out on you, and I shouldn't have."
"Why?" Reyna asked. The simple question caused Thalia to pause. Reyna's dark eyes seemed to pierce right through her.
"I don't know," Thalia finally admitted. She crossed her arms and looked down. "I guess... I just see myself in you. No, I... I don't know."
Thalia hung her head and stared at the ground. She couldn't form her words properly, and she knew she was giving Reyna the opportunity to walk away. Her manager didn't take it. Thalia slowly looked up and took a few moments to gather her thoughts.
"When your mother hit you, it brought me back to what my mother did to me," Thalia began with a whisper. "I guess I wanted you to fight back. To stand up for yourself. Like I should have. I was reflecting my feelings of what I should have done onto you."
"What you said was wrong," Reyna muttered. "I can handle being ignored. I can handle being yelled at, but don't tell me that my mother doesn't love me."
"I never should have said that, and I am so sorry," Thalia said softly. She studied Reyna, but the woman held no emotion on her face. Her eyes were like lasers and felt like they were going to pierce through Thalia. "If there is anything I can do to make up for it."
Reyna looked away for a few moments and seemed to be lost in thought. Thalia opened her mouth to continue, but she saw Reyna look up, "Lupa."
"Morning, Reyna. Thalia," Lupa greeted as she appeared next to Thalia. It took a moment for Thalia to force herself to smile, but it felt like she was stretching her lips wider than they should go. "I have to borrow you, Reyna. There's some paperwork we need to go over for our new clothing launch."
"Of course. Should I get Percy?" Reyna asked. She kept her gaze from Thalia.
"I'll get him," Thalia offered.
"Thank you, Thalia. Have him meet me in my office. Come on, Reyna. I have our district manager on call," Lupa said. She turned and walked away. Reyna turned to follow.
"Please just consider my apology," Thalia said quickly. Reyna looked to be mid-step, but she stopped upon hearing Thalia. "And, I can take you out on my motorcycle. If you still want to ride on it."
Without an answer, Reyna walked away. Thalia let out a frustrated sigh. She supposed that it was only fair for Reyna to treat her like this after how Thalia acted, but it still hurt. She just hoped that things between them would go back to how it was before.