Chapter 6
Percy Jackson was confused. It wasn't the first time in his life that he's ever been so confused, and he was sure that it wouldn't be the last. He wasn't called a seaweed brain for nothing. There are times when he could be oblivious, he knew that. There were times when he tended to do things that ran on the rather dumb side, he knew that also. Usually those dumb actions tended to do more good than harm, but even so, he knew better than to believe he was the most intelligent being to walk the Earth.
That's besides the point, however, irrelevant. Now, he was confused on a totally different and much more important subject. Women. More specifically, Aphrodite.
She had been actively avoiding him for the last two days, and Percy for the life of him, can't figure out why that was exactly. He'd see her on Olympus, and he'd smile and wave, and she'd just turn a bright pink color and flash away before he could even speak to her. It'd be funny, if it wasn't a tad bit concerning. He wondered what he had done wrong to receive such strange behavior.
He debated about going to Apollo about it, but Apollo had a big mouth and couldn't keep a secret to save his life. Percy expected as much from the God of Truth. Hermes was his next go-to, but even Hermes was a bad secret keeper. As the Messenger God, Hermes was prone to gossip as well.
Percy's only choice was to choose the one person who knew could keep a secret, and the only person he trusted not to blad his business to everyone under the sun. Which was how Percy found himself shrunken down to his mortal height, dressed in his Camp Half-Blood t-shirt and jeans, standing outside of the Aphrodite cabin. He lifted his hand to knock on the door, and he was unsurprised to see Drew appear in the doorway, "Percy! Oh my god! Everyone thought you were dead!"
"Hey, Drew," Percy offered a wave of his hand, "Nah, I'm not dead. I'm more alive than ever, actually. Is Piper in?"
"Yeah, of course! One second," Drew said before she turned, "Piper! Someone's here to see you!" She called out before she returned her attention to Percy, "Listen, we're all so sorry about what happened to you and Annabeth. You were our OTP, we were so disappointed when we learned what happened."
Percy chuckled awkwardly as he reached a hand up to rub the back of his neck, "Uh, it's all good. I'm doing much better now, actually. The Gods set me up with a new gig, and I'm slowly finding my place in the world again."
"That's good," Drew smiled at Percy, "Well, since you're single now maybe we ca-"
"Drew, who's at the door?" Piper appeared behind Drew, and her eyes widened at the sight of Percy standing in the doorway, "Percy!" She squealed in a very un-Piper-like way, and practically shoved Drew out of her way to jump into Percy's arms. Percy chuckled as he wrapped his arms around Piper, hugging his friend tightly.
"Hey, Pipes," Percy grinned, "Miss me?"
Piper pulled away to punch Percy in the arm, "Of course I missed you, you idiot! I thought I told you to IM me once you've settled in! It's been 2 months, Percy!"
"I know I know, I'm sorry," Percy chuckled as he rubbed his arms, "Things were still kind of bad at first, but I'm doing much better now. Your mother was a major help in my road to healing, actually," Percy smiled, "Are you busy? Can we take a walk? Catch up?"
"Of course!" Piper beamed as she grabbed Percy's arm, "Drew, you're in charge until I get back, okay?"
"No problem, Piper, have fun. And Percy, call me?!" Drew made a phone motion with her hand, and Percy resisted the urge to groan as he allowed Piper to drag him away from the Aphrodite cabin.
"I see you still have a trail of admirers following your every move," Piper teased, "Is it the same way on Olympus?"
"Like you wouldn't believe," Percy groaned dramatically, "Nymphs, minor Gods and Goddesses. I don't understand it, either. I'm literally no one special."
Piper snorted at Percy's words, "Yeah, right. You're single handedly one of the most good-looking guys I've ever met, Percy. Not to mention, kind, loyal, caring, humble, charming and funny. You're the perfect man. If you weren't like a brother to me, and I wasn't currently with Jason."
"Damn, brother-zoned. How the mighty have fallen," Percy joked, and Piper snorted as she elbowed Percy in the side.
"Oh, your ego will be alright, I'm sure," Piper rolled her eyes, "So, how is it on Olympus? Tell me everything."
And Percy did. He told Piper everything he could think of. How he was offered Godhood again, how he accepted it, his titles, how the first few weeks he tortured himself by using distractions to ignore his pain, about her mother coming to his aid and offering him a way to rid himself of all the pain he's felt, his newfound friendship with Aphrodite. It was when he had finished telling Piper about the next Great Prophecy, that he had noticed they were at the beach.
"Mom told me about that in a dream," Piper said as she tugged Percy to sit in the sand beside her, "Do you think it's you? The one who has to live or die for their domain?"
"I don't want it to be," Percy huffed, "But knowing my luck, it'll turn out that way."
"My mom's worried that it's you," Piper frowned softly as she glanced at Percy, "I've never actually seen my mom so worried before, honestly. She claimed that if it is you, that we, your friends, should be prepared to fight at your side so that you may live. She really doesn't want you to die."
"Your mom and I have somewhat of a friendship going on," Percy shrugged his shoulders as he leaned back on his elbows against the sand, "It makes sense that she's worried."
"You and my mom?" Piper lifted an eyebrow, "As in Aphrodite, my mom."
"That's the one," Percy nodded his head, and Piper snorted softly.
"Well, you were always one of her favorite demi-gods not including her children, so that makes sense," Piper laughed softly.
"I don't know if I'm her favorite anything, anymore," Percy frowned softly to himself, "She's been avoiding me these last few days, and I'm not sure if I did something to upset her or not. Did she mention anything to you when you spoke to her?"
"No, not really," Piper shook her head, "She has been rather weird though. She stammered over your name like twice last time we spoke through IM, which if you know my mother, that's strange because she never stammers. What do you mean when you say she's been avoiding you?"
"Well…we usually hang out most afternoons. Ya know sip ambrosia, eat nectar, talk. But she hasn't been to see me these last few days, and whenever I try to visit her, she never lets me in. At first, I thought maybe she just wanted time to herself. Which is understandable. But then, I'd see her on Olympus and I'd smile and wave, and she'd turn a bright pink color and flash away before I could even talk to her."
Piper listened carefully to Percy's words before a broad grin took over her features, and then soon after she was laughing. Percy's brows furrowed as he sat up on the sand, watching as Piper clutched at her sides, her hysterical laughter carrying across the beach.
"What? What's so funny?" Percy frowned, his brows furrowed in confusion.
"Oh, Gods! This is rich! And of course, you being the most oblivious kelp head I know, you wouldn't even have realized!" Piper continued to laugh, and her laughter was beginning to get to Percy as his frown had deepened.
"Piper! Tell me! What's going on?" Percy had to resist the urge to whine.
Piper's laughter soon died down to giggles as she reached a hand up to wipe at the fallen tears from her eyes, "I-I'm sorry, Percy, I just needed to let that one out. That's too funny," Piper giggled softly.
"What's so funny?" Percy urged, and Piper looked at Percy, a grin stretching across her features.
"My mother has a crush on you."
"Say what now?"
"The avoiding you, the blushing and running away whenever she sees you. She most definitely likes you, Percy," Piper explained.
"Well, of course she likes me. We're friends," Percy deadpanned, and Piper rolled her eyes as she reached a hand out to slap Percy upside the head.
"No, you idiot!" Piper huffed in annoyance, "My mom like-likes you."
"Why do you keep hitting me?" Percy huffed as he rubbed the back of his head, "Also Like-likes? What are we? In kindergarten? No one uses the phrase like-likes anymore, Pipes."
Percy quickly dodged the hand that was aiming for his head once again, "Well I obviously had to dumb it down for your oblivious self," Piper huffed as she dropped her hand to her side, "But it's true, my mother likes you, Percy. She's behaving like a teenager with a crush. I've seen it in my own cabin, with my brothers and sisters, and I've seen it all over camp. Hell, I'm the daughter of the Goddess of Love, I know these things."
"You're serious?" Percy's eyes widened at Piper's words.
"I'm 99.9% sure that Aphrodite has a crush on you, Percy," Piper nodded her head.
"Holy shit," Percy flopped back against the sand, and Piper snorted in amusement as she watched Percy stare at the sky, obviously in some form of mild shock.
"Good on you, Perce. Pulling the Goddess of Love. Leo will be jealous when he hears this," Piper joked, and Percy's head snapped to look at Piper.
"Oh, please, for the love of the Gods, don't tell Leo. That little firestarter can never keep his mouth shut," Percy pleaded.
"Can I tell Jason?" Piper inquired.
"Sure, you can tell Jason," Percy nodded his head.
"Well then, I'll have to tell Leo because Jason tells Leo everything, which means Leo will know anyways," Piper shrugged.
"Fine, then you can't tell Jason."
"What about Hazel and Frank?"
"Definitely not! I love Frank, but he has as big of a mouth as Leo. Which means the whole of Camp Jupiter will know by tomorrow."
"Okay okay, so no to that. Oh my Gods! Can I tell that bitch Annabeth? I'd love to rub it in her face that you've gotten the Goddess of Love to fall for you!"
"No! You can't tell anyone," Percy sat up quickly, "This has to stay between us for right now, Piper. At least until I figure this out."
"So…you're gonna go for it?" Piper pushed as she leaned towards Percy, her eyes shining with intrigue.
"I-I don't know yet," Percy sighed as he flopped back against the sand.
"Well, do you like her too?" Piper questioned as she leaned over Percy.
"I mean, I guess," Percy shrugged, "She's easy to get along with. She's kind, and she's smart. She's a great conversation holder. She makes me laugh, all of the time. Being around her is just like being around a best friend. She's comfortable and amazing. She never fails to make me smile. When she came to me the first time to talk to me, she helped me out way more than she realized, and she continues to help more than you'll ever know. It sucks not talking to her everyday because I had gotten so used to it, so used to her. She let me see past the image she puts on for the public eye, and I like that version of her. The real Aphrodite."
Piper listened to Percy's little rant, and she hummed softly as she settled back down in the sand, "You may not have noticed it yet, Perce, but you most definitely have a crush as well."
Percy sighed as he closed his eyes before he glanced over at Piper, "You don't think it's too soon?"
Piper shook her head silently, "Not in the slightest. You and Annabeth have technically been broken up for months now, and you went on your journey of self-healing, of self-discovery. Honestly, the only person who can tell you it's too soon, is yourself. What does your heart tell you, Perce?"
"My heart is telling me to be careful," Percy huffed, "She's still technically married to Hephaestus. And I don't know about what's going on with her and Ares. She's also the Goddess of Love, which means she's prone to fall in love with some other guy who happens to be better than me when the time comes. And I'm not sure I can take another heartbreak, ya know?"
Piper nodded her head in understanding, "I get it, Percy. But honestly, with the way the New Age of the Gods is now, I think something could be worked out in your favor. You just have to hold out hope. Let fate run its course."
"The last time I let fate run its course, I almost died. Twice."
"True," Piper nodded her head silently, "But maybe you can trust it one more time to see if it works out for you."
Percy hummed softly as he glanced up at Piper, a small smile taking over his features, "What would I do without you, Pipes?"
"Lucky for you, you'll never have to find out, kelp head," Piper reached out to ruffle Percy's hair.
Percy chuckled as he fixed hair, sitting up slowly, "Thanks a lot, Piper. I really needed this. I'll think about what I want to do. I promise. I have to go now. Duty calls. But I'll IM you?"
"You better," Piper grinned, "I'm not above finding a way to Olympus to kick your sorry ass if you don't. And visit me again, yeah?"
"Of course," Percy laughed, "Take care of yourself, Piper. We'll talk again soon," Percy grinned before he slipped through a web of shadows, disappearing from Piper's sight.
Piper sighed softly as she watched him go, a small smile on her features. After a moment of staring at the place in the sand, Percy had just occupied, Piper reached into her pocket to pull out a drachma. She created a rainbow in the mist before tossing the drachma into it, IMing her mother.
Piper smiled softly at the sight of her mother staring into her Love Sphere, obviously trying to distract herself if the way she was flicking through the channels was any indication, "Why don't you just talk to him, Mom?"
Aphrodite nearly jumped 10 feet in the air at the sound of Piper's voice, and she quickly spun around to view the IM in the center of her living room, "Piper, dear, to what do I owe the pleasure of this call?"
"As if you don't know," Piper rolled her eyes, "I just finished catching up with Percy, and he's informed me that you've been avoiding him. I made a rather startling discovery after getting all the details."
"Oh? And what discovery was that?" Aphrodite questioned as nonchalantly as she could.
"You like him," Piper flashed a teasing smile at the IM, "Why don't you tell him?"
"It's not that simple."
"Love never is," Piper sighed softly, "You taught me that. But honestly, it's as simple as you make it. You need to speak to him. He's upset and he thinks he's done something to upset you. Percy's already abandoned and tossed aside by a lot of people in his life. Don't be the next, mom. I'm not sure he can take it."
Aphrodite sighed as she nodded her head in understanding, "I-I know. I just- I don't want to ruin the friendship I have with him."
"Tell him that then. Talk to him, mom. I'm sure everything will work out the way it's meant to," Piper assured.
"Alright, alright…I'll talk to him in the morning."
"Great!" Piper grinned as she clapped her hands together, "Now that that's settled, I have a date with Jason that I just can't miss. And you need to figure out what you're gonna say to Percy. Goodnight, mom. And good luck!"
"Thank you, Piper. Have fun on your date with Jason. Send him my well-wishes. Use protection," Aphrodite smirked.
"What? Eww, Mom!" Piper groaned, and Aphrodite laughed, "Goodbye, Mother!" Piper swiped through the mist quickly to end the call with her mother. She rolled her eyes as she rose to her feet, "Percy's gonna have his hands full with that woman. I wish him luck," Piper said to herself as she headed towards the camp once more.
