Jason sat nervously on the couch in Piper and Annabeth's apartment. His leg shook furiously, anxiously waiting for Annabeth to emerge from their shared bathroom. Nearly 20 minutes ago, Jason took Piper in there where Annabeth offered to clean Piper up so she wouldn't wake soaked in her own blood. Annabeth was still shaken up herself, her head buzzing with questions, but she remained strong for her best friend.

A few minutes ago, the water turned off in the bathroom; Jason counted the seconds until Annabeth emerged, worried for Piper. How would she react to being a vampire? Would she still be the same person? Would she still care for him? Would she blame or hate him?

These questions plagued his mind and clawed at his worn down heart. Swirls of guilt and shame gnawed at him, making him want to run away from his troubles, but he stayed. He would stay at Piper's side and hold on to the hope that she would forgive him.

Finally, Annabeth walked out of the bathroom. Jason immediately jumped to attention. She kept her head down, her long, blond curls covering her tearful face. She turned her head slightly towards Jason before speaking,

"S-She's clean. I wrapped her in a towel and lied her next to the tub because i couldn't lift her any further."

"Thank you." Jason said softly.

Annabeth nodded before slowly retreating to her room. Jason let out a shaky breath before sucking in some courage to see Piper.

As he approached the bathroom, he could hear his dead heart beat in his ears, full of worry and hurt. But as he came to the doorway, he stopped to gaze over Piper. She was still stunning. Her hair lying around her, the light hitting it just right so it looked like a halo. Jason missed her bright, kaleidoscope eyes that were hidden underneath her eye lids. He hoped for the moment that they reopen and look up at him with love.

Scooping her up in his arms, Jason carried her sleeping body to her room. Gently laying her down, he set her on her bed and covered her with a blanket.

Jason put his hand in hers as he brushed the stray hairs from her face. His guilt continued to haunt him and gnaw at him, bringing him further and further down until he could no longer hold it in. He held Pipers limp hand in his hands, squeezing it until he feared he'd break it. Then the bubble bursted, everything that he was holding in came crashing down.

Jason's shoulders shook as he squeezed Piper's hand, whispering her name, hoping, wishing she would wake up and make everything okay… but there were no sounds. Only Jason's lone tears as he cried…

….

,Sunlight leaked into the room. Piper felt like she had a hangover. Her head felt like it was going to exploded, throbbing and punching at her skull. She tried sitting up but her body felt heavy and foreign. Using all her might, she pushed herself up with her shaky arms and sat back against the bed frame. The harsh light burned at her eyes, she quickly shielded her eyes and turned away. Her head continued to throb. Suddenly, Piper felt hungry too. Her stomach growled painfully like it was eating at itself because there was nothing left. Piper tried pushing herself off the bed, but her weak arms gave out and she fell with a thud onto the ground. Her stomach growled impatiently. Groaning, she pushed herself up. Her body still felt heavy as she trudged towards the door; she also felt achy and sore but somehow she knew, some instinct, told her that food would help all of that...

...

It was late afternoon, the sun was just past it's highest point in the sky but it still shined bright, blinding Jason. Jason was already cranky because he had to leave Piper and the cruel sun was making it worse. He left to go pick up Percy because he would need the extra hands if Piper woke up which left Annabeth alone with her. Jason instructed Annabeth to stay in her room with the door locked and if she hears Piper's awake to immediately call him or Percy but he still worried. A lot of things could go wrong but he wasn't going to let that happen.

As soon as Jason pulled up to their apartment, Percy walked out. He was wearing blue pattern board shorts and a white Tee with his beaded necklace. He sent Jason a half smile as he got in.

"How's Piper doing?" He asked as he buckled in then turned to Jason.

"Not good. She hasn't woken up yet." Jason answered as he pulled out of the complex and sped back towards Pipers apartment.

"She'll be fine," Percy reassured him, "She took a nasty fall, so it's going to take her body longer to recover."

Jason tensed at his words, gripping the steering wheel until his knuckles were white. But after a few seconds he took a deep breath and nodded.

Jason hoped the rest of the drive would be quite and easy. But of course it wasn't. A few minutes out from Piper's apartment, Percy's phone rang. Jason glanced over to Percy.

"It's Annabeth." He announced before picking it up. He listened for a second then said, "Don't worry we'll be there in a few seconds."

He hung up and looked to Jason. "Stop the car. Piper's awake and we need to get there now."

...

Piper felt like a zombie. Her mind only focusing on one thing. Food. She trudged into the kitchen, her feet giving out the moment she got there. Only at the last second did she catch herself on the island counter.

The longer she was awake, the more confused Piper became. She couldn't remember anything,she could only feel. She felt pent up anger and frustration, sadness, and… love. Love was the strongest of the emotions, but she didn't know why or to whom these emotions were directed towards.

Shaking the thoughts of confusion away, she focused the a sweet scent in the air; her stomach roared to life giving her the extra push of energy that she needed.

Piper walked towards the door of their apartment. The scent. The scent was just outside. Opening the door, the shining sunlight burned her eyes. She shaded them with her arm and blinked a few times to adjust. Her nose was pointing her to the right, so she followed. She drifted to the right where she saw her neighbor, Travis, standing outside talking on his cell.

At first, he didn't notice Piper, but once she got closer he smiled and hung up his phone.

"Hey, stranger! I haven't seen you in days! How's it hangin'?"

"You smell really good."

He laughed."Well thanks, i guess." He leaned in to get a better look at her, "Whoa. You don't look so good. Are you okay? Can I help?"

"You're my friend right? You can trust me." Piper said charmingly.

Suddenly dazed and seemingly in a trance, Travis nodded, "Of course."

"Then I do need something from you." Piper said zoning in on his pulsing veins. "Don't scream. I'm so sorry about this." Tears brimmed in her eyes at the realization of what she was going to do. At an inhuman speed, Piper grabbed his arm and bit into it. A sweet, warm, metallic taste filled her mouth. She moaned in delight as she continued to drink in gulps. But what felt like seconds later, she was being pulled away. She hissed and fought against whoever was holding her back. Firm hands gripped her shoulders and a familiar scent filled her lungs.

"Piper. Pipes, you need to calm down." the familiar voice said.

Piper stopped struggling but she stood tense as she slowly opened her eyes. Her eyes met bright, clear blue eyes; they looked so familiar. For some reason, she trusted this person. She relaxed under his hands and reached out to touch him. The first touch along his cheek, a spark ignited. She pulled back in shock, but hesitantly moved back. His skin was smooth and warm. His eyes fluttered shut as he sucked in a sharp breath, enjoying her touch. She moved her hand along his angular jaw, down his throat, then moving around so her hand dug in his soft, fluffy hair.

"Piper…" He said once more. And with that, something clicked inside of her. Every memory came rushing back. Moments in her life flashed before her eyes. Her head seized with pain.

"Jason?" She asked pain filling her voice. His face softened with sadness. Piper pushed him away and grabbed her head as she cried out in pain. "Ah!" She fell to her knees, holding her head in her hands as continued to cry out. Jason kneeled down beside her and consoled her until the pain became too much and she fell limp into his arms.

Jason scooped her up once more and stood. He looked to Percy who was holding back Travis. Jason hadn't noticed, but Travis was struggling against Percy.

"What'd you do to her? I was helping her!" Travis yelled.

"What's going on?" Jason asked.

"I don't know. He just started freaking out on me when you grabbed Piper. He keeps saying he's Piper's friend and that he needs to help her." Percy replied.

It didn't take much to hold Travis back. Percy held one hand on Travis' chest to keep him back. Jason eyed Travis. His was acting weird; he was acting frantic and protective.

"Travis." Jason said sternly. Travis stopped struggling and looked up at Jason. "Why do you need to help Piper?"

Travis blinked confusingly like Jason had spoke in a foreign language. "B-because she told me she needed me. She told me I could trust her."

"Just like that? Because she told you to?" Percy asked.

Travis nodded like it made perfect sense. Percy looked to Jason questioningly.

"Take Piper back to her room." Jason said as he handed Piper over to Percy. As Percy headed back to their apartment, Travis started to follow. In a blinding fast turn, Jason pinned Travis against the wall with one hand. Still dazed, Travis looked up with foggy eyes.

With much effort, Jason pushed the new thoughts into his mind. "Forget everything you just saw. Forget what Piper told you. You went outside to talk on your phone and a stray dog attacked you.. Nothing else happened."

"Nothing happened..." He repeated softly. In a blink of an eye, Jason was gone.

...

Travis' head really hurt. It was like he just woke up from a dream except his head was throbbing. He blinked a few times before the fog in his mind cleared. He looked around trying to figure out what he was doing. He looked down at his arm, inflamed bite marks were dripping fresh blood.

"Aw man.." he sighed as he covered it up with his free hand to stop the bleeding.

Travis took a second to recall how the bite got there. His memories seemed dreamlike. He couldn't see how it happened but he just knew a dog bit him...

...

The sun had set hours ago, the aftershock of Piper's awakening fading with it. Jason sat at Pipers bed side. His head rested on her hand that he held in his as he caressed her smooth skin. The color was finally returning to her face and her breathing was flowing in even breaths. He focused on her breathing, the sweet sound of her living, until it lulled him into a soft sleep.

Jason hadn't realized he fell asleep until he felt movement under his head. The soft movement rocked his head to the side, pushing him out of his dreams. He blinked a few times to adjust to the darkness then turned to his sleeping beauty who was now awake.

"Hey there.." she said in a sleepy voice. Jason jumped up.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" He asked concern filling his tone.

"Weird.." she said a little groggy, "I don't remember much."

Jason's heart felt heavy at his next words. "What do you remember?"

"I remember being at the warehouse with Octavian. He drank some of my blood, but everything after that is foggy and a little distorted."

"Do you remember anything else?"

Piper searched her memories for a moment, her head still foggy and in pain. "You were there and I remember standing on a rafter but…" she started to say something but the thought seemed to elude her. "Nothing.. I don't remember.." She said a little frustrated. "What happened?"

"It's okay. It's best if you let it come back to you in pieces."

Piper nodded then looked up at Jason, her eyes glassy with tears. "I do remember something."

Jason's heart dropped. In fear of the horrible words that could follow.

"I remember feeling like I'd never see you again.. I was so afraid that I'd wouldn't see you. And as I stood there on that rafter, all I could do was regret how terrible I was to you."

"Piper, you weren't-" she cut him off.

"No, let me finish." She let out a shaky breath. "I spent so much time fighting my own insecurities that I never got the chance to really get to know you and be with you in the way you deserve especially since all you did was help me and support me. And I was so afraid that I wouldn't be able to tell you this because I realized that I love you, Jason Grace. And I want to keep loving you. It's okay if you don't feel the same because of how terrible-"

Her words were cut off with a searing kiss that left Piper breathless. As Jason pulled away, Piper touched her lips with her hand.

" I understand that it takes time for you to work out whatever has been bothering you, but I'd wait a thousand years for you, Piper, because I love you." He said lovingly.

Happy tears spilled from Piper's eyes as a goofy smile broke out across her face. Jason reached out and wiped them away with his thumb. Piper threw herself in Jason's arms. His warm, strong arms felt like heaven around her making her feel safe and happy.

The rest of the night, the couple held one another. Sometimes chatting about random things or just laying in a comfortable silence, but they never talked about anything supernatural because for now they could enjoy each other's love and didn't need to worry about anything else…