Disclaimer: I don't own the Percy Jackson or Heroes of Olympus series, RR does.


CHAPTER 2


After a silent journey of pretending they didn't know each other (from her perspective, at least), they walked into a small Caribbean restaurant a couple of minutes of walking from the campus. She'd already forgotten the place's name but it wasn't like it even mattered, right? Just walk in, survive some time alone with probably the most annoying person you know and walk out. That was the plan.

She looked at their surroundings. It wasn't anything particularly spectacular, some tropical plants (or at least trying to look like ones) here and there, a few garlands of flowers (probably fake) and a huge guy behind the counter that looked like taken out alive from travel agencies' brochures about "peaceful time spent with native Caribbeans".

Not something that might impress a girl on a first date- Wait. It wasn't a date, she reminded herself.

Just amends.

He bounced to the table near a window, grinning and waving to the big guy. "Hey, Leo! Same as always?" he asked in his stentorian voice. The said guy shook his head, motioning for her to come sit on a chair he'd drawn back in the meantime.

"Today I'm giving amends to the reina you see here" She rolled her eyes at the use of the Spanish word for queen (seriously, a pun?) and sat on the chair he'd prepared for her. "Make it something special" She couldn't see his face, but she was almost 100% sure Leo'd winked at the waiter, who chuckled.

Gods, could that show just go on without her?

They were sitting in silence, waiting for their surprise order. Leo was nervously tapping his fingers on the table top and she was staring at him, cold-eyed. "Soo..." he started, giving her an uncertain smile "How's your head..?" he asked, his eyes locked on his thumbs.

"Better, thank you" she drawled out in an answer. He gulped nervously.

"Cool..." he muttered. She inhaled deeply through her nose and closed her eyes, placing her fingers on her temples. She had the feeling that her head was going to start aching again any minute. "Have you known what your name means..?" he asked after a moment of blissful silence. She opened her eyes and glared at him.

"Yeah... My father..." she hesitated. She wouldn't tell him about her childhood, what for? "He taught me some Spanish" she hurried to say instead.

He nodded slowly. "Ah... You aren't from California, are you?" he blurted out before he could bite his tongue. Her eyes narrowed. Uhuh. Sensitive topic..? "B-but it's not even my business and all so maybe we'll just-! Oh look, Joe's ready!" he'd never been as thankful to the waiter as in that moment, when he saved him from utter humiliation carrying two evaporative plates of pollo en fricasé to their table.

"Enjoy your meal" the big guy smiled at them and winked at Leo. She would have rolled her eyes yet again at the two's synthesis, if she wasn't staring at the dish, wide-eyed. Last time she'd eaten it, it was... Before Circe's Island? Dad had used to make it...

"Um... Is everything ok..?" she heard Leo's uncertain voice. She blinked a few times and took her eyes away from the plate.

"Yeah, it's perfect" she answered and, before she could even record what she was doing, smiled at him. As his face covered with a deep shade of red, she immediately regretted it. Gods, girl! Don't be all flirty with him! "So... Let's eat..!" she hurried to take the cutlery in her hands and noticed with a relief that he did the same.

X

"It was... WOW..." Leo mumbled, patting on his stomach with a delighted look on his face. "You excelled yourself, man!" he called out to Joe taking an order from some couple and the said man smirked. "Did you like it, Reyna?" he asked, looking at herself cleaning her mouth with a napkin. Did she like it? She hadn't eaten anything so delicious in a long, long time...

"Yes, very much" she answered with reserve, not wanting to sound too pleased. A wide smile spread across his face anyway. She felt her ears burning. It wasn't like his face looked just too adorable in that moment, no, no. "Thank you for the lunch" she said, standing up suddenly.

"Whaaat?! Don't tell me you're gonna leave already?!" he whined, his eyebrows drawing close in a true hurt. She shook her head slightly, not looking him in his pleading eyes.

"I have... Classes to attend to and..." she mumbled, taking her bag from her chair. He stood up too.

"Me too but we'll make it anyway!" seeing that it left no effect, he grabbed her forearm, which surprised them both. She looked him in the eye, her own widened, and he pulled back his hand, blushing furiously. "I mean..." he run his fingers through his curls, his sight fastened on the ground "Please stay... If you want to..." he locked his eyes on hers.

They stood in awkward silence for a while. She was well aware that everybody was looking at them. Well, at least Joe, as the couple had decided to physically strenghten their bond by exploring every bit of their bodies and mouths over and over again. She suddenly felt pretty weird alone only with him, a Caribbean tank-man and the making out lovebirds. She prepared for a leave but made the mistake of looking in his eyes again. They were pleading for her to stay, showing the desperate need to keep her there with him. What made him so longing for her..?

Damn, she was becoming soft.

"Ok" she sighed, falling on the chair again. He made a strange sound of half chuckle, half relieved sigh and sat down too.

There was silence between them again. She crossed her arms on her chest, waiting, and could almost see gear-wheels in his head trying to come up with something, anything to make her stay there worth it. "Um..." he finally started uncertainly "Would you like to meet the love of my life?" he blurted out. She lifted her eyebrow.

"Who?" she asked dryly. Why would she even want to meet her? What a strange thing to ask.

"Not who" he grinned. "I'd say what! Joe!" And before she could even protest, the big guy played a song from the radio standing on the counter. She knew that rhythm. Caribbean music..?

"This is it!" Leo drew aside his arms, standing up and moving in the tact of the music. Did she have to mention that he wasn't as good of a dancer as he probably thought he was? "The love of my life, the gods' gift, calypso!" Really? He called Caribbean music the love of his life? She unconsciously snorted with laughter at the sight of his hips' clumsy moves. Unfortunately, he heard that.

"No laughing, reina, until you show me how you dance!" he said, grabbing her hand and pulling her after him to the improvised dance floor in the table-less middle of the restaurant.

"Wha-?!" she only managed to give out before he threw her arms around his neck and put his hands somewhere in between her waist and her hips, swaying them both in the rhythm with an irremovable grin plastered to his face. She felt her cheeks flushing again. "What are you doing?!" she asked, her voice a bit higher than she'd like it to be.

He chuckled. "Showing you what great fun is, of course!" he spun her around. She had to admit, she did consider it a nice way of spending time. But it was a long time earlier, with her father, for gods' sake! She wanted to free from his grip but...

No.

No, no, no, no.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no!

Why couldn't she make a single move towards pulling away..?

Was she..?

Was she enjoying his closeness, the gleam in his eyes, his warm touch on her body and their crazy almost-dance..?

No way.


ZJeM, 03.01.14


From author:

I'm sorry it's not longer, just decided to end it with a cliffhanger, buhahaha. XD

I know their dance probably isn't a tiny bit like any Caribbean dance would be, but I don't care. Just imagine it as casual swaying to the music. ;)

Please google pollo en fricasé. When I saw this, I almost started drooling. :D

THANKS FOR READING!