Chapter 4: This Means War
It was few weeks later, and Annabeth was pretty sure that as long as they were in school, Jason did not let go of of Piper's hand. At the end of every class, he would wait in the hallway for her, or meet her somewhere along the way.
It made her really happy for them.
Tonight was the homecoming dance, and she was pretty sure Drew did end up finding a date unfortunately. Apparently, she was going with this dude named Dylan. Dylan was some punky douche bag who tried picking up Piper the previous year. Of course, they weren't dating yet, but Jason took care of that guy. Which was one of the reasons Annabeth knew Jason wasn't cheating on her.
Annabeth leaned back on her bed and listened to Piper rummage through her closet as Rachel sat in a bean bag on the floor, complaining about the most obnoxious kid in her art class.
"He irks me so MUCH!" The redhead rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. Her frizzy red hair fell around her face and over her shoulders.
Piper was examining a navy blue strapless dress and then looked up. "Yeah Octavian is pretty annoying. Is he going to the dance?"
Annabeth let out a sound that could have been a laugh or a cough. "Uh no way is he going. He would annoy everyone to death.''
Rachel fisted her hands and scrunched up her freckled nose. "Oh, he is going! He told me that he is so cool, that he is going to win homecoming king."
Piper and Annabeth shared knowing glances, and the dark haired girl smiled with sympathy. She sat down on the bed and looked at Rachel. "Do you have a date to the dance Rachel?"
Rachel's face turned a light shade of red and began twirling a strand of her hair. "Uh no. I'm just going with you guys."
Annabeth gave Rachel an empathetic smile when she saw the smirk Piper had on her face. Piper was good at knowing when people took a "romantic interest" in each other. Annabeth wasn't sure Rachel was going to like the fact that Octavian, the guy just about everyone hates, had a thing for her.
"What?" Rachel said nervously when she also noticed the smile.
Piper flipped one of her braids over shoulder and continued running her finger over the dress fabric. "Nothing," she smiled.
Annabeth noticed Rachel's flushed face and decided to change the subject. "So, uh, such a terrible loss at the homecoming game yesterday right?" Annabeth didn't know how intelligent that sounded, considering she knew absolutely nothing about sports.
Rachel nodded, her red hair bouncing around her shoulders. "Oh yeah! I don't usually stick around for sports. But because of yearbook," she nodded her head toward the camera sitting next to her, "I saw that foul. That ref had to be blind."
Annabeth sat up and fisted her hands, nodding her head. "Yeah! Poor Beckondorf! He was out for the rest of the game, they would have won if he was still in there." Annabeth was quite defensive of Beckondorf. It was his girlfriend Silena who gave her the confidence to kiss Percy that many years ago. In fact, Annabeth had helped the two of them hook up as well.
As that conversation wrapped up, Piper dropped the pile of dresses on the bed and gave a bright smile. "Okay guys. We have to leave soon. Put on your dresses!"
Annabeth stood up and slid over to Piper, picking up her dress. "Whoa Piper. You're never excited about this kind of stuff."
Piper blushed and brushed some hair behind her ear. "Heh, sorry. It's nothing."
Rachel hopped up with a smirk and bounced over, hands behind her back. "Nah, Piper is just excited to slay Drew with her dress. And, you know, make Jason die from her beauty."
Piper's face turned as red as Rachel's hair. "What...? No.."
There was an awkward pause as Annabeth and Rachel leaned toward Piper, waiting for the truthful answer.
Piper bit her lip and held back a smile. "Okay yes!" She held up her hands and continued. "I want to see the look on Drew's face when I walk in there with Jason! She'll be all miserable with numb face Dylan. And I'll be with my boyfriend Jason!"
Both Rachel and Annabeth broke into laughter, holding onto each others shoulders so they wouldn't collapse. "Relax Piper!" Rachel laughed.
Piper retreated her face into her hands. "Ahh my stupid mom is wearing off on me! BUT Jason is the cutest boy in school. So I have a logical reason to be so excited."
Annabeth brushed her curly hair out of her face and rolled her eyes. "Well I wouldn't say that."
Piper stuck out her lip and hit Annabeth gently with a pillow.
Annabeth raised her eyebrows with a smirk and took this as a challenge. She was picking a pillow up and readying herself to whack Piper across the face, when Rachel hopped between them. "Hey guys! What happened to getting ready?''
Annabeth sighed and dropped the pillow. Rachel was right of course. She didn't want herself looking less suitable than she already is. She never brushed her hair on the weekends.
As the girls gathered up their feminine gear of makeup and clothing, Rachel glanced around the room. "Hey guys, wheres Hazel?"
Piper ran a brush through her hair and held back a curse when she realized she still had little braids in her hair. She began untangling them and answered, "I guess her dad is actually home tonight. So she couldn't come over. But she'll meet us there. She lives right by the school, if anything one of us can walk over there and get her."
Annabeth followed Piper's example and began brushing her hair. Her head of curly hair made it more difficult than girls with straight hair, like Silena. "Oh yeah, Percy and I will stop by her house after Jason and you guys get to the school. We can just run over to her house. It'll be quick. She's to small too go on her own"
Rachel nodded and took the brush from Piper when she was done. "Doesn't Hazel have a brother? Can't he walk her?"
Piper and Annabeth shared glances and shrugged. "I don't think school dances are really his speed." Annabeth said.
Rachel nodded and accepted the answer, not entirely knowing much about her friends' family history. She really just became friends with the group near the end of summer. She had been friends with Percy for years, but Annabeth was kind of always grumpy when Rachel was around for the longest of time. Rachel was happy they cleared things up.
They continued working on their appearance. Taking turns doing each others makeup and nails. Annabeth sat the girls on a stool while she did their hair. She got a few complains about the earrings she picked out for Rachel, but in the end the girls looked pretty darn beautiful.
"Rachel that dress really suits you." Annabeth complimented as she scanned her friend up and down. Rachel was wearing a white dress that hugged her figure nicely on the top, and flowed out at the waist. On the skirt of the dress, it looked like there was paint splattered across it. She had on wedge sandals and pearl earrings. Her hair was braided down her shoulder, with a few curls falling into her eyes.
"Thank you." She smiled with a slight blush. "Piper I love how you look! Let me get a picture!" Rachel quickly grabbed her camera and took a few snaps. She had on a navy blue dress that was about the same length as Rachel's. It had a black belt around the waist and she had on uncomfortable black heels. Her ears occupied earrings that had little feathers hanging from them. She even talked Annabeth to letting her wear her gray flannel over it, and it surprisingly looked good.
But they both stared in aw when they saw Annabeth. She had on a nice forest green dress that went down to her ankles. It was strapless as well, and had a gem in the middle at the top. She had open toed high heel shoes, and a pair of owl earrings from her mother. Her curly hair fell randomly onto her shoulders, and she had on no makeup. She didn't normally wear makeup anyway, but she could only imagine what Percy could get them into. Last time she wore makeup, they ended up in a fountain.
Rachel sat down and grabbed a chip out of the snack bowl, careful not to ruin her lip gloss. "When are the guys suppose to get here anyways?"
Annabeth shrugged and smiled. "Any mome-!" She was cut off by the special ringtone she had for her boyfriend; Just Keep Swimming from Nemo. It reminded her of the conversation between Jason and Percy about Ellen.
As she pulled out her phone she laughed silently to herself at how ins-inc her boyfriend and her are. She knew he would call any minute, and he did. Annabeth always thought about if the two of them had to fight off monsters or something, how they would make such a great team, considering they can read each others minds. Of course, getting a phone call and fighting monsters, is not really a comparable thing.
''Hey Percy!'' she greeted as she put the phone to her ear.
''Hey babe,'' he responded. Annabeth was pretty sure she could hear the grin on his face. "We'll be there soon. We were just picking up some stuff."
Annabeth raised an eyebrow and turned away from her friends who were waiting patiently. "Like what?"
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On the other line, Percy shrugged his shoulders. "I was visiting the stables earlier. Blackjack really wanted some donuts." Percy could just imagine Annabeth rolling her eyes. He didn't mind though, even if everyone thought he was crazy. And maybe he was. He knew he couldn't really talk to horses. But Blackjack was different, and he felt a connection with him.
"We're actually coming around the corner right now. See you in a sec." He smiled as he looked at the passing houses.
"Okay," he heard her voice say.
After hanging up the phone, he sat back in his seat and listened to the story Leo was telling Jason about one of his 'inventions' malfunctions.
"Wow man." Jason had said. "I'm happy I was not there."
Leo rolled his eyes and and held up his palms. " I wish you were there! It was the closest to death I've ever came to."
Percy looked over and raised an eyebrow. "What?"
Jason took a hand off the wheel and pointed a thumb at Leo in the back seat. "Leo was just telling me about the time a pipe cleaner almost stabbed him in the eye."
Percy glanced at Leo and scoffed jokingly. "Wow man. You must have a very pathetic life."
Leo narrowed his eyes, but couldn't hold back a smile. "Yeah, says the guys who had a crush on the same girl for, like, 8 years! You didn't even start dating until this summer!"
Jason snorted at the thought. Him and Piper had only known each other for about two years before they got together. "Yeah at least Percy has a girlfriend!"
The older guys both laughed out loud, and highfived. Jason quickly put his hand back on the wheel before he accidentally crashed into the Chase's mailbox.
Leo let out a groan of frustration, and the other boys laughed again.
As the boys piled out of the car, Percy noticed a glimpse of a figure in the window. He couldn't see that well, but it was defiantly Annabeth. The curly blonde hair gave it away. He grinned and gave her a wave. She rolled her eyes and slightly waved back as she vanished from the window.
The girls gracefully walked down the porch, except for Rachel, who almost face-planted.
Jason grabbed Piper's hand, like he always does when he see's her. "The flannel," he grinned. "I like it."
Annabeth walked up to Percy who was standing off to the side, his elbow resting on the top of the car. "Hey."
Annabeth grinned and stood on the other side of the car, placing her arms on the car as well. "Hello there Seaweed brain. You look quite handsome."
He ran his fingers through his hair. Percy had always been insecure about his looks, but hearing Annabeth say that always reassured him.
"You look pretty good too Wise Girl." He was quite surprised that he was not tongue tide by her beauty. Was probably one of the perks of getting used to this 'boyfriend' thing. "No makeup?"
She placed her hands on her hips. Her eyebrows were raised and her lips were slightly curled up. "Is that a problem?" She challenged.
He shook his head as he threw it back, laughing."Course not," He reached over and grabbed her hand. "You look much better this way."
Annabeth just slapped his arm and laughed. "Yeah, okay Seaweed brain!"
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Leo walked over to Rachel with his hands behind his back. He stood in front of her, screwing up a picture she was trying to take of Piper and Jason talking in front of a flower bush.
"Leo!" she scowled, as she put the camera down to examine the blurry picture.
He grinned and stepped closer to her. He held his arm out very gentlemanly like. "Miss Rachel Elizabeth Dare, can I escort you to the car?" He gestured toward the rusty, worn down car that Jason's mom used to own.
"No thank you Valdez," She smirked as she pushed passed him and walked over to the car where the other couple were getting in, carefully so she didn't fall on her face.
Leo shrugged. He thought it was worth a shot. He didn't really have any romantic feelings for Rachel, but she looked kind of pretty and they were both single. Leo kind of chickened out on asking Hazel to the dance. He really liked her, and it wasn't like him to get nervous. But he actually cared what she thought. He also felt a pain of guilt every time he was planning on asking her. Him and Frank were suppose to be friends. He could see how that was working out.
Jason and Piper took the front seats, meaning the four of them had to cram into the back seat. Rachel was on the far right, next was Percy then Annabeth, with Leo taking the rear. At first they tried just sitting really close to each other, but when that didn't work, Annabeth decided the best solution was to just sit on Percy's lap. He didn't complain, and the others thought it was kind of funny.
Although Leo didn't take a romantic interest in Rachel, or any of his female friends (that are present), he still did think they all looked beautiful. And sitting next to Annabeth now, he never realized how good her perfume smelt. He made a mental note to tell Hazel to add Annabeth to the list of girls he smells because their perfume is so fine.
The rest of the ride was spent with Annabeth explaining Greek Myths to Percy for one of his classes, while Piper listened to Jason list the same facts but in the Roman version. Rachel took really fast shutter speed pictures of things outside the window, while Leo made comments on the Myths. He would say something like, "Oh Coach Hedge would defiantly approve," or "What kind of name is that? It sounds like an Espresso drink."
As the time on their phones ticked away, because who seriously uses real clocks anymore, they finally arrived at Half-Blood High. The parking lot was full, and kids were pushing each other around like wild animals. "Jason just let me and Percy out here, we're gonna walk over to Hazel's and make sure she gets here okay."
Percy turned toward Annabeth and cocked his head. "We are?" When he watched Annabeth nod her head slowly like he was an idiot, he said, "I mean, yeah we are!"
Leo was going to offer to go with them, but then thought better, thinking it would be awkward for him to tag along.
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After letting them climb out, Jason took the car to find a parking spot. Percy and Annabeth walked hand in hand down the school sidewalk. Percy noticed the Stoll brothers carrying buckets, and remembered to stay away from them tonight. He also saw a girl and a boy he recognized as sophomores, Lou Ellen and Cecil, running down the sidewalk past them yelling about some nerdy movie that came out.
The couple dodged cars as they crossed the busy mid section where most were entering. "It would have been smart to ask Jason to just drop us off over here.." Annabeth mumbled. Percy nodded his head in agreement.
They were finally in a safe zone when they noticed a tall guy waving at them. He was standing with a shorter girl with dark hair. When Percy noticed who it was he rushed toward them, pulling Annabeth with him. "Beckondorf!"
"What's up Percy?" He highfived him with is left hand, for his right one was in a sling.
"How's your arm?" Annabeth asked with concern, remembering the game the previous night.
Beckondorf just shrugged. "Charlie's very stubborn. I told him we shouldn't have even came tonight." Silena smiled wrapping her arms around him.
He gave her a quick kiss on the head and looked at his friends. Percy thought it was really sweet Silena was willing not to go to the dance for Beckondorf. She seemed to really love this kind of stuff. "Yeah. You got a tough one." Percy laughed.
Silena giggled at him. "You look very handsome Percy."
Percy grinned. "Thank you. Beckondorf looks handsome too." The other three stared at him awkwardly for a second before laughing it off. After a confused moment, Percy processed what he said. "Wait no! That's not what I meant. I mean- Silena you look handsome! NO! Ugg!"
It made the rest of them laugh even more, and Percy joined in after his red face went down a little. "Seriously though, why are you leaving so soon? It hasn't even started yet." Beckondorf finally managed to say.
Annabeth stood up straight and held up a hand. "Oh we're not leaving. We have to go get Hazel.''
Silena nodded and grabbed Beckondorf's hand. "Oh okay. We wont hold you any longer. We'll meet you guys in there!" She ran off with Beckondorf, and was happy to see that Clarisse was standing at the door waiting for them with Chris Rodriguez.
They continued their short journey down the road as they wandered through Hazel's subdivision. "I think it's this one here." Annabeth nodded her head to one of the older looking houses. It was an average size, maybe a little smaller than the other houses. All the blinds were closed, and the grass was overgrown. The only nice looking thing about house, were the rose bushes in front. That, and the nice black Ferrari parked in the driveway. Their dad couldn't afford to buy a decent meal for his kids, but he could pay for a nice ride to drive around in because he is barely at home. Go figure.
They stood at the end of the driveway. "Okay, you wait her, I'll go knock." Annabeth concluded as she began walking away towards the door.
Percy frowned and grabbed her wrist before she got past him. "Um no. I'll do it.''
Annabeth pursed her lips. "What's the problem?"
Percy pointed at the door and widened his eyes. "Her dad is crazy! He could come at you with an ax!" Percy felt a bit of guilt, saying stuff like that. Hazel was his friend, and he never once was up at night thinking about her well being. He had never met her dad, only seen him. And that was enough.
Before Annabeth could answer, they heard the door swing open and shoes hitting the pavement. Hazel was coming out the door, with a sad expression on her face. Physically, she looked fine. He hair fell in it's regular curls, and she was wearing a purple dress with a white cotton jacket over it. She hadn't noticed them standing there yet, mostly because she was talking to her brother who was following behind her with a very angry aura.
Percy was a bit alarmed by this. Not the fact that Nico was angry, that was normal, but that was walking with Hazel. Did that mean he was going to Homecoming too?He sure as heck wasn't dressed like he was. He was wearing all black like normal. His hair wasn't combed and his shoes...well Percy couldn't complain about the converse. Percy was even wearing converse, along with his nicest looking clothes he has.
Finally Hazel looked up and smiled. "Hey guys!" She ran toward while Nico lagged behind. Percy wasn't even sure if he heard Hazel say that.
"Hey Hazel!" Annabeth smiled before pulling her into a hug. "You look beautiful! Hey Nico."
The sound of his name seemed to pull him from his thoughts and he looked up. "Uhh.." He muttered to himself, trying to make sense of what they were doing here.
"Percy and Annabeth are gonna walk me." Hazel announced as she gave Nico a side hug.
Percy shifted his weight, as he noticed how uncomfortable his former friend looked. Percy wished they weren't former friends. But he couldn't do much about it. "You're not coming Nico?" Percy instantly regretted his words when he saw Nico's face darken.
Nico looked back and fourth between Annabeth and Percy about four times before saying, "Nope. Just trying to get away." He then turned on his heal and began stomping down the sidewalk, in the opposite direction. Percy could have sworn he could see steam rising from his head.
They stood there awkwardly for another ten seconds while Hazel chewed her lip. "He got in a fight with our dad.." She trailed off. "Any who! Lets go!" She grabbed Annabeth and Percy's hands and pulled them down the sidewalk.
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The music was much louder than she anticipated. And she was crammed up in a room with kids who were all technically older than her. Some kids were doing things that made her fan herself so she didn't pass out. And I thought middle school was crazy..
The only things that kept her in check, were her friends. When they arrived, she found Piper and Jason by the punch table, while Annabeth and Percy went to find Silena and Beckondorf. Hazel desperately was trying to find Frank, that was when she spotted a short Hispanic kid standing at the other entrance, winking at girls as they entered.
"Leo!" She called as she bolted across the room, dodging kids who almost stepped on her. When Leo noticed her, he walked over, giving up on a girl who looked about ready to punch him in the face.
"Looking fine Miss Hazel Levesque." He winked, doing finger guns at her.
Hazel punched him in the shoulder gently. "Shut up!" She then stood on her tip toes and continued to look around. "Where's Frank?"
Leo waved a hand. "Pffft who knows? Probably at home polishing his animal statues."
Hazel punched his arm again only harder. "Frank does not have animal statues!" She laughed.
Leo shrugged. "Why? You wanna dance with him or something..?!" He grinned because it was fun teasing her, but also was curious.
Hazel flushed, thinking about the many weeks ago where the two of them held hands. They hadn't spoke about it since, though she couldn't help but notice how Frank's face is always a rosy color when they were together. "I dunno!" She shouted over the loud music.
Leo frowned. That was defiantly not the answer he wanted. He quickly covered up his frown though, when Bruno Mars' "Uptown Funk" started to play. He grabbed her wrist and dragged her toward the dance floor.
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Piper couldn't help but notice Rachel and Octavian arguing, from the corner of her eye. She didn't normally like to get into others peoples' business, but it was kind of hard not to notice them when they were standing in the corner, the most underpopulated part of the room, and waving their arms around screaming. Piper decided to stay out of it. Her mom told her it was her job to get involved in everyone's relationship. But who is her mom to say that when she left her dad? Piper see's her mom every once in a while, but actually cannot stand her.
Piper pulled her flannel closer to herself as she swayed slowly to the music, waiting for Jason to return from where he was talking to Hazel while Leo stuffed his face with cookies. She nearly jumped out of her skin when she felt a tap on her shoulder. Jason was obviously not standing with her, so when she turned around and instantly was staring into Drew Tankaka's beady eyes, she wasn't surprised. Being this close to her, Piper noticed the pink eyeliner and strong perfume she was wearing. She had absolutely no scars or zits, her face had no marks. In fact, now that she thought about, Drew kind of looked like rat with a makeup addiction.
"Hey hon!" Drew smiled, as she ran her hand down Piper's arm. Although she sounded genuine, Piper could see the evil in Drew's eyes.
Piper shrugged Drew away. "What do you want?"
After hearing Piper's tone, Drew immediately dropped the act and pursed her lips. "I just wanted to let you know you look terrible Dumpster Girl."
Piper just held out her arms. "Well I guess Jason likes 'Dumpster Girls'!" She then gave herself a highfive and walked away, while Drew stomped her foot and growled.
Just to spite her, Piper walked over to her friends and wrapped her arms around Jason, as everyone jammed out to some Taylor Swift songs.
"What up Beauty Queen!?" Leo acknowledged her, as he held up his hand for a highfive. She happily obliged.
Realizing this was her first time talking to Hazel tonight she said, "Hazel you look beautiful!" Hazel smiled and said the same thing back, Piper could see the uneasiness hidden under her smile. "Are you okay?"
Hazel glanced around the room. "Have you seen Frank?"
Piper shared a glance with Jason who smiled nervously and shrugged. She saw Leo making puking gestures and bit back a laugh.
"Oh yeah!" Jason finally said holding up a finger. His blue eyes seemed to glow in the dark room, it was actually a little creepy in Piper's opinion. But a good creepy. "Percy did tell me Frank said he might not be able to make it tonight."
Hazel's excitement seemed to subside at the new information. Piper patted Hazels shoulder comfortingly, "It's okay," she smiled. "I'm sure he wishes he was here with you too." She glanced at Leo, who seemed to have a sad yet sincere smile on his face. Weird, she thought.
"Yeah!" the Hispanic boy declared. "It's all good!" He wrapped his arms around Hazel and Piper, two of his favorite girls in the world, and pulled them into a group hug. He placed his chin on Hazel's head of hair, thinking about how great it was that he had a friend who was shorter than him. Even if she was a girl and two years younger. She was the only kid around his age who was shorter than him. Besides Micheal Yew, a very short senior who made up for it with his attitude.
They all laughed, and when Jason wrapped his long arms around the trio, they laughed even harder. He has like a giant turtle shell, protecting them from the dangerous world.
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As the night went on, they started playing a few slow songs. The DJ dude specifically said, word for word "Okay here are the romance-y soooongsss! Grab your girl, or your man if that's how the good Lord made ya! If you have no one, then dance with yourself!" His voice echoed obnoxiously from the microphone.
Percy widened his eyes and wrinkled his nose when he heard the voice. The DJ's, who he hadn't been paying attention to all night, voice sounded familiar. He lifted his head and glanced at where the stereo was set up. The man was average height with shaggy blonde hair, and even from here Percy could see his blue eyes. His smile was blinding. Looking at him, Percy was positive he was one of his classmates dads or something. He'd seen him around the school for years, even back in middle school. Except the guy looked so young. He couldn't remember which classmate it was at the moment, but his parents must have been pretty young when he was born.
Percy shook the creepy thought from his mind as he danced with his girlfriend. It made him think back to their middle school days, before they were dating. At a dance, their friends forced them to dance together. It was so awkward, mostly because he kept stepping on her feet. But now it wasn't awkward. He still stepped on her feet, but that didn't make it a bit awkward. They talked and laughed, and he still crushed her feet under his. He still apologized, but he could tell by the way she rolled her grey eyes that she did not care.
"Anyways, my mom wants you to stay for dinner this week." Percy grinned a she placed a piece of her hair behind her ear.
Annabeth nodded and gave a small smile. "Okay. Anything for your mom." She had to bite her lip back from saying 'I can't wait until she's my mother in-law.'
She noticed how Percy's face became kind of nervous and she was instantly concerned. "What's wrong?"
He shrugged and tried to cover it up with his signature goofy grin. But Annabeth knew something was bothering him. "Oh.. you know.. my dad is finally coming to meet me."
Annabeth's jaw dropped. She has heard all about how Percy's father has never been there. She knows that his mom was in love with him, but it was still a bit odd. Where has he been all these years? Why did he all of a sudden want to meet Percy?
"B-But..?" she stuttered, not exactly sure what she was even going to say.
"I don't know." Percy frowned, as he looked down at his old sneakers. "I don't know if I'm gonna wanna hug him or beat his ass for leaving us.."
Annabeth put her hand on his cheek; it was very warm. "We all have such messed up parents don't we?"
Percy thought about it for a second: Jason's mom is an alcoholic and he never met his dad. Leo's dad showed his face once and disappeared from the face of the planet. Piper's mom left her dad. Frank's dad has never been around. Both Hazel's and Nico's moms died and now they share a neglectful father. Annabeth never had a great relationship with her dad, but they are patching things up. She visited her mom every few weeks, which was better than what most of them got.
Although he felt bad for all of his friends, he couldn't help but wonder if they were drawn to each other for these similarities. Honestly, his first friend, Grover, was an orphan. So maybe he did have an invisible magnet that forced him toward these amazing people.
"Yeah," he chuckled not feeling so bad anymore.
Annabeth gave him a side smile, and pulled him closer. "Whatever happens.." She whispered. "I'll be with you every step of the way."
Percy ran his fingers through her hair, and was leaning in for a kiss when he felt an unexpected sting in his right leg. The pain quickly dissolved, but then he found his clothes soaking through with water. All he heard was the laughter and he instantly knew who was responsible. "Travis! Connor!" He grinned as he ran toward them. He wasn't surprised when he was greeted by Connor while Travis and Katie Gardner argued. They were always arguing. He grabbed a couple balloons from the bucket and threw them right at the arguing duo. Katie let out a high pitched shriek. Percy noticed Travis lean in and whisper something to her. She turned beet red and stormed off.
"Nice!" Travis praised, running over then highfiving him, although he was dripping wet. "Your turn!" The older prankster chuckled as he smashed a rubber death bomb on his brother's head.
That was the start of the war between the three boys. Annabeth watched the whole thing. How Connor and Travis teamed up, weaving around people trying to get Percy soaked. But like always, Percy overpowered them. He whipped around throwing balloons at all different angles, soaking everyone in his path. The Stolls finally got him cornered when Leo joined the game, Percy now ran out of amo. They were backing him in the corner when Dr. Thorn, the vice principle, grabbed the Stolls by the ear and gestured for the other boys to follow. He lead them toward the door, and there were many groans of annoyance. Most people found the Percy Jackson show entertaining. Even the DJ, who looked like he was answering questions for Cecil and Lou Ellen. He seemed to enjoy the attention.
After the four boys were thrown out the front doors and Thorn was far down the hall, Leo and Connor exchanged highfives. "Totally worth it!" Connor grinned.
Percy felt a bit guilty for ditching Annabeth. She had to understand that he was just defending his turf, right? As if on cue, Annabeth walked out the front doors followed by his friends. He was a bit disappointed when he realized Frank really hadn't showed up. His grief remained, but he managed a smirk.
"Because you losers can't stay out of trouble," Annabeth rolled her eyes as she placed her hands on her hip. Her blonde hair was getting frizzier as the night went on. "We plan on just going to get something to eat at that Chinese place."
Hazel forced a smile. Frank loves Chinese food, and she was really wishing he was here right now.
"Cool." Leo and Percy agreed at the same time.
Jason nodded his head toward the Stolls. "You guys wanna come with?"
The brothers glanced at each other and shrugged. "Nah, we're good." Connor answered.
Piper fingered her braids. "You sure?"
"Yeah," Travis confirmed. "We're gonna see how long it takes before Thorn throws us out again!" The troublesome boys grinned at each other and ran back inside the school.
They all stifled some laughs and Hazel let out a sigh. "They are hopeless!"
Leo furrowed his brow and looked at Hazel. "Hey! That's what you say about me!"
Hazel nodded. "You are more hopeless than anyone."
Nico's facial expression remained the same the whole time he walked down the sidewalk; a scowl. His dad drives him insane, and that little encounter with Percy and Annabeth did not help either.
He kicked a rock continually as he walked down the road, thankful he was the only one out there. Most of the kids that lived around here were at homecoming. Something he hated, but could tolerate. It let him leave the house, something he didn't do much, and not worry about having to run into someone he knew.
It was both their first year of high school, and his little sister has already been to more parties than him: one. He wasn't too prone on letting her go, especially since she was so young and innocent, but she insisted. He didn't particularly like her friends, but he could appreciate how nicely they treat Hazel.
He was just mad at his dad, he thought. His dad finally decided to come home tonight after being gone for two weeks, asking for money. Nico knew their dad was loaded, but refused to pay to keep the house in order. And to make matters worse, every job Nico ever applied for (although he despised the idea of working for anyone, him and his sister needed the money) had the age expectation of fifteen. He had several months before he turned fifteen, and the money problem was getting worse. So of course he told his dad to screw off, and a few other not-so-nice words he would never normally use. He got shoved pretty hard into a table for 'disrespecting' his father, but he still thought it was worth it. Hazel wasn't sure if she should still go to the dance after the incident, but Nico convinced her to still do it. She looked so beautiful in her dress, he didn't have the heart to keep her at home with their corpse of a father. Hazel was the only one that made him ever think about feelings.
As Nico got into town, he hesitated on where he wanted to go. He just wanted to do something for passing time, and hopefully their father would be gone by then. Nico considered grabbing something to eat, but passed on it because he didn't have an appetite. He finally settled on the library. He double checked that it was still open. It was.
He walked inside slowly, glancing around and seeing nobody. In fact, the library was dark. Too dark for a place where people were reading. He started to wonder if the sign outside was wrong and the librarian just forgot to lock up.
It was a pretty grand sized library, with tons of shelves. Walking to other end, he realized that there were some dim lights still on. He carefully slid down the sides of the shelves, just in case someone was there. He could sense movement, so he peeked through a set of books. He could seriously not believe it.
Of course it was Solace.
He was hunched over the table with a stack of books and papers scattered around him. Nico couldn't help but even feel sorry for him. The kid had circles under his and looked like he would pass out at any moment.
He continued to watch as he stood in the shadows. Will lifted his hands and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and began to yawn. Nico almost panicked a little bit when Will began gathering his books and started walking toward him. The pale boy decided the best option was to remain still and maybe he wont notice him. He closed his eyes tightly as if that would help him, and waited until he heard a loud Bang!
He opened his eyes to discover that Will Solace tripped over literally nothing and was laying on the floor covered in loose leaf paper.
Nico cocked his head to the right as Will's vision came back to him, finally noticing the younger boy's presence. "Nico?"
Surprised that Will didn't jump or even startle a little bit at his sudden presence, he just nodded.
"What are you doing here?"
Nico raised one brow. "What am I doing here? What are you doing here? There is like no one in here."
Will shrugged as he sat up and dusted the nonexistent dust off his shirt. "Researching stuff." The blonde began gathering his papers and put them into a nice pile on his lap. "Librarian realized I was the only one who ever came here after seven. So she starts cleaning up and going early, but getting the same paycheck. As long as I lock up, she's cool with it.'' He pulled a key on a chain out of his pocket and swung it on his index finger.
Nico crossed his arms, a little confused by the news. "Isn't that illegal?"
Will shrugged again and flipped some hair out of his eyes. "I mean, I guess. But you don't have to tell anyone you know?" He winked.
Nico just rolled his eyes.
"Besides," Will continued. "I'm actually helping her work less and gain good money she deserves. She probably has a family!"
He looked at Nico standing a few feet from him. Now he finally understood how Nico felt, and other short people for that matter. It must suck, always having to look up at someone. He reached his hand up for Nico to pull him up to his feet, but that kid just shook his head stubbornly. Will pulled out the pouty lip, which still didn't work. Dang it! he thought, the pouty lip always works!
"Fine..." He grumbled, as he situated himself to stand."Be that way.."
He struggled to stand up with all the books and paper, and after about ten seconds, Nico decided that was enough. He rolled his eyes and reluctantly held out his hand. Will gladly took it, and Nico had to force himself to not pull away. Will's hand was so warm, so unlike his. The contact sent a weird feeling up Nico's spine. Something that made him uncomfortable. Once Will was to his feet, Nico quickly disconnected their hands.
The older boy began putting the books back on the shelf, and Nico didn't see any other option but to walk next to him. "Why are you studying?"
Will smiled as reached up to the high shelf and placed a book up there. "Medical stuff. I need to pass my medical classes and science classes if I'm going to get into Med school."
Nico took a step back and crossed his arms. "Med school? Aren't you just a sophomore?"
Will placed a hand on his heart and smiled sarcastically. "Yeah, thanks for remembering." He turned on his heel and continued, "College is something I take seriously. I don't care what Lou Ellen or Cecil say. I told them to go to that dance without me."
Nico sat down at one of the tables but continued listening. "Dances aren't really my thing anyway." Will said.
Nico propped his elbow on the table and held up his face with his hand. "Really?" He raised an eyebrow.
Will shrugged. "Not really. I especially did not want be there tonight though."
When Will stifled a laugh after he said that, Nico was a little confused and gestured for Will to continue.
Will side smiled as he finished cleaning up his mess and walked over to the table. "My dad was DJ-ing the freaking thing."
Nico sat up and widened his eyes that were hiding behind his hair. "Your dad?"
Will shrugged and fiddled with his thumb. Nico almost laughed when he saw the Spongebob band-aid on his finger. Almost. "Yeah my dad is really good with music and stuff."
Nico didn't really share his personal life with other people, so he surprised himself when he found himself saying, "Yeah I don't like seeing my dad either.."
Will looked up at Nico with his wide blue eyes and shook his head. "No no no! It's..It's not like I don't like my dad. In fact I really like having my dad around.." He ran his fingers through his hair and sat back in his chair. "You see, my parents were both teenagers when I was born so my dad is pretty young. And even though my parents didn't stay together, my dad still stuck around, which I really appreciated.. Considering my mom doesn't really support-" Nico saw how Will stopped mid sentence and looked down at his hands. "My mom and I don't see eye to eye on.. certain things." He finished.
They sat there in an awkward silence for a minute while Nico thought about how to respond. He was never good with this 'empathetic' stuff. So of course he said something jerky like, "So you like your dad.. but you don't want to see him. That makes a lot of sense."
He was a little worried Will was going to snap at but, but the blonde boy just smiled. "Nah," He smiled. "I was just worried he was going to embarrass me." Will looked up at the ceiling in thought and put a hand to his chin. "Have you ever seen my dad before?"
Nico slouched in his chair and squinted, trying to remember any time he might have seen the father of Will Solace. Then a memory flooded into his mind.
He was in sixth grade and it was the first week of middle school. It was the first year Hazel joined his family, but she was still in elementary school. So he sat on the bench in front of the school where he waited for his dad to pick him up. His dad promised he would be there on time, but Nico was not surprised he was lying. All the buses were gone, few kids were still around. The teachers hadn't left yet, but he was still ready to get home. He hated this place. He figured the underworld would be better than this place.
The only thing that kept him from raging was the blonde boy sitting on the other end of the bench. He was a little taller than Nico. He was wearing a blue t-shirt and cut off jean shorts. He had on high top converse and rainbow bracelets. His blonde hair fluttered in the wind as he bobbed his head to the music he was listening to. He seemed to absorb the sunlight. For some reason, Nico found his presence calming.
The boy opened his eyes, probably sensing that Nico was looking at him. Before the blonde kid could see him staring, Nico turned his attention to the sky. Hopefully the wind would blow the blush off his face.
The kid took his earbuds out and grinned at Nico. "Your parents forget to pick you up too?"
When Nico didn't respond right away, the kid slid down the bench a little bit. "Wait, you're a sixth grader right? I don't think I have ever seen you before."
Nico glared at the kid. He no longer found the boy calming. Just obnoxious.
The kid crossed his arms and pouted. "You know, it's rude to ignore people?"
After the boy annoyingly asked him his name a few more times, Nico finally sighed and reluctantly said coldly, "Nico."
"Nico.." The blonde repeated under his breath. "Is that Italian or something?"
Nico continued glaring, but nodded.
The boy smiled brightly, and his teeth were extremely white. "Oh. Well my name is-!"
"Will!"
They both turned their heads toward a big van that was blasting music. How they didn't hear it coming, Nico had no idea. But the dude inside was took off his sun glasses and smiled, opening the door. "Will! Come on, your mom said if you're not home soon she'll actually call the cops!"
Nico noticed how his dad looked just like an older version of Will. Will got up and adjusted his backpack. "Well, see ya.'' He walked over and jumped in the van. The last thing he heard Will's dad say was, "Who was that kid you were flirting with?"
And you didn't have to have superpowers to hear Will's groan of frustration over the blasting music.
Nico blushed at the memory. He was sure that Will didn't remember that day, so he answered with, "Ummm.. no I don't think so."
Will frowned and looked away a bit disappointed. "Oh." Was all he said.
After remember the first day he met Will Solace, he realized how little he changed. He still wore his surfer shirts and shorts all the time. The only two kind of shoes he ever wore; sandals and high tops. His hair was blonde as ever, if not more blonde than it was three years ago. One of the biggest changes was the height. Will shot up, and was very tall compared to Nico.
"Anyways," Will finally said. "It's getting late. Don't you have to get home?" He pulled keys out of his pocket and stared at Nico expectantly.
"Nah." Nico said getting up and putting his hands in his pocket.
Will eyes soften as he followed Nico to the door. "Yeah, me either."
Nico stopped in the doorway and raised an eyebrow at Will. "You look like you are going to pass out."
Will finished locking up the door and scowled at the pale boy. "Speak for yourself. You're so pale and look like you haven't eaten in like ten years. You look like death."
Nico just scoffed as he walked down the steps .
"And where are you going?!" He heard Will call.
Nico took a deep breath and yelled, "Away from you!"
Will frowned running toward Nico. When he caught up, he grabbed his shoulder. "Why did you even stay in the library then?"
Nico's face flushed when he couldn't answer the question. Why had he stayed in the library when he saw Solace? His natural instincts is always to walk away when he see's other kids from school. "I-Uh.."
Will grinned in triumph. "See? Come on friend! You're coming with me!" He grabbed him by the wrist and started dragging a protesting Nico down the sidewalk.
"Where are we even gonna go?"
Will shrugged as he ran down the corner. "Who knows? Where the wind takes us!"
Nico scoffed and pulled his arm back. "It's not even windy.." He grumbled.
Will rolled his eyes but continued to smile. "You suck the fun out of everything!"
Although still annoyed, Nico sighed and followed. "Okay, so where is the wind taking us."
Will gave Nico a look like he was crazy. "Dude, that's the point of saying 'wherever the wind takes us'! Because we don't know!"
Nico threw his hands up in frustration. "I know that! But I think it's ridiculous!"
Will lagged behind, just to make sure Nico didn't take off. "Fine, where do you want to go? Are you hungry?"
He watched Nico shift around and sink back into his hoodie. ''Not really.." He mumbled. Will nodded, not wanting to push Nico to much. He was usually a laid back person, but when Nico was around, he was literally the most unchill person ever.
"Maybe you will be when we pass these restaurants?" Will suggested.
"Doubt it.." Nico grunted.
As they neared closer toward the restaurants, a group of kids came out of one of the food joints. Nico prayed they would cross the street so he wouldn't have to pass them. But it was just his luck. They looked like they were set on walking this way. When he heard Will mutter to himself ''Hey is that Annabeth..?" he knew it was too late. Hazel had already noticed them and was leading the gang toward them. He sunk even farther back into his hood.
"Hey guys!" Hazel smiled. Her hair was all messy now. Probably from running around. She was like a horse that busted out of a stable. She was just happy to be free.
Will waved back. "Hey." He nodded toward Annabeth who waved in return.
Percy gestured toward Will and said, "You know him?"
She smiled and shoved her boyfriend gently. "Yeah, I used to tutor him."
Will awkwardly smiled and nodded in agreement.
"So what are you guys doing?" Hazel asked standing next to Nico
The two boys shrugged. "I don't know." Will said. "Neither of us wanted to go back to our houses, so we were just at the library."
Leo furrowed his eyebrows. ''The library? Isn't that what iPhones are for?"
Piper shoved Leo. "The library is just where smart people go. So that's why we wont find you there."
Leo pouted at the comment while Percy and Piper exchanged highfives.
"Right." Nico added, as he stared at the cracks in the sidewalk.
The group was silent for a few moments until Leo started snickering. All of them, even Nico, turned toward him.
"What?" Annabeth finally snapped, her patience level very low.
Leo rubbed his eyes and gestured toward Will and Nico. "Them! Look at short little Nico in all his dark clothes! And then Will in his bright orange shirt, as tall as the Empire State building!"
The two boys exchanged glances and their ears reddened. Nico shrunk even farther into his hood.
Percy snickered a little bit too. Hazel just gasped and wrapped her arms around her brother. "Don't tease Nico!"
Nico excepted the hug, but shrugged her off after a few moments.
Hazel yawned and turned to her friends. "Anyways, I'm tired. I think me and Nico are going to head home." She looked at Nico for permission.
He nodded. "Right." He turned on his heel and headed for home.
Hazel shrugged nervously at her friends, said goodbye, and followed him.
The rest of the group unanimously agreed to all head home too. They said goodbye to Will, and turned around to head back to Jason's car; opposite direction of the way Hazel and Nico were going.
Although the blonde boy did not want to go home to face his mom yet, he decided it was probably for the best. He wouldn't deny that he was staring at Hazel and Nico as they walked away. Mostly Nico though. He looked like a black blur in the shadows, and it was kind of mesmerizing. He thought he was safe and wouldn't get caught staring. But when the raven haired boy turned his head back and glanced at him, Will's heart did jumping jacks.
Hey guys! Sorry this chapter was so whack and the lack of Frank! It just kind of happened that way! So right now, I'm planning on making the next chapter focused around Frazel and Solangelo. Not sure what's gonna happen tho!
Sorry how stupid this chapter is. It was poorly written, i know.
Also, I had to add Apollo. I love that guy! I thought it would be funny to make him the DJ!
Also, I thought it would be interesting to make Will's mom kind of a butt but his dad completely supportive of him. In my mind, the only people who know about Will as of right now are his parents, Lou Ellen and Cecil.
Obviously there will be many small side couples too.
-Silena & Beckondorf
-Clarisse and Chris
-Little bit of Travis and Katie (I have no idea where it came from but i kind of like it)
-Octavian and Rachel (I don't necessarily ship this. I thought it would be a funny ship. If Rick were to do this, i wouldn't think it was completely horrible. Unfortunately, Rachel is the oracle..and Octavian is dead.. Honestly I wont be surprised if he appears in Trials of Apollo and yells "SURPRISE MOTHER FU-!"
ANYWAY! Before I get carried away! Please review and remember that Will and Nico are bae!
Until next time~MyLifeIsALie