Holy Hephaestus this chapter gave me trouble. It's so awkward and repetitive and...ugh...
I didn't like this chapter, but I hope you guys do. I'll get another one up shortly.
I own nothing you recognize as canon.
XXV
MARK
Mark studied Sammy Leo from the bow of the ship. The Roman was currently talking about battle strategies with Frank. Mark felt like this whole thing was just another bullet on Sammy's brag sheet, bringing him closer to becoming praetor.
He grunted. What's so special about him anyway? he thought. A stuck-up Roman who can punch really hard? Ooh, so athletic! What's Espie see in the guy?
When did everything turn into a 'let's hate Sammy Leo' party? Mark used to be good friends with him. They used to hang out all the time. They'd been childhood friends forever!
But then Espie up and got suddenly cute, and all of a sudden Mark Grace and Sammy Leo Zhang were worst enemies.
It wasn't like they were openly fighting for her. Sammy hadn't once brought it up, but it was quite obvious he had a thing for Esperanza Valdez. As a descendant of Aphrodite, Mark could tell the Roman felt that way, and before he was sort of rooting for him and Espie to be a thing.
But now Mark couldn't explain how butterflies were flittering in his stomach every time Espie walked by. The only thing he could think of was that he, too, was feeling something for the demititan.
It made him angry. He didn't know who to be angry at; Espie for being so awesome and cute, Sammy for going after her, or himself for falling for her. Nothing was making sense to him.
He rubbed his head.
"Yo."
Mark lifted his gaze. His father was standing before him, his sword out.
"Wanna spar?" he asked, a smile playing on his lips.
Mark nodded. A quick spar would clear his head. Jason didn't hold back, so Mark would have to keep on his toes and pay attention to just the battle.
Mark drew his Celestial Bronze blade, which had been sheathed at his belt. "Sure."
Bronze met gold as he and Jason clashed. Jason smiled when the sparks flew. "You've been practicing."
"Didn't expect me to take after Grandma, did you?" Mark retorted. He jumped away for a second before throwing himself back again.
Their blades met again and again. The winds began picking up. Mark knew what that meant. Jason was about to manipulate the winds, mostly to off-balance Mark.
The legacy concentrated, keeping the winds at bay as best he could. If he let up for an instant, his father would throw him a mile into the sky.
"So," Jason drawled. "You look like you need to talk."
Mark hated it when his father did this. He wasn't the best at multi-tasking, and keeping the winds at bay plus sparring with Jason was hard enough. Now the son of Jupiter wanted to talk?
"No," Mark growled.
"Come on," said Jason, whose strikes were getting faster. "You obviously are in a bad mood. That means you're not getting what you want. Tell me what you want or throw your tantrum now and be done with it."
"I don't throw tantrums," Mark complained.
Jason grinned. "Your grandpa McLean spoiled you too much as a baby. You do throw tantrums. Big ones."
"Don't bring grandpa into this. This isn't his area of expertise."
"Not something valuable, then?"
"What? No." Mark felt his body lift slightly. He fixed himself and landed lightly before blocking another strike. "Stop it, Dad. This doesn't concern you either."
Jason struck even faster, his grin getting bigger. "A girl, then?"
And just like that, Mark was flung straight back. The winds threw him at the exact moment the legacy hesitated. He hit Icarus so hard he saw stars.
Jason grabbed him and helped him up. "Hit it right on the mark, huh?"
Mark groaned and rubbed his head. "Shut up, Dad."
Jason slapped him on the back. "Are you in a bad mood because a girl couldn't come with you on this quest?"
"No," Mark said. "I didn't ask you for advice."
"You're getting it. Now…a girl present on the quest, huh?"
Mark stared at his father. "Can you stop?"
Jason grinned. "Narrows it down to two. Lacy?"
Mark stayed silent and stared at his feet.
"Oh, Espie."
Mark couldn't believe how fast his father had deduced the situation. He wished Jason was more on the dense side, like Mr. Jackson.
"How—?"
"Being married to a daughter of Aphrodite makes me aware of these things," Jason said. "And being married to Piper McLean makes me need to pay attention to the little things; like how my son behaves."
Mark rolled his eyes.
Jason braced his shoulders. "Son," he began. "Would you like to talk about it?"
"I'd rather wait for Mom," Mark said. "No offense to you, Dad; it's just that this is kinda an Aphrodite thing…"
Jason shrugged. "Whatever. But just know that if you need help, I'm here for you, too. Aphrodite children aren't the only ones who can understand love hardships."
"How could you help?" Mark challenged.
"I helped Nico, didn't I?"
Mark had forgotten about Mr. di Angelo. As a teen he had had difficulty dealing with his homosexuality. Unwillingly, he had confessed to Jason about it and Mark's father actually helped him. Not as much as Mr. Solace did in the end, but it was enough to get the ball rolling, so to speak.
"That's different, though," Mark protested. "He was having trouble with his sexuality. You kept it a secret. My…my problem isn't so…secretive."
His gaze wandered over to Sammy Leo again, who was still talking to Frank.
Jason followed his gaze. He cocked an eyebrow. "Ah," he deduced. "Not just a matter of confessing, huh? You got a rival."
Mark grumbled. "Stop it, Dad. Mom taught you too well."
Jason smiled. "It helps to be not as dense as Percy in this aspect. Gods help that man when Bobby starts having girl trouble."
He looked back at the Zhang boys and nodded to himself. "Okay," he said. "I think I know who can help you with this rival business."
"You do?"
Jason nodded. "You know, I noticed a few things happening on the Argo II back on the first quest. Things circulating around a certain trio."
Mark gave him a questioning look.
"Believe it or not," the son of Jupiter said, "Frank and Hazel had a bit of a bumpy start. Can you guess who made the bumps?"
The legacy shook his head. He had never heard anything about the Zhangs having relationship trouble. He'd always assumed they'd loved each other since the beginning, just like the Jacksons (when they started dating, that is) and his own parents.
"Leo did."
If Mark had been drinking anything, he would have spit it out. "Mr. Valdez? But, didn't he like Calypso?"
"After Malta there wasn't a problem between those three," Jason answered. "But before that, Piper and I had noticed how Leo and Hazel acted towards each other, and how Frank was starting to react. When the quest first started, having those three alone together might have made things difficult."
"But Mr. Zhang and Mr. Valdez are, like, the best of friends."
"Yeah, now. Once Calypso came into the picture, Leo no longer saw Hazel as a love interest. But before that, it would get pretty awkward."
Mark blinked. He'd never once considered that Frank might have had a rival for Hazel—nor did he consider that rival was Leo of all people!
"So you said someone could help me with this rival business," Mark drawled. "Who?"
Jason turned his head. "Yo, Frank! C'mere a sec?"
Frank blinked in surprise, but came over. Sammy cocked an eyebrow, but then shrugged and walked toward the control center, where Leo was crouched, working on some sort of doohickey.
Mark tried not to whimper as the tall Asian stepped near him. He was way taller than Mark, and it was really awkward talking to him sometimes.
"Really, Dad?" he said. "Frank could help?"
Jason slapped him on the back playfully. "I think so. It's either that or Leo."
Point taken. Leo didn't really seem like the type of guy to give proper love advice…
"What can I help with?" Frank asked.
"Mark here needs some love advice," Jason explained. "He's got himself a rival for a girl and doesn't know how to handle it, since both of them haven't confessed yet."
Frank nodded. He looked down at Mark with a gentle gaze. "Why don't we sit and talk? Start at the beginning, and I'll try to help you."
Mark nodded and took a deep breath as they sat down. Jason walked away to give the two space.
"It's a little bit awkward," he said.
"Love makes things awkward," Frank said with a shrug. "You should know that, since you're related to Aphrodite herself."
Mark smiled. "It's awkward because my rival is Sammy Leo."
Frank smiled. "For Espie? I should have known."
"How'd you—?"
"Sam's been fawning over her for a while now. But, he's just like me; he's nervous about even going near her and asking her out."
Mark should have known Sammy's hesitating nature ran in the family.
"Can you…" Mark paused. "Can you help me with this whole 'rival' business? I don't want to lose Sammy because we're fighting over Espie."
Mr. Zhang nodded. "I can try."
A/N: Next up is a Sammy Leo chapter. While Mark talks to Frank about rivals, guess who tries to comfort Sammy...:D
