Once Calypso had left, I just lay there, staring at the ceiling of the cave. I thought of all the money I could make by selling the precious stones that were incrusted in the rock above me. Then I thought of what I'd buy with that money. An orange Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4, more gadgets for my bed back at camp… and that bag Silena wanted, whatever it's called. I could've sworn it was called a Burkha, but that wouldn't make any sense…

I miss Silena, I thought, Does she miss me? Did she cry when they told her I was gone? I hoped not. Obviously I wanted her to care, at least a little, but I didn't want her to cry. I winced at the thought of being the reason she was upset, even though it wasn't entirely my fault.

I heard footsteps resounding in the cave, and painfully sat up so I could see who was coming. Seconds later, I saw Calypso and a boy about my age, seventeen or eighteen, walk around the bend. She blanched slightly when she saw I was awake, but other than that acted perfectly normal.

"Charles! You're awake. This is Apollo, have you met him?" I shook my head. I'd only seen him on a field trip to Olympus a year ago, but other than that…

"Of course he has!" Apollo exclaimed, giving me an unintentionally painful slap on the back.

"Great," said Calypso with a forced smile, "Then I don't have to make introductions. I'll leave you two to talk." And then she disappeared into thin air, much like she'd done a few hours ago.

"So, Becks – mind if I call you Becks?" asked the sun god.

"Uh… sure."

"I have a question for you."

"Shoot."

"Would you be interested in leaving here and returning to camp?" Of course, I answered in my head. But I didn't say anything. I noticed how he'd said, "leaving here". He must know that I didn't want to leave Calypso. Not that I loved her or anything. But I felt really bad for her. Heroes come, heroes go, she falls in love with them, and they break her heart. And that split second I saw fear in her eyes before she kissed me… that was the fear of losing yet another one, and going through yet another heartbreak.

"Want to think about it for a minute?" I shook my head. Apollo grinned. "No need to tell me. I know all… see all…" I nodded at him, made a pitiful attempt to bow, and he just winked at me and swaggered out. I took a deep breath and followed him to the garden.

Calypso was tending her garden. She was crouched down, covering up a new shrub with dirt, absentmindedly letting the soil sift through her nimble fingers. I could tell she knew I was here, but wasn't looking at me deliberately.

"Can I help?" I asked. Without looking up, she nodded. Feeling even more awkward than I usually do, I sat down next to her.

"What can I do?" She didn't answer for a few seconds, then whispered,

"You could stay here." She sniffled, and let tears form in her beautiful hazel eyes, spilling over and silently cascading down her cheeks, dripping off her chin onto her new plant. "But you're not going to, are you?"

"I… no. No, I'm not." The words burned as they came out, but I had to say them. She nodded sadly, and then turned to face me, grim defeat plain in her features.

"I understand. It's… it's the right thing to do. You need to see your friends. And… and her." We both knew who "her" was. "I'm so sorry, Charles." Calypso gently leaned her head on my shoulder, and I could feel every single one of her quiet sobs shaking her. Almost automatically, I reached out to stroke her hair, like I always did with Silena when she was upset.

"It's O.K.," I reassured her, "Nothing to be sorry about." She steadied her breathing and continued,

"You're different from the others, Charles. You… you didn't lead me on, you didn't even entertain the idea of staying here. But you seemed to genuinely care about me, and I thought… I thought..." Another couple sobs racked her body, choking her.

"I do care."

"That's the problem," she whispered. "You, more than anyone else… I couldn't bear to see you go."

You, more than anyone else… You, more than anyone else… You, more than anyone else… You, more than anyone else… You, more than anyone else… You, more than anyone else… You, more than anyone else… You, more than anyone else… You, more than anyone else… Those words would've made any other guy feel really good about himself, but when I heard them, I just felt awful. I felt like the worst person in the world, because I broke Calypso's heart more than anyone else…

"You ready?" asked Apollo. I turned around, and saw him standing in front of a bright orange Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4. My car. It was even more beautiful than in pictures.

"Uh…" I tore my gaze away from the sun chariot, glanced at the girl next to me and nodded. Just as I was about to get up, though, she put a hand on my shoulder. Before I had time to react, she closed her eyes and kissed me again, this time more softly, as if she always wanted to remember what my lips felt like.

I wouldn't even be lying if I told you that I didn't feel anything. Obviously it's nice to be kissed by a really beautiful immortal goddess, but I didn't feel a spark. All I could think of was Silena, and the fact that I'd be seeing – and possible kissing – her soon. Calypso pulled away. I felt guilty and relieved that I hadn't felt anything in that kiss, and I think she could tell.

"Go, brave one."

"I'll come and visit you," I promised. She shook her head.

"No one returns to Ogygia. Just go." I wanted to say something, but Apollo interrupted me.

"Come on, Beckyboy," he said kindly, "Let's go."

So I climbed into the passenger seat of the neon orange car and buckled up. Apollo slid in next to me and turned the key in the ignition, making the engine roar to life.

"Sorry for interrupting," he said, "But I had a feeling what you were about to say was extremely stupid." I nodded gratefully.

"Yeah."

"By the way, do you want to drive?"

A/N: Wipe away those tears, because this isn't it. There will be one last chapter where he arrives at camp, two weeks after the explosion. And believe me, he'll raise some eyebrows because not only is he alive, but riding in Apollo's Lamborghini. And in case you're wondering, the bag that Silena wants is the Hermès Birkin bag, named after Jane Birkin. Honestly, I don't get the obsession with it, but she's a daughter of Aphrodite, of course she wants one. - SK