"If you want to keep a secret, you must also hide it from yourself." ~ George Orwell, 1984
Zeus looked at his friends pleadingly. "Guys, it doesn't have to be this way."
"No, Zeus, it's either them or us." Hades told him coldly. Zeus can still remember that line as if he said it yesterday.
"It doesn't have to be." Zeus murmured repetitively in his sleep. "Why can't I be friends with you and them?"
All of a sudden, Zeus opened his eyes. It wasn't high school anymore. That day was gone. He sighed as if he saw his wife Joan snoring next to him. Everything was normal, except he wasn't. Zeus have been dreaming of the day his argument with Poseidon and Hades started for the past few days. He didn't even know why. Hades has been dead for almost a year and he barely spoke to Poseidon anymore. They aren't on good terms but it's better than they will ever be in. What is with all these high school dreams?
"Zeus, honey, go back to sleep." Joan mumbled.
Zeus glanced at his wife. "I'll take a walk around the city. Don't feel like going back to bed." For a split second, instead of Joan, Zeus thought he saw his ex-girlfriend from high school - Hera. What? He blinked. Okay, he definitley need a walk.
"Mhm." Joan nodded sleepily, yawned and laid her head back on the pillow. "Go ahead."
Quickly, Zeus changed and walked outside of his front door with only his wallet and phone. It was only 6am in the morning but the streets of New York City aren't exactly empty. Typical New York. Even at these odd hours, New York City is bustling. He managed a smile as he saw the sun rising in a distance. He was born and raised in Manhattan and was a proud of New Yorker. He loved every bit of this city but lately, he wasn't feeling the thrill of being in this big city anymore. He tried telling himself that he is excited, like he have been previously. It wasn't working. It wasn't because New York wasn't interesting anymore. Contrary to that, New York is still the ever-changing city people dream to be in. Zeus knew he was the one who changed his perspectives. He couldn't find everything he want in New York anymore.
It wasn't only that. He couldn't find everything he want in life anymore. Life used to be something full of challenges and excitement but now everyday is just a day closer to death. Zeus had considered to just kill himself already but he was wistful. He loved his wife, he loved his children more than anything, he couldn't bear to see them go. He knew he told Poseidon a few months ago that he was waiting for death and that was true. He also told Poseidon he had one last step that would evoke some kind of thrill in him he has been anticipating for so long. He was planning something for quite a while. A suicide mission, some call it. It wasn't even really a mission. Just something fun Zeus liked to play around with. The mission didn't go as planned but for some reason, Zeus wasn't worried. What has he got to lose? If he could lose anything, he has already lost it before he finished college.
He paced back and forth in the familiar streets of Manhattan he walked all his life slowly, taking every breath-taking view New York has to offer inside of him. He knew it was a stunning city but after living in it for so long, it became predictable. He knew which building was coming up next. He didn't have a tourists' enthusiasm and their foreign sense.
"Zeus Grace." Zeus heard somebody call him curtly from behind.
"Oh, Tristan McLean." Zeus nodded at his ex-best friend. "Fancy seeing you here."
"Won't expect you either." Tristan returned.
"Don't you have to film some new Hollywood movie?"
Tristan shook his head. "Taking a break. My last movie was exhausting."
"Good to know. Sorry, I have to go." Zeus lied. "Good seeing you."
"Same." Tristan nodded. Zeus wasn't sure if it was sincere or not. He didn't care. His replies aren't the most honest either. Isn't it awkward enough to see your best friend whom you fell out with in college with? He stayed on better terms with Tristan then what he did with Hades and Poseidon but that doesn't resolve resentment they bear for each other from college.
"Hey Tristan!" Zeus remembered himself waving nervously at Tristan McLean in high school. Zeus wanted to laugh. Why was he ever so worried about Tristan? He remembered how conscious he was around Tristan and the popular people. They were nothing. They are nothing to him. He was so obsessed and so desperate to become popular, he was blinded from the whole truth.
Still, Tristan McLean was more famous that him. Tristan is at the top of the world while Zeus is one of those people only the few who works in law know. Zeus doesn't care anymore. Tristan could have everything but he saw how he could have nothing as well. The world is strange but if anything, high school is much stranger.
"Let's at least try to be civil." Cat sniffed. Their history teacher unfortunately didn't pick up on the fact Nico and Cat are not even on speaking terms and paired them together to complete a project on Julius Caesar.
"Fine." Nico agreed. "So why don't you start on the research? I'll go get some poster paper."
"Sure." Cat gritted her teeth as Nico left to find the poster paper. She didn't know how to act casual around Nico especially when her brother revealed that Nico already knew who the Shooter is. He should have told her! Cat knew they fell out before summer but that doesn't mean Nico couldn't at least give her a hint. They have been through this together and Nico knew Cat wanted to know. He could have the decency to tell. What if, Cat wondered, Nico knew the Shooter all along but pretended he didn't when they were still working together. That bastard, Cat frowned.
"Something wrong?" Nico asked as he returned with the paper he promised. "You're not researching yet. Your macbook isn't even on."
"I'm fine." Cat turned on her macbook and opened a webpage to Google.
"Don't use Wikipedia. Some of the information are unreliable." Nico reminded her.
"I'll use Wikipedia if I want to." Cat growled, irritated. She already felt annoyed at Nico for not telling her who the Shooter is. Now he has to go on about Wikipedia being unreliable? Cat hated those people. What do they mean Wikipedia isn't reliable? Wikipedia is so easy to use and fast, Cat was prepared to learn everything from there. (AN: I know anybody could edit Wikipedia so it is pretty unreliable but I just get annoyed when teachers give you countless lectures about not using Wikipedia.)
Nico glared at her. "I want a good history grade, okay? I'm not putting false information found on Wikipedia on this report."
"Why are you suddenly into history? You never really pay attention in classes." Cat scowled.
Nico narrowed his eyes. "Nothing."
"Sensitive subject? Something to do with your dad?" Cat guessed.
"Shut up."
Cat grinned. "Whatever."
There was silence between them as Nico brought out his laptop and started researching about the Roman Dictator.
"Did you know Julius Caesar was captured by pirates when he was traveling through the Aegean Sea when he was 25?" Cat started.
Nico rolled his eyes. "Yeah, the pirates wanted 20 talents of silver as ransom for him but then Julius Caesar told them he was at least worth 50 talents of silver instead. The pirates agreed with Caesar and asked for 50 talents. While waiting for the ransom to be gathered, Caesar befriended the pirates and acted as if he was their friend instead of their prisoner. He would write join their games, write poetry for them and recite it to them and do all sorts of things like that. When Caesar is freed, he went back and executed the pirates who kidnapped him."
"Well, do you know that Caesar salad wasn't named after him?"
Nico gave Cat a look. "Obviously! Tell me something I don't know."
"How about, Caesar's dad died when Julius Caesar was only sixteen." Cat challenged.
Nico yawned. "My dad loved Julius Caesar. I doubt you'll find anything I won't know. Oh, don't even bother quizzing me on Marilyn Monroe, Katherine Hepburn or any other great American film legends. My mom is obsessed with those celebrities."
"Here's one I bet you know the answer to." Cat's eyes gleamed dangerously. "Nico, who is the Shooter?"
Nico forced a laugh. "Good one, Cat. Stop it, okay? I may know a lot of things but this is definitley a mystery."
"You're lying." Cat smirked. "I know things you don't but now you know something I don't. Tell me, Di Angelo."
"I honestly don't know." Nico answered. "You know I don't."
"I know you do. I have my sources."
"What sources?" Nico gave out a harsh laugh.
"Just tell me who the Shooter is. I won't tell anyone." Cat promised.
"That's what you said to Travis Stoll before you told everybody in school that he had a crush on Katie Gardner." Nico pointed out.
Cat looked offended. "Hey! That was beneficial! Katie needed to know that!"
"The whole school didn't."
Cat sighed. "Okay, but that wasn't the freaking Shooter. I swear, I won't tell. I won't even tell Mitchell that he was the Shooter's next victim."
Nico gave Cat a look of doubt. "I'm not telling you who the Shooter is."
"Percy, your friends have been trying to find out who the Shooter is. Have you told them? Have you even told your own friends?"
Nico shook his head. "No way. My father would never tell anyone things he knew even if they were really close. If he taught me anything before he died, it was to keep things to yourself."
"You're not your father, Nico. I know you want to honor him and shit but you're turning into Hades 2.0. If you learnt anything from your father, that has to be don't end up like him or you'll get killed. That's why he got killed, right?"
"You know who killed my dad, don't you?" Nico narrowed his dark eyes suspiciously. "Tell me."
Cat laughed disbelievingly. "No. You don't know who killed your dad?"
Nico shifted uncomfortably. "That is something I would not know the answer to."
"You've been trying, haven't you?"
"Shut up!" Nico said irritably.
Cat smiled.. "I'm not telling you who killed your dad, Pork Chops."
Nico's mouth fell open. Pork Chops. He recalled that from a fax he pulled out from his dad's drawers on the file that was marked 'Drew Tanaka'. Who was Pork Chops? He never figured out and if Cat used it right now..was it related to Drew's death? "You know who killed Drew." He accused.
Cat shrugged. "We were on the same boat."
"You didn't tell the authorities?"
"Would you tell the police who the Shooter is?"
"Didn't anyone else on the boat saw it? Didn't they tell?" Nico frowned.
"Maybe some did. I think it's safe to assume that the person who killed Drew is extremely careful. They would have made sure nobody knew who killed Drew. Or at least, nobody who actually mattered realized the truth." Cat told him.
Nico studied Cat, as if he just understood something more about her that he should have known before. "Shit!" He swore. "How much did they pay you?"
"Pay me?" Cat repeated mockingly. "Oh, I thought you would know better than this. Pay me?"
Nico bit his lips. She was right. Cat wouldn't do anything for money. She has everything she needs. Money is something that would definitley not motivate her or make her do something. "Secrets." He murmured. "What did they tell you that you don't know already?"
"Tell me who the Shooter is."
Nico hesitated for one second and his lips turned into a sly smile as he laughed softly. "Fontaine, I have one name for you. Whether she is the Shooter or not, I think you know. You know everything, you just need to put the pieces together. Clarisse La Rue."
When Cat heard the name, it was her turn to be surprised. She stared at Nico as if she has been betrayed by him. "How long have you known?"
"Since the beginning."
"Does anyone else know? More importantly, does she know?"
"Not if you won't want them to." Nico shrugged. "I know, I'm on Percy's side and everything but I don't tell them everything. If they knew, the whole world would know."
Sally Jackson bit her lips as she gazed at a picture of Poseidon. He has been gone for quite a while. Normally, Sally won't be worried but knowing his husband, he would never miss Percy's birthday. Now Percy has started school and he wasn't there for his son. She tried calling him but it kept leading her to voicemail.
"Poseidon Jackson here. I'm busy right now so please leave a message."
Sally sighed. She can't keep covering for her husband making excuses. Percy must know something is wrong by now. Poseidon never left them for so long without telling Percy personally. This time, he just disappeared. Sally knew roughly what was the situation, but not the details. She knew it was best not to interfere. Whatever her husband got himself into, he could handle it himself.
"Maria, it's Sally. Do you know anything about my husband? He's gone for quite a while." Sally called Maria Di Angelo and asked. If anybody knew what's going on with Poseidon, it would have to be Maria. Sure, Poseidon had many friends that he was closer with than he was with Hades but Hades has to be the one who would understand everything. His friends are just those friends who you don't tell you deep secrets too. Even though Hades and Poseidon weren't exactly what you would call friends after high school, their previous relationship allowed them to continue confide secrets to each other.
'It's Goode High." Maria replied. "It always is. There's something about that high school."
Neither Sally or Maria grew up in New York City and they certainly weren't a student in Goode High but they knew there was something special about that high school. It was almost like everything that happened there was connected. That school seemed to be always tied with something.
"But what? He isn't even a student there anymore."
Maria gave an eerie laugh. "Once you're a student in Goode High, it never leaves you. You will always be apart of it."
"Creepy." Sally shuddered. "Maria, would you please let me know if anybody tells you anything about Poseidon?"
"Sure." Maria promised, emphasizing her Italian accent. "Definitley."
"Thank you." Sally smiled genuinely and hung up the phone. On the other end, Maria smiled to herself too. One of the reasons why she loved Hades so much was that everybody believed he's omniscient. They always thought he had the answers to everything and as his wife, people expect her to know a few things herself. Now Hades is gone - even though Maria missed her husband terribly - people can't turn to Hades anymore. It's always Maria. She has power and it's only normal for humans to be thirsty for power. People didn't expect somebody as innocent as Maria would betray them. They put their trust in her. After all, she's just a pretty girl from Italy.
Maria picked up her glass of whiskey and sipped it elegantly. "Nico! I have something to tell you." She called for her son.
Luke hid among the many people crowding around where the 9/11 Memorial Plaza is. They were all praying for the victims who died in the terrorist attack which happened 12 years ago. It reminded him of how even though time could pass, people could stay the same. It has been 12 years and people are still grieving for the people lost in the Twin Tower attacks. You could hide hatred, vengefulness, anger, all these emotions inside of you and still feel the rage you felt decades ago. It's buried inside of you and became the person you are today. You can't escape from it.
It reminded him of how people are trapped and sometimes, they just couldn't leave. Some of the victims of the 911 attack are trapped between parts of the building unable to escape. Luke knows he is trapped. He couldn't do anything that would attract attention as he is supposedly dead. That was before he publicly ran away from the police though. Luke knew it was a stupid move but it had to be done. How else could he runaway? It was the only way out.
And it was apart of the plan. He was told it would work out perfectly. The plan does not contain of a single flaw. It's perfect. Even if many parts of the plan didn't go as planned, the results would still be the same. How perfect can a plan get?
Luke knew he made a bad mistake in his past. If he could, he would go back in time to change what he did, but it's impossible. He chose the path he was going to have to take when he was still naive. Now, he understood and he would much rather not be involved. He's gone too far down the path to change now. It's who he is. One wrong move, he's gone.
"It's your choice, really." One of the people he worked for, Kronos, always say with a sickening smile. "You chose this and you can always choose to leave."
Lies. Luke wanted to laugh every time he's been told this. What choice? Kronos only says that to make him seem like the good guy when in fact, he isn't. He's not exactly the 'bad guy' either. Nothing is so black and white. Luke can see why people like the younger version of himself would blindly follow him. What Kronos wants to achieve makes sense. Luke wanted that too but he didn't agree with the way Kronos is getting to the goal.
Now that he's back in New York, he knew Kronos really trusted him. Nobody else knew he's back though - not even Thalia Grace.
"I didn't think I'd see you here, Luke Castellan." Somebody said.
Luke jumped. Nobody was suppose to recognize him. He was in the middle of a crowd. Nobody was even suppose to notice him. They were all suppose to be crying over the dead victims. Shit, he thought as he forced himself to turn towards the person. Poseidon Jackson.
"It's the Eleventh of September. Of course I'm here." Luke said, trying to sound casual. "I have to pay my respect to people who died twelve years ago."
Poseidon laughed. "I suppose you do. Does Kronos know you're here?"
Luke froze. "Kronos?" He asked in confusion, as convincingly as possible. "Who is that?"
"You know who I'm talking about." Poseidon replied coolly. "I know who he is and so do you. Don't you work for him now?"
"If you mean the man I work for, the answer is no." Luke told him truthfully. "I like to come back in New York during September. Everybody is back from their holidays and it's New York again. He doesn't know that. Besides, I have to come back to pay my respects for these victims."
"Why are you so interested in the victims of 9/11? I bet you don't pay your respects to victims of the Vietnam War, World War I, World War II, or other events like that."
Luke's baby blue eyes grew cold. "Personal."
"Castellans." Poseidon mused. "You're funny people. Your dad is really open and friendly. You didn't inherit that. You can be charming if you want to though, just like your father. In some ways, you're like your father but in many ways, you aren't. Your mom is rather strange too, don't you think? I swear, she was actually uh, normal, the first few times I met her but isn't she locked up in a Psychiatric hospital right now?"
Luke's eyes narrowed and turned into a dangerous glare. "Don't you ever talk about them in front of me again, Jackson."
"Hold up!" Poseidon held his hands up in front of him. "Respect your elders! Didn't they teach you that in Kindergarten?"
Luke took a deep breath and spoke in a chilly tone. "I don't respect my parents. I don't respect you either, in case you haven't picked up on that yet. Let me tell you something Jackson. Without you and your buddies Zeus and Hades, I would be perfectly happy. You know that."
"They aren't my buddies." Poseidon interrupted sharply. "We aren't friends. I won't even call them my acquaintances."
Luke's eye twitched. "Well, that must explain why Hades gave you the picture that would solve the mystery of Drew's death."
Poseidon looked at Luke Castellan. Oh god, he knows about the picture? Poseidon didn't know how but Hades seemed to have predicted Drew's death? Somehow, he knew Drew would want a picture taken with the other girls on the raft. Even when he wasn't around, somehow, he recovered the picture and passed it onto Poseidon. Poseidon found it in one of the hiding spots he used to hid with Zeus and Hades back in primary school. They have all these abandon places around New York where they would spend hours together. Towards the end of middle school, they stopped using those places. Recently, Poseidon liked going back to those hiding place as he felt nostalgic and it reminded him of how happy, innocent and carefree he was as a child. The world contains so many dangers he would never have guessed. One time, he was in one of those particular spots when he discovered the note Hades left with the picture.
"That's right. I know stuff." Luke smiled smugly. "I don't know which side you're on or even if you are on one side but I can be someone you would want to watch out for."
Poseidon shook his head. "Luke, I'm not going to play games with you. I have enough enemies of my own to steer clear of. Let's begin with, how the hell did you survive the Shooting and what the hell are you still doing in New York? The way you ran off last time was stupid, even I know that. Everyone saw you and it just confused everything. Half of the people are claiming it's just a hallucination and you are indeed dead from the Shooting. Of course, you weren't exactly confirmed dead from the Shooting. You were just gone and people assumed you died. The rest are pretty positive that you're out there but is baffled of your very existence."
"It's a year to the day you woke up from coma." Dr. Marshall beamed at Jason. It has been a while since their last session. Dr. Marshall was called away to work on a confidential case in Germany.
"Yeah. I honestly don't think I'm getting my memories back." Jason admitted.
Dr. Marshall's eye gleamed when he heard the comment but it quickly turned back to normal. "Nonsense!" He said brightly. "I believe they'll come back sometime. If not, maybe your hypnosis sessions could reveal something."
"They haven't work yet and we've been doing these hypnosis sessions quite a few times." Jason pointed out. He shuddered as his memory took him back to his very first hypnosis sessions. He dreamt about being on a beautiful white beach with a girl that Jason could pretty much confirm to be Piper now. He also remembered how he eavesdrop on his doctor after his sessions and Doctor Marshall was talking to two different people on the phone. One to say he got nothing from the recordings and another to say he changed the recordings and got something they want. What could they have got? Jason remember how it led him to do research on Doctor Marshall. He also remembered how Lawyer Brown told him about Marshall's dodgy past with previous patients. Even after that, his dad Zeus still trusted him so Jason knew this doctor is somebody to be trusted. Zeus Grace is one of those people who is suspicious about 99% of the things in this world. A few months ago, he told his dad that Piper was invited into a modeling agency and was suppose to go there for castings and his first words were along the lines of 'modeling agency? how does she know it's a legit one?'. Jason sighed, for some reason, it bought more memories back. He remembered how his friends found out that the Marshall family was involved in drugs. He remembered how Hylla found out he went to the same college as Zeus, Hades and probably Poseidon. At that point, the three ex-best friends already split apart and Hylla mentioned something about Dr. Marshall being close to Hades. At some point, Jason decided to give up and go to California with Piper. In California, he pretty much abandoned his impending research on Doctor Marshall as well, he decided to look through Poseidon's apartment instead. He never gave it much thought.
"True." Dr. Marshall answered. Somehow, it gave Jason a vibe that he was lying. "We'll just have to keep trying, won't we?"
"Are you sure you haven't got anything? Can I look through my tapes from previous sessions?" Jason questioned. "It's a legal thing. My lawyer wants to see it."
"Who's your lawyer?"
"Lawyer Brown." Jason replied.
The name seem to have caught Dr. Marshall by surprise. "Did, did your dad hire him?"
Jason nodded. "Who else? I don't know anything about lawyers and stuff."
"That bastard." Dr. Marshall muttered under his breath and turned to Jason. "Oh, that's great. Did he tell you anything about me?"
"Something to do with a girl named Megan Leighton but I can't really remember." He lied. Of course he remembered. The conversation they had was branded in his mind like a tattoo. Megan Leighton was framed for the murder of Sergeant Tait of the FBI department due to Dr. Marshall's tampering with her hypnosis recording. When the truth was discovered, Megan was innocent and Marshall spent a year in prison.
Dr. Marshall cursed under his breath again and forced a laugh. "Oh, Brown. He is such a liar. I went to college with him. He never liked me, that bastard. He was such a fibber. He bullshitted his way through every courses and somehow aced it. A genius really.
Jason frowned. That was an unexpected comment. "Really? He never would cross me as such a person."
Dr. Marshall nodded. "Of course, he hid it so well. World class fibber."
"Can't you see? He's lying!" Percy exclaimed.
Jason blinked. "He was?"
"Yes, Sparky!" Leo shouted.
Jason gave Leo a look of disgust. "Please don't call me that."
"Piper called you that." Leo protested. "And it was fine."
"Don't." Hazel sighed.
"But gosh, that was a lie?" Jason repeated, widening his eyes. "I. I didn't think it was."
Annabeth bit his lips. "I'm not actually not sure about that. I might have to side with Jason for this one. Lawyer Brown doesn't exactly have a clean record himself. He has narrowed escapes with the law several times."
Jason frowned. "Why would my dad hire all these dodgy people? We can afford anyone and I bet he isn't oblivious to the bad side of Lawyer Brown and Doctor Marshall. If we could find out Doctor Marshall is into drugs, I bet he can."
Piper shrugged. "Why don't you ask him?"
Frank cried a bit too quickly. "No!" When everyone stared at him, his cheeks turned red. "I mean, I understand why Jason won't do it. Piper, not everyone have parents or guardians like yours. Yours have like no secret between you guys and you're comfortable of sharing anything with them. They're open-minded and they seem to remember what it's like being a teenager and just get it. If Jason's parents are anything like my grandmother, it's not going to work. My grandmother is really conservative and strict. I'm really careful of what I say around her because I don't know her reaction if I said anything out of line. I can't even talk about dating or say the word 'frick' because I'm scared of her reaction."
Everyone knew how Frank was raised by his grandmother and is still trying to be totally comfortable with it. After Frank's mother died in war after joining the army, his grandmother took on the role of taking care of Frank. His father walked out of their family when Frank was barely few months old but he didn't feel resentment towards him and wasn't keen on finding out who he is. If Frank's father wasn't around for his whole life, Frank was convinced it's better if it stays this way.
"Frick?" Leo bursted into laughters.
Frank grew even redder.
"Leo!" Hazel scolded. "It's not like you have a great relationship with your dad either. I mean, you guys don't really talk to each other that easily."
Leo scowled as he remembered when his father convinced not to take cocaine. Reminding him that his mother died being addicted to it. His relationship with his father have started improving from then onwards. "We talked recently, like a really close talk. And, I would say frick in front of him."
"Listen up!" Nico barged through the door and ordered. "How far have you guys gone in this whole investigation? You started pretty much a year ago and no offense, but you got nowhere."
Grover scowled. "Hey! We did figure out-"
"Yeah, it was nothing." Nico interrupted. "Look, I'm here to tell you guys that you don't have any more time to waste. I don't know what the Shooter is going to attempt next but it's big and once it's done, it's gone. Everything's gone."
"Everything?" Hazel repeated. "That's a bit dramatic, isn't it?"
Nico laughed harshly. "Not like that everything. It's not like the world's going to end but like everything you did is gone."
"And what do you think we should do about it?" Percy asked dully.
Nico smiled eerily. "I got everything planned out. We just have to re-trace things. In fact, it's pretty easy. I do have a theory of what's going on but I'm not going to share it or we might not even be able to get the truth if we all have the same opinion. All you guys have to do are follow my instructions and be amazing actors. Don't question what's happening, just do it. Don't tell anyone what I told you either. It might ruin the outcome of this experiment."
Hephaestus smiled at Aphrodite admiringly. They were the pair of friends that seemed unlikely to even become friends. Aphrodite, the pretty Queen Bee of the school. Hephaestus, the boy who couldn't possibly grew up to look as horrific as he did. In fact, Hephaestus knew how lucky he is to become so close to Aphrodite. If anybody asked him who his best friend is, he would have to say Aphrodite knowing Aphrodite couldn't say the same thing back to him. Hephaestus knew that Aphrodite would admit that he was one of her friends, but not best friend. He guessed when you have so many friends, you get to choose which ones to be closer to.
Aphrodite knew Hephaestus was trustworthy though. She trusted some of her secrets with him and Hephaestus told her everything in return - except of course the fact that he had a crush on her.
That was Elementary School though.
In Middle School, Aphrodite started ignoring Hephaestus. She started teasing him like they were never best friends. She started taunting him like they didn't keep each other up all night when they were younger. Hephaestsus knew it hurt but it wasn't as painful as high school.
"Pussy." Aphrodite rolled her eyes as Hephaestus walked past her in the cafeteria. News traveled quick in Goode High and she already knew Hephaestus refused to buy the drugs Ares was trying to sell him.
Hephaestus stared at his ex-best friend. "It's not cowardly to refuse drugs."
"You're too cowardly to do anything." Aphrodite told him. "Maybe being ugly helped too."
"You've changed, you know that?" Hephaestus asked. "You were actually nice and really sweet back in Elementary. We were friends."
Aphrodite insisted. "I didn't change. No, I was always like this."
"I know you better than you know yourself."
"Really?" Aphrodite's eyes gleamed. "I barely talked to you starting from Middle School. You don't know me at all."
"I know more about you than you ever can learn about yourself."
Aphrodite raised her eyebrows. "Creep. But I doubt it."
Hephaestus sighed and muttered.. "You really changed. You're nothing but a bitch now."
Aphrodite glared at the boy coldly. "What did you call me?"
"A bitch. Is that what you want to be when you grow up? Because that's what you are." Hephaestus regretting what he said after it fell out of his mouth. "No, you wanted to be a model and a fashion designer ten years ago." He added quietly.
"Is that what you think I am?" Aphrodite asked him. She sounded almost hurt.
"No!" Hephaestus immediately said.
"Fuck you!" Aphrodite's eyes hardened again. "Fuck you, Valdez. Don't even talk to me again. Don't even look at me and get the fuck out of my sight."
Hephaetus' mouth dropped wide open. Aphrodite had teased him over the past but she never told him to not talk to him again. This got to be a joke. Aphrodite can't be that mad, especially when she was the one who even started taunting him. "Me? You were the one who ignored me since middle school!"
Aphrodite narrowed her eyes. "Shut up!" She shouted loudly, turned her back away from him and stomped away.
If Hephaestus didn't know Aphrodite like he did, he would have been perfectly fine. Maybe he would even celebrate the fact he won't be seeing or talking to Aphrodite again. Aphrodite would leave him alone. However, Hephaestus did know Aphrodite and she wouldn't ever say something like that to him. He was beyond simply feeling hurt and devastated. For his whole life, he had a crush on a girl who ignored him and is currently mad at him for something she did herself. Hephaestus didn't understand but he felt bad. He didn't know what to do anymore. What do you do when you're in his situation?
The next day, Aphrodite continued ignoring him. It was almost like he's inexistent. Like they were never friends and she never acknowledged him and will never do so either. Hephaestus became depressed. By the end of the week, he stole a gun. It wasn't like him to steal. He could even make his own gun if he really wanted to but Hephaestus felt like stealing something for the first time in his life. He wasn't himself.
It took another week for him to gather his courage to pull the trigger. Hephaestus was never great with aiming things. You can either say it's fortunate or it wasn't that his shot didn't hit him in the crucial parts of his body. When his parents found him, they rushed him to the hospital and the doctors were able to bring him back.
Nobody knew why he did it and he never told anyone. How embarrassing. I tried killing myself because a girl I liked didn't like me back and told me to never talk to her again. No, it even sounds stupid.
Cat pushed the door opened to find Kaylee typing something on her laptop. When Kaylee looked up and saw who was standing in front of her, she quickly closed her laptop and looked up. "Cat." She acknowledged.
"Kaylee."
"What are you doing here?" Kaylee asked quickly.
"Just paying a friend a visit." Cat said airily. "So how is your mother doing? Is she recovering?"
"Yeah." Kaylee nodded. "The doctors think she's going to make a full recovery."
Cat smiled. "That's nice. I always liked your mom."
"Cat, I'm serious. What are you doing here? Who even let you in? As far as I'm concern, nobody is in the house except for me and my mom. And my mom is sleeping. I know what a heavy sleeper she is."
Cat laughed. "Your security system don't faze me. I've seen worse. It's actually surprisingly easy to break into your house."
"But that's not something people do. Breaking into people's houses, I mean."
Cat shrugged. "Well, I just thought you might want to know. They re-opened Drew's case again. They invited Ms. Indigo to come back to New York for questioning. Even if we convinced her you stabbing Drew is a hallucination, they might take that into account. You can be a suspect. The police need every single detail they can get, including supposed hallucinations."
Kaylee's face turned pale. "Oh my god. Cat, tell me you have a solution for this. Do we kill Ms. Indigo or something? You know I'm in. I would do anything to keep my family safe."
Cat laughed. "No, not another murder. That would be a bit too suspicious, don't you think? To be honest with you, I don't know what we should do exactly. By we, I really do mean you. For once, I'm innocent."
"Is there anything I can do?" Kaylee wailed. "No, this can't be happening! Tell me you're lying."
"Why would I lie about such thing?" Cat mused. "There are a few solutions I can think of but none of them are what you would call perfect. Yes, we can kill Ms. Indigo but that would make the case a lot bigger than it is and we don't want that. You can come clean and explain why you did it. You will go to juvenile prison and probably have a horrible record for the rest of your life but maybe the story about needing money for your mom's medical fee can give you a few pity points. We can somehow dump everything on Kerri or Ms. Indigo and get away with it. Guilt's a huge thing on that one and to think you're doing it to a friend though. You can also-"
"Kerri."
Cat groaned. "Oh, come on! Really? I wish Brittany or Chelsea were in the same raft. I prefer Kerri so much better than Brit or Chels."
"Then we'll dump our problems on them." Kaylee said, strangely calm for plotting against her best friends. "We were the ones on the raft, Cat. We can manipulate everything. We can say the raft was floating towards the banks and it was easy for someone to just stick a knife while standing on the bank. We can say we saw Brit or Chels standing there but she disappeared in a flash and Drew was dead. At least, one of us can say that and the other one of us could say we didn't really see anything but there felt like another person there. Kerri doesn't need to know about anything. She could be the one who genuinely didn't know."
"Which one do you hate more?" Cat smirked.
"I'm going to have to say Brittany. I mean, I like them both but Brit is so dumb. She'll be an easy target." Kaylee rolled her eyes.
"You're really on board with this?" Cat asked. "She is your best friend."
"Best friends come and go. Family stays the same. I have to protect my family and myself." Kaylee explained. "I'm desperate. Brit has everything. It's time for something to take her down a bit."
"Jealousy." Cat laughed. "It always comes up."
AN: Hey guys! aha, this is the first year anniversary of this story! Yay! :3 Oh and as you can see, this chapter is taking place over several days including September 11 and today. I was going to update earlier but I thought it'll be cool to update on the same day I started this story in. I was afraid that I won't have enough time to write another chapter by today if I updated on September 11th - the original date to update this.
Don't worry, I'm aiming to finish this story by the end of the year so it's getting closer to the end ;)
~Kisses, Emily