What's the Big Secret?

I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Jenepossède pas PJO (Français/French)

Sophie's POV

There is a new kid in my class…and he's totally hot! What? A sixteen year-old can't dream? There is something familiar about him, but I just can't place it. His name is Greg Smith, and he has sandy blonde hair, unlike my golden blonde hair. He has deep, brown, handsome eyes that just make me melt. Ashley has a crush on him too. She sat next to me in the first class that we saw him: our first period History class. I kicked her, letting her know I call dibs. She glared at me, but accepted the terms of our agreement. We had agreed that if one of us calls dibs on a guy, the other one can't try to get his attention.

I was ecstatic when I found out he was in my lunch period! I took a deep breath, grabbed Ashley's hand, and strode over to him. This was bold, "Hey, your Greg, right? My name is Sophia. Sophia Jackson. This is my best friend Ashley Watson."

"Yeah, I'm Greg. Sophia's a cool name," I blushed, "Your last name is Jackson? That sounds familiar. Do I know you?"

"Well, I thought you seemed familiar when I met you, but it might be a coincidence," I replied, "Do you want to sit with us?"

"I'd like that," he smiled. I was screaming my fangirl screams inside right now. HE SAID YES! Even though I have insane parents, I still have a normal life with crushes!

Greg and I get along great, as if we knew each other forever before this conversation, "So, what part of Manhattan do you call home?"

He told me his apartment building, "You're joking, right?" I asked

"No. Why?"

"That's where Sophia lives!" Ashley was just as surprised as me.

"I didn't hear that we were going to have new neighbors," I informed him, "I normally do because my weirdo parents want to know who's moving in, and if they have a criminal record."

He laughed, as if he thought I was joking, "I wasn't kidding," he stopped laughing immediately.

"Well, your parents can't be as bad as mine," Greg challenged.

"I don't think so. My parents talk to themselves in the bathroom," I told him.

"Are you serious? Do they say things like 'Oh my gods'?" he asked me.

"Yes!" someone else with freak parents, "My sister's best friends' parents too!"

"You guys are weird," Ashley commented.

"Your homework is to learn your family tree up to your great-grandparents. We will be studying the characteristics of them because we will be learning about genetics and human biology," Ms. Kirk, my biology teacher informed us. Again this year!? I learn about this stuff every freaking year! I thought science was always changing! But hey, it gives me an opportunity to learn about my family history!

I bumped into Greg in the hall, "Hey!"

He smiled, "Have you been to biology?"

"I just left! I can't wait! I'm finally going to learn my family history!" I exclaimed.

"Me too! I mean, I know my mom's side, but my half of my dad's side is a mystery," he informed me.

"Half of both of my parents sides are a mystery to me," I said glumly, "I better get to my next class. See you around, Greg."

Greg and I walked home from school. I could have sworn that the big guy behind us was following us. I was just a little paranoid, I guess, "Hey, Sophia, wait; I have to tie my shoes," Greg asked me to stop. I did, and to my relief, the big guy didn't.

What I didn't expect was for him to stop at us and talk, "Young heroes, I can tell that you will follow your parents' footsteps," he had a raspy voice. I peered up at him, trying to get a glimpse of his eyes. Or should I say, eye. He had one eye in the middle of his head. I screamed. Greg looked up, didn't even have to squint real hard, widened his eyes in panic, took my hand (which felt nice), and ran. The Cyclops didn't follow.

"What was that thing?" I asked as soon as we reached the inside of our apartment building.

"You didn't guess?" he asked.

"Well, I guessed Cyclops, but that can't be right; they don't exist," I stated matter-of-factly.

"Look, I can't explain it, but I see things like that all of the time. I learned to ignore them, and they don't bother me. Until today," he confided. Then he added, "My mom has the same condition. She's helped me a lot. She told me that I would use it to save the world one day, but I think she was milking it."

"Will you walk me to my door? I'm a little freaked," I confessed. He nodded.

"What floor?" he asked.

"Twenty-one," that's how old my awesome Aunt Hannah is. That's how old my parents were when they got married. It's an easy way to remember, but only one will stay the same forever.

"Cool! I'm on the same floor!" how weird is that?

We climbed in the elevator and I pressed the button that said '21'. We traveled upward until we heard the ding sound. The doors opened to let us out, and Greg walked by my side until I stopped. I left my key in my room, so I would just have to knock. Great, now my parents get to see me getting walked home by the guy I like. Super. I took a deep breath and knocked.

The door opened a few seconds later, and I was relieved to see it was only Hallie. Hallie glanced back and forth between Greg and me, debating whether or not she should tell our parents. I gave her my please-don't-tell look. She understood, and let me in without a word. I waved goodbye to Greg before I closed the door.

I whispered, "I'll tell you all about it later," to Hallie before we got into the living room, where, of course, my parents were. My dad was watching an ocean special on the National Geographic Channel (he doesn't like learning unless it's about fish) and my mom was poring over papers from work.

I made my presence known, "Don't you guys always look up new neighbors?"

They looked up and smiled, "Welcome home. Yes, I guess we do," answered Mom.

"Why?" asked Dad.

I kept my answer simple, "Because we have new neighbors on this floor, the Smith family. They have a son who's my age."

"Why don't we welcome them to the building, Percy? You might find someone to hang out with other than Ashley, Sophia," Mom commented.

"What's wrong with Ashley?"

"Nothing is wrong with Ashley. It would be nice if you made more friends," Dad answered for her.

"I swear; college made you smarter Percy. My mother even thought of you differently afterwards," Mom told him. She mentioned her MOM!

"That reminds me; I have a mini-project in biology. I have to find out my family tree up to my great-grandpa," I told them hopefully. That reminded me of something else, too, for some reason: the Cyclops.

"Sophia? Are you alright? You seem shaken?" Mom asked, concerned. I noticed that she ignored the mini-project…for now. My mom doesn't resist schoolwork.

"Mom, Dad; do Cyclops exist?" I asked carefully.

"No," my mom answered simply, not looking up from her notes.

Dad was curious though, "Why would you ask such a thing?"

Would they think I was crazy? Then again, they are nuts themselves, "Well, when I was walking home with Greg," Mom and Hallie glanced at me suspiciously. Then Mom and Dad shared a meaningful, worried glance. Whatever that meant, "This guy was following us. Then Greg had to stop and tie his shoes. The guy kept moving, so I thought it was just a coincidence. But then, the guy stops in front of us and says, 'Young heroes, I can tell that you will follow your parents' footsteps.' What did you do? I looked real hard at his face; believe me, it wasn't easy. What I saw scared me frozen to the spot. He had one eye in the middle of his head. I screamed, and Greg looked up. He didn't even have to squint to see that this guy wasn't normal. Greg told me he sees these things all the time after he pulled me away, and so does his mom. He doesn't know why. She helps him deal with it." I watched my parents' reactions. They glanced at each other again, and mouthed what looked like Rachel at the same time. Then they smiled.

"Let's go visit our neighbors now!" Dad exclaimed. Hallie looked a little disappointed; she probably wanted to learn everything about Greg.

A minute after we knocked on the door, a frizzy, red-headed woman opened it with an annoyed look on her face. When she saw my parents, her eyes widened, "Rachel! It's been too long! When was the last time we saw you?" Dad asked.

"Percy? Annabeth? Tommy! Get over here, now!" Rachel shouted to someone who must be her husband. These are Greg's parents, and they already know mine.

"Let them in! Duh," Tommy replied. Rachel blushed and let us in.

My parents hid behind Rachel as they walked into view, "Guess who just knocked on our door, straight out of the pages of our high-school yearbook?" Rachel asked Tommy. High-school yearbook? My parents stepped out from behind Rachel and Tommy grinned.

"Well, if it isn't our hero; Percy Jackson himself. And lovely Annabeth Chase Jackson; are you still smarter than everyone? I bet you are," Tommy greeted. My parents beamed, and Dad went up to him to give a friendly but firm handshake.

"When was the last time you saw Tracey?" he asked.

"I think she and the rest of the girls were going to the Rockies. Tracey loves the group, not regretting her choice one bit," Tommy answered. Who was Tracey?

Then Greg walked in the door, "Sophia? What are you doing here?"

Before I could answer, Rachel cried, "Sophia's here? Is Hallie here too? I must see them! The last time I saw Sophia, she was still learning how to make sentences! I never saw Hallie." Greg raised his eyebrows at his mother.

Rachel turned around and her eyes grew wide when she saw me, "You are so beautiful! You grew up so fast! Sixteen now, right?" I nodded my head. This lady was scary.

Tommy was grinning at his son, "So, how did you two meet?"

"She's in most of my classes," he mumbled. Embarrassing parents; I know just how he feels.

"We must get caught up!" Rachel exclaimed.

Mom added, "In private."

"Greg, why don't you show the girls your room?" it wasn't a question; it was a request. Greg nodded his head, and we followed him into a room. As soon as the door was shut, Greg pressed his ear to the wall. I did the same. So did Hallie

"– is no longer a protection. They encountered a monster today! What else could be following such power? Psycho Kelli?" my mom was hissing.

"We should just do it the old-fashioned way. There is no urgency for knowing. Annabeth, darling, I know you think that not knowing is no longer a protection, but I think it is more than ever a protection," Dad countered.

"We don't all have Tsunami at our beck and call," Rachel informed him.

"I have my knife, Percy has Tsunami, and Tommy has his bow. You should be okay, Rachel. You will be a strong asset, just like in the labyrinth," Mom reassured her. MY MOM CARRIES A KNIFE!

"I don't think we should discuss this any further without everyone else. When is the next opportunity to get us all together?" Tommy mentioned.

"I agree. Christmas is coming up, so we could get together then for an actual normal reason," Mom suggested.

"And for answers now, I'll IM Chiron when we get back to our apartment," Dad added.

"Once you leave, I'll IM everyone the invitations. I think we should go to that special place reserved for people like us," Tommy added. There was moving around, and I heard footsteps coming towards our door.

I quickly moved my ear from the wall and crossed to the bed quickly. That's what I would've done if the box hadn't been in the center of the room unnoticed. I tripped, shrieked, and fell towards the ground. Greg caught me by the waist, "Are you okay?" he asked as soon as our parents entered the room.

"What happened?" Dad asked before actually looking at the scene. I was facing the ground with Greg's hands grabbing my waist. He lifted me up, and we were both blushing.

"I tripped," I informed the grinning parents.

"Well, it's time for us to be going now," Mom said with a smile plastered on her face. Hallie, Mom, Dad, and I left with a few exchanged goodbyes.

I completely give the credit for the idea of a restaurant reserved for gods, demigods, and others to Mountev94. The restaurant was mentioned in The New Couple!, a PJO fanfic.