Hi again. I'm so sorry about not putting anything out last week. I've been loaded with work for the end of the semester, and it's been affecting just about everything. Anyway, here's a new chapter for you guys. I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Heroes of Olympus (they both go to Rick), or the song that the chapter is named after (which goes to Panic! At the Disco). Please enjoy.

Broken

Chapter 6: Far Too Young to Die

Nico

No sooner than I left my appointment was I ambushed by a certain Jason Grace. He has really got to stop with that. It started a few weeks ago, completely out of the blue. It was two weeks after I was admitted into the hospital. Somehow, he had deduced what had happened. He never told me how, but he knew about Percy. He knew what I did.

Now, naturally, I was a little taken aback. Percy had told me that no one knew. He didn't tell anyone. So, since Jason knew, there were two distinct possibilities. Either Percy slipped up and told somebody, namely Jason, or Jason had some sort of Sherlock Holmes skills. Or maybe somehow he herd me talk about it. Maybe he overheard me going to one of my appointments. But like I said, he wouldn't tell me how he knew, so it was a secret for now.

Anyway, he just burst into my room, unannounced, like Percy did, with a smile and a get well soon bouquet. It was awkward. The first words out of his mouth that first time were "I know about Percy." Um, ok then.

This time, he actually ambushed me in Chiron's waiting room. How did he know when I had an appointment? The bouquet never changed. Lots of yellow and white flowers with names that I will never remember. But the flowers were all the same. I could see that. It was the same stupid little card too. There was this little teddy bear holding a sign saying "Get well soon". How did he get so many of those? He was just a blond bag of mystery.

"Hey Jason." I said in the most awkward way possible. It was high-pitched and squeaky. I'm not sure why I did that exactly, but I did.

Equally as awkward, Jason replied "Hey Nico. What's up?"

"Um, I just got out of an appointment. You know, with my psychiatrist."

"Yeah, I see that."

Why didn't you let me go to my room then I thought. Physically, I just stood there, pressing my lips together into a tight line. We sat in silence for a long time. I noticed that his hair was longer then it was before all of this happened. He didn't look so stiff now. He wasn't, as Percy put it, "the military poster-child" anymore. He looked like a teenager, especially with the groove in the side of his hair. It looked like somebody tried to take a razor to his hair, but stopped before it could get very far. It made him look rebellious, like a teenager should. Everyone noticed his gradual change that started when Percy came. He started to wear less purple, and more orange. His posture relaxed. His smile got more genuine. Before Percy, only Leo or Piper could make him smile. Now he actually looked happy. And I guess he wanted to share that with me. For some reason.

After about a minute, he shook his head, as if coming out of a trance and held out the flowers and card. "Um, maybe we should go to my room first." I said pointing behind me in a spastic way.

"Oh yeah." He said. "We should… go then. Right?"

I nodded and started walking to my room. "So, how did you know about my appointment?" I had to know.

"Actually, Leo told me about it." He said.

"Oh yeah." I had almost forgotten that Leo and Jason lived in the same foster home.

We walked in silence the rest of the way. When we arrived at my room, I set down the card and flowers on the table. "So," said Jason, "You're coming back next week, right?"

"Yep," I replied "I can't wait to get out of here."

"Yeah, I bet. Do you have the schoolwork and stuff that you missed?"

"Yeah, I got most of it done. I'm in the middle of an English paper at the moment."

"Oh, do you need help?" He asked.

"No, I got it."

There was another awkward pause. "And I heard Percy visited."

I might have blushed a little at that. God Damnit. "Yeah. He and Leo stopped by for a bit." I tried really hard to try to look like it was nonchalant. Let's just say, there was a reason I wasn't an actor.

"Did you talk to him about-?"

"Nope, I'm not going to, like I told you every time you've visited."

"I'm just saying-"

"Stop. He already knows that I like him. I don't want to give him the 'creepy stalker dude' vibe, so please just stop."

"All I'm trying to say is-"

"I don't care."

"Look-"

"No, you look. I am not going to make a fool out of myself. Let it drop."

"Alright." He said. "But-"

"Get out." I choked out.

He stared at me. "I'm sorry."

"I said get out." I said, louder this time.

"I'm not trying to-"

"Get out of this room. Right now."

"Look, I'm sorry."

"Get out!"

"Nico, just let me-"

"Shut up, get out." I know it was harsh. I'm not sure why I actually did it. I just got really emotional.

He backed out into the doorframe. "I'm not trying to upset you. But, you really need to talk to him." Then he turned and walked away.

I fell into my bed. God, what was my problem. Screaming into my pillow, I thought about how Jason only wanted to help. I pushed him away. Just lie I did with everyone. Ugh. I decided to watch a little television. Maybe I can drown out the thoughts intruding into my previously calm mind. And, naturally, absolutely nothing was on. I clicked off the TV and I fell into my bed.

My mind was flooding with memories. Everything around me faded and a room with beige walls replaced it. I recognized it as my house. I also realized that I was 10 years old again. "Bianca!" I called. Silence.

I didn't think much of it. She might still be sleeping, I thought. I decided to go downstairs to grab some breakfast. Stuck to the fridge was a note.

Nico,

I had to go out to get some groceries. If you are reading this before I get back, there is a meal in the microwave for you. We have cereal if you're still hungry.

Love You,

Bianca

P.S. Leave some of that food for me. I'm gonna be hungry when I get back.

I knew what was about to happen. I had relived this moment countless times. But old me had no clue. He… I just shrugged and poured myself a bowl of cereal. She could have the microwaved thing when she got back. I turned in the TV. There was a story about of a construction site accident that had just happened. I wasn't all that interested, so I changed the channel to Cartoon Network. There was a marathon of some show I enjoyed. Teen Titans maybe? I never actually saw the show though. It was a commercial. About a minute later, with the commercials still playing, there was a knocking on the door.

Clad only in pajama pants and a t-shirt two sizes to large, I went to answer that knock. A police man with a stony, ashen face was standing on the other side. "Hello?" I said.

He swallowed. "Is this the home of Bianca Di Angelo?" His voice was shaky, but deep. He sounded, and looked, like the kind of person who was usually confident. But the way he stood was giving off a sad aura.

"Yeah," I said, starting to get a little worried. "Why do you ask?" I was scared now. Bianca always told me that police could take us away. After our mother died, we were orphans and shouldn't be able to live in the house anymore. We had to be careful.

"Are your parents home?"

"Uh, no, our mom went on a retreat. I can tell her when she gets back." Yeah, I lied to a cop, but I didn't want to leave. If I told the truth, he might take us both away. Or at least, that was the thought. He probably knew.

"What about your father?" He asked.

I shrugged. "Never met him." That much was mostly true. He left my mom when I was a baby. Bianca knew him, but she would never tell me about him.

"Are you Nico?"

"Yeah."

"Maybe we should go sit down." I led him to the living room and we both sat down. The police man looked like he was about to shatter. He swallowed again. "There's been an accident. Your sister and a friend were at a construction site when it started falling. I'm not sure how it happened, but" his voice trailed off. He took a big breath. "Uh, the friend is in critical condition."

I stared at him. "What about my sister. What happened to Bianca?"

He took another big breath. "There was nothing anyone could do."

"No."

"She was dead before we got to the scene."

"No. You're lying." I could feel the tears welling in my eyes. I knew what he said was true. I could feel it. I just didn't want to admit it.

He reached for my shoulder as the first tear trickled down my face. "Don't touch me." I said, slapping the hand away. "You're lying. She's not- She can't be-"

"I wish that I was."

There was a long pause. My next question was almost a whimper. "Who was it? Who was the friend?"

"Nico," he said, "it wasn't her fault."

"Who was it?"

He took another breath. "Zoe Nightshade."

There was a lot more exchanging. I tried to deny it a lot more. The police man tried to comfort me. I pushed him away. It was a pretty vicious cycle. When he left I remember going to my bed and crying my eyes out.

It was the day that I died. Not physically, but my spirit left that day. The little kid in me was dead. I was a shell. There were very few days after that that I felt happy. There was the day that I came out as bisexual in freshman year. There was the day that I met Percy. There was the day at the courthouse. Those are really the only ones.

Zoe went into a coma after that. She hadn't stirred for five years. She was in the same hospital I was in actually. I knew that she had a sister, Calypso. My therapist recommended that I meet up with her. I never did. She moved away the next year. We never even talked.

As I realized my place in the hospital bed, I also felt sleep reach out to me. I guess the flashback did a number on me. As my eyes closed and I fell asleep, a single, accurate prediction came to my mind. It was going to be a long week.

To be continued…

So yeah, it's almost two thousand words and eight pages. Yey. Again, sorry for last week. Does the length make up for it? If not, well, I've apologized three times now. Also, sorry for all the exposition. I didn't plan for a sequel in the first one. If you have any questions comments complements or complaints, leave a review. Make good decisions. Peace.