Chapter 05: Percy's Nightmare
The following week seemed the worst in Percy's entire life.
And that had to stand for something, because he had been through a hell lot, Tartarus included and all.
But he would seriously rather face a horde of crazy bloodthirsty monsters (though they weren't hard to come by nowadays anyways, what with the ship being full of them every single day) than enduring the worst punishment ever: Jason was ignoring him.
It wasn't that obvious looking away thing where you looked at a person and that person made a notion of looking anywhere but back and would treat you like air or act like you were some sort of lesser being.
Instead, Jason seemed completely normal – just that he stayed in his room instead of the training grounds, sat next to Leo instead of his favorite place (other than the head chair) and pretty much spent all his time with said Latino whenever he wasn't fighting off monsters, having guard duty or hiding out in his room.
It was maddening.
He didn't just not look at Percy at all, he also didn't even give any sign that he acknowledged his existence.
When Percy sneered at him and said something mean, Jason didn't do as much as flinch or even turn his head in the slightest.
He would just keep doing whatever he was doing, no matter if he was talking or fighting or just sitting there staring at a spot far away.
Percy had even kicked him a few times under the table, but Jason hadn't even pulled back his feet or anything.
Sometimes Percy found himself considering pointing Riptide at Jason's neck to at least get any type of reaction.
Seriously, this was even crueler than when Percy had ignored him!
He had at least looked at Jason and run for it whenever they had happened to see each other face to face with nobody else around.
But Jason completely looked through Percy, as if he didn't exist. This was the most horrible treatment Percy had ever experienced.
And he hated Jason for it. Really hated him.
He slashed at some dummies and beheaded the lot, fuming.
At the same time, guilt seemed to have settled in every single pore of his body.
This was all his fault. He hated himself even more than Jason.
He beheaded some more dummies, annoyed with himself, with Jason and with the world in general.
He heard the door open and looked around, watching Jason enter, closely followed by Leo.
Those two! Seriously! Wasn't he going anywhere anymore without his little Latino lover?! Friends, fat chance.
They seemed all over each other.
It was disgusting.
Percy snorted and hacked wildly at dummies, not caring about whether he hit them or not – which was immediately regretted as one came hurling back at him, flattening him on the floor and pushing the air out of his lungs.
Great.
"You ok, Percy?" Leo called over but he waved it off, not even looking in the direction of the noise.
"Just fine." He spat, got up, sliced the dummy into bits and walked out of the training room fuming.
Could his life get any more fucked up?!
.
Three nights later, the nightmares were back.
Tartarus was back.
Percy screamed and yelled, trying to escape from that horrible place.
He was kicking and thrashing around, trying to get that stench out of his nose and that horrible, horrible voice out of his head.
It was all pointless.
He was right there, standing on Tartarus itself.
There was no way out.
Percy screamed once more, feeling something hard colliding with his hand or maybe the other way around and a pain shot through his body, temporarily tearing him out of his dream and back into reality.
But it was as if he was being pulled right back in by Tartarus itself.
He got thrown back into the acid fumes, the monsters bickering all around him, laughing at his demise, pushing him around.
And he was all alone.
"Jason..." He whispered, tears running down his face, hiding within himself in a futile attempt to escape the pain.
He felt the monsters closing in on him and that sick, horrible voice sounded in his head again.
'You will never be able to hide from me. I am always right there...you can run all you want, little demigod. In the end, your life belongs to me...'
Percy yelled and clapped his hands over his ears though it made no difference.
He thrashed around again as if he could swat the voice away somehow or get the monsters out of his face.
'Futile...' one monster began and suddenly, the others chimed in and they all began chanting.
„It is futile...everything is futile...there is no hope...nobody to save you from the darkness...you are alone...all alone...why do you fight?"
Percy screamed and yelled, it felt as if he was screaming out his lungs, trying to tune them out.
But the more they chanted, the more he began to realize that they were right.
Why was he even fighting anymore?
It was all just hopeless.
There was no point.
Even if they managed to beat Gaea and survive, there would simply be something or somebody else acting up and starting a war.
There would be another crisis and everybody would have to fight.
And even if there wasn't, what was really the point of everything?
Why fight?
Why live?
What for?
There was nobody.
Nothing.
And Percy felt his defenses lowering, felt the monsters coming closer. Everything around him turned darker and darker.
Why bother fighting?
Nothing really mattered anymore. He was drifting now. Drifting towards what seemed like eternal darkness.
And he heard the voice booming in his head and all around him in the dark.
'Yes, little demigod. Give up. You have fought long and well, but now it is time for you...to rest...'
Why was that thought so alluring?
The thought of just letting things happen. The thought of not taking up the sword and trying to heroically fight his way out of here. Why was he just letting go like this?
He didn't know.
And the longer he was in the darkness, the less he cared. He was simply drifting and drifting.
And nothing else mattered.
.
Jason was just on his way back from the toilet when he heard it.
A whisper of his name followed by some strange noises and then silence.
Then the yelling started. Jason moved over to the door where the noise came from.
Percy's room. He stopped right in front of it, listening.
For a moment, there seemed to be more thrashing, then he yelled again and whined, terror in every note of his voice.
Something inside Jason clenched. This didn't sound like a normal nightmare at all.
"NO! NO, LET ME GO!" He heard Percy practically screaming in his sleep, wondering how he or the others had ever slept through something like this.
This was horrible.
He had his hand on the doorknob but hesitated.
This was nothing of his business. Percy had made it clear he didn't want Jason anywhere in his life. He should respect that.
Suddenly, the yelling and screaming stopped. Instead, a wailing started.
"No...I don't...I don't want to hear...go away...no...I don't..." He whined and it sounded as if he was curling up into a ball or something.
Then it grew eerily quiet. Right when Jason thought it was over and Percy must have drifted off to 'better' nightmares, the whispering started.
"No point...there's no point..." Jason pressed his ear against the door.
Was Percy awake now? Or still dreaming?
"Yes...why fight anymore...it doesn't matter anymore...nothing matters...nobody...nothing...I'm all alone..."
Jason closed his eyes and opened the door.
Percy was lying in his bed, curled into a ball, his arms wrapped around his head as if he tried to cover his ears. His body was cold and trembling. His lips were blue. His face scrunched up.
Jason walked over to the bed, unsure what to do.
"Give up...yes...rest...that...that sounds nice..." Jason carefully touched Percy's arm, but he didn't as much as flinch.
"Percy...Percy wake up..." He muttered quietly while softly shaking him.
"So nice..." Percy whispered and Jason realized that there were tears running down his face, moistening the pillow beneath him.
"Percy, wake up. You are having a nightmare." Jason said, worry clearly audible in his voice.
He shook him with a tad more force but Percy did not wake.
"All alone...all alone..."
Jason looked around him to see if there was anything he could use to get him to wake up.
The room was a giant mess, but nothing caught his eye that could have been particularly helpful. He leaned over Percy and began unclenching his arms and freeing his ear so he could hear him.
"Percy, you're not alone. Think of all your friends. Think of all the people that love you."
"Pointless...Futile..."
"No, no it's not, and you know it. Percy, wake up. Don't let them lure you in. Fight them, Percy." He said soothingly and started pulling Percy towards him, checking out a heavily bruised wrist while bedding Percy's head on his lap.
What did he do? Fight the wall? He made a mental note to get Percy some ambrosia later.
.
Jason softly stroked through Percy's hair and started talking to him in a quiet, soothing voice.
He wasn't sure Percy even as much as heard him.
"They're all going to die...and it's my fault...why..." He whispered and Jason shook his head, leaning over him once more and whispering in his ear.
Or at least as close as he could get from this angle.
"Jason..." Percy muttered all of a sudden and Jason perked up, thinking that Percy must be coming out of his nightmare after all.
"I'm right here, Percy." He said quietly and continued his stroking of his hair.
"I'm sorry Jason..."
Jason stopped for a moment.
Ok, awkward. Maybe he wasn't coming out of his nightmare after all.
Percy shivered and paled even more.
He looked almost like a ghost.
Jason's insides suddenly churned and felt with dread.
Was this...normal? This didn't look normal.
It looked as if something, some higher force, was actually really trying to pull Percy...somewhere. Somehow.
"Percy? Percy I'm right here. If you want to apologize, do it in person. Percy?"
"I'm sorry..."
"I can't hear you, Percy. Get your sexy little butt out of you dream world and say it to my face." He scolded himself in quiet for his poor choice of words, but he was suddenly feeling rather horrid.
He started shaking Percy again. Hard.
"Percy. Percy wake up. Seriously, how can ANYBODY sleep that tight." He declared, almost yelling now himself.
But Percy just muttered some more apologies and it was as if he was slowly drifting away...but to where?
How? He was right here.
Right in Jason's arms.
Where could he possibly go?
This was stupid. But nevertheless, he couldn't get rid of the panic rising within him.
"Percy! Percy can you hear me?! Percy, WAKE UP!" He practically shouted and shook Percy so badly his head spun just from watching.
Now he was over Percy, looking down at him, laying there on the bed and he realized how pale he had become.
His skin seemed an unnatural shade of grey and his lips seemed a dark blue, though it could have all been just the light.
"Percy! Percy, open your god damn eyes!"
Percy wasn't whispering anymore.
He wasn't moving anymore either.
Jason frantically checked his pulse.
Still there. Though weak.
What the hell? People didn't just die in their dreams, not like this at least.
He shook Percy again, even stepped that low that he pushed his hand beneath Percy's shirt and pinched his nipple.
There was no reaction whatsoever.
He bent down and let their foreheads connect, staring down at Percy's completely still face.
"You are an asshole, you know that, Jackson? An asshole and a coward. What is this supposed to be? You running from reality? 'Oh my, my life isn't going all sparkly ponies and McDonalds, I'll just leave for good cause there's no point'? I'm right here. And I won't forgive you unless you say it to my face that you are sorry. You hear me? I won't forgive you. Ever. And if you die on me now, Jackson, I swear I will hold that against you forever. And I'll tell all my kids to hold it against you too. I'll tell them what a coward you were for running away. That you couldn't even say sorry." It was desperate, to say the least. But it was the only thing he could think of.
Sadly, to no avail. Percy did not budge. And his pulse was weakening.
He guessed he should jump off the bed and call the others.
Call for help. Maybe anybody would have an idea. There had to be something they could do.
But Jason found himself incapable of moving.
He was still sitting there, on top of Percy, their foreheads connected, staring down at his pale face, watching him breathe ever so slow and weakly.
"Percy..." he whispered and rubbed his forehead against Percy's a bit.
Was this how it was going to end?
He wished he was Annabeth. Somebody close to him that could have gotten him back.
Instead, he was just Jason.
Jason fucking useless Grace.
He should go running for help. Instead, he felt himself cupping Percy's face gently.
"Percy...come back..." He whispered ever so softly.
Before, he had been yelling and Percy hadn't even budged.
Of course he was so going to hear him whisper ever so barely audible.
But rational thought evaded him.
All he could do was stare down at Percy, watching him getting paler and paler.
.
He was still drifting. It felt great. Just forgetting everything that ever bothered him.
The voice was a bummer though.
He couldn't pinpoint it directly, but there was this voice inside his head that kept saying these really stupid things.
'Wake up' What for? He was feeling great here. This was amazing. There's no way he was going to go back.
All that was waiting there was pain and hurt and misery.
'I'm right here Percy...' Thinking about it, that voice sounded so much like Jason's.
Ah. Jason.
He felt a twinge of regret. He hadn't even said goodbye.
All in all, they hadn't talked at all after Percy's little emotional outbreak.
He had destroyed everything with his stupidity.
He wished he could at least tell him how sorry he was.
That he hadn't meant it. But it was all too late now.
Though he wondered whose voice that must have been, he spread his arms to embrace the darkness around him, letting go of any feelings.
Feelings were just in the way.
"Percy!" He heard that voice again, this time louder, cutting through the blissful silence around him.
Seriously, why couldn't that whoever-it-was just leave him alone? Couldn't he tell he was happy here?
"Open your goddamn eyes!"
But his eyes were open.
He could see the darkness all around him.
Could feel it taking over every single part of his body.
"You are an asshole, you know that, Jackson? An asshole and a coward. What is this supposed to be?"
Man, that just had to be Jason. Nobody else ever annoyed him like that. There was nobody who would dare.
"You running from reality? 'Oh my, my life isn't going all sparkly ponies and McDonalds, I'll just leave for good cause there's no point'?"
That was so NOT what he was doing here! The emotions were beginning to surge back into him to manifest into rage.
"I'm right here. And I won't forgive you unless you say it to my face that you are sorry."
'Suit yourself. I'm feeling great here. What do I care whether you forgive me or not, Grace. Nothing I can change about it anyways.' He thought to himself, huffing indignantly and trying to concentrate back on the soothing darkness around him.
"You hear me? I won't forgive you. Ever. And if you die on my now, Jackson, I swear I will hold that against you forever. And I'll tell all my kids to hold it against you too. I'll tell them what a coward you were for running away. That you couldn't even say sorry."
Wow. What a threat. Percy felt his temper rising.
Seriously, what was wrong with that idiot blonde?
Couldn't he just let him rest for a while? He was acting as if Percy was DYING or something.
He felt the darkness tightening around him, but his mind was too busy being annoyed with Jason.
Seriously, why was he acting like that?
Any other person would have left him to himself.
Why did he always have to butt in?
Acting like he was saving his life or something.
He felt himself moving against the darkness.
It was one thing to not being able to say you're sorry for something you've done wrong.
It was another thing not being able to talk back and defend oneself while being attacked and threatened by a blond superman.
"Percy..." A mere whisper, but it held so much emotion all of Percy's anger evaporated.
What was he doing here? He should be with Jason, making fun of him for being such a drama queen.
But as he tried to leave, he slowly realized that it really wasn't all that easy.
He had been drifting slowly and steadily, as if a breeze had caught him and carried him along his way.
But now, as he tried to turn back, it was more like a thundering river, pushing him back 3 steps with every one forward.
He barely managed to retain his grip and keep moving.
"Percy..." Jason's voice sounded so…helpless. Worried. Fearful.
Images flashed through Percy's mind.
How they had sparred in the training room. How they had fought over the head chair.
Percy started fighting against the darkness even harder.
Who was going to bully Jason if he was gone?
Who was going to show him his place and tell him he wasn't freaking perfect blonde superman?
Percy wouldn't have it.
"Percy...come back..." The voice pleaded. His heart clenched.
He pictured him sitting there, next to his bed, worrying. He was always worrying.
Worrying about the weather, about the monsters, about the ship. About Piper, about Leo, about everybody in the world. About the world. About the mission.
And now he worried about Percy.
Percy felt a fluttering in his heart and felt as if he was at least making some small progress on getting out.
"Percy..."
His head shot up. A light. A bright light. It illuminated the darkness and showed Percy everything around him.
Let's just say it wasn't pretty.
He was so ready to go.
"...I need you..."
Those three words practically catapulted Percy right out of the darkness and into the light.
Jason.
Jason needed him? He could feel his heart fluttering.
Damn right, Jason needed him. Hopefully everybody had heard that.
.
And just like that, Percy Jackson managed to tear himself out of his nightmare, back into his own body in his room on the ship, moving upwards just to feel something hard colliding with him.
"Ouch!" He yelped, though it wasn't entirely because his head had collided with Jason's.
As soon as he had woken up, all the pain and sorrow came washing back over him.
But somehow that didn't even matter that much.
Because all he could see and care about right now was Jason.
His face was so close.
Their foreheads were touching and he was looking down with those beautiful sky blue eyes, full of worry and fear.
He tried to smirk, though he knew he must look pathetic, if the way he was feeling stood for anything.
He felt like crap.
His entire body ached and just as much as lying completely still already seemed extremely difficult and painful on his lungs and heart.
"Course you need me, dude." He said quietly and Jason's lips twitched.
He expected some sort of retort, but instead Jason seemed to practically drop onto him.
He groaned, but at the same time felt his arms going through the quite difficult and rather painful task of wrapping themselves around Jason.
He could feel the warmth of Jason's body spreading through his own, only now realizing how cold he must be if Jason felt warm.
"Idiot." Jason muttered quietly against his ear and Percy closed his eyes for a moment, just enjoying the sound of his voice.
He nuzzled his face against the crook of Jason's neck and inhaled his scent.
Jason didn't comment on it, instead still squishing him beneath him.
They stayed like this for what felt like an eternity, yet still much too short.
Then Jason began moving, much to Percy's dismay.
Not that he said much other than a bit of huffing and a whimper he could barely suppress.
"Seriously, never scare me like that again. What were you thinking?" Jason asked accusingly, but the fact that he softly placed his hand on Percy's forehead and then began stroking through his hair kind of ruined the lecture, really.
Percy couldn't hold it back anymore. A broad, goofy grin spread on his face. Jason made a face.
"What? This is serious. What's there to grin about?"
Percy grinned even harder and felt his hand touching Jason's.
"You're talking to me again…" He muttered and Jason's eyes widened for a moment.
Then he turned his head away, a flush spreading on his cheeks.
"Seriously? That's what you care about?"
.
As Percy still grinned at him like an idiot, Jason could only shake his head and lean over to stroke his face softly.
His skin tone was slowly turning back to normal. His breathing seemed to be steadying and all in all he seemed to at least leave that brink-of-death-state behind.
Percy's hand touched his softly and Jason still found it unnaturally cool.
He pulled back and got up, intending to get the dark-haired hero a blanket and maybe something to drink and eat, as well as some ambrosia.
But as he stepped away from the bed, he heard Percy making a weird noise between a whine and a complaint and he began to move, trying to get up and follow.
"Stay..." He whispered.
"What the…lay down, Percy."
"Stay."
Jason looked at him exasperated as he pushed him back down into his pillow. "Percy, I'll be right back."
But Percy didn't let go, pulling at Jason's shirt.
"I'm fine." He said, defensively.
Jason gave him his best 'Are you dead serious'-face and then crossed his arms.
"Fine. Then get up and come with me." Percy looked alarmed for a moment, but to Jason's surprise and utmost horror, he actually tried to get up.
.
It wasn't very graceful, not to say pathetic.
As soon as Percy put any weight on his arms, they gave way and he hit the pillow again.
His face felt hot and he knew he must look utterly stupid.
Not to say helpless.
What the hell?
This didn't even remotely feel like when he had out powered himself too much on the training grounds.
Not even when he had been on the very verge of death all those times before had he been like…like this.
So weak.
So helpless.
He fought his way into a sitting position, nausea washing over him.
His vision was blurry and his face burning. His insides churning and every fiber in his body aching.
He suppressed a groan. As he tried to push himself up, he wasn't surprised whatsoever by the pain shooting through his body and the way his legs seemed worse than jelly.
He fought for balance, but in vain.
As he felt himself toppling forward, he felt Jason's strong arms wrapping around him.
For some reason, it felt really good.
"Really, you are unbelievable. You got to be the most stubborn person on this planet." He muttered as he pulled him upright and kept him steady, taking most of his weight onto himself.
Percy would have complained, but the nausea was back and he was trying to keep himself from retching.
Jason moved him towards the door.
"Are you sure you don't want to lie down again?"
Percy weakly shook his head. "I'm…I'm fine…"
Maybe if he kept telling Jason and himself that, it would actually come true.
.
Jason looked around at him worriedly.
Was he imagining it or was Percy turning a nasty shade of green?
"Bathroom?" He asked as he opened the door and guided Percy out carefully.
Percy nodded quietly, swallowing hard.
Oh great.
Jason helped him a few more steps but the further they got, the more Percy's body trembled and he was sweating heavily, his legs more tripping over each other than stepping forward.
After another step, Jason stopped.
Percy was about to complain but shut his mouth before more than words came out.
And then, to Percy's absolute horror, Jason turned around to him, leaned over and seriously LIFTED him off the ground, princess-style.
He stared at him in disbelief.
Jason looked back down at him, a quizzical eyebrow raised. "Yes?" He asked, daring Percy to complain.
Percy would have liked to say something. Anything.
Even better, he would have loved to jump out of Jason's freaking arms and walk away like a boss, showing him he could handle this by himself.
Sadly, he didn't do anything but look away pouting, annoyingly noticing how a feeling of comfort, warmth and – worst of all – security surged through him.
It was as if he was feeling safe in the arms of his…well whatever Jason was to him.
Jason began walking, carrying him to the bathroom.
He didn't rub it in. Percy wasn't sure what he would have done if this had been the other way around.
Would he have even been there in the first place?
Would he have stayed at Jason's side through a nightmare and tried to wake him, begging him to come back?
Would he have looked down at Jason with relief when he finally woke up and just hug him and be happy he was back?
Would he have stuck around to make sure he was ok, checking his temperature and lastly even carrying him around on the ship instead of simply leaving him back in bed?
He found himself unable to answer those questions.
He had never actually seen Jason showing any sign of weakness whatsoever in the first place.
He didn't even know if Jason had bad nightmares as well.
Or what they were about.
What if Jason actually did have them but simply acted strong, as Percy had done with Annabeth and all his other friends?
Or was Jason simply stronger than him and could put it aside easier?
Sure, he hadn't gone through Tartarus, but still Percy knew how horrible those nightmares could get.
Jason was the son of Zeus, well, Jupiter. He would have a lot of responsibility. Even more than Percy.
No time for weaknesses. For the first time ever, Percy actually wondered what life must be like for Jason. Next to the oh-look-at-me-I'm-so-awesome-cause-I-can-fly-bullshit.
Then again, truth be told, Percy had never heard Jason bragging. Not to him, not to anybody, really.
He was, as Leo had put it, a mother duck, looking after her ducklings and pushing her own concerns away for later.
He looked up at Jason as they entered the bathroom.
Jason was a really amazing person.
Their eyes met.
Percy looked away fast, not wanting to answer awkward questions – not that he could have answered them in the first place.
The moment Jason put him down, the nausea hit him again.
He tried to fight it, but it seemed like the momentary peace in Jason's arms only made his body unprepared for the sudden wave of pain, sickness and nausea.
Needless to say, he stumbled towards one of the toilets and barely made it in time before he would have had a hell lot to clean up afterwards.
.
Jason helped him kneel down and keep his balance, stroking strands of hair out of his face.
It was the most bizarre, yet most caring gesture Percy had ever encountered.
This guy, he wasn't even his friend or anything, yet he was here with him, helping him, supporting him, giving him a glass of water between his retching attacks and flushing the toilet.
Percy was quite glad about his blurry vision. The stench was already horrible enough as it was.
'It must be even worse on Jason' Shot through his head as he retched again, feeling Jason's big warm hand on his back, patting softly.
He really was a great guy.
"I'm…I'm sorry…" He muttered, taking a few sips of water from the glass Jason was holding out to him.
"What for?" Jason asked quietly, putting the glass down again and taking a kind of wet cloth to wipe Percy's forehead.
When had he gotten that?
He tried to focus on it, but concentrating seemed to not go too well with his stomach.
He vomited again.
"Everything…" he muttered, for it was easier to just say that than to go into detail right now.
For being a great guy.
For taking care of him.
For pretty much saving his life.
Of course, he also wanted to apologize for his behavior.
Not only what he had said in the clearing, but also how mean he had been to him in the past.
Maybe Jason hadn't been as bad as Percy had thought.
.
Jason kept patting Percy's back, giving him water every now and wiping his forehead off with a wet cloth he had found in the cupboard beneath the sink.
He wasn't exactly surprised that Percy was puking.
It was more that he was surprised about how beside himself the dark-haired boy seemed to be.
With his skin pale and his gaze dazed, he was barely recognizable from the loud and proud boy bullying him during the day, or the dominant and competitive man he could be during their few sexual encounters.
He looked weak. Weak and frail. As if a too rough wisp of wind could snap him in two.
And then there was that apology. For everything.
What was he talking about? Was he trying to apologize for calling him disgusting and wanting him out of his life?
Or was he apologizing for this whole mess?
If the first, he didn't really care anymore anyways.
If the second, then it really wasn't Percy's fault…much.
Jason had to admit, he was indeed a bit peeved about Percy just giving up on everything the way he did.
Was there nothing for him to hold on to?
He had gone through so much, there must have been something or somebody that made him think like all this was worth it, right?
He thought of Annabeth and how Percy had gone through Tartarus with her, just to be left by her for Piper.
He thought of Percy's best friend Grover whom he had only met once at some point and how he was travelling around the world now, leaving Percy behind alone.
He thought of the people at Camp Half-blood who had missed Percy, but hadn't really gone searching for him.
He thought of the people at Camp Jupiter and how they had had to turn against him for the sake of the legion.
And now the camps were on the brink of war with each other.
Jason sighed. OK, maybe there wasn't exactly somebody in particular.
But still…Jason found himself thinking that Percy could have at least considered his feelings before going like 'nothing matters anymore and I'm all alone anyways'.
He was still here, after all.
Or did Percy not want him to be here?
And if so, was it because of their...little adventures or because Jason was simply the way he was?
He looked around him, searching for something that might help Percy.
He stared at the shower.
Leo had put one in here for reasons unknown, since the shower room was pretty much two doors down, really.
But now it might come in handy.
Percy usually felt better around water after all.
He looked down at the fragile mess called Percy Jackson. He seemed to be either lost in thought or dozing off.
His skin color was slowly returning to normal again.
Then again, there surely was nothing left in Percy's stomach anymore anyways.
He passed him the glass again and Percy sipped a few times.
This time he didn't retch again.
Instead, he tried to get up on wobbly legs.
"Careful." Jason cautioned and helped him up.
It felt a bit as if Percy was drunk.
He guided him over to the shower.
Percy eyed him from the side. "Thanks." He muttered, though turning his head away, as if he worried his breath might bother Jason.
Jason hesitated for a moment, standing in front of the shower.
Then he helped Percy inside and got in after him to keep him from falling.
Percy didn't complain.
.
As Jason started the water, he could feel Percy shivering against the cold, but then his shoulders slacked and he turned his head upwards.
Jason could almost feel him breathe in deeply, as if the water was his air.
He loosened his grip on Percy and found he was able to stand by himself, though still slightly wobbly.
"This feels so good…" Percy murmured and Jason chuckled, though he really didn't feel that great under the running water.
Especially not with his clothes on.
But he wasn't going to complain if it helped Percy.
Said son of the sea god now started moving around some more, stretching and flexing his muscles, looking around at Jason, grinning.
New strength seemed to be rushing through him now.
"This is awesome."
Jason chuckled. "I bet it is. Are you going to be ok now?"
Percy nodded and it seemed like he wanted to say something, but decided not to. Jason let go of him completely and turned to go.
As he left the shower, Percy started to follow.
Jason looked around, raising an eyebrow.
Percy didn't exactly look at him.
"Ah…I…wait…" He stuttered and grabbed hold of Jason's shirt.
A moment later, his clothes and he himself were bone-dry.
He blinked. "Uh…thanks…" He scratched the back of his head awkwardly and turned once more to go.
Now that Percy was good again, he'd probably want his peace and all.
He would be able to grab something to eat by himself as well. So no reason for Jason to stick around anymore, right?
But as he turned and walked towards the door, Percy again opened his mouth to say something but didn't.
Instead, he followed him to the door.
Jason blinked. Percy flushed.
And then, right when Jason wanted to ask if there was something wrong, Percy looked at him with those startling sea green eyes, leaned forward and kissed him.
It wasn't one of their usual, hot kisses.
It was soft and hesitant, as if Percy was worried how Jason would react.
Jason, standing in the doorway, felt his world getting turned upside down.
His hand found Percy's cheek and he kissed back just as softly.
It was like nothing he ever experienced before.
But just as fast, it was over again.
They parted and Percy started fidgeting about with his hands and his clothes, seemingly straightening out his shirt, then pushing his nervous hands in his pockets.
"Thanks. For…well…everything." He muttered, not looking at Jason but to the floor.
Jason nodded quietly. "No problem. If you need anything or have nightmares again…you know where to find me."
With that, he turned once more to leave.
This time, Percy let him walk a few steps before fiddling again and calling after him. "Grace?"
Jason stopped and turned, wondering if there was a chance he could get another kiss.
"I…I really am sorry, you know. About what I said and all. I really didn't mean it."
Jason smiled and lifted his arms. "Already forgotten, mate. We are cool again, then?"
Percy smiled relieved and nodded. "But don't let this get to your head. I feel like I got drugged, so don't you be making fun of me tomorrow."
"It already is tomorrow."
"Fine, then today. Do you have to annoy me right when I just thought you were a nice guy?"
"Oh? Just nice? I hoped for something more along the lines of awesome."
"You know what, Grace, fuck you."
"You wish."
They both sized each other up again, then laughed.
Percy leaned against the door frame while Jason started walking away, though backwards, so he was still facing Percy.
"Night, Grace. And by the way, as a little return of the favor, if there's anything I can do for you…"
"Oh my, please stop. A half-dead Percy AND a nice Percy in one night, that is simply too much for me to take." Jason said while putting his hands over his heart dramatically.
"Haha. You are so funny.", Percy said drily and closed the bathroom door behind him.
Jason chuckled and walked back to his room, all the while grinning stupidly and maybe even – a tiny itsy bitsy bit – looking forward to seeing Percy again at the breakfast table.