A/N: I want to thank all of those who cast their votes. Most of you answered Annabeth while a handful answered Reyna. Now there's something I need you to do: i want you to forget everything you know about these characters prior to reading this story. I want you to focus on who they are in here. In the next chapters, a lot of changes are going to happen. Emotions are going to run wild and characters are going to make decisions. I want you to observe them, look at what they're going to do and weigh who really Percy is better off with. I'm going to ask you that question again. :D

This is one of the most challenging chapters I've ever written and I have no idea how you're going to react to this. You'll understand once you get to the end. And I think i need to find somewhere to hide, in case angry readers come after me.

Also, my working schedule has changed, so I probably won't be updating in the next two weeks. I'm not doing this on purpose, please understand that I'm trying to balance things out. But I will try and update earlier.
I'm running out of time so there won't be any shoutouts, but know that I appreciate all your reviews so keep them coming. I need to know what you're thinking.

DON'T JUST READ, LEAVE A REVIEW!

NEVER LET ME GO

Chapter 11: AVALANCHE

PERCY

Lunch time.

Perfect timing. I had received the text message half an hour ago that Noah would be let out earlier than usual, just before lunch. I would be at the office at least until three and no one was available to look after him. So I texted Nico if he could drive my son to me. He said he would. Now I had to let Mr. Lynn know. He was okay with it, as Noah had stayed with me twice or thrice before and he was actually fond of him.

I caught up with him. "Hey, Mr. Lynn?" I called.

He turned around from boarding the elevator. "Yes, Percy?"

"Uh, Noah will be let out earlier and I'm wondering if he can stay here with me? Both my Mom and girlfriend are busy so no one is available to look after him."

Mr. Lynn smiled kindly. "Of course. Just make sure he doesn't go running around; he could get lost in this building."

"Yes, sir."

I sent a quick text to Nico telling him that it was okay to bring Noah over. I went to the lobby to wait for them. Fifteen minutes later, my cousin walked in, with Noah on his arms. I stood up to meet them. "Noah, why are you making Uncle Nico carry you?" I asked as I took my son from him.

"I'm tired, Daddy," he said as he wrapped his arms around my neck, snuggling against my chest.

I chuckled as I kissed his forehead. "A lot of work at school?" He nodded. I turned to Nico. "Thanks for bringing him, man," I said.

Nico shrugged. "It's fine," he said, looking down to check his watch. "Anyway, I need to go now. I have a class at one." He gave Noah a mocked punch on the shoulder. "Bye, little monkey." My son gave a small wave. "Be good to your Dad." Nico paused, thinking. "On the second thought, don't."

When he was gone, I turned to Noah. "What's up with you today?" I asked. Normally, if he was given the chance to stay with me at the office, he would bug me endlessly to give him a tour.

Noah shrugged. "I'm tired," he answered simply, then tapped his stomach. "And hungry."

That made me laugh. "Alright, let's go get something to eat at the pantry."

We were sitting at a table, with Noah devouring his share of our order when one of my workmates went to sit by us. "Hey, Perce," Rachel greeted.

Rachel Elizabeth Dare was a complete mystery to me. She's probably one of the wealthiest people in New York City. She could easily just relax for her entire life and still had more than enough. Her Dad owned at least four companies which were all operating in the city and was one of the most well-known business figures of New York. Rachel, however, was not your typical rich-and-snob girl. She was actually cool, of not a bit weird. During her day-offs, she could be seen actively participating on non-government organizations helping people.

"Hi, Rachel," I greeted back, looking up.

"Whoa, what happened to your face?" she asked, extending a hand to touched my bruised cheek.

I nervously leaned away, seeing that Noah was watching us. "Nothing. A little misunderstanding."

"Oh," she breathed. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah."

She then saw Noah for the first time. "And who is this? Your younger brother?"

I cleared my throat as Noah looked away from me to stare at Rachel. He was frowning, the look on his face saying Who is she? "Uh, no," I told Rachel. "Rachel, meet Noah; he's my son." Of course I told her that I had a son before but she didn't believe me. Don't ask why; I have no idea. "Noah, introduce yourself."

He jumped off of his seat and went to where Rachel was, her eyes wide. "Hello," my son said. "I'm Aedan Noah but Daddy calls me Noah." He extended his had up to Rachel who accepted it, still looking at me in surprise.

She finally composed herself. "Hi, Noah. My name is Rachel, I'm a friend of your Dad's." Noah gave her a small smile before going back to his seat, resuming eating. She turned to me. "Anyway, I'll see you later, Percy," she said walking away, but not before squeezing

I watched her as she left the pantry shaking her head. I wondered what that could mean. Noah was the one who gave me an answer. "She likes you, Daddy," he said simply, like it was not a big deal.

I gave him a look of confusion. "What? What made you say so?"

Noah rolled his eyes. "It's obvious, Daddy. She was touching your face."

I chuckled. "That doesn't necessarily mean she likes me, you know." Noah opened his mouth to make a reply but I stopped him. "Alright, I'm not talking about this with you; you don't understand this kind of thing."

He pouted. "You just don't want me to tell RR that a girl talks to you that way," he mumbled under his breath.

I laughed. "And what way is that, exactly?"

Noah batted his eyelashes. "Hi, Perce," he said in a somewhat high-pitched voice, mimicking Rachel's. "You know what I'm saying, Daddy."

I ruffled his hair. Noah must be the most sensitive and smart five year-old in existence. "Even if that's true, it's not like I was flirting back to her, right?" Noah shrugged. "And if you tell Reyna, it doesn't matter. She knows I love her, and only her."

"Why did you kiss Annabeth, Daddy?" he asked.

That caught me off guard and for a while I didn't know how to answer. "It's more complicated than that, buddy," I finally managed to say. "Please don't judge me, Noah. As much as I want to explain it to you, I can't."

He sighed. "I'm sorry, Daddy. I didn't mean to make you upset."

I smiled as I ruffled his hair. "That's okay."

"But you're going to tell her? You said if I make a mistake, I should tell you."

I kissed his forehead. "Of course. I'm going to tell her, I promise."

"What if she gets mad?"

I shrugged. "I'll have to accept it. I was wrong to let it happen."

"Okay."

I watched silently as Noah finished eating, my chest heavy of thoughts – thoughts on how Reyna's going to react about this. Mad, no doubt. I just hoped she gave me the chance to make it up to her and didn't break up with me. I couldn't lose her.

"I'm done, Daddy," Noah said after a moment.

"Good," I said, standing up. "Come on, you can stay at my office. Behave and just sleep, okay? I have tons to do."

He nodded as he took my hand.

Reyna was at my kitchen when Noah and I arrived, busy preparing food.

She smiled brightly when we walked in, giving both of us a kiss. "Hey, there," she greeted. "How's your day?"

"Tiring," I answered, setting my duffel down on the table. "What time did you get here?"

"Around noon, I guess. Which was a good thing; your room badly needs cleaning." She looked at Noah and smiled at him. "This little man here is much tidier than you are, shame on you," she said playful. I laughed as I kissed her head.

"Hear, hear," Noah said.

"Alright, you guys are ganging up on me." They both laughed. It looked like a completely normal afternoon but I knew there was something I needed to do. I remembered my conversation earlier with Noah and looked down at my son. "Noah, why don't you go ahead and do your home works; there's something Reyna and I need to talk about." He raised his eyebrows at me. I nodded at him. "Just don't forget to wash up first, okay?" I called as he ran upstairs.

"What is it?" Reyna asked when I turned around. I gave a loud sigh. "Perce, you're scaring me."

"Rey, there's something you need to know," I said, taking a deep breath. The next words barely escaped my mouth. "Yesterday afternoon, when I went to confront Annabeth about what happened with Josiah . . . something – something happened, Rey."

"What?" she asked, touching my arm. "Perce, you can tell me anything."

"Annabeth and I kissed," I blurted out. I watched her expression. For a second there was nothing, her face completely expressionless. Then her lips trembled, her eyes watered and she was suddenly trying to get past me. "Rey, please," I pleaded as I tried to hold her. "Please, I'm sorry. I - - I didn't mean for it to happen. Just please, let me explain."

"What, Perce?" she asked, tears running down her face. "What are you going to say? That it means nothing to you?"

"It doesn't – "

"You let it happen, Percy! That means something!"

She tried to step aside but I blocked her way. "Rey, please. Just – just slap me, hurt me, yell at me. Do anything, just please don't leave."

She bit her lower lip and looked down. My chest felt heavy as I watched her tears running down her eyes. I wanted to do something: kneel in front of her and beg for her forgiveness or anything . . . anything I had to so she would forgive me, though deep inside me, I knew how hard it would be on her end. She was as guarded as I was and letting people in her life was a huge challenge for her as much as it was for me. But when we met, Reyna made exceptions for me. She put down her walls so I could get in, so we could ne together. I knew, even without her telling me that she still lived with fear every day, the fear of me leaving her.

And now, I just made the biggest mistake of hurting the strongest person I've ever known.

Reyna looked up. I felt like I was being stabbed repeatedly on the chest at the sight of her red eyes. "Why, Percy? I-I tried my best to be a good girlfriend to you. Where have I gone wrong?"

"It's not you, Rey. Please. I'm sorry."

I hugged her but she pushed me away. "Just – just let me go. I need to be alone." When she tried to walk past me, I didn't stop her. I just watched, watched as another important person in my life walked away. What's wrong with me? Why do I always end up hurting the people that I wanted to protect the most?

I sat down on the table, my eyes trained on nothing. I kept remembering the tears that Reyna cried, how hurt she looked when I told her. I felt like I buried myself under three feet of dirt, cutting off all oxygen supply in my body. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't think. I wasn't even aware when I started crying. I just felt them, hot and burning with pain and shame down my cheeks.

I don't know how long I stayed there. I only became aware of the time again when Noah found me. He didn't say anything. He climbed into my lap and wrapped his arms around my neck. I hugged him and pressed him tightly against my body. "I'm sorry, Noah," I whispered in his ear. "I always mess things up."

Noah looked at me. "She's mad?"

"She walked away," I answered. "And I'm afraid it's permanently."

"She's going to forgive you, Daddy," he said. "Just give her time." Noah hugged me again and I buried my face on his hair.

We stayed there until Noah fell asleep, while I stayed awake the entire night.

"Rey, I know you're mad at me but please pick up the phone so we can talk about it. Please."

I was on my way to my car to pick up Noah the next day. I had gotten off from work and called Reyna for the hundredth time, but it was always voice mail. I tried in every possible way to reach her but she just wouldn't reach back. I made a silent note to pay her a visit later the day.

I was just setting my phone down when it rang again. I pressed answer and immediately brought it to my ear. "Rey, thank God you called me – "

"May I please speak with Mr. Percy Jackson?" a woman's voice asked from the other line.

I frowned. "Speaking. Who is this?"

"I'm Meredith Reese, the principal of Meriwether Preparatory School."

I fell silent. Meriwether was Noah's school. "Why? Is there something wrong with my son?"

"That's exactly what I need to ask you, Mr. Jackson," she said.

"What do you mean?"

"It's something we need to talk about in person. Are you going to pick Noah up?"

"Yes. I'm actually on my way now."

"Perfect. I'll see you." She ended the call.

I stared at my phone, worried of what might be the reason why the principal herself needed to talk to me. Did Noah get in trouble? That was the only explanation I could come up with. I sighed and jumped into my car and drove, thinking the whole way.

Fifteen minutes later found me in Mrs. Reese's office. Noah was sitting at the waiting area. He met me halfway when he saw me. "Hey, there," I said as I sat down in front of him. "What's wrong?" Noah shook his head. "Look, Noah, I'm not going to be mad but I need you to tell me the truth."

"I didn't get in trouble, Daddy, I swear."

"Noah – "

"Mr. Jackson?" I looked up and saw a woman around her late forties standing beside and opened door. "In here, please."

I stood up. "Stay here, okay?" I told Noah.

"Daddy . . ."

"I'll be right back."

I went in. "Please have a set," she said. The name plate on her table identified her as Mrs. Meredith Reese, Principal of Meriwether Preparatory School. "Mr. Jackson," she said. "May I call you Percy?" I nodded and watched her as she sat down behind the desk in front of me.

"I don't mean to be rude, but I have no idea why you called me here."

Mrs. Reese took a deep breath. "Percy, I'm well aware of how young you were when Noah was born. You were seventeen and that stage is the most crucial into self-discovery. Teenagers use those years into finding out who they really are and who they're going to be." She placed her hand on top of her desk, wringing her fingers. "You, however, weren't given the chance to do so. Noah was born and you had to grow up quickly. May I ask how you handled the responsibility?"

"Right after high school, I started working," I answered, wondering where this would go. "All kinds of job – cashier, bagger, waiter – anything to provide for him. I didn't attend college."

Mrs. Reese nodded. "If I may ask, Percy, where is Noah's mother?"

I took some time before answering. "She left on the night Noah was born."

"And your son is a reminder of what you've lost and what she did to you."

I straightened on my chair. "What exactly do you mean by that? Look, can you just get to the point?"

Mrs. Reese leaned forward. "Percy, have you hurt your son?"

I stood up, so suddenly that I knocked my chair back. "What?! Who even gave you the idea that I do?!"

Mrs. Reese stood up and waved to the door. The assistant that I saw earlier went in, with Noah in tow. He looked scared. "Daddy, what's going on?"

The principal went to where he was and sat down in front of him. "Noah, I need you to tell me the truth. Has your Dad hurt you?"

Noah shook his head vigorously. "No. He never hurt me."

"Excuse me," I interjected. "How can you even come up with that?" Mrs. Reese started unbuttoning my sons' shirt. "What are you doing?"

"Answering your question, Mr. Jackson." When it was open, I felt my heart stop. On my son's torso and chest were eclectic patterns of bruises. Some were fresh, while some looked like they were a day old.

I knelt in front of him and held his shoulder. "Noah, who did this to you?"

He shook his head. "No one, Daddy."

"Noah, tell me the truth. Who did this to you?!"

My son started crying. "Daddy, I swear. No one."

I looked at Mrs. Reese. "Why are you tolerating bullies?!" I yelled at her. Noah cringed and stepped away from me, which probably was a sign to the principal, that I was, in fact, hurting my son. "You let this happen under your watch! What kind of principal are you?!" I looked back at my son to make him confess who was bullying him but what I saw made my blood run cold. Thick, crimson liquid was running down my son's chin from his nose. "Noah, what's going on?"

"Daddy?" he asked.

I glanced sideways to Mrs. Reese, her face worried. "What's going on?" I asked her.

"Daddy," Noah called again.

"Percy, I think it's better if you take Noah to the clinic," she suggested.

"Daddy!" Noah yelled. I looked back at him, only to watch his eyes roll back into his head as he lost consciousness.

I paced the waiting room of the hospital nonstop, my heart hammering in my chest. Noah had been in the examination room for almost two hours. Nobody had come out to talk to me and I was going out of my mind with worry.

"Perce!" a voice called. I turned around and saw Reyna running to where I was. I had left a message right after we got in the hospital. Thankfully, she momentarily set aside what was going on between us. I badly needed her.

"Rey," I said as I met her with a hug.

"Has there been any update?" she asked.

"No but – "

"Mr. Jackson?" I looked back and saw the doctor who was attending to Noah stepping out of the examination room. "In my office, please."

Reyna took my hand as we followed him. I didn't even bother sitting down when we got inside. The name on the door read Dr. Mears. "What's going on? Is Noah going to be okay?" I asked impatiently.

Dr. Mears took a deep breath. "Mr. Jackson, based on what your son told me, he has been experiencing fatigue and weakness for almost a week now." My eyes widened. Noah had never told me anything about this. "His nose was bleeding when you brought him here earlier, he also has a fever and bruises all over his body." He rubbed the bridge of his nose as he leaned forward and, in a quiet voice, said, "Together, these are sure symptoms of acute promyelocytic leukemia."

My breath got caught in my throat. Reyna's hand tightened on my arm. "W-what's that?"

Dr. Mears gave me a sad look. "Mr. Jackson, Noah has cancer of the blood and bone marrow."