A/N: Hi. Thank you guys so much for supporting this story. It's becoming bigger than I thought and I really am loving writing this story. And I really, really appreciate you guys always taking the time of reading and giving me feedbacks on what you think. I want you guys to know that those mean so much to me. So please keep them coming! :D

This chapter isn't much, to be honest. I wrote it because, in my opinion, Percy needs some break from the drama inside. I just thought that an "outside" chapter is in need for him. This chapter is short and kind I'm kind of frustrated with how it turned out, to tell you the truth. And if you guys feel the same was, I won't blame you but please let me know what you think. :D

I don't have much time to write shoutouts so I'm sorry if I won't be doing it in this chapter and I promise you guys I will make up to it next chapter. :D

Song of the chapter: Amen Omen by Ben Harper

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NEVER LET ME GO

Chapter 23: When They Come For Me

PERCY

I got the call early in the morning.

He's gone. After fighting for some time, he just stopped and let oblivion take over him. I'm not sure what to think, actually. I haven't really been into a funeral except that time when I was six when Mom took me to her friend's mother's funeral. I could still remember the feeling of solemnity, of sadness that hang around everyone, like no one was allowed to smile or even be happy. I could recall how everyone talked in hushed voices, like whispers of prayer for the dead.

I killed the engine of my car and stared across the dashboard to the people starting to pour in, all wearing black. I was glad I picked my navy blue shirt, which was almost black. I didn't give much thought on how I should look. I just thought that I had to be here.

I got out of the car and approached the entrance of the chapel. As expected people were huddled together, speaking in soft whispers. Some were looking at me, maybe because I was an unfamiliar face, or maybe because of the clothes I was wearing. I should've listened to Annabeth and worn a suit.

I didn't pay them attention. I just fixed my eyes on the picture of the dead that was propped on a stool. Written below was the name Luke Castellan.

I approached the coffin and took a peek. Luke looked peaceful, like he'd been expecting this to happen - of course after years of battling the disease, he knew this was inevitable, not just for him, but for everyone. "We're meant to die, and that's what makes everything around us matter" wasn't that what I heard from a movie? I guess that was true.

I could see a small smile on his lips as he laid down inside that cold box, lifeless, the dreams and things he could've achieved lay forgotten the life he left behind.

I didn't linger much. I didn't know Luke that well. We just met once and talked for about fifteen minutes, but those fifteen minutes were one of the most remarkable ones I've had. In that one conversation, Luke made me see how difficult I'd been on everyone around me.

I was looking for a seat when I noticed a woman with dark brown hair sitting on the front pew, her eyes trained on the coffin up front. Her eyes were red but she wasn't crying. Beside her sat a boy of about fifteen years of age. I knew who they were instantly and for some time I debated whether I should talk to them, or what. Something made me to, though. I found myself sitting down beside them. Luke's younger brother looked up at me, obviously wondering who I was. His mother, though, showed recognition.

"Percy," she greeted. For a moment I wondered how she knew me. Mrs. Castellan sensed it and answered the question that was in my mind. "I know you from your father. I've met him on one of Luke's chemotherapy session. He spoke about his son and I know it's you." She stared at me. "You look remarkably like him."

"So I've been told," I answered simply, not sure on what to say.

I heard voices around us and Luke's younger brother looked back, so did Mrs. Castellan. "Katie's here, Travis," she said, a small smile touching her lips. Travis rolled his eyes and stood up to talk to the brunette standing at the side.

When he was out of earshot, Mrs. Castellan looked at me. There was something in her eyes - something that said she saw a whole lot more than what naked eyes could see - that made me extremely uncomfortable. Her next words, however, were laced with so much regret and hurt that I could feel it reaching me. "He was in so much pain," she murmured. "So much that I swear the lord of punishment himself visited Luke and inflicted all types of torture on him."

What few words I had left me. I could remember Luke when I had my conversation with him just a few days ago, how he was clearly hurting but was still smiling for the sake of everyone around him. If there was agony enough to make him show it, I wondered, how much was enough? How much was too much?

"He doesn't deserve it, you know?" she said. "I mean I know he was a rebel during his teenage years and caused a lot of trouble but Luke changed; he became so much better. I know people who don't know him thinks he is a bad person, what with all he's done, but what they don't know is that my boy was hurt a lot of times before. By me, by his father. His hard life made him the way he was.

"Luke changed," Mrs. Castellan continued. "Or maybe he didn't because he was a good person deep inside. I don't know what brought him back. Maybe it was when he found out about his condition. Maybe he came back because of us. When he shouldn't have worried about anything else, he was thinking about us."

"He did," I said. I'm not sure what made me. Maybe it's because there was resonance with what she said. Or maybe its because of Luke, who I considered as one of the few people I called friends, was the one who actually knocked some sense into me. "He told me about it the first time we met." Mrs. Castellan stared at me, a small but sad smile painted on her lips. "He said that he couldn't let his sickness take his family from him to." I paused, realizing that I haven't even offered my condolences. "And Mrs. Castellan - "

"Please, Percy, call me May."

"May," I repeated, staring into those eyes, which were the same color as Travis's but so much different from Luke's blue ones. I wanted her to know that I was being sincere with my following words and was not just saying them for the sake of saying. "I'm sorry that Luke is gone. He was a wonderful person."

The smile on her lips widened for a bit. "He is, Percy," said May. "You know if there's another good thing other than bringing my family back together that Luke being sick did, it gave me back my faith."

I nodded to hide the surprise on my face. Religion was the last thing I thought would be discussed on a funeral.

"It's not specific one faith, or religion, Percy," she said, my attempt to conceal m thoughts an apparent failure. "It's just that - faith. Pure and simple. It's just believing that there's a greater power at work here, that Luke passing was just a part of the greater scheme of things. I don't really know why it had to be my son who got sick but I do know this: when people die, they're not really gone; it's only their mortal body that died but Luke - his love, life and memories - will always be alive here," said May, pointing to her heart."

"And to the hearts of those people he's touched around us," I offered."Luke's too young, but I heard that our lives aren't just measured in years; they are measured in the lives he's changed, including mine." The last part was something I saw in a movie and just quoted.

"If that is the case," May began.

"Then Luke is one of the oldest person that has ever lived," I finished for her.

May chuckled. Her smile, though, dropped as soon as it appeared. She reached out and touched my face. It surprised me but I didn't pull away, because it actually felt nice. "You remind me of him, Percy," she said. "You both give comfort where it's badly needed." She paused. "So let me return the favor. I know that coming here was hard for you, what with the things going on around you, but let me tell you this: it's not easy to be on the side of the one watching. It was nearly impossible for me and Travis but Luke - he was the one who gave us peace and comfort until the very last second. He stayed strong for us. Even when the pain crippled him, he smiled for us." May paused again. Honestly, I had no idea where she was going with all these. "I want to spare you from feeling what I will always feel - regret. Regret of not being strong and brave enough to face what was happening. I was running away from it. There's guilt in here, too, because instead of Luke just worrying about his recovery, he looked after us when it was supposed to be the other way around." Her voice quivered. He was the one who made sacrifices for us."

"May," I said. "You don't have to feel that way. If there's one thing I know is that Luke did those things not because he felt obligated to, but because he wanted to."

"I know, Percy. Believe me, I know," she said. "But that was him and this is me talking. This is from the perspective of the outsider and I'm telling you that even when I don't want to feel this way, I know that I always will."

I didn't answer right away. I didn't really get what May was trying to say. What I get was this: I was wrong to think that going here would be a bad thing. When Dad called me to say that I should pay my respect, I was hesitant, mainly because it scared me. Dad managed to talk me into it and right on that second I knew it wasn't a bad thing to be here. I couldn't really explain it but that talk I was having with a woman who just lost her son, I could only describe it as meaningful. I'm not going to try and come up with a reason because the greatest moments can't be explained; they can only be lived.

"I know it's a different situation for you, Percy," May continued. "Your son is only five but I want you to know that it's not easy. You will be furious at the world, you will question everything, but it will just drive the knife deeper. You have to look at it from an outsider's perspective to know what you need to do."

I bit my lip. "Noah's five, May. I can't just accept it. I-I can't just stop and look at it like I understand what's going on."

"Well, that's just it, isn't it? We will never understand, which is why we need to accept it. Acceptance is the first step. That's where it will all start. With acceptance, it will be clearer because your questions that cloud everything, stop. How can you be what Noah needs you to be when you're question everything?" she asked.

I didn't have an answer for that one.

May gave me a motherly smile. "Thank you, Percy. Your presence here made me feel a whole lot better." She paused, taking a deep breath. "It would've been better if Luke's father is here."

"Why, where is he?" I asked.

"Nobody knows; he disappeared two years after Travis was born," she said with a wave of dismissal and I could tell it wasn't something May wanted to talk about.

I nodded and looked up, only to notice a small podium with mic had been set up front. "What's going on?" I asked.

"Eulogy," May answered. She then looked at me expectantly. "Would you like to give one?"

I wanted to shake my head but I couldn't say no to May. "Yeah, sure."

She stood up and took my arm, leading me to where the stand was. She then left me there and sat on the front pew.

I looked around. Most people I recognized from the support group. Some looked like family, and they were all watching me, maybe wondering what a guy in navy blue shirt and worn out jeans and sneakers who didn't even have the respect to wear proper clothes was doing here.

I leaned to the microphone. "Hello," I said stupidly. "Um, I don't really know Luke or anyone here of that matter, but, um," I stammered. I'm not used to speaking; much less in public and I hated it when people stare at me. But when I looked at May, I knew I couldn't just step down and not just finish what I started. "I just met him when my Dad made me visit their support group. We had one conversation, just one, but that was enough for him to change me."

I saw Travis looking at me, his eyes devoid of emotion. Maybe he didn't want a complete stranger giving the very first eulogy for his brother's funeral. "I'm not going to make this long and lengthy, because honestly I don't have that much to say. Let me at least say one thing: Luke wasn't an ordinary person and people like him pass by once in an eternity and I'm thankful that I was given fifteen minutes of his time." I looked around and saw that people were looking at me more intently now. "So today, I guess we can hold the mourning for a few seconds and instead, celebrate the life he led. Let us celebrate the kind of person he was and how much he meant to each and everyone of us. Let us celebrate how this guy made us a better group of people."

May nodded and stood up to meet me when I stepped down the podium. She gave me a hug and whispered, "Thank you so much, Percy. That was beautiful." She then surprised me when she gave me a kiss on the cheek.

"Sure," I answered back, my throat tight. Giving that speech – I don't know, it did something to me. Suddenly this place looked terrifying, like something in my life would lead me to a place like this soon. I shook my head and stared back at May. "Look, I need to go, okay? I'll be back once I get the chance."

She gave me a kind smile and stepped aside. I quickened my steps and found myself leaning against my car. I thought backed about what I did back there. Those words were not enough to ease the pain off of those people who had been left behind by Luke. May acted like it was a huge thing that I did for her, but I guess she was just being nice. How Travis looked at me – that's real. He wasn't happy about my speaking on his brother's funeral. He was a teenager – that was given, but the look he gave me, it made me feel like I had to do something real, the something that actually would mean something.

Suddenly, I knew – I knew what I had to do. I fished out my phone from my pocket and pressed a speed dial. The line rang thrice and then he picked up. "Dad? I need your help."

I stared at the piece of paper on my hand. On it was the address Dad gave me. 7 Maple Street, Hartford, Connecticut.

It appeared that Dad knew where Luke's father had been all along but withheld the information. "Luke knew where he is, Percy, but he didn't want his father to see him that way. He said he wanted his father to always remember him as the boy he knew and left a few years ago" was his explanation when I demanded to know why he never bothered sharing it.

"It would've been better if Luke's father is here," that's what May said and I thought that if there's something that I could do that would actually mean something, this would be it. I stepped out of the car and crossed the street to my destination.

I knocked on the chipped door and waited for almost a full minute before someone answered. He was around the same age as Apollo and had sandy hair. I was taller than him for perhaps an inch. He was in pajamas and I suddenly realized that I woke him up from a midday sleep.

"Hermes Castellan?" I asked, though I was fairly certain I found who I was looking for.

"Who are you?" he demanded. "Do I know you?"

"No, you don't," I answered. "I'm here on behalf of Luke, your son."

He suddenly looked afraid, like the idea of the son he abandoned back then was a ghost who wanted to hunt him. "Why? What's happened?"

I took a deep breath. "I think that maybe you want to say goodbye for the last time."

[Next - Chapter 24: BROKEN ANGEL]