Disclaimer: I only own the plot and my OCs. Anything you recognize as not mine belongs to Rick Riordan, Greco-Roman mythology, and/or their otherwise respective owners.
Author's Notes: Hi, everyone! Hope you all are doing well. My writing schedule's recovery is going slow, but I got 3/4 of what I needed to get done this week finished, so I'm counting that as a win.
As always, I hope you enjoy, and until next week,
~TGWSI/Selene Borealis
~The Finding Home Saga~
~Finding Home~
~Chapter 49: My Perfect Second First Date~
The Friday after that one, when I got home from school, the first thing I did was throw my bag on my bed before I shucked off my socks, since my shoes had already been discarded near the front door, and went into my private bathroom – something I still couldn't believe I had in this apartment – to take a shower. The water rejuvenated me as I washed off all of the grime from the day, paying special attention to my hair. It was always messy and a bitch to style, which I didn't really care about attempting to do anyways, but I wanted to make sure that it was fluffy and soft like it always was when it was cleaned properly.
When I was done, I changed back into my school clothes, even though that was kind of counterproductive, and settled on my bed to work on my homework. That was how my mom found me when she got home from her job at around five, one of my notebooks in my lap and a textbook opened up in front of me. "You're doing homework?" she asked me. "Already?"
"What?" I complained. "I don't have that much to do this weekend." And that was true, I didn't. "I figured I might as well get most of it out of the way now instead of later. Am I not allowed to be responsible?"
"No, I didn't say that," she said, but a pensive expression did come over her face. "Are you going over to Silena's or Callie's tonight?"
Ever since we had gotten back from camp, I had made a promise to myself to spend time with them (outside of school, in Callie's case) together. So far, we'd even managed one afternoon with all three of us at Silena's house.
...Which, can I just say, wow. I'd known beforehand that her dad was rich, given that he was a famous painter, and of course I'd visited her at her house before, but I was always taken aback whenever I went to the mansion she and her dad lived in, and only them. Five bedrooms, six bathrooms, two two-car garages, and all in the Tudor style.
But, anyways, I digress.
"Mom."
"Alright, I'm sorry for doubting you." She raised her hands in surrender. "What do you want to do for dinner tonight?"
...About that.
"I think I ate too much for my afternoon snack," I said. "I'm not actually that hungry."
My mom frowned. "Really? Because you know I'm going to my class later tonight. If you get hungry then, I won't be able to make you anything."
"I'm sixteen, Mom," I pointed out. "I can fend for myself."
"I suppose that's true," she sighed in response. She walked over to me to cup my face in her hands and look me in the eyes properly, her ocean blue meeting my sea green. "Where did the time go, Percy? I swear, it was just the other day you were a seven-year-old and I was having to chase after you in Grand Central Station..."
I gave her a smile, albeit a slightly strained one. Those times weren't exactly happy to remember for either of us, even if there had been happy moments, but...the older I was getting, the more difficult it was becoming for me.
"I'm still your kid," I told her, regardless of how I didn't feel too much like a "kid" anymore.
"You're my baby," she corrected me. She pressed a kiss to my forehead. "You'll always be my baby."
I kept my mom company as she made herself and then ate dinner, talking about my day and listening to her talk about hers. At six-thirty, it was time for her to go off for her class. She rubbed my arm while I worked on cleaning out the pot she'd made her Mac and cheese in. "If you get hungry and decide you want to order out, I'm putting money on the counter," she told me.
"You don't need to do that. There's stuff here I can eat."
"Just in case," she reiterated. "I'll see you when I come back home."
"Alright."
I waited ten minutes after she'd left, just to make sure she didn't come back because she'd forgotten something and to finish up my washing of the dishes. Once it was twenty 'till to the dot, I went back to my room and opened up my closet.
The Oceanid scarf made a reappearance tonight as I put on a dark blue sweater over a white shirt and darker washed jeans. I used a comb to brush my hair as I looked at myself in my bathroom mirror, again not trying to style it, just trying to make sure it sat right. I gave myself a once-over once I was done, and decided that I'd done a pretty good job. I was no Silena or one of her half-siblings, but I was pretty good at my own sense of style.
Not a moment sooner, the sound of somebody knocking at our door pricked my ears. Faint, from where I was in the apartment, but discernible.
Luke grinned at me as I opened the door. "Percy," he went. "Hello."
"Hey," I returned.
"Are you ready?"
I shut the door behind me. "Just let me lock this, then I will be."
He pulled my hand into his as we walked down the hallway, heading for the elevator. To my relief, nobody was around to see us. I wouldn't have really cared if most of them had, but there was this one gossiping lady on our floor that my mom had gotten friendly with, and I really didn't need her to become privy to my love life. "So, where are we going?"
"I told you it was going to be a surprise."
"Yeah, but I thought you would've given me at least some sort of hint by now."
"You'll like it, that's my hint."
"That is not a hint, Luke."
I wasn't all that surprised when I found out there was a car waiting for us a couple blocks away, all sleek and black and with the windows tinted. Nor was I that surprised when, after the two of us got into the back, a familiar face turned around to smirk at us. I was a little, but not too much.
"Alright, you two crazy lovebirds," Mia Argent said. "You ready to be driven to your destination?"
Luke sighed. "Mia."
"I'm not going to apologize for that. With what the two of you have decided to do, you definitely are insane." Her icy blue eyes softened as she focused on me. "It is nice to meet you properly now and without the backdrop of that quest, Percy."
"Uh...thanks. I guess it's nice to meet you, too."
Luke tensed next to me at my phrasing, but Mia wasn't bothered by it. "I probably deserve that," she quipped. "I did pull out a chunk of your friend's hair. How's she liking her new haircut, by the way?"
"She's ready for it to grow out."
Mia laughed, and I couldn't help but notice her laugh was like wind chimes. "I bet."
"Sorry," Luke mouthed to me as she turned back around and began to drive us off.
"It's fine," I reassured him back.
I started having my suspicions of where he could've possibly been taking me when Mia pulled onto Park Avenue, and those suspicions increased as we entered one of the skyscrapers after Mia had dropped us off there. The button he pressed in the elevator was only confirmation, what with how the various businesses in the building were listed on a guide on the wall, and it made me groan. "Luke."
"What?"
"You're taking me here?"
"I thought you'd like it."
"It's a Michelin!"
"So?"
"It's expensive!"
He'd already gotten me my pendant, and then my shield. Now he was doing this?
Luke grinned crookedly. "I've always wanted to go to a Michelin," he said. "I learned about them when I was on the run, when I was on my own. I thought it'd be hilarious for a runaway kid like me to be eating with all of the snobby rich people. Now, I'm getting to live out that dream with you. Besides," here, he nudged my shoulder, "it's a Scandinavian restaurant. You told me last summer how much you were wanting to get to know the culture your grandmother came from. It's not much, but it's a start."
I paused. "You remembered that my grandma was from Iceland?"
He gave me a look. "Of course I did. You told me it."
My initial panic was somewhat soothed. I could tell he was being honest with how this was a childhood goal of his, and he hadn't just chosen any Michelin restaurant in the city. He'd chosen this one for me.
"Hello," the hostess of the restaurant greeted us minutes later. She eyed us with scrutiny – we weren't exactly the typical kind of people that came to this kind of restaurant. She probably thought we were dumb teenagers or some stupid shit like that. "I'm sorry, but if you are looking to dine here tonight, I must inform you that you will not be able to do so without a – "
"I have a reservation," Luke cut over her.
"Oh, I'm sorry." Abashed, she looked down at her list. "Name?"
"Castello, party of two."
"Ah, there you are." She picked up two menus from behind her and stepped away from her station. "Right this way."
I almost started protesting all over again as she led us over to a table right next to the ceiling-to-floor length windows, because Luke had definitely done something to get us this kind of spot on such short notice. I didn't know what, but he'd done something.
I kept my mouth shut, however, until the hostess walked away, promising our server would be with us in a moment.
"Luke," I hissed. "Seriously, this is too much."
He let his menu fall back onto the table. "Do you want to go somewhere else?"
He'd do it, if I asked. I knew he would.
My stomach churned with guilt. "No, it's fine," I said, picking up my own menu. "Just...hold off on the elaborate gifts and dates for a while after this, okay?"
His responding beam nearly took my breath away. "Promise."
Our waitress came to get our drinks. I ordered a water with lemon, Luke a sparkling water; we turned down the sparkling wine. "What?" I teased as she went off to collect them. "You're not going to get any alcohol?"
"I'm eighteen, not twenty-one. And I didn't think you liked alcohol."
"I don't like beer, or the hard liquors," I told him. "Everything else is okay."
In retrospect, I probably shouldn't have told him that. He was a child of Hermes, after all, and the smirk he gave me was the exact same one as Mia's. "Noted."
It was hard for me to make up my mind as to what to get before the waitress came back. There were multiple options to get for each course, and most of the first two involved fish. I wasn't sure if I was in the mood to eat the flesh of an animal I could've communicated with tonight.
"What would you like tonight?" the waitress asked us breathily.
Luke and I locked eyes.
You go first, I conveyed to him.
He ordered the mushroom soup for his first course, followed by the short rib, followed by artisanal cheeses – he didn't have the biggest sweet tooth in the world.
Then it was my turn.
"And for you, sir?"
"I'll also have the mushroom soup." My face was flaming as I spoke. "Uh, with the Swedish meatballs and the princess cake."
"Alright," she agreed. She finished writing down my order and took our menus. "Your first course will be out shortly."
"First course."
It was a good thing that my mom had two classes back-to-back on Friday night this semester, I couldn't help but think. We were going to be here a while.
Without a menu to look at, I propped my cheek on my hand and stared at Luke, taking in his features. It made him a little befuddled. "What?"
"Nothing," I said. We'd already talked about how our days had gone while waiting for our drinks and to get our orders taken. "I'm just admiring the view."
His cheeks dusted with pink. "Is it a good one?"
"The best."
That just made him go red outright.
I was immensely proud of myself for it.
People stared at us as we sat there, talking, laughing quietly. Again, it was so obvious we weren't like them. The other customers were, for the most part, rich; it was obvious in their clothes, in how they acted. And even including the ones that weren't that much wealthy, they were all older people, like early thirties at the best. We stuck out like sore thumbs.
After a while, the waitress came back with our bowls of soup. The portions were smaller than they'd be at less fancy restaurants, but I knew that didn't mean anything. The food was designed to be filling.
Our first course was really good; I didn't think I'd had anything like it before. The soup had a creamy, rich base with sourdough croutons. We ate slowly, savoring the taste.
Just as soon as we'd finished off our soups, the second course was out. The dishes were a little bit larger than the size of the first course, and the smell of them was heavenly.
"Μὰ θεούς," I groaned upon my first bite. "This is...fucking good. How is this so good?"
I'd never really eaten anything Scandinavian before. I mean, sometimes as a kid, when my mom had had enough money (which had only happened a couple of times a year, that went without saying), she'd taken me to an international grocery store or a Whole Foods to buy some Scandinavian products: skyr, licorice, gjetost cheese to go with crackers, and etcetera. We'd never been able to buy enough food even out of the usual grocery bill to make a genuine Icelandic recipe, since most stores didn't really carry much stuff from there due to the country's size. And even if we'd been able to, my mom's parents had died when she was five. That was too young for her mother to have passed down any recipes.
So to be able to eat something that had been prepared with similar ingredients my amma would've used when she'd been cooking for my mom, and something that had been prepared by someone who knew like the back of their hand how to make it...it was nirvana.
Luke had said something while I'd been lost in my marveling, but I didn't know what it was. I swallowed down my food so I could talk to him again. "Thank you," I told him earnestly. "So much. For taking me here, and overall just being you."
"Thank you for being you, too," he quipped back to me. "And you're welcome." Then he speared a piece of meat and a couple of the thin-sliced potatoes that had come with his short ribs on his fork and held the end of it out to me. "This is good, too. Do you want to try?"
I let him put the fork into my mouth. The meat practically melted there, it was so tender, and the potatoes were simple but delicious. "Damn," I remarked. I looked down at my plate; since he'd given me a taste of his, it was only fair that I do the same. "Do you want to – ?"
In the blink of an eye, he'd halved one of my meatballs with his fork and popped one of the halves in his mouth. "That is good," he said.
I had to hide my laugh. "Luke."
I didn't want us to get in trouble.
By the time the third course came out, I was well on my way to being full. The princess cake – a Swedish dessert consisting of marzipan, raspberry jam, and whipped cream – was decadent, and just to my tastes.
Luke took care of the bill when the waitress came around with it and to collect our plates. Without even looking inside, he opened up his wallet and picked out a shiny gold credit card and put it in the bill presenter. The waitress went off to ring it up.
It bothered me more than I would've cared to admit. "You didn't even look at the bill?"
"It's covered," he responded calmly. "Don't worry about it."
"Not worrying" about money wasn't really something that was in my abilities.
But, I realized he'd probably gotten the card as a result of magic or some other aspect of the demigodly world. Probably.
It wouldn't be fair for me to be angry at him because of it when I also used money procured by magic during my quests.
The entire dinner had taken us two and a half hours, meaning it was shortly after ten. I had about an hour to get home before my mom did, and then change into my pajamas, brush my teeth, and get into bed. No rush, I thought.
I slipped my hand into Luke's as we walked out the building. "Thank you," I said. "Again."
"This was a good second first date?" he asked.
"Perfect, just like the first one," I answered. We stopped walking just outside the building so he could look out at the street, presumably to look for the car his sister was driving. People walked past us, not paying attention to us. I wasn't exactly the biggest fan of PDA, but I took this to my advantage. I pulled Luke down to give him a short kiss – chaste, sweet. "I love you."
He chuckled. "I love you, too."
The sound of a car horn honking startled the both of us.
"Get in, losers," Mia called out through the front passenger door window, which she had rolled down. "Stop causing a scene on a public sidewalk!"
Luke huffed. "Fuck off, Mia."
"Can't. I got to get him back to his place first," she retorted smoothly.
The drive back to my mom's apartment took thirty minutes – a miracle in New York traffic, all things considered, but I figured it was a quirk to the children of Hermes. Following a quick make-out session, I rested my head on Luke's shoulder. "I don't want you to go."
"I know." I felt him lean his head against mine. "I don't want to, either."
This was the choice we'd made. We had to deal with it.
I nuzzled against him some. "When do you think you'll be able to visit again?"
"Probably not until the week after next. I'll let you know a few days in advance. Make sure to check the books on your desk for bookmarks."
I scoffed. "You make it sound like we're in a spy romance movie or something."
Mia dropped me off in front of the apartment building. I kissed Luke again, straddling his waist briefly on my way out of the car. It got the reaction I wanted, as he let out a groan. "'Night, Luke."
He kind of looked like he was at a point beyond words, but he nodded dazedly. "Goodnight, Percy."
Back up in the apartment, I hurriedly changed out of my clothes and put them in the bottom of my hamper so that my mom wouldn't see them, before I did the rest of my night routine. I settled into my bed, pulled up the covers around me, and closed my eyes.
I wasn't asleep fifteen minutes later, give or take, when I heard my bedroom door be opened. I heard my mom's breathing patterns as she observed me, and her bid me goodnight as well quietly, before she closed the door, leaving her none the wiser as to what I had done or where I had been.
Word Count: 3,356
Next Chapter Title: Does Your Best Friend Know
