Reyna always regretted drinking too much when she woke the next morning and the hangover hit. She groaned and buried her face in the nearest solid object, which felt like the couch. There was a constant ache in her head. Even her breathing was too loud. It felt like someone filled her head with concrete, and there was no way she could stand.
Someone tapped her shoulder, and Reyna opened one eye. She lifted her head enough to see two pills. Reyna slowly grabbed the medicine and was given a glass of water. She gratefully drank it, took the medicine, and then laid her head back on the couch with a pathetic moan.
"What time is it?" Reyna groaned. It felt like a blanket had been thrown over her in the middle of the night. It had also fallen to the ground sometime after that. A pillow was near her head, and she grabbed it to bury her face in.
"About three in the afternoon," Nico answered. He sat in a chair near her and grabbed his controller. "Do you want to talk about what's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong," Reyna muttered. She buried her head underneath the pillow. Why did she drink so much? The last time she had been hungover was the day after Gwen broke up with her, and she couldn't remember the time before that.
"You only drink that much when you're upset," Nico commented. Even though Reyna couldn't see Nico, she still glared at him. "Are you sure there is nothing wrong? Especially with how you broke down after talking to Hylla."
"I'm fine," Reyna said. She bit back another groan and closed her eyes tightly.
"You're a terrible liar," Nico commented, but he didn't push it. He just fell silent, presumably focusing on his game. "I'm going to ban you from playing this when you're drunk. You lost all my souls."
Reyna moved the pillow enough to see Nico's character rolling away from an attack. It seemed like he was in a different area than before. Reyna spoke, "You're welcome."
"I am not thanking you for losing all my souls, even if you did kill three bosses. You didn't even level up," Nico complained. Reyna rolled her eyes, but a smile came to her face. "I have some leftover food for you in the microwave."
Reyna threw the pillow aside and slowly sat up. She rolled off the couch and slowly made it to her feet. Reyna stepped into the kitchen and opened the microwave. She grabbed the slices of pizza and walked back towards the couch. She collapsed onto it and watched Nico play his game.
The two of them had been roommates ever since Nico graduated high school. While both of them could more than afford to live on their own, they both had reasons for not wanting to. Nico spent most of his life alone, and he didn't want that anymore. Reyna just wanted to keep her best friend close.
"Did I do anything dumb last night?" Reyna questioned. She focused on the water and groaned. Reyna hated herself for getting drunk. Why did she do this?
"You flirted with Gwen," Nico said. Reyna found it hard to swallow, and the pizza didn't taste so good anymore. She lowered the plate and stared at the ground. Gwen and her had ended on an odd note. When they broke up, Gwen gave her some kind of bullshit excuse that it wasn't Reyna. It was all Gwen's fault.
Reyna knew better though. She remembered all the times that they would be laying together, and Gwen would ask all kinds of questions about Reyna's past. Reyna just couldn't bring herself to answer them. She didn't really tell Gwen how she was feeling and didn't go beyond the usual answer of being fine. It obviously ate away at Gwen.
Gwen should have known better anyway. She was there when Reyna had been dating Thalia Grace. A sigh left Reyna as she thought about Thalia. The two of them had been great together, but there was just one thing that Thalia wanted that Reyna couldn't do.
"I dodged that!" Nico complained. Reyna glanced up to watch Nico's character collapse, and a death screen appeared. Nico glared and sat forward. He gripped the controller.
"How bad was I flirting?" Reyna asked quietly. Nico glanced at her.
"Just a few things. It's not like you slept with her or anything," Nico commented. He looked back at the screen. "Speaking of sleeping with someone, I have a date tomorrow night."
"With the hot fireman?" Reyna asked. The blush on Nico's face caused a smirk to come to Reyna's lips. "I was eyeing him as well. I'm sure you'll be doing a lot more than eyeing though."
"Shut up. Or, I will blast the menu music at full volume," Nico threatened. Reyna kept her smirk but quickly dropped the subject. She focused on eating once again. "You're lucky Lupa gave us the day off."
"I'm still going to stop by the gym. There's nothing else to do today," Reyna said. She finished eating and stood. "I'll probably get groceries on the way home. Need anything?"
"I already added it to the list," Nico said. Reyna nodded and grabbed her wallet and keys. "Reyna, if you need to talk, I'm here."
"I know," Reyna said. She looked at Nico. Then, her eyes moved to the ground. "Hylla gave me an ultimatum. Again. She just wants me out of her life."
"Reyna, I'm sorry," Nico said. He placed down his controller.
"It's fine," Reyna muttered. She swallowed painfully and grabbed the grocery list. Reyna put the items by her jacket. "I think I'll take a shower first."
Nico looked like he wanted to stop her, but he just nodded. Reyna turned and walked towards her room. She did her best to hold back her tears. Reyna didn't know why it was so hard to talk to Nico about her sister. There was only one person that it was easy to talk to.
Reyna shook her head and grabbed a fresh set of clothes. She would just get her sadness and anger out at the gym. That would calm her down. Reyna took a deep breath. Going to the gym would allow her to think, and hopefully, everything with her sister would work out.
Reyna stared down at her gloves as she walked out of the locker room. She would spend about an hour with the punching bag before finishing with weights. Lupa still wanted her to do the same exercises as Annabeth, which was going through the fundamentals again and again. Reyna understood why, but she hated doing it.
Spending all that time injured ate away at her. Reyna wasn't able to calm herself down by sparring and fighting. She was forced to sit on the sidelines and rehab. When she didn't make any progress, it angered her more and more.
Reyna fixed her gloves and looked up. She stopped walking and stared at the other person in the gym. Lupa looked at her and spoke, "Are you ready to spar?"
"Spar?" Reyna repeated. She slowly moved towards the ring. Before Reyna's injury, she would spar with Lupa almost every Friday. The exception would be on the weekends that any of them had a fight, or if Reyna was injured. She didn't think they would resume sparring so quickly.
"If you're up for it," Lupa said. Reyna smiled and moved towards the ring. She rolled inside and stood in one swift movement. Lupa smiled and fixed her own gloves. The two of them didn't wear any additional protective gear when they sparred. They trusted each other enough to know there wouldn't be any serious injuries or permanent damage.
"Always," Reyna said, and she got into her fighting stance. Lupa folded her arms behind her back and studied Reyna. The former champion always started her fights that way. She waited for her opponent to make a move.
Numerous techniques had been used to start fights. The first dozen times Reyna came in swinging. Lupa had dodged every punch, and usually, Reyna got socked in the mouth for her efforts. Reyna then tried to go at Lupa's legs and take her down. Lupa dodged the first few times, until one day she decided to snatch Reyna out of the air and throw her across the ring.
That was the day Reyna realized how strong Lupa was. And also how fast she was when she mounted Reyna before Reyna had even managed to sit up. Reyna still didn't know why Lupa quit fighting. The woman was towards the end of her prime, but she was still an amazing fighter.
Reyna was never patient enough to wait for Lupa to make the first move, and today was no different. She slowly moved closer and threw out a punch. Lupa dodged it by going underneath. Reyna had no way to defend herself as Lupa picked her up off of the ground and slammed her down.
Lupa mounted Reyna and threw a punch. Reyna caught it with her elbow and threw a punch at Lupa's jaw. Her opponent jerked her head backward to stop it. Reyna brought her elbow back and hit Lupa in the jaw.
Reyna shoved Lupa off of her and rolled backward. She made it back to her feet. Lupa was a master of wrestling people to the mat and mounting them. Then, she would punch them until the referee pulled her away or her opponent gave up. The only way to survive was not to let Lupa get her punches in.
Lupa threw a punch, and Reyna dodged. The two fell into their usual pattern of attacking and dodging. As they sparred, Lupa spoke, "You've been off these last few days."
"Hylla called me at the press conference," Reyna muttered. She backed away and lowered her fists. Lupa stepped away as well. Reyna shook her head and got back into a fighting stance. Lupa did as well, and the two of them went back to punching and dodging.
After a minute of back and forth fighting, Lupa spoke again, "What did she say?"
"She told me that she was dating a woman and had been for the last three years. She finally broke the news about it when she called. Now, she wants me to meet the woman," Reyna muttered. She caught Lupa's punch and wrestled her to the ground. The two fought for a position of power before Reyna gave up and pulled away. She made it back to her feet.
"That doesn't seem like something that would make you that angry," Lupa commented. She backed away enough to give Reyna time to breathe, which was a good thing. Reyna felt fatigued already. She would need to spar a lot more before her next fight and get used to the high-intensity fighting style, especially if she was going to fight Clarisse again.
"Hylla said that if I don't show up to dinner, she'll know how I feel about her. She won't bother me again. Hylla is going to abandon me just like she did years ago," Reyna muttered. She shook her head and moved closer. Reyna threw a fast and brutal punch that caught Lupa in the jaw. Before she could follow up, her legs were kicked out from underneath her.
Reyna hit the ground and jumped to her feet. She kicked Lupa in the gut, and when the woman doubled over, Reyna brought her knee upwards to hit Lupa in the jaw. She blocked her strike with her hand and backed away.
"Point one goes to you," Lupa commented. She backed away and took a few moments to calm her breathing. Reyna did the same. "How is the elbow?"
"It doesn't hurt," Reyna answered. She resumed her fighting stance. Lupa did as well.
"Have you made an effort to get close to your sister again?" Lupa questioned. Reyna moved to the right and Lupa moved to the left. They circled each other.
"I've tried, but I can't let her in. She kicked me out of her life once before, and I know she'll do it again," Reyna answered. She gritted her teeth and shook her head.
"It sounds like she wants to let you in," Lupa said. "I know how much it hurts you that she kicked you out before. Did you ever ask her why?"
"She was angry," Reyna muttered. She threw a punch that matched the boiling of anger in her chest. Lupa caught her hand and dragged Reyna to the ground and into an armbar. Reyna felt panic in her chest, and Lupa quickly let go. Reyna scrambled away.
"Round two goes to me," Lupa said. Reyna didn't get up at first. She just stared. "Your first few opponents will go after your elbow. You must decide how much you will let it bother you."
Reyna nodded and made it to her feet. Lupa continued, "There must be a deeper reason behind Hylla kicking you out that day. What caused all that anger?"
"We were arguing," Reyna muttered. She shook her head. "I don't even remember what it was about. That's how dumb it was, but she still kicked me out of the house. If she was going to kick me out for something that petty, my days were numbered."
"You've never talked to Hylla about this," Lupa stated. Reyna looked down. "Or anyone."
"There's nothing to talk about. Hylla did that to herself. She turned her back on me, so why should I support her? Why should I let her in, just so she can do that again?" Reyna asked.
"Life is like fights," Lupa said. She moved closer to Reyna. It took a moment for Reyna to bring her fists up and prepare for round three. "You may think that you know someone, that you have studied them and know everything they will try. But, there is always a chance that they will surprise you."
Lupa's fist connected with Reyna's mouth a moment later. Reyna fell backward and felt two knees slam into her stomach. The wind was driven out of her, and Lupa placed her fist to Reyna's temple.
"You never know how Hylla will act until you speak with her," Lupa said. She stood and offered Reyna her hand. Reyna slowly grabbed her hand and was pulled to her feet. She doubled over immediately and tried to catch her breath. "We should call it here."
"Thank you," Reyna said. She took a few moments to stand up straight and look at Lupa. "Do you think it is a good idea to meet Hylla at dinner?"
"I know you are scared of getting hurt again, but you must ask yourself this: Would it hurt more to lose Hylla because you saw her at dinner and things went wrong, or would it hurt more to have never tried in the first place?" Lupa asked. Reyna didn't answer. "Enjoy the rest of your weekend. I'll see you Monday."
Reyna nodded and pulled off her gloves. She stepped out of the ring and moved towards the locker room. Reyna walked towards her locker and grabbed her phone. She stared at it and slowly sat down. Sparring always helped clear her head, and Lupa was always able to help her.
Reyna took a deep breath as she made up her mind. She flipped open her phone and typed in her sister's number. Upon getting Hylla's voicemail, Reyna's nerves almost got the better of her, and she wanted to hang up. Instead, she took a deep breath and spoke, "Hylla, I'll be there at dinner. Just text me the time and address. I lo... will see you then."