Friends With Mental Issues (Percy Jackson Fanfiction)

The Les Fous

   In the seven's hang out room, Nico gazed at every one present, something feeling slightly off. First off, Percy wasn't there, and he was normally there pretty early, which always pissed Nico off, but that wasn't the point. And secondly, the six people Nico had come to know as friends seemed to have separated. Leo and Piper, who were normally conjoined at the hip, were at separate sides of the room. Nico could feel a tense atmosphere weighing down on his chest.

   He didn't particularly like feeling suffocated, so Nico stood, walking straight out of the room. No one payed attention to him, and he didn't expect them to. They were too busy with whatever the hell was going on.

   Percy needed to be there to at least lighten the mood, which was normally up to Leo, but nothing seemed to be normal today. Of course, days like this weren't exactly abnormal, but it seemed like ever since Percy's arrival, everyone had gotten used to his bright presence. Now that he wasn't there to do his therapy magic, no one seemed to know how to deal. It was completely and utterly pissing Nico off.

   Nico burst into Percy's room, ready to give him a peace of his mind, but stopped dead in his tracks, mouth hanging open. Percy was standing with his back to the door, his whole body shaking. This instantly activated Nico's motherly instincts. "Percy?"

   He didn't answer.

   "Hey, Percy..!" Nico walked around him so that he was now standing in front of him. Percy's green eyes were cast down to the carpet, stare completely blank, and the shaking of his body was shivering. His clothes were damp. Nico gripped Percy's shoulders, his eyebrows twisting in a rare moment of worry. "Percy, what the hell?!" Again, Percy didn't answer.

   Given the fact that Percy's clothes were damp, and Nico had no idea how long he'd been standing there, he wasted no time on waiting for an answer, instead ripping off what he could of Percy's clothes and shoving him in the bathroom, ordering him to take a shower. Nico was afraid Percy wouldn't listen, but he sighed in relief when he heard the water running.

   Running an exasperated hand through his hair, Nico fell back onto Percy's bed, taking a shaky breath. What the hell was wrong with everyone? 

~

   Inside the shower, Percy was mentaly kicking himself. He let Nico see his worst side, and it was far from pretty. He let the warm water wash over his cold and still shaking body, wondering if there was a way to get out of this. Of course there wasn't, but it wouldn't hurt to try.

   Act natural.

   Percy emerged from the bathroom, a towel wrapped around his waist, not feeling any better, but prepared to act like it. Nico was sitting on the bed, staring intensely at the wall. "Get clothes on, then explain yourself. I'll be waiting." And then Nico stood up, exiting the room.

    The grin that Percy had plastered on his face slipped off. How the hell was he supposed to explain himself? Or rather, how was he supposed to explain himself without seeming like he belonged among the patients, not the therapists?

    Nevertheless, he did as he was told, putting on a set of clean clothes, taking a deep breath, and walking out of his room to face Nico. He was leaning against the wall, his eyes closed. "Nico, I-"

   "Don't waste your breath. I don't want to hear any of that shit saying you're fine because we both know that you aren't. Someone who's fine doesn't stand in wet clothes for God knows how long. So do us both a favor and get straight to the point." Percy's shoulders sagged, but Nico didn't see. In fact, the whole reason he had his eyes closed was because he had no desire to see someone like Percy break down. If anyone were to ask him later, though, he would say that he had his eyes closed because he was an insomniac, and therefore needed rest for his eyes.