DIVINE » l. valdez

reunions

sorry for herself, feeling stupid, feeling small

In an instant, all the confidence and happiness Hina had built during her adventure with Apollo was stripped back to its pieces. The emptiness that had consumed her for six months rushed back, encasing her in a world of darkness.

Hina released Harley's hand, her arms wrapping themselves her torso. 

Nerves chipped away at her, leaving her body shaking despite the heavy coat she wore. While Hina Ito was not good at many things, the one thing she excelled at was avoiding her problems and yet, there she stood unable to run from the confrontation brewing. 

Neither moved, the distance between them growing by the second. 

So caught up in her mind, Hina didn't notice Apollo guiding Harley away, the two discussing the logistics of the combat ukulele.

Despite the life breathed into the camp, it seemed like Hina and Leo had stepped into a bubble of silence, the world around them fading away.

As much as she wanted to scream and throw things, she felt numb. Her hands fell limply to her sides, the words she had been planning for months disappearing from her lips.

"Ina," Leo spoke, the single word carrying a lifetime of pain. 

"I mourned for you," she choked out in disbelief. 

Leo took the first step, his eyes never leaving her face as if to make sure she didn't disappear. 

"I thought you were gone, Ina. When you-" he paused, his eyes squeezing shut like he was willing the image away. "When you jumped, I kept waiting to see that bright light, to know you were okay, but it never came. After, Gaea felt lighter, she stopped fighting as much. Ina, I thought you died."

His words hit Hina, the weight crushing down on her heart. Tears welled in her eyes, causing Hina to finally look away from Leo.

Her hands clenched, crumpling the paper ticket in her hand. Just like that, Hina felt like she was back on the Argo II after the House of Hades, except this time, Leo had nothing to return but her broken heart. 

Hina's lip trembled and she cursed herself for her inability to keep her emotions guarded. For six months Hina had been a shell of herself, seeing the cruelty of both life and death first hand, and yet Leo seemed to have no problem moving on with his life, without her. 

"I did and I wish it stayed that way. I should've gone to the Lethe and forget about all of this because apparently you did."

"Ina, please. We can fix this-"

"There is no 'we', Leo. Just face it, this time, it's over. This isn't some broken machine, you can't fix this." Hina gestured between them, pushing him away as he stepped closer. 

She turned to leave, dropping the ticket as she wiped away her stray tears with her sleeve. She ignored his calls after her as she quickened her pace. 

Hina was done. 

Of course, the universe had other plans for her. 

Around lunch Percy had found Hina hiding out on the back steps of the Apollo cabin, throwing rocks into the dirt. He slid onto the wooden step beside Hina, resting his arms on his knees.

"Tough day?" he asked.

Hina let out a bitter laugh. "You could say that." She continued to pelt the ground with stones.

"It's not your fault, you know." At her silence, Percy clarified, "Calypso. Her curse practically makes anyone sent to that island to fall for her. It happened to me once too."