19

827 32 79
                                    

life is short. it doesn't really seem that way when we're living, but it is. seconds turn to hours, hours turn to days, and days add up to years. before you know it, your body and mind are crumbling as you desperately latch on to the little life you have.

losing someone you love puts a lot of things in perspective. the reality of death, for one. no one holds the promise of tomorrow. you'd think that with my mom dying, i'd cling a little tighter to the friends i have but i couldn't. i distanced myself, slowly, as the days went by.

i stayed in my room, throwing myself into my work and only leaving when i knew no one was waiting for me outside. i hardly ate anything because i couldn't stomach anything other than occasional sips of water. nick was constantly trying to get me to come out but i couldn't do it. i couldn't bring myself to pretend everything was okay. i couldn't go out there and hang out with them without thinking that one of them could be gone next and i'd be left miserable once again.

it took me over a week before i was able to be with my friends again. i was thalia monroe, daughter of one of the strongest men to walk the earth. i didn't crumble when life tried to pull me down.

as i exitedmy room for the first time in nine days, i immediately ran into nick. "thalia?" he asked. he blinked his eyes a few times as if he thought he had vision problems.

"yes doofus, it's me."

"oh my god, thalia." he enveloped me in a hug and i had to clench my teeth to keep from crying. "i've missed you so much."

"i know," i said softly. "i'm sorry, i just needed time. i don't even know why i got so upset. i've not seen or talked to my mom in three or four years."

nick pulled back to look me in the eyes. "thalia, you don't have to make excuses for being sad. you may not have been close with your mom, but i know you loved her. and losing her is going to hurt. i just don't want you to bear it all by yourself."

"i'm okay now," i assured him. "i just needed my time to grieve. i got so scared to be with you guys because i couldn't stop thinking about losing you, but i cannot push you guys away and spend my life scared of death. it goes against everything i've ever believed."

nick smiled at me. "you're right. i just wish you had come to the conclusion sooner. we've all been so worried about you."

i gave him a soft smile back and pulled him down the hall to dream's room. when i opened the door (without knocking first) dream immediately jumped to his feet and hugged me tightly. my head fell against his chest, and i breathed in his familiar scent.

"thalia, you had us so worried," he murmured against my head. "are you okay?"

"i'm in desperate need of time with my best friends," i admitted before pulling back. "can we have a movie night?"

"of course," they said in unison.

"what do you want to watch?" dream asked.

"i don't care. but can we stay in here please?" something about dream's room always comforted me. i don't know if it was the way it was messy in an organized way, or if it was because his was a musician's room and music was an escape. whatever it was, i always felt calm being in there.

"of course," he said.

"i think we should have a marathon of our favorite disney movies," nick suggested. "first up is zootopia because thalia loves it and nick is amazing."

"you're just saying that because you guys have the same name," i teased. as we all squeezed on the bed together, i felt a weight come off my shoulders. things felt normal again, and i was glad for it. it had just taken a little bit of time.

"it's also just a really good movie," dream threw in. he turned off the lights and laid down on the bed beside me. we were props up by the dozen pillows dream had on his bed. as the movie started, i relaxed against the two people i loved more than anything else and let myself feel better.

we stayed in dream's bed for hours, watching movie after movie until i felt my eyelids grow heavy. i hadn't slept in days. like the drama queen i am, i refused to do anything but lay in bed and be depressed. i mean, i kinda had a good reason, but it wasn't like me to just quit so easily. i was almost ashamed of myself.

"guys, i've got so much work to do. the gala is in four days and i've barely done anything about it," i said suddenly. the beginning of panic was starting to set in. i was nothing short of a perfectionist and i should have planned out every detail long ago.

"how can we help?" nick asked immediately. he paused the movie and both of them turned their full attention on me.

i sighed and rubbed my head with my hands. "i've got to check on decorations, see who all has rsvp'ed, talk to the person who owns the venue, make sure the catering is all set up. oh crap. the catering. julian. i've not talked to him in so long." i felt a little guilty about somewhat ghosting him. he was understanding, so i wasn't too worried about him being upset with me, but i felt like i maybe should have talked to him. he was my boyfriend after all.

"do you need to call him or something?" dream asked.

"i can later. right now, i've got work to do," i said dismissively. julian could wait. "also where's karl?"

"oh he had to go back home to do a video with jimmy, but he's coming back down for your gala," nick explained. "he also stole percy for the video, but he said you had given him permission."

"yeah i did. and goo, i need my comfort streamer back around," i said with a small smile.

"hey! i thought i was your comfort streamer," nick said. he pretended to be mad but i could tell he wasn't.

"i could be her comfort streamer if i ever actually streamed," dream added.

"you two are my comfort people, if that makes you feel better," i told them.

they both smiled at that. "alright, thalia, how can we help?" nick asked, suddenly serious.

"let's start with the venue."

word count: 1104

𝑻𝐇𝐄 𝑵𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐒━━ 𝘴𝘢𝘱𝘯𝘢𝘱Where stories live. Discover now