Drowning in the Siren's Song

Chapter 52

He had expected it, but the level of awkwardness was overwhelming. It was almost comical. Him sitting in between a semicircle of Jason, Reyna and Rey, with Keria on his head. All stares and no words. 

"Haa..." He sighed. He could feel a steady stream of laughter from Keria's mind as her nails dug into his hair and resisted the urge to smack her away. It would be no use. She'll return anyways or cackle from further away. 

"What going on?" Jason asked, gradually becoming suspicious. It was common for them to approach Percy first, so having him specifically ask them to come together was baffling on several levels. 

Reyna nodded, having deduced enough of Percy to find the situation confusing. She would never hang out with Jason and Rey by choice but since it was Percy making the specific request, she had obliged. But oh boy, she really wanted to smack them all and run away. 

Rey, meanwhile, was having the time of his life. Percy had given him some leftover bones to chew and he was completely immersed in licking the streaks of tendons and meat off of them them. He couldn't care less about the atmosphere. 

"Percy?" Jason prompted, leaning forward. Percy jerked in place, squirming quietly. His hands were uncontrollable, fidgeting with the ring on his finger. Its blue stone gleamed brightly, completely in contrast to the mood.

"Ah... you see..." He trailed off, avoiding his eyes. It was a surprisingly cute scene to see. The usual confident and calm Percy was shifting and fidgeting in place, hesitating. Moreover, his hair was messy and his clothes were haphazard.

Jason calmed down. After watching him, the doubts in his mind hadn't faded, but his head had cleared. There was obviously something unusual going on, but at least it wasn't dangerous. 

How did he know?
It was obvious- If it were a truly dangerous situation, then Percy wouldn't have been so anxious.

But it was still off-putting. What was it that was making his steady eyes waver? Though he was calm, the answer he received still shook him to the bones.

"I'm... leaving."

Jason froze in place though he wasn't moving. Loud silence filled their ears. His words seemed to echo. For a moment, he felt numb. It was so shocking it seemed obvious. 

But not to all. Within a flash Reyna was up on her feet, glaring sharpy down at Percy. She hugged herself, clenching her own arms as of she was preventing her feeling from leaking out. Her mouth was open, as if wanting to speak, but she couldn't. She stormed away without a word, disappearing within the woods.

No one tried to stop her. No one could. Jason subconsciously lifted an arm to reach out but chose not to catch her. She needed time and so did he. There was a bomb to process.

Of course someone like Percy wasn't going to stay there forever and go to Camp Jupiter with them. There was literally nothing tying him there. He had nothing holding him back. He didn't have anything left to learn nor a mission he had to finish. 

Then the feeling of betrayal hit. Suddenly, he felt like a stranger. Did he really know of Percy's circumstances?
He laughed to himself. It was a bitter sound, filled with sadness. 

Who was he kidding? He couldn't even confidently say that he knew Percy well. How could he just say that Percy must've had no mission? Nothing to learn? 

But then he saw the tears gather in his eyes. Suns of sea swimming in tears. Drop-by-drop, water fell from Percy's cheeks and finally, Jason opened his ears to his pleas. 

'Ah...' His mind clicked. 

Yes, Percy wasn't open about himself. Yes, his past was unknown. Yes, he rarely spoke.
But he was so much more than his silence. 

Though he knew very little of him, Jason knew that the time they spent together was not short,  nor a lie. Who knew, maybe one day the reason restricting him might let him free, and then he was sure that Percy would come and tell him all he wanted to know.

Jason threw his back and sighed, long and deep. He felt the heat behind his eyes but squeezed them shut, willing the tears back. "When will we meet again?"

He though that his manner would reassure him, after all, if he kept the mood calm and nonchalant, it would end in a cool conversation without anymore of crying.

But Percy eyes only widened as he cried even harder, succumbing to his sobs. He had allowed the tears to fall unconditionally but now he truly wept.

He felt completely awful. Little did they know that there was so much he was hiding from them. He could see the amount of trust Jason was putting in him, acting like it was no big deal, but the guilt was eating him from the inside. 

Not to mention that Reyna was probably furious at him. Though it wasn't a betrayal, it felt like he'd stabbed a jeweled sword right in their backs. 

Poor Rey was hovering around him, trying to lick away his tears. He couldn't understand the conversation but Percy conveyed what he wanted to say, and instead of a reaction from him, all he received was endless worry as to why he was weeping. 

Why was he the one who was so affected when he was the one causing them pain? It didn't make sense at all. 

Then he realized. He was in complete denial. 

The reason why he was so upset wasn't because he caused them pain. It wasn't because he felt like he betrayed them, and it wasn't because he felt like he couldn't take responsibility. 

He realized that the reason he couldn't stop sobbing was because he was going to miss them.

There was no way to know when he would meet them, or if he would meet them again at all. The life of a demigod was as dangerous as it was painful. Unforeseen situation were endless and the mortality rate even higher. 

Not to mention that it was probably him who had the highest chance of dying, whether it be from the hands of a monster or a god. The world was unstable and he knew that he had too much power to influence it. 

But now, he didn't want any of it. All he needed was the safety of his friends till he could properly take responsibility for them. 

But who knew? Maybe they might even surpass him by the time they meet again. The thought somehow calmed him. 

He returned to reality as his panic subsided. Somewhere in the midst of his chaotic insecurities, Jason had hugged him while Rey sat beside him with a paw on his thigh. 

Now that he could think clearer, he noticed that Jason held him the way Percy had hugged him that night deep in the woods. The position was fiercely protective and with both Jason and Rey, he was surrounded with warmth. 

The irony of the situation hit him square in the chest as he closed his eyes, allowing the last of the tears to slip through. 

He would tell them the truth later, he promised.