When I Don't Remember You (Percico)

Chapter Nineteen: I Am Barely Breathing

Nico di Angelo

After the meeting, since people had nothing better anyways, a lot of then just hung around and talked and stuff and I could see Percy becoming very overwhelmed as Annabeth and Grover were both talking with him in the middle of them looking like he wouldn't know how to respond if the attention shifted to him.

Debating on how I could calm him down and get him out of the situation, Rachel (the only person besides Sally that knows we're dating) walked overli me.

"Our ride won't be here for at least an hour," so she had noticed Percy's state of mind, too. "You have some of Sally's Tupperware, right? From the last time you were over?"

Rachel's a fucking genius.

"I do!" I most certainly did not have any Tupperware because Sally gives me sweets either in plastic baggies or on a paper plate. "Thanks for the reminder, I'll go ask Percy if he wants them back. Just pop by when your ride is almost here. Cabin 13."

Telling me she would, Rachel walked over to Thalia and I walked over to my oh so incredibly anxious boyfriend.

"Hey," I said, not even thinking the other two noticed me as they were talking about something in great depth. Camp renovations, I think. I know Annabeth is in charge of a lot of that sort of thing. I got Percy's attention though, which is what mattered. "hi, I have a bunch of Tupperware and stuff that I keep forgetting to give back your mom. Do you want to head to my cabin before you have to go so I can give them to you to like, give to her?"

"Hm?" And it took him a second to realize that I'm just giving him an excuse to leave if he wants it. "Oh yeah, that would be... Good. Very good, um... Yeah. Hold on."

"What's up?" Annabeth asked after finally taking note of me.

"Oh, I'm just gonna run to Nico's cabin really fast to grab some Tupperware containers mom gave him the last few times he was over," but he went with it, which was good. "I should be back, I don't know when Rachel and I have to leave, but not for... Not for a while."

"Oh, okay, sounds good!" Grover said. "we'll be here or just outside the big house on the porch."

Could Grover read through my plan of wanting to be away from people and knowing that Percy also wanted to be away from people?

Probably, but I know he can't connect us dating so that's fine.

After all, he didn't say anything after that. Percy and I left and he played with his camp necklace the entire way to my cabin, and the moment we got into my cabin and the door was closed, he pulled me into a hug and buried his face in the top of my head, trying to regulate his breathing.

"Thank you," he said after a few moments of breathing while I took to rubbing his back while holding him in return. "Considering the fact that I've still barely processed like... A lot of things it's just... A lot and people were loud and just..."

"Shh, it's okay, I know," I reassured my boyfriend. "i also don't like the amount of people that we in there, but I could see that it was making you anxious. Rachel's the one who gave me the Tupperware excuse, though, because I couldn't think of a good reason to get you away from Grover and Annabeth. I don't have any Tupperware."

"It did confuse me at first," Percy insisted that he knew that. "It's a good excuse, though. Um..."

He paused for a second.

"Can we have a sleepover tonight?" My boyfriend asked, anxiety still lingering in his voice. "i know you were over like two days ago, but my mom works early tomorrow and if I have a nightmare I'm going to feel shitty waking her up and I don't want her to have to call in because she's tired and..."