The tragedy of Will Solace

Nightmare

At first, Will didn't notice anything wrong. Seeing that beautiful smile and those kind eyes was enough to erase all of his worries. But then he hugged her. He immediately felt something was off. While his mom held him hard, making it difficult for him to breathe, he tried to focus on her vitals. Her blood pressure and heart rhythm were high. Maybe she was stressed? There was something else but... Will wasn't sure.

- Let me look at you - his mom finally let go of the embrace. She was now holding his face with her hands. - You are so big!

Her breath had a strong minty smell, her hair was disheveled, and she had bags under her eyes. He felt a little guilty. His messages during the summer probably weren't enough to reassure her everything was fine. They had never spent so much time apart.

- Momma, I'm okay. - he gave her his best smile so she knew he was being sincere.

They took a cab back home, which was a little strange.

- Did something happen to the car? - Will asked.

- I just left my keys with a friend. But don't worry, hun, I'll get it back tomorrow. - her mind seemed elsewhere, and she talked slowly. Something had happened, but Will didn't know how to ask. She didn't even ask him about Camp. Will didn't know whether to be relieved or concerned.

They finally arrived home. It was late, so everything was dark. When his mom turned on the lights, Will was surprised by the mess. Sure, the house was usually messy, but this was even worse. It also smelled different, and stuffy. It reminded him of the smell of Cabin 11 in the mornings before anyone opened the windows.

- Sorry about the mess hun, I've been ... a little busy lately.

- With the band? - Will was happy. The band deserved its big break.

- No hun, I've been... working on my own for a little while.

- Did something happen?

She smiled and shook her head. She looked and sounded exhausted.

- It's okay momma. You can go to sleep. - he stood on his tiptoes and kissed her on the cheek, and she went to her room. Will was exhausted too anyway. He went to his room, which still looked exactly the same. He put on his pajamas without removing the bead necklace. He had earned that.

Unfortunately, he didn't get a sleepless night.

Those were rare for demigods anyway. His most recurrent nightmare was about snakes under his bed. Michelle had explained to him that Apollo's children weren't the biggest fans of snakes, because of their father's rivalry with Python. Will found it ironic that Asclepius' symbol had a snake. Still, it was probably better than fearing spiders: the chances of encountering one of those were much higher.

But no, this time, his nightmares decided to take him to a familiar sight: the woods.

He was again in the forest, at Camp Half-Blood. It was nighttime, but a red light illuminated everything. He recognized the smell of dirt and pines. He had his orange t-shirt, his necklace, and his medic kit. This time, he wasn't lost or barefoot. When a voice called for help, he immediately knew what to do. Except that, unlike last time, he knew the voice. It was Michelle calling.

- Help! Will! Please!- he had never heard her comforting voice so scared before. It didn't sound right.

He was running to her when he heard more voices. They were the voices of his siblings and his friends. Carmen, Aida, Lee, Hannah, Michael, Lisa, Mateo, Tamara, David, Victoria, Louis, Ben, Oscar, and Mary.

- Help! Someone!

- We have wounded people over here! Someone needs to come!

- Will!

He was still following Michelle's voice, but instead, he stumbled upon the hospital tent. This was also different: last time, his dream had changed, but now, it was all the same dream.

He saw the tent filled with wounded people, but they were no longer faceless. He recognized them, they were campers, people he saw regularly at lunch or the infirmary.

- Will? - he recognized that voice: it was his mom. She was at the back of the tent. He ran to her.

- Mom? What are you doing here? - but she didn't seem to recognize him.

- Will? Where are you?

- Momma! It's me, I'm right here!

But no matter how many times he said it, she always seemed to look past him.

Will woke up with tears in his eyes. He got up immediately and went to his mom's room. The room was a mess, with clothes and papers all over the floor.

- Momma? - he whispered. But she didn't answer. She was soundly asleep. Will didn't want to wake her up, but he didn't want to be alone, so he just approached the bed slowly, trying to be as silent as possible. It was difficult with so much stuff on the floor, but his mom was profoundly asleep.

He cuddled next to her and closed his eyes again.