[̲̅B][̲̅u][̲̅t][̲̅t][̲̅e][̲̅r][̲̅f][̲̅l][̲̅y] | Percy Jackson x oc | PJO x HP |

Chapter 16 | I Think I Died A Little Inside |

    Do you know that feeling when you’re about to cry? That’s how I felt as I watched Percy and Grover interact with Annabeth on Olympus.

    I was just a stand-in for her. A filler. A replacement. Just until they got her back. Who was I kidding with thinking I got close to them? They just wanted me so they had someone to fill her space…even our hair color was the same! It wasn’t fair. Even at Hogwarts, Percy only wrote to me because Annabeth wasn’t around.

    Let’s go back a few hours.

    Grover went to Olympus with the Ophiotaurus while we went to the Chase household to get his car and guess what? We got the car. We got there fine, but Ladon, the eucalyptus eating dragon, gave Zoë a big boo-boo. Then, we found out Atlas was Zoë’s dad. Crazy, right? We fought the Titan Army, Percy and I took the weight of the world from Artemis, we fought some more, Thalia killed Luke (but he didn’t feel dead. I still felt his soul lurking), Annabeth’s dad showed up, then finally we won the battle and we went home.

    But we didn’t win with zero losses. We landed in Crissy Field. Zoë had died from the force of Atlas’s blow. I liked Zoë! She was really cool…and overall a badass female warrior. She might not have been the easiest to get along with, but she was an amazing person. The important thing was she died with honor and dignity. She earned her place in the stars.

    We went back to New York by pegasi. Let me tell you, not. My. Style. I had a bad case of saddle butt. The gods debated whether or not to kill Thalia and Percy which resulted in Thalia joining the Hunt. Both of them lived to see another day, but I wished it didn’t have to be with Thalia being gone again. She was my bestie.

    Which brings us back to now.

    I was standing alone in the corner, watching as Percy and Annabeth danced together. I was painfully jealous, but I knew they were friends. Best friends. Friends where one had a crush on the other and the other was oblivious to his two female friends liking him.

    I think I knew why they called it a crush now. You always end up crushed in the end.

    Aphrodite came to my side. “Jealousy is not a pretty look on you, dear.” She handed me a little glass of fruit punch as I looked over at her.

    “Why does she have to like him too?” I moped, looking back at them. I’d feel a lot better if I knew Annabeth didn’t have a crush on Percy too. And maybe if all my feelings weren’t amplified by ten because of my sadness over Zoë. I played with the now gray strand of hair. It changed as I was holding up the sky with Percy.

    “Well, if I were you, I’d steal his attention before she asks for another dance.” She pointed to Percy walking away from Annabeth and in my direction. “Give me something to work with.” Aphrodite whispered in my ear before disappearing from my side.

    “Hey.” Percy said, leaning back against the wall. “What are you doing over here?”

    “Grieving over Zoë.” He pulled me into a hug, fiddling with the ends of my hair.

    “I know I may not have known her for as long as you, but I miss her too. She should be here, celebrating our victory. I’ll be there for you whenever you miss her like right now.” He whispered gently. He didn’t let go of me. And I was happy about it.

    I looked up at him before pulling him onto the dance floor. I danced with him, not caring for his clumsiness. I just felt…safe around him. And I liked it. I liked it a lot.

ততততত

I sat bleary-eyed in the Big House, eating my chocolate bar, with my head resting on Percy’s shoulder. The whole quest ordeal caught up to me sleep wise. At Hogwarts, I had a tight schedule. Wake up, breakfast, class, homework, dinner, read, sleep. It was safe to say I have not been doing that.