i hate everything about you, percy jackson

TWO. cold air and cold feelings

TWO. COLD AIR AND COLD FEELINGS

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IT WAS A COLD winter, just like it usually was in New York. Most people would complain and whine about how cold the air was, and how annoying the snow was, but Matheo Shin was overjoyed about the cold weather.

He loved how peaceful the snow was, and how the cold air felt on his cheeks.

He had spent the past nine winters at Camp Half-Blood, and he adored the snow covered cabins each year. However, he could understand why some kids didn't appreciate it as much as he did.

Take the Apollo kids as an example. Their life was quite literally centered about light and the sun, and they got grumpy and tired without it. They were practically human glow sticks, so Matheo did feel bad for the during the especially bad winter days.

There weren't as many campers during the winter, either, only the few campers who didn't go home for the holidays.

Which was why he was shocked when he saw a now fourteen year old Percy Jackson walking down a path right past him — Grover next to him and a group of girls, plus one younger boy, not too far behind him.

And his face was grim.

He hadn't seen Percy with such a face before.

Curious, Matheo got up from where he sat, setting his, honestly very interesting, book down.

To be completely honest, after Percy had asked Matheo to be his friend it wasn't smooth sailing. They had a lot of disagreements, and Matheo couldn't find himself to like the younger boy, but he didn't dislike him either, it was very confusing.

Percy, however, enjoyed talking to and hanging out with Matheo, despite the heavy tension between the two.

Regardless, Matheo followed after the younger. Matheo carefully made his way to the Big House, trailing behind the group of kids. He leaned against a pillar as he zoned in to the conversation. "—wrong? And where is Annabeth?"

Oh.

That explains why Percy seemed so grim. He and Annabeth — daughter of Athena — had been close since Percy first came to camp. She had been on all of his quests with him. "Oh, dear," Mr. D said, but his voice was completely void of emotion, "Not another one lost."

Matheo wondered what the camp director had meant by that. Another? There were multiple? "What do you mean?" Thalia Grace — child of Zeus — asked from where she stood next to Percy. "Who else is lost?" She took the words right out of Matheo's mouth.

Matheo moved out of the way just as Grover came prancing past him, hiding just in time. "The hunters are all moved in." The hunters must've been the group of girls that had been with Percy. Matheo had heard quite a few stories about them.

"The Hunters, eh? I see we have much to talk about." Chiron — the activities director — interjected, crossing his arms over his chest. He instructed Grover to take the youngest looking boy to the den, and to show him the orientation film.