Cedric Guerrero steps off the school bus with heavily-lidded eyes and a mildly dazed expression on his face. He had fallen asleep on the vehicle, and the drive over had given him ample time for a satisfying nap.
Luckily he had been sitting by himself, as he had woken up sprawled along the seat horizontally. He wouldn't have wanted to place the unfortunate luck of being his personal pillow on anyone.
He yawned, turning his back to his classmates and waiting for his friends to step off of the bus. They had been sitting behind him, so he didn't have to wait long for-
Cedric frowned, suddenly alert and all weariness forgotten, "Why is there sandwich in your hair, Grover?"
Grover Underwood shuffled towards him quickly and muttered, "Nancy threw her lunch at me. I barely convinced Percy not to go at her."
Ah. Suddenly Cedric understood.
Nancy had thrown her lunch at Grover. Percy had gotten upset. Grover had held him back (possibly because of Percy's probation). And so Grover had tolerated the abuse the whole drive over.
Cedric suddenly felt guilty over having enjoyed his brief nap while his friend had gotten bullied right behind him.
"Sorry man," Cedric said, as Percy stepped up to them. "If I hadn't fallen asleep I could've talked to Nancy—"
"You've been having a hard time sleeping, Ced." Percy interrupted, as if that explained everything. "Nancy was being a little shit, there wasn't much you could've done to stop her."
Cedric hesitated, because he had been having a hard time sleeping these past few months. But also, he knew he could have convinced Nancy to at least pause her abuses for a bit. He knew she had a soft spot for him. Many people tended to.
Cedric sighed. In resignation. "I'm sorry I couldn't help," He said, unable to help but apologize again. "Let's try to get as much sandwich out of your hair while they role call, Grover."
They tried their best, and they did manage to get a good amount of sandwich out of the older boy's hair, but peanut butter and ketchup stains resolutely dyed Grover's shirt for the rest of the day.
In the museum, Mr. Brunner lead the class as well as any seasoned museum tour guide. He lead them around a thirteen foot tall stone column with a big sphinx on top that the teacher called a stele. He spoke of the details of the carvings on the sides, but his voice was hard to hear over the noise the other students were making.
Cedric huffed under his breath, starting to get irritated by the distractions around him. He was a student interested in the material, and the behaviors of his classmates were annoying him enough to want to do something about it.
He could feel Percy's agitation next to him, and-remembering he was on probation-placed a hand on his friend's elbow for his attention.
"We should get closer," He muttered to him but—
Percy was already turning towards Nancy Bobofit, who was snickering and muttering about the nude man on the stele—
"Will you shut up?"
Mr. Brunner stopped talking. The entire group started to laugh at the comedically timed interruption.
"Mister Jackson," Mr. Brunner said, his voice calm—kindly so, "did you have a comment?"
Cedric could feel how tense Percy had gotten. He squeezed Percy's elbow once before letting go, not wanting to further any embarrassment for him.
"No, sir," Percy said, his voice almost strained.
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Triptych | PJO
Fanfiction"Now Cedric, I'm sure your father has explained to you who you are. Would you happen to have any idea as to who your godly parent is?" "Dad," Cedric corrects, still looking at the floating cards in front of him. He manages to tear his eyes away to l...
