New beginnings (Percy Jackson abuse story)

Last night of normal

When Percy came home, he was late. He had been at work to help his step dad pay the bills, but a costumer had fallen and Percy wanted to be sure she was okay.

Percy worked at a small coffee shop. It was warm and had a home like feel to it. More importantly the calming atmosphere helped Percy keep his panic attacks under control while in public.

Percy was cleaning up for the night as the last customer walked out the door. She was an older women and when her ankle hit the floor the wrong way she dropped like a sack of bricks.

"Mam, are you okay?" He had said, his voice gravelly from lack of use.

She had answered with a shake of her head and Percy had spent the rest of the night helping her feel better and driving her home in her car. He had to walk nearly six miles back to the apartment.

When he arrived it was nearly dark. Percy could only hope that his step dad was too drunk to care about his tardiness. But if coarse that wasn't the case.

As soon as he walked in Gabe started to yell.

"Where the hell have you been? You couldn't of called or anything you worthless kid?"

Percy would of reminded Gabe that he didn't have a phone and nowadays people don't usually let strangers borrow their's, but he was already in a lot of trouble.

Gabe gave him a hit on the head. And then another. Then another. Soon the world started to fade and he could hardly feel the knife Gabe took to his skin and slashed with.

The cut must of been deep because it wouldn't stop bleeding.

It was strange, in a way, to Percy. He was used to the hits and the name calling and even the all too frequent beatings, but Gabe only cut him when he was really angry. Cutting was dangerous because if Gabe got out of hand he could really hurt Percy. And Percy had already had a few of those awkward hospital visits where he wasn't sure what to answer when they asked what happened.

"Damn kid, it should of been you not your fucking mother." Gabe grunted as he started to kick Percy, now on the floor, in the ribs.

Gabe was of course talking of Percy's mother's death that past fall. She had cancer and a soft spot for meth. The two did not mix well.

Although the drugs temporally made her feel better it made the treatment for her lungs impossible.

Gabe had been the one to get her hooked, that's how they met after all. And yet Gabe had still found a way to blame Percy. And Percy sometimes wondered if it truly was his fault.

That was the last thought he could remember thinking before he fell unconscious that night.

The lasts normal night.