Breathing Next To You (Percy Jackson)

Chapter Nine

Percy

Well then. Sorry you didn't get your way. I'm leaving anyways, Chiron just wanted me here to announce because he couldn't be. We managed to push back our reservations to 8:30.

"Don't mind them," Daniel told me," they're just pissed off because Luke isn't here to tell them what to do."

"Yeah, I figured somebody would be that way," I agreed," whoever has that job now is beyond me."

"I thought it was you."

"It used to be. Not anymore. Someone's bound to know. But I'm not staying here, so. You don't have to if you don't want to. They just all everyone for whatever reason."

Nico had retreated to his cabin to say goodbye to Hazel so he wasn't here.

"I suppose, you have your stupid date right?" Daniel suggested," and Elizabeth at home. I think I will, too. Mom leaves Sunday so..."

"Oh, yeah, she does," I recalled," 3, right?"

"Yeah, at 3."  He confirmed for me with a slight nod," but Mr. No Dad what did your date think when you had to leave?"

"But why do you care?"

"I just do, okay," Daniel tried to reason," all summer you were kind of in a shit mood and as your friend to see that every time I saw you, if you start seeing somebody that makes you not feel shitty it'd be nice to know who it is. I mean, how many times did you at least try to kill yourself this summer? 3, 4?"

"6..."

If you want to include Monday, 7.

"Exactly," Daniel points out," and if someone can make you feel like you're worth something in a way that you won't consider or try suicide, it'd be nice to know who it is."

I sighed and told him that tomorrow when the five of us are supposed to meet up if it goes well I'll bring them with to meet. Which made him happy.

I talked with Tyson and Grover along with Annabeth for a little bit and I actually got to meet the quadruplets. Two girls and two boys. Hell, right? She leaves for Yale next Friday, so that'd be expensive. Four kids, $45K a year for college, bills, food, gas, and also things to just enjoy life.

One job.

Yeah.

We kind of shared about college, where we were applying, what we wanted to do.

"What about you?" Grover asked me," where'd you apply to?"

"Oh, me?" I asked," um, the Culinary School of New York."

"You're a kitchen man?" Annabeth seemed surprised, " how didn't I know this?"

I shrugged.

Anyways, Nico and I left and got to the restaurant on time.

We talked about next to everything. It was a nice locally owned restaurant but it will still managed to be really fancy so. After we ate and paid the bill we returned to my place. Where you could smell the cookies as soon as you walked in. Mom not in vision, although Paul working on seating charts and crap for classes. He did notice before he went to use the bathroom.

"You're home, we were starting to get a little worried," Paul told me and then realized he had saw Nico," Nico?"

"What about him?"

"Did you guys go on a double date or something?" Paul asked me," your mother spoiled the surprise of your date."

"No. It wasn't a double date," I answer," just a normal date."