In The Spotlight - Solangelo

Chapter Twenty

The rest of the gang was waiting by Thalia's Tree, some sitting at the bottom and some hanging off the branches. Leo was swinging wildly from branch to branch, and Percy was attempting to copy him but failing miserably. I watched as he fell out of the lowest branch onto the grass below - thankfully, he got up again like it was nothing and continued messing around, unlike what Thalia went through when she fell down. The other two were sitting at the base of the tree. Annabeth was reading some sort of book on Greek mythology, and Jason was just staring into the distance.

As soon as he saw us coming up the hill, Jason rushed towards me. "I am so, so sorry for whatever Drew did to you," he apologised in an urgent voice. "I swear to God, I didn't tell her anything about, y'know. She tried to get me to speak, but I refused, I promise."

"But, she-"

"She lied," Will interrupted. "Whatever she said about Jason, she lied."

There was silence for a few moments, as I considered what to say. Drew had told me that Jason told her everything. He told her that I'm gay, that I have a crush on Will, probably about my previous crush on Percy as well. Could I trust him anymore?

Yes, I could trust him. He had always been there for me, even if he didn't mean to be. When Bianca died, he was there helping Thalia through it, and by extension he also helped me. When Thalia left, we were both there for each other. He helped me with my sister, and I helped him with his. We had a strong bond that would never break. And I trusted him with my secret.

Secret... It wasn't exactly a 'secret' anymore. The entire school knew. Probably. Oh, God, what had I gotten myself into? This all could've been avoided if I hadn't become so close to Will! Then again, these last few weeks had been the best of my life. Sure, they've had their ups and downs. I've broken down into tears at least three times. But Will had been there. Even if he was the source of all the drama, he was also the solution. And I loved him so freaking much. He helped me progress in my worst subject, made me more confident in myself, even helped me to make friends! Friends...

I actually had friends. How come I had only just realised that I had actually made friends? Friends who I... trusted. People who I trusted enough to finally open up to. It was time for me to come out. They probably already knew, since Drew had outed me before I even had the chance to come to terms with it myself, but I felt as if they deserved to hear it from me firsthand.

"I, um, I have something to say," I announced, slightly louder than usual. "To all of you guys." I moved closer to Thalia's tree, took a deep breath, and spoke out the truth. "You probably already know from everybody spreading stuff, but... I am a homosexual. And I hate myself for it. For years I've been hiding - the only people who I trusted with this information was my sister and Thalia, but they've both left me. And I guess Jason as well, but when I came out to him I was actually coming out to Thalia, so whatever. He was just there as well. A-anyway, I guess you guys know for sure now. I am completely and utterly gay. I understand if you want me to leave."

Everyone was staring at me. It was beginning to make me uncomfortable. I stood there awkwardly, until Leo jumped down from the tree, walked up to me, and put his hand on my shoulder.

"Why would we want you to leave?" he questioned. "I'm pretty sure I can speak for everyone here, we all accept you for you. I mean, Will is also gay, and he's still here. To be perfectly honest, I'd be lying if I said I hadn't thought about dating a guy once or twice."

Annabeth gave me an encouraging smile. "Leo's right. Who you find attractive doesn't change anything, you are still our friend."

Percy nodded. "I agree. You are still a pretty cool dude."

For once I my life, I gave everyone a genuine smile. They accepted me. When I was with these people, I could just forget about all my fears. I wouldn't have to worry about them judging me, or about being excluded because of what I was. I could finally feel... normal. I wouldn't have to hide who I was anymore. "Thank you guys." I had tears of joy in my eyes. "Thank you so much."

A/N: Hey guys! Firstly, thanks for reading this, it means a lot to me that people are actually enjoying my work. I love you guys so much. But what I wanted to say was, now that the summer holidays have started here in England, I should be able to release more often. I think I might be able to release a new chapter every day for a while. Just wanted to update you guys on that.

Thanks for reading, I'll see you later! :D