Discolored

9: Uh, He's Supposed To Be Breathing, Right?

WPOV

I'm being ridiculous. Percy's vitals are normal, his wounds are healing, and none of my tests are coming back with any indication that anything is wrong. I think I might just be exhausted—sometimes, when I work at the infirmary for too many days in a row, I start doubting myself more and more. Maybe this is just one of those times—as far as all my testing can tell, Percy is going to make a quick and full recovery.

Nico is picking up on my nerves, I think, and he's been sticking with me all day. He made me take a longer lunch break than I normally do, and he wouldn't let me eat with a patient. Instead, he made me leave the infirmary and eat outside with him—I think he was hoping the sun might help calm me a little instead of eating under the headache-inducing lights of the infirmary.

I slump against the door and lock eyes with Nico. "We did it," I say.

A spark of bravery tells me to lean closer to him, and a rosy blush spreads across his cheeks when our lips are close enough that I can feel his breath. I cup his face in my hand, and I'm about to pull him closer when someone clears their throat, and I startle.

Nico leaps away from me. Mr. D and Chiron are standing in the hall, waiting to see Percy. Chiron nods at the door to Percy's room and says, "Mr. Solace, Mr. di Angelo, am I interrupting anything?"

My entire face must be red. I wipe my clammy hands on my shirt and try to pretend that this isn't the most embarrassing moment of my life. "Uh—er, no! So, you wanted to see Percy?"

I open the door to find Percy, unsurprisingly, still fast asleep. That terrible feeling is back in my gut again.

"He was attacked by a monster he summoned accidentally on the beach," Nico tells the men. "He's recovering well so far, though."

Mr. D raises his eyebrows. "And how do you know that, Nick?"

"My name is Nico," offers Nico weakly, but Mr. D gives him a look that implies he cares very little. Nico sighs and continues, "And I know because I've been assisting Will today—not on any actual medical procedures, but just with retrieving supplies and things like that."

I look back at Percy again. Something has to be wrong—I must be missing something. But I've already run so many tests—everything is normal.

And then I realize—his chest isn't moving anymore.

I race to his bedside. I can hear a commotion outside Percy's door, but I don't pay it any attention—I'm going to have to do CPR—oh my gods, what is wrong with Percy—?

I do the chest compressions, and he's breathing again. Adrenaline is rushing through my veins—as soon as I can feel his chest moving up and down again and his pulse feels strong, I grab my stethoscope and listen to his heartbeat.

It's back to normal.

Oh my gods—Percy just almost died. There's no way this is all just in my head anymore. There's something I'm missing about his case, some test I haven't run or something I missed in the initial check-ups. None of my siblings have noticed anything wrong, and when I press them to try to find what I'm missing, they always look at me like I'm crazy.

But no—my gut is right about this one. I feel sick to my stomach as I stare at Percy, lost and confused.

Chiron is watching from the doorway. "Is...everything alright, Mr. Solace?"

Breathing heavily, I straighten and finally tear my gaze from Percy. "Something is wrong. Nothing is showing up in my tests but—there has to be something else at play here."

When I finally look back at the door, Chiron looks more than a little worried. I guess I can't blame him—he just witnessed Percy get resuscitated. It's moments like these that I hate being the lead healer at the infirmary—who do I turn to when I don't have answers? There's no one else who knows how to care for Percy, so if I can't figure it out in time—

I can't think about that right now.

Behind Chiron, Annabeth and Hazel are out of breath. Nico holds Hazel back from the room, and Mr. D blocks Annabeth. When I meet their eyes, they are terrified.

"My vision flickered into black and white for a minute," Annabeth says, and her tone is horrified. "You saved him?"

"I saved him," I assure her. "He's stable again for now. I promise I'm doing everything I can."

With this reassurance, Annabeth and Hazel stop fighting Nico and Mr. D so much. Nico lets go of Hazel's shoulders. Just as I think everyone understands the safety concerns of having so many people in the room with the patient, Annabeth and Hazel slip around Nico and Mr. D before they can be held back again.

"All of you really shouldn't be in here!" I said, balling my fists.

Hazel arched her eyebrow. "Except Nico?" Nico scoffs.

"Shut up, everyone out!" I ushered out Chiron, Mr. D, and Hazel. I allow Annabeth to stay with Percy. Nico follows me out of the room without either of us saying a word.

But just as I'm about to leave to summarize Percy's case to Chiron, I hear Annabeth's voice call, "Will, wait!"

I tell the others to wait outside. Annabeth is kneeling at Percy's bedside, her eyes latched onto his face.

I close the door so it's just us. "Annabeth, I promise I'm trying everything I know—"

With one look, she shuts me up. She looks like a woman in a horror film as she realizes the killer is behind her. She opens her mouth to try to talk, and nothing comes out at first.

And then she says at a volume barely above a whisper, "Will, the colors are flickering again. I think...I think Percy is dying."

Word count: 979

Thanks for reading :) I hope you like the story!

Yours,

Sunny