Wisdom Vs. Beauty

Jack Barakat

A/N: Hey guys! So I found a co-writer last night: AriWretchedandDivine! Ari will be writing Jack's P.O.V. along with two others. I don't want to put an author's note at the beginning of each chapter, so if you see a dedication to Ari on a chapter, that's the chapters she wrote.

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I sat on the bed in my dorm room staring up at the ceiling. It was another boring day at this stuffy boarding school. I'd returned to my room, or more like I was chased back to it by a pack of girls. Why do they have to follow me around all the time? I'm nothing special. I mean, I guess I'm pretty handsome, but it's not like I'm Brad Pitt.

I got up to get my guitar, the shuffling attracting the attention of my roommate and best friend Grover. He lounged on his bed, reading some book with a blacked-out cover.

"What are you reading?" I asked.

"Nothing," he said, smiling innocently.

I laughed. "Porn again, huh?"

His smile faded. "No, pevert."

I laid back on my bed, strumming my guitar absentmindedly. It had been four years since my best friend Alex had moved away, and not a day went by that I didn't think about him. I had a huge crush on him, and had planned on telling him the day he left. That morning, I'd made my way down to his dorm room, going over what I was going to say to him in my head. Reaching his door, I knocked, calling out that it was me. There was no answer. I knocked again. Cocking my head to the side, I opened the door. Nothing. The room was completely empty. There was no trace that he'd ever lived there at all, save for a note on the nightstand.

Jack,

I have moved away. I'm sorry it was on such short notice. We'll be together again one day, I'm sure of it. For now, just don't forget about me.

Alex

I had read the note so many times that I could recite it word-for-word without even looking at it. Grover noticed me spacing out, and snapped his fingers to bring me back to the surface.

"You're thinking about him again, aren't you?" he asked.

"Yeah, I am," I whispered.

"Maybe it's time we go see him," Grover said, walking over to my bed.

I sat up. "What?"

"We're gonna get you out of here and go to Camp Half-Blood," he said, getting the suitcase from under my bed.

"Camp Half-Blood? What's that?"

"It's a camp for children of Greek Gods, like Zeus, Athena, Ares, and the like."

I squinted at him. "Did you hit your head or something?"

"No. I'm telling the truth. Alex was sent to Camp Half-Blood four years ago because he's a son of Athena. And you're a son of Aphrodite. That's why people fall in love with you left and right. Greek myths are real."

I laughed humorlessly. "I get it. You're trying to prank me. It's not funny dude."

He sighed. "I didn't want to have to do this, but you leave me no choice."

He unzipped his pants, and my eyebrows shot up. "Dude what are you doing! Keep your pants on!"

"You need to see the truth."

"I don't think I want the truth."

His pants hit the ground, and I dared a glance. I rubbed my eyes, trying to make sense of what I was seeing. Grover's entire lower half was that of a goat's.

"I'm a satyr," he explained. "Half man, half goat. Do you believe me now?"

I nodded, stunned.

"Good, now let's get going. We have a Griffin to catch."

"A say-what-now?"

He laughed, putting his pants back on and grabbing his crutches to keep up the human façade. "You'll see. Come on. We gotta get to the roof."

He handed me my suitcase, and turned to grab his and pack it. I set my guitar in its case and closed it. Once he was done, we left the room, looking around to see if the coast was clear. It was evening, and everyone was probably down in the cafeteria eating dinner. That didn't mean security guards weren't lurking around. Pressing a finger to his lips, grover stealthily made his way down the hall to the stairs, me close behind.

We hurried up the stairs to the door to the roof, which was locked. Grover extended a hand, signaling for me to stand back as he kicked off his shoes and braced himself up on his crutches, kicking the padlock loose.

"Nice move," I whispered.

He nodded, slipping the shoes back on. We hurried across the roof, coming up on a winged creature with the head of an eagle and the body of a lion. Taking my suitcase and guitar, Grover pulled out a rope and tied them to each side of the beast. I worried about my guitar hanging like that, but he assured me it would be fine. He dumped his crutched and pants, and climbed onto the Griffin's back, waving at me to join him. I guess if he trusts the thing not to eat him, I should too. I climbed on behind him, holding tightly as the Griffin flapped its gigantic wings and lifted us up. I smiled because soon I'd see Alex again.