What Kills You (Percico)

Chapter Seven

Nico

The best feeling ever was when, after Chiron took Peter to explain shit, I got to hold my boyfriend's hand around people we knew.

It was so worth the anxiety of coming out and having to talk to Hazel for an hour last night. It was worth it.

"Did you tell Peter," I asked Percy as we walked towards the pavilion for lunch. "About the fact that you're like gay? Or that were dating?"

"Oh, he knows that I'm gay." Percy insisted. "He helped me land my first date. I was 6. I helped him with his. We went on a double date. At Chuck E Cheese. I gave him all of my tickets. Still fun, though."

"Aww, you were a little charmer."

•••

After setting up a time to meet with Poseidon, we had nothing to do until Sally and Paul got off work. In five hours.

It only takes twenty minutes to get to the apartment.

We soon did have something to do, though. When Frank, Hazel, Jason, Piper, and Annabeth all showed up for the holidays.

It's crazy how fast time goes, isn't it?

Peter

Suddenly there was a small horde of teenagers running up to me and then the blonde girl who was my age tackled me in a hug and I was scared for my life. She was cute, I'll give her that. They were all attractive.

But I knew none of them.

"You're back!" This girl who tackled me was very happy that I was awake for whatever reason. "Oh my gods!"

"Yeah..." I said, kind of scared.

"Annabeth, you're going to give him a heart attack." Another girl sound my age said, she had darker hair. Native American maybe? That's what it looked like. Native. "He can probably talk better when he hasn't just had the wind knocked out of him."

She rolled her eyes, Annabeth did, and helped me back up.

"Thanks... Annabeth." I said the name a little slower, trying to make sure I said it right and that it was her.

"No problem, Percy." She said and then I understood why she tackled me in a hug. I'm just slightly paler than my brother (apparently they brought me outside on nice days at the hospital) and skinnier. But I'd he was like dead for a while... Which he told me about... I could understand why they'd think I look like him. We're identical in every other way after the trim Drew gave me. "Sorry, I got excited. We've talked over the phone but you're actually here. In person."

"Yeah..." I said, feeling bad about the confusion. "I'm not Percy."

"You're not... You're shitting me, Jackson." A man who could very well be Superman's son with blond hair told me. "Just because you lost some weight or whatever in the underworld doesn't mean you're somebody else."

"No, I know..." I said and stopped. "I'm not Percy, you're confusing me with him. I'm somebody else entirely. Percy's with Leo and Nico, I think."

"Oh..." Annabeth said, looking like she was trying to remember if she knew me. "Who's your parent? Or do you not know yet?"

"Poseidon."

"And you're not dating my brother?" The last girl asked me, who seemed a little younger. 15?

"I'm single." I assured her, hoping that was a good thing. "I've been awake for like 4 hours, I'm not in a huge rush to date right now."

Before they could say anything else, Nico, Leo, and my brother found us. And they were just confused.