Stone Walls (Jercy AU)

PERCY

Percy was upset. No, upset wasn't even the word to describe what he felt. He felt like there was this whirlpool of anger, sadness and guilt. He was angry that Jason seemed to pry at his feelings. He was sad at the mention of his pain. And he felt guilty for acting the way he did towards Jason.

Percy didn't bother going to dinner. He wasn't that hungry. But he also hasn't eaten all day. After that incident with Jason, Percy went straight to his room and collapsed on his bed, and didn't come back out. After Percy had stormed out, he heard Thalia yelling at Jason, but he didn't hear a word from Jason. Percy feared Jason might have given up on him. Percy knew he wasn't the best at opening up, but he appreciated Jason being there. Truthfully, Percy wanted to tell Jason how he truly felt about not being in his apartment anymore. He wanted to tell Jason he wasn't scared, that he felt safe, that he didn't have to worry about random men touching him in his own home. But Percy didn't know how to tell Jason all of that. As much as he wanted to, Percy couldn't let his guard down. He was scared Jason would think of him different, that he would view him as this depressed, bruised up, slightly scrawny boy. Jason was the straight A, lean football player. To Percy, it did not seem like a friendship meant to be.

However, Percy didn't know what Jason and him were right now. Friends? Acquaintances? All Percy knew was he was drawn to Jason, and it seemed anything but friendly to him. Percy loved his presence and he enjoyed his comfort. His smile was charming and his laugh was sweet. But he was into girls, not to mention he has a girlfriend, Piper.

"Percy?" Mrs. Grace said from the other side of the bedroom door. "May I come in?"

"Yes, Mrs. Grace," Percy said, sitting up on the edge of the bed.

"I've told you a million times to just call me Beryl," she said as she walked in and sat next to Percy.

"Right, I'm sorry."

Beryl smiled kindly at Percy when he looked up at her. "How are you feeling today?" Percy shrugged. "I heard what happened between you and Jason."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't be causing something like that when you've given me somewhere to stay." Percy looked down at his lap, feeling too embarrassed to meet Beryl's eyes again.

"Don't be sorry," she said softly, putting her hand under Percy's chin and turning his head towards her. "You and Jason didn't mean for it to happen."

"He keeps trying to help, but I keep pushing him away."

"I know, but it's going to take time. You'll be able to talk about it eventually. And Jason is a little ill-tempered and impatient, like his father was. He doesn't mean to snap at anyone."

"I pushed him to that, though. I shouldn't have been so rude to him."

Beryl chuckled softly. "Both of you could've handled the situation better, honey, but sometimes things are just out of our control."

Percy looked up at her and grinned. "Thank you, Beryl."

She laughed and said, "I left some food in the microwave for you in case you get hungry." Percy nodded. "Goodnight, Percy, don't sleep too late." With that, Beryl ruffled his hair and hugged him gingerly before walking into her bedroom down the hall.

Percy smiled to himself. Beryl had always been so nice to him and Grover. She was best friends with Percy's and Grover's mothers. She never left that out and never made them feel like they weren't there. She always invited them to Thanksgiving and Christmas, until Percy's mother passed away and Percy wasn't allowed to come anymore. But Christmas was right under the corner and Percy couldn't wait.

Percy heard his stomach grumble so he walked towards the kitchen to get the food Beryl set aside for him. But when he walked into the kitchen, he saw Jason again. The kitchen must be the go-to spot for seeing Jason Grace. This time, however, Jason was punching numbers into a calculator furiously and writing vigorously. Percy definitely believed if Jason pressed the keys any harder, the calculator would break. Percy didn't realize he was just standing in the kitchen entrance staring until Jason spoke up.

"Hey, Percy."

Percy walked over to the microwave. "Hey, Jason." While Percy went to grab his food from the microwave, neither of the two teens said a word. Percy couldn't hear any calculator keys being murdered, or the notebook pages flipping. But he could feel his gaze on Percy. Even without facing him, Percy could feel the intensity of Jason's eyes looking at him. It almost felt like he was drilling holes into Percy's back. As Percy got his food with a bottle of water and took a seat across from Jason, he felt Jason's eyes trail him. 

"I'm sorry for the way I acted before," Percy said, capturing Jason's stare.

"You weren't the problem," Jason responded, "I was."

Percy didn't say anything else. He ate his food and scrolled through his phone that was in his sweats pocket, and Jason continued to torment the calculator. It wasn't an awkward silence to Percy. It felt more comfortable, more relaxed. Percy didn't feel anxious or nervous. He finished his pasta and stir fried veggies, but Jason was still doing his work. Percy cleared up his dishes and his seat across from Jason again. Jason closed his notebook, and sighed.

"I have no idea who thought math was fun enough that they made it apart of teaching," Jason said annoyed.

Percy laughed softly and turned his phone off. "Your calculator was probably crying with the way you were hitting it." Jason laughed and looked down at the table. Percy could hear his laugh ringing through his ears.

Jason looked so much different than he did this morning. He looked more calm and put together, even if he was frustrated with whatever god forsaken math he was doing. His eyes no longer looked intense. The corners were slightly crinkled from his laughing and they seemed clear. Something in Percy told him this was the time to open up to Jason.

"Being out of the apartment feels different in a good way," Percy began. Jason's smile quickly turned into a more curious expression as he leaned against the table. "Gabe was always terrible to my mom and I. He would smack her around and when she wasn't home, he'd do it to me. After she died, it wasn't the same anymore."

At this point, Percy was starting to tear up and his voice was quivering. But he didn't feel like he had to stop. He wanted to keep going. "He started to beat me more, almost everyday. I had to wake up early before school to make him breakfast but I wouldn't have time to eat. I started to fall behind on all my classes. When I got back to the apartment, it was filled with empty beer bottles, food, and vomit. One time I came home, and there was a random guy there. He -" Percy stopped himself. He bit his lip and felt a single tear run down his left cheek. He looked off to the side, not able to look at Jason any longer. He felt so vulnerable, so exposed.

"You don't have to keep going if you don't want to," Jason said softly, his voice dripping with concern. Percy nodded and sniffled, bringing his hoodie sleeve to wipe his eyes. "You did great, Perce."

And that was all Percy needed to feel better. Although tears were slowly running down his face, Percy was proud of himself. Deep down, Percy congratulated himself for finding this bravery inside of him. He also felt so thankful to have someone listen to him. He was beyond thankful that that someone was Jason Grace. And in this moment, where Percy was sitting at the table crying in front of Jason who cracked jokes to make him laugh, Percy knew he felt something more. It wasn't just a friendship to him.