I'll be here forever

chapter 9

I was still on running on an adrenaline and nectar high when the sky started getting lighter, and Percy didn't say anything about stopping, so we kept on. I tried to keep track of the miles in my head, but I lost count after twenty. Which was a lot.

Suddenly Percy stopped me, a hand on my shoulder. I really hated that every time he touched me, my heart went crazy, like it was trying to jump straight out of my chest.

"Look," he said, gesturing behind me, so I turned to where he was pointing.

The sun was rising, the barest hints of its rays shining up over the horizon, painting the sky in beautiful yellows and pinks. We watched together as it slowly crept up over the trees in the distance, the pinks fading into purples fading into blue. Most of the clouds from the day before had moved on, looking for some other place to hang over and provide shade, giving the sun an almost clear path in the sky.

I laughed, an exhilarated sound. It truly was beautiful. Percy's smile was almost as big as mine.

"It's beautiful," I said, and Percy nodded in agreement.

Soon after, we kept walking. The exhaustion really started to catch up to us both when the sun told us it was around one in the afternoon. The road just looked exactly the same, just different cars passing every once in a while. Most payed us no mind; some would judgingly stare at us, some would honk. We didn't particularly care. Occasionally we would walk past a big, rolling farm, but other than that, everything stayed the same.

I was about to suggest we make camp and rest for a while when a beat-up, old red truck pulled over behind us.

Percy and I exchanged confused glances. A car had never stopped next to us before. Honked at us in annoyance before going about their day, sure, but none had stopped.

An older man stepped out of the car; he was maybe 50, 60. He walked with a slight limp in his left foot, and had a nice smile on his face. I couldn't tell you why, but I didn't trust him. I moved a little closer to Percy, just in case.

I felt Percy relax, his hand being taken out of his back pocket. I shot him a confused and alarmed glance. Something wasn't quite right about this guy. I placed a hand on my sheathed dagger casually. 

"Hey, guys! Do you, by chance, need a ride?" he asked, and Percy smiled softly, nothing like his usual smile. The way he smiled at me was crooked, the smile of a troublemaker. This one was one that would impress his partner's parents in an instant.

I opened my mouth to decline, but Percy beat me to it.

"Yeah, we could use one, but only if you'd like. We've been walking for quite a while," he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. I shot him a confused glance, which he ignored, but I played along anyways.

"That would be amazing, sir," I smiled my best "grateful" smile. His widened, and I didn't like it.

"Of course, of course! Hop on in, guys," he gestured to his truck, "I hope you don't mind, but my granddaughter is sitting in the front seat."

"Oh, it's no problem at all. We'll sit in the back," Percy said easily, trailing him back to his truck. I reluctantly followed. I couldn't let Percy go in there alone.

The man hopped in the driver's side, and Percy opened the side door for me. I tried to convey how much of a bad idea I thought this was without saying anything, but Percy didn't seem to get the message, because he climbed in after me without hesitation.

A teenage girl sat in the front seat, probably about 16 or 17, scrolling through her phone; she didn't even acknowledge Percy and I getting into the car. She was really pretty, with shoulder length brown hair. She made me feel a bit more at ease, but I still didn't like this.

The old man started the car, easily pulling onto the highway. I've got to admit, it was much nicer and much faster than traveling on foot.

"So, what camp did you guys go to?" he asked pleasantly. Percy and I exchanged glances, then he looked down at the pin on the backpack I still had on.

"Camp Half Blood, sir," he said politely.

"Ah, I see. Are you two on a quest, perhaps? You're quite a ways from home. They hand quests out willy-nilly over there. I'm from Camp Jupiter myself, made it there when I was thirteen. Had Nelly's mom, my daughter, over there, a whole generation! Never been on a quest, thank the gods. I almost forgot, this is my granddaughter Nelly. She tends to get absorbed in her technology thingamajigs," he talked on and on. I figured his granddaughter didn't really listen to him , and felt a twinge on sympathy for him.

"Are you married?" Percy asked. The old man nodded.

"I was. Almost forty years, going strong. 'Chelle was the love of my life," he sighed, "daughter of Mars. Very strong willed. She wanted fight up with all the young ones in the first giant war, and fight she did. They say we won that day, but it was not a victory for me. Everyone lost someone, though. We keep on, it's all we can do."

Percy nodded.

His granddaughter, Nelly, huffed and looked up from her phone for a second.

"Grandpa, who'd you pick up this time? You said you wouldn't..." she trailed off when she saw Percy and I in the rearview mirror. Then she froze, her eyes widening, her face turning bright red. She broke eye contact and looked straight ahead, her phone turning off on its own from disuse.

Percy didn't seem to notice, and kept asking questions.

"Who is your godly parent?" he asked.

"Oh, my Maw and Paw lived out in the world. I'm a direct descendant of Apollo, I am. They say it skips a couple generations. My Maw beat me over the head the first time she heard me say I saw a monster! Ah, that woman was crazy. She's dead now, Pluto lay her to rest."

Percy nodded a bit more slowly this time.

"Anyways, I'm sorry for talking yall's ears off. Where ya headed?"

"Well, where are we right now?"

"Oklahoma. Gods almighty, it's beautiful out here. I-"

"We're headed somewhere near Cincinnati, Ohio" I blurted out. I didn't know why I said it; I almost felt compelled to. Percy raised an eyebrow, but nodded anyways.

"That's far! But it's pretty convenient, I'll admit. Nelly and I are headed to New York, we can drop you off on the way!"

"That'd be amazing," Percy said gratefully.

It was silent for a while. Nelly seemed to have forgotten how to function, and the old man turned on the radio and hummed along. Percy seemed perfectly at ease, spinning Riptide in pen form in his hand, and I wondered how he could be so comfortable with this. I was squirming every two seconds, just waiting for one or both of them to attack us.