Nightmares (Jercy Oneshot(s)) ✳️

Keep It

"Right through the red doors?" Jason asked with his monster-proof phone held up to his ear by his shoulder. It was an awkward angle that made Jason's neck hurt, but he couldn't use his hands at the moment. They were occupied by large posters of encouragement for his boyfriend.

The parking lot behind him was filled with cars, but the lot was vacant of people. Inside the building, he could hear people cheering. He wasn't sure what for, the competition hadn't started yet. Maybe morale? A small part of him tried to shout that he was late, but the anxiety-fueled thought was crushed by his constant affirmation he received from Sally. 2 pm at the red doors, her voice said from the phone. It helped, having her reassure him that the meet hadn't started yet. He didn't have this problem before, the doubt and overthinking, but after he was shot with what seemed like dozens of arrows helping out Apollo, his senses were always on edge. And thus, so was his confidence.

Jason walked through the doors, using his hip to push them apart as the stench of chlorine flooded the atmosphere. A warm gust of wind came from the room. The school always made sure to crank up the heat in the pool area. The water was cold and Percy had told Jason that he heard too many students complained until they got heat.

Jason scanned the room. Rows of bleachers surrounded the pool. The bleachers were a rusted silver and crowded with families. The swarms of heads made Jason loose track of what row he was suppose to be scanning for. Sally had hung up on him, his phone now wedged in the weird angle to try and hold it. Every step he took felt like his arms were cramping.

"Jason!" He heard through the murmurs of the crowd. He looked around. A family was sitting near him, their daughter laughing at something her dad said. A gaggle of blondes with necks long like the ones you'd see on a flock of geese.

There was a large pool in the middle. It was still, with the swimmers lining up behind a diving board. The pool divided into 7 lanes, each equipped with their own diving board and a small ladder. Jason turned away and scanned the crowd again.

"Jason!" Estelle screamed while making the sprint to him. Sally went after her telling her not to run as the girl crashed into Jason's legs. Jason locked his knees to keep himself from falling down, her forehead brushing against his hand.

"Jason!" She repeated with a delighted expression. Jason felt himself smile, he ruffled her hair and Paul had come to take the posters out of his way. The three year old held onto Jason's pants like it was her lifeline, Sally throwing out a few apologies with a fond smile.

"Alrighty Ms. Stell-Bell, we gotta go back to the stands." Sally chided in. Jason felt his grin widen as he saw the oversized shirt on Percy's little sister.

It was a lightning blue Jersey, lined with navy colored seams. It was large on her small frame, running down to her ankles. In a bold white was the number 7 and the name Jackson above it.

"It's for bubba!" Estelle exclaimed when she noticed Jason staring at her new shirt. Jason nodded along.

"We got one for you too." Paul said as he led the group back to their spots. There were a few towels on the seats. A flowery-purple one marking Estelle's spot that she was sharing with her Ariel doll and a plastic shark. He tugged at Jason's hand but he gently told her to wait as Sally handed him a jersey.

"There's a changing room if you need one," she said once he unfolded the shirt. Estelle was tugging on his jeans pocket now. She was rambling about a mermaid adventure and how Percy was going to swim like Ariel. She held up her doll as emphasis on, what Jason managed to get from her mix of whispers and screams, how Percy would be in the water.

Sally sat herself down and Paul went to grab a few waters from concession. Jason looked and saw in the furthest lane from their seats was Percy. Estelle had pointed him out once Jason had taken a seat on her towel. She climbed in his lap, pointing an accusing finger at who she claimed was "the winnerest winner of all!"