Hearing words in the silence

chapter 5

Percy is still smiling as he leaves the therapist's office, and he's quite sure that he shocks his mother to death when she arrives to pick him up. He waves cheerily, sliding into the passenger seat, and she's still staring at him as though she doesn't recognize him.

"So uh... Did your session go well, then?" she asks, shifting the car into gear and pulling out of the parking lot.

Percy grins wider, remembering Nico, the first person to make an effort with him in three years, and he can't help but feel his heart start to race a little. His mother continues to eye him suspiciously as he nods, and Percy knows she's confused by his sudden change in attitude, but he doesn't care.

The rest of the drive is silent, and his mother keeps sending him weird looks that Percy pretends he doesn't see until they pull up in the driveway and Percy clambers out. He's eager to get his hands back on his guitar. Meeting Nico seems to have given him an all new inspiration and his fingers itch to strum the strings.

His stepfather is in the kitchen when Percy opens the door. He grunts at him, shooting his stepson a disapprovingly look, and Percy avoids his eyes.

"What are you grinning about, huh?"

The words are spat at him spitefully, and even from a few meters away, Percy can smell the alcohol on his breath. He fights the urge to gag, instead giving a non-committal shrug before he's slipping into his bedroom to leave his mother to deal with his mess of a stepfather.

It's not long before he can hear them yelling, and Percy slams his door shut loudly to make his point clear before he's rummaging through his closet again. His fingers close around the neck of his guitar finally, and he tugs it out of its hiding spot, settling back down on his bed with it in his lap. His fingers brush over the strings once, not playing them, but merely feeling the texture beneath his calloused fingertips, closing his eyes and committing the touch to memory, saving it for the inevitable day that his parents would take his guitar away from him. He knew it was only a matter of time, really. They were convinced that it gave him a reason to hide away from the rest of the world, and that, in turn, was detrimental to his "recovery".

Percy wanted to tell them that he couldn't recover from a disease that didn't exist.

There was no recovery to be done - Percy was perfectly healthy.

Then, Percy remembered Nico.

He felt a dull ache in his chest as he thought of the other boy, wishing for the first time that he was like everyone else. He wanted, needed Nico to like him. Percy hadn't had proper contact with someone his age in three years, and he had all but forgotten how much he needed it until it had been forced upon him. And now he wanted more. But Percy also knew from previous experience that there was no way Nico would hang around much longer now that he knew Percy would not speak.

Percy doesn't blame him; it does make a friendship a little difficult. But he still allows himself to hope that maybe, just maybe Nico will be different to all the others. Maybe he'll give Percy a chance.

With that thought allowing a smile to grace his lips, Percy sets the guitar down, crawling into bed beside it and letting his eyes fall closed.

"Perseus?"

Hands are on Percy's shoulders and shaking him gently, and he swats them away in annoyance, rolling over and trying to fall asleep again. He's shaken more firmly this time, his voice being called again and again until finally, Percy groans quietly and opens his eyes to find his mother staring back at him.

He's taken aback at first - He's never seen her lose control.

But here she is, standing in front of him, her eyes wide and watery, makeup smudged in messy streaks down her face.

Percy sits up abruptly, his eyes searching hers for an explanation.

"Perseus, we're leaving, come on,"

Percy's worry dissipates; this is hardly anything new.

"Will you get out of bed? We're leaving right now, please, Perseus."

A shake of the head and Percy is lying back down again, pulling the covers up to his chin and rolling on his side so that his back is facing her. This happens at least once every two weeks, often more. Percy 's stepfather will get even drunker than normal, they'll fight, yell, scream, and soon enough, his mother will come rushing into his bedroom demanding he get packed and that they're leaving his stepfather for good.

They never do.

Once, they actually made it to a hotel and stayed one night before his mother was rushing them home again the next morning. If Percy knows anything, it's that his mother can't stand not having security. It doesn't matter that her husband is an alcoholic, she still needs him. She needs him because she can't bear the thought of anything changing, or of her being out on her own without him to support her. Percy used to play along if only to please her, getting out of bed and packing his things, following her to the car and getting in, buckling up his seatbelt and waiting patiently for her to change her mind again.

"Perseus, I'm serious this time, get -"

"Babe, I didn't mean it, promise. I'm sorry," his stepfather's voice calls, and Percy rolls his eyes, because his stepfather his just as pathetically dependant as his mother.

It's not long before he's left alone again, and he can hear his mother downstairs apologizing for even thinking about leaving.

Sorry I have not updated in quite a while I've been struggling a lot with school work, home life and my own set of mind but I think I've got it under control again.

Jess-Lou out!