When the Sun Meets the Sea

"A tear ran down his cheek."

Percy's POV
   It's been a couple days since the 'weird Apollo incident.' The new campers are really improving and I am too at archery, surprisingly. But the thing that shocks me the most is that Apollo and I have been getting closer and closer. It's just that we're drawn to each other. Like two opposite sides of a magnet; cause that's what we are.

It was around midnight when our friendship got a bit more serious? Deep? Something like that. I was laying in bed trying to fall asleep when there was a knock at my door. I sat up confused. Who would knock at this hour? I grabbed riptide off the nightstand, just in case, and approached the door.

I pulled the door open and there stood Apollo with tears pooling in his eyes yet they won't fall. His cobalt blue eyes looked so exhausted and tired and just......dull.

"Apollo?" I ask. He sniffles.
"Remember when you said that I could come here if I couldn't sleep?" His voice is small and soft. I nod.
"Can I?" I nodded once again and pulled the door open wider.

He walked in and sat down on my bed. I closed the door and put riptide back on the nightstand. I sat down across from him, Indian style. I waited for him to gather his thoughts. After a couple of minutes he spoke.

"You know how I can like envision stuff?" I nodded. "Well I get visions and dreams. And sometimes they're not good. I got one of the bad ones tonight." A tear ran down his cheek.
"Oh Apollo." I whispered.

I pulled him in a hug and he finally let the tears fall. He buried his face in the crook of my neck while I rubbed his back.

"It's okay. Let it out. I'm here." I whispered to him. Heart wrenching sobs came from his body. My heart slowly cracked at the sounds.

A couple minutes later he pulled away. His eyes were bloodshot and his face was blotchy. I smiled warmly at him.

"Do you want to talk about?" I asked softly. He nodded a little.
"The dream or nightmare was of these families. And they were dying and no one was helping them. I couldn't help them. So many people. Dead. People with their heart broken and stomped all over. People losing their loved ones all to soon. And these visions they plague me for days. And it doesn't help that they're getting more frequent. And I just - they're just-." He sighed. More tears escaped his eyes. I quickly brushed them away with my thumbs.

"There might be bad ones but what about the good ones? Do you have those?" He nodded. "What are they?"

"They're normally when someone finally gets that good grade or when they get into that school that they always wanted. When people wake up and see the love of their life sleeping peacefully next to them. Sometimes of people getting married, starting a family.
"People watching their children grow and seeing them start their own family. When someone raised enough money for that thing that they always wanted. When someone pulls out freshly baked deserts for that fundraiser that'll help change the world slowly but surely." More tears fell and I wiped them away. "They're the only things that keep me going from the nightmares." I tilt my head to the side.

"Haven't you told anyone about this?" He nods. "Just mom." He meets me eyes. "And you."

"What about your sister? Artemis?" His eyes got a new emotion. Anger. I was shocked. "She hasn't cared since we got to Olympus." He spat out. He looked at my confused face and sighed. "When we got to Olympus all these gods stared after her. And being the protective brother that I am I shooed them away. She eventually saw this but not me making them go away. And that's when she started hating men. And you would think that she wouldn't hate her own brother. But now, we barely go hunting anymore. She barely ever talks to me and when she does it's yelling. And I'm only doing the thing she yells at me for because it's the only way to get her attention! I mean who ignores their own brother! Their twin! Their little brother." He whispered the last part but I still heard him.

This added another crack in my heart. Seeing him like this. So fragile and depressed. But I'm glad he trusted me enough to show himself like this to me. He's crying again and I pull him in another hug. But this one for completely different reasons.

I found another god to have anger towards. Artemis. How can she do this? To him. To her own twin brother. I pushed the thoughts away and comforted the crying god in my arms.

He calmed down after a while. And I brushed my thumb over his test tracks. He leaned into the touch. He opened his eyes and stared at me.

"Can I stay here for the night? I don't want to be alone." The last part was barely a whisper.
"Of course."

I got back under the covers and made room for Apollo. He got under the covers and I wrapped my arms around his waist and tucking my head under his chin. I sighed in content from the warmth. Our legs soon became tangled and our breathing steadied.

Apollo's POV
I cracked my eyes opened and looked around. I was in the Poseidon cabin. Again. I looked over and saw Percy laying there. Poseidon is going to kill me

The sunlight from the window hit her just right. It made her glow. She had a small trail of drool coming out of her mouth and I smiled. I stare at her sleeping form. A little creepy I know but she was too beautiful.

Wait. What?! Since when did I think like this? Am I falling for her? Good gods I might be. I was snapped out of my thoughts when she stirred. She lifted her head up and squinted at me.

"Hey." Her groggy voice said.
"Well hello sleeping beauty."
"I thought we went over this."
"Nothing you can do will change my mind." She sighed.
"Well if you are going to call me a name I will just have to call you on." I raised an eyebrow.
"Oh yeah?" She nodded.
"Yeah. So if you say the 'sleeping beauty' name is true....." she tapped her chin in thought. "Sunshine."
"What?"
"That's your nick name." I smiled at her and she smiled back.
"I like it. But now I have to come up with a better one then before." She rolls her eyes.

She sits up and swings her legs over the side of the bed. My smile fell a little from the absence of warmth.

"You should probably go to your kids so they don't freak out." She got up and went to the dresser. I sat up to.
"Yeah I probably should."

I stood and and she turned around with clothes in her hands. I walked over to her and hugged her. She tensed for a second then hugged me back. I pulled back.

"What was that for?"
"For last night. Thank you." I kissed the top of her head and flashed away before she could do anything.

Okay I'll end it here. I might update soon though. I really do think that. This chapter is mainly just them growing together. Apollo thinks he's falling for her. Maybe she'll find out that she might be too in the next chapter? Who knows?
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