When the Sun Meets the Sea

"Mother!"

Percy's POV
After dinner Apollo offered to take the dishes while mom got Arika ready for bed. I saw Paul go into the living room while I make sure Apollo hasn't broken a dish. I hop onto the counter and watch him.

"Where does this go?" Apollo holds up the plate and I point to a cupboard.
"You know, mom and Paul are definitely going to interrogate you." Apollo hesitates as he closes the cupboard.
"I know. How bad are they going be?" I smirk.
"Mom will be brutal. Don't know about Paul though."
"Great." Apollo chuckles humorlessly.

Apollo puts away the last cup and I hop off the counter. I grab Apollo's hand and lead him into the living room. We take the love seat while mom and Paul take the couch.

"So Apollo," mom starts.
"Here we go." Apollo murmurs. I withhold a chuckle.
"How did you two get together?"
"Well, er, I came to camp to help the demigods with their archery. You know, your daughter is amazing with a sword but terrible with a bow." Mom and Paul laugh and I gently shove Apollo's shoulder.
"Hey! I'm getter better aren't I?" Apollo smiles at me.
"You are." Apollo places a kiss at my temple. "With time of course." I laugh. "Anyways, the competition was today."
"How long have you guys been together?" Paul asks. I look over at Apollo.
"Uh, almost a month now. We started dating two weeks before we defeated End." I answered.
  "What does your father think of this?" Mom asks. I hear Apollo gulp
  "He hasn't said anything." Yet. The word hangs in the air and I know everyone is thinking it. All of a sudden Arika come stumbling in.
  "I can't sleep." I hear mom sigh.
  "Arika, why don't you and Percy go get a glass of milk? Would you like that?" Arika nods. Apollo looks up at me. 'Don't go.' His eyes say. 'Sorry.' I say back.

   I scoop Arika up and go to the kitchen. I set Arika down on the counter and get the milk from the fridge. I put some milk in a cup and put it in the microwave to warm up. With my advanced hearing I can hear the conversation in the living room.

"As far as I know, you were Olympus' 'playboy'." Mother says. I flinch. The microwave beeps and I get the milk out.
"Careful, its warm." I hand the cup to Arika and she takes a sip.
"I like it." She takes a another sip. I smile.
"Keyword is were. Your daughter made me realize that I can't keep running around the world sleeping with different people. I love her and I have no intention of hurting her." I freeze. Apollo's words flash through my head.

'He loves me?' I can feel mom and Paul's surprise.

"You what?" Paul asks. I find my self leaning closer even though I can hear perfectly fine.
"Well, (I'm totally making this up) I believe in love at first sight. And although I technically didn't fall in love with her when I first saw her, given she was like thirteen that would've been wrong. It didn't take long for me to fall in love with her though."

'Didn't take long to fall in love with her.' I watch Arika sip her drink, not even the littlest concerned with the conversation on the other side of the wall.

"She's a remarkable woman. It's kinda hard not to fall in love with her." A smile breaks out in my face.
"What are your intentions with my daughter?" Mom cuts straight to the point.
"Well," Apollo pauses, searching for the right words. "I intend to love and care for her as long as I can. I intend to inspire her to grow more and help her through her struggles as best I can." Apollo speaks with so much conviction my heart melts. Arika holds out her empty cup. I take it and set it in the sink for later.
"You want to go to bed now?" She nods and rubs at her eyes. I pick her off the counter and carry her into her room. The conversation stops when I walk in. I look over my shoulder.
"She's tired now." They nod and smile as if the weren't talking about my love life.

After I tuck in Arika I take my seat next to Apollo. He immediately puts an arm around my shoulders. The air is tense.

"Aren't the fireworks tonight?" I ask. Apollo nods quickly.
"They are. That's why I came to pick you up. I thought you would like to see them." I smile and look over at mom. She seems to think before she smiles.
"Go." We all stand up and as we are about to close the door she shouts something. "Remember to use protection!" I freeze before shouting.
  "Mother!"
  "Bye! Love you!"
  "Love you too!" I say before slamming the door. Apollo bursts out laughing. I roll my eyes.
"Come on. We don't want to be late."

Apollo and I teleport to camp and find our way to the beach. I drag him through the crowd to find my favorite spot.

  "This is a nice spot." Apollo stated. It was a bit off the path but had the perfect view.
  "I know. Annabeth found it." I summoned a blanket and Apollo and I sat down next to each other.
"So when is it supposed to start?" I looked down at my watch.
"Any time now."
  "Great." Apollo gently grips my jaw and turns my head so I look at him.
  "What are you-" He leans down and kisses right went a firework exploded in the sky.

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