Alone Again (Percico/Pernico AU)

Chapter 27

Heads up: I'm gonna time skip to Sunday for plot convenience. Also, I hope you enjoyed that one shot bc you'll probably hate this book after reading this chapter whoops.

Okay, continue😂

He was perfectly aware that he'd be alone again.
*****

Nico was going to do it. He was really going to do it. Ever since Luke had dropped that bomb on him about Bianca, he'd been dreading talking to Percy again. What the fuck was he supposed to say? "Hey, your friend told me you killed my sister, how's your week been, bitch?"

Yeah, that probably wouldn't work.

He sat in the passenger seat of Jason's car, staring out the front window and gripping the armrests like there was no tomorrow. The blonde seemed to notice, for he removed the boy's left hand at a red stoplight.

"It'll be fine, Nico," Jason reassured the younger male, pushing the gas pedal after the light turned green.

Nico shook his head. "I highly doubt that. I mean, what if he totally freaks out and kills me too?"

Jason rolled his eyes, pulling into the small parking lot. "You already know there's officers surrounding the place."

"Does that really mean anything, though?" Nico asked with a sigh, unbuckling and climbing out of the car. Jason was just going to sit in the car while Nico talked to Percy, which really only confused him more. He wasn't exactly sure why his brain couldn't comprehend anything, but he was quite tired of it.

He waved to Jason, closing the car door and walking inside the building. He requested his visit and did some sign in thing at the front desk before being brought to their cafeteria area again. He had tried to show up around the same time as last week to make sure that he didn't awkwardly interrupt something. Upon walking into the room, Nico immediately noticed that all eyes were on him. He also took notice that there seemed to be a missing pair of eyes since his last visit.

"Nico?" Percy spoke up, looking quite surprised.

Nico nodded. "Can I, uh, talk to Percy alone by any chance?"

The girl (what was her name again? Christine? Carrie? Oh, Clarisse!) shoved Percy off the bench and sent him in Nico's direction. Nico did notice that Percy looked quite, how to put it, unstable, to say the least. That both concerned and worried Nico for completely different reasons. The two sat down at the furthest table from the others, which also happened to be the furthest from the door.

"So, ah, you're back," Percy stated, still looking really confused but managing to wear a hint of a smile.

Nico nodded, suddenly about ten times more anxious about the situation. "Listen, I just came to...to say something about a thing that, uh, that Luke told me the on Monday."

Percy's somewhat joyful expression immediately fell for a moment before coming back with a very forced, light chuckle. "Luke's a joker...that...one," he chose his words carefully, knowing full well what was about to happen.

"What he said wasn't a joke," Nico muttered bitterly, looking at the wall.

Percy sighed heavily. "It never is."

"Just why...why'd you do it? Were you really that desperate?" Nico asked, hoping to get some kind of answer.

Percy simply sat there, taking deep breaths as he racked his mind for a decent answer. Nico deserved an explanation, and Percy desperately wanted to give it to him.

But he couldn't.

He was, once again, useless to everyone around him. Percy's mouth began speaking before his brain was ready. "I...I'm sor-"

"Don't fucking apologize," Nico said, returning his eyes to Percy, who nodded in response.

"You know, I really didn't want to come here today," Nico began, still looking at Percy, who was staring at the table, "Jason basically had to force me, and he's sitting in the parking lot right now. Ever since you told me that nobody really visited in the past five years, I was pretty confused. When Leo told me that you'd done shit, I didn't believe him. I was curious as why to Thalia Grace, the badass who has no fears, decided it was a good idea to warn me before showing up here last week. I genuinely thought you were a good person. But now...now everything makes sense. All of your anxiety around me, all of your little secrets, all of the others being so cautious around you and me when we're together. They were all worried for me when they found out I was coming here today. They all already knew, you already knew, and I've been in the dark for the past three years. And I finally got the truth. I was actually mad at everyone for a few days, pissed that they'd kept it from me all this time, but then I realized...they were all just trying to protect me from everything, and how could I be mad for that? Thinking over what Luke said, it made me realize that the only person I have to blame...is you."

Nico sat, staring at Percy bitterly as he waited for answer. It went on like that for a few minutes before Nico eventually gave up, sighing. "Fuck you," he spat quietly, standing up and leaving without another word.

Percy continued to numbly stare down at the table, only temporarily flicking his gaze to his sides to see Connor on his left with Travis and Clarisse on his right. They hadn't heard the conversation, but anyone could see that it obviously didn't end well. Connor gently wrapped his arms around Percy, deciding to ignore the small flinch that followed, while Percy subconsciously laid his head on Travis's shoulder, who just happened to be the tallest person there, if only by a little bit. Clarisse awkwardly reached over Connor's side and reassuringly rubbed her thumb across the back of the boy's hand. The four just sat like that for a while in silence, knowing that none of them were exactly the best at verbal comfort.

Finally, Percy was the first one to say anything. "I'm sorry," he whispered, almost inaudibly. "I...maybe he's right about me."

Travis looked at him, confused, "What are you tal-"

"I'm the one to blame...everything's that happened to me...was my fault," he spoke in fragments, looking up at the other three before continuing.

"Wasn't it?"

GUYS I LIKE DOING THEATRE BC I MEET PEOPLE THAT LIKE THE SAME MUSICALS THAT I DO AND I JUST REALIZED THIS IS A PJO FANFIC AND NOT A MUSICAL ONE, I'LL GO NOW, SORRY.