Alone Again (Percico/Pernico AU)

Chapter 39

Excuse me never putting subjects in Clarisse's dialogue.😂😂 I just feel like she'd speak like that, whoops.

Enjoy my trashhhh!

[Trigger warning but not really???: really just discussion of how Percy tends to emotionally/mentally shut down every once in a while, nothing too bad]

And for once, Percy could genuinely say he was.
*****

"Fuck you!" Connor jokingly shouted at Percy as he picked up two cards from the deck. They were basically playing UNO with a standard deck of cards, which was an art apparently Clarisse, Connor, and Percy had mastered.

Needless to say, Nico was not good.

Although it was a game based on chance, Nico still somehow managed to never win a game. However, he didn't mind because Percy was finally seeming to feel a bit better, and that was Nico's main goal since he'd seen Percy so numb from feeling that same morning. He had to admit that he was impressed Percy managed to pull himself together and play card games with the two inmates and himself so quickly, yet it led to Nico wondering what else Percy was able to keep under wraps like this. What other emotions of Percy's had Nico completely ignored? Or more importantly, how much had Percy hidden and bottled up in just the short time Nico had known him, let alone for the years prior?

As he placed a card down, Nico felt someone tap his shoulder. He looked up to see Clarisse, glancing back and forth between Nico and the other two boys, who were continuously bickering as the game went along.

"What miracle did you perform to get him out of there?" She asked quietly, tossing a four of hearts down.

Nico shrugged. "Been trying to figure that out myself, to be quite honest."

"Well, whatever you did...nobody's been able to get him out of one of these until today."

"One of those?" Nico questioned, looking over to make sure Percy wasn't listening into their conversation. He was glad to see that Percy was still joking around with Connor about gods know what. However, he couldn't stop the sound of worry from creeping into his voice as he kept on with his interrogation, "These happen a lot?"

Clarisse sighed, grabbing Nico's wrist and standing up. She tugged him down the hallway, shouting to the boys behind her that she was showing Nico something and receiving confused affirmation. Once they were out of sight, she continued their conversation. "They used to. Every month or so. Luke and Annabeth were the only people he'd really ever talk to. And then Annabeth couldn't visit anymore because of her parents, and obviously Luke and Percy weren't the best of friends after age, like, fourteen."

Nico nodded, slowly taking in all of the information before mentioning the one piece of the conversation that seemed suspicious, "What did Annabeth's parents have to do with her visiting?"

"Stopped her and moved her out to California or some shit for six months. It's just easiest to say they didn't like the effect Percy's friendship had on her reputation."

"Sounds like her parents," Nico muttered mostly to himself before returning to the original topic, "What does he do during these...what are they?"

"Like hell I'd know," she scoffed, "Jackass just completely shuts off. The only time you can really get him to do what he's told. Only eats enough to survive, probably doesn't sleep, ignores ninety-nine percent of humanity. It's a bit terrifying when you care about him as much as you and I do, or Annabeth did, or as much as I thought Luke did."

"When did they start? Or do you know how?" Nico felt a tinge bad for throwing questions at her whenever she was done answering the last ones, but she seemed willing to talk and Nico knew he wasn't going to get answers from Percy himself.

Clarisse shook her head. "Nobody I've talked to really know how. I'm not even sure Percy knows why they happen, to be quite honest. Probably something to do with his mom or Gabe-you know about both of them, right?" A nod. "Okay. As for when, I'd probably say about eight or nine months after he got here. Three months after they hired Mr. D. Gods know how long after I got here."

"Can I ask...how long have you been here?" Nico asked, drifting off topic as he tended to commonly do while speaking to people.

She shrugged. "Lost track of the days. I was about the same age as Percy was. It's been quite some time. Speaking of which...I turn eighteen in less than two months."

Nico furrowed his eyebrows, not exactly processing what the issue was. "Happy early birthday, I guess?"

"And then Travis isn't too far behind me," she ignored Nico's remark.

"What does this have to do with me?"

She sighed, resisting the urge to roll her eyes at the boy's current lack of common sense. "It'll just be Connor and Percy here in less than three months. I just want to make sure you won't ditch him. And maybe keep an eye on Connor for Travis and me, too?"

Nico nodded. "You've all been together for the past five years, haven't you?"

"Yeah, excluding the rare month or so one of us lived actual lives. As much as I hate to admit it, I've really grown to think of them as family. A dysfunctional family of childhood mistakes."

"Optimistic," Nico murmured to himself. Everyone in that detention center was just so positive about life.

Clarisse continued speaking, "And I know they're seventeen and can easily handle themselves after all the shit they've been through...but moral support, eh? And please don't remind either of them. I still need to mention it, but I'm waiting for Travis to get back so I can talk to him first. He is leaving his brother, after all. Nico nodded, hoping he'd figure out what exactly Clarisse was telling him to do at a later point in time.

She sighed of obvious relief before their names were called from around the corner.

"Talk soon, di Angelo."

Happy Independence Day for all my American children! The fact that it's the Fourth of July reminded me of the shit one-shot I gave y'all last year. And then I went back to look at the date of the first chapter and it was September of 2016.

Like holy frack, I was twelve when I started this.😂 I'm scared to read the old chapters when I force myself to edit this. If I ever finish it, whoops.

Anyways, just wanted to give a huge thanks for all of you that have stuck around through this trash, whether you found this book two years ago or yesterday. And another thanks for 9K reads! It means so much to me that you guys are enjoying what I'm writing and always giving such positive reinforcement.

Love y'all, have a great week or two (or a month, whichever) until I get another chapter up!💕😂