Chapter Text
“Okay, get ready for me to knock your socks off,” Connor says as they sit out by the lake after dinner.
“Connor, I gave us a coffee shop meet-cute. How are you going to up that?” Jason taunts.
“With a high school AU of course!” Connor beams at him, “now hush and listen to my story.”
Connor is doing his homework in the school library when he hears his name being shouted. Connor was perfectly ready for this to happen of course. The whole reason he was sitting in the library was in the hopes that when Percy came to find him the librarian would kick him out for being too loud. The only problem with this foolproof plan is that it was not in fact Percy who walked it. It was not Jason Grace, and not just your regular old Jason Grace. This was Jason Grace with blue hair.
It’s not as if he and Jason don’t know each other. They share a friend group and there have been many times that they’ve hung out in groups, though never alone together. The most time they spend talking to each other is at lunch. After Jason and Piper had broken up the lunch table had rearranged to place them at opposite ends. Leaving Jason to sit with him, Nico and Will and Piper to sit near Annabeth, Percy, and Leo.
Jason makes a beeline for him, and before Connor can even look around for the librarian Jason has him by the wrist and is pulling him out into the hallway. For a moment Connor is taken aback by the way that Jason is clearly so upset and yet continues to be gentle with Connor. Jason has easily got both the height and athletic advantage over Connor, and yet his grasp on his wrist is firm but not violent.
“Is there a reason you’re grabbing my wrist?” Connor asks when his brain finally starts working again.
“My hair is blue,” Jason says plainly.
“Uh, yes,” is all Connor can manage to respond with.
Jason huffs for a second as he looks at Connor. Seemingly thinking about where this conversation is going to go. Connor isn’t sure whether it’s safe to speak.
“My hair is blue, and odds are it’s your fault.”
“Is it really my fault if you stole Percy’s shampoo? Stealing is a serious crime, Mr. Grace” Connor really doesn’t see how this is his fault.
“Ok first of all thank you for confirming that Percy has been stealing my shampoo. That is strangely comforting in this moment,” Jason runs a hand through his blue hair.
Connor is going to kill Percy. Why can’t the kid just buy his own shampoo? It’s not as if Connor wanted to prank the star athlete of the school. He just wanted to prank his favorite fish boy.
“Part two of my question: why put in blue dye if you thought Percy was going to use it. His hair is way too dark for this to stick?”
“Oh, the answer is simple. Percy is a heathen,” Connor replies, “Percy uses shampoo as body wash, so really, my hope was to turn his skin blue.”
Jason pauses for a moment, and Connor worries he might hit him. Instead, though, Jason laughs. Nearly doubling over with the intensity of his laugh. Connor watches him for a moment. This isn’t the first time Connor has seen Jason look so handsome, but it is the first time he’s seen him look so blissfully free. It’s a good look on him.
Connor imagines that it’s hard to be the person who is good at everything. Jason holds the school records for both soccer and track and field. He’s the student government president, and captain of the debate team, and according to Percy, he’s what many of the girls have deemed the best prom date candidate.
Eventually, Jason stops laughing and looks at Connor. Connor can’t help but feel the dread bubble up in his stomach when he sees the way that the blue dye sticks to Jason’s scalp. Jason must notice him looking and once again runs a hand through his hair. Only then does Connor notice that Jason’s hands are blue too.
“Listen I know you didn’t mean to do any harm, but I’ve got this huge thing planned on Friday, and I was really hoping to not have blue during it,” Jason pleads.
Connor knows exactly what is happening Friday even if Jason doesn’t say it directly. Everyone in the school has been talking about it. Jason is going to prompose to someone. Though no one except Leo and Nico seem to know who. Not even Percy. Though this makes sense, because the only reason that the whole school knows that a promposal is happening is because Leo had accidentally mentioned it to Percy.
Connor supposes that Jason really shouldn’t have blue hair when he asks whoever the object of his desires is to prom. Though there’s an evil part of Connor’s brain that wants to sabotage it. Jason would have much more fun going to prom with him than he would with whatever girl he’s going to ask that will be judgy of blue hair, but he’ll be the bigger man.
“It’s temporary. Come to my house and we’ll wash it out with some of my clarifying shampoo and some hot water,” Connor says, throwing his backpack over his shoulder.
Jason sings his praises as they walk down the block to Connor’s house. Connor reminds Jason that he’s technically the reason Jason’s hair is blue in the first place. Jason counters it by blaming Percy, and, well, Connor’s never been one to miss an opportunity to blame Percy for something.
When they get home Travis is there, but he thankfully thinks nothing of the fact that Connor and Jason are spending time together alone. Nor does he question the fact that Jason has blue hair. God, Connor loves his brother. Connor takes Jason up to the bathroom.
“You’re probably going to have to take your shirt off,” Connor says, trying not to blush.
“Oh uh yeah totally, right, cool,” Jason says, turning red.
Jason takes off his shirt and Connor does his best not to stare at him. Instead, he focuses on the work ahead of him. He grabs the clarifying shampoo from where it is kept in the cabinet, for situations like this one. He also grabs some towels and some good conditioner.
“Cool so why don’t you just sit down and lean your head back and I can shampoo it for you,” Connor attempts to play it cool.
Jason does as he’s told and Connor gets to work. It’s not a very long process. Connor had specifically picked something that would come off easily. After all, his intended target was Percy, and he didn’t want to face the wrath that was a pissed-off Annabeth. Jason stays quiet through most of the process, which is good because Connor can’t focus on conversation when Jason has his shirt off. That’s just unfair.
When Connor finishes wrapping Jason’s hair up in a towel the way he’s seen his mom do it a hundred times. Jason laughs when he sees himself in the mirror. Connor tries to ignore the fact that he still hasn’t put his shirt on. Eventually, Jason redresses and removes the towel on his head. Connor walks him to the door.
“Thank you so much for your help, Connor,” Jason smiles at him as he leans on the doorframe. Connor thinks he may swoon.
“Of course. It was my fault after all!” Connor smiles back.
“I’ll see you at lunch tomorrow,” Jason says, leaving with a wave.
The next few days pass by mostly the same though Connor thinks that Jason is looking at him more. Though there’s a good chance that it’s wishful thinking. Well, it would be if Percy and Leo stopped making kissy faces at him every time that Jason so much as looked at him. They were assholes though, so it’s just as easy to think they found out about Connor’s crush than to actually think Jason liked him.
Then Friday comes. Connor has been waiting for the day. Interested as anyone else to see who Jason plans on bringing to prom. There’s a tension in the air that everyone can feel. Connor feels it too. No one is sure when it’s going to happen, though the safe bets are either at lunch or after school.
Lunch goes by normally, though everyone looks at their table for the entire lunch. Jason doesn’t seem to be phased, and instead makes conversation with Connor about the latest season of some Netflix show he’s been watching. Leo throws an apple at him at one point and Jason grabs it before it can hit him. All very basic lunchtime stuff.
After school, Connor is just ready to go home when Nico appears out of nowhere, “I have a new pack of mythomagic cards and if I don’t open them in your presence they won’t be any good.”
Connor laughs at that remembering when they were kids and Nico would swear that Connor was his good luck charm. Now, neither Nico nor Connor play, but Nico will buy them on occasion in hopes of completing his collection.
“Come on, they're in Jason’s locker,” Nico says, walking away without bothering to see if Connor is following.
Connor pauses for a moment, questioning why they would be in Jason’s locker rather than Nico’s. Nico doesn’t give him time to question it as he power walks down the hallway. Who knew such a tiny goth could move so fast? Connor is so focused on catching up to Nico that he barely notices the small crowd that is forming around the locker.
When he finally catches up he sees it. There at the locker is Jason Grace, looking as handsome as ever. Instead of cards, he’s holding a large poster and a box of candies. Connor stares for a moment confused, until he reads the poster.
Connor, I’d be blue if you didn’t go to prom with me.
“That was cute,” Jason smiles as Connor finishes the story, “but I don’t know if that was a meet-cute. If anything it was a meet ugly, and we already knew each other.”
Connor huffs, “Fine then you can tell a meet ugly next time and we’ll see who’s better.”
“Oh, you are so on.”