Chapter Text
Leo watched Percy for a moment. It had been a year since the war ended and they were back at camp again for the summer. Everyone seemed to be happy, except for one certain son of Poseidon. Something was clearly wrong, and Leo was pretty sure he knew what it was.
Percy had been to Tartarus the year before after saving Annabeth from falling. He went alone. But that was only one reason the Latino suspected he was acting this way. Another reason was that Nico had died saving him. And that’s when he realized he liked guys and he’d liked Nico. Leo knew it had really hurt him to realize that. He’d liked Nico, but hadn’t realized it until he died. It had affected him a lot.
Over the past few days, Leo had noticed that Percy looked sad very often and would always leave when anyone was kissing or just being coupley. Leo realized then that it wouldn’t go away until they did something about it. He had the perfect idea of what to do.
“Hey, Percy,” the son of Hephaestus greeted, sitting down on the older demigod’s bed. Percy looked back at him, wondering why he was there. “I had an idea of how we can get away from here. I know you need some time to properly mourn Nico and to heal from Tartarus and everything that happened to you. And it hurts me to see Hazel and Frank together. I liked Hazel, but she didn’t like me. I know at least a little bit of how you feel and I think it’ll be best if we leave.” Green eyes seemed to calculate and pick apart what he was saying.
“So, you think we should go somewhere?” He nodded in response.
“That’s exactly what I’m saying. I have a cousin in Hawaii. I haven’t seen him in a while, but I know he’ll help us out. We can go and work in their shop for a while before we get used to being there. What do you say?” He considered it for a little bit.
“I don’t know, Leo,” he finally answered. “I still have nightmares. I don’t think it would be good to stay with anyone right now.” He still woke up screaming or crying or just shaking in the night with nightmares from Tartarus. Sometimes, he’d wake up feeling paralyzed and couldn’t move and he’d hyperventilate if someone wasn’t there to help him calm down.
“I’m sure his walls are already sound-proofed. When we were younger, he would stay up late and help his brothers in the other rooms and I would never hear a sound. And if they aren’t, we can always find a way to sound-proof them.” He took one of Percy’s hands in both of his, squeezing it reassuringly. “You need to get away from here or you’ll never heal. You trust me, don’t you?” He nodded a little. “Then trust me on this. I want to help you. Let’s go to Hawaii.”
“Okay, Leo,” he started quietly. “Say I decide to go with you…” he seemed to collect his thoughts for a moment. “What about our friends?”
“What about them? They’re all happy, Percy. They’re gonna be fine without us. They have their happiness. You don’t yet. You deserve to find it. And I think you’ll find it. In Hawaii. If you come with me. You can always leave later, but give me a year, alright? Just that much.” He sighed and looked away.
“Alright, Leo. A year. If it doesn’t work out by then, I’m gonna go back home and start college there. If not, I’ll think about staying.” The younger demigod grinned and hugged him tightly.
“Great. We’ll leave on Friday.”
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They decided not to tell anyone where they were going, but they told them they were leaving. Everyone thought it was a good idea for them to get away, especially Percy, for a while. They really needed to clear their minds from all of this. Annabeth was really happy to know that her best friend would get the help he needed. And that he would have the chance to be happy. He really deserved it.
“I’ll miss you,” she murmured, hugging him tighter. It hurt him a bit. He still loved her, but she didn’t love him back. It was just another reason why he needed to go.
“I’ll miss you too,” he responded truthfully, though he was gonna try and get over her too. Hopefully, in the end, he wouldn’t be missing her too much. For another moment, they just hugged. And then, Annabeth let go, and it was like it might be a little bit easier. Maybe he would be able to get over her.
“We’ll see you later,” Hazel told them. She was another reminder of Nico, and Percy had avoided her lately, but he’d wanted to say goodbye. He didn’t know when he’d see her again, or any of them.
“There’s your mom,” Leo said, pointing down the hill to where a Prius drove up. It was time to go. Percy turned and took a last look at Camp Half-Blood and at his friends before he looked at Leo and they walked down the hill and got into the car. Percy didn’t look back.
Things were going to improve.