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“Piper is out with Shel right now, if you were looking for her.” Tristan wiped the remains of coffee away from the corner of his mouth, which Apollo followed with more interest than he probably should for a parent of one of his… not friends but they’d risked their lives for each other, which probably wasn’t nothing either.
“That’s okay, I can wait if you don’t mind,” his hand hovered against the edge of the doorway as Tristan moved aside and let him come in.
“Coffee? It’s just drip, I’m afraid.”
“Lovely,” he smiled at him, and he could really see what his fellow Olympian had seen in this man, with his charming jawline and clever eyes. His hair was at an awkward stage between lengths but it was well kept and combed. He hadn’t shaved that morning either, and a shadow had gathered around his lower face in a way that Apollo wouldn’t mind waking up with maybe one morning. Especially with those cheekbones… he wouldn’t mind that at all.
“How’s moving treating you?” He asked as his hands closed around the cup, and he found Tristan McLean was quite easy to talk to after all. Things he had found out about him from an hour’s long conversation:
- he’d been recognised twice in his favourite new coffee shop and was currently giving a fake name and background
- one of his coworkers had asked him out, and he’d had to decline them because he wasn’t interested in getting back in tabloids and was about 30% sure that that was why
- Piper was settling well into her new high school and seemed to be a lot happier than she had been at any previous school
“I’m glad to be around more,” he said, hand’s round a third cup of coffee, now gone so cold it could be sold in a hipster cafe on either coast. “I didn’t get to see her so much when I was acting, or promoting my films, it’s not good to bring a kid around like that, if I’m flying out to New York one week, to Mexico, to Australia, but I don’t think she was happy in Los Angeles either. All children are cruel, but Los Angeles teenagers-” He made a face, and Apollo couldn’t help but chuckle.
“I can see why you’ve been nominated for so many Academy Awards, Tristan.”
“And why I’ve not won any either,” he smiled. “Maybe I should have brought her with me, and had her homeschool from a computer. I don’t know. Potential futures are unknowable, to me at least,” he shrugged. “But I have made mistakes, and all I can do now is try my best to be there for her, and make up for them, I suppose.”
“For what it’s worth,” he chose his words carefully. “My father… wasn’t as dedicated as you seem to be, and I think you’re doing a great job, personally.”
Tristan chewed on the inside of his cheek, and Apollo didn’t miss the way his eyes darted down to his lips, just for a second. “I hope you’re right.”
“I usually am.”
“You’ve been spending a lot of time with my daughter’s father.”
Apollo screamed and dropped his lyre, “ Aphrodite , don’t sneak up on me!”
She smirked, her appearance changing from round faces to high cheekbones, to tanned to freckles, to blond, to ginger, and silky black hair hanging around a face that could give him a headache on a bad day. He shut his eyes, trying to focus. “What is it?”
“Nothing, nothing.” She grinned. “Haven’t seen you in love in a while.”
“I’ve been busy. Doing things.”
“Doing things, doing stuff. Never any people, though.”
He was so glad he was a god right now and not Lester. He would have definitely turned scarlet otherwise. “What do you want?”
“I was just wondering how Piper is taking it. She hasn’t mentioned you spending this time with her father in any prayers.”
“Piper prays to you?” He raised an eyebrow.
She scowled, “Sometimes. Not as much as I’d- we’re getting off topic. This is about you and Tristan . Tell me, does he still do that tongue trick?”
“I’m not sleeping with Tristan McLean!” He’d been too loud. He could practically feel Erato and Calliope - why was she invested in this? Were Tristan’s movies covered as Epic? - breathing next to him, and gods didn’t need to breathe!
Aphrodite pouted, “Really? That’s a shame. He’s rather talented . Anyway, let me know when you do, I’ll tell you what he likes, it’s this little spot beside his ear… Well, I’ll tell you when you want to know. Tra-la!” She poofed out, deliberately leaving a strong smell of perfume, and unsurprisingly, Tristan’s own cologne.
“Love gods,” Apollo muttered. He didn’t say anything else though. Just in case.
But Piper was going to murder him when she found out.
It wasn’t as if he and Tristan were dating. Or… anything. They were just two adults who drank coffee together and talked about their kids, their lives. Apollo had to dress up his parts since Piper’s father didn’t know about any of it, but the feelings were real. His inadequacy. The way being on Olympus these days didn’t sit on his skin right any more. The way the power felt more wrong than right, the way he could choose to kill people with no consequences most of the time, over a mere whim.
Maybe it was the fact that he didn’t know that made the stakes lower. Or maybe it was that he had had… not dissimilar experiences himself in Hollywood. Being a god and an actor weren’t really equivalent but in the venn diagram of the two, they weren’t too separate either.
And he was handsome, and nice. And had a killer sense of humour.
But Piper would kill him. He was a god now, but she would work out a way of doing it. Especially since she was good friends with the blonde scary one who was dating Percy Jackson.
And Tristan wouldn’t date him if she vetoed it. He knew a lot of things about him now, but most particularly how much he loved his daughter, and there wasn’t much that he wouldn’t do for her. Maybe he’d even help with the deicide.
The version of him that was driving the sun chariot pulled out his phone and typed into the search bar: how to tell someone you’re dating their dad. you’re not really friends but her ex boyfriend is your half brother and you consider yourself a little responsible for his death even though his ghost said not to be.
His phone loaded for five minutes straight as he split his vision between his route until it sparked and exploded. Fair enough, really. It didn’t help him though.