Work Text:
I sat with my legs resting on the table like a baddie, reading a not-so-baddie book about medical anatomy. It had been a slow day. Actually, it had been a slow week. It was the beginning of summer and while it was warm, the summer campers had yet to show up in swarms. Everyone was too lazy with the warm sun to recharge themselves to even consider traversing the lava wall. Making for light work.
A fly gently bumped into my head. The heat was so nice and warm, and everything else was so boring. Even the air seemed to agree with the sleepy-induced day as dust filtered through the streaming sunshine. I had drifted off when the shouts first echoed. Then with the second one, I was awake. A group of Athena kids were rushing Malcolm in. He had a long cut that stretched from his hip down to his calf. It looked deep.
“Oh thank the Gods that it's Will,” one of the campers said. “He was practicing with Clarisse and—”
“One should never practice with Clarisse.”
“Shut up.”
“—and she accidentally went too far.”
“Just get him on the bed,” I yelled over all the commotion. I grabbed my supplies and made my way to his side. “Okay,” I pointed to a couple of kids, “I need y’all to hold him down while I do this.”
I staunched the bleeding, disinfected the wound, and numbed it. With my thread, I started stitching the wound. It was going to take forever, so I had them feed him ambrosia. The whole situation was chaos. I felt small and panicked but also like I had an important job to do. It was a little too much, but I had to keep going. The idea that I couldn’t was as scary as if I could. Just for a second, I felt my body have that scary increase of nervous energy. The feeling that I couldn’t control my body before I settled into a better rhythm.
No matter how many times I heal someone, it is always so scary. What if I can’t do it? What if I let someone die? My ability for healing was all that kept someone from dying. My own skill holds someone’s life.
Malcolm is fine. I cleaned up everything, and he is now resting. I rest my elbows on the edge of the sink. The sleeves get a little wet because someone splashed water all over the counter. I rub my face, extra tired from the energy rush. I look at my hands for a second and they seem red. I jump back before looking at them again and deciding it was just the lighting.
To be honest, Malcolm was a little touch and go there for a second. The wound was deep; I could see his bone. A lot of blood had been lost. I was super worried. The last time I had been that worried it was…
A couple of bodies sprawled against the dirt, monster grime dusting them. There was the tide of monsters ready to join those already on the ground. I watched carefully, trying to see where all of my siblings were. I couldn’t lose any more after Lee. I watched carefully as Michael talked to Percy. Their backs were turned to me so I couldn’t tell what was going on. I could smell the metallic scent and chalky dust in the air.
I lost focus on them for a second as I turned to see how far I was from the Empire State Building. It was my first time in forever since I had seen the building. I never went with the rest to visit the gods because I was still too young. That’s when I heard the crack of the bridge. I turned to make sure that Michael had come back so I could double-check that bandage.
I couldn’t see him. The bridge was crashing. I ran forward as if I could keep the entire bridge together. Someone stopped me. I can’t remember who stopped me. The bridge materials mixed with the air, making it hard to breathe.
I couldn’t handle it. My brother was supposed to lead; he was supposed to make it to college. Maybe he did make it and I just can’t see him. My anxiety was through the roof. “Did he make it, Did he make it?” My brain screamed.
I was gripping the sink so hard, I wanted to break it. Tears streamed down my face but quietly, quietly.
“Hey Will, could you—”
I looked into the mirror to see Nico. He came up to me and started rubbing circles into my back.
“Hey, do you want to head to my cabin?” he said in a soft voice. “Austin just showed up. An Athena camper explained what happened.”
I just nodded. He moved and gave a little hug before taking off his hoodie, an interesting development, and putting it on me. Then he ruffled my hair and pulled up my hood. A quick kiss was pressed against my cheek before bringing me out into the light.