The House of Hades (Fan-Fiction)

Chapter 29

Chapter 29

Jason

            Jason didn’t like to admit he was scared of Reyna.

            His hands trembled around the remote and the microphone. The way she gazed at him calmly brought shivers up his spine.

            “What do you want to talk about?” he asked, trying to sound as calm as possible.

            “You left me,” she said simply, her cold eyes assessing him. “You left me alone, Jason. I couldn’t handle it by myself, and you never came back.”

            “I’m sorry,” he instantly apologized, feeling an overwhelming amount of guilt set in his stomach. “You don’t get it, Reyna. Juno wiped my memory. I didn’t remember you, much less my own name.”

            “Then how did Percy remember Annabeth?” Reyna implied. “If he remembered her, how did you forget me?”

            That statement cause Jason’s palms to sweat. The way she was glaring at him, almost as if she hated him. But she couldn’t hate him, he knew that. She had to feel something for him after the question she just asked.

            “Well?” Reyna asked, raising one eyebrow.

            “I didn’t feel the same way about you, Reyna,” Jason blurted out. “Percy… I could tell he loves Annabeth. I don’t love you, Reyna.”

            Her face fell before it became expressionless. “Oh.” She swallowed and didn’t meet his eyes. “It’s the girl, isn’t it?”

            He knew she meant Piper. “Yeah,” he admitted. “It is Piper.”

            She nodded. “I shouldn’t have bothered,” she said softly. She finally looked up at him, nodding slightly. “Good luck on your quest, Jason.”

            “Stay safe,” he advised, setting down the microphone and lifting up the remote. He pressed the power button. The screen flickered once before going dark.

            The silence was almost overwhelming. Jason exhaled and leaned against the wall, closing his eyes.

            Though they stopped the Romans from pulverizing the Greeks, Jason still felt so much guilt. He remembered all the fires raging through Half-Blood Hill. Most of the trees had been dead except for Thalia’s pine. So many of the campers looked injured, and so many cabins looked ready to collapse.

            There was also the guilt from Reyna’s broken face.

            He didn’t regret rejecting Reyna, no way. He loved Piper. But he was imagining a different reality, a reality apart from the quest. He knew if Juno hadn’t taken his memory he would be dating Reyna. He could imagine holding her hand as they walked along the Little Tiber. He could imagine her laughing at his stupid jokes, kissing his cheek like Annabeth did to Percy.

            He was feeling so much guilt as he imagined kissing Reyna’s lips.

            “Ugh!” Jason slammed his fist into the wall. Stop thinking about Reyna, he thought forcefully. You have a girlfriend, Jason. Think about Piper.

            It was still hard to forget the image of Reyna’s lips on his.

            Jason felt so guilty and stupid.