(Fem.) Percy meets Spidey

32

"Why are you home?" Mom's voice was cutting, sharp like a razor. 

I winced and shoved my hands in my pockets. "Dad said I could," I mumbled. My eyes, trained on the floor, flicked up to her face. 

She stared at me, arms crossed, and scowling. It wasn't a look she gave me often (a lie. How often did she look at me like that after something happened at school?). Paul whistled away in the kitchen. Swallowing, I uncrossed my legs. My foot slid back. I should've went out the window, should've avoided her, and I don't know why I didn't do it. Through fabric, my nails dug into my flesh. 

"He's the one who asked to do these custody weekends in the first place. Do you really expect me to believe that he sent you back here without you doing something?"

"You do remember what he does, right? He has stuff to do"--not quite a lie--"and I'd only get in the road, if I even saw him at all. So what's the point in me being there?"

"It's called making an effort."

"What, so me working my ass off to prove myself to them isn't making an effort? Me doing whatever they want me to do isn't good enough to have a relationship with my dad? Gods, you get that he told me it was fine for me to leave, right? Call him and ask him, just stop yelling at me!"

"You're the one yelling."

"No, I'm not." Papers fluttered and the curtains swung. I growled and slipped past Mom, tuning out her voice. My hands shook. Should've went back to Dad's, if only to avoid this. I could've dealt with the stares, with the old men trying to sit close to me, talking to me and calling me pet names. 

At least there, I could escape. I could hide behind Dad or tug on his sleeve, and he'd help me. Here, I had to settle for grabbing a pancake. I had to grab a pancake and scurry back to my room like I was some sort of mouse. 

I curled on top of my sheets, the door closed and the seahorse tucked against my chest. My skin  buzzed, and that spread to my bones. I wanted to flap my hands or rock myself, but what if Mom came in? The thought of another lecture---of more yelling, because even if she didn't get louder it was still yelling---made my stomach ache. Why couldn't I just be the kid she actually wanted?

Why did she even have me with Dad?

Things would've been different, so much easier, had she decided not to sleep with him. She knew he was a god. She didn't have the excuses of most of the other demigods' parents. They didn't know, they didn't get a choice. Some of them had a baby dumped on their doorstep without even sleeping with someone. 

I swallowed. My eyes drifted to my nightstand, and the cellphone sitting on it. Just an arms reach away. I picked it up, scrolled through my contacts, and picked Peter. One word and one button, and a monster would be searching for me. Maybe it would be something big. 

Maybe it would hurt me. Maybe it'd kill me. 

Something bloomed at the thought. A sense of calm, a sense of want. It was nice, but also dark. I frowned. Shuddered. I dug out one of the coins Dad gave me, and I nudged the prism on my dresser until a rainbow formed. 

Dad's image quickly formed. He sat on his throne, slouched like he was when someone continued to talk about something he'd long lost interest in. Was I- Was I really going to do this? Draw his attention away from something important?

He glanced towards me, twisting in order to see the message better. "Percy?" With the wave of a hand, he moved the message in front of him. "We're breaking for the time being," he said to the council members. 

"Are- Are you busy?"

"Not particularly, why?"

It was all too easy to slip into Greek. 

"Well, for one, can you tell Mom that you said I could come back here? I don't think she believe me earlier. And...You remember how you made me promise if I thought about killing myself?"

The full weight of his attention crashed over me. His eyes searched my face. "Do I need to come over?"

"No! No, I'm fine. I'm not going- I'm not going to do it. I just- I just thought about texting Peter to get a monster to show up. 

"That's still not good."

"I know." I curled up on myself. Dad sighed. The message cut off. For a moment, my throat tightened. Then he appeared next to me. Larges hands slipped under me, lifted me with ease. I squeaked and curled up. 

"Here we go," he mumbled once my head rested in his lap. "I'm right here, little foal." He petted my hair, smoothing stray strands. Slowly, I relaxed, stretching out and pressing into his touch. It felt nice. I was touch-starved. I knew that. 

Why else would this feel like ambrosia tastes? 

"You can't tell her."

"I'll have to tell her at some point. She deserves to know."

"Mhm, it would be like when Gabe didn't tell Mom  when one of his poker buddies hit me. Or how I wasn't supposed to tell her that he hit me."

Dad pressed his head to mine. "And you should know why that's bad."

"She knew anyway. Never did anything about it." Except using her makeup to cover up bruises on my face so the school wouldn't call CPS. Telling me I wasn't I allowed to have friends over. My words slipped together as I drifted back towards sleep. "Don't see why she would now. So it's better to not tell her."

With a sigh, he brushed his thumb over my cheek. "I'll talk to her. About you coming home early, not this. For now." 

I hummed, happy. "Love you."

Unlike Why is Everything So Loud, Percy actually has a modicum of healthy behavior

Also it is 12:10 in the morning and I am barely coherent

also, chapter 6 of this fic has also been edited because reasons

See yah