Pain - A PJO Fanfiction

~Chapter 28~

(A/N: sorry for how short this is and hoe bad the writing is im badly sleep deprived and tired and my meds are being a bitch, the writing part burnt my brain)

The next time Percy awoke, he groggily sat up, blinking. His brain felt foggy, but less exhausted, nonetheless. He took a glance around the room, and to his surprise, he was still in his cabin.

"Perce?" Apollo said gently, causing him to flinch slightly.

"Oh. Uh, what happened?" Percy asked confusedly, turning to Apollo, who was sitting at the edge of his bed.

"You were half-dead, so I decided to take you to the infirmary. Will did some tests and gave you an IV, and told me to get you to eat something if it's the last thing I do," Apollo sighed, concern evident in his eyes.

"Oh, right," Percy muttered quietly, remembering that he had forgotten to eat before.

"'Oh, right'? Percy, you need to be careful," Apollo said softly. "You need to take care of yourself. There's only so much medicine can do, and even that is risky."

"I'm fine, 'Pollo," Percy murmured, glancing away.

Apollo quietly sighed, gently laying a hand on Percy's shoulder.

"Please don't lie," Apollo pleased in a whisper, "Please. Not to me. Please."

"I..." Percy trailed off and hesitantly met his gaze, wincing at the vulnerability in Apollo's eyes. "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize. Please, just don't... don't lie. I don't want you to suffer, Percy, please. Don't lie. For my sake, if you're so careless of your own well-being. Please," Apollo begged desperately, his voice a whisper, tears slowly pooling in his mesmerizing eyes.

"Okay. Okay. I- I won't. Okay," Percy replied quietly, his voice cracking.

Apollo wrapped his arms around him, his embrace tight but gentle. After a minute, they broke apart, a comforting silence filling the room.

"So, truthfully, how do you feel?" Apollo questioned quietly.

"Kinda tired. Slightly nauseous," Percy shrugged.

"Anything I can do?"

"Nah. I just want to get some air, though," Percy sighed, looking up at the roof.

"It's dark out," Apollo informed him hesitantly.

"Oh?" Percy said in slight surprise.

"...yeah. You were out for a while. Uh, do you still want to go outside?" Apollo asked.

"Yeah, sure," Percy shrugged, getting up from his bed as Apollo did the same.

Percy headed out of the cabin. Apollo grabbed a thin blanket before following his boyfriend.

They kept walking until they reached the seaside, Apollo's arm wrapped around Percy. Once they reached the shore, Percy sat down on the sand, gazing up at the sky. Apollo settled down next to him and threw the blanket over their shoulders.

Apollo watched Percy as his eyes searched the night sky, gazing at the stars.

"What're you looking for?" Apollo asked quietly.

"Hm?" Percy asked, seemingly zoned out as he turned to face his boyfriend.

"You seemed thoughtful, what were you looking at?" Apollo wondered quietly.

"Oh. A constellation," Percy replied hesitantly.

Apollo tilted his head in curiosity.

"Not just any constellation, is it?" He guessed quietly.

Percy let out a soft sigh, his gaze reverting to the sky.

"No," he confirmed softly, "it's not."

Apollo kept watching Percy, observing him.

"May I ask?" Apollo finally asked, his voice quiet.

Percy looked at the sea ahead, not meeting Apollo's eyes as he spoke.

"It's Zoë's constellation I was looking for. Zoë Nightshade. She was a huntress of Artemis until I got her killed, on the quest," Percy explained quietly.

Apollo stayed silent for a few minutes. He had heard the name before; Artemis had not taken her huntress' death lightly, and Zoë Nightshade had been one of her oldest and favorite huntresses.

Apollo looked up at the night sky, his eyes searching for the stars until he found the one. With the shape of a girl with a bow, it shined brighter than the others, glinting beautifully as it lit up the dark sky.

Percy gazed at it as well, and for a while, the couple sat together, honoring the girl who had died, and the stars that shone for her.