Everything I'm Not ~ Solangelo

Chapter 13

I awoke the next morning to a fairly warm, sunny day. Morning light filtered through the windows and spilled onto the floor. White, fluffy clouds drifted lazily across the clear blue sky. Birds sang a cheerful tune from the trees. I sat up and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. I could hear Hazel downstairs, humming as she prepared breakfast. I slid out of bed and rushed down to greet her. 

"G'morning," I said as I sat down at the table. 

Hazel turned away from the bacon sizzling on the stove and smiled at me, "Good mooring, Nico." She turned around and nudged the bacon with a spatula, "Breakfast will be ready in just a few."

"You didn't have to make breakfast," I said. 

Hazel shrugged, "I know. I just got up early, and I figured it wouldn't hurt to do something productive." 

"This doesn't have to do with last night's conversation, does it?" I asked suspiciously. 

Hazel turned and grinned, "Okay, maybe it has something to do with that."

I chuckled, "What is this, a special out-of-the-closet breakfast?"

"If that's what you want to call it, sure," Hazel answered as she turned off the stove and scraped the bacon onto a plate. 

"Seriously, you didn't have to do this," I repeated. 

"Stop saying that!" Hazel chided. "I'm doing this because I want to!" She produced two plates from the cupboard, and placed them on the table. "Toast?" she offered, pulling a few pieces from the toaster. 

"No thanks," I replied.

Hazel frowned, "I got up early and made this for you, you're eating the toast!" She put two pieces of toast on my plate, poured me a glass of orange juice, and served me several pieces of bacon. "Eat!" she commanded. 

"Any plans for today?" I asked as I took a bite out of my toast. 

"Going to a cafe later with friends," she answered, "Wanna come?"

I dropped my toast, "Did you just ask me if I want to go with you?"

"Yes," Hazel replied with a puzzled expression. 

"You want me to go with you to a social event?" I asked in disbelief. 

"Yes," Hazel repeated. "I'm pretty sure that's what I said."

"Who's going?" I inquired. 

"Leo, Frank, Piper, Jason, Annabeth, and Percy," Hazel answered.

My stomach did a somersault at the mention of Percy, "Percy's going to be there?"

Hazel raised an eyebrow, "Yeah, why?"

"Nothing, just wondering," I replied hastily. 

She looked me in the eye, "Look, are you coming or not?"

I thought for a moment. For some reason, the idea of Percy being there made the deal a thousand time sweeter. Thinking of his dark, wind-swept hair and sparkling green eyes made me feel warm and fuzzy inside. "Okay, I'll go," I decided. 

"Okay then," Hazel said, "I'll make sure to text them so they know you're coming."

"Are they okay with this?" I inquired.

Hazel nodded, "Yeah, they'll be fine with it." 

We finished breakfast, and cleaned up the kitchen. Once we finished, I hurried to my room to get ready. I finished in a matter of minutes, and headed downstairs to wait by the door.