Omega before (prequel)

Distant

The Percy feels really are starting to tear at my soul. The poor guy.

Percy's POV,

The keep my eyes tightly closed yet the sun still shone through them from the above the surface. I stayed criss-crossed on the sandy floor and focused on the seaweed tickling at my skin. The pounding of my heart echoed through the lake, waves carrying its rhythm out in ripples. I released a ragged breath.

       It was always nicer underwater. My tears went unseen, swept up by the currents before they could be noticed. It was just me and my thoughts, nothing else. Then again, being alone in my head wasn't always the best thing. Right now those thoughts only made more tears slip from my eyes.

I'd ran till my legs had given out in me. I had crawled to the lake and let the water swallow me, wrapping my up in it's comforting arms. I couldn't believe it. The truth on his face, the confusion. He had looked me dead in the eye... and when he said it I knew he really had no clue. He didn't know me.

He'd forgot about me.

It hurt. Jason had been like a brother to me. Sure, he wasn't my best friend like Grover was but he was still one of the closest to me. My own family.

But he'd forgotten. He didn't think I was his friend. Hades, he even thought I was a new camper! That's what hurt. That's why I was sitter by at the bottom of the Long Island lake, crying.

And it wasn't the last time I'd be doing so.

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A month had past since then. Since Grover has disappeared, since Jason forgot me, since Annabeth stopped having nightmares. Since everything started to change.

Don't get me wrong, I was happy my beautiful Wise Girl didn't have to relive the horrors of Tarta- that place, in her dreams. Then again, who was I to go to now? I had said so to her only a week ago.

"I am not going to Nico," I stated. "He wouldn't like that very much. But, I don't want to bother you while you're asleep. You deserve all the rest you want." I finished and kissed her temple.

"Yes... But Perce-" she leaned into me- "I got over it and so can you. You're strong, you can overcome anything. Eventually the nightmares will go away and until then, I am here for you."

I pulled her closer to me and started to fiddle with one of her curls. She smelt of old books (I would know, she always had some ancient book with her) and strangely enough, vanilla.

"Do you remember how I nearly let myself go when we were in that river?" I said and felt Annabeth snuggle closer to me.

"Hmm," she responded.

"Well, you know, that was really tough for me." I sighed with exhaustion and nuzzled my head into the crook of my girlfriends neck. "I think I keep ignoring that I was ready to let go. I think it scared me. You know, that maybe after all this time... I think if you guys weren't here I would probably already be gone. If the world didn't depend on me I would have left years ago. And it brings up some memory's," I paused to think about a beer bottle flying toward me, glass piercing my skin, "that weren't so good. I'm just so... scared."

I had looked down at my Wise Girl only to find her asleep in my arms. A sad smile stretched across my face. I had bent down and kissed her on the forehead. "It's a good thing I have you... I don't know what I would do without you. I love you."

Now, a week later, I still hadn't asked Annabeth if she remembered any of our conversation. Maybe if was best if she didn't. She had enough to worry about, with the rebuild if Olympus and New Athens.