Zombie Parade

19: First Steps

Percy POV

I stared at the interaction with intrigue and worry. They were just staring at each other, and everyone else was simply watching. No one knew what to do.

"What's going on here?" Chiron asked.

He rolled himself to the center of the cafeteria. Only the guards were at the cafeteria right now because Chiron was calling a private meeting. This was his way of welcoming the new members to the camp. However, no one expected people to already know each other.

"Reyna, I can't believe you're alive. I- I thought you were gone," Jason stammered. Thalia nodded in worry before looking at Piper.

That's when I realized Jason and Reyna used to be a thing.

"Jason, gods, I missed you," Reyna expressed.

She went forward and hugged Jason. The whole room tensed, and we all looked between a flushed Piper and a hugging ex-couple. Reyna didn't mention knowing Jason and thalia. But again, the topic never came up.

Jason self-cautiously pulled away from Reyna Arellano, who frowned in confusion. I felt bad for the young lady, but I also don't blame Jason for moving on. As far as he knew, Reyna died. However, the situation is a lot tenser than anticipated.

"Gods, this is so awkward," Annabeth whispered beside me. I nodded. She gently tapped my palm before stepping forward.

"Um, this should probably be a private conversation," Wise Girl suggested. "How about we start the meeting a few minutes late while Jason and Reyna catch up? A few others are running late anyway."

"Yes. That sounds like a great idea," Chiron agreed.

The group dispersed while Annabeth came back to me. She was right as usual. Jason and Reyna deserve to have a private conversation. Jason and Reyna walked out of the cafeteria, and Piper and Thalia followed them after a few seconds. Meanwhile, the rest of us sat down at the dining tables.

I grabbed some chips from the center of the room. It's been a long day, and I haven't even eaten anything since yesterday.

"Seaweed Brain, your stomach is growling horrendously," Annabeht scolded.

"I didn't eat anything since yesterday. They didn't have much food at the hospital, and I missed lunchtime today," I answered. "It's a good thing Grover smuggled some snacks out of the kitchen for me."

"You're getting special treatment," she countered.

I shrugged while popping the bag of chips open. As I crunched on some Lays, I closely looked at Annabeth's features. I memorized the texture of her skin, and the wrinkles around her lips when she smiles. She's beautiful and brilliant. I did miss her a lot even though I was only gone for a few days.

Her ponytail whipped around while her stormy gray eyes glistened. Her gaze narrowed on my face, and I couldn't help my blush. I was caught staring at her.

"I, um, just zoned out," I stammered.

"You're such a bad liar. What were you thinking about me?" she asked seriously.

"Listen, Wise Girl," I started nervously. "The way we reacted to seeing each other again wasn't normal for friends. It meant more."

Annabeth sighed before taking a chip from my bag. "You're right. I don't know what it was all about. It was probably an inappropriate reaction, but I couldn't help myself. I was so scared when you didn't come back yesterday."

"When I was out there, I only wanted to come back for two reasons. One, I had to come back for Stella. I couldn't let her down and leave her," I said.

"What about the other reason?" she asked quietly.