𝐒𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐄

𝐈𝐕

One of the most peculiar moments of her life involved sharing an elevator ride with Percy, Sally, and his two friends from Camp Half-Blood (seriously, what kind of top-secret camp is this?).

Maintaining composure in the elevator was manageable; the challenging part was pretending not to notice Annabeth discreetly eyeing both her and Percy's matching hoodies, as if she was some outcast who shouldn't be there.

A few minutes before, Selene had agreed on a ride home while they were on their way to an eight-hour road trip—and all the leading minutes after that seemed like torture.

Selene walked out of Percy's bedroom with her sports bag over her shoulder, still wearing the Ballet uniform from the practice she attended before Percy's lesson. She wore the usual sleeveless leotard with pink tights, white all-stars, her hair up in a bun and the Spider-Gwen sweatshirt. Since it was the last day before Christmas' break, they were just wrapping up some loose ends and hoping Percy would dwell on his exam in January.

She discreetly smacked Percy's arm as she walked through the corridor in the weirdest silence. "By the way, guys, that's Mene. She's my school friend," he said. "Mene, that's Thalia and Annabeth from Camp."

Selene smiled at them with no success. Thalia, the one with spiky black hair wearing skull earrings and a Green Day shirt, looked at her from head-to-toe—they were probably the contrast of one another. The other one, Annabeth, was too focused on a map to even acknowledge her.

Off to a great start, it seems.

During the elevator ride down, an eerie silence enveloped everyone—except for Sally, who was belting out the lyrics to the millennial music blasting from the speakers. Selene nudged Percy's arm a few times, silently questioning if she was the only one finding the entire situation a bit odd. In response, he glanced back at her, nodding and mimicking, "Stop fucking poking me, seriously."

"Is that a Green Day shirt?" Worst-case scenario would be Thalia ignoring her, and Selene would be left with the biggest poker face ever. Either way, it was worth trying.

But things went down the complete opposite way. Thalia's eyes sparkled, "You know them?"

"Well of course I do. 'Cigarettes and Valentines' shaped me into who I am today."

"For the gods, finally someone who actually understands me!" She exclaimed. Percy looked back at her, eyes narrowed. "People yak about 'American Idol,' but hey, that's not their only record."

Annabeth rolled her eyes, "Ms. Jackson, allow me to carry this bag for you."

Sally smiled, "Thank you, darling."

"So, what's your name again?" Thalia turned to her.

"Selene, but friends call me Mene. So it's Selene for you." She deadpanned. Maybe a small little joke? It wouldn't hurt... Or would it? "Just kidding."