The Player's Proposal

28: The Alcohol

Percy POV

Let's get one thing straight: I won this proposal. I went over three months without having sex as the deal prompted. Regardless, I didn't feel any satisfaction.

I felt like such a loser.

My mom always told me that there was no such thing as losers and winners. Instead, some people did better at times while others struggled. However, after losing my mother, I only felt like a loser. I kept thinking about all the things that she taught me.

Even during my apologies, I only thought of my beautiful mother. She'd be proud of me for standing in front of my ex-girlfriends, especially those who hate me.

Besides my apologies, I was avoiding social interaction.

My whole body and brain felt numb. It's been a few days since she died, yet I still couldn't function properly. It hurt too much.

I sighed as I checked my text messages.

Percy, please come to lunch today. It'll be good. - Grover.

My best friend was prompting me to come to lunch. I was going to sit in the library (like I did yesterday), but I also wanted to be around my friends. I needed a distraction from the pain.

My mind wandered as I walked to the cafeteria.

I had apologized to every one of my ex-girlfriends except Rachel. She was the most recent of my exes, and she still didn't like me. I decided to get it over with today.

The cafeteria was loud as always. It was funny how the tables near me silenced as I passed them. I knew that I was in the center of gossip, but I didn't care.

The reason that I faked my loss was that I wanted the gossip to stay away from Annabeth. She doesn't deserve to be talked about negatively when she's the most amazing woman. I'd never forgive myself if she got hurt because of me. Moreover, I stayed loyal to the proposal like Annabeth wanted. She just didn't know it.

My friends quietened as I approached our table. My blue hoodie made it difficult for me to see all of them. However, I knew that they were all curious for answers.

They wanted to know why I 'broke' the deal on the last day.

I felt Annabeth's piercing gaze against me, but I shied away from her. I took a seat next to Jason and Grover who patted my shoulder. I was sitting across Rachel by the way.

The silence was suffocating. Fortunately, Leo saved the day.

"Hey, Aquaman, do you want a cookie?"

"When did you have the time to make homemade cookies?" Hazel asked. "Also, you didn't offer any to us."

"These cookies are delicious and sacred. Only those that are worthy of the cookie may have the cookie," Leo expressed. A smile twitched on my mouth before I frowned again.

After the death of a loved one, you feel guilty about smiling or laughing. It sucks, and it takes time to get over it.

I happily accepted the chocolate-chip cookie from Leo. I didn't have much of an appetite over the past week, so I cherished the sweet dessert. "Thanks, Leo." I tentatively nibbled on the cookie. Surprisingly, Leo's baking was delicious.

I expected it to be burned considering how much Leo likes fire, but the cookies were tasty though. Another cycle of silence followed.

"So, uh, I'm just going to address the elephant in the room. The proposal between Percy and Annabeth is over. I believe that Percy apologized to everyone as well," Piper explained. "I think that we should move on. Yeah?"