All eyes were on Percy as he walked back in the room. He hated it. He muttered a sorry before heading back to the seat.

"Dude," Nathan said as Percy sat back down next to him. "What in the world just happened?" He asked. Silence for a moment. "Were you crying?" He whispered as quietly as could.

"Sorry, I have some PTSD issues, they just got worse recently. I'm typically able to get them under control faster, but things have just been off recently," Percy explained.

"Man that sucks!" Nathan said. "So what gave you PTSD?" He asked. Percy was shocked. He gave him a look that let Nathan know that the event behind it would not be discussed further.

"Well, talking about it triggers it, so it's best if we didn't," Percy said.

"Oh right, that makes sense," Nathan said sheepishly. There was awkward silence between them.

"Did I say anything? While I was out?" Percy asked, scared he might have revealed something bad or made a bigger fool of himself.

"No, you were pretty silent, shaking a lot though, and then right before we got Paul in, you started just screaming, no one could understand what you were saying. It was honestly really scary, especially since I consider you a friend and there didn't seem like there was anything I could do to help you," Nathan said. Percy was surprised.

"Well, thanks for caring that much," he said sincerely. Percy felt bad for the guy. He hardly knew him, yet the guy already expressed that he cared about him, which was more loyal than he knew most mortals to be. He had so much to hide that a mortal could never know, and here this guy was, saying that he was scared for him instead of scared of him and disgusted, and thinking he was stupid or weak.

Most interactions he'd had with mortals, was them picking on him for something, so having Nathan express that he cared was something Percy was unfamiliar with and not used to coming from a mortal. Rachel was different, but that was also because she was clear sighted, so technically she didn't count.

Percy zoned out for the rest of the class. Many of his classmates looked at him cautiously throughout the remainder of class, as if he was about to explode at any moment. It wasn't very comforting to have so many people watching him. He didn't like to cause trouble, he didn't like to attract attention at school. To his relief though, his teacher was wise enough not to call on him again, she had learned her lesson, that or she was scared of him like the others.

Finally the class ended and they all shuffled out. Naturally, the news about his panic attack spread like the way a wildfire consumes a drought stricken land. People were so desperate for any drama, anything interesting going on around them in their simple, mundane lives that they could talk about and make up all sorts of lies to entertain themselves.

It didn't feel great to be the butt of it, but a part of him wished he had the capacity, or the time, to actually be interested in something so lackluster and unimportant when a monster could be waiting around a corner just waiting to jump out and kill him. Things of mortal importance just weren't things that he could take seriously. But maybe that was all the time he spent away, stressed out of his mind, fighting a war to save the world that most mortals would never begin to understand so he wouldn't be getting thanks from them or even the gods either.

He and Nathan had parted ways to go to their next class. Nathan had Chemistry, while Percy had study hall. It was his first day, and it was only second period, so he knew he wouldn't have a lot to do. Just a short little assignment from his Greek mythology class. Still though, with his dyslexia, it might take him a lot longer than he'd prefer. It took him the whole hour just to complete half of the sheet, the words swimming off the pages and swirling around his head like a drain.

He had heard the whispers in the class, people speculating about him, why he left, why he had a breakdown in class. If it had been five years earlier, he probably would have picked a fight, but Percy was too tired to be bothered. He was mentally and physically exhausted from the quest of the seven, and while he wouldn't trade the friendships he had made for the world, his unwavering loyalty would ensure that, he had been left with mental and physical scars that just left him, well, tired.

It hadn't been too long and he still needed the time to heal, not to mention the nightmares and attacks getting worse without Annabeth around. He inwardly cringed at his neediness. Not that he didn't love Annabeth, he just felt bad. For the remainder of camp, the two had been attached at the hip. It was like some sappy romance movie.

Yes, he loved her, and he would fall into Tartarus all over again for her if he had to, but he knew he was starting to get needy and clingy. She was the only one who could really get through to him during his times of panic. She was also the one his nightmares and attacks were about. Not being able to save her, losing her, her getting hurt. Having her there was reassuring.

While he hated the distance that was between them, he knew they needed to spend some time apart from each other, otherwise, their relationship could suffer, and he didn't want that. They had already been through so much, and he couldn't stand the thought of them breaking up. He hoped that someday, they could have a family together, and live happily. However, that hope had been clouded with anxiety for a while. Tartarus had changed his way of thinking though. Now, he had been thinking of marrying her as soon as he could, because he was worried their lives would be cut short, and they wouldn't get to experience the things they talked about. Like growing old together, having a family, helping out with camp. He was so scared it wouldn't happen that he was determined to make as much of it come true as he could. Snapping back into reality, he put his work away in his bag and left the room. It wasn't long before he was cornered by a couple of the school's troublemakers.

Steven and Blake were your typical high school punks. Annoying enough to make a ruckus and distract, mean and tough enough to get in a few fist fights, disregardful of teachers and schoolwork, and just in general jerks. But they weren't bad enough to get expelled. Some detentions and suspensions, but never expulsion. The two of them were super excited when they heard that Percy would be going to Goode. Someone with his track record, they expected him to be like them, or worse, and they were hoping to get into some fun trouble. However, what Percy actually was like was different then what they expected. They made it super clear to him, that they couldn't believe someone with his record was a decently good kid. His grades were nothing to show for, but Percy tried his best to be kind and avoid as much trouble as your typical big three demigod can. Steven and Blake approached him. Steven was the bigger of the two, taller and more muscular with shaggy blond hair tied back into a little ponytail that just barely held. Streams of blond fly always hung in his face. His skin was a deep tan and he looked like a surfer dude, except his personality was all wrong. His eyes were a dark brown that held a mischievous glint, reminding him of the way the Stoll brothers looked when they had their eyes on something to steal. Steven was a bench warmer on the football team, but that was because he didn't have the grades to play, but he was such a good player, and a scary guy, they couldn't afford to completely kick him off the team.

Then there was Blake. He had buzzed brown hair and brown eyes and was pale as a ghost. He was the smarter of the two, but that wasn't saying very much. He was a bean pole, taller than both Steven and Percy, but he had less meat on his bones. Percy knew better than to underestimate him. He was a runner and his kicks packed a powerful blow.

"So we heard some rumors because people have been talking," Steven said. Well duh. Steven's head tilted a little to the side as he talked down to him. "I've heard that you had some sort of nervous breakdown in the middle of class," he said as he smirked. Percy sighed.

"Oh, you have now?" He said with an uninterested tone.

"So Prissy, what's got you trembling in a classroom like a chicken?" Blake cackled.

"Why would I tell you?" Percy laughed, surprised at them.

"We might have to beat it out of you then," Steven smirked. That's how it usually went down. They approached, tried to provoke Percy and regardless if it worked or it didn't, they'd end up attacking him and all of them would be given detention. Blake and Steven would always say that Percy provoked them, and with a track record like Percy's, people tended to believe Blake and Steven more and then it would start all over again.

"You were also missing for a year, we missed our favorite punching bag," Blake joked.

"I'm not your punching bag, now if you two don't mind, I have to get to class," Percy said, tired of them already.

"We will get our answers Percy, and maybe it'll be enough to get you expelled again," Steven laughed as they walked away. Percy made it to English class as soon as the bell rang. The teacher glared at him.

"try to arrive a little sooner Mr. Jackson," he said, an annoyed expression taking over his face.

"I'm sorry sir, I got a little held up, but I was in here before the bell so technically I'm on time," Percy shrugged. His teacher scoffed before sending him to an open seat. He realized it was next to the girl who had been staring at him in Greek mythology before everything went... anyways, she had wavy brown hair that stopped at her shoulders and almond shaped brown eyes. Her ears were pointed at the top and her nose was small and sharp. She looked like an elf. He wouldn't be too surprised if she was one out of all the crazy stuff he'd seen. She wasn't as pretty as his Wise Girl, she was rather plain looking if he was being honest. The only reason why he was observing her so much was because he had caught her staring at him earlier and he wanted to know who could have been attracted to him. She noticed him staring and he mentally cursed, she probably thought he was interested now. Annabeth had given him lessons because he was so clueless in the love department, and was trying to help him not lead people on because apparently that was something he did a lot.

"Hi, um, I'm Kirsten," she said shyly, nervously playing with the tips of her hair. He was surprised she still seemed interested, even after witnessing his attack.

"Oh, um, Percy," he said awkwardly, cursing himself again because now it seemed like he was nervous and he didn't want her to think he was interested in her.

"I know... um, are you okay?" She asked, her expression laced with concern..

"Oh, I'm fine now," he waved it off quickly.

"O-Oh, um okay then... um, does this happen often?" She asked cautiously.

"Yeah, it's fine, I can get it under control," it was a slight lie. He always had Annabeth to help him through it and wake him up.

"I see... still, that must be scary," she frowned. She had no idea.

"It's not as bad as it used to be," he shrugged. Another partial truth. They had slowly been getting better, but then he and Annabeth had to part and they started worsening again quickly.

"Okay then... so... your friends with Nathan?" She asked.

"Yeah, why?"

"My best friend Erin is dating his friend Tim," she said. The name rang a bell. He was a tall brunette who ran cross country and track. From what Percy could remember, before his aunt had so lovingly erased his memories, he and Tim had some classes and got along pretty well.

"Oh, nice, I know Tim," he said. Kirsten laughed lightly.

"Um, I guess we'll be seeing more of each other then?" She asked shyly.

"Yeah, guess so," he trailed off as he looked up to the board and saw the writing. He could so go for some Ancient Greek translations because the letters kept moving around like the cup game where a ball is hidden under a cup and is switched around and you have to guess which cup it's under. Percy was horrible at that game, it made him dizzy. His ADHD caused him to switch his focus onto a different cup over and over. He never won. It was the same with his dyslexia. The letters going everywhere and his ADHD having trouble picking only one word to focus on. It was a nightmare. Kirsten turned to him to say something when his phone rang. He felt his heart sink to the bottom of his stomach. Sure his other demigod friends have his number to use for emergencies, but the person who called him the most was Annabeth. Because of the distance between them, he could only assume it was one thing. She had an attack. The teacher looked at him with disdain.

"Mr. Jackson, turn your cell phone off!" He scolded.

"I'm sorry sir, but I really have to take this," Percy said as the ringing died out.

"Well they aren't calling anymore, please wait in between classes to use-" his teacher, Mr. whatever his name was, was cut off by Percy's phone ringing again.

"Seriously, I have to answer this," he said getting out of his chair and heading towards the door.

"Mr. Jackson! I'll go talk to Mr. Blowfis about this!" He said.

"Do it then! He knows I have to take this!" Percy said before hitting the answer button and shutting the door behind him.

"P-Percy?" A voice sniffled from the other side.

"Annabeth, it's okay, I'm here!" He heard a squeak sound before she just started sobbing uncontrollably.

"Hey, shh, shh, it's okay," he said. He should have known that she would have an attack as well. If one of them had an attack, it wasn't much longer after that the other one would have one as well. It was kind of one of those things where because one of them had an attack and confided in them about it, those emotions and thoughts were brought back, and they'd have an attack as well. They had tried to figure out how to stop it from happening like that, but there was just no stopping it when most of the time it was self inflicted by thoughts.

"I can't do this!" She sobbed.

"We've been apart for 2 weeks already. When I had an attack before school started, it was better because my dad or my step mom could just call you, but no one understands at school, and I couldn't snap out of it," she explained.

"Annabeth..." he trailed off. She had to go through it alone. He couldn't be there to wake her up. He felt sick to his stomach at the thought of it.

"It was awful, I can't do this! I can't deal with these attacks on my own!" She sobbed.

"How long were you out?" He asked gently.

"About an hour, maybe a little over. After I got done talking to you. I started freaking out. I knew you weren't here and all the sudden I was overwhelmed and I was standing in darkness in Tartarus completely blind and alone again. I was stumbling around, my ankle feeling like it was about to fall off. I was screaming for you, but you were gone. I couldn't find you anywhere. I lost my voice and I couldn't call out anymore. I was alone in the dark with no way to communicate. Then I drank the fire and my throat was burning and things were all surrounding me. I tried to scream but I couldn't. I couldn't see the monsters closing in, only hear them and smell them. I was so overwhelmed and I... I couldn't wake up, and I couldn't find you and then you weren't here when I came to and I..." she choked up again at the end and let out another sob.

"Hey, it's going to be okay? I'm here now," Percy said, choking up himself at the end.

"Percy?" Annabeth asked questioningly through sniffs.

"I just, I feel so useless. You were in pain for an hour, and I had no idea, and I couldn't help you. I should have known that I would've caused you to have one too. It's all my fault," he said covering his eyes with a hand.

"It's not your fault. I don't have anyone looking out for me here, and I can't call you when I'm out of it. I just have to deal with it for now until I can convince my dad to let me come back. It just keeps getting worse because you're not here. I just want everything to go back to normal, where we could not worry about Tartarus every other minute, and we could fight monsters without making any stupid hesitations to send them to Tartarus, making us vulnerable. I hate this," Annabeth said, frustrated.

"I do too. I just want to be normal again. I want "us" to be normal again," he sighed. "Anyways, are you feeling better now?"

"Yeah, talking about it helped a lot, but just hearing your voice made me feel better," she said sweetly.

"Alright Wise Girl, I love you, but I got to go, otherwise I'm sure my teacher will be mad I even stepped out this long. You can do it. I believe in you. You're a strong girl, Annabeth. Try not to let this ruin your day," he said.

"Thanks Seaweed Brain. For a held that's filled with a whole lot of kelp, you do have some good things to say every once in a while," he could practically hear her smirking at him through the phone. "Anyways, I love you too, bye," she said. And like that he had to go back into his English class, his teacher, Mr. Wilson glaring murderously.

"See me after class, Mr. Jackson," he sneered.

"Yes sir," he said tiredly before returning next to Kirsten.

"You okay?" She asked as he sat back down.

"Yeah, I'm fine, someone very close to me wasn't though,"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I hope they get better," Kirsten said kindly. He hoped so too.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

-A/N-

Sorry this is a little late, I hope it's worth it though. These chapters take much longer to write than my other stories do so I can't put them out as fast, plus this story isn't my main series right now.

Still, I said that this story was going to be short, but after this chapter, I'm getting the feeling that this story will be much longer than I intended, which is fine because I enjoy writing it. Next chapter was supposed to be from Nathan's and maybe Kirsten's point of view, but I'm thinking I might push it back for another chapter because I came up with the see me after class and I want to finish Percy's first day back before getting a few outside perspectives of the events.

Anyways, I hope you're able to be patient with me until the next upload. I'm not sure when that will be. I'm hoping to post it every other week. Not a specific day, but that's the goal for now, and it's subject to change. So, until next time!

YouDontKnowShipping