We Olympians (A Percy Jackson AU) || BOOK 1

Chapter 23 || Frank

Frank waited impatiently back home. It'd been time for dinner and everyone was waiting for Percy and Clarisse to get home before they all went in the dining room together.

"Look, I don't think they're comin--" Piper started to sigh before two figures burst through the door, sopping wet from the rain pouring outside.

"Where were you?" Jason demanded.

"Sorry," Percy cleared his throat. "I had to make a trip to the water facility. Demeter wanted a downpour so she could save some of her plants from drying out."

"And I was stupid enough not to bring my car so I couldn't drive away from this nub," Clarisse motioned to Percy, who grinned cheekily.

Frank's eyebrows rose.

"You look happy," he remarked.

"I wouldn't say happy," Percy hung his raincoat. "But better. Plus, I thought it'd be fun to make blue cookies tonight, since its..."

"Your mom's birthday," Piper said sympathetically.

"Yeah," Percy sighed. "I haven't seen her in a while."

"Four years," Clarisse grumbled.

"Not helping," Frank said to his sister, who rolled her eyes.

"Well... aren't we gonna go eat dinner?" Leo's stomach gave a grumble in response. "I WANNA EAT!"

Frank looked around.

"Wait, where'd Percy go?"

That's when a face came flying to Frank's. Not Hazel's--wait, did he really just think that? No. It was Percy's. And it was upside down.

"Percy!" Leo laughed and groaned at the same time. "You don't have to hang off everything!"

Frank looked up and realized that Percy was hanging from the new chandelier.

"But it's comfy!" Percy whined.

"You look like the male version of Sofie Dossi without the curly hair," Hazel chuckled. Oh... she looked so cute when she was smiling.

"Nah," Percy shook his head, "That girl's too gorgeous for me. I'm just Percy."

"Want proof?" Jason pointed over to a group of Aphrodite girls, who were staring at Percy.

Percy, the idiot, just grinned, waving back.

"I don't know why they're staring." He frowned and everyone felt like slapping his face. "I guess my face kinda looks like a sponge! I bet they have dirt in their eyes and they wanna use me to get it out!"

"That's it, I'm done."

Reyna had joined them and she marched away, her purple coat flying in the wind behind her as she ran for her own sanity. Percy smirked.

"I knew she'd do that."

"But seriously. Get down from the chandelier."

"Sure."

"NO NO--" Hazel started but Frank got the scare of his life when Percy literally bent in half.

"F**KING GODS YOU'RE LIKE A SPIDER!" Leo screamed.

"How many acrobatic classes did you take?!" Piper shrieked when Percy had finally flipped himself down.

"Oh, don't think I'm flexible. Look at the nereids. They taught me how to be flexible by literally tying my body parts into a pretzel at the bottom of the pool each time I went swimming. They don't do it anymore. It got weird after fourteen."

Frank laughed at the image that popped in his head. Percy on the bottom of the pool with his butt touching his nest of black hair, his legs in front of his face, his left arm to his right leg and his right arm to his left foot, head popped out of the weird pose. As they walked into the dining hall,  Percy and Clarisse seemed to be sharing some look... but Frank ignored it. 

Percy was playing with his spoon while trying to balance it on his nose, Hazel picking at her food while shoveling some in the fire... the usual.

"Your homework's done," an Athena camper came up, papers in her hand. "Payment?"

"Where's the square?" Percy asked, his eyes still focused on the spoon on his nose.

The Athena camper stared at him before handing him the square. Percy wordlessly took his credit card out, swiped it, and put it back in.

"Bye bye!"

"Bye... Percy..." She stared at him for a few more seconds before racing off.

"I think you just scared her away," Leo laughed while Percy pouted, giving him a look.

"I did not! She's probably just in awe of my awesomeness!"

"Oh, stop it with the puns before I take this fork and skewer you," Clarisse grumbled, holding up her fork threateningly.

"Clarisse, you need to stop being so... dramatic. Start... chillaxing," Percy had his fingers out in a zen pose.

Clarisse simply took her water bottle and squirted it in Percy's face, drenching him. Percy blinked the water out of his sea-green eyes before smirking, water dripping down his lips.

"That was refreshing."

She sighed, standing up.

"I'm gonna go throw rocks at the Aphrodite kids," she said. "See you in the Poseidon lounge."

"Bye!" they all called after her.

"Don't kill anyone!" Percy yelled as she exited.

"No promises!" Clarisse responded as the doors closed.

The yells and screams were all they needed to know.

"And you'd think the Aphrodite kids learned to put on helmets," Hazel chuckled.

"Nah," Piper shook her head. "My siblings would never. They claim it looks bad and weird on their heads."

"Aw, you know she'll spare Silena," Frank waved it off.

"Oh you look so cute when you do that..."

"What?" Frank turned to Hazel.

Did she call him cute? Did she call him cute?! Was this his chance? Could he finally have some feelings show so that she'd get the hint? Would she be his girlfriend? Would they grow old and get married together with kids who look just like them?

"N-Nothing. I said nothing. I said you have some food on your... forehead."

Frank wiped his forehead off to find nothing, but shrugged.

"Oh," he said.

Next time, Frank. Next time.

"Yeah, next time," Percy teased him and Frank realized he said that out loud.

"Did... Did Hazel hear--"

"Nope," Leo chirped. "She's too busy blushing while Piper's whispering in her ear."

Frank looked over to see Hazel's face a bright shade of red.

"I don't think she's blushing for me! She probably ate a... a Cheyenne pepper!"

"She's eaten ghost peppers before." Percy raised an eyebrow. "We all have and she thinks they're not that bad."

"Well maybe she ate the... the Carolina Reaper! I don't know! Or maybe she accidentally burned her face in the fire--"

"Frank..." Jason was struggling not to laugh. "Just accept the fact that she likes you and you like her."

Frank's breathing calmed and he nodded, still slightly breathless.

"O-Okay. Got it."