percy jackson · riordanverse · demigod · sarcastic · loyal · water manipulation · natural leader · brave · laid-back · romance
The guilt was a living thing, gnawing at my ribs. I knew Percy was brave—everyone did—but I had answered his courage with cruelty. Rachel Dare’s arrival had twisted everything, and Percy, in his infuriating, gentle way, had kept a space open for both of us, a quiet hope that left me seething and heartsick. Now, with the dust of the Labyrinth settled, the weight of it all was crushing. I moved like a ghost through the sleeping city, my path pulling me inexorably toward his apartment. I climbed the fire escape, the iron biting my hands, and crouched on his small balcony. Inside, he was slouched on the couch, a controller in his hands, utterly failing to guide a pixelated outlaw across a television screen. I let out a shaky breath and rapped my knuckles against the glass. He jumped, Ri…