Percy stepped off his bus, and cranked his music a little louder. He winced as he put weight on his left foot. His whole leg felt like crap after last night's beating. He thought Gabe might've broken his leg, but no such luck. He still had to limp his way to school. He went to his locker, and began unlocking it. Then he felt a hand grab him from behind. He turned, expecting Luke, or one of his cronies, but was pleasantly surprised to see Annabeth. He hurriedly adjusted the collar of his shirt, so she wouldn't see the fresh bruises on his skin.

"Hey stranger!" She said happily. Percy almost smiled, than thought the better of it.

"Hey 'Beth…" He said. She frowned at him.

"What's wrong?" She asked. Her gray eyes seemed to pierce him, as if daring him to lie.

"Nothing, just slept funny I guess…" He responded. She didn't seem satisfied, but dropped the subject.

"Alright… Well, c'mon, we're going to be late for Mr. D's." She said. Percy nodded, shut his locker, and began walking with Annabeth to class. They still had a little bit of time before the bell rang, so they hung out and talked. Percy found out more about Annabeth family, her stepbrothers, stepmom, and slightly crazy dad.

"You're probably tired of hearing me talk, so tell me about your family!" Annabeth said enthusiastically. Percy visibly stiffened. Annabeth noticed.

"Sore subject?" She asked. Percy quickly loosened up and shook his head.

"No, not really, not anymore. My mother died one day, and my stepdad has raised me ever since. He's an alright guy." The lie slightly caught in his throat, but he managed to get it out.

Annabeth eyed him, but before she could say anything, the bell rang. She got up and moved to her seat. Percy prepared himself for a boring eighty five minutes of Mr. D talking. Class began, but Percy's mind was elsewhere. He was thinking about how sore he was going to be when he had to stand up. His thoughts drifted to Annabeth.

Annabeth.

The one shining light in this dark hole he called a life. She actually talked to him. She actually didn't treat him like shit, like he was a waste of space... She had kissed him. He was still reeling from the memory of that. He couldn't believe that someone as beautiful as his blonde friend would ever even think of doing something like that. He crossed his arms in thought, then winced as he nudged a bruise hidden under his black hoodie. He sighed. His injuries reminded him about letting people into his life. He hadn't really known his mother, but for some reason, the color blue made him think of her. Gabe was a different matter. He was forced to have that… that pig in his life. But he couldn't do anything about it. He had toyed with the idea of calling the police, but Gabe would probably kill him when he heard sirens. His arm throbbed again. Percy sighed, and battered down his metaphorical hatches against Mr. D's voice. This would be a long day.

School finally ended. While other kids would be happy, Percy only felt sadness. He had nothing to look forward to at home but pain, both mental and physical. He got on his bus, and sat alone as usual, blasting sad music into his ears. He checked his phone, and saw he had a message from Annabeth.

Hey, you want to hang out later? It read. Percy carefully considered. He wasn't sure he was willing to risk letting anyone else into his life. He had enough pain for the moment, thank you very much. He typed a response.

I'm busy today, maybe some other day :( sorry. He sent it.

The bus pulled up to his stop, and Percy disembarked. He walked to his house, and slowly crept in, taking great care not to make a sound. He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, but didn't bother answering it. He walked up to his room, silently shut his door, and laid down on his bed. He didn't bother doing his homework. The only thing he wanted to do, was lay down in his dark room while listening to sad music. Music was the one thing he had left, but it was beginning to fail him. He rolled over, and then, with great clarity, saw the object standing on his bedside table. It was a half-full bottle of melatonin, a chemical in your body that helped you sleep. It was sold in pill form as well, so people with sleep problems could get to bed faster.

He uncorked the bottle. He was so, so tempted to just shove them all down his throat… but something held him back. He didn't know what, but he put the cap back on the bottle, and laid down, silent tears streaming down his face.

He didn't know what to do anymore.

After about five months, an update! A short chapter, but still, you're probably staring at your screen in disbelief :P

No telling when the next chapter will be up, but I'll see you next time I post!