Hello there. I know this might have taken a while to come out with, but I've finally decided to do this. Finally, I'm writing a sequel to Side Window. Hopefully it doesn't ruin the original ( s/9182049/1/Side-Window if you haven't read it) for you guys. If it's that bad, you could always just viciously deny its existence. Sort of like I do with Hunchback of Notre Dame 2. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the story. I am not Rick Riordan, and therefore do not own PJO or HoO (no matter how much I wish I did).

Major Trigger Warning: This one is (hopefully) going to be much darker than the original. It's going to discuss things like PTSD, Anxiety, and Panic Attacks. If those things don't bode well with you, this might not be the best story for you. Sorry.

Broken

Chapter One: One Hundred Sleepless Nights

Percy

His eyes. I can still see them, so lifeless, so different from those eyes that studied my arms in the hallway. Nico Di Angelo, the innocent, attempted suicide because of me. Gabe Ugliano was in a morgue. Could there be any more blood on these hands?

I'm never going to get used to those dreams. The blood smeared across the walls and the body swinging from the shutters, it was just too much. I always woke up screaming. It was horrible the night I was in custody. I woke up the guard, and he wasn't exactly happy about it, but what can you do? If I could get rid of the dreams, I would.

Then there are the panic attacks. I'm just walking around, and suddenly my head goes numb. I can feel my heartbeat through my whole body. It makes me feel like I'm dying. In fact, the first time I had one, that's what I thought. I thought I was dying, and I called 911. It was about a week after my trial. (which, by the way, I was found innocent. The self-defense plea worked, hooray.) My mom had taken me to the mall. I guess she was trying to make me feel normal again. Maybe if I hadn't killed my step-father and almost killed my friend, it would've worked. I knew something was weird when I could hear the blood flow in my head. I was shaking within a minute of that. Any outsider might have thought I was drunk or high. My mom noticed and I told her quietly to call the ambulance. The ambulance arrived quickly. The whole ride to the hospital, a voice echoed in my mind. "Your Fault. Your Fault." The rhythm, while terrifying, was oddly relaxing. The chants eventually lolled me to sleep. "Your Fault. Your Fault." It was over when I woke.

The doctor told me what it was. At first I didn't believe it. A panic attack, really? Then it happened again, and again, and again. They got worse each time, like descending into a new level of hell. And there was no way to escape them. If I stayed in my room alone, they still came. If I went out, they came. If my mom stayed with me, they still came. They rocked my world harder then I even thought possible.

I really wished I could talk to Annabeth. She might have been able to help me, but she closed her curtains all the time now. When I tried to knock on her window, she never came. And I had seen light in her room. I couldn't help but think that she hated me. I didn't blame her. What I did was monstrous. Not to mention the fact that I took advantage of her. She was vulnerable. I took advantage of that. I would talk to me in her position either.

Nico was still recovering from his attempt. I hadn't gone to him, but my mom told me that he was much better now. The day she told me that was the first day I didn't have an attack. It was also the last. I know I should have tried to talk to him, but there was just way too much guilt. I couldn't bring myself to it. I know, it's pathetic. But my entire life had become just that, pathetic. Everything I had ever worked for seemed to be gone.

Well; that was the story until Leo Valdez decided to knock at my door.

It was four Sundays after the trial, at about noon when the doorbell rang. That's strange I thought. We haven't had any visitors sense the incident. My mom opened the door before I got downstairs. It wasn't even a second after that she called up to me. "Percy!" she yelled. "There's someone here to see you."

Me? I thought. Who would want to see me? When I got downstairs and saw that grinning Latino boy standing there, my eyes widened and my head flooded with questions. Why is he here? What does he want? He just gave me a bigger smile. "Hey, Perce. Long time, no see. What's up?"

"Leo," I said, "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I was getting kind of worried. You haven't been in school sense the trial. I thought maybe something happened." He explained. "Anyway, it looks like you're fine. So tell me, what's kept ya from coming back?"

I just looked at him for a few seconds. "Well," I finally said, "I've been trying to recover mentally from the whole thing."

"You can't do that by yourself. You know that, right? Everything gets easier if you have someone to help you through."

"You think I should go back?" I asked. "Won't people be a little, you know"

"Percy," He said, "everyone in the group went to the trial. Every other person in the school was following it on TV, and I'm telling you, every single person was on your side."

"But Leo," I said, "I did kill him."

"Percy," He shouted. There was a brief moment of complete silence. "Stop trying to hold this all by yourself. That's why this all happened in the first place. Let us help."

My chest felt like it was caving in on itself. "You said everyone?" I asked. He nodded. "Even Annabeth?"

He gave me a smirk. "Annabeth was worried about you the most."

"But I knocked on her window and-"

"She wanted to talk to you. She just couldn't bring herself to." He explained. "I think she was afraid that the whole thing made her insignificant to you."

"So she still likes me?"

"That's what I've been saying. So, you coming back or what?"

I had to think for a minute. I'd been away from there for so long. Was I ready? But then I thought about Annabeth, and then the rest of the group. Leo was right They could help me through this. "Alright," I said, "I'll go back tomorrow."

"Awesome!" He said.

"But I have to talk to someone first."

"Who do you wanna talk to?" he asked.

"Nico"

To be continued…

So that's that. A new story has begun. Is it good? Do you want to know what happens next? Is the title crap? Leave a review telling me what you think. A little review goes a long way. You can also Follow/Favorite it if you want. So, until next time. Make good decisions. Peace!