I chose to sit down and think my thoughts during a period of white noise: history. Mr. Chiron was an avid history fanatic, and sometimes reminded me of characters in a fairy tale.

He droned on about the Industrial Revolution, pausing every few minutes to check the class wasn't falling asleep. Which was surely an unfair thing to do, considering it was a warm Friday afternoon, right before the last period. Everyone in the room struggled to keep their eyes open.

My biggest struggle was to keep my head from lolling backwards and disrupting my train of thought. Mr. Chiron, to my dismay, kept a close eye on me. Maybe it was that I constantly had eyebags. Maybe it was that I had been away from school for so long. Or maybe I just looked dead inside. Either way, he kept his eyes trained on me when they weren't on the textbook.

My thoughts were rather organised, to be honest. I kept them in neat categories and depending on their importance, opened them up. Some were like packages on your doorstep, when you're just itching for them to take up time (this box, dubbed Important, contained mostly Percy Jackson). The other box that I had was filled with daily priorities, like homework and studying. They were background noise to me, always in my mind but didn't often take up much space. Then there was the last box, which I always wanted to push away, but kept nagging, and had become louder and louder in the past few hours: feelings.

Persephone was a nice woman, I thought first. She was kind and never treated me unfairly. She occasionally told me off if I accidentally stepped on her plants the few times I had been to her house, but she always rewarded my apologies and good listening skills with cookies.

I felt lied to. I did nothing wrong, but my father still thought I deserved not knowing about my mom. And I had to find out after sneaking around sketchily and forcing an explanation. I couldn't see that as fair, ever.

Another thought: was he acting on being fair, or on my best interests? Hades was a good parent. He worked hard to provide for me and was there when I needed it. He had even offered to talk to me about the incident, an offer I hadn't even considered. But he did have a habit of sheltering me. After my mother died, he didn't become the mean parent forever sulking in solitude, but rather an anxious parent checking his every move in case he was doing something wrong; after all, he didn't have someone else to check for him.

And what did any of what happened mean for me now? Was Persephone going to move in? Get married? Have kids? What about Bianca?

The questions rushed in like a waterfall, and I had to keep blinking, so my eyes didn't do the same. I was breathing too hard. My desk neighbour looked at me once with confusion and turned back. This is why I hated thinking about feelings. They never felt any good. But if Will Solace was kind enough to comfort me at seven in the morning, I was obliged to at least try his advice.

Lunch arrived soon and I fell in sync into my usual pattern of securing a canteen table for us. Hordes of students rushed through the hallways, but I was quick and snake-like, slithering through to the canteen before another student could think about it. Today, the canteen smelt like pizza, which was usually a good sign. The lunch lady slopped on a pile of mystery meat with a small slice of pizza, with an expression that told me that whatever happened, I should be grateful.

I took only a bite into my pizza before being joined by Jason. He waved at me and smiled with all his teeth, before sitting down opposite me.

"Hey, Nico!" Jason was someone I could never figure out. He wasn't a highschooler of any kind, but he fit in so well. He had cropped blond hair that, upon first thought, might make him look intimidating, but he always had a smile on his face, and a pretty one at that. It was warm and friendly, and invited me in every day. He wore glasses that he had acquired only a few months back, and he looked less serious and even more a dork, in the best way.

"Hey, Jason." I smiled back. "How's life?"

"It's alright." He grinned. "I found this dating app online, and basically what it does, is that you put in stuff like your interests and personality, and it'll give you a list of potential soulmates. Maybe I'll find my red-stringed soulmate here, Nico!"

"Maybe you will." I smiled. "Be careful though."

"I will," he nodded. "I've actually matched up with this girl called Piper. She seems really nice and looks like my type. And she's in the area, Nico! I think I'll go on a date with her. What do you think?"

"I think you should." I spoke. "If you think it's right, then go for it."

"I do, but I'm nervous, you know," he twiddled with his fingers, looking low enough for his glasses to slip a little. "Do you think you could maybe wingman me?"

"You want me to come with?" I said, a little startled.

"Yeah, I do." He spoke. He had this expression on his face where he looked a little uncomfortable, but he wanted a favour out of me. "Please, please, please, Nico. I'm begging you. I can pay for some ice cream after that. Just be invisible, you know? Just hang around the area, and you can call me and get me out of the situation if she ends up being not great."

I heaved a sigh, my shoulders dropping. "Alright, Jace, only because I'm your friend."

He flashed a brilliant smile. "Thanks, Nico."

I offered a small nod as Will, Percy and Annabeth joined us. Will dragged the chair next to me and sat down. He sat weirdly. He gripped his hands to the edge of the chair, where one's legs would go, and put his legs next to the backrest. Somehow, through all these antics, he still managed to bob his thigh.

He invited me into a brisk conversation after Percy briefly greeted me. It was usually like that: a simple hello, before getting into a conversation with anybody else. It wasn't his fault though. It's hard to not converse with your girlfriend, so I didn't blame him one bit.

Will Solace mentioned softly the morning's events. "You doing okay?"

I nodded, and he left it at that with a small smile. He started to recollect his Chemistry lesson and how easily things went wrong. He made me laugh surprisingly easily. It usually took Percy snorting milk out of his joke or dark humour to make me laugh, and Will used neither.

I walked home that day feeling much better than when I left. The double doors and the massive staircase felt a little less lonely and a little more spacious. Hades greeted me with a tentative wave.

"Dad, I think we should talk."