CONTENT WARNING: This chapter tackles with mild (but blatant) transphobia. Please proceed with caution.

The bell sounded through the halls, the noise of students packing away their stuff erupting from every classroom. I followed suit. I grabbed my things and left as quickly as possible, trying to remain under the radar.

I managed to just miss the crowd of students all running toward the lockers with a few teachers calling out to stop speeding down the hall. Percy was not so lucky.

Percy squished through the crowd, no force helping him squeeze through the hungry students. I disappeared from the halls and into the canteen. I lined up fourth, only beat by Charles. He was speedy and managed to get the teachers to let him off a few minutes early.

I took some mystery meat lunch with some strangely coloured vegetables and sat down in my usual spot in the middle of the canteen, on a white table. Placing my tray down, I let out a sigh. I counted to three and a hoard of students came through the door, each rushing to not fall behind in line. I eyed anyone who dared looked at the spare chairs until Percy Jackson came.

I waved and he grinned right back, his tray full of a lunch that was identical to mine. He sat down one seat to the right, opposite to me, slamming his tray on the table with a sigh.

"I really hate English," he groaned. "Mx. Taylor spent all their time on the phone."

"I wish Mrs. Daniels did that," I picked up a piece of meat with my fork, debating whether to eat it or not. "But she read the entire thing out at snail's pace. But, on the bright side, I did meet-"

"Hey, Percy," Annabeth cut through my story. She kissed Percy's cheek and sat down next to Percy. She smiled at him and turned to me. "Hey, Nico."

Annabeth was more or less a stereotype. She was the type you'd find in the classroom after school, pouring over a math problem, or would finish the assignment on the same week it was assigned. She was ahead of everyone, always. It had struck me as strange she hadn't found her red-stringed soulmate.

But what made me irk was not really something I could critique her on. She was Percy's girlfriend. I never fully understood how they got together, but they met via Percy's math teacher assigning her as his tutor. They spent their Saturdays, then Fridays, then every day, at the library, and I knew Percy well enough to know that he was not that fond of Maths. Then one day, she turned up, her arm in his, and announced they were together.

Saying I should've guessed it would be an understatement. I should've seen it coming the moment they met. But until know, I assumed that Percy's type was more like Clarisse, but less mean.

"Hey Annabeth," I said.

The two launched to a conversation about paperclips and staplers, Jason soon joining them.

"I think I've been summoned," He slammed his tray right opposite me and smiled. "How can I resist my girl, stapler?"

"True love," Percy cooed. He began an elaborate handshake with Jason, which lasted about thirty seconds to long. There was only two things Percy loved more than Annabeth: Jason and blue cookies, in no particular order.

Percy, Annabeth and Jason conversed as if they'd been there for hours, and I was left with sitting alone on my side of the table, picking at food and shouting out laughs as everyone else did. This was normal. Every lunch was like this.

But it wasn't every lunch I heard a boy with a bounce in his step walk up to me and tap my shoulder. I turned around to find a bright smile and blond curls greet me.

"Hey, Nico, it's me, Will," the boy grinned. Conversation from the opposite side of the table ceased as they looked in awe at Will. Will looked at the rest of them. "Hello! I'm in the student exchange program. I was in English with Nico."

He sat down to my right, opposite Percy. He greeted Will with a wide smile. "I'm Percy. This is my girlfriend Annabeth," Annabeth waved. "You met Nico in English?"

"Oh, yeah, we really hit it off," Will said. He was relaxed in every aspect except his posture. I'd never seen that before. I couldn't decide if he was a golden retriever of a cat in the night.

"Hey, Percy," A slimy voice greeted. Percy turned around and grinned. I resisted a sigh.

"Octavian!" He exclaimed. "My man, what's up?" Octavian resembled Will in most ways physically, from the blond hair to the blue eyes, but Will was tanner, and wasn't as much as a schmoozer as Octavian.

"I don't like him," Will whispered to me. I was startled to hear his voice so close to me but didn't show it.

"Neither do I," I grumbled. But Percy and Octavian were close. Too close. Percy was well aware that I didn't get along with him, but Percy was still friends with him. I didn't want to keep him from his friends, but I still wanted to stick to mine, so I just kept my distance when Octavian was around.

"Did you see Mr. Taylor," he scoffed. "I can't believe he's my English teacher."

Ah. And there it was.

Octavian was not someone I hated for no reason. No, I had an exceptionally good reason to dislike him. He was a massive transphobe.

He had revealed this to me a year ago, when he went on a rant about how trans people can be trans as long as they'll keep it to themselves. "I don't understand why they use the labels," he had muttered when he thought I couldn't hear. "Only the straight people, gays and bi people are real. The rest are just pointless labels for the sake of it."

He knew well that Percy was a trans ally, but that didn't stop him. And neither did Percy.

And this was where Percy confused me. He was brave, and kind and would protect anyone from Clarisse in a heartbeat, but if Octavian had said anything, Percy resembled a mouse, silent and trying to scurry away from the situation. In every other way, Percy was perfect. He was handsome, kind and had a big heart, but he didn't say anything about Octavian's nonsense at all, ever.

"Mx. Taylor," Will corrected, eyeing Octavian, but keeping a smile on his face. "And I find them to be a decent teacher in the least."

"You're the new kid," Octavian smiled a little two wide. "You transferred from Texas, yes?"

"That's right," Will took a tentative bite of his lunch and swallowed it without chewing. "Here for three months. Thought it'd be nice to check out what the north is like."

Will had the most distinct southern accent I heard. He sounded like a character straight out of a 1970s movie. I could imagine his voice cutting through the winds, the world pixellated, and the sound of gunshots erupting. But Will spoke slowly and clearly, as if he were fully away of how everyone perceived him.

"How do you find Washington D.C.?" Octavian asked. His eyes moved too fast and his smiled didn't falter. "And more importantly, Olympian College?"

"It's all good," he said, breezing through the questions. "Still getting used to it, but that's expected."

"Have you met your soulmate?" Octavian asked. He spoke a little too soon, like he wasn't really listening to Will, and that was far too a personal question to someone you'd met under three minutes ago. Will noticed this.

"I don't know. It's hard to know if I've met the one," Will said, tilting his chin down and his eyes up at Octavian. "But I'm sure I'll find someone eventually. Life will find me if I don't find it first, I always say."

"Well, maybe you'll find 'the one' here," Octavian said. "I hear Nico's been on his own, yeah?"

That caught me off guard. My cheeks burned before I could compose myself, but I took a moment to make sure I didn't spout anything stupid. But, to my shock, Will spoke.

"Ah, I would've thought someone like Nico would have everyone chasing him," he grinned. His smile reaching his eyes, now squinting. He let out a small chuckle. Octavian opened his mouth and then shut it.

"You'd be shocked," Octavian said, in a tone that was far too flat. "Really,"

He waved the table goodbye, but Will and I didn't wave back.