Gabe

I cried during this, and it didn't take me long.

Percy played the male lead, which I was proud of. The role fit him pretty well. But there's this thing that was in there, and it hit me. It hit Sally, too.

When Percy was younger, he tried to kill himself. Obviously, it didn't work out and he woke up the next morning in a hospital. But he wrote a note. And Percy put this letter in this musical, switching up the names.

"Dear Evan Hansen," Percy started off as he typed in this laptop. "Turns out this day wasn't an amazing day after all. This isn't going to be an amazing week, or an amazing year, because why would it be? and
I know, because there's Zoe, and all my hope is pinned on Zoe, who I don't even know, and doesn't know me. Maybe if I could just talk to her. Maybe nothing would be different at all. I wish everything was different.
I wish I was a part of something. I wish that anything I said mattered to anyone. I mean face it, would anyone notice if I just disappeared tomorrow?
Sincerely,
Your most best, and dearest friend, Me."

Fucking bawled my eyes out, and not just because of the acting.

That was one of the scariest nights I've ever gone through. Having him in the hospital because he tried to kill himself when his mom was gone for a few days.

I didn't sleep for a week after that happened. I was in the hospital as much as I could be the three days before he was let out. After that, I was afraid to go to bed. I didn't want that to happen again. For him to think that everyone had been asleep so he could hurt himself. So that way, Percy could cut, he could pop pills, and do every other thing that we never caught.

That wasn't the first time it happened, either. Nor was it the last.

They uh... They did a really good job with it, though. With the show. Percy's always been a really good actor. He's also able to cry on command, which helped with this role.

I had realized we were still holding hands when they went up to do their bow. And after the bow, we waited a minute for it to clear out.

"Hey," Sally whispered over to me. "Are you hungry?"

"A little," I whispered back, unsure as to why we wer whispering. "Why?"

"Do you want to go out to eat after this?"

"I'd love to."

Percy

I was nervous, because now Mom and Nico get to be introduced to each other. Which, they know each other. But Mom doesn't know he's my boyfriend. And plus, Gabe has to meet him in person. They've talked over the phone once.

I saw my parents walking over and it was fine and dandy, until Gabe and Estelle saw Chiron and Gabe just kind of pretended like he didn't and Estelle yelled that she wanted to ride the pony.

That was only a little embarrassing. We're all lucky that Chiron has a sense of humor and just laughs whenever somebody calls him a pony.

My parents and Estelle found us, and Estelle pointed at Grover.

"Llama!"

I did laugh when she said that. But I didn't feel that bad, because even Grover laughed. My mom did, too.

Mom gave me a hug and she gave Grover a hug. It was the three of us here. And I don't think Nico was expecting anything, especially considering she doesn't know we're dating.

So when my mom hugged him, he gave me this look, confused.

Gabe leaned over to me, knowing my mom didn't know yet, unsure if my friends knew.

"Is that him?"

I nodded my head. That's Nico. That's the reason I didn't kill myself the night after Annabeth raped me.

But I get why he wasn't expecting the hug. His mom has been gone for a while, and his dad isn't affectionate. He hasn't received anything like that from a parent sort of figure in a long time.

They told us we did a good job, and Grover was pulled off to the side by Clarisse for something or another. Which is when I figured that now is as good of a time as any.

It was weird. I've never had to tell my mom about having a boyfriend. The other times she'd figure it out that we like each other before I even knew half the time.

"Hey, Mom," I brought it up as casually as I could manage. "remember when I told you that there was this person that I liked?"

"Yeah!" She assured me, smiling. "What about it?"

I motioned to Nico.

"This is Nico," I just felt reason to introduce him again, I don't know why. "He's my boyfriend."

And because Mom never really believed it when I was little, it took her a moment. But she just went in and gave Nico another hug.

Nico

I've gotten two unexpected hugs today from the same person.

This time, I was a little more scared. She knows now. Should could disapprove and tear us apart if she wanted.

"Take care of him," Sally didn't have any interest in that, though. That's not who she is. "He's got a lot of problems, and he might be a little clingy, but he cares."

"Of course." I responded. "I'll take this little shit. You have that one now, right?"

I mean, Gabe and Sally laughed. Percy didn't. So I gave him a light arm punch and told him to lighten up.

He did the thing, and looked at me.

"You keep doing this to me." My boyfriend joked with me. "Soon enough, all your money for college will be going to my medical bill."

"If Will is the one taking care of your broken arms," I insisted, helping him up from the chair. "I think I can get myself out of paying for that bill."

That entire encounter played off good, though. Gabe didn't seem like a bad guy, and he was really accepting of Percy and myself being together as two guys.

Had my mom even dreamed of that, we wouldn't hear the end of it for weeks. It was the 1930's and 40's, though. She just knew what she was taught. Maybe if she was brought up when Sally or Gabe was, it'd be different.

But that didn't happen. What has happened, happened, and I have to learn to live with it. It's in the past now. I have to let it stay there.

I'm just grateful for how cooperative Hazel's been through all of this. Especially with Percy being in our cabin so much. Then again, I put up with it, too. With Frank.

It'll be an adjustment. But I'm okay with this one. Having a family. Getting used to platonic affection. Parental love.

Outside of the occasional hug from my dad, usually because I just expierenced something traumatic, I don't get that. Most kids don't here.

It's kind of sad. As a kid who once had a mother and father, and Bianca...

I miss them. I don't know how somehow like Jason can function. Without parents.

"Hey," Percy had taken note of my distant look later that night, as we were getting ready for bed. "You okay? You look lost."

"Yeah," I assured him as I nodded my head, squeezing his hand. "Just seeing your parents today... Makes me feel nostalgic, I guess. Makes me miss the family stuff, you know? Not that I have too much to miss, I don't remember a great deal of it. But still."

"Yeah, I get it." He agreed, the two of us laying down. "I went through a lot of that with Paul. But I also didn't trust Paul and didn't want to start trusting him and letting him into my life. And my mom's."

"Oooh, a little rebellious, are we?"

"I guess," Percy remarked, shrugging. "I don't know. I've always been that way with my dad, too. Gabe wasn't father of the year after he started drinking. But... He was my dad. And he is my dad, he's back of course. But I just didn't want somebody to come into my life and take his place. I didn't want him to be gone. So like... I kind of get it. You've been on your own for a while. You're not used to being able to rely on others."

I zoned out during half of that.

"Mmm... Yeah...". I said as I rested my head on his chest. "That..."

I felt him chuckle.

"You're so cute,"my heart fluttered when I heard my boyfriend tell me that. "I love you."

"Mh... Love you... You..."