InsaneJournal

Jason made his way back to the room he shared with Thalia. Despite his protestations, he was well aware that he’d been broody lately. Very broody. Probably broody enough that Piper was going to be annoyed at him for being such a crappy boyfriend. Which he had been. He was going to have to make that up to her.

But ever since Reyna’d gotten here, things had been..complicated. To say the least. He cared a great deal for her - she was his best friend, and had been since he was twelve years old. And in some ways, he felt really guilty for choosing Piper. But...he’d never felt those feelings for Reyna. And she’d never given him any indication that she was interested in him that way. How was he supposed to know if she never said anything?

The thing that was bothering him most now was his fear that dating Piper was going to cost him his friendship with Reyna. He had no idea how to balance the two relationships, neither of which he wanted to lose.

Thalia was the last person he should be talking with about this stuff, and he knew that. She was a hunter of Artemis - what could she possibly know about it? But she was also his big sister, and the closest thing to a mom he’d ever really had. And that was the person he needed right now.

Reaching their room, he stepped inside and threw himself on the couch, pinching the bridge of his nose and waiting for her to arrive.

Thalia was in her room, getting lost in the time-sucking monster that was YouTube, when she heard the front door open. She immediately went on alert, her battle reflexes flaring before her brain kicked in and reminded her that she was expecting Jason.

When she came out, Jason was already on the couch, doing a very good impression of a broody teenager. She couldn’t help but smile at that. There weren’t many times when demigods could actually act like the teens they were - monster-fighting and wars tended to age a person - so anything that made them seem remotely normal was rare.

She couldn’t take pleasure in it, though. Something was obviously bothering Jason - and had been for weeks now. She was just glad that he was finally willing to open up to her about it. Thalia didn’t like seeing her brother troubled. He might be taller - and physically older - than she was now, but to her he was always going to be the baby brother she looked out for.

“Hey,” she said, coming to sit on the couch next to him. “What’s going on?”

Jason looked up at her tiredly, displaying that over-dramatic teenage broodiness that would usually be normal in one of his age. Of course, most boys his age hadn’t face titans or killed sea-monsters or been a soldier for nearly their entire life. But still.

He shook his head a little. He really didn’t want to talk about this with anyone, but it was getting to the point where he was truly starting to believe that he wouldn’t be able to work this out on his own.

“Why are girls so difficult?”

Thalia lifted an eyebrow. Ah, so that was what this was all about.

“Girls in general?” she asked. “Or just one girl?”

Thalia didn’t know anything about romantic relationships, it was true. She’d sworn an Oath to forsake romantic love forever, as a matter of fact. But she did know people; she just hoped that what she knew would be enough to help.

“More than one. It’s Reyna and Piper. I really like Piper, I do. I like being with her. She’s sweet and beautiful and we’ve been through a lot together. But ever since Reyna got here...well, she doesn’t like it. At all. And I’m afraid I’m going to lose my best friend.”

Thalia frowned. She didn’t know Reyna too well except for the fact that she was scarily intense and had trouble talking like a normal person. She hadn’t realized that Reyna and Jason were so close, either.

“So when you said she doesn’t like it, what does that mean? Is she demanding that you break up with Piper so you can go back to being BFFs with her? Is she giving you the silent treatment to show that she’s not happy with you?”

“No...it’s not like that. It’s just...every time I bring Piper up, she gets mad. Like...I asked her to help me find a Christmas present for her, and Reyna freaked out. “

Ah. So it was that kind of a best friend. “Does she like you?” Thalia asked bluntly.

“Um, yeah. I think so. But I never led her on or anything.”

Thalia sighed. “Okay, I think I’m getting it, and it’s really not that complicated. Jason, I love you, but you’re an idiot. Also, Reyna may need to put on her big girl pants and just suck up the fact that you have a girlfriend, but it could be just that you’re an idiot.”

“What? That’s your advice? That I’m an idiot!? How am I an idiot? I didn’t do anything idiotic. I mean, at least, I don’t think I did.”

“You asked a girl who has a crush on you to find a Christmas present for your girlfriend!” Thalia pointed out. “That’s the most insensitive thing you could’ve done! And you’re wondering why she freaked out?”

“It’s not like that! She wanted to come shopping with me! We were buying things for people so of course I had to get something for Piper. It’s not that horrible, what I asked.”

She stared at him. “Did you ask her to help you find gifts for anyone else?”

“Well, no, I mean, I had ideas for everyone else. I figured since she was a girl she could help me with that one.”

“Okay, so look at it from her perspective. You guys agree to go on a shopping trip. She thinks it’s some kind of bonding experience where she gets to spend time with her BFF. And first thing you do, you ask her to find a present for your girlfriend. You know, the girl who stole your heart, thus rendering it impossible for her to take it and therefore leaving her alone and heartbroken?”

“This is stupid, that’s what it is. Why does she have to like me? Why did she have to ruin what we had by getting all romantic?”

Thalia shrugged. “I don’t know why anyone has to get romantic. It just leads to all...” she waved her hands in his general direction. “this. But here’s my advice. You tell Reyna that you’re sorry, you don’t feel the same way about her and you never had, and that you’re with Piper now, but you do want to stay friends with her. She’s not going to be happy about that - no one would be - but if she values you as a friend like she’s supposed to, she’ll suck it up. If she doesn’t, then she’s not really a friend anyway. But assuming she does, here’s the really important thing. You quit asking her to help you with anything regarding Piper. Have a fight with Piper? Talk to Leo. Need help finding a present for her? Ask Annabeth. You do not bring up Piper ever with her, and that will let you both pretend that there’s nothing wrong or awkward in your BFF status, and one day you’ll wake up and there really won’t be.”

Jason frowned. It sounded like good advice, sure. It really did. But he still hated it. He hated not being able to share everything with Reyna, like they always had before. He didn’t want their friendship to change, not at all. It was perfect.

“You don’t understand. She...Reyna...she’s...she’s this amazing girl. I know most people here don’t get her at all. But once you get to know her, she’s brilliant, and kind, and loyal, and...she’s just...she’s beautiful. In every way. And I don’t want things between us to change. I don’t want to have to guard what I say to Reyna.”

What had seemed to Thalia like a pretty straightforward case of a best friend who’d developed feelings for someone who liked somebody else had suddenly picked up a twist that she hadn’t seen before. She wondered if Jason realized that he’d just gushed about his best friend in way more effusive terms than he’d ever used to describe his girlfriend. It could be just because of the history he had with Reyna, but...

“You’re absolutely sure you have no romantic feelings for Reyna whatsoever? That it’s completely on her end and none on yours?”

“I...of course not. I mean, I don’t have feelings like that for Reyna. My feelings for Reyna and Piper are completely different.”

Thalia narrowed her eyes as she studied her brother. “So if Reyna were to meet a guy today and fall madly in love with him and be all, ‘Hey Jason, go nuts with Piper, I got me a man’, you’d be...?”

“I’d be fine with it,” he said, keeping his voice calm despite himself. What he, of course, didn’t notice at the moment was the flash of electricity in his eyes, or the way the papers on the table had briefly fluttered as if hit by a strong wind.

Hoo boy.

“Okay,” Thalia said carefully, because she had seen his involuntary reaction. “You don’t want to guard what you say to Reyna, but since she’s gone and ruined everything by liking you when you absolutely do not like her back in any way and have done nothing to to make her think that you might, you have two choices. Don’t hold back. Keep asking her for advice about Piper and tell her about everything that you and Piper do - oh, and don’t leave out the juicy details. Make sure you tell her all about how nice Piper smells and how good she feels. That will A) serve her right for ruining your friendship with her crush and B) make her so mad at you that she’ll forget she ever liked you, and everything’s peachy keen. Or you can be considerate of her feelings for just a little while and suck up the fact that you can’t tell her everything for, oh, give it a few months. That’ll give her time to get over her feelings, and you guys can go back to being best friends like before. And just as a hint: The first option is not the right one.”

Jason glared at her a bit, but took her point all the same. “Fine. It’s weird, and I don’t want to do it. But I won’t talk to her about Piper for a few months. And...it’s true, Thalia. I never did anything to make her think that I...you know.”

“Okay, keep it that way,” Thalia said. Of course, given that he himself wasn’t aware of his conflicted emotions, she wasn’t sure he’d even be able to tell if he was giving out conflicting signals.

She gave him an encouraging smile. “I know it’s hard right now, but...well, hopefully time sorts things out. And if it doesn’t, we’ll just look at it again and see what we can do about it. I know I’m not good at this romantic stuff, but I’m good at figuring out what makes people tick. You don’t have to try to work it all out alone, because you have a sister and that’s what sisters are for.”