What If Three Days Meant Forever?

Will POV

"Hey, Will."

Monique is sitting at the dining room table with a plate of waffles and what appears to be a rolled up newspaper in hand. "Hi." I croak out before sitting down across from her. "Have you seen Nico?"

She shakes her head as she takes a bite out of the strawberry that was sitting atop the small tower of waffles. "He left."

"Left?" I say, furrowing my eyebrows in confusion. "What do you mean left?"

"He'll be back." She waves me off. "He'll probably tell you about it when he gets back."

"Tell me about what?" I wonder curiously.

"Where he went."

"And where did he go?"

"Underworld."

"What? Why? Is something wrong?"

"I guess we'll know when he gets back, Will."

"Was he summoned down there or something?"

"I don't know."

"Did something-"

Suddenly, Monique slaps the newspaper down to the table with force that makes me jump. "Will, is there something you need from me in particular?" I open my mouth before clamping it back shut and settling for a simple shake of the head. "Okay then. No offense, but it'd be nice to have some quiet while I eat my breakfast."

"Are you okay?" I ask seriously. Monique is usually such an open and friendly person and doesn't loose her patience that quickly. She takes a deep breath before answering me.

"I'm just tired."

"Did you get any sleep last night?" I ask, going into doctor mode.

"No, that's not-" She cuts herself with another slow intake of breath. "I'm just ready to go back to New York, that's all."

"Did something happen? Did my mom say something?"

"Nothing happened, Will." She says with a sad smile. "I'm just going to be very busy when I get back. I've been taking these tutor courses so that I can be eligible for school next September and I haven't been the most responsible person when it comes to keeping up with them."

I start to feel the guilt bubble up in my stomach. "Oh, Monique, we shouldn't have asked you to come-"

"Don't even start!" She says quickly, putting her palms over her ears to further show how she would not be listening. "Nico is bad enough with all that. It's fine, really. I'm kind of smart, I guess, so I'll be able to catch up rather quick. Then of course, there's the business of the Olympus meetings. I have another scheduled for as soon as we get back because I missed the November one, and then one on Christmas, which, with the Christians I'm living with right now, I have no idea how I'm going to slip past and get to the front lawn, much less New York, without them noticing."

"You have a lot on your plate." I agree with a nod.

"You have no idea. But there is some good sprinkled into the pot of bad. Quinton and I are most likely going to the same school next fall."

"That's amazing!"

"Yeah." She says, trying to bite back her impending smile. "But it's not fully determined yet, so I'm trying not to hope and all that. Either way, that's, like, an entire year from now. First part of business is Olympus."

"How many are on your side?"

"Well, it's gone from two to eight, but for all the wrong reasons. I let slip that the weaponization factor of the whole thing could be beneficial to them. I was trying to appeal to their selfish sides which worked a little too well. Now, they want to convert the school idea into a military camp, run by Ares instead of me."