Olympian

5: Breakup

Percy POV

I COULDN'T BELIEVE ANNABETH. HOW COULD SHE SAY SOMETHING LIEK THAT? I know that Annabeth doesn't like me, but accusing my girlfriend and close friend of cheating on me was too much.

I had been dating Drew for months. We even confessed our lives for each other, so she couldn't be cheating on me. Right?

I felt sick to the stomach just thinking about it.

My decision to skip the rest of school was made because I knew I couldn't concentrate anymore. Instead, I drove to Olympia so that I could swim off my tension and anger.

During my drive, I realized that the possibility of Luke betraying me hurt more than Drew cheating. For those that don't know, I've known Luke since we were freshmen in high school. Luke and I instantly bonded after placing on Olympia's senior swimming team. We were accomplished at a young age. He even taught me a few techniques for swimming and controlling my breath; meanwhile, I often invite him to hang out and have dinner because his family life isn't great.

I confided in Luke so much over the year, treating him like a brother. Like family.

I wiped the tear off my cheek. Annabeth had to be lying. I didn't believe her words at all. I couldn't.

Parking in the lot, I ran into Olympia's pool room. Chiron was surprised to see me so early. I shrugged off his surprise, changed quickly, and dove into the water.

Swimming always helps me feel better. It clears my head and pushes my problems away.

I didn't realize how long I kept swimming until other athletes started coming in. Slowly, the pool started to fill up as afternoon turned into evening. Finally, Chiron told me to stop practicing.

He put his arm around my wet shoulder and walked me to a plastic bench near the locker rooms.

"Perseus, is everything okay? You did good in practice, but you're less lively than usual," Chiron acknowledged.

"I'm fine, Chiron," I breathed out. "It's Percy, by the way."

Chiron chuckled while stating that he liked full names. Chiron was an amazing coach, and he always provides the best advice. Plus, he always looking out for my well-being and my swimming career.

For example, he pulled me out of swimming just now because practicing for hours upon hours straight wasn't healthy. It was too exhausting. Chiron definitely believed in quality over quantity. Also, Chiron wrote several recommendations for me to go to college on a swimming scholarship. I was very grateful for everything Coach Chiron does for me.

One quality I didn't like about Chiron was that he won't stopping calling me Perseus.

Ugh, I hate than name. It's Percy.

Chiron patted my back before saying, "I'm putting together a very important practice on Saturday. All the swimmers will be competing in many events. I'm testing everyone's times, especially yours."

"Okay, Chiron. I'll be ready."

"Good."

Having special practices to check our event times were pretty common. However, Chiron seemed way too excited about this particular practice. I felt like he was keeping something from me. Regardless, I'm going to try my best at every event, especially if Chiron was encouraging me to.

After a few more minutes, I slipped into the locker room to change and get ready.

That's when I saw Luke sitting on the wooden bench. He was sitting near my locker. His head was downcast, and he was waiting for me.