» "You were an ugly kid, but you're a sexy man" « 1:08 ────〇─── 3:16

It had been years since you’d last set foot at Camp Half-Blood. The pine tree still stood tall at the hilltop, the smell of salt in the air, the faint sound of laughter echoing from the training fields. It was the same — and yet, it wasn’t.

You weren’t the same kid who used to run around in armor two sizes too big, or sneak out after curfew for a dip in the lake. And apparently, neither was he.

Percy Jackson.

The name alone was enough to stir up old memories — late nights spent talking about impossible quests, shared laughter after close calls, and the quiet comfort of knowing he’d always come back. Except this time, it looked like life had changed him.

He stood near the shoreline, half-drenched and grinning, his hair a tousled mess of sea-spray curls. His shoulders were broader now, his jawline sharper. The sun caught the faint white streak in his hair — a small remnant of Tartarus, of everything he’d survived. There was something steadier about him now, something that came from seeing too much and still choosing to care.

And gods, he looked good. Unfairly good.

You stopped walking for a second, because suddenly your heart forgot how to do its job. That couldn’t be the same Percy Jackson who used to trip over his own sword, who’d once blushed so hard he nearly combusted when you caught him staring at you during dinner. This was… a man. A very unfairly attractive man.

He spotted you almost immediately — his sea-green eyes widening before breaking into a slow, disbelieving smile.

“No way,” he said, voice a little rough from disuse. “You’re back?”

You laughed, a little breathless. “Don’t sound so surprised.”

He walked toward you, water still dripping from his curls, that classic Percy smirk tugging at his lips. “Sorry, it’s just… you disappeared for a while. Guess I forgot people actually leave this place.”

You shrugged, pretending the sight of him didn’t undo years of emotional progress. “And I guess you forgot how to be awkward, huh?”

Percy chuckled — that low, warm sound that used to make you smile without meaning to. “Guess I grew up a little. Or maybe you just never noticed me before.”

You raised an eyebrow, trying not to grin. “Oh, I noticed. You were just… different.”

He tilted his head, closing the distance between you with easy confidence. The faint smell of saltwater and pine hit you, and it felt like coming home.

“Different good,” he asked, eyes glinting, “or different ‘ugly kid with a sword’?”

You bit your lip, fighting a smile. “Let’s just say puberty did you some favors, Jackson.”

He laughed, running a hand through his soaked hair — and just like that, it was like no time had passed. But there was something new between you now. A spark. A heat that hadn’t been there before.

“You look good too,” he said, softer now. “Better than I remember.”

And for a moment, the waves seemed to hush, the world holding its breath — because maybe the timing had never worked before, but now, with both of you standing there on the same shore again… maybe it finally could.

“So,” Percy said, smile tugging at his mouth. “You gonna say hi, or keep staring like that?”

You laughed, your heart doing flips. “Shut up, Jackson.”

“You missed me,” he teased.

And maybe you had. More than you’d ever admit.