you were a hypnos child, meaning you could drift off anywhere, anytime. most days you curled up in your cabin under a heap of mismatched blankets, the smell of lavender and chamomile tea lingering in the air. your siblings teased you for being the definition of “low maintenance” —

all you needed was a quiet place, and you could disappear into dreams for hours. sometimes you’d stay awake through the night instead, wandering camp in soft slippers, the moonlight painting you silver. but you never really left your cabin much … until him at least.

you met percy in the most un-hypnos way possible.

— by nearly knocking him over. you’d been walking half-asleep to the dining pavilion, your mind still tangled in dream-fog.

when you bumped right into him. his soda fizz splashed across his shirt, and he gave you that half-annoyed, half-confused “what just happened” look. you mumbled a sleepy apology, your voice slow and quiet, like honey dripping from a spoon. something about the way you blinked up at him, still halfway in another world, made him laugh instead of get mad.

and somehow that was it.

he started showing up at your cabin with blue cookies and asking you to walk with him, even though you yawned every third step. you’d watch him train at the arena, and he’d watch you nap on the grass under the shade of a tree.

it was the strangest balance, but it worked.

right now, you laid tangled in his blue-and-white striped sheets, the fabric warm from the summer sun streaming through the window a nice contrast from the cool air in the cabin.

percy’s arm was draped around your waist, his hand idly tracing circles over your shirt. your breathing was slow and even, your hair spilling over his pillow, your lips parted just enough to let the softest sigh escape. he smelled faintly of saltwater and laundry detergent — comforting and familiar.

he stared at you for a moment before speaking. “is this really what you do aaalll day?” he asked, his voice low, teasing.

you hummed without opening your eyes, the sound somewhere between a yes and a “don’t bother me.” “pretty much,” you murmured after a pause, your words soft but laced with the tiniest smile.

percy shook his head, though the corner of his mouth curved up. “i don’t know how you’re not bored out of your mind.”

“dreams are never boring,” you replied, eyes still closed. “and besides … this is nice.”

he went quiet for a second, and you could feel his gaze on you again. his thumb brushed gently over your side, almost absentmindedly. “yeah,” he said softly, almost like he was agreeing more with himself than you. “yeah, it is.”

the room was quiet except for the faint sound of waves crashing somewhere far off — the ocean never seemed too far away from him, even here. you shifted closer, your cheek pressing into his chest, and he adjusted his hold without thinking, pulling you tighter against him.

his heartbeat was steady under your ear, a soft rhythm that made you feel like you could stay there forever. and maybe you would.