Impeccable Taste

I groaned as I saw Ganymede's caller ID on my phone just as there was a knock at the door. All I wanted was one night, one night of relaxation with our friends, to end a chapter in our lives with dignity. I had been so good too. What the fuck more could Zeus Grace ask of me?

"Which one do need me to get?" Jason asked, dusting the flour off his hands. I almost felt like crying. The fact that he was willing, offering himself up, to deal with Ganymede and his father after he's been hounded just as much, if not more, was indeed proof of his love. I couldn't do that to him, though.

"Door," I answered with a sigh, receiving the sweetest kiss on my cheek in return as a gesture of good luck.

"Why?" I answered the insistently ringing phone. I heard Jason snort as he opened the door to Will and Nico.

"Well, good evening, Perseus," Ganymede's snooty voice drawled, and I could practically hear the eye roll. "Mister Grace would like to confirm tonight's dinner."

"His Grace can fuck off." Will's eyes went a little wide mid-wave. Jason and Nico, on the other hand, were barely containing grins, having seen this little show many times.

"Perseus," Ganymede warned.

"Don't you dare take that tone with me, you fucking lapdog," I growled. "I told both you and Zeus that we won't be available tonight, a week ago. Contrary to what his Grace believes, he is not the pinnacle about which our lives revolves, and we have other plans."

"The reservation is at eight," he said, entirely ignoring my statement.

"His Grace will be eating alone."

"Perseus," Ganymede sighed, sounding very exasperated even though he had no right to be. "Mister Grace will be furious if you pull out of this commitment."

"The only Grace I've committed anything to is Jason, Chihuahua." Speaking of my Superman, he uncorked a bottle of wine and silently handed me a glass slightly fuller than the rest of the glasses. I mouthed him my thanks.

"Perseus," I didn't grant him a chance to say anything else.

"No, Ganymede. I have the fucking read receipts for the email I sent a week ago. Our guests have already arrived. So, do your master a favour by wetting his dick and keeping him at home to save him from the embarrassment of dining alone. Goodbye." I slid my phone onto the kitchen counter before I chugged half my glass of wine.

Will choked on a sip of wine, but Jason seemed unbothered. "How can you say shit like that?" Will gasped.

"Well, I've heard him tell my father to fuck himself regularly, so telling Ganymede to go do it, might be an improvement," Jason shrugged, kissing my cheek.

"It's still a bit extreme, isn't it?" Will asked, his southern upbringing appaled by the lack of respect.

"No, William. Ever since Jason got signed, I have been working my ass off to market him. I've doubled his followers in the last month. Last week's fundraiser, where the Zeus had me tell everyone who would listen about the Billion Oyster Project I'm going to be working on to win some eco brownie points as if I was his prized schnauzer in a dog show, caused a spike in Zeus's support. We deserve one fucking night to regain our sanity, and I am not going to allow the fucker to ignore our needs and force us to bend to his will. Just because he refuses to listen, doesn't mean I have to shut up and take it!" I ended my little rant by chugging the rest of my glass. Jason silently refilled it and effectively emptied the first bottle.

"Anyway, hi," I said, a little sheepishly. "I'm sorry for biting your head off. You didn't deserve that."

Will silently pulled me into a hug, and damn I needed that after the day I've had. "Hi, what are we having?" he asked, peeking over my shoulder into the kitchen.

"Fish and chips," I answered, earning me a smack on my shoulder from Jason.

"Paneed red snapper with sweet potato wedges, thank you very much," he clarified. Will and I shared a look.

"Fancy ass fish and chips," I amended, making Will laugh.

"Why do you both seem a little more on edge than usual, though?" Nico asked, ever tactful, as we migrated towards the couches. Jason was staring at his shoes, and we took a synchronised deep breath.

"We have an extra guest tonight," I explained.

"Who?"

I glanced towards Jason. Even if he was the one to invite her, I knew he was uncomfortable with having Annabeth over. Hell, I was a little restless and anxious about her coming back into our lives. Why wouldn't he be even more so? I knew I wouldn't have been as pleasant as he was if it had been Reyna.

"So, Perce and I were shopping for the condo this morning," he started with a sigh. "And we ran into Annabeth."

Both Nico and Will simply blinked at us, dumbfounded. There was a frantic, yet distinctly familiar knock at the door and I went to greet Leo and Calypso. Leo bounced off to the couches with his usual beer, but Calypso frowned at the glass of white wine I handed her.

"I know its disappointing, but Jason hid the red from me because he said it was going to ruin his fish."

"Hey," he protested from the couch. "I told you you could switch to red with dessert."

"I made brownies," I winked at Calypso. "No one's gonna tell me I can't have a Cabernet with a chocolate dessert."

"My hero," she mockingly swooned.

"Can we get back to you two running into Annabeth?" Nico asked, seemingly recovering from his shock.

"What?" Both Leo and Calypso screeched.

"Okay, so we're looking at tables for the condo, and there she is, shopping for furniture for her new apartment."

"Wait, new apartment?" Leo asked. "Does that mean she's back for good?"

"Yeah, doing her masters at Harvard," I nodded.

"So, what, you just invited her to dinner?" Nico scowled at me, eyes darting toward Jason in concern.

"Of course not, I would never purposely put Jason in an uncomfortable position like that," I defended. "He invited her himself." Every head snapped towards my Superman.

"You invited his ex to dinner?" Leo asked flatly.

"You guys weren't there," Jason whined. "She was nice. She apologised. Besides, they were best friends before they ever dated, like real true friends. And gods know that with all the time we've been spending with my dad lately, we've learnt how precious real friends are."

"If we're so precious to you, why can't I have red wine?" Calypso quipped, and I snorted.

"Also," I interrupted before Jason could lecture her on food and wine pairings. "It helps that he knows Annabeth and I never saw each other naked."

"Yeah, that helps," Jason pouted, and I plopped back down next to him, squeezing his thigh.

"Wait, you and Annabeth never..." Will trailed off with a frown. "But, you two dated for over three years. How the fuck did you not?"

"Need I remind you that I'm gay?" I smiled at him sweetly.

"I'm gay," he countered. "And I lost my virginity to Lou Ellen."

"Okay, but this is Annabeth we're talking about. Up until our senior year, I was fully convinced that she was ace."

"What happened senior year?" Leo asked with a grin, sniffing the gossip like a bloodhound, and that's when I realised I've never told anyone about what happened, not even Jason.

"It doesn't matter..." I tried, but the warmth flooding my cheeks betrayed me.

"Oh gods, what happened?" Jason asked next to me, going slightly rigid.

"Wait, Jason doesn't even know?" Leo asked, practically bouncing in his seat. "It has to be good then."

"Percy, what happened?" Jason asked again, completely ignoring Leo.

"Fine," I huffed. "Annabeth saw Piper in a bikini and went 'damn'." The room went deathly quiet for a full four seconds before it erupted in laughter. Leo fell over onto Calypso's lap as he clutched his stomach.

"Was this at Piper's start of year pool party?" Will asked thoughtfully, and I nodded my confirmation. "Okay, but to be fair, even I went 'damn'."

"I...I am..." Nico wheezed. "I am so happy they are both gonna be here tonight."

"I'm so glad that the news of my ex-girlfriend being gay for another girl amuses you," I deadpanned, taking another sip.

"Well, at least she's gay for like the female version of you, so you know you're her type," Will tried to soothe.

"If you didn't have a dick, that is," Nico grinned evilly.

"Okay, so that's another gay," Leo threw his hands up in exasperation. "When did straight people like us become an endangered fucking species?"

"Since when are you straight?" Calypso asked with a frown, and Leo's smile fell.

"Babe, please, no."

"So things have been hectic with the new shop and everything, and we barely have time to see each other, not to mention relax. So, I took Leo to my yoga class the other day. You know, two birds with one stone."

"Babe, no," Leo begged, sagging onto his knees. Calypso grinned and continued.

"So, he takes one look at my yoga instructor, Pyke, and goes 'fuck, he's hot'." Leo was shaking his head frantically, eyes pleading her to stop. That only made me wonder how much worse this story could get.

"So, I'm thinking he's going to get jealous and tell me I can't go to yoga anymore because the instructor's too hot, but no. No, Leo gets this far-off look in his eyes and askes me 'you know who's hotter, though?'" Leo dropped his head on her knee in defeat.

"'Jason'," she finished, and we roared as Jason blushed crimson.

"Leo, I agree," I laughed. "As someone who has been to yoga with your fiance, Jason is hotter than Pyke." Leo buried his face deeper into Calypso's dress, ears tinting pink.

"So what if you're not completely straight," Calypso shrugged, running her fingers through his hair. "You at least have impeccable taste."