we're driving fast in my car [PRIVATE]

n n n daughter of apollo

Spring was just around the corner and Alex could tell from the cold breeze that whipped her face. Her red-orange hair fanned out behind her as she maneuvered the bicycle near the edge of the lake. One of her friends, a son of Hermes, had lent her a mean mountain bike. Although she doubted the legality of him acquiring such thing, Alex deemed it as none of her concern as she took it out for a spin. It took her a while to relearn how to ride a bike, being out of practice, but soon enough she found herself zooming across the courtyard like a pro. Now, she was cycling around the lake faster than she should. One wrong move and she would be sent plunging into the water. Alex laughed as she threw the lake a sideway glance. As if that would actually happen, she thought.

Alex was so preoccupied that she hadn't considered another bad possibility happening until her eyes flickered to what was ahead of her. Hurtling along the dirt path at breakneck speed, she realized too late that there was a boy in her way. Uh-oh. Her jaw tightened as she began squeezing the brakes. The bike lurched slightly and she knew full well that she wouldn't stop in time. If she suddenly forced the bike to stop, the momentum might cause her to lose balance and fall into the lake. Her heart pounded as she closed the distance between them. She was less than ten feet away now...

"HEY!" she yelled across the wind. Only five feet away. "GET OUT OF THE WAY!"

the truth never set me free so i'll do it myself

n n n daughter of apollo

Alex let out a sigh of relief as she sped past the boy who was now on the grass. Thank the gods for fast reflexes, she thought. Although the bike hadn't slowed down enough for her to ride safely, Alex already loosened her hold on the brakes. The adrenaline rush had not yet faded, her heart still racing as she comprehended what happened. By some miracle, she and the boy were in one piece. She smirked. The danger had passed.

Oh how she was mistaken.

Alex heard the boy's warning but it was already too late. The bicycle gave a frightening lurch from under her. It had bumped into the rock, small enough to fit into the palm of Alex's hand, but the force was strong enough to throw her off her seat and send her flying into the lake - the very cold lake. Alex didn't even have time to scream before her body struck the icy surface with a resounding splash.

the truth never set me free so i'll do it myself

n n n daughter of apollo

It was a whole new perspective being underwater. Everywhere Alex looked she saw nothing, nothing but blue. Every now and then a small shadow would flick past, fishes sliding out of her sight as quick as they came. The lake's creatures minded their own business and did nothing to the slowly drowning girl. The impact of the fall had rendered Alex immobile it seemed and all she could do was to let the water carry her deeper into its depths. A few bubbles slipped from the corners of her lips. Her oxygen supply was diminishing fast. Swim, she tried to tell herself, but her mind seemed to have trouble processing the simplest of commands. Her arms and legs were starting to get too heavy and they weighed her down... This was it... Alex closed her eyes...

Next thing she knew she was sprawled face-down on the bank. The grass felt ticklish under her but that was the least of her worries. Her clothes stuck to her body like glue and she could feel drops of water sliding down her skin and into the ground. Alex's pulse raced as her hazy mind came to a realization. She could still feel all these things, which meant that one of her senses was still working. It meant that she was still alive.

With great effort, Alex tried rolling on to her back but only managed it halfway through, lying on her side as coughs wracked her small frame. Her throat hurt with every cough but she could no longer help it - her body was doing its best to get as much water out of her system as possible. It didn't help that her clogged nose slightly stung every time she tried to breathe. Alex forced herself on all fours, planting her palms firmly on the ground for support. Cough, cough, wheeze. For the next few moments, nothing was heard but her endless coughing. At the moment, Alex didn't wonder how she got back on land alive and breathing. All her focus was on keeping herself that way.

the truth never set me free so i'll do it myself

n n n daughter of apollo

"Are you okay?"

Alex sucked in a raspy breath at the question, trying to quell her coughs as her watery eyes flew to the speaker. She couldn't make his features out well but he seemed as drenched as she was, sparkling water dripping from his clothes and hair. He must have been the one to pull her to safety. Alex's cheeks flushed at the thought of being saved by a total stranger. Great first impression, Alex.

"I'm good," she managed to get out, albeit a little hoarsely. She was still half-lying on her side, both hands gripping the grass and the dirt as she attempted to steady herself. Her vision was still cloudy as she squinted at the boy. "Are you?"

the truth never set me free so i'll do it myself

n n n daughter of apollo

Alex bit her lip at the response. Well, at least the boy was being honest. But he wouldn't have been in his state right now if it wasn't for her... Alex quickly shrugged the guilty thoughts off. Past is past. Besides, thinking about it only made her feel sicker.

Alex finally mustered enough strength to pull herself into a sitting position after a few attempts. Her body still protested; it ached everywhere. Her nose stung, her ears felt waterlogged, her eyes seemed so sore that she didn't have to be a genius to know that her irises were riddled with red lines, and - she realized with a shiver as a gust of wind blew past - she was so damn cold. And if that wasn't enough, her head was still swimming and her vision hadn't totally cleared yet.

"I'm fine," Alex stubbornly insisted - well, more like lied really. She raked her fingers through her faded red hair, the original blonde color peeking out from the washed out dyes, and found it uncomfortable how the strands were plastered around her neck and face. "I think you should," she said breathily. "I can't see you very well but you don't seem to look so good."

the truth never set me free so i'll do it myself

n n n daughter of apollo

Alex rubbed her eyes. Her vision was beginning to clear but only barely. "Hm, okay," she agreed a bit grudgingly as she shifted her weight to the balls of her feet. She tried to push herself up but to no avail - her legs didn't seem to want to carry her just yet. A soft sigh slipped out of her pale lips. "Just... give me a moment."

Taking a few deep breaths to regain what was left of her composure, Alex used the time to squint at her savior. He was blond, she realized, and he looked vaguely familiar. Was it possible that she had met him before? Oh! Alex blinked at the realization. He was the boy she nearly ran over with the bike! The bike!

"Damn!" Alex exclaimed, her glassy eyes widening. A cold chill that had nothing to do with the wind ran down her spine. She glanced around wildly, her head pounding at the motion but she ignored the pain. Oh gods, what if it was destroyed? She didn't even realize how her thoughts turned into spoken words. "Warren is going to kill me..."

the truth never set me free so i'll do it myself

n n n daughter of apollo

It took Alex a full five seconds to process what the boy had said. "Oh no," she mumbled. She bowed her head and clutched it with both hands. "No no no... this couldn't be happening... Warren is definitely going to kill me..."

Looking up once more, she realized that the boy had come to stand beside her. Alex rose to her feet with a pained huff. The mere motion made her nauseous, although that may have been because of how fast she tried to stand up in her condition. "No need to be sorry. S'not your fault. Actually I should be thanking you," she said, managing a weak smile. "You kinda saved my life."

the truth never set me free so i'll do it myself

n n n daughter of apollo

Alex listened to Salvador introduce himself, swaying a little on her feet as she did so. Water dripped continuously from her clothes and hair, splattering the ground below. The breeze made her shiver once more and she wrapped her arms around herself tightly. "I'm Alex," she said. "Nice to meet you. Now let's get your leg treated."

Guilt washed over her as she glanced at his bruised leg. It was bad enough that she had to lose the bike. Why did she have to drag another person into her mess? Here they were now, two demigods soaked to the bone and barely on their feet, trying to get to the Big House.

"I'm really sorry," she said quietly. Sorry didn't cover it though. Sorry was just a word, and a mere word couldn't make up for what she had caused. But then, it was all she could offer. What else can she do?

the truth never set me free so i'll do it myself

n n n daughter of apollo

Resisting the urge to chuckle at Salvador's pink-tinged cheeks, Alex responded with a relieved smile. Even with Salvador's attempt to shrug it off like it was nothing, she could tell that her apology had not landed on deaf ears. Thinking about it brought the bike back to her mind and she suppressed a cringe. She doubted that the Hermes kid she now owed a bike to would not be as kind as Salvador even with the best and sincerest apology she would come up with.

The cold wind blew once more as they walked, melting the smile off her face. She gritted her chattering teeth hard. This was one of the times where she absolutely detested being a daughter of Apollo. It would have been more beneficial to her situation if she were a daughter of a wind or an ice god. Heck, if Poseidon had hooked up with her mother instead, maybe Salvador wouldn't have needed to save her sorry behind. But then, she thought ruefully, maybe I would've gotten involved in troublesome prophecies and other stupid adventures. That thought alone quickly banished any desire of being a kid of the powerful sea god.

"So," Alex said, cutting the silence before it could become too long for comfort, "who's your parent? Mine's Apollo." Even with her attempt to keep her slightly shaking voice controlled, there was still a rough edge to her tone when the sun god's name left her lips. She acted like it was nothing though, more interested and curious as to what the boy's answer would be. Anything to keep her mind off the bike and the nasty spring breeze.

the truth never set me free so i'll do it myself

n n n daughter of apollo

Alex stopped in her tracks, seeming as if the chilly water had actually frozen her into place. She was saved by a son of Ares. Ares. The knuckles of her right hand tingled at a certain memory, one that coincidentally occurred in the same place they were in now.

She stood there unmoving, staring at Salvador as if seeing him clearly for the first time (metaphorically of course; she could barely see through the little drops of water pooling in her lashes). The boy she had thanked for saving her life, the boy she had even apologized to, was a son of Ares. He was part of the cabin that terrorized kids on many occasions, and even she had fallen prey to their antics more than once. At one point, Alex was even convinced that they were just brutes who had nothing better to do but fight. She loathed them on principle and she was pretty sure that the feeling was mutual. Now, she had so much trouble believing that Salvador was one of them.

"You are a son of Ares," Alex stated simply, devoid of emotion. Maybe she just hadn't heard him right. Her ears still buzzed after all.

the truth never set me free so i'll do it myself

n n n daughter of apollo

Salvador was really a son of Ares. The mere fact made Alex scowl a bit. She was saved by one of the people she wanted so badly to banish to the deep dark pits of Tartarus. And she technically owed him her life. Never would she have guessed that she would owe her life to a fricking son of Ares.

"It's nothing," she said, her tone clipped. She paused a little, watching water drip down his blond hair. "It's just... Your brother almost killed me once."

Maybe that was a bit of an overstatement. Maybe her anger was unjustified. But then, Alex's mind was not in the best state and she was chilled to the bone. Her scowl had faded by now but her forehead was creased and her lips twitched slightly, as if unsure whether to form a smile or a frown. She even subconsciously started to flex her right fingers. They had been broken that fateful day (and what do you know? It also took place in the lake), along with a few other bones that required her to recuperate in the infirmary for an eternity. It was awful.

the truth never set me free so i'll do it myself