Baby daddy on board

[Mateo Sanz Rare]

There were plenty of things that were running through his head at the moment. Nothing was making sense to him at the moment, and he hated that. So, he was going to do the only thing that he knew what to do. He was going to have to step up and talk to Lilythe about getting out into the real world and go find a house and a job to help bring a child into the world now. It wasn't that he didn't want the child, but he didn't want the child at the moment. He was still young, and Lena was still very young. A teen mom! He had made her a statistic and that was something that he wasn't happy about. He made his way to the big house where he knew that Lilythe would be at. It was going to be the first time in a while that he was going to be talking to her and he didn't know what he was going to say or anything.

He stepped up the stairs and into the house and looked around. "Lilythe?" He questioned as he walked into the living room. Still not seeing her there at all. He walked into the kitchen and grabbed himself a glass and filled it with some water before taken a drink. He was lost in thought as he walked around the kitchen. He had ran his hand through his hair so many times that he was sure it was a mess.

 

@ Lilythe Rayne . 

[Lilythe Rayne Rare]

Lilythe had been upstairs trying to figure out what kind of situation she could work out for the current situation occurring at camp. Rumors had travelled faster than they ever had before about a certain child of Aphrodite and child of Hecate expecting their own child in the coming months. There wasn't really any precedence at Camp Half-Blood of campers coming up pregnant. The news had shocked her, and she assumed it could only have been more shocking to the two of them. Immediately she had gone into caregiver mode and started searching The Big House for a space that would work to raise the newborn in.

She was in the middle of this when she heard the voice of one of the very campers she was trying to help. Immediately she started to walk down the stairs, but because she had been so far up, it took a while before she managed to make it downstairs and he had already moved to the kitchen. As she reached the bottom step, she called over to the kitchen, "Mateo?" She started to walk over that way. "Are you alright?" Lilythe tried not to give away much, because she wasn't even sure if the rumor was true. Though Mateo never came to The Big House, so she had to figure something was going on at the very least.

"Did you need something?"

[Mateo Sanz Rare]

He ran his hand threw his hair once more for good measure when he heard a voice coming from top of the stairs. His blue eyes snapped to where Lilythe was in that moment, and he let out a sigh. Tears threatened to come to his eyes as he tried hide the fear in them. He was doing pretty good. However, Lilythe would know that something was going on, because that was just her in the long run. He shook his head for a moment and sighed. "I don't know." He said as he freaked out a little more, his voice going up a little as he tried to not again get angry. Because she had waited a while to even tell him about it. Which hurt him beyond belief. She even told him that she knew he would do this and run away. She even gave him a way out if he wanted it, however, he didn't want to go out. He wanted to be there for the child, and her. Admitting that he had more feelings for her than just the normal lust. He might even say he l..o..v..e..d her. Which was saying a lot for the boy who told himself and her that he wouldn't be doing that. He shook his head and sighed again. 

"Did you hear already too." He muttered as he looked around the room hoping that no one was listening. 

[Lilythe Rayne Rare]

It was clear to Lilythe that something was definitely wrong. There wasn't much that could shake Mateo that Lilythe could think of. This had to be what she felt like it was. "Well... do you want to talk?" Lilythe started to try and begin her normal regiment of comfort when he continued. And his question only confirmed it for her. Helena was pregnant. "I didn't know for sure until just now. You know how rumors are at camp..." Lilythe offered him a look of sympathy.

Gesturing towards the living area, Lilythe guided him over to the couch. "I bet it came as quite a shock." She could offer very little by way of comfort. It wasn't like the two of them were particularly close. She had dated his brother, so she knew Mateo about as well as the rest of the Hecate cabin, but that was only to say that she had spent a lot of time in that cabin and knew their quirks. She couldn't, with any degree of sincerity, say that she truly knew very many of them. Not knowing how to help in this situation made her feel a bit nervous, but she tried her best not to show it. Mateo needed someone to support him right now, not someone else burdening them with their own anxiety.

[Mateo Sanz Rare]

Taken a deep breath and letting it all out in one blow he nodded a little at her question. His dark hair falling into his eyes just slightly. He didn't have anyone to talk to this about. He thought he had Levi, but he was playing brother to Lena at the moment, and he was still pretty pissed off at him for not saying something to him earlier. He swore he sighed way more times than he thought he would this day. "Good to know that everyone knew before me." he muttered with another shake of his head. That was the thing that was bothering him to no end. If she would have told him any other way, he would have been able to work out his feelings. Hell, if she would have told him when she first found out, he had seen her that night. Things could have been better. It wasn't that he didn't want to be in a relationship with her, he wanted that. Hell he was in there right now. However, he wanted to know why she thought hiding it because she was scared was the better idea of it all. And to top it all off, Mateo isn't a morning person so of course being told that right when he woke up was doomed from the start. 

He walked from the kitchen to the living room and sat down on one of the couches. "Shock is an understatement." He told her with a small frown on his lips. He didn't know what word would put it as it. He sighed once again. What was that now the hundredth time. "She waited two months to tell me anything, everyone knew before me. How is that even far." He told Lilythe as he looked dead in her eyes. He just needed someone to be on his side. "I might not have acted the right way when she told me. But I'm more upset that she hadn't said anything to me because there were plenty of times we were around each other." He told her as his foot began to tap on the ground. 

[Lilythe Rayne Rare]

Lilythe shook her head. "I don't think everyone knew. Most of the rumors I heard were about it were about how you handled finding out... I just heard them today. I would have heard something sooner if that were the case." She didn't really want to go into much detail. Largely because she wasn't trying to make him feel bad. On the contrary, she was trying to help him make sense of things. "But gossip travels fast around camp once it's out there." Lilythe confirmed.

"Still, two months is a long time to wait. I can understand why you're frustrated with her." Lilythe conceded. Her thoughts went to Helena and what the poor girl was probably going through right now. However, right now Mateo was probably just as stressed and she wanted to make sure that she had him in a better headspace before she went to go check on the girl. "I don't think she meant to hurt you, but that doesn't mean it didn't hurt you." Lilythe said with some level of experience on the subject. That had been true for both Shadow and Azrael. Neither boy had ever meant to hurt her with their actions, but they had both managed to in their own way, nonetheless. "Before I say this, I want you to know that I agree with you that she should have spoken sooner, but... she was probably scared. That girl has loved you for so long, the last thing she would want to do is anything that hurt you. She probably blamed herself for getting pregnant in the first place..." Lilythe offered a hand on his shoulder. "She should have told you sooner. And you get to be upset about that. But... don't let that anger keep you from figuring things out with her. Whatever that looks like." Lilythe wasn't going to push him one way or the other. She definitely had her idea of what she wanted things to look like for them, but it wasn't her place to push that on him. He needed to figure that out for himself, and talk to her. "Figure out what you want, and talk to her."

[Mateo Sanz Rare]

Mateo could only sigh. He didn't handle being told well at all. It was sad and he knew that he needed to go back and talk to her a little more, but they had said things that hurt the other and that wasn't what he was wanting to do at the moment. He needed to sulk a little and so did she. He knew that she might have it a little harder than he did at the moment since she was the one that was pregnant at the moment. However, he didn't care because this was wild, and he was still reeling from the hurt of not knowing at all. "Yeah, I know. I shouldn't have acted that way." Maybe his spell hadn't worked, it was the morning, his spell work was only stronger in the night. That much he knew. He once again shook his head and sighed. That was going to be the thing today. Him sighing. His lungs were going to pop from it, he just knew it. He knew all about the camp and how the gossip traveled. It just sucked being on the other end of it at the moment. He liked to be part of the spreading not what it was about. 

Mateo had been looking down, but his head snapped up when she agreed with him that two months was too long to wait. So, someone had agreed with him. So maybe he wasn't going to be a lone in this at all. He had someone that he could talk to and that was a good thing right. He gave her a faint smile and nodded his head. "I would have been able to handle it better, if she would have told me when she found out. I would have still been shocked and all that, but I would still be able to help out more. Right now, I have no idea what I can do. She wants nothing to do with me at this point." He told her. "She told me to leave, so that is what I'm going to do." He said looking at Lilythe. After everything she said. He understood that Lena was scared, hell so was he, he hadn't told her to leave the cabin. She told him to leave. She was the one that told him to do that, so she couldn't get mad at him for that. He wouldn't tell anyone that he was going off but Lilythe. That was all that needed to know at the moment. She told him to figure out what he wanted and then talk to her. "But that's just it." He told her with a sigh. "I don't know what I want." he said as he once again ran his hand through his hair. He scooted up to the edge of the couch and placed his head in his hands. "I want to be there for her, but I think to figure myself out I need to leave." He said glancing back over to the older camper. "I think I need a quest." He told her. "I need to go do something. Clear my head." 

[Lilythe Rayne Rare]

Lilythe felt a bit of relief as she could see Mateo's body language calming. He was still upset, and he had every right to be hurt, but he was calmer than he had been before. Thank the gods. She had hope that if she could get him calm, she could also get him to do the right thing. It seemed like he was leaning towards doing that on his own anyway, the way he spoke. "For what it's worth, I don't think anyone handles finding out that they're unexpectedly going to be a parent, well I think both of you handled it the best way you knew how in the moment." She said, trying to reassure him.

"I really doubt Helena truly wants you to leave. She loves you. She's just hurt. She shouldn't have said it, but we all say dumb things we don't mean from time to time." Lilythe was fairly sure she knew Helena well enough to make that claim. "But if you need some time to think and clear your head... I don't have any quests, not really, but I did get word from Chiron that there was a small nest of harpies out in New York City that was getting bigger than it should." She was going to ask Azzy or Shadow to take care of it, but this could kill two birds with one stone. Mateo would get to work out some of that anger of his, and maybe while he was out there he could figure out what he wanted. New York City was huge, and had just about everything someone could want from a city. If he couldn't figure himself out there, Lilythe wasn't sure where he could. Plus it's not that far away if something goes wrong...

[Mateo Sanz Rare]

He knew that Lilythe was right about it. No one is really ready for a child at the moment. He knew that, but it was happening way too fast for him, and he didn't know how to react to it. He wanted everything to do with the child and Lena. Of course, he wanted to change for her, but then there was the whole thing that happened with Megan, and he had a thing about trusting girls in that respect. Did he think that Lena would do that to him, maybe not, but he wasn't at all one hundred percent sure. She still told him to leave. Lilythe had made a point that they had acted the best way they both new how to and he still he wondered if he could have handled it a little better. 

"Well, she sure has a funny way of saying it." he commented back to the older woman who said that she didn't think that Lena meant what she said. If not, then why did she say it. Granted he did say he didn't want to be a father, but who wanted that at the moment. It was the first words that came to his head and he had repeated it to her. Which he shouldn't have but it was to late for that now. "I made the mistake of saying I don't want to be a dad..." He told Lilythe as his head went to his hands once again. "The more I think about it, the more I worry for the child, and of course Helena...would this make her that much more of a target?" He was a little worried about her. Everything was crazy. "She can't leave the camp just yet." he told her with a worried look on his face. "I don't know what I would do if I lost the only family that I've ever had." He was stupid, and he could hear Lena nodding her head along to that. However, he perked up when Lilythe said that there were some monsters out in New York that needed handling. "I'll take it." He told her with a sigh. "Anything to get myself back together." He told her, "Do I need to bring anyone with me just in case, or can I take care of this myself?" 

[Lilythe Rayne Rare]

Lilythe sighed and spoke softly as Mateo replied and confessed what he had said. Oh no... Mateo, you didn't... Internally, Lilythe could feel herself wanting to slide her hand down her face in disappointment. She wouldn't though. It wouldn't help the situation for her to facepalm in front of him. Lena's a sweet girl, but when you piss her off... and Mateo's got a short fuse to begin with. "Well if Azrael or Shadow told me they didn't want to be a father after getting me pregnant, I'd probably show them the door too." She held up her hand to stop him from responding before she could finish. "I'm not saying that she should have said it. I'm just saying she was hurt and mad, and probably didn't mean it. In her mind, with the way you responded you were pretty much telling her that if she wanted to be with you, she had to give up her child. A child that she probably has already grown quite attached to..." Lilythe looked at him meaningfully. "A child that, now that you've calmed down a bit, you seem pretty attached to yourself." She offered a comforting smile. "I'm not saying that she doesn't owe you an apology. I think words said in the heat of the moment often require apology when we sober up from our feelings. I just think that it might help you heal to remember that she said it out of pain, not because she meant it..."

"If you're worrying about them... I'm told that's basically what being a parent is." Lilythe smiled. "It's how I feel about all of you guys all the time. So... sounds to me like you're already thinking like a Dad." She winks at Mateo. "Your secret's safe with me though. I'll let you tell Helena, when you're ready. She looked a bit puzzled at his next question. Lilythe wasn't really sure what would happen with a pregnant demigod. "I've never seen a pregnant demigod before, so I don't know if it amplifies their scents at all. But I can't imagine that she'd be very helpful in combat other than her charmspeak as she gets further along..."

"As for the monsters... I'll leave that up to you. You can bring up to two others if you want. You could probably handle it alone, but it would take longer. But I want you all back to camp by June. If you still need more time after that, I can send you back out, but at least come back and check in. So I know you're okay."

[Mateo Sanz Rare]

Mateo watched her carefully as he said what he told Lena. She hadn't moved a bit, but he had to wonder if he was going to get the blunt end of everything. He closed his eyes when she started talking and keep them closed as he tried to put himself in Lena's shoes. Honestly, it was a lot harder than he thought that it would be. He listened to what Lilythe said and sighed. So much sighing happening right now. He shook his head and opened his eyes, looking right at her. Lilythe was normally right about things, but he didn't want to say that out loud. Maybe the way that he said it did make Lena feel bad, but he didn't want to be a dad, he didn't lie to her at the moment. So, there was that. "Well, I didn't lie to her." He said out right. He didn't want to lie to Lena and have to fake it his whole life. He didn't want a child right now. He was not a fit man much less a father. He shook his head a little ran his hand down his face. This was all to much. So many she didn't mean it, and maybe what he said, he didn't mean either. He didn't want to be a dad right now but didn't mean that he didn't want to all together. She was to young right now. Maybe when she was his age. But he hated that she was only 17 years old. 

He was worried about everything that was going on, he didn't want anything to happen to her, and yet, here he was causing the most to her by leaving. But he needed to. He needed to get his life together, he couldn't stay at camp much longer. He had to care for Lena and the baby that was on the way. His face flushed red when she said that what he was doing basically was being a parent. "Wha..."He blinked a couple time, bewildered by her statement. He knew that he loved Helena, but he hadn't told her that, and now he wanted to be a dad, or was acting like one at the moment. Was he lying to himself? How crazy was that. Did he need to relearn about himself? 

Lilythe looked puzzled by the next question he had. He was worried about her getting into some trouble. When Lilythe said that she hadn't seen a pregnant demigod, he kind of sighed a little. Well, this was just great. "Right. I think I'll have to do most of the fighting then." He just hoped that it was at night when it happened then, because he would be able to use his magic that way. But he would still be able to use a sword and things, he wasn't that stupid. 

"I think I need to make this trip alone. The last thing I need is to have someone in my ear about what is going on." He told her with a small smile. "I'll be back, I promise."  He told her as he thought about it. "I can Iris message you while on the road to get these harpies out of the way." he was ready to take this on at the moment. He knew that he was going to have to say something to Lena, but he doubted that she would talk to him, so maybe he would tell Levi instead to let her know that he was going to take care of a nest of Harpies. "Umm." he started off and looked to the ground then back at her. "Is there any way that you can help me get a job?" he questioned her curiously. "I need to start saving up for a place."

[Lilythe Rayne Rare]

Lilythe nodded. "I know you didn't lie." She offered a soft pat on the shoulder. "But that didn't mean it was easy for her to hear. Just like it wasn't easy for you to hear that she was pregnant." Lilythe shrugged at that point. She could see the wheels turning in his head. In that moment, Lilythe could almost swear that she was watching Mateo's entire identity shift in a matter of moments. The once reclusive and mysterious playboy, known for his affinity for remaining unattached, suddenly found himself thinking about making a home and a family. It warmed her heart to see it, and she truly believed that if he could manage that change of identity, then those two might actually make it.

"At least until the baby's born, anyway." Lilythe confirmed as Mateo stated he would have to do most of the fighting. "Does that mean you won't be staying at camp?" Lilythe quirked her brow curiously. "I could make up a room here in The Big House. At least, temporarily..." One of the few things she regretted for her campers was that, unlike Camp Jupiter, there wasn't really a Camp Half-Blood version of New Rome. I'll have to talk to Mr. D about it... we could call it New Athens or something. She thought to herself.

Mateo's next question brought Lilythe back to the moment. "A job? Now that is something I can handle." She gave him an impish smile. "We need a delivery driver for the strawberries. Might need to go get your license while you're in town, too. If you haven't already. But you can drive the truck for Delphi Strawberry Services." She pursed her lips. "We can talk about pay when you get back. But figure out the cost of a decent apartment nearby, and we'll go from there. At least until you find something better."

[Mateo Sanz Rare]

He watched her hand as she patted him on the shoulder. He let out another sigh. He needed to do what he needed to do. He knew that Lilythe was right. He had to agree with her that much, however, it didn't mean that he had to like it. This was going to change his whole outlook on everything right now and he didn't know what to think about it. He moved from side to side on his feet and thought about what was going to happen to him. He was known for being a playboy and hell, not he was locked in with someone. He didn't hate the idea deep down inside, but on the outside, where he was still trying to figure himself out a little he was worried that he was going to be the right person for her and that scared him more than anything. He was the boy who didn't commit to anything. Especially after the whole Megan thing. 

Lilythe told him to stay at camp until the baby was born and he sighed. Again, it was like he was doing that a lot as of late. He nodded his head a little. "Thats fine." he told her, "She would be safer here then out in the open." he said as he ran his hand through his hair. "I don't know." he said as he thought about it. "Would Lena like to be at the big house?" he questioned curiously. Maybe, since her brothers and sisters know what was going on at the moment. He blinked. "Maybe we should move into the big house at least until we're ready to live out in the real world." he was trying to not choke on his words. There was a lot going on. 

A small smile came to his lips as he said that getting a job for him would be easy for her. "Great." he muttered out a little happier. She told him that he would need to get his license and he nodded his head a little. That he could do. He was old enough to try and he had already gotten his permit and had been taking care of that over the years. It was the only way that he was getting into bars and things. He nodded his head. "I think that would be a good idea." he told her the small smile becoming a little bigger. "I think Lena would like to move into the big house as well." he told her with a small nod of his head. "I think she would be safer there than in the cabin with all her siblings around her all the time." he didn't want to make her feel bad by leaving but he needed to go out and clear his head, because he was worried he would say something stupid again. He didn't want that. "I don't want to hurt her anymore. I need to go do some soul searching while I'm away." he told Lilythe with another sigh. "I'll be back. I'll Iris message you in a couple of days." He told her honestly. "During that time I'll write her a letter as well. I need to figure out a way to tell her sorry."He told Lilythe with a small smile on his lips. There was a lot going on his mind and that was something. 

[Lilythe Rayne Rare]

Lilythe shrugged. She didn't know Helena nearly as well as Mateo did. The girl had been claimed fairly quickly after her arrival to camp, and Lilythe had never really gotten much opportunity to speak with her one on one. She couldn't really answer Mateo's question about her preference in location. "You'll have to ask Lena that yourself. I can offer... but I'm not her. I can't know if she would prefer to be here or in her cabin." Lilythe offered a comforting smile. "But I'm sure that once you fix things, wherever she stays, I'm sure she'll want you there. And the offer stands if you guys decide to go that route."

It was like something had clicked in Mateo. He suddenly seemed ready to acknowledge the changes he needed to make in order to make a life with Helena feasible. She could hear his thought process as he explained everything, and she couldn't have been more proud of the growth he had made in a mere matter of minutes. Lilythe had no doubt that the soul searching on the trip would be enough for him to come back to camp a new man. The changes were already starting. "I look forward to your message, and hearing that Helena received her letter." Grabbing a set of keys off a nearby counter, Lilythe passed them over to Mateo. "You'll need these for your job anyway... might as well take the truck now. Just... get your license before you get caught without it." She winked.

[Mateo Sanz Rare]

Mateo's face went blank for a moment when Lilythe told him that he was going to have to ask Lena what she wanted. He shook his head because there was going to be no way that he was going to march his ass over to her at the moment. He was still working on his feelings for everything. The fact that she said that he had to fix things as well. Lena should be the one fixing thing too. He shouldn't be the only one that needed to do it. They both had done things and said things. So of course, he wanted a sorry as well. He nodded his head a little and took a deep breathe. This was all just way too much for him at the moment. He was ready to leave. If he could that was. "Well, could you see for me until I get back?" he questioned curiously. He knew that Lilythe would want to talk to her anyways. Well, that was what he thought anyways. 

The fact that she had agreed that he could go and beat up a couple of monsters was great to him. He would just have to get a sword and all that, depending on when he was going to fight the monsters. He still had his magic and all that at night but during the day he would have to use something else. He gave her a small grin and nodded his head. He would have to figure out what to say to Lena when the time came. He watched as she grabbed the keys off the counter and passed them to him. A smile came to his face. "Thanks, will do." he said and moved to go to the door. "Oh, and I promise not to die." he mused a little as he chuckled. "Oh, what about a weapon?" he said curiously. He waited for her to bring him one and then he was off. He still needed to clear his mind of all the things that were happening. 

 

(You can end it if you want too)

[Lilythe Rayne Rare]

Nodding softly, she smiled at Mateo. "I'll ask her while you're gone. But... you should let her know your plan." Lilythe said gently, but encouragingly. "It's not my place to patch your relationship. You're going to have to do that on your own, Mateo." She fixed him with a look that conveyed both sympathy, but also tried to impart a sense of urgency. "I'll support you two in any way I can though. I promise."

"You can grab any weapon you want out of the armory. They're just celestial bronze, but they'll have to do. I don't have anything fancy from the gods lying around that I'm aware of." She pursed her lips and put a finger to them as she thought, before continuing. "It might be a good idea to take something both in melee range and for distance. That way you'll have both styles of combat covered, in case you encounter something unpredicted."

She walked alongside him as they moved closer to the exit to The Big House. In many ways, Lilythe worried about Mateo. She knew he was more than capable of handling the task. But the emotions that seemed to be stirring within him were likely overwhelming. She wished that she could do more than offer what she had. "I hope you find what you need out there, Mateo..." Lilythe said gently, before gesturing out the door. "I hope Tyche favors you."

END