for those about to rock

Ben was hanging out by the lake for a change. He didn't really like water nor getting wet, so Ben tried to steer clear of the lakes. But since it was November, there were few people around and Ben figured it would be the best place to read his book in peace. The cold weather made it impossible to go swimming (unless you were a child of Poseidon or clinically insane) and the winds picked up around the beach so Ben was pleased that he had found such a good spot for reading. Ironically, Ben was wearing a windbreaker (despite his parentage), but it did little to protect him from the chill.

Suddenly, Ben was unable to read because of the loud music coming from an extremely amped up guitar. Placing his bookmark into his book, Ben stood up. He was annoyed, but Ben didn't let it show on his face as he approached the boy. The other half-blood was younger than Ben, and he didn't want to spook the boy so he came up from the front. "What are you playing?" Ben asked quietly.

Ben gave the boy a small smile. The boy, who had introduced himself as Carlisle, was a son of Apollo, which did not surprise Ben in the least. He would be polite, even though the children of Apollo were loud and incredibly bad poets and Ben found them hard to be around. But Ben wasn't one to judge people and he figured he could use a chat, so he stayed (despite the fact that both of them looked awkward). Who knew? Maybe this boy would make a good friend.

Ben tried his best not to make snap judgements about people (even if it was blatantly obvious that the judgement was true). Even though Ben was a fairly good detective, he did not say any of his findings out loud. He used to, but that only got him into trouble and stuck in some fairly awkward situations, so Ben figured it would be best just to keep his mouth shut. Since he was incredibly shy, it was not hard for him to do this. "er.. I'm Ben. S-son of Aether." Ben tensed up all of a sudden. Why had his mind chosen now to bring back his old stutter? He hated the anxiety of talking to people, and stuttering while he was doing it only made everything worse.

Then another person showed up and Ben felt really awkward just standing there. Carlisle asked him about his book, but Ben just looked at the newcomer in surprise. "Oh umm my book?" Ben muttered, feeling rather stupid. He had just repeated exactly what the boy had been asking. Ben had been reading yet another fantasy book. "It's called the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. By Douglas Adams" Ben spoke a little bit louder, his confidence regaining.

Ben had not expected to get into a conversation before. As yet another demigod approached, Ben started to get a sense that he knew the boy. Ben searched his mind, attempting to bring up a name or a god associated with that face. And then it came to him. The boy was called Jonas and he was a year or two older than Ben. Ben could not remember where he knew this boy from, but he assumed it was just from being around camp. They were distant friends (in Ben's opinion of friends, he called everyone who was remotely nice to him a friend), he guessed, but they did not know each other that well. Ben's easy trust made it so much worse when he lost a friend. The loss of someone he remotely liked took a noticable affect on Ben, but the betrayal or loss of a true friend was so much worse. Ben sometimes felt very needy (which, in some people's standards, he was). "H-hi." Ben was barely audible and he doubted that Jonas would hear or recognize him.

Ben gave Jonas a small smile and lifted his hand to level with his heart in a shy wave. Bringing his hands back to his side, Ben nervously cracked his knuckles as he listened to the other two talk. Jonas also seemed to be a little unsettled at the son of Apollo’s conduct, which did not surprise Ben. Jonas was not the most straightforward guy the way the Apollo kids were. Ben felt slightly uncomfortable when Carlisle mentioned girlfriends. Ben was not any good at talking to girls. The only girl who had ever talked to him long enough to become friends was Anna. And she was practically his best friend (which was saying something, as Ben did not have many friends). He was always so awkward when it came to girls, especially kids his age. Ben had trouble relating to them and he could never approach anyone without making himself look like a fool. But maybe Anna was something more than a friend? Ben didn’t know. He never really had a friend like Anna before.
The sun pulled Ben out of his daydream. It had been hidden behind some clouds, but now it shined right in Ben’s eyes, forcing to put his hand on his forehead, as a makeshift hat. ”ermm... that sucks.” Ben had a strong urge to say ‘I guess’ after that, but he refrained from doing so.

Ben now felt outright uncomfortable. What was the girl doing here? Couldn’t they just have a normal conversation? Apparently not. Shifting back and forth uncomfortably, Ben turned away. He fidgeted with his hands, showing how uncomfortable the boy felt. Ben felt a strong urge to say something mean about Carlisle but he shook the terrible feeling off. Was he turning into a mean person just like the others? Ben hated bullies. He hated anyone that said unkind things, really. Even when he had been insulted, Ben tried to stay as far away from conflict as possible. He wasn’t a peacemaker (Ben would not stop conflict that was already happening), but he did not see the use in violence and name calling.

Sensing Jonas’ gaze on him, Ben turned to the other boy. He seemed to be trying to figure something out, but Ben did not know what. His name, perhaps? People did not seem to be able to retain small information about Ben for very long. Maybe it was because he seemed so small? Ben had never been tall, and his shyness seemed to emphasize this even more. ”I’m Ben.” He muttered.