Quiet Threat

?'s POV

You ever have one of those moments, where you have this feeling that deep down, something bad is going to happen at any moment, or that everything is just going to go wrong for you at that very moment?

That's the only real way I was able to describe the whole way to Chicago. There was this looming feeling over me that something was horribly wrong, even though everything seemed perfectly fine at the moment. Everybody was driving and walking bout, eventually joined by the sound of car horns and someone yelling from their cars. It was nothing that was not normal compared to the everyday life that I so eagerly associate with the humans.

However, everywhere I went, those feelings of weariness and concern constantly loomed over me. I couldn't shake off the feeling that something bad was going to happen at any given moment, even when nothing became of it. Perhaps it was just from the dreams I had the nights before, or perhaps I was just thinking too much over those earthquake situations that were happening at the moment. I can't deny that I'm quite the paranoid being at times.

Believe me, it's not like I try to keep this feeling inside of me on purpose, or didn't try to do something about it. I genuinely tried to shake it off, and just enjoy my time with Shades, Horny and Jaws. We first arrived to Chicago and got ourselves a lunch at some sports bar, though I can't remember the name. I wasn't really paying attention.

Just about everybody in the restaurant was huddled up, keeping as far away from the four of us as possible. It was awkward and kind of embarrassing at first, but I can't really say I blame them too much, now that I think better about it. After all, it's not every day that people are going to see a purple haired guy walking around with a man with a bull's head, a huge guy with only one eye and some weird snake lady with serpents for hair. Still though, they could have at least had the decency to not make such a big freaking deal over it.

Anyway, at one point, Jaws, Horny and Shades began to argue about... something... I want to say it had something to do with either who they believed would eventually become presidents of this country, or something along the political lines. I wasn't very focused on it at all.

That was honestly the one thing I had to be grateful for for having that ominous feeling that something was about to go wrong. Under normal circumstances, I would be forced to listen through those three mythical beasts rant and shout at each other about some ridiculous argument that really shouldn't concern any of the four of us in any way. I swear, the four of them do it just to annoy me.

With this feeling, however, I was able to just look out a window and just zone out, letting the feeling take me in as I just sat there, staring at the world outside of the window. I stared at all of the humans that were obviously too ignorant to feel that something was amiss, walking their dogs and just trying to get from where they were to wherever they had to be.

It may sound really strange, but there are some times where I envy the animals such as the dog and the domestic cat. Unlike beings like me, who can't go a single second without worrying about something or having to think about some screw ups I did in the past, the cat and the dog almost never have to worry about a single thing. They're provided shelter, food, and just don't have to do much of anything, if they're in the ownership of the right family of course. Then again, knowing my luck, I wouldn't be in one of those families if I were really an animal.

"...Well let's ask the god there." I faintly heard Jaws say. "...Yo. You in there?"

"Huh? What?" I questioned as I looked away from the window and looked at all three of them. "...Oh... sorry... I wasn't paying attention... what was that?"

"...We... we're talking about who we think could become the president of this country next." Shades said. "We... we're hoping that we could get your opinion on it."

"Why the Hades does it concern you?" I muttered with a shake of my head. "Why does it matter to any of us who's going to be the next freaking president? It doesn't matter to us, because he won't have any power over us." I didn't really mean it to sound so bitter and hostile, but it ended up coming out quite sternly from my mouth, much sterner than I had originally heard it in my head.

"...Well, jeez. What the heck got your underwear in a twist?" Horny said as he shook his head.

"...Sorry... didn't mean it to come out so sternly." I said with a shake of my head. "I... I've just been... getting a bit paranoid these past couple of days."

"Paranoid about what?" Shades questioned. "...Does this have something to do with this constant earthquake crap, or that stuff that had happened in Camp Half Blood a couple days before?"

"No... not necessarily, but I guess those can kind of add to it." I said with a shrug and a sigh. "...I'm just having this feeling that somewhere, at some upcoming day, something is going to go horribly wrong for me... that something or someone is going to come along and try to ruin everything, you know?"

"...Uh... no... I... don't think we do know."

"...It's... not necessarily easy to explain." I said with a shake of my head. It was perfectly easy enough for me to explain, but not to these three. I felt like I always had to dumb down what I wanted to say and find out much 'simpler' ways to put it just for the three of them to comprehend it. Even if there's no simpler way for me to try and describe something, when it comes to these three, I always think I have to find some way to dumb it down for them to get what I'm saying. I just couldn't do that this time.

"...I'll explain it to you all later." I said, dismissing it with a nod as I looked back out the window. I guess the three knew I wasn't going to be giving my opinion on what they were talking about any time soon, as the three turned back to each other and began to talk about something else, though they were talking quieter this time, so what they were talking about I honestly have no clue.

It didn't take long for us to eat our meal, and we got our bill paid, and so we went back, hoping that we would go back, get into our car and start driving back to the destination we had planned next. However, it seems like I was much less focused than I thought, because when we got out to the parking lock, we couldn't find our car.

"...Yo, grapehead!" Shades called out to me as we looked all around. "Are you absolutely sure this is where you parked?"

"Of course I am." I said as I pointed to the empty parking spot where I know for sure I had parked. "I swear to any god up there that I parked right there."

"Obviously you didn't, because it doesn't appear to be here." Horny said.

"Ugh... alright... look." I said as I began to reach into my pocket. "This is an easy fix. I'll just take my car keys, I'll unlock the car doors, and we can find which of the cars it is then..." I continued to fish in the pocket of my jeans with a frown on my face.

"...Something wrong there?" Jaws questioned as he was the first to notice the look I had on my face.

"...My keys... I can't find them." I said as I stuck my hand in my other pocket, which I could just barely fit in there. That's the one thing I hated about jeans; their pockets were absolute murder to work with.

"What do you mean you can't find them? How the heck did you lose your keys?"

"I don't know... I'm looking for them now, but I..." I looked up at the three of them, as they stared at me. "...I... didn't leave them in the restaurant, did I?"

"I didn't even see you take the keys in the restaurant." Shades said. The three beasts looked at each other and then slowly looked back to me. "...I... think you left the keys in the car."

I looked down as I tried to remember whether or not I had taken the keys with me. As I thought about it, I began to get a hunch that perhaps Shades was right. I didn't take the keys out of the car. "...Ah crap." I muttered. If I really had left the keys in the car, and the car isn't where I had parked it, then there was a good chance that some dirtbag had stolen it and driven off.

"Oh, great. Now we don't have a car, and we're going to have to walk around, which will not only take longer, but will also have us completely exposed in public." Jaws said with a sigh and a shake of his head. "Nice going, grapehead."

I was absolutely baffled and self-loathing at that moment. How could I possibly forget to take my keys with me? I don't just forget to do very important stuff like that everyday. I'm usually a more prioritized guy than this... I guess this feeling of something going wrong was more distracting than I originally gave it credit for.

"Well... I guess you don't have to worry about that feeling of yours anymore, do you?" Horny questioned as he gave a shake of his head. "You were feeling like something was going to go wrong and make everything harder... and now our car is most likely stolen, and we have to walk everywhere here now, which is something going wrong and making our lives harder... mystery solved. Congratulations."

I was quiet, but I gave a little nod and a sigh. "...Well... I guess we got no other alternative than to start walking." I said, trying to not let this get me down too terribly much. Even though it seemed like something had gone wrong and made everything harder, that feeling was still looming over me. I had a feeling that perhaps Horny was wrong, that getting the car stolen wasn't what the feeling was warning me about, but a part of me really was hoping that it was. After getting my car stolen and now having to walk with these three idiots throughout Chicago, with heads turning to us and people avoiding us, I don't know if I can really handle things getting any worse.