Concept by me

Annabeth POV

It shouldn't feel this good unpacking the last box, especially since Annabeth's inhabited this apartment for three months now, but damn, it feels good.

With a swipe of her not-so-shiny new key, the tape is broken and the contents of the final box are uncovered. So that's where all of her books went! Between the fruitless job hunt and the lying around watching porn—Netflix, she means—Annabeth hasn't had much time to think about where her books ended up in her move, let alone take the time to read anything longer than a takeout menu.

She empties the cardboard box on her lumpy bed and tilts it on its side, and then carefully lays each book back into the box. She'll have to go thrifting for a real bookshelf soon, or better yet, grab one from the curb on garbage day.

"Damn book," she mutters to herself. It's not a damn book. It's one of her most prized possessions, which isn't saying much considering Annabeth isn't one for material goods, but it's hers. It's a reminder of the silver linings in life, a reminder to count her blessings, and maybe most importantly, a reminder that people don't always suck.

Yes, it's a scrapbook, and it got glitter all over Annabeth's things.

Hazel gave them out to everyone in the study group at their last meeting. She must have spent a long time working on these; everyone received personalized photos, messages, and other memorabilia. Percy's has fish stickers throughout it, and Piper's smells like coffee. Annabeth's, on the other hand, has a relatively neutral aesthetic, except for the glitter.

She planned on taking the time to examine the pages when she got a quiet moment to herself, but with moving out of her dorm and into a new apartment, and with the awkward run-in with her ex recently, she sort of forgot about that, as well as the thank-you text she was supposed to write to Hazel. Although, she supposes there's no such thing as too little too late with Hazel, is there?

There are fewer pages from the beginning of the year, probably because Hazel didn't anticipate everyone making such good friends, but there are a couple of pamphlets from orientation glued to the page, and the background—are those Hazel's Latin notes? How clever!

There's a photo of Piper and Jason kissing at the debate from last fall, and a quote from Annabeth... "You threw JUULius in the toilet!" When did she say that? There's a sweet note too: Congrats on quitting nicotine! How... kind.

The following page has a few condoms and fliers from the Safe Sex Fair taped to it. Wow, Annabeth forgot about that... and that note—she didn't realize the effect that she and Piper had on Hazel that night.

A couple of other expected events are on the pages, like the Valentine's Day Dance. Annabeth looks happy shooting finger guns at the mirror alongside Piper and Hazel.

Something falls out of the scrapbook binder.

Annabeth gasps. She thought she'd never see another one of these pamphlets ever again. They should have all been properly disposed of by Dean D's marketing director, Ms. Venus.

But there's Annabeth on the front of a New Rome Community College admissions pamphlet. That was such a nightmare for her at the time—not only the thought of people from back home learning where she ended up but the possibility of the whole campus making assumptions about her sexuality.

Does Annabeth know what her sexuality is almost a year later?

Yes. She's just not ready to say it out loud. Words aren't easily retracted. What if the label changes everything?

She never pictured getting ready for her sophomore year of college in a dumpy apartment on the wrong side of town. Then again, she'd never pictured herself staying in an apartment and living a borderline sedentary lifestyle. Sure, every girl needs a night in with a pint of store-brand ice cream and a shitty horror movie, but that's turning into every night for Annabeth. She needs to live. As in, come home drunk with some guy—or girl, she's going to have to get used to saying that—she barely knows.

God, when's the last time she had sex?

Was it really in the study bubble with Percy during the paintball game? Granted, it was surprisingly good sex, but she hasn't scored since. That's not like her.

Then again, it's not like her to eat ice cream for dinner multiple times a week...

Ping!

Ah, yes, now that the electricity is back up in Annabeth's apartment, she can check her email. Classes start back up in a week and she needs to be on top of reviewing syllabi, pirating textbooks, and writing supply lists... the works.

It's an Evite. Who the hell uses Evite anymore?

It's an Evite from Sherman Yang. Of course, the only person stupid enough to promote 'sexy hot tub parties' using email accounts ending in 'edu.'

Annabeth has to squint to read the weird font on the invitation.

Hey there, sexy dude, dudette, or non-binary homie! Chapter Five of the Mars Coed Fraternity invites you to our place tonight for Sherman's Hot Tub Party!

She rolls her eyes. College parties are so high school, at least to Annabeth. She used to go all the time with her ex-boyfriend Luke. She's still scarred from the time he hand-fed her too many edibles and somehow got her to make out with a straight cheerleader named Tammi. Considering that was her first sexual encounter with another woman, no wonder it took her so long to realize she isn't straight.

So no thanks, Sherman. Annabeth will not be eye candy at your hot tub party. She's not even going to RSVP.

She's going to review her class syllabi, and maybe get ahead on some reading if she can find the textbook PDFs online. You know, important stuff.

But, just because she's ADHD, she's going to have to mindlessly scroll through Instagram, including the accounts she doesn't follow out of spite but has saved in her recently searched so she can stalk them easily.

That includes Luke, who just posted a picture of himself with his hot new girlfriend, Kelli. She's everything Annabeth isn't. How is she so model-thin? And her curls have that effortless bouncy look that Annabeth can never get from hers. She's older than Annabeth, but a little younger than Luke. Kelli is just his type: concerningly young, but still legal.

That shouldn't sting. Luke is a creep who gives drugs and alcohol to minors and makes them do nasty things for him.

Damn, and Annabeth had sex with Percy Jackson? Seaweed Brain?

It was better sex than she'd ever gotten from Luke.

Wait a second.

It doesn't sting, not even a little.

She feels nothing, except maybe that Kelli is kind of hot.

It's liberating.

She laughs out loud like an insane person. This is the greatest thing ever! This is cause for celebration!

Where's her bikini? She's going to Sherman's Hot Tub Party. So what if all her previous college parties sucked? She's going to make some new memories! She's going to make out with people in a totally not creepy way!

Her blue bikini is a little snug. She should have expected that after spending months in quarantine last year baking bread and watching Tiger King. Her boobs aren't on the verge of jumping out of their assigned seats, but she's going to have to sit out on Marco Polo.

Shit, who plays Marco Polo in a hot tub? Get it together, Annabeth!

This party is going to rock.

For safety reasons, she covers up with shorts and an oversized t-shirt and puts her lanyard around her neck. Does she need her expired New Rome Community College student ID? No, but she needs the pepper spray that shares a lanyard with it. Safety first.

✎✎✎

"P-A-R-T-Y! Party, party is on our side! Where is the party? The party's over here!" Members of the Mars Coed Fraternity shout towards the Hunters gang.

Annabeth sure hopes she doesn't have to deal with that all night.

Thalia and Zoё lead the Hunters in shouting back, "P-A-R-T-Y! Party, party is on our side! Where is the party? The party's over here!"

Annabeth pulls out her phone; hopefully, she has enough service to call an Uber because this party is absolutely not going to rock. Hell, maybe the bus is still running.

"Annabeth... nice..." Ellis slurs. God, is he already drunk? Annabeth's making a big mistake.

"Uh, listen, Ellis, I don't have any cash on me, so I'm just gonna go hop on the bus while it's still circulating-"

"Nah, nah!" he shouts, the smell of Natural Light strong on his breath. "The ten-dollah fee doesn't apply to the ladies!"

That's sexist, but it's also typical. Most clubs and parties will charge women a reduced entry fee, which seems great at the time, but it's actually a way of saying, hey, you're part of the experience we're promising men, so here's a discount!

It's disgusting.

But money's tight. "Thanks, Ellis," Annabeth says.

"Have fun! And lose the mask; we're here to have fun!"

He's right—Annabeth's the only person here wearing a mask. Hell, she's probably the only person who bothered to bring one. She should keep it on just to be safe, but she doesn't want to be that weird girl wearing a bikini and a mask.

Screw it. Annabeth loops her mask around her wrist; it shows that she's not uptight, but she's more than happy to put her mask on to make others feel more comfortable. It's sort of the best of both worlds.

The Mars Coed Fraternity house is pretty much just like every other fraternity house Annabeth's ever been in. It's stinky, and there are stains on every piece of furniture, which Annabeth hopes are just from beer, but you can never be too sure, so she doesn't sit in them. She scoffs. Typical.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Annabeth Chase!"

"Hello, Clarisse."

Clarisse looks down at Annabeth as if examining her under a microscope. "So what brings you to my neck of the woods?"

Annabeth crosses her arms. "Free beer, right?"

"Yeah, yeah, let me pour it for you," Clarisse says, grabbing a red Solo cup from the counter. "The keg is kind of finicky."

The keg kicks, coating Annabeth's ankle in beer and filling her cup with foam.

"That's embarrassing," Clarisse notes. "Right this way. We've got wine coolers and hot dogs."

"Gee, my favorite," Annabeth quips as she follows Clarisse outside to see the main attraction.

The hot tub is filled to the rim with shirtless guys whose faces light up every time a girl in a swimsuit walks by in hopes that she'll join them in the germ-infested waters. She never does.

And then things get atypical. Over by the snack table is probably the hottest girl Annabeth's ever seen. She's tall but doesn't carry her weight like a giraffe, and she has dark brown silky smooth skin. Her long black hair is done in a perfect braid, with no stray hairs in sight.

That's who Annabeth would like to make out with by the time this night ends.

"That's Reyna," Clarisse says. "She's a transfer student from Puerto Rico."

"Do you know if she-"

"Yes, she speaks English."

Annabeth balls her fists. "That's not what I was asking, I mean-"

Clarisse smirks. She should be wearing a mask. "Sherman's been trying to flirt with her for like twenty minutes. I don't know who she likes, but it ain't men."

"No! I mean... is she nice?"

"Bahahaha!" Clarisse grips her stomach and laughs.

"Well... is she?" Annabeth asks.

"I guess? I don't talk to most of the people that come to these parties—here, drink this—I just like, open the door and get them drunk enough to not sue us if they get chlamydia."

Annabeth takes a sip of her wine cooler; she's going to need a buzz if a girl this gorgeous is going to be her first... something.

"Listen," Clarisse says, "I gotta go blow up some rafts for the pool since Mark popped 'em all. Go get her, tiger." She winks and slaps Annabeth's ass.

Okay. She can do this. It's just like flirting with a guy, only Reyna is probably going to realize she's being flirted with right away and if she's not into Annabeth, it could be embarrassing.

Being a girl that likes girls is hard sometimes.

At the very least, she'll save her from Sherman, who is discussing the spread of dips he made for the party. Oh! He made bean dip. That looks good.

But Reyna won't want to hear about bean dip! She'll want to hear about Annabeth's... apartment? No, that's creepy. Her history with Clarisse? No, that has implications.

Ah. New Rome. Neutral territory. If anything, Reyna will learn that she is a little bit crazy for choosing to pursue higher education here, and there's nothing wrong with being a little bit crazy.

Okay. Great plan. Annabeth can do this. One foot in front of the-

"Annabeth! Didn't think I'd see you here!"

Him. She'd know him anywhere. That goofy grin, intense sea-green eyes... For those reasons, Annabeth can't shake the incident in the study bubble.

"What do you want Seaweed Brain?" she manages to ask. It's harder than she thought talking to someone she saw naked.

Percy throws his hands up in defense. "Hey, just saying hello! How are you? How was your summer? I love your nose piercing!"

He's talking way too fast for Annabeth to process, so instead of saying something clever like I was fine until you got here or reasonable like Thanks, I got it a week ago, she asks, "What are you doing back so soon?" like she actually cares about his life.

"Flights are hella expensive this time of the year... or, uh, next week," he says, "so I'm back a little early, and I thought, huh, might as well check out Sherman's Hot Tub Party!"

Reyna laughs at something another girl says.

Annabeth grips her wine cooler hard enough to turn her knuckles white. "Thanks for sharing."

"Totally. Listen, you wanna get in? Or did you not bring a swimsuit?" Percy asks.

"You realize the hot tub is disgusting. Like, if I dip my pinky toe in I'll probably contract some horrible STD," Annabeth says.

Percy throws his hands up in defense. "Suit yourself!" He takes his shirt off, revealing that gorgeous toned body complete with the muscles of a swimmer. Forget looking like an Olympic Athlete—Percy looks like an Olympian god.

It should be easier for Annabeth to ignore this than it is. After all, she and Percy agreed to pretend like nothing ever went down between them.

But the way he stretches his arms behind his head right now makes Annabeth think it's a lot easier for him to play pretend than it is for her.

So if Annabeth wants to make the same impression, she should just take off her oversized t-shirt and shorts and get in the pool, or at the very least, she should dip her legs over the side.

She wants to. The swimming pool seems a lot cleaner than the hot tub, and she's sure it is by a long shot, but every alarm in her mind is screaming COVID-19 PROTOCOLS IN PLACE! ENGAGE SOCIAL DISTANCING SEQUENCE!

Travis Stoll and Katie Gardner are making out by the pool ladder, and Annabeth suspects Grover peed after the last cheer-off between the Hunters and the Mars Coed Fraternity—in the pool.

Percy cocks an eyebrow. "Well?"

Reyna's sucking on a green freezy pop over by that damn snack table.

"I brought more bean dip!" Sherman yells from the porch. He deposits the contents of his bowl into the communal bean dip. This party is turning out to be a super-spreader event. Annabeth's going to have to take a COVID test when this is all over just so she can start classes with everyone else. Damn, Fauci needs to hurry up with that vaccine thing.

Reyna's green freezy pop breaks, a little piece falling to the ground. She gasps and laughs with some other girl. There's no way Annabeth missed her chance this fast. Maybe there's still a chance.

"Annabeth?" Percy asks.

"I'm good. Enjoy your diseases though." She's got some flirting to do.

But still, Annabeth's the only one wearing real clothes. She pulls her t-shirt over her head just to fit in a little better. It's a good thing she did. People cannonball into the pool left and right, splashing water on Annabeth's shoulders.

Besides, Leo didn't name that bulldog Annie's Boobs for nothing.

Alright. Somewhat cute bikini? Check.

Cute enough pickup line? Check.

Buzz?

Annabeth grabs another wine cooler and takes a sip for confidence. She's going to be needing a lot of that.

This isn't so bad. She can just pretend she wants a cookie and then hang out by the snack table until she gets the confidence to speak to Reyna. Great, now she's almost there. What are those positive affirmations Hazel's always sending her? You're gorgeous and people love you!

And if Annabeth starts to feel like Reyna won't like her, she can just bail. Perfect plan.

"Hey, Anna-bae..." Sherman slurs. "Buffalo dip?" He holds out a bowl of something that looks radioactive and not edible.

"Oh, uh, no thanks," Annabeth says. "Excuse me-"

She wants to drop-kick the guy that grabs her arm until she realizes it's just Connor Stoll, who is surprisingly sober considering the party atmosphere.

"Didn't mean to sneak up on ya!" he says. "Guess I'm just getting single blues, you know."

Annabeth shouldn't take her frustration out on Connor, but it's hard not to. "No, I don't know."

He just can't take a hint. "I was wondering... Is Percy single? I saw you talking to him, so I didn't want to make a move if you guys are like, together, but if you're not, I was going to shoot my shot." Connor rubs the back of his neck.

"What happened to Malcolm?" Annabeth asks because she's genuinely curious. Connor and Malcolm got together sometime in the fall and lasted well into the spring. They were even voted 'cutest couple' at the Valentine's Day Dance.

Connor crushes his soda while maintaining a perfect smile. "We're on a break. Now, how about Percy?"

Why does Annabeth feel a little defensive? She has no idea what Percy's taste in men is, or if he even has one. "I don't think he'd be interested," she blurts.

"So are you guys together? Or is he straight?" Connor asks.

Annabeth scoffs. "Good god, we're not together."

"So I'll go see if he wants to play chicken?"

"No! Don't do that!"

"Do you need a wingman?"

Annabeth smacks her palm against her forehead. Why does she care so much if Connor makes a move on Percy? Percy's just a stupid guy with insanely hot back muscles and a cute crooked grin and-

Reyna. Reyna is super hot. Eye on the prize, Chase, she reminds herself.

She swipes an orange slice from the fruit tray and stares for a minute. The shorter girl, Thalia Grace, rakes her hand through her spiky blue-streaked hair. Annabeth doesn't know what her type is, but Thalia isn't it. Thalia is a threat. The way Reyna throws her braid over her shoulder and laughs at her jokes is a dead giveaway that Annabeth should abort the mission right now. She should just turn around and forget about Reyna's soulful brown eyes and-

"Hey, did you need something?" Reyna moves out of the way so there's room for Annabeth to get to the bean dip.

"I, uh..." She's gone speechless. This wasn't supposed to happen. A million tiny Annabeths are running around in her brain screaming and throwing in towels left and right. Instead of using her pickup line—the one she forgot completely—she grabs a scoop-shaped tortilla chip and piles some bean dip into it. She doesn't even like beans.

She gives one last look at Reyna before making her awkward escape.

Reyna laughs politely. "I saw some Natural Lights in that cooler if you need something to wash the bean dip down with." Then, she launches into this full analysis about how she doesn't normally drink light beer, but how desperate times call for desperate measures and- Oh! She isn't even talking to Annabeth anymore. Thalia stole the dang show. Annabeth lost to a gang member. That's not supposed to happen.

A lot of things happen that aren't supposed to happen. For starters, Annabeth slips a little on a muddy patch. Now her shoes are all squishy and she's going to have to hope they don't get stolen when she sets them out in the hallway to dry.

But her problems can't end with squishy shoes and a mildly embarrassing encounter with an attractive woman, now, can they?

Obviously not.

Annabeth's foot slips a little too far, and for a second, she's worried that her old track injury might resurface, but then the rented slushy cart rolls into Ellis, and it just dominoes from there.

"Woah!" Ellis tosses his red slushy into the air, falling head over heels and right into a tiki torch. He tumbles into the pool with a SPLASH. Travis and Katie look up from their make-out session long enough to wonder if the red liquid on the pool liner is blood or not.

At least he doesn't have to stop, drop, and roll!—is something only Hazel would say right now.

Thalia yanks Reyna's hand to lead her away from the tablecloth, which now reeks of burning plastic and various flaming dips.

All Annabeth can do is stare helplessly as Percy—of course, it's freakin' Percy—jumps into action riding a lawn mower like it's some sort of trusty steed.

"Get out of the way!" he shouts as he rides the mower towards the table, a garden hose in his hand. With a squeeze of the handle, the table and its contents are drenched.

It's like one of the sexy firefighters from those calendars that Will likes just rode in to rescue her, and she's never been more humiliated.

The smell of burning plastic is overwhelming, and Annabeth's shoes are completely soaked now, thanks to Percy.

"Oh, god, who melted the faces off my garden flamingoes?" Mark asks.

Sherman begins to speak through a bullhorn. "Don't worry, folks! The party will commence inside with a game of strip Just Dance! P-A-R-T-Y..."

"Party, party is on our side!" the rest of the fraternity cheers along.

Annabeth will have no part in this cheering because she's starting to remember why she's not a party girl... and strip Just Dance? What the hell is that all about?

And if she doesn't already know she has zero chance of going home with someone tonight, Reyna and Thalia are whispering and giggling to each other as they hop into an Uber blasting Eddie Money. That should be Annabeth making out to the tune of "Two Tickets to Paradise," dammit!

Partygoers either make their way inside for more fun and games or pile into Ubers that are too small just to save money.

Here's Annabeth, thinking about getting a wine cooler for the road because she doesn't have anyone to share an Uber with.

She's all alone. She's not going to cry about it, obviously. She knew the risks when she got on the bus, but she didn't anticipate borderline ruining the party.

Music still plays on somebody's forgotten portable speaker: Let's get lost you can take me home, somewhere nice we can be alone...

Somebody's singing along to this stupid song.

"'Bikini tops... coming o-o-off..." Percy sways his head back and forth in the hot tub. Lady Gaga? So maybe he's not straight...

The water almost goes up to his shoulders, not that Annabeth's disappointed by that or anything. Sherman probably has the jets turned up to max so nobody can see the filth floating around in there.

"Oh, hey Wise Girl," Percy says nonchalantly. "How's your night been?"

Annabeth rolls her eyes and rests her elbows against the side of the above-ground hot tub. "Very funny, Seaweed Brain."

"Well, my night is," Percy starts, lowering his sunglasses, "Fire. Oh, I like that song. Hey, Alexa, play-"

"Please don't rub it in."

"Sorry, I cope with humor sometimes."

That's sweet of him. Percy can be sweet sometimes. Annabeth often forgets that. Maybe she should thank him for-

"Are you okay?" he asks.

Annabeth purses her lips. "Pride's wounded, and I'm like eighty percent sure I've been exposed to COVID, so, you know, could be better."

"Get in," he says.

"What?"

"You said you've probably already got COVID, so get in the hot tub."

Annabeth feels a blush deeper than the wine coolers rising up her chest. "Get in the hot tub? With you? What if somebody saw me?"

"No offense, but what could be more embarrassing than what just happened? Get in the hot tub."

Annabeth takes off her squishy shoes and socks, noting how nice it feels to have cool air on her feet. She shimmies her drenched jean shorts down to her ankles. Those probably won't be coming back on anytime soon because, you know, chafing.

"Should I feel bad about tracking grass into this hot tub?" she asks.

Percy laughs instead of replying, so Annabeth takes that as her cue to get in the warm water. It's not as hot as it should be in a hot tub—it's more like a lukewarm tub.

Annabeth fears for her poor bikini; who knew boobs were so buoyant? Stay in your assigned seats, she scolds them. Instead of wrestling with her boobs, she folds her arms over her chest.

"So you saved the frat house from a fire that would have not only burnt the place down but also gotten Sherman and the others arrested for serving alcohol to minors," Annabeth states.

Percy shrugs. "I guess."

"And you're just being all casual about that now?"

"Anybody would have done the same."

Something tells Annabeth to drop this conversation even though most people would not have done the same.

"You're smarter than you let on, Percy Jackson."

"I'm hella tired now- Oh..." He lets out the biggest fake yawn Annabeth has ever seen, dramatically stretching his arms until one is around Annabeth. She doesn't remove it though. The guy saved the frat party—the least she can do is let him rest his arm around her. Plus, she doesn't mind.

She certainly liked having his arms all over her body a couple of months ago in the study bubble... Ugh, how is he doing such a great job pretending it never happened? Honestly, she's kind of offended.

"Was I not good enough?" she asks. "Back in May, I mean. You haven't said anything about it all night."

Percy sets his sunglasses on the table next to him, showing off those perfect green eyes. He cocks a playful eyebrow. "We agreed to pretend nothing happened."

"It seems a hell of a lot easier for you to pretend," Annabeth notes.

He sighs. "I can't forget about that. I can't look at you in that stupid swimsuit without thinking of it. God, Annabeth, you were amazing. Like, best I've ever had—and your body... You'd kick my ass over the things I could say about it."

This is what Annabeth's been needing. She likes to be one of those girls who doesn't rely on validation from guys, but it feels nice coming from someone like Percy.

She wouldn't tell him all of that though. "You know I'd kick your ass," she says.

He laughs, and she laughs along. It's comfortable, being with Percy.

"So you're still hung up on me, huh, Wise Girl?" he quips.

So what if Annabeth is hung up on him? It was great sex. She has every right to be. She pushes his pec with her palm as if to say Get outta here!

But she forgets what she's going to say to tease him back because damn, he's so hot. He's the perfect summer boy.

"Think we could agree on something else?" Annabeth mumbles. They're so close, her words ghost his lips.

Percy leans forward and smiles. "What about when we get back to New Rome in a week?"

Annabeth smiles against him. "We'll still have the summer after all."

"I'll be your summer boy for another week," Percy says, "but you gotta promise me—just hand stuff in this hot tub, okay? I think I saw someone's burrito floating around in here."

"Good thing I've got my own apartment."