okay hi! It's been so long and I am so sorry. Thank you all SO MUCH for being so patient, kind and supportive with me - it means the absolute world that you've all stuck around. I know this is a really short chapter, and I'm not really happy with it, but it's something. And my motivation has made a little comeback so maybe things will start to pick up :)). Anyways, I just wanted to say that I hope you enjoy this and I love you !! ❤️

Sunday, February 24th
5:10 pm - Annabeth's living room.
29 weeks and 4 days pregnant

Everyone gathered in the living room, cozying up with blankets and snacks. Although it was a Sunday, Annabeth invited everyone over to watch a movie and hang out, wanting to see her friends. She wanted to hear all about what was going on with school and anything else she was missing before they went back. It wasn't any occasion necessarily special, but she was still excited.

Not being at school meant she was missing a lot. Of course, Drew always had the latest rundown of the hottest drama and was always happy to fill her in. However, it wasn't so much about the actual group. She still saw a number of them almost everyday, but she missed school more than anything at the moment. The amount of times she had considered calling off the whole plan just to go back in was a little scary. Of course, her friends always calmed her down and helped to rationalize.

Not shortly after they began the process of deciding on a movie to watch, Annabeth heard a key jam into the lock of the front door followed by the familiar squeak of it swinging open.

"Anna?" Frederick called into the house. Then she heard her father's footsteps leading into the living room. Then he appeared in the doorway. "Oh great, there's a bunch of children in my house," he mumbled jokingly.

"Hi Mr. Chase!" Everyone yelled in unison at him in greeting, laughing. It was quite funny because he was the decided "dad" of the entire group. Annabeth laughed and stood up to hug her father, Travis standing as well. That boy always had to bother Frederick in one way or another.

"Hi dad," she said, hugging him hello. "I didn't know you were gonna be home toni—"

"Mr. Chase!" Travis interrupted her, clapping her father on the back. "Fred! How are you? You know I've been thinking about you lately," the brown haired boy joked. "You should join me up in the links, I've got a beautiful new set of clubs with your name on 'em." It was almost scary how good Travis was at playing this character of his.

Frederick gave the boy a sarcastic smirk, narrowing his eyes at him. "Okay, Travis," he retorted, although it was all in good fun.

Annabeth rolled her eyes at the boy and shook her head playfully, pushing him back into the living room. Then Frederick walked into the foyer and she followed him. "I didn't know you were gonna be home tonight."

"Yeah I wasn't supposed to be but I got out early," he explained. After pulling off his shoes and hanging his coat on the rack, he walked to the table where the stack of mail sat. He began sifting through rather mindlessly when he suddenly paused.

"What?" Annabeth asked, noticing his blanch.

"There's some mail for you, Pumpkin," he said, holding up a large envelope. Looking at the seal on the front Annabeth realized it was a letter from the one college she hadn't heard from yet; the most important one.

Annabeth froze. She couldn't move. She couldn't say anything, she couldn't take the letter from her father. She was terrified. If it had taken this long for her to get the letter there was no way it was good news. Of all the colleges she had applied to so far—Cornell, Buffalo, Berkeley, and a few others—she had received letters from five out of six, all acceptances. Now, the most precious of all the documents was in her father's hands, and she couldn't open it.

Her father stepped towards her. "Look at me," he said and she listened, somehow finding her breath again. "There is not one doubt in my mind that this is a good letter. You've worked for this your entire life and I am incredibly proud of you—nothing could change that. Your mother would be so proud of you and all of the amazing things you have accomplished and will accomplish. You can do this," he finished, placing the letter in her shaky hands. He smiled brightly at her.

"Hey," Percy walked in from the living room. "We need another opinion on the mov—" He realized what was in her hands. "Holy shit." He stared at Annabeth with wide eyes. She looked up at him, waiting for his reaction desperately. Then he let out a breathy chuckle, the corners of his mouth quirking up. She knew what that meant; he was confident in her.

"God, what's taking you so long?" Thalia complained, marching into the kitchen followed by everyone else. "Seriously, it can't be that much of an endeavor for you to just ask her—" then everyone realized what was in Annabeth's hands. She hadn't been the only one waiting for this letter; all of her friends were as well. They had all gotten their acceptances and knew where they were going by now. They had constantly consoled Annabeth that she would get the letter soon, being incredibly supportive of her. She appreciated it greatly, but nothing would be good enough until she had it. And now she did.

"Hell yeah, Annie," Thalia said, walking up to her friend. "Look at that," she said in fascination, pointing to the seal on the front of the envelope.

"Thalia, I can't do it," Annabeth whispered to her friend. Part of her felt pressure under the eyes of all of her friends. Of course, she was comfortable around them, but what if she opened this letter and it was a rejection? She was the smart one of the group, that was her brand. What if this letter proved that she actually wasn't as much of a genius as they all believed her to be? What if she could never live up to her mother's standard and follow in her footsteps? She'd be a failure. And not just to everyone she loved but to herself.

"No, yes you can," Thalia asserted. She stood behind Annabeth and peered over her shoulder. "Annabeth listen to me. No matter what that letter says, you're a genius. You are the smartest fucking person that everyone in this room knows and a few words on a piece of paper don't determine that. Everyone knows who you are and how hard you've worked every single day of your life to get as far as you've gotten. You're gonna open this letter and no matter what it says—although it's definitely gonna be an acceptance—you're going to be okay."

You're going to be okay.

Annabeth repeated the words in her head, hoping she would come to believe them. She took a deep breath and thought of her mother. She wouldn't be disappointed in her. She would be proud of me. Feeling tears rise in her eyes, Annabeth blinked a few times and took a deep breath.

Breathe.

She exchanged a glance with Percy. She was so nervous that her hands were shaking. It felt like every molecule in her body was vibrating with edge, a buzzing running down her spine.

Percy looked into her eyes, putting a hand under her chin. "Hey," he said, his voice soothing her. "This is a good day. You're a genius," he chuckled, making her laugh as well. "I love you."

"I love you too," she said, then he kissed her gently and she shook her hands in an attempt to release her jitters. Then she started opening the envelope, carefully and slowly, the lump in her throat growing with every passing second.

Annabeth pulled out the crisp piece of paper with shaky hands. Hesitantly, she began to read the letter, her heart beating in her finger tips and reverberating through her head.

"Oh my god..."

Everyone immediately stopped, looking to her. The room was dead silent.

Her ears started ringing for a short moment and her breaths got short, tears rising in her waterlines.

Dear Annabeth,

After a long process of careful consideration, we are delighted to inform you that you have been admitted to the Class of 2023!...

A chuckle of relief escaped her lips.

Everyone started cheering as a smile spread across her face. She grinned, laughing as tears steamed down her face.

A chorus of "YAY!!!"s and "CONGRATULATIONS!!!"s roared through the kitchen and Annabeth had never felt so relieved in her life. Thalia hugged her tight, shouting, "I told you it was gonna be good!"

Then Annabeth hugged her father, who had tears in his eyes himself. "I'm so proud of you, Annabeth. We're so proud of you." She knew that he meant her mother as well, and the tears started falling more heavily. She knew that she had made her mother proud and her chest filled with a feeling of content and happiness that swelled like a balloon, making her feel whole.

Percy grabbed her tear streaked face and kissed her, holding her close. She laughed against his lips, smiling as he chuckled. "You are incredible," he said. "I love you."

"I love you more," she replied, kissing him again.

"I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!" Will screamed, engulfing the blonde girl in a hug. "You're my super hero," he said.

They pulled away and Annabeth gave him a grateful look, like, you're going to make me cry even more than I already am. He laughed and hugged her one last time.

"We never doubted you for a second," Travis said, giving Annabeth a small hug.

"Yeah, okay," Connor said sarcastically, mocking his brother. He shoved him aside and gave Annabeth a hug. "I actually never doubted you," he said smugly.

She laughed. "Thank you."

"Bro!" Travis complained at his brother. "Shut up!"

The two boys of course began roughhousing while Nico faced Annabeth now.

"That's really amazing, Annabeth, congrats. I'm happy for you," he said with a small smile.

She grinned at him as largely as she could. "Thank you, Nico. I really appreciate that," she said, and she meant it. Nico wasn't big on sentiment, so that was a bit of a big deal. His smile wasn't anything huge, but she had a feeling that he was coming around slowly—Will was a bit of help.

Once everyone settled down, they all headed back into the living room, resuming their spots.  After a bit of arguing, they all decided on a movie to watch and cozied up.

Percy put his arm across Annabeth's shoulders and she rested her head on his shoulder. She sighed and sunk further into his side, content in his warmth and in the fact that the apprehension about college was over. Still, there were a lot of questions still hanging in the air, unanswered.

Things like how she was going to manage classes and a baby, how she would afford an apartment (actually manage classes, a baby, and a job), and how Percy would factor into all that still swirled around her head. But for now, she was grateful for the small victory she had accomplished today, and was going to appreciate this feeling of happiness while it lasted.

So while things were no where near sorted out, she was okay with that, and she'd take it one thing at a time.

Baby steps.

•••