12:14 A.M
Tick.
Tick.
Tick.
My old grandfather clock ticked softly, but to me, it was like a clap of thunder, banging loudly. I slowly sat up in my bed, and looked out the window. It was pitch black, the only light from a street lamp a block away. I ran my hand through my hair, and started to get dressed.
Gee, why is a crazy 22 year old man getting dressed at midnight?
Well, i didn't know myself. I hadn't slept soundly for years, and I just tried to fall asleep by taking a walk.
It didn't work.
No matter how much medicine I took, no matter how tired I was, I never slept. I used sedatives once a week, just to even me out. Last week, the doctors refused to give me any more.
Just think of sleep, and close your eyes, and you'll sleep.
Yeah, no.
I finished tying my shoes, and jogged slowly put the door. I locked it behind me, and started on the quiet streets of San Francisco. It was like this every night, quietness. The only sound was the faint hum of the street lamp, illuminating the sidewalk, and the occasional pitter patter of drops of water, falling from the gutters of apartments nearby from the past rain that had come. I started to try a new shortcut, into a few alleyways here and there, to get to the large golf course a couple miles away. I ran there, because it was silent, and there was no chance of anybody there. I ducked into one of the alleys that I had mapped out, and ducked between a few dumpsters. It lead me onto a sidewalk, and I slowed down my pace a bit.
Tip tap, tip tap.
I turned my head to the left a bit, where the sidewalk across from me was.
The tapping stopped, and so did I. I was under a streetlight, and the one across the road, was lighting something-no-someone, up brightly. I waved my hand, and crossed the road to get to her. It was then when I got a glimpse of this woman in front of me.
Her blonde hair was long, past her shoulders. It was curly, like princess curls. Her eyes, they were perfect. They were gray, and had flecks of white. Depending on how the light hit them, they changed colors, into different shades of gray. Liquid steel, a dark, almost black type of gray, and a light gray, almost close to white. Her face was in a scowl, and she looked hesitant to talk to me.
"Why are you up?" I asked.
"I could ask you the same thing." She retorted.
I grinned.
"I'm Percy." I introduced.
"Annabeth." She responded, extending her hand for me to shake. I took it gratefully, and I felt sparks in my hand. I could've sworn I saw a flash of disappointment go through her eyes when I pulled away first.
"So, why are you up?" I tried again. Her facial expression never changed.
"Waiting for a coffee shop to open. Couldn't sleep." She said, and shrugged. "You?"
"Same. Except, I run instead of coffee." I said.
"Wanna join?" I asked, going out on a limb.
"Sure. Where to?"
"The golf course." I said.
"That's in Daly City!" She exclaimed.
"Yeah, so?"
"That's near fifty miles away!" She said, and her tone went up an octave. I chuckled, and grinned wider.
"Then let's go somewhere else?" I proposed.
She nodded, and made a face that said well, duh. I grabbed her hand, and wanted to walk away, but she pulled out of my grasp and glared at me.
"Don't touch me." She ordered. I raised my hands in a surrender.
"Okay, then follow me!" I said, mimicking my voice in a higher pitch. I heard a faint chuckle, and turned my head. The smile was already gone. I rolled my eyes and started running. Full speed. I listened solely on the sound my foot made on the concrete, it was relaxing.
Bam, bam, bam, bam
I focused on that, until I heard something else.
"Where are you from?" She questioned.
"New York City. Moved here a couple years ago." I explained. She looked confused, but stayed silent.
"Here we are!" I announced, and flew my arms apart. She stayed silent and sighed heavily, and dramatically.
"Oh my god, a warehouse!" She yelled, sarcasm dripping off of her words.
"It's the inside that matters." I grinned. She rolled her eyes playfully. I grinned and pushed the door open. I turned around to face Annabeth.
"it's, perfect." she breathed.
I nodded in return. I looked at the giant room in front of me. I built it a couple years ago. I had made my own indoor training area, sort of. It had a rock climbing wall, an archery target, some dummies lined up, with a sword and a couple of knives.
"How did you get all of this?" Annabeth asked.
I smiled.
"The weapons were passed down from generation to generation, and all the stuff I got for free, this place was closing down, and they were just throwing this stuff out, so I stole it."
"Oh, so you're a rebel?" She teased. I laughed.
I pulled her hand. "Rock climb?" I asked. She nodded excitedly.
"I used climb all the time, when I lived in Utah." She said. I smiled at her.
"Why'd you move?" I asked.
"My mom moved around a lot." She said sourly. I could sense the hate in her voice. I dropped the subject, I didn't want her to leave.  I tried clipping her to the wire, but she refused.
"I have hands, don't I?" She joked. I raised my hands in a surrender. She jumped up, and grabbed onto a ledge with one hand. I screamed, and she laughed.
"Told you." She teased.
I rolled my eyes and slowly started to climb. I wasn't the best at this. Annabeth sighed and posed herself so that she was waiting. I finally reached her, and she tilted her head back, and kept climbing. She was really fast. I tried to hurry, and nearly fell. Annabeth wasn't so lucky. Her foot slipped, and she fell off. I quickly yanked her hand up, and tried to pull her back up. This wall went high, and we were probably about 15 feet up already. After all, the warehouse had a high roof. Annabeth glances down frantically, I tightened my grip, and pulled her up onto my ledge.
"Gotcha!" I yelled.She rolled her eyes in response. She mumbled a thanks, and then continued climbing. I quickly followed, and we finally reached the top. We were barely touching the roof, but yet could still sit comfortably.
"So, you're kind of a crappy climber, I guess?" Annabeth asked.
I laughed.
"Whatever. Anyway, where do you want to go next?" I asked.
"What do you mean?" She questioned.
"Don't you want to hang out with me?"
She shook her head. "For all I know, you could be a murderer."
I grinned. "Even if I pinky promise?" She burst out laughing, and accepted my pinky finger.
"I know a place." Annabeth said. I nodded.
"Let's go."