Part two of the mini-story I've been working on for ages. It's the longest piece I've ever written, so I hope you enjoy it!

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Point of view: Omniscient and Limited Third

Type: Mortal AU

Main Ship: Percabeth

Word Count: 11,271

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"Annie, sweetie," Annabeth's father murmured, rubbing her shoulder, "it's time to get up."

Annabeth rolled onto her side and palmed her sleepy eyes. "Five more minutes," she grumbled.

Frederick laughed. "You've already said that, and I gave you five more minutes. Now you have to get up. Come on, you don't want to be late for school."

The little girl's grey eyes shot open and she sat up abruptly, almost colliding her face into her father's. "Are you kidding? I have school?" she exclaimed.

Her father nodded, holding back a smile. "Yes, sweetheart. Get up and get dressed, and meet me in the dining room. I have news for you."

The little girl nodded frantically, scrambling out from her grey comforter with white polka-dots. She threw on her school uniform and grabbed her small backpack before sprinting down the stairs.

As Annabeth rounded the corner into the dining room, she spotted her father sitting at the head of their gargantuan table. There were two plates loaded with toast, eggs, and bacon, as well as a mug and a glass of orange juice. Frederick had his mug in his hand and his cell phone pressed to his ear. Her footsteps slowed as the curious kid tried to listen in on the conversation.

"As I said, come over tonight at about seven o'clock. I'll get Annabeth on board this morning. Just be casual, and don't be fake, babe. She hates when adults talk down to her." He paused, sipping from his mug. "Yes, she's only eight. She knows what she wants, that's good. Alright, see you tonight, sweetheart."

Annabeth frowned before shuffling farther into the room. "Who was that?" she asked bluntly.

Frederick looked over at his daughter, who was pulling out her chair and climbing up onto it. "Oh, she's just my really good friend. I want you to meet her. She's coming over for dinner today to see you."

Scrunching up her eyebrows, the young girl spooned some of her eggs into her mouth. "Weird. You've never had a girl over by herself before. Only guys."

"Yeah, well," her father said, resting a hand on her shoulder, "she's special."

The rest of their breakfast was silent. As Annabeth munched on her food, and as she climbed into the family car, and as she stepped into her second-grade classroom, thoughts of her father's "special friend" filled her mind. What made this lady so special?

For once, Annabeth wasn't happy to return home after a fulfilling day of school. She didn't want to have dinner with her dad's new friend. The second Jules-Albert pulled the car to a stop, the young girl hopped out of the car and sprinted up to her room.

She spent several hours doing her homework, studying for her upcoming quiz, and reading her newest book. Around six o'clock, as Annabeth was flipping the page to a new chapter, her father called her downstairs for dinner.

The girl sighed, finished her sentence, slipped her bookmark between the pages, and stood up. She shuffled out of her bedroom and down the stairs, trying to elongate the time it took to get down to the dining room as much as possible.

After an astounding five minutes, Annabeth arrived in the dining room. Her father was hugging a tall lady. She had dark auburn hair, brown eyes, and thin lips stretched into a smile. That smile quickly morphed once she transferred her view from Frederick to Annabeth.

"Hello there, sweetheart. My name is Helen, what's yours?"

Annabeth scrunched up her nose. "My name is Annabeth."

"That's a beautiful name," Helen noted.

"Thanks."

Frederick cleared his throat. "Well, let's sit down and eat, yeah?"

Helen nodded. "That would be amazing."

She strutted over to the table and stood beside the chair across from Annabeth's usual seat. As the young girl climbed up onto her chair, she watched as her father pulled out the chair Helen wanted to sit in. Annabeth frowned.

"That's my mom's seat," she announced.

"Your mom's?" Helen repeated.

"Yes,"  Annabeth said slowly. "My mom always sat there."

The lady chuckled. "I'm sure she won't mind me sitting here. After all, I want to be close to you and your dad seeing as we will be spending a lot of time together."

Annabeth wanted to argue that her mother was very particular about her belongings and would not want this stranger sitting in her seat, but she was too distracted by the end of the woman's statement.

"What do you mean by that?" she asked.

Frederick placed his hand on top of his daughter's. "Well, it's been around a year since your mother passed, and it's about time for us to move along, don't you think, Annie?"

She scrunched her eyebrows and recoiled her hands from the table. "No, I don't think. What's going on, are you guys dating or something?"

Her father sighed. "Or something."

"Frederick," Helen murmured, locking eyes with him, "don't try and hide it."

He opened his mouth, but no words came out. Finally, he spat out, "I - I can't."

Helen turned her attention to the young girl across from her. "Annie, your father and I are getting married."

Annabeth's eyes widened and began to feel very watery. Her whole world was practically turned upside down. She scrambled out of her seat and out of the kitchen. As she ran up the stairs, she heard her father call after her, but she didn't turn around. Tears began to slide down her face in rhythm with her footsteps.

Once she reached her bedroom, she bolted inside and slammed the door behind her. She collapsed on her bed, wishing her mommy was around to comfort her.

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Annabeth woke up on her sixteenth birthday in a very bad mood. She had just had a dream about becoming the CEO of her own architectural company, but seconds before the dream ended and she was promoted, she got hit by a taco truck. That didn't lead to a good morning.

She groaned and rolled over. She patted around her nightstand before finding her phone and picking it up. She unplugged it and rolled back over. She scrolled through her notifications - a few new Instagram posts, a Snapchat, an email - but one truly stuck out to her.

HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY, FROM SEAWEED BRAIN TO YOU, I HOPE YOU HAVE A GOOD DAY, I HOPE TO SEE YOU SOON!!!

LOL but seriously happy bday Annabeth i love you and can't wait to see you l8er xoxo Seaweed Brain

XD

Smiling profusely, she quickly texted him back.

Thank you so much!! I'll see you around noon?

Yes ma'am ;)

Annabeth sighed, extremely happy to see her best friend later on in the day. She sat up and stretched her arms above her head. She slid out of her dark grey covers and trudged across her bedroom, yawning. She slipped her slippers on and made her way down the hallway and staircase to the kitchen, where Haleigh was bent down in the oven.

"Morning, Haleigh," Annabeth murmured.

The young chef jumped up and spun around, slamming the oven shut with her hip. "Good morning, Miss. I didn't hear you."

Annabeth laughed. "I'm going to assume that there is a cake in there for a surprise party that is going to take place tonight for my father to pretend to care about me growing up and then actually spend the evening making business alliances. I'm going to act as if I know nothing and go wait in the dining room for my breakfast."

Haleigh laughed. "You've always been quite the sarcastic one, Miss."

The teen shrugged. "I've heard that's what the loss of a parent at a young age can do, but maybe it's just in my DNA."

The chef scoffed. "Oh, cut it out. You're messing with me."

"Maybe I'm not. Maybe this is just my personality and I've never let anyone see it before," Annabeth retorted, opening the refrigerator and grabbing the glass pitcher of orange juice.

"I doubt that," Haleigh announced, passing the younger girl a glass. "You're a sweet girl, I know that. You're just trying to give me a hard time."

"Yeah, maybe I'm trying to get you to quit, seeing as you're 21 and should be living a college life, not the life of a servant."

As Annabeth sipped her drink she made dead eye contact with Haleigh. They held it for a moment before the chef burst into laughter. This caused Annabeth to spew her juice. Of course, another eruption of laughter from both girls occurred.

"What are you two doing?" a shrill voice exclaimed.

All sounds of enjoyment were sucked out of the atmosphere as Helen entered the kitchen.

"Haleigh, don't be distracted by Annabeth here. Get to work and clean up that mess."

Annabeth blinked. "I spilled the juice, I can pick it up."

With a small glare, Helen shook her head. "She gets paid to do that, darling. But if you must, clean it up quickly and join your father, the twins, and me in the dining room." 

Annabeth pursed her lips and nodded, before turning and making a face at Haleigh. 

The chef bit her lip, holding in a laugh. She turned to grab a roll of paper towels from under the counter as well as a spray bottle. She passed the paper towels to Annabeth as she began to spray the floor.

The two girls sat in silence as they cleaned up the mess, the easy-going vibe of their previous conversation gone. After the work was done, Haleigh thanked Annabeth before returning to her cooking.

With a small frown and a greatly dampened mood, Annabeth left the kitchen and headed toward the dining room. She saw her father sitting at the head of the table with Helen on his right, and Bobby was on her right with Matthew across from him, like always, but something was off. The room had a strange vibe to it, and it made Annabeth anxious.

She slowly walked over and sat down across from Helen. Both adults looked at her, but she stared down at her placemat.

Her father cleared his throat. "Happy birthday, Annabeth."

She looked up at him and smiled. "Thanks, Dad."

"Do you have any plans for the day?" he questioned.

Annabeth nodded happily. "Yeah, Percy and I are going to head to the beach for the afternoon."

The twins giggled, but Helen cut them off with a look.

"That's good. Could you try to be back for dinner, around eight?" Frederick asked.

Resisting the urge to roll her eyes at his predictability, she said, "Yeah, sure."

After a brief moment of silence, Helen sniffed. "So, Annabeth," she began.

The teenager closed her eyes briefly to prepare herself for whatever sob story Helen was about to present. "Yes?"

"I've been so lucky to act as a parent for you for the past 8 years. Watching you grow up with my own children has made me view you as a child of my own. I would like to make that official if you would let me."

Annabeth inhaled sharply. "You mean..."

"I would like to adopt you, Annabeth," Helen told her.

Suddenly, Annabeth felt like a little girl again. Her mind went blank. Her eyes went wide. Her jaw dropped. Once more, she was being given earthshattering news and she was expected to be okay with it.

She hated all the expectations being given to her. A proper young lady agrees to everything and smiles at everything. A proper young lady only shows positive emotions. A proper young lady lets everybody push her around.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Annabeth announced.

Everyone at the table stared at her incredulously.

"Why not?" Helen asked.

"You want to adopt me for all the wrong reasons, I know it. You think that if you officially become my mother, you can have a say over what I do. That's not going to happen, because I won't let it. I will not let you adopt me, Helen."

"Now, Annabeth, dear," her father said warmly, resting his hand on her shoulder. "Make sure you're thinking things through."

She stood up swiftly. "Oh trust me, I am. All I ever do is think, so you do not need to tell me to do so. I think Helen is a no-good gold digger, and I think she does not deserve to be called my mother!"

With that, she turned on her heels and ran out of the room. As she made her way for the front door, she heard a gasp - probably Helen, always overdramatic - a shout - most likely her father - and a whimper - she assumed it was one of the twins. This didn't deter her and she continued on her mission to get as far away from that cruel woman as possible.

"Miss!" a voice called.

Annabeth glanced over her shoulder and saw Haleigh rushing toward her through the tears in her eyes.

"That didn't go well at all," the chef murmured, tugging the teen into a hug.

Annabeth shook her head. "No, I suppose it didn't. I need to get out of here."

"Miss, you can't just leave," Haleigh told her, pulling back and staring at the girl.

"Yeah?" the teen retorted. "Watch me."

Annabeth wormed out of the chef's embrace and took five long strides toward the door and out of the mansion she called home.

She knew where she needed to go, she just didn't know how to get there. She couldn't walk - it would take too long and was too risky considering her fragile mental state - and she couldn't be chauffeured - Jules-Albert would tell her father where she was. Annabeth sighed, preparing herself to make a reckless decision. 

She sprinted toward the garage and climbed into the driver's seat of the crisp new black Lamborghini. After digging the key out of the glove box, she inserted it into the ignition and put the car in reverse. Sure, she didn't have her license, but desperate times called for desperate measures. Besides, Annabeth did have her permit, and that was good enough anyway.

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Annabeth was just settling in for bed when her phone dinged. A little confused, she rolled over to her nightstand and grabbed her cell phone.

She was surprised to see a new message from an unknown number.

I remembered LOL lets see if u remembered.

Annabeth blinked. Fishing through her memories of the day, she finally picked out one specific one.

"Try writing down your number for me, and we'll see if I remember it."

With a giddy smile on her face, Annabeth quickly typed out a response.

I did

What are you up to, Seaweed Brain

I was thinking abt what happened today hbu

I was getting ready for bed

Oh sorry

U can go to sleep if you want

No, it's okay I want to talk to you

Oh ok

How was ur day

Pretty good. It was good to talk to my mom

I feel the same

My dad died when I was a few months old

That's awful, I'm sorry

Hey ur situation is a lot worse. I never really knew the guy. U had a full connection w/ ur mom

Yeah but at least I got the chance to get to know her

Lets just say both our lives suck

XD

Yeah, true

So what school do you go to?

I just ended with Yancy Academy but they prob wont invite me back

Yikes, so you're a bad kid huh?

Maybe I shouldn't have given you that ride home

JK

Yeah I guess u could say im a troubled kid i mean the adhd and dyslexia dont help

You're kidding, right?

About the ADHD and dyslexia?

Nah why

I have them too

I just have fewer behavior issues because of my parents and stepmom I guess

LOL we really arent that different then

Besides the fact that ur probably 2-5 times richer than me

My family is probably 2-5 times richer than you*

I'll let you know when I personally become a multi-millionaire

LOL ur pretty funny

I should probably go so my stepdad doesnt kill me but it was good talking to you

Annabeth found herself not wanting to stop talking to this stranger.

Why would he kill you?

For using his phone to text a girl passed 10 PM

He probably thinks im a sexual harasser or something crazy like that

That's really strange Perce

I'll let you go so you don't get in trouble but it was nice talking to you

Good night Percy

Good night Annabeth

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Everything felt like it was going in slow motion as Annabeth turned left through the green light. Cars were crawling towards her slower than a turtle. Trucks were shuffling along on either side of her. The only thing moving super speed was the large 18-wheeler hurtling straight towards her.

Annabeth didn't know what to do, and that terrified her. The 18-wheeler was turning right, even though there was a red light for that lane. If she stopped, the cars behind her would hit her. If she kept going, she would collide with the huge truck. Unknowingly, she pressed on the horn and laid off of the gas. The semi slammed on its brakes, allowing Annabeth to safely turn.

Once she had made it onto the road she desired to be on, she sucked in a breath. Her mother had died from a truck t-boning her small 2-door BMW. If Annabeth had been in a similar accident, with the small Lamborghini she'd borrowed, she would have been killed.

As tears began streaming down her face, Annabeth found an opening to pull over and did so. Putting the car in park, she leaning back into the seat and held her face in her hands as she wept.

If she died from a car crash, who would care? Her father moved on from his wife dying within a year, so why would he care about his rebellious young daughter? Helen hated her for sure by then and would convince the twins to think similarly. Annabeth rarely talked to her classmates, so she knew they wouldn't give her death a second thought. Sniffling, Annabeth took out her phone and called the only person she could comprehend caring about whether or not she was alive.

"What's up, Birthday Girl? Couldn't wait a few hours to talk to me?" Percy teased.

She sniffed, letting out a small laugh. "Caught me."

Immediately, she heard his tone change. "Woah, wait a minute, are you crying?"

"Psh, no," Annabeth told him. "Okay yeah, maybe a little."

"Why are you crying? Are you hurt?" he asked.

Annabeth would have made a joke about the concern in his tone if she were in a better mood. "Not physically, but my mind is a mess right now. Are you home?"

"Yeah. Are you?"

"No, I'm on the side of the highway."

"By yourself?" he exclaimed.

"Yeah," Annabeth murmured. "I took the Lambo."

"Annabeth."

"Yes, Percy?"

"You're scaring me."

Annabeth sucked in a breath shakily. "I'm scared, Perce."

"How far are you from my place?" he asked softly.

She glanced around at her surroundings. "Probably less than ten minutes."

"Okay, come over and we can finish talking in person," Percy told her. "Please be safe."

"I will." Annabeth closed her eyes, making several tears fall down. "Hey, Perce?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you stay on the phone?"

Percy chuckled. "Sure, just put me on speakerphone or something."

"Alright," Annabeth agreed. "Let me try and hook it up to the car's radio."

A few minutes later, she had successfully hooked her phone up to the Bluetooth and was back on the road. Percy was babbling off on what had been going on in his life, and Annabeth chipped in every so often. His voice helped her stay grounded. Sure, that scared her, but it also made her feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Time flew by and suddenly Annabeth was pulling into the parking lot adjacent to Percy's apartment building. "I'm here," she told him.

"Okay, do you want me to come down or do you want to talk up here?" he asked.

Annabeth glanced around, noting the dangerous neighborhood. She looked up at the apartment building and determined she'd rather be in the comforting atmosphere of Percy's home than the crisp, personality-less car. The only downside was that if someone keyed the Lamborghini, she would be in extra trouble.

"I'll come up," she decided. "Give me two minutes."

"Wait, wait, wait," Percy rambled.

"What?" Annabeth asked, concerned.

"Okay, now you can come."

Annabeth snorted. "You just set a timer, didn't you?"

"No," he answered. He was obviously lying and the dip in his voice gave that away.

"See you in 120 seconds, Seaweed Brain."

"119, actually. 118, 117, 116, 115 - "

Annabeth laughed as she hung up the phone. She climbed out of the car and locked it behind her before walking away from it, saying a silent prayer that the automobile wouldn't get destroyed.

About halfway to the apartment building, Annabeth noted her attire that wasn't entirely public friendly. She was still dressed in her thin cotton pajama shorts, her camisole tank top, and her fluffy slippers, not to mention her hair was performing its best imitation of a rat's nest. Hoping that no one was looking at her and that Percy wouldn't care, she picked up her pace.

Annabeth decided to take the stairs for time's sake and sprinted up three flights until she reached the floor the Jackson's resided on. Walking down the hallway toward their apartment, she did her best to collect herself before rapping her fist against the wooden door.

She heard a muffled voice that grew louder, accompanied by footsteps.

"7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2," Percy listed, before finally opening the door and greeting Annabeth with a huge smile. "1. Perfect timing as always, Ms. Chase."

"Taking things literally as always, Mr. Jackson," she quipped.

"Nice outfit," Percy commented, jokingly scanning her up and down.

Annabeth blushed and crossed her arms. "Thanks. Can I come in?"

He mimicked her stance and leaned against the door frame. "Nope."

She had already begun walking forward, expecting an affirmative answer, and collided straight into his blue tee-shirt clad chest. "I'm sorry, what?"

"No, you cannot come in."

Annabeth looked up at him - he was a solid six inches taller than her - and frowned. "Why not?"

"Because," he said, drawing out both syllables, "you haven't paid the entry fee."

She rolled her stone-grey eyes. "And what might that be?"

Percy smirked and spread his arms. "A hug."

Annabeth scoffed. "You're a jerk," she mumbled before falling into his open arms.

Her arms wrapped around his waist as he draped his own arms across her upper back. She could feel the warmth of his hands against her skin and it made her insides fill with its own warmth. When Percy rested his chin on her shoulder and began to fiddle with her loose curls, Annabeth thought she was going to shriek from happiness.

After a substantial amount of time, Annabeth relaxed her grip around his waist and they both stepped back.

She felt her face heat up and cleared her throat. "Now may I come in?" she asked teasingly, but her voice wobbled.

Percy's own face was slightly red, but he smiled and nodded. "Yep, come on in."

He turned around and began to walk down the hallway, presumably to his bedroom. Annabeth had never ventured farther than the living room/kitchen of the Jackson's apartment and excitedly followed behind him.

Percy turned right at the very end of the hallway and opened up the door, revealing his bedroom. The walls were painted dark blue and had an even dusting of band posters and other pictures coating them. He had an unmade full-sized bed, a dresser with several knick-knacks upon it, and a desk with his report card still laid out on it. He went over to sit on his bed, and Annabeth did the same.

"So what's wrong?" Percy asked, cutting straight to the chase.

"Helen wants to adopt me," Annabeth started, "which might not seem that bad but really is. You know how she is. I mean, she hates me. Clearly she's only doing this for her own benefit. And so I got really mad and said some things, and then I started crying, and since I didn't want to do so in front of them, I ran out of the room and took the car."

"Wow, happy birthday to you, huh?" Percy remarked, shifting so he was sitting criss-cross.

"Yeah, I know." She rubbed her eyes. "I think it was supposed to be a good surprise, but neither my dad nor Helen seem to understand how deep my hatred for that woman is."

"Annabeth," Percy murmured, "don't say that. You don't hate her, she just annoys and frustrates you."

She rolled her eyes. "Which I hate."

He sighed and rested his hand on her thigh. "I get it. She tried to be your mom and it didn't work out. She treated you horribly for a long time. But did you think about the fact that maybe she really is trying to turn things around for you two?"

Annabeth glanced at his hand before returning her attention to his face. "You really think so?"

Percy nodded. "Yeah, I do. But there's no way for you to know other than by talking to her about it. I can come with you if you want, and if it doesn't work out, we'll leave straight away. How does that sound?" 

With a small sigh, Annabeth nodded. "Okay, fine."

Percy smiled, but it quickly morphed into a smirk. "So, you brought the Lambo, huh?"

"No, Percy, you cannot drive the car," she said, monotoned.

He laughed. "Fine. Come on, let's get going."

"Can I have some clothes first?"

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Annabeth regretted being born. More specifically, she regretted being born a female.

She had settled down in her bed to do some reading and fell asleep. After waking up an hour or so later, she felt like she was sitting on something wet. Alarmed, she kicked off the covers and hopped out of bed. When she saw the large red splotch on her sheets, she groaned, knowing what had happened.

She had finally gotten her period: every preteen girl's dream until it finally hits them like a grenade.

For once, Annabeth didn't know what to do. She grabbed a pair of fresh sweatpants and underwear from her dresser. Then she walked over to her ensuite bathroom and pulled down her pants before sitting on the toilet. She felt nauseous at the amount of blood in her underwear.

She swapped out her soiled clothes for her fresh ones, even though she figured those would soon be dirtied anyway. She got up and flushed, washed her hands, and exited the bathroom.

Under normal circumstances, she would go to her mother. Unfortunately, her mother had died in a car crash eight years ago. Next in line would be her father, but seeing as it was four o'clock on a Friday, he was still at work. The last and most desperate choice was her stepmother.

Annabeth despised that woman because she tried to be everything that she simply couldn't. Helen tried to be a mother figure for the grieving girl, but that was not what the girl needed.

Annabeth sighed and trudged out of her room and down the hall. She figured Helen would be in one of the twins' rooms, seeing as they were the lights of her life. Their bedrooms were added onto the third floor as additions because she couldn't stand being a floor away from her babies.

She knocked on Bobby's door, which was adjacent to her own bedroom. 

"Come in," a small voice called. She opened the door and spotted the six-year-old boy sitting on his carpet, playing with toy cars.

"Hey, Bobby," Annabeth called.

"Yeah?" he replied.

"Where's your mom?"

"Um," he began, "with Matt."

She had to stop herself from facepalming. "And where's Matt?"

"I think they're in his room."

"Thanks, buddy," she said, turning and rushing across the hall to the other twin's bedroom.

Low and behold, when she opened up Matthew's bedroom door, it revealed the young boy sitting on Helen's lap on his bed. She was reading a book to him and looked up at Annabeth midsentence.

"Oh, hi. Would you like to join us?"

Annabeth shook her head. "No, not this time. Could I talk to you?"

She could tell Helen was surprised, but the woman nodded her head. "Sure, I'll be done with this chapter in a minute and then I can come to your room, if you want," Helen offered.

Annabeth nodded briefly before turning on her heel and heading back to her bedroom. Afraid to sit on anything and do any more damage, she stood in the center of her room while she waited.

A few minutes later, she heard a soft knock on her door.

"You can come in," Annabeth announced.

Helen timidly entered the fourteen-year old's room. "Is something wrong?" she asked.

Annabeth furrowed her eyebrows. "Not necessarily. I, um - I started my period, I think. I stained my bed and my pants pretty bad, and I'm not sure what to do."

The woman looked at the teen with kind eyes. "I see. Wait here while I grab something for you, alright?"

Annabeth nodded. 

Helen sauntered out of the room and returned with a small plastic square in her hands. "This is a pad. You open it up and put the sticky side on your underwear. You go do that while I strip your bed, okay?"

The teenager cleared her throat. "Okay. Thank you."

"Of course, sweetheart. Feel free to come to me for anything, anytime."

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As Annabeth pulled her freshly stolen Lamborghini into her driveway, she focused very hard on not releasing her breakfast onto the leather interior.

"You look like you're going to be sick," Percy commented.

She put the car into park and removed the key from the ignition. "I feel like it, too. Come on, let's get going before I chicken out or something."

Percy snorted. "Annabeth Chase? Chickening out? I can't imagine that."

That resulted in a swift punch to the bicep, which ultimately ended with Percy whispering harsh swear words.

After a small laugh fest at Percy's choice of language, the pair of best friends climbed out of the Lamborghini and dragged their feet along the walkway leading to the Chase's mansion.

Annabeth took a big breath before twisting the doorknob on the front door of her home. She stepped inside and immediately wanted to leave. The atmosphere was suffocating her.

One look up at Percy, who was on her right, instantly comforted her. 

"It's going to be okay," he murmured, a soft smile dusting his lips, "and if it isn't, I'll be here for you."

Annabeth couldn't believe the amount of affection and adoration she had for this boy. A simple sentence paired with a smile sent a swarm of butterflies to her stomach and an overflow of dopamine to her brain. When he reached over and brushed her hand with his, she almost gasped, and when he entwined their fingers, she was doing her best not to scream. Suddenly, their platonic relationship didn't seem so platonic.

The lovestruck girl cleared her throat before saying, "Thank you for being here. It means so much to me, Perce."

Percy smiled. "I wouldn't be anywhere else," he told her, squeezing her hand.

The two forged deeper into the house, passing the kitchen and dining room and heading up the stairs. After checking her father and stepmother's bedroom and finding it vacant, Annabeth directed her and Percy towards her father's office across the hall.

Annabeth lightly rapped her fist against the wooden door. After hearing a soft "Come in" she twisted the handle and stepped inside. Percy lingered in the hallway and Annabeth missed the warmth of his hand around hers.

Her father's office was a lot busier than her mother's always was. The walls were beige and the carpet was grey, and black shelves covered the walls. On the shelves were several model planes, as well as blueprints and other paper scraps. He had two desks, one on the left and one on the right, but only one chair. The chair had wheels on the bottom so whenever he wanted to switch desks, he wheeled himself backward and turned to face the correct direction.

Sitting at the desk on the left was none other than Frederick Chase. 

"Hey, Dad?" Annabeth asked.

He turned to look at her. She could see relief in his eyes, but frustration and anger coated over it.

"Yes, dear?"

Annabeth looked down at her slipper covered feet, suddenly more sheepish than ever. "Where's Helen?"

"She's in Matthew's room. Have you been thinking about her proposal?"

Letting out a small half-smile, she nodded. "Yeah, I have."

"Okay, go and talk to Helen, then. But when you're done, I would also like to speak with you."

Annabeth nodded solemnly before turning around and walking back into the hallway, where Percy was waiting patiently.

"Annabeth?" her father called.

She looked over her shoulder. "What?"

"I love you, dear, and I trust you to make the right choice."

"O-okay," she choked out. "I love you too, Dad."

She proceeded to rush out of the room before her father could see the tears in her eyes.

After shutting the door behind her, Annabeth harshly whispered, "I'm an awful daughter."

"That's not true whatsoever, Annabeth," Percy told her. "You are an opinionated young lady, but that doesn't make you a bad daughter."

She quickly swiped her hand across her face, removing the few stray tears that had made their way down. Unfortunately, Percy caught sight of them before she got rid of them.

"Oh, come here, you silly goose," he murmured, tugging Annabeth closer by the wrist and encapsulating her in a warm hug. "It's okay to cry."

"I hate crying," she coughed out.

"Well get over it, because it's good for you."

Annabeth chuckled, sniffling. "You're one to talk. The only times I've seen you cry, you were ashamed of it."

Percy loosened his grip and stepped back. "That's because I was a stupid little boy. Now I'm a full-grown man, and men cry proudly."

She scanned him from head to toe, prepared to make a comment about how little manliness he really had, but was taken aback. Percy Jackson had certainly grown into his body over the past year or so.

"Whatever you say, Seaweed Brain," she retorted, looking at the ground to hide her blush.

"So," Percy said, "where to?"

"Matt's bedroom, apparently," Annabeth answered, grateful to have moved on to a different topic.

Percy grabbed her hand and began walking down the hallway. "Let's get to it, then."

The pair made their way down the hallway, passed Annabeth's room and her mother's office, which were across from each other, and finally took a right into Matthew's bedroom.

Annabeth took a deep breath and tapped on the door lightly. "Hello?" she called.

"Come on in," Helen's shrill voice called.

The teenage girl recoiled, regretting her choice. A quick elbow nudge from the man on her left snapped her out of it. She turned the handle and stepped inside.

"Hey, Helen, could I speak with you?" she blurted out before she had the chance to change her mind.

Helen's eyes were wide, but she nodded. "Sure. Let's go somewhere more private, yeah?"

Annabeth voiced her agreement and retreated back into the hallway. She began to walk a little ways back the way she had come but felt an absence of warmth encasing her hand.

She glanced behind her, where Percy was standing. "What are you doing?" she asked him.

"Giving you and your stepmother privacy," he explained.

Annabeth frowned. "I want you to be there."

He smiled sadly. "I know, and I want to be there, but I feel as though it would only make things worse. You can and should do this by yourself."

She sighed but knew he was right. "Okay," she said. "You can wait in my bedroom. It's right here." She pointed at her door, which was right across from where she planned to speak with Helen.

At that moment, Helen popped out of Matthew's room. "Oh, hello there," she said to Percy. "I didn't see you earlier."

He sent her his trademarked troublemaker smile that made teen girls go wild and adults go insane. "My name's Percy, it's nice to meet you, Mrs. Chase," he said, offering his hand.

Helen tentatively shook it and smiled thinly at him. "Same to you." 

They had a brief staredown before the older woman returned her attention to Annabeth. "Where would you like to go?"

Annabeth pointed at her mother's office and walked over to it. She slowly made her way behind the old mahogany desk to the bay window. Once she plopped herself down, Helen deemed it safe to follow suit.

Annabeth decided it was best to get all of her thoughts out before letting Helen say a word. After closing her eyes for a moment, she began to unload all her fears and concerns that had been building up the entire morning.

"I hate to say this to you, but you've only acted motherly toward me two or three times during our relationship. This initially made me think that you were only trying to adopt me so you would have more control over my decisions and even get some sort of inheritance if something were to happen to me. Of course, this outraged me, and I felt like I needed to get away from you and my seemingly unknowing father. I went to Percy's place," she said, toying with the sleeve of the large blue sweatshirt he had lent her, "and told him all this, but he explained another side of the story to me. He said that there was a large chance that you genuinely wanted to stand in as my mother and wanted to adopt me to jumpstart that. I need to know which is true, and I need the truth. Why do you want to adopt me, Helen?"

Helen sighed. "I want to adopt you because I want to be apart of your life, Annabeth. I don't want to be your dad's wife to you, and I don't really want to be your stepmother, either. I feel as though those terms create a bridge between us, and that if I were your official mother, that bridge wouldn't exist anymore."

Annabeth was surprised at her explanation. "Really?" she asked.

"Yes," the older woman responded. "But once you left, I realized maybe it would be better to build our relationship first. I don't think it would be healthy for me to become your mother if you don't even see me as one."

Annabeth bit her lip. "I agree. It would be like jumping from enemies to marriage partners. It made no sense to me, which made me jump to the conclusion that you were only in it to benefit yourself."

"I understand," Helen said, crossing her legs. "So how about this: we continue our relationship as stepmother and stepdaughter, but get rid of the stigma that I am only in it for myself, because trust me, Annabeth, I am not. I truly love you and your father and will do anything to prove that."

Annabeth smiled. "Sounds like a plan. I'm sorry for my views of you, Helen. Thank you for not being too upset with me."

"Of course, dear," her stepmother said, smiling back.

She leaned forward with her arms wide, and - even though she was extremely uncomfortable - Annabeth settled into the hug. They pulled apart rather quickly, but it was enough to signify the fresh start to their relationship.

"So," Helen said, smirking, "I'd assume these clothes are Percy's."

Annabeth blushed. "You'd be correct."

"That's very sweet of him," the woman continued.

With a nod, Annabeth toyed with her blonde curls. "He's a very sweet guy. He supported me every step of the way here."

Helen grinned. "Do you like him?"

"God, no!" the teen exclaimed. "Most definitely not."

"Uh huh."

"Helen, I'm serious. Percy's my best friend, and I have no romantic feelings for him."

"Right," she said sarcastically. "Just because you talk about him almost every day, and your face lights up like a little kid when you do so, and you look at him with complete adoration when you speak to him doesn't mean you like him. Because that'd be absurd."

Annabeth lightly nudged Helen's shoulder with her hand. "Chill, lady."

With a laugh, the older woman stood up, and the teen did the same. They walked out of Athena Chase's office together before parting ways in the hallway. Helen went right, back towards the twins' bedrooms, but Annabeth went straight across the hall to her bedroom.

When she opened the door, a giddy smile coated her lips. The sight of Percy Jackson sprawled on his stomach on her bed filled her with joy. He was scrolling on his phone and hadn't noticed her yet, so she quietly shut the door behind her. Then, as silently as possible, she sprinted across her carpet before jumping onto his back.

Percy yelped and rolled right, onto his back, crushing Annabeth beneath him during the process. She was cackling beneath him while doing her best to shove him off. In a blur of emotions, Percy rolled back to his left and plummetted off the bed.

Annabeth was laughing so hard she was crying. She sat up on her knees and waddled over to peer over the side of her bed. "Are you okay?" she wheezed.

Percy groaned. "Yep."

This sent Annabeth into another fit of laughter, and she covered her mouth with her hands.

Suddenly, she felt a hand on her elbow, but before she could save herself, a quick tug sent her flying off the bed. Conveniently, she landed right on Percy's lap.

Annabeth was still giggling like a little girl, and Percy had joined her with his own deep chuckle. He had managed to sit up and had one arm supporting his body with the other wrapped around Annabeth's waist to keep her from falling off of his lap.

Percy was the one to collect himself first, and Annabeth could feel him staring at her. This caused her laughter to come to a halt and her cheeks to flush.

"What?" she asked him self-consciously.

Using both of his arms, Percy turned Annabeth so that she was facing him. "You look beautiful," he explained.

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear nervously. "I'm sure, especially with my eyes all puffy from crying, my hair a wreck, and clothes three sizes too big for me."

Percy smiled and she felt shivers go down her spine. "I love that you're wearing my clothes," he told her. "I was so excited when you asked me if you could borrow some."

Annabeth smiled. "That's cute."

He brushed his thumbs against the curve of her hip. "You're cute."

Her breathing hitched and her eyes fluttered closed. "Percy."

"Annabeth," he murmured, resting his forehead against hers.

With a sigh, the girl opened her eyes and brought her hand up to his face. "We can't."

"Why can't we?"

"Because." As Annabeth filtered through her usual mental excuses for not falling in love, for not finding a boyfriend, and for not kissing a boy, she realized something. Her mother wouldn't want her to be sad and lonely. Her mother wouldn't want her to spend her life focusing on education and disregarding the social aspect of being a teen. Her mother would want her to live a happy life, to live a full life, and to live a loving life.

Percy's green eyes locked onto her own grey ones. "Because..."

Annabeth smiled and brought her other hand up to cup his jawline. She lightly caressed his cheekbones with her thumbs and memorized every detail of his face before closing her eyes and leaning forward.

As Annabeth and Percy kissed, an entire fleet of butterflies was set loose in her stomach. Each nerve ending in her lips was on overload, and every patch of skin that his hands grazed was set on fire. Although the kiss was brief, it was magical, and Annabeth felt no regrets.

Once they pulled away from each other, Annabeth opened her eyes and found herself staring into an ocean of sparkling sea green. That, as well as a pair of smirking pink lips, was a telltale sign that Percy was about to say something highly mischievous.

"You never finished your sentence," he teased. "Because..."

Annabeth rolled her eyes and pushed his shoulders. Percy collapsed onto his back but tugged Annabeth down with him.

Their noses collided, causing them both to exclaim in pain before giving way to the laughter that almost always crept into the room whenever they were together. Annabeth rolled to the left, off of Percy, but stayed close enough that the entirety of their sides were pressed together. She smiled when his hand grasped hers.

They laid there in silence for a while, enjoying each other's company. Annabeth was very grateful for her sudden recklessness.

After quite some time had passed, Percy broke the silence with a question. "So, are you still down to go to the beach?"

Annabeth grinned and sat up. "Of course. I can go get changed real quick, and then we can get Jules-Albert to take us to your place and then straight to the beach.

"That sounds great," Percy said, sitting up as well. "But don't forget that you're supposed to talk to your dad."

Her happy mood drooped. "Right. I can take care of that pretty quickly I bet, especially considering the fact that Helen and I made up."

"You never did tell me what happened," Percy pointed out.

Annabeth glanced at the clock on her nightstand. "I can tell you in the car."

"Perfect," he said, smiling at her. "Ready?"

"Yup," she responded, getting up from the ground. She lent Percy a hand to assist him in getting up before heading over to her walk-in closet. "You can stay here while I get dressed."

He smirked, snapping his fingers. "Aw, man, I was really hoping to join you."

"Percy!" she squealed, scrunching up her face. "Don't be gross."

"Only for you, Wise Girl," he teased, winking.

She laughed before running into the closet and shutting the door. After climbing into a bathing suit and a pair of denim shorts with a tee-shirt on top, she made the last-minute decision to throw Percy's hoodie and sweatpants into her dirty laundry bin. Then she exited the small room.

Annabeth and Percy walked out of her room and down the hall. Annabeth made a brief pitstop at her father's office, ready to give a full explanation, but he said that Helen had already given him most of the story and that she was free to go. She told him about her plans with Percy, and he gave her permission. Excited to spend the rest of her birthday with her best friend - and potential lover - she rushed out of the office and back into the hallway.

The pair continued down the stairs and out of the house, after a brief wave to Haleigh. They wandered over to the garage and hopped into the G-Wagon. Jules-Albert was already out there, so he quickly settled into the driver's seat and began to drive to their destination: the Jackson's apartment.

Along the way, Annabeth told Percy about her conversation with Helen, excluding the part at the end where they were talking about Annabeth's prospective feelings for the boy she was sitting beside.

Once they were at Percy's apartment complex, he rushed up to his home by himself, promising to change and be ready as fast as possible. Less than ten minutes later, he exploded out of the front door and sprinted toward the car.

"What's wrong?" Annabeth asked urgently.

Percy grinned. "I told my mom we kissed and she was trying to worm all the details out of me."

Annabeth blushed and nudged the boy with her shoulder. He chuckled and tossed his arm across her shoulders. They stayed like that for the remainder of the car ride, until Jules-Albert parked the car in the parking lot of a nearby beach that was never too full.

"Have fun, you two, but stay safe and do not cause a ruckus."

Percy nodded solemnly. "Yes, sir."

The chauffer winked at them through the rearview mirror, and they chose at that moment to scramble out of the car. 

After gathering their few belongings, they walked over to one of the entrances and began to search for the perfect spot. They found one rather quickly, which was surprising for a Friday evening mid-July.

They set down their towels and Annabeth was about to sit down when Percy grabbed her hand and bolted toward the water, dragging her with him.

"Hey!" she exclaimed. "My clothes are going to get all wet!"

"Clothes dry," he pointed out, continuing on his destination.

Annabeth noted that he had taken off his shirt, despite his statement. Still, she kept running with him. They splashed through the shallow water before diving into it once it got deep enough.

"I can't believe you," she said to him. The bright smile on her face contradicted her supposedly angry mood.

"You seem perfectly happy to me," Percy noted.

She rolled her eyes and sent a massive wave of water into his face. He coughed before bursting into laughter. Then he sent several tsunamis back at her.

They delved into an intense splash war that lasted at least fifteen minutes. Once Annabeth had finally tired out and surrendered, she made her way back to the beach to take off her street clothes and give them a chance to dry. 

She felt Percy's eyes on her back and turned around. When she spotted him staring at her, she crossed her arms over her chest. During her quick change, she had put on a slightly more revealing two-piece than she would usually go for. She loved the color, though; it was a bright blue that made her look very tan.

Percy stuck his tongue out at Annabeth and she laughed before returning to the water. Percy wrapped her hands around her waist and pulled her into a hug.

"I love this," he mumbled, toying with the strings that kept her bikini bottoms intact.

She squirmed and put her hands over his. "Don't mess with them, please. I really don't feel like revealing myself to the whole beach today."

Percy laughed but moved his hands up to the small of her back. Annabeth looped her arms around his neck and toyed with the short pieces of black hair that had curled up from the water.

He brushed his lips against her bare shoulder and she sighed. He proceeded to kiss up her neck before planting one final one right on the corner of her mouth.

He leaned his face away slightly. "May I?" he asked her.

Annabeth would have grinned at how cute his politeness was if she wasn't so eager to kiss him. Not even bothering to reply, she entangled her fingers in his hair and pulled his face towards hers. They kissed for the second time within the hour, and Annabeth loved it.

Trying to keep in mind that they were in a public place, Annabeth retracted her face from his. They grinned at each other happily.

They spent the rest of their time at the beach splashing each other, racing each other, and kissing each other. Once the sun began to set, at about half-past seven, they made their way out of the water to dry off.

They huddled together on one towel with a towel each wrapped around them. They faced the water and watched the sunlight glisten against the lake.

"My dad wants me home around eight, and he didn't come out and say it, but I believe he's hosting a party for me. Do you want to come?" Annabeth asked.

Percy smiled and glanced down at the blonde tucked under his arm. "Of course."

Annabeth texted Jules-Albert to come and pick them up before getting up and drying off. When she picked up her clothes, they were still thoroughly damp. She frowned at Percy.

"My clothes are still wet," she complained.

Percy furrowed his eyebrows before raising them in realization. "Oh. I'm sorry. You can just wear my shirt.

Annabeth looked away from him and smiled. She was hoping he would say that. "Okay, thank you," she told him after she had maintained her stoic face.

They both gathered up their stuff. Annabeth climbed into Percy's white teeshirt, which fell right to the end of her bikini bottoms. Percy slung a towel across his back, which made him look absolutely adorable. The two of them hiked up the beach and over to the parking lot, where they spotted the G-Wagon entering.

Annabeth and Percy walked over and loaded their belongings into the trunk. Annabeth headed to the left side of the car, and Percy followed her. She was confused at first but smiled when he opened up the door for her. Annabeth climbed in as Percy walked around the back to get in on the right side.

The drive back went by quickly and soon Jules-Albert was pulling into the Chases' driveway. All three people got out of the car, but only Annabeth and Percy began walking toward the front entrance. Jules-Albert headed deeper into the garage, where he had a small office-type room.

Percy opened the door and Annabeth stepped inside. The house was eerily quiet and dark. Percy walked in behind her and shut the door. After a count of three, the lights turned on and about fifteen people shouted, "Surprise!"

Despite her suspicions, Annabeth jumped, before erupting into laughter. Percy's deep chuckles could be heard behind her.

In the very front of the crowd were Annabeth's father, stepmother, and stepbrothers. Surrounding them were Haleigh, Annabeth's cousin Piper and aunt April from her mother's side, Annabeth's good friend Thalia and her brother Jason, and a few of Annabeth's aunts, uncles, and cousins from her father's side. Surprisingly, none of her father's business associates were present.

"Oh my goodness, thank you, guys!" Annabeth exclaimed. She surged forward, ready to give hugs, but halted the moment she remembered her appearance. She assumed her father and stepmother weren't expecting her to arrive with snarly, scummy lake hair and a big tee-shirt on. She blushed. "Um, excuse me for a moment," she said, before running through the mob of people and up the stairs.

She quickly changed into a pair of denim shorts and a light blue racerback tank top. She heard a gentle knock on her door and called, "One second!"

Annabeth rushed over to unlock her door and opened it to reveal a still-shirtless Percy. She smiled up at him sheepishly. "We didn't think this through, did we?"

"Nope," he said, walking into her room. 

She closed the door before heading over to her bathroom. She grabbed her hairbrush and started to detangle her mane. "I'm sure they won't mind if you're wearing swim trunks," Annabeth deducted. "It's all family, minus Thalia and Jason. The only people who might give you a hard time are my aunt April and Thalia, but they mean well."

Percy nodded. "Yeah, I'm not worried about that. The thing is these are still wet, which isn't' the comfiest."

Annabeth thought for a moment before rushing into her closet. She exited quickly after with Percy's grey sweatpants and blue swim team hoodie in her arms. "Everything happens for a reason," she announced happily.

He laughed. "You are correct. I'll go change in the bathroom while you finish brushing your hair."

Annabeth grinned. "Aw, man, I was really hoping to join you," she said, mimicking him from earlier on in the day.

Percy wriggled his eyebrows. "You're certainly welcome to."

She giggled and shoved him toward her bathroom. "Go change, Seaweed Brain," she said, tossing his white shirt at him.

Five minutes later, both teenagers were presentable and headed downstairs to face the crowd again.

Annabeth gave her thanks and greeted each of her relatives with a hug. As suspected, her aunt April commented on Percy's attire, but he played it off very casually with a joke about his constant unpreparedness.

The last people Annabeth said hello to were the majority of her cousins and her friends Thalia and Jason. They were all sitting at the end of the dining table, chatting about the woes of high school.

Annabeth sat down at the end of the table and Percy sat on her left, across from Thalia and beside one of Annabeth's cousins, Lydia. Thalia was next to Jason who was next to Piper. Next to Lydia was her little sister Hannah, and beside her was their big cousin Cameron.

"Hey, guys," Annabeth greeted. 

She received a chorus of hellos back and then the conversation continued. Lydia was ranting about how inconsiderate some guy on their football team was of the cheer team. The rest of the guests filed into the dining room and sat down to eat. Haleigh began setting out platters of food onto the middle of the table. 

Meanwhile, Thalia tapped on Annabeth's thigh.

"What?" Annabeth asked.

Thalia brushed her short black hair out of her face. "What's the deal with Mr. Sweatpants?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Sorry to interrupt, Lydia, but Thalia is very concerned about the identity of the man to my left. Everybody, can I have your attention please?"

Thalia glared at her, making her laugh. "This is my best friend Percy," she continued. "That's all. Carry on."

There were slight chuckles around the table and Annabeth made eye contact with Piper. Her cousin winked, and Annabeth couldn't tell if it was about the dramatic announcement or her strange relationship with Percy. She decided to brush it off and focus on what Lydia was saying.

"I mean, any self-respecting guy knows that cheer is a very difficult sport. Would you agree, Percy?"

Percy's eyes widened, surprised to be brought into the conversation. "Uh, sure. I mean, it looks pretty complicated to me,"

Annabeth snorted. "A lot of stuff is complicated for you, Seaweed Brain."

He narrowed his eyes at her playfully. "Sorry that I'm not a super genius nerd like you, Wise Girl."

Cameron chuckled. "Trouble in paradise?" he commented, pushing his light brown hair out of his eyes.

"Wait," Lydia blurted, "are you guys dating?"

Annabeth and Percy blushed and looked at each other. They hadn't really put a label on anything, but Annabeth had assumed Percy had some sort of romantic feelings for her.

"Uh, we aren't really..." Annabeth started.

Percy coughed. "We don't want to, um..."

Thalia laughed. "Friend with benefits, I assume."

"Thalia!" Annabeth, Jason, and Lydia exclaimed in unison.

"What?" the black-haired girl replied incredulously. "We were all thinking it, except maybe little Hannah over there."

Hannah looked up, having been distracted by the plate of buttered bread in front of her. "Huh?" she mumbled, mouth full of food.

Everyone laughed at the youngest cousin in the family, taking the attention of the teens off of Annabeth and Percy's relationship.

"So, Percy," Lydia began, "where do you go to school?"

"Annabeth and I both go to Goode," he explained. "You?"

"I go to Wesley Academy. It's over in Queens."

Percy nodded understandingly. "That's a nice school," he commented.

Lydia grinned happily as if she had made the school herself. "Yeah, the cheer team is one of the bests in the state."

"Wow, that's awesome. I assume you cheer, seeing as you talk about it so much."

"Yup," she replied. "It's my favorite. It keeps me in shape and is fun for me."

"That's how I feel about swimming," he told her.

"You swim?" Cameron asked. When Percy nodded, Annabeth's cousin grinned. "Dude, so do I! Maybe I'll see you at a meet someday."

"I would love to go to one of your meets, Perce," Lydia said, butting into the conversation once again.

Annabeth saw red and she didn't know why. Without comprehending what she was doing, she placed her hand on Percy's right thigh and smiled at him. "Percy's a great swimmer," she said. "He's the captain on the team and we aren't even juniors yet."

Percy smirked at the hand on his thigh before making eye contact with the jealous blonde to his right. "Thanks, Annabeth. You aren't too bad either."

She scoffed. "Are you kidding me? In all our races earlier, you crushed me!"

"Yeah, but I made up for it, didn't I?" Percy teased, winking.

Annabeth blushed.

Thalia slapped her hand on the table. "What did I say? Friends with benefits! I so called that!"

Percy laughed and Annabeth's face flushed even redder than it already was.

They continued chatting and eating for another hour or so. Halfway through, Haleigh brought out a large cake that Annabeth cut slices out of to hand to everybody. Percy stood beside her keeping her company the whole time. Each group had left a present in the dining room, but Annabeth didn't want to waste time opening them when she could be socializing.

A little before ten o'clock, everyone started to say their goodbyes and get ready to leave. Annabeth thanked each person for coming, even her cousin Lydia who was clinging to Percy like a middle-aged man to a freshly cooked t-bone steak.

Annabeth gave Jason and Thalia a hug, the latter of which harshly whispered "Friends with benefits" in her ear. Piper, although she didn't make any snide comments, sent Annabeth another wink before leaving the house.

Eventually, Percy was the only person left in the house who didn't live or work there. He and Annabeth were sitting on a couch in the living room. Helen was tucking the twins into bed, and Annabeth's father was in his office, as always.

"It's pretty late," she mentioned.

Percy frowned. "You want me to leave?"

Annabeth shook her head frantically. "No, quite the opposite actually. I was wondering...actually, hold on a minute."

He chuckled. "Okay, Annabeth."

She climbed out from under his arm and ran upstairs to her father's office. Seeing as the door was open, she walked inside and cleared her throat. "Dad?"

He looked up from his work and smiled. "Yes, sweetie?"

"Um," she started, suddenly shy and uncertain, "do you think that Percy could stay the night?"

Annabeth watched her father's face go through several stages of shock. 

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. It is your birthday, after all, and teens often commit fornication to celebrate the day they were born."

Annabeth's jaw dropped and she blushed intensely. "No, no, no. I do not want to commit fornication. I just want to spend more time with him."

Her dad smiled softly. "I trust you to make good decisions, Annabeth, and I trust Percy. So yes, he may stay the night."

She grinned and ran over to hug her father. "Thank you, Dad."

"Of course, Annabeth," he whispered. "Happy birthday."

"Thank you," she repeated, before running out of the room and back down the stairs.

She came to a halt right in front of Percy and took a minute to catch her breath.

"Yes?" Percy prompted.

Annabeth rolled her eyes before biting her lip, thinking about how she wanted to phrase her question. "We've never had a sleepover before," she stated.

He chuckled. "That would be correct."

"Would you like to have a sleepover?"

Percy's eyes lit up. "Did you ask your parents?"

She nodded. "I already got the okay, because I didn't want to get your hopes up for nothing," she admitted.

He grinned. "Then, yes, I would love to have a sleepover."

Annabeth smiled. "Great. Let's go upstairs."

"Wow, Annabeth," Percy said, "you work fast."

She scoffed. "Shut it, Jackson."

"Last one to your room is a rotten egg!" he shouted, jumping up from the couch and rushing over to the stairs.

"Percy!" she exclaimed.

Annabeth chased after him, but his ten-second head start didn't allow her to win. She arrived at her bedroom slightly out of breath with a big grin on her face.

After glancing at her clock, she noted how late it really was. It was almost eleven o'clock. She yawned.

"Sleepy?" Percy mocked.

Annabeth rolled her eyes but nodded. "Yeah, I'm going to get ready for bed. I have spare toothbrushes if you want to come and brush your teeth."

He smirked. "Yeah, I want fresh breath, just as a precaution, you know?"

The blonde blushed and walked over to her bathroom without further acknowledgment. Percy joined her and they brushed their teeth quickly. Annabeth ducked into her closet to change into a fresh pair of pajama shorts and an old summer camp tee-shirt. When she stepped out of the closet, she caught sight of Percy stripping his white tee-shirt off. She inhaled sharply, not expecting to see such a sight so late at night. Percy heard it and looked over his shoulder. He turned around and smiled sheepishly.

"I normally sleep shirtless, but I don't have to if it makes you uncomfortable," he told her.

Annabeth frantically shook her head. "No, it doesn't make me uncomfortable."

Percy laughed. "Okay, cool. Don't worry, the sweatpants will be staying on tonight."

She rolled her eyes and walked over to the bed. She laid down on the left side and plugged in her phone. When she felt the weight of another human dip down the mattress, she rolled over to face him.

The two teenagers stared at each other for a while, happy to be in each other's presence. Of course, Annabeth had to do something to mess it up.

"Remember earlier when Lydia asked us if we were dating?" she inquired.

Percy yawned and nodded, brushing his untamable black hair off of his forehead. "Yep."

Annabeth sat up and supported her weight with her arm. "We didn't know how to answer," she continued, "and I feel like we need to work on that."

He smiled. "I really like you, Annabeth, and I'm down for whatever you want. I just want you to know that."

Annabeth couldn't believe the stunning guy in front of her had a fraction of the feelings for her that she had for him. Everything about him was perfect. He was funny, sweet, smart, and handsome. Why would he fall for a girl like her?

"I...I like you too, Percy, and I want to make our relationship official. Is that okay?"

Percy nodded before reaching forward and pushing a piece of hair from Annabeth's face. "That's perfectly okay. Would you like to be my girlfriend, Annabeth Chase?"

Her eyes fluttered shut and a smile graced her lips. "Yes, Percy."

She felt the mattress shift as he moved closer and wrapped his arms around her. They laid there together, not talking or moving, just relaxing in each other's proximity.

Sure, Annabeth's life was a mess. So was Percy's. But that didn't have to stop them from finding love and happiness in each other. They were lucky to have what they had and Annabeth refused to let it go.