Annabeth should have been expecting it when Percy's head slammed down on the kitchen table. She'd seen his funk coming on for days, and now it was at its peak. As an attentive girlfriend, she noticed how he spent a considerably less amount of time eating and a lot more time on his school work - it was bizarre, really, how her boyfriend only did algebra to avoid the rest of his problems. On the flipside, as a bit of an austere girlfriend, she let him shut down any conversation about his bad mood with little to no retaliation.

So really, it was Annabeth's fault that Percy was concussing himself; she should have attempted an earlier intervention.

"Seaweed Brain," she mumbled, peeling his forehead off the tabletop. "Please tell me what's wrong."

"I don't know."

"I think you do."

"I'm just... a little off this week, it's no big deal." He refused to meet her eyes.

"So..." Don't be snarky, Annabeth. "What was wrong last week, then?" Oops.

Percy sent her a dirty look that was clearly meant to be translated as back off, but giving up wasn't really Annabeth's forte. She was going to get her boyfriend to open up one way or other. After all, he always got her to talk so easily. How did he do that? Probably his naturally comforting demeanor, which was not helpful to her in this moment. She'd have to try something else.

She sat on top of the table, right in front of Percy, and gently ran her fingers through his hair. He sighed softly and dropped his head onto her lap, wrapping his arms around her knees and pulling her legs tight against his chest.

Annabeth laughed gently, "You could have asked me for a real hug."

No response. Alright, she could handle a few minutes of silence. Maybe it would persuade him to say something.

Just as she was deciding that she'd miscalculated and her boyfriend was going to win this battle, Percy sniffled.

"Oh, baby," Annabeth whispered as sweetly as she could, "it'll be okay. Please tell me what's wrong, I know it's been bothering you for a while."

He lifted is head to look at her, and she wiped stray tears off his cheeks.

"Gods, this is just so embarrassing," he muttered.

"You don't have to be ashamed of crying, Percy."

"No, no, not that. Well, I mean, yes, that..." he smiled weakly at her. "But not really."

Annabeth could tell that she was close to getting it out of him, but he needed one last push.

"Well," she started, sliding down from the kitchen table and into his lap, "you never have to be embarrassed around me." She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and leaned in for a soft kiss.

"That's not true," Percy said when they pulled away. "You have everything figured out, a plan for it all. I have no idea what I'm going to do." He looked so sad, it broke her heart. She must have looked a little confused, because he decided to elaborate. "Like, for college. Annabeth, I'm just not prepared like you are."

At first, Annabeth didn't understand what he meant. He did know what he was doing - they were going to New Rome in the fall. They already had an apartment lined up. They'd been officially accepted into the university; Percy had studied so hard and passed all the tests he needed. But then it clicked.

"Lots of kids start off with an undecided major, Percy. Really, they do. You're perfectly prepared." She topped off her statement with a playful poke to his chest, which usually pulled a slight grin out of him, but he continued to look upset.

"Yeah, but, I don't even have a clue, Annabeth! None of the classes interests me, and I'm not good at anything."

Okay, this was not going well. It hurt her to see him so distraught like this, especially over something that wasn't even true. "You are good at so many things! You know that, I know that, everyone knows that. And it's not possible that you didn't sign up for any classes that you're not somewhat excited about."

Percy rolled his eyes. "Fine, I'm good at making waffles and I'm excited for advanced sword-fighting, but I can't get a degree in breakfast foods or being a demigod. You're going to be a successful architect, Wise Girl - and I'm happy for you, I really am. But there's just nothing in the real world for me."

He grabbed her hips and lifted her back onto the table, trying to stand up, but Annabeth pushed him back down to his chair. "I refuse to believe that." She smiled lovingly at her boyfriend. "We're going to find you a career, Percy. I promise. In fact, you stay right here, I'm going to grab my laptop. Nothing a good Google search can't fix."

She ruffled his hair before she ran off, and she happily noticed that his eyes looked a little bit brighter.

*******

Annabeth was practically dead on her feet. Wednesday's were the worst day of the week, her marathon lecture day, and she was hoping that they'd get easier as the semester went on and she adjusted to the schedule. However, it was now seven weeks in, and Wednesday's were anything but more tolerable.

As she opened the door to her and Percy's tiny apartment, Annabeth decided that not all Wednesday's were miserable. Every-other week, Percy had an evening class like she. But this week was an off-week, which meant he greeted her with a meal and a smile. Percy always made sure Annabeth had a good end to a crappy day. She loved him for that.

"Hey, Wise Girl." He pulled her into a hug and kissed the top of her head. "I made your favorite."

Annabeth glanced at the pasta on the stove. "Thank you," she mumbled, nuzzling his chest. "You're amazing. It smells amazing, too."

Percy grinned and said, "You're lucky I like to cook."

It was true. Her boyfriend's love - and talent - for cooking was something she was very thankful for. Annabeth rarely felt like she had time for something as, uh, trivial as preparing food, and she was gods-awful at it anyway. Percy was the one that made sure she didn't accidentally forget to eat for the day, and it was just a bonus that every dish he made was delicious.

"Percy!" she suddenly exclaimed. "That's what you should do!"

"What? Do what?"

Annabeth had finally found something that Percy could pursue. The last few months had been a vain attempt to find him a career path, and she couldn't believe they overlooked this. "Cooking! You should become a chef! That's your job!"

But Percy didn't seem to agree. "Nah."

Annabeth swore she must have misheard him. "Nah? Percy! I'm serious."

"So am I." He dished out some pasta on a plate and tried to hand it to her, but she refused to take it. She stubbornly crossed her arms over her chest instead.

"Why? You like cooking. You're good at it. It checks all the boxes, Seaweed Brain."

"Annabeth," he sighed. He settled for laying the plate down at her usual spot at the table and grabbed her shoulders gently. "It's a good thought. And I appreciate the enthusiasm," he smirked when she rolled her eyes, "but it's just not realistic."

"Why not?"

"For one, I'd have to transfer schools. New Rome doesn't have a culinary program."

"Well... I suppose that's a fair point."

"And two, I like cooking for us. It's fun to try new things, and it makes you smile. But I just can't see myself doing it as, like, a job. Not my scene."

Even though she knew Percy was right, Annabeth couldn't help but feel a bit deflated. However, she didn't want him to notice because the last thing he needed was more negative feelings about his lack of direction.

"Okay, Percy." She scooped pasta onto another plate and handed it to him. "We'll look somewhere else. I don't want you cook for other people if it means you won't cook for me."

He laughed. "Deal."

******

Annabeth absolutely had to stop staring. She knew it was rude, and she had a job to do at the moment anyway, but gods - she just couldn't help it. Percy looked so freaking attractive in his Camp Halfblood counselor tank-top, skirting around campers and dodging rogue sword blades. Every time he praised a kid on new move, demonstrated a tricky maneuver, or rallied his class together for a pep talk, she felt like her heart might explode. The kids loved him, too; Percy's training slots always filled up the fastest.

Annabeth was so wrapped up in her, um, thoughts, that she didn't notice Percy saying her name until he was practically yelling at her.

"Earth to Annabeth? Wise Girl?"

"Um, yeah?" She called back across the arena, where she was supposed to be reorganizing the armory. Percy taught a good class, but his students weren't the most meticulous when it came to cleaning up. "What's up?"

"Can you help Ben find a new sword?" Percy placed a hand on top of a younger camper's head. He couldn't have been more than nine years old, his breastplate straps nearly falling off his shoulders. "This one isn't balanced right." A quick glance told Annabeth that when Percy said this one isn't balanced right, he really meant there's no way this kid can even lift this sword, please help him get his life together.

"Of course. Right over here, Ben."

Poor Ben rushed over as fast as he could, his too-big-sword dragging in the dust behind him. He about wiped out at Annabeth's feet trying to slow down.

"Whoa, kiddo, it's okay," she said, steadying him. "You've got plenty of time."

"I know!" Ben said quickly, precariously handing her his weapon. "But I just don't want to miss anything! Percy's class is the best."

"The best?" Annabeth asked amusedly as she searched for a better fit.

"Yeah, definitely! He's my favorite teacher."

"Why's that?" Annabeth didn't need anyone to tell her that Percy was great with kids, she could see that herself. It was crystal clear in the way he made his baby sister Estelle giggle and clap her hands, how her twin-brothers Bobby and Matthew cared more about if Percy was coming over than she, and especially when he was at camp. But it made her feel warm and tingly to hear little Ben talk about how much he adored her boyfriend, so sue her if she took longer than necessary to find him a new sword.

"Well, I don't know. I guess he just makes everything fun. And he never makes me feel bad about myself. Like, if I get it wrong, he helps me do it right. And he is so cool! Did you know that he can make hurricanes?"

Annabeth couldn't help but laugh. "I did know that, Ben. I'm his girlfriend, remember?"

"Oh, yeah!"

She decided that she'd kept this poor boy from his favorite class long enough, and handed him a much lighter sword. "Here, bud, try this one."

He swung it in a big arc, which she was totally not expecting, and jumped back a bit. Before Annabeth could chastise Ben, Percy yelled over to them.

"Ben! Get over here so we can learn how to safely test out our weapons!" 

Ben sprinted back to his class, shouting a quick "thank you" to Annabeth. Percy winked at her before turning back to the kids.

At the campfire that night, Percy was about tackled right off the bench by his girlfriend.

"New job idea!" she excitedly said in his ear, arms thrown around him in a tight hug.

"Oh yeah?" He embraced her back, pulling her even closer. She moved her head so they were nose to nose, which probably wasn't the best decision since the entire camp could see them, but nobody bothered to throw a glance in the couple's direction anymore. Annabeth broke into a huge smile, and Percy couldn't help but mirror it. "What is it, Wise Girl?"

"Okay, I know this is totally going to turn you off at first, but hear me out... a teacher."

His smile disappeared. "Teacher? Like, at a school?"

"Yes, like an elementary teacher!"

"You think I want to spend the rest of my life at school? Oh, Annabeth, honey," he pushed her back a bit and laid a hand against her forehead, like he was checking her temperature. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Perseus," she said exasperatedly, shoving his hand away. "Listen. You love working with kids. You'd get the summers off to spend at camp. Think about how much fun you would have if you had a whole classroom of kids-"

"Annabeth," he interrupted, copying her tone. "It's not that simple. A camp counselor and a schoolteacher are not the same thing-"

"It's the same concept-"

"It's not! I'd have to teach them how to learn. In case you need a reminder, I'm not good at learning." He grunted angrily but Annabeth interjected before he could continue to bum himself out.

"Well, first off, that's not true. Just because you aren't the best test-taker doesn't mean you aren't smart. Second of all, primary education doesn't require you to know calculus." Percy was not looking convinced, so she grabbed his arm tightly. "Earlier today, during your sword fighting lesson, Ben told me that you were his favorite teacher." Annabeth watched as Percy's hard expression softened a bit. She squeezed his arm affectionately. "He said that you were the best because you made him feel good about himself, that you're always so helpful. He told me that, Percy. If you have that effect on a handful of kids after a few weeks, imagine what you could do for a whole class of kids in nine months."

She finished her speech nervously, swallowing thickly, and waited for Percy to respond. He stared at his lap quietly for a few beats. "Maybe I can teach a class here and there at a demigod camp because I'm good at that, Annabeth. But I was not good at reading in first grade, so how can I teach another kid to do that?"

"Because you know what it's like to struggle, Percy!" Annabeth felt a lump swell in her throat, and she realized that she wasn't really this set on getting Percy to major in education; she just had to make him see that he was capable of so many wonderful things. "You would be the teacher that takes care of all his kids, even the ones that are falling behind, because you understand them! You know that things aren't always easy, and you could show them that it's okay to not be perfect. Percy, do you understand what I'm saying? You're selling yourself short."

Annabeth stared sadly at her boyfriend, and he seemed like a totally different man than the one she was gazing at early. Before, he was confident and comfortable. Now, he was scared and defeated. His shoulders slumped and his head hung. Annabeth wanted to take away all his pain, to tell him once and for all that she believed in him. But he never listened.

"Okay," he said finally. "Okay. I'll think about it."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I don't have any better ideas."

"You still have plenty of time to decide." He looked at her skeptically. "Seriously. We're just headed into sophomore year. You still have some gen-eds to complete."

"Okay," he agreed.

"We'll find you something," she promised. "We will."

*****

Annabeth had convinced herself that getting a jump start on her junior year was a good idea. Now she wasn't so sure. She wasn't getting anything worth her time out of the couple of summer semester classes she'd signed up for, and now she and Percy were stuck in the city of New Rome during these beautiful June days, instead of training new campers at Camp Halfblood. She'd initially felt incredibly guilty for even wanting to take the classes. Percy had been so miserable as the previous semester had waned away; he still didn't have a clue what he wanted a degree in, and it was seriously bumming him out to continue going to school. He deserved a real break, and Annabeth was going to be the one keeping him from doing what he looked forward to all year: teaching at camp. But he'd promised her that it was more important she get her schooling in. "One of us needs to be successful," he had said, which made her feel a whole lot of mixed emotions. 

But as it turned out, Annabeth was hating these summer classes a lot more than Percy. He was in a much cheerier mood when he wasn't dragged down by essays and exams. He always woke up with her in the morning, brewing the coffee and fixing breakfast while she showered and got dressed. He made the bed so she didn't have to, and did all the grocery shopping so she could devote every minute of the evenings to her homework.  The new system was working out great, even if Annabeth did hate her classes. Both of them were relieved of a lot of stress.

Or at least she thought. Annabeth came home from a late class one day to find the apartment in the exact shape she'd left it in the morning. No food was on the stove or in the oven, which was strange. Percy was sprawled on the unmade bed, a New Rome University course catalog laying next him. She sighed unhappily, dreading the conversation she knew they were about to have. It happened at least once a month and simply ran in circles. Both of them were getting frustrated.

"What's wrong?" she asked, already knowing the answer. She laid next to him and draped her arm over his stomach.

"I have to pick something, Annabeth. I've wasted all the time I can. I have to pick a major before this year starts."

Neither of them said anything for a while. Percy tangled his fingers in Annabeth's hair while she drew circles on his chest. He was the first to speak again. "Maybe I just pick something basic, you know. Like, communications. Or business."

"But you don't like either of those things."

"Does it matter?" He sat up angrily. "I've just gotta buck up. I can't keep doing this to us."

Annabeth's chest hurt when he talked like that. "There's nothing wrong with searching, Percy."

"Yeah, well, the search is over. Time to get a degree."

"I don't care if you have a degree. I just want you to be happy."

And there it was. She'd finally said what she'd been wanting to for the past couple of months. Sure, she'd wrapped in a soft shell, but he needed to hear that maybe college just wasn't for him. She didn't love him any less for that.

Percy was visibly trying to process her little statement. Annabeth decided to help him along. "There's no reason to be doing something that your heart's not in. Life is too short to waste, we both know that. I don't want you to waste it because you feel obligated to finish college." She placed a hand on his cheek, turning his face towards hers. He looked... embarrassed.

"I don't want to let you down, Annabeth. You're going to do so much after college. I just can't match that, I can't keep up with you." He scooted away from her to sit at the edge of the bed, looking at the wall across from them.

"Percy," she whimpered, trying not to cry. This sounded like a good segue for a break-up, and Annabeth refused to let that happen. She crawled over to him and wrapped her arms and legs around his middle, like a koala bear. She squeezed him so tight it probably hurt, but he didn't react. "You'll never let me down. For Hades' sake, I'd completely fall apart without you. Just look at the last few weeks! My grades are the best they've ever been, because you take care of me. You have to remind me every twenty minutes to drink water. You wash the laundry so I have clean clothes to wear. I came home the other day and you were sweeping the floor so we don't live in filth - do you even know how long it's been since I touched a vacuum? You hold me together Percy; it's not that you can't keep up, you're ahead of me."

Annabeth counted the breaths she took before Percy responded: two-hundred and seventy-one. "Well, I do like taking care of you. And I have enjoyed staying home while you go to class. Gets a little lonely, though." His voice was completely neutral and she didn't know what to think of that. "Maybe we can get a puppy."

"A puppy?" A few minutes she thought he was going to break up with her, and know he's suggesting they get a dog? Well, that was certainly was a change for the better. "The apartment might be a little small. What about a kitten?"

Percy wrinkled his nose up and Annabeth laughed. She felt the tension ease out of the room as Percy unlatched her limbs from him and pulled her into a real hug.

"Oh please," she insisted jokingly, "you secretly love cats. Just admit it."

"It's not that I don't like them... I'd just rather have a dog."

"Well, then, it has to be a small dog."

"Never mind, I'll take a cat." He leaned down and kissed her. They didn't finish their discussion about the future, but that was alright.

******

Annabeth sped walked back to her apartment, her stomach churning worse with every step. Percy had texted her, "Come home right after class," with a kiss emoji, and she didn't know if that was good or bad. You never know with Percy. It'd been about a week since his breakdown and he'd been acting a little off ever since. They hadn't returned to the topic, but she knew they'd have to soon. 

"Hey, babe, I'm here," she said quickly as she opened their door. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," Percy answered her with a grin from the couch. He stood to greet her. "Just the opposite, actually."

"Um, okay, good," she mumbled suspiciously, peering around the apartment. "What's going on then?" She gasped. "Did you go get a puppy?"

Percy laughed. "No, do you see a puppy anywhere? But it is on my list of things to do."

"Great. Okay, but really, what is it?"

"Drum roll please," he said with his trademark smirk. Annabeth couldn't decide if she wanted to smack or kiss him.

"Jackson! Just get on with it!"

"Fine!" He held her in anticipation for a few beats longer. "I figured out what job I want."

She felt like a weight was lifted off her chest. "Really?"

"Yep. Guess what it is."

"Percy, I swear to all the gods if you don't just spit it out-"

"Jeez, Wise Girl, okay. Just don't freak out when I tell you, deal?"

Why would she freak out? A million possibilities ran through her head. He wanted to be a firefighter. Or join the military. Maybe a cop. Possibly any dangerous occupation in the world, because Percy could just never let her breath easy, could he? Swallowing the fear in her throat, she answered in a small voice, "Deal."

"I want to be a stay at home dad." 

Annabeth didn't even register what he said initially. Stay at home dad was just so different from what she was expecting, it took her a second to understand. Her confusion must have scared Percy, because he started speaking really fast.

"Like, not right now or anything! But someday, you know, when we're married and live in a beautiful house that you designed because you're the most amazing architect in the world, and we have a cat and a dog and garden and whatever else you want. It'll be just like this summer all the time - you can be rich and successful and I'll take care of our family, making sure everyone drinks their water and eats three meals a day. That's what I want, Annabeth, and I'm sorry if it's a lot to take in right now but I've thought about it all week and-"

She cut him off with a fierce kiss, flinging herself into his arms and knocking them over onto the couch. "Percy," she kissed him again, "not only is that the perfect plan," and again, "but that is the sweetest thing you've ever said."

"You really think so?"

"I really do."

"It does check all the boxes."

"Every single one."

"So can I drop out of college now?"

"Please do."

******

Annabeth hated keeping secrets from Percy, especially something this big, but she was nothing if not a schemer, so she'd have to hide this one a little big longer. A few hours wouldn't kill either of them, anyway.

She sent her husband a text saying that she'd be home a little bit late from work and not to worry. He replied with a thumbs up a kiss emoji, the same one he sent her in New Rome all those years ago, which was just so perfectly ironic that she wondered if he somehow already knew. But that was impossible - all of the proof was tucked safely into her purse, sitting in her passenger seat. Deciding that it was simply fate, Annabeth buckled her seat belt and headed towards the store.

She couldn't help but think about all of different positions Percy had taken on since deciding he was dropping out of school. First, he really had adopted a dog and became a full time puppy caregiver for a few weeks. Annabeth was very thankful that she never had to make any midnight potty adventures. Next, he spent a lot of time at Camp Jupiter, creating a new position for the Romans that was somewhere between praetor, war games director, pegasi master, and emotional-support guy. After college when they were back in New York, he babysat his sister a lot while Annabeth worked on starting her company. Babysitting didn't last very long, because soon they were married, and he took the title "stay at home husband," which loosely translated to him spending most of his time at Camp Halfblood, which was short walk from their new house, but Annabeth didn't mind at all.

Now it was time for him to finally take his dream job.

Annabeth searched the aisle of cards frantically for the exact phrase she was looking for. When she found it, she nearly squealed. She must have carried her happy face all the way to the counter with her, because the cashier raised an eyebrow at her.

"This job must be a pretty big deal," he commented after a glance at the card he was scanning.

"Yep," Annabeth replied happily, "it is."

She barely remembered the drive home, all she could think about was giving Percy the card and the face he would make. She almost started crying right there in the car, all by herself. Gods, it might be a long nine months. She stepped out of the car excitedly, securing the card in her purse so Percy wouldn't see. She was instantly greeted by the dog that grew up in their tiny New Rome apartment, and the memory almost made her cry again. Get a grip Annabeth.

"Wise Girl!" She heard Percy call from the side yard where he was watering the garden. She practically skipped over to give him a kiss on the cheek. "I figured you'd be a while - usually when you say you're working late, you're gone all night," he added with side hug.

"Would you like me to leave?" she teased.

"Never."

They probably could have stayed there forever, kissing in front of the garden, but Percy's hands slid around her waist, brushing her stomach and Annabeth just couldn't handle it anymore. "I, uh, gotta pee," she muttered to him, stupidly, and took off for the house. She didn't even give him a chance to respond.

Once she was sure he hadn't followed her inside, she pulled the card and the positive pregnancy test out of her purse. She thought about writing a personalized note, but decided against it; he would understand everything she wanted him to know without words. Closing the card around the test, she stuck it all in the envelope and took a deep breath. Then she headed back outside.

"Hey, Seaweed Brain, I've got something for you."

"Hm?" he answered, lifting his head up. She could practically see his thoughts as his brows furrowed: anniversary? no, birthday? no, any holiday at all? no.

"Just open it," she ushered, stepping close to him, wearing a huge smile. He wiped his hands on his shorts and took the card.

"Congratulations on the promotion," he read aloud from the cover. She almost laughed at his confusion, but almost cried tears of joy when he opened it up to the test.

Percy looked at her with the most elated face she'd ever seen him wear. "A baby?"

"Yeah. You can finally be a stay at home dad." She sniffled happily as he pulled her into a crushing hug.

"I'm so glad I chose this job," Percy whispered in her ear, and Annabeth couldn't agree more.