Hey guys! I hope you like it :) Spoilers for Mark of Athena.

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Annabeth shot up gasping, the covers falling off of her as she fought to get breath into her lungs. Ever since Piper had brought back an unconscious Percy, she couldn't seem to escape the nightmares. The idea that he had almost died... it seemed too real. Her chest heaved as she remembered how pale he had been. Logically, she knew he was okay, but she couldn't shake the feeling that it was foreshadowing. Percy wasn't invincible. No matter how much he liked to pretend he was. He'd already been hurt far too many times on the quest, each time feeling like a stab to her heart.

She bit her lip as her eyes started to water, trying to force herself to be strong.

"Annabeth?"

The familiar voice caused her to look up. She jumped out of the bed and ran towards him, throwing herself into his open arms. His hands automatically folded around her waist as she hugged his neck with all her strength. "Hey, what's wrong?"

She shook her head, angry at herself when the tears started to fall. "I just really love you."

"I love you too, babe. Talk to me. What's going on in that pretty little head of yours?" Percy asked, stroking her hair as she cried.

"You just keep getting hurt and I can't lose you again, Percy. I just can't. When you were gone, I could hardly breathe. And now you're here, but I'm so scared. Please don't leave again. I don't know if I could handle that," the girl sobbed, burying her face in her boyfriend's shoulder.

He tightened his grip on her, frowning. "I'm not going anywhere. I promise. And I never meant to leave you. God, I'm so sorry, Annabeth. I'm so freaking sorry." His words were filled with emotion as he pressed his lips to the top of her head.

She pulled away to look up at him. "I thought you were dead when Piper brought you back."

Percy felt his heart break as she started to cry again and couldn't stop himself from tugging her back into his arms until there was no space between them. It was only a second later when she completely fell apart. He trailed his fingers along her spine, trying to comfort his girlfriend. He knew how she felt. There was more than one time when he had wanted to leave the ship and take Annabeth somewhere safe. But they weren't the kind of people to abandon their friends.

"I'm right here, baby. I'm right here and I'm not leaving."

Her knees gave out and he scooped her up into his arms, setting her gently on the bed. He went to pull away, but her fingers gripped his shirt like a lifeline. "Where are you going?"

"Shh, it's okay, love. I'm just going to grab something from my room. I'll only be a second, I swear."

She looked uncertain, but released her hold, sinking back onto the bed, a look of anxiousness in her eyes. He felt terrible about leaving her, even for a minute, but he had something to get.

When he came back, Annabeth had curled into a ball and was whimpering, her small body shaking. Percy hurriedly kicked off his shoes and climbed onto the bed, curling himself around her. "It's okay, I'm here. I'm right here."

He could feel his girlfriend trembling against him and he tucked the sweatshirt he had gone to retrieve around her shoulders with a kiss to her forehead. She froze, then slipped her arms into the sleeves and brought them to her nose. The smell of him was comforting to her and her shaking started to slow.

Annabeth let him guide her head to his chest as their legs tangled together. She could feel his heartbeat against his ear and his hand lightly dancing over her hip where her shirt had risen up.

Percy leaned down and kissed her, murmuring against her lips. "I love you, Annabeth Chase. And I promise you I will never leave you again."

She smiled for the first time that night since Piper had returned. "I love you too, Percy Jackson."

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