DISCLAIMER: I do not own PJO/HoO or anything you may recognise.
The first thing she steals from him is his pencil.
They're four years old and in school, and she looks over at him with large, round eyes, holding up her own with it's broken tip, and he doesn't hesitate to slide over one of his to her. He's got tons of them, anyway.
She smiles gratefully at him before returning to working furiously on her sheet. He doesn't know what's got her so focused, so he leans over his table to peek into her paper. It's crowded with these intricate doodles, all shaded to perfection. He looks up at her in amazement, only to find that he's been caugh snooping. She gives him a hesitant smile, like she isn't sure if he'd want to talk to her after seeing her artwork.
"That's incredible." He tells her, still in awe.
"Thanks." She whispers softly. "I'm Annabeth." He beams at her.
"Percy Jackson." He says proudly, and she nods with a slightly braver smile before turning back to her drawings. He watches her create some more gorgeous patterns for a while until his teacher calls for him.
He spends the rest of the day talking to Annabeth, who, he decides, is pretty cool, as far as girls go. His mom's a couple minutes late to pick him up, but Annabeth's dad is even later, so she keeps him company until it's time for him to leave.
He says his goodbyes, smiling widely, and she returns it with the same enthusiasm, waving his yellow pencil happily in the air.
oOo
The second, and probably the most corny thing he's ever had to say, is his heart.
They're in their freshman year of high school, and Percy's finally gotten that two inches over her. She looks even prettier than before, which in all honesty, nobody could imagine was possible. She lets her waves grow until they fall down nearly to her waist, and she starts to wear a lot more skirts and pink.
Percy doesn't know why he's so attracted to her suddenly, seeing that boys who dressed like him- With band tees and ripped skinny jeans- didn't generally go for girls dressed like her, but here he is, still wondering how someone as perfect as Annabeth Chase ever came into being. They still hang out all the time, of course, but he can't stop the thoughts he has about her- He can't help notice how pretty she is when she giggles into her hands, or how she blushes when the teacher calls her name.
She's talking about sexism in their English class right now, and Percy can't help but hear how genuine and passionate her voice is. He knows it's one of the issues she's really serious about, but watching her talk about it in public is a whole new feeling. She's speaking with so much conviction that Percy just knows. He knows that he's doing it- He's most definitely falling head over heels in love with this girl.
She steps off the dias and takes her seat in the one in front of him, turning back to face him almost the second she's in the chair.
"How'd I do?" She asks, biting her lip, and Percy grins at her.
"Fantastic." He assures her with a smile.
oOo
He wouldn't consider it stealing, seeing that he willingly gives up his virginity to her.
They're studying for their SATs in her room, and they're lounged on her bed, Annabeth quizzing his vocabulary from her flash cards. He's lying on his back, looking up at her white ceiling and answering absently- They'd been at the books for months together and the words had started to come a lot easier to both of them.
"Recalcitrant." She reads from somewhere beside him, sounding bored.
"Stubbornly resistant to authority or control." He recites, not missing a beat. He hears her sigh, and looks up at her. She's lying on her stomach, propped up by her elbows, and he turns to see her drop the cards and hang her head down. He leans over, poking her side lightly in an attempt to wake her up. She squeals in laughter, and Percy can't help it- He turns over so he's straddling her with his knees, and tickles her until she's begging for him to stop in a fit of giggles. He smiles down at his girlfriend, and in that moment, he knows exactly what's going to happen.
She's still smiling when he leans down to close the gap between their lips. She threads her fingers through his hair and deepens the kiss. It's slow and lazy and happy, and Percy doesn't want to pull away, ever. His fingers dig into her hips, and she lets out a soft moan that drives him absolutely mad.
His hands move slowly under her pullover and over the smooth skin of her abdomen, and he can feel her shiver under his touch. He grins into her kiss- He can't believe he's dating this gem, really.
He pulls away, eventually, and she lets him slip her pullover over her head. It's a new experience, but they're both going at a slow pace and they're grinning at each other and it's not awkward or weird or scary- It seems natural, almost, and Percy doesn't think he'd have ever had it any other way.
oOo
She steals his words when they're months from college.
"We're making this work because I'm not giving up on us." She tells him, her expression fierce, like she expects him to tell her, no, he thinks it's time to call it quits like most of their friends are doing. He wanted to say the same thing to her, really, but it's like she read his mind. He opens his mouth to answer, but she cuts him off. "Look, Jason and Piper were only together four months- They barely knew each other before that. What we have, it's different, Perce. I just know it. We can definitely do long distance." She rambles, and Percy knows that expression she's got on- She's going to burst into tears any moment, and he struggles to try to stop her, but she's still talking. "And I know you aren't into romance and that it's not punk todate the same girl for over two years, and I know you're going to want to say no, but before you do that," Her voice cracks and her eyes are starting to water. "Please don't." She whispers, and Percy wants to laugh.
He reaches out and wipes her cheeks gently.
"If you gave me the chance to say it," He told her gently, unable to keep the amusement out of his voice. "You'd have known that I think we'll do great." She letsout a watery laugh and sniffs loudly.
"Really?" She asks quietly, and it makes Percy want to hit something when he sees her like this. She's always thought she wasn't good enough for him, for some reason that he just cannot understand, and it always comes out in these strange ways, and he doesn't know where this doubt comes from. It frustrates him so much, because in all honesty, if anything, it's the other way round.
"Really." He promises, pressing a kiss to the top of her head and pulling her into a hug. "If that's not punk enough, consider me girly." He tells her, and she nods against his chest.
"I trust you." She draws the words right out of his heart.
oOo
She steals his leather jacket and he has no problem at all.
Partly because it's one of his older ones that he wore in high school, and it doesn't fit him anymore, and partly because it's still too big for her slim figure, and he thinks that's kind of adorable.
"Happy sixth anniversary!" She sings as she waltzes into their room, where Percy is currently flopped on the bed with no intentions of moving for the next four days. He looks up to find her wearing a crop top and a pair of dark denim shorts with white lace along the pockets that shows off her tan midriff. She's already got her makeup on, meaning he has no choice but to go out with her. He groans and peels himself off the bed, changing into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt.
He comes out to see Annabeth shrugging on his jacket, the silver zips shining in the light. She turns around and gestures for him to hurry up, so he reties his shoes and follows her out the door.
"Where are we headed?" He asks her as they walk away from the car parking. If Annabeth thinks they're going on a romantic walk in the busy New York streets, he's got news for her-
"On a walk." She hums lightly. She's walking with a skip in her step- Probably because it's April and a beautiful day in spring. He opens his mouth, but she beats him to it. "Keep your cynical thoughts to yourself, Percy Jackson." She tells him, and he only laughs, throwing his arm around her shoulders.
The find themselves in a large park- They sit down in the grass and talk for hours together, and Percy feels himself fall further and further in love with her. She's everything and more he could ask for.
It's time for them to head back home, though, because he's got reservations at a fancy restaurant for which he'd had to work extra time for three months to save up for, but he doesn't mind- This is Annabeth, and she takes anniversaries extremely seriously. It's got a lot to do with how she grew up never seeing what eternal love looked like, Percy thinks, but if it made her happy, he'd cross the ocean and walk through hell.
She gets to her feet and picks up the jacket, that she'd folded up and then sat on to keep her shorts from getting wet on the grass, now muddy and a little damp, and Percy wants to cringe because she's positively ruining it, but she shrugs it on, and he forgets what's wrong with it, anyway.
"Ready to leave?" He smiles down at her, and she reaches up, pressing her lips against his in response. "Happy sixth, Annabeth."
oOo
She steals his dog and he's not okay.
Technically, it's their dog. Maybe even more her dog, seeing that she'd been the one to bring the little golden retriever pup in in the first place. ("But Percy, look at her! She's adorable! Can't we keep her?") But when they decided to keep Mrs. O'Leary, it was a mutual decision, which made her half his.
Mrs. O'Leary obviously didn't believe that, for some reason, because she made a habit of only approaching Percy when she was hungry. Annabeth, who'd started working in a law firm, was gone for most of the day, and Percy only went into the bar late in the evenings, which meant he spent most of his day with Mrs. O'Leary.
She'd wander around the house like some kind of dog zombie, almost completely ignoring Percy's entire presence unless it was time for a walk or a meal, leading Percy to believe that they'd adopted a ghost dog, but that was until Annabeth's keys rattled into the hole. Then, it's like Mrs. O'Leary is a whole new dog that's been given life, all of a sudden, as she bounds to the door and throws herself on Annabeth, who can barely hold her weight.
He's grown to somewhat hate his pet dog, a little because she likes Annabeth more, and mostly because for as long as she's around, she's recipient of Annabeth's unwavering attention, leaving no space for Percy.
"Are you listening to me?" Percy waves his arms in front of her, but she only hums, not looking up at him. "Annabeth, she's got enough food. You don't want to fatten her." As if she understands him, Mrs. O'Leary lets out a low growl, and Percy scowls at her from behind Annabeth, who's still scratching behind the dog's ear.
"I've got a shift starting in half an hour, I need you to drop me off. Is that okay?"
"It's great, Perce. I'll just spend the evening with Mrs. O'Leary." Annabeth's voice is a muffled by the little monster moving into her. She presses a kiss to the top of the dog's head before turning to Percy, smiling innocently, and Percy glares at her.
"Yeah, let's just spend all our nights with a dog." He snaps, and she looks like she's trying not to laugh.
"What's wrong, babe?" She bats her eyelids, still on her knees, and Percy rolls his eyes, giving her a light shove and marching out.
oOo
She's managed to steal his mother, too.
Sure, she's always been something like the daughter his mom's always wanted, but now she's plain ignoring him to speak with Annabeth.
"Annabeth! You two haven't been around here in ages! You have a lot of explaining to do, young lady." Sally greets as she opens the door to let the two of them in. She gives Percy a quick hug, and Annabeth a long one, complete with kisses on both her cheeks.
"Sorry, Sally- I've just had so much work on my hands." Annabeth shrugs, shedding her coat and bag behind Percy.
"Hey, Mom." Percy grins, only to have his mother smile kindly at him.
"How are you, sweetie?" She asks, but gives him no time to respond. "Also, Annabeth, I've made you some salad, darling, but I still think you should be eating more than just some leaves."
"Did you make me some of your lasagna?" Percy asks hopefully, only to receive a small glare.
"It's unhealthy, Percy. Honestly, has living with Annabeth taught you nothing? I should call Paul- He'd stepped out to get some milk almost an hour ago."
Percy rolls his eyes, following Annabeth into the kitchen, where she's sipping a glass of apple juice. He pops a beer can open, taking a sip after throwing her a smirk.
"It's lunchtime." She tells him.
"So?"
"You're disgusting." She teases, and Percy sticks his tongue out. His mother joins them not long after, wrapping one arm around his waist and another around Annabeth's,drawing them closer to her.
"I've missed you two." She smiles, and the two of them turn around to return her hug.
"Missed you too, Mom." Percy says, just as Annabeth says,
"As did we, Sally."
Percy wonders if Annabeth feels like a family right now, because if there's one thing he wants desperately to give Annabeth, it's this- A loving, warm family. Something she never had.
oOo
She steals his goddamn college hoodie, and gives him so much anxiety.
He hasn't worn his UIUC hoodie in years, which is why it's the perfect place to hide an engagement ring, he'd thought. Where she'd managed to fish that out of, he doesn't know, but he knows he has to check the pocket before she finds it.
He doesn't know what's a normal way to stick your hand into someone's hoodie pocket, so he spends a lot of time just worrying about it. She's curled up on the couch with a pink nose and a terrible cold, sipping a mug of hot chocolate and watching TV, and he approaches her cautiously.
"Hey." He says awkwardly, trying to map out how he's going to reach into her pocket.
"Hi." She sniffs, and he takes the seat next to her.
"Doing alright?" He asks her, reaching out to wrap his arm around her waist, somewhere near the pocket. She nods with another sniff.
"I think the medication helps. I feel like throwing up, though."
He can't feel anything, and relief floods over him. He lets out a long breath, and Annabeth looks at him with her brows raised.
"Just really happy you're getting better?" Percy covers weakly, before racing back into their room, only to find the box behind his socks. He assumes it must've tumbled out of the pocket, and decides now is a time as good as any, so he grabs it and bounds back into the living room.
"Um." He starts smartly. Annabeth frowns at him in curiosity. "Marry me." He continues, mentally wondering why he didn't have a speech prepared. Annabeth frown melts into the largest smile he's ever seen, though, and it instantly makes the cold winter afternoon brighter and warmer.
"Okay." She tells him, and in two steps he covers the space between them, pulls her to her feet and leans his forehead against hers.
"That was terrible." He laughs against her lips.
"It was." She agrees with a giggle before closes the gap between their lips.
Percy draws back, and lets it sink in. He's marrying this woman, with a runny nose and a messy bun and swollen lips in his UIUC hoodie.
And he's the happiest man in the world.
oOo
She takes his breath away.
She's sparkling in the silver gown that has a small train. Her hair's styled into this intricate bun and her dress sits perfectly on her figure. She beams at him as she walks down the aisle with her father, and Percy cannot thinkseebreathe. He can't.
She takes her place in front of him, and he's looking at her in awe. Suddenly, the last twenty four years of his life that he's spent being best friends with her flash before him. Twenty four years of Annabeth Chase, he thinks, wondering how miserable his life was when he was three.
He turns back to his bride, and good lord, he really can't breathe.
oOo
Of all the things she's taken from him, Percy can tell you one thing for certain- He regrets nothing.