Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the Percy Jackson and The Olympians series, or the brilliance that Rick Riordan possesses.

I tried to be chill but you're so hot that I melted. - I'm Yours, Jason Mraz

Annabeth was having a fantastic morning.

The New York weather had that certain bite she had come to adore. The atmosphere was relaxed as students milled around the campus, scattered here and there. Laughs and sighs mingled as people went about their business. Sneakers sloshed against the ice laden sidewalk, books weighed down arms. Snowflakes danced in the air and dotted faces. It was brochure worthy, truly. Not long ago had she finished an especially intriguing mythology lecture—courtesy of her history courses—and she had just left the coffee shop with a chai latte.

As stated, Annabeth was having a fantastic morning. Until a wall appeared out of nowhere and knocked her ass first onto the hard, unforgiving concrete and spilled her aforementioned chai latte all over the front of her.

The wall confronted her sharp scream with a graceful "Oh shit!"

"Oh, no. Oh. I'm so sorry. I didn't-I mean you just kinda-oh my. Are you okay?" The boy that she thought was a wall bent down to look her in the eyes.

Annabeth started to pull her sweater away from her body in sporadic jerks. A futile effort to alleviate the third degree burns that no doubt covered her chest.

She cut her arresting, gray eyes at him and couldn't help the smug feeling that blossomed when he winced. "I just had scalding tea poured all over me. I'm feeling peachy."

Cue another wince."I know. I'm so sorry. I'm never this clumsy." He thought better of it. "Okay that's a lie. I trip over air like it's my job. Even though it's not. You know. My job. I'm rambling. Is there anything I can do? Do you want me to find a nurse. I-" He found the will to silence himself when he noticed the half irritated half amused expression Annabeth was sporting. He looked down at the sidewalk, and let out an anxious breath. The next few seconds were quite as Annabeth pulled herself together. Percy shifted uncomfortably, and flicked a few clumps of snow from his Nikes.

She could hear Percy muttering to himself about his perpetual stupidity and how people should make sidewalks more user friendly. Deciding to put the poor guy out of his mystery, Annabeth made the next move.

"No nurses required. I think I'm okay. Honestly, it's probably my fault. With my luck and all." She responded truthfully. She didn't want to make him feel bad. Yes she was in pain, but having been on the other side of these situations, she could empathize with his embarrassment.

"I don't know. I still feel pretty awful. Are you sure you're okay?" He reached for her hand to help her up.

She complied and despite her attempts to hide it, a small smile snuck onto her lips. "Yes, I'll be fine."

"Here let me buy you another one." When she was done fighting complete anguish, she took a moment to really look at the guy. She noticed his thick accent within their few moments of dialogue. So he was obviously a native New Yorker. He was taller than her only by a few inches. A purple NYU sweatshirt stretched across his broad shoulders, and clung to his slim build. His inky hair stuck to his face in damp waves. If it wasn't for the intense smell of chlorine, she would have thought he just got out of the shower. Swimmer, she guessed. But the clutzy cherry on top? His eyes. They were the deepest green she'd ever seen. They were captivating in the most unapologetic way. They held so much, that they were almost impossible to decipher. But somehow, that was the appeal. He wasn't hard to look at. Like at all. In fact, he was incredibly attractive. Not that she would be mentioning that to him anytime soon.

An awkward cough snapped Annabeth back to reality, and she realized she had yet to give him a response.

"That won't be necessary. Seriously, I'm okay. We're all good."

"Come one," he pushed "I literally just assaulted you with a hot beverage. This is me trying to make amends." He slung a duffle over his shoulder that she hadn't noticed before.

"No, that's okay. Really."

"Please."

"No. I have to get to class."

"Why do I feel like that's an excuse?"

"It's not." It's wasn't. She really did have a class in 10 minutes, and she had quite the walk ahead of her. Though, that didn't mean she wasn't relieved about the getaway.

He squinted his eyes and brought a hand up to squeeze his lips between his pointed finger and thumb."Fine. How about a rain check then? Not now, but definitely later."

Annabeth had a feeling that he was not going to let up. Maybe he would let her go if she let him think he'd gained something. "Rain check. I can do that."

He smiled and she tried to ignore the fact that it lit up his whole face. And maybe the world around him. Same thing. "Sweet. Right. I'll let you go then." Bingo. "Again I'm really sorry…um…" he fumbled for a name.

"Annabeth."

"Annabeth." Just by letting it slip off his tongue he made it sound sacred or something. "I'm Percy." Unique. It fit him.

"Well, it was lovely to meet you, Percy. Definitely…intense." She decided.

Her stomach did this weird churning thing when his cheeks reddened, and he tucked his chin to his chest. He composed himself enough to make a cocky remark. "Yeah. I usually have that effect." Figures. His eyebrow arched slightly.

"Third degree burns?"

His smile widened. Damn him."That's only because I'm so hot, you see."

"Or just lethal with a chai latte." His laugh. His freaking laugh. Nothing should've been able to sound that extraordinary. Of course, it was infectious, and Annabeth revealed a smile against her will.

She spared a glance at her watch. Dammit. She had five minutes to clear half the campus.

"I've got to get going." She didn't wait for a reply. As she rushed away, she took a second to accept that she was about to walk into a room full of people with a giant eye sore of a stain on her favorite sky blue sweater. He yelled at her retreating figure.

"Hey! I didn't get your number!" She couldn't help but giggle when his eyes widened in panic.

"I'm sure we'll run into each other. You seem to have a knack for that." Her giggles turned to full on laughter when the red on his cheeks intensified.

"Remember! Rain check!" He retaliated.

"How could I forget?" She tosses over her shoulder.

And really, how could she?

::

So, this is my first fic. Kind of late on the scene *cough*verylate*cough*, but I've recently become obsessed. I'm also pumped about this story! At first it was a one-shot, but it grew and I'm liking the direction it's headed.

I love constructive criticism. And because of the abundant amount of crazy talented writers on this site, I'm really hoping for some feed back. Hopefully good feedback, but I'm all ears!

Thank you guys for reading, and I hope you all are along for the ride!

-Gray :: John 3:16