Annabeth Chase wanted to believe him. She wanted to badly to trust him and give her heart to him. But she would not. No. She could not. Luke Castellan had broken her heart one too many times. Luke Castellan had betrayed her and everybody she loved so dearly at Camp Half-Blood. But, she could never forget Luke Castellan.
When she was just a sad girl living without her real mother in San Francisco, she didn't really have anything holding her back when she ran away. It's not like her step-mother or step-siblings would ever want her to come back. They were completely happy without her. Actually, they were extremely happy without her. On the subject of her father, she believed that he cared. Somewhere deep down he was very upset without her. But, he had enough things to deal with without Annabeth in the way.
As she roamed the streets as a child, she was alone and helpless. What was a small girl supposed to do against a ferocious monster? She ate on the streets, finding shelter in alleyways and the shadows of lofty buildings. But then, one day she'll never forget, Thalia Grace and Luke Castellan walked into her life. They were the models of what she wanted to be when she grew up. They travelled the country together and they were a family. That was what Annabeth had always wanted. She had friends who would be there for her no matter what was family to her. He promised. He promised that they would be a family forever and always. That was all she could want in life.
Grover soon joined their family. He was not the strongest or smartest, but he vowed to protect them through anything they went through. He spoke of the magical place called Camp Half-Blood where they would find their real father or mother and they would be safe from anyone and anything. This safe haven was the place Luke, Thalia, and Annabeth had dreamed of together, as a family.
They were so close to getting there. They were right on the top of the hill. They could see the cabins, the big house, and everything in the camp, down to the children of Ares practicing sword-fighting next to the children of Athena painting the landscape. But Thalia was wounded. There was no way she would survive. Her father, Zeus, saved her and she became the tree that would mark the border of Camp Half-Blood. If you passed Thalia's tree, you were safe.
Luke was all she had left.
But he chose to side with Kronos and the titans. He was a traitor. There was no way to forgive him, right? As she sat in her house, remembering the good times before she had to worry about monsters because she knew Luke would save her, she barely heard the knock on the front door. But, the faint knock was heard, barely.
Reaching for the doorknob, she opened the door.
"Uh, h-hi, A-a-nnab-beth," Luke Castellan stuttered nervously.