I had originally written this story on my old account, but I thought I would rewrite it and post I here in a better version, so I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 1

Annabeth

The last place Annabeth wanted to be was Florida.

She hated everything about it, absolutely everything, and although she could back up any of these accusations with accurate evidence, she still loathed it. She especially loathed Hideaway Springs AKA her new home.

Hideaway Springs was the complete opposite from San Francisco, including the climate and pretty much its location in the U.S.

Florida was south east and San Francisco was north west, and not to mention on opposite sides of the country. She had made the argument to her father when he told her they were moving that it wasn't like she was moving a town over, but she was moving 2,000 miles across the country.

It's not like he could say she could still visit her friends because face it; she couldn't.

Her father had just remarried a woman named Heather, and to add on to that new change, he got a new promotion that relocated them across the country. So now here Annabeth was, stuck in a new place, with no one but her two new step brothers for company.

The house that they moved to was right near the beach, which was unfamiliar to Annabeth since she was used to the hustle-bustle of the city, and now all of a sudden here she was in a serene location by the ocean.

The house was a beach house, and it was fairly large, large enough for Annabeth not to complain, since it was a huge upgrade from their small apartment that she and her father used to share back in San Fran.

She remembered the day her father told her they were moving, and she absolutely threw a fit. She would have to leave all of her friends behind, and she locked herself in her room for a whole day. She refused to speak to her father and if anyone tried to come into her room she would throw pillow after pillow at them until they left.

She hadn't been able to process that it was all real, until she actually stepped into her new room that overlooked the ocean.

The walls were a light baby blue, and her bed was pushed up against one of the walls. There was a balcony, with two glass doors leading out to it, but a curtain over them for at night. She didn't know how often she would use that balcony, and she didn't intend to. All of her furniture was already unloaded into her room, but she still needed to unpack the boxes of her belongings and possessions.

She groaned as she flopped down on her bed, and stared up at the blue ceiling while closing her eyes tightly. Of all places in the world, of course they had to move to the beach right by the ocean.

Annabeth was deathly afraid of water. After her near death experience when she was five, she refused to step foot in a pool, ocean, lake, whatever large body of water she was near, she would try to get as far away as possible from it.

She didn't want to think about that experience, but the sounds of waves coming from outside of her window filled her mind, and her thoughts went elsewhere:

A young Annabeth, maybe eight years old, sat by the apartment complex public pool with her ankles in the water. She was kicking the water lazily back and forth as the hot sun beat down on her back. The water was so cool and refreshing that she could just jump in if she wanted to, but she didn't want to get her hair wet, and besides, she had sprained her ankle a few days before and she didn't want to injure it.

"Come on, Annie!" Annabeth's best friend Luke, called from the water. He and some of his other friends were splashing around in the water, and Annabeth wanted to join them so badly, but she stared down at her wrapped ankle, and just smiled at her friend.

"Sorry Luke!" she called, "maybe another time!"

"Don't be a baby!" he teased, and Annabeth rolled her eyes. Luke's blond hair was sticking up from his head, and his face was red from the sun, but he didn't seem to mind. Annabeth glanced down at the water and noticed how cold and refreshing it was.

"Maybe just for a little bit," she said, and pushed herself into the water, followed by cheers from Luke and his older friends. Annabeth laughed as she swam over to Luke, kicking her feet against the cold water.

The sun no longer felt like an oven on her back as she floated nicely in the water, just letting the water soak her in.

Her ankle started to sting, so she swam over to a floating tube and hopped in, relaxed once again as Luke and the others continued to play.

She closed her eyes, soaking in the warm summer air, and the cold water beneath her, until she felt herself being flipped over and landing into the water. Unfortunately for her, she had hit her head against the wall of the pool, and it felt like a bus had rammed into her skull.

The quick prank had taken her by surprise, and she hadn't had time to hold her breath, so she had swallowed a fair amount of water, but unfortunately, she was flipped over in the deep end of the pool. Water filled her lungs, and she tried kicking to the top, but her ankle cramped up, and she wanted to cry out in pain, but she knew if she did she would only take in more water. Her head pounded, and she knew she was going to lose consciousness quickly enough. She waved her hands, trying to reach the surface that she could see distantly away, but Annabeth was never a strong swimmer, and with her ankle out of use, she couldn't exactly kick.

She started to see stars and started to resent herself for going out in such an idiotic way. Being flipped over and not being able to hold her breath?

That was until someone grabbed her and brought her back to the surface.

She landed on the ground and started spluttering and coughing out all of the water that had filled her chest.

"Oh my god, Annabeth, I'm so sorry," she heard Luke apologize over and over while leaning over her. Annabeth's father was standing over her, as the lifeguard for the pool stood over her, asking if she needed to go the hospital.

She wasn't exactly paying attention to what was going on, but soon an ambulance had arrived to take some vitals on Annabeth to see if she really was okay.

Although Annabeth's ankle eventually healed, and she had a minor concussion from the accident, but either way, Annabeth refused to ever swim again.

Annabeth opened her eyes and let out a breath, trying not to think of that day. Her father had refused to let her be friends with Luke anymore after that, leaving Annabeth in a very lonely state for a long time.

Of course she eventually made other friends as the years went on, but she still refused to swim. Her father tried to tell her that that was a freak accident that could have happened, and it more than likely wouldn't happen again, but Annabeth wasn't going to take that chance. She had felt so helpless, and so scared as she sunk to the bottom of that pool, that she never wanted to experience that feeling again.

Now she was sixteen, and it was in the middle of the summer, and she had nothing to do.

Her two step brothers were already making the best of it. They were younger than Annabeth was, and they found interest in anything and everything. Right now they were down on the beach with Annabeth's father and her step mother (who were both taking a break from unpacking) while the boys made sand castles and played in the water.

Just watching them in the water made Annabeth nervous, so she turned away from the window and decided to explore.

She walked down the spiral staircase that lead into the living room, before heading outside into the hot Florida sun.

Annabeth had already had a tan that had come naturally with her genetics, but the sun only made her tanner, so she didn't mind as the hot sun beat down on her. The neighborhood was a quiet one, seeming as the environment that surrounded them was very calm.

Annabeth didn't know where to start first. She was by herself, and there was so much to see. She started by walking down her street, to see where it would lead her, and surprisingly it led her to a small square full of shops and restaurants. Tourists and residents littered the square, going in and out of shops and restaurants.

Annabeth didn't have any desire to go into any shop or restaurant there, so instead she turned on her heel and headed back to her house.

Her house…

That felt so strange.

If someone had asked her where her house was a few months ago, she would've answered with "across the street from the public library in the Winston Apartment Complex and on the fifth floor, apartment 532."

But now that question and answer had a whole different meaning.

There was a small cobblestone path that led up to the front porch of the house, which extended off of the driveway, and as Annabeth was walking, she noticed something that she hadn't seen the first time.

It was a small dirt path, leading towards a brush full of small palm trees, and tropical flowers. Annabeth glanced at her new house, and the path, and decided which one she would prefer to be in.

She chose the path.

Her flip flops lifted up dirt from the path as she walked, but she didn't really mind. The palm trees loomed over her, casting a shadow, but she loved it anyways. There weren't any houses nearby, and Annabeth didn't exactly know where this path was leading her, but she was willing to find anything that wasn't her new home, or the ocean.

Birds chirped, and the waves of the ocean could still be heard as she walked. The sound wasn't as calming as most people would think to Annabeth. In fact, the sound of the waves crashing against the shore, frightened her.

The whole ocean frightened her. It was so big, and deep, and who knows what's out there? Scientists don't even know what could be out in even the deepest parts of the oceans.

Annabeth tried to shake her mind from these thoughts, and continued to focus on the path in front of her, until something suddenly caught her mind. She pushed past a palm leaf, and was taken aback by a small pond. It was maybe ten feet long and ten feet wide, but the water was bluer than any sort of water she had ever seen.

And it was shallow. Well, it looked shallow. She could practically see the small pebbles at the bottom of the pond. It looked like something taken right out of a movie. The water looked so inviting, that even Annabeth of all people, had to resist the urge to go out and touch it.

She leaned down towards the clear water, and stared at her reflection in it, as it flickered in the small ripples of water. Her big gray eyes stared back at her, and her blonde curls fell around her face. She let out a breath before looking around. There wasn't any sign of human activity here, and for a moment, Annabeth liked it. She could sit down on the small rocks by the water, and just take in the sunlight.

Maybe it would even get her mind off of missing San Francisco…

Suddenly, the voice of her father broke her thoughts, calling her for dinner. Annabeth made her way back through the dirt path, until her house came into view.

She looked back once more time at the path, and made a mental promise to herself that she would go back for it tomorrow.

I hope you liked it!

Don't worry, Percy's coming in soon ;)

Thanks for reading! Xx

~stay beautiful~