September: Making Friends in the Sandbox
"How do you feel, honey?"
"I don't know, Mommy," a young boy with a mop of messy black hair and sea-green eyes murmured.
He observed the room full of students running around and playing with toys. It was quite spacious, the classroom. It had a sandbox, a water table, and tables for coloring, a play kitchen, a TV, a large circular rug for story time, and a small bathroom. Boxes of toys and stuffed animals were littered about the place. Easels with freshly paint splattered across the canvas were in the back.
It was truly a sight to behold.
"Well, I'll be back to pick you up around three o'clock, okay?" Sally Jackson bent down to look her son in the eyes.
"When's that?" Percy stared in confusion at Sally.
"Oh, never mind. You'll know because I'll walk in here."
"Okay."
And then she was gone.
Percy didn't know where to go first. He decided to go play in the sandbox and tromped over enthusiastically.
There were different colored pails and shovels; one for every color in the rainbow, or at least Percy thought so. He picked out a blue shovel and matching pail and started shoveling sand into the bucket.
A boy with curly brown hair sidled up next to Percy. "H-Hi."
"Hi," Percy hoped this boy would go away because he was starting to creep him out.
"I'm Grover."
"That's a funny name," Percy commented honestly.
"O-Oh, well, what's your name?" Grover asked hesitantly. Percy noticed that his ears twitched every now and then. What a strange person.
"Percy."
"That's kind of a weird name, too."
"Really? I never thought about it."
And so without any confirmation, the two began playing together as friends. Grover would pat the sand into Percy's pail and hand it off to Percy. He would then attempt to make a sandcastle like he saw his mom do when they went to the beach.
"It doesn't really look like a castle," Percy sighed in disappointment
"Sure it does!" Grover reassured.
"I'm gonna find a flag for the top, okay?" Percy ran over to a toy chest overflowing with trinkets on the other side of the room without Grover's consent.
Grover sighed; there really wasn't a top part of the sandcastle to put a flag on, but whatever made him happy...
Suddenly, a girl with startling gray eyes and curly blonde hair tied up into a ponytail walked over and took Percy's pail and shovel.
Grover stood there, shell-shocked. The girl was intimidating, and frankly, very scary. But he wanted to prove that he was a good friend to Percy. This was the perfect opportunity.
He marched over to the blonde girl with a limited amount of confidence that was slowly fading with each step. She was constructing something that actually resembled a sandcastle.
"What do you want?" she snapped.
Grover flinched. This might've been harder than he imagined. "Erm, you need to give that back," he pointed to the blue shovel and pail that was lying next to the girl's sandcastle. "It's my friend's!"
"Where does it say his name?" the girl shot back fiercely. This girl had trouble written all over her.
"Well, he got it first!" Grover protested.
"So?" she pouted. "It's the best pail and shovel in the entire room!"
"They're all the same!" Grover exclaimed and began flailing his arms wildly as if it would prove a point.
"Nuh-uh," the girl shook her head.
"Yeah-huh!"
"Hey, uh...Grover!" Percy tapped his new friend on the shoulder. "What's going on?"
"This girl took our stuff," Grover stated nervously, pointing to the blonde girl.
The girl shook her head once more, "Anyone can use it. It doesn't matter."
"I got it first!" Percy cried.
"That's what I said!" Grover added with a whimper, moving behind Percy for protection.
"What's your name?" Percy demanded.
"Annabeth," the girl dusted some sand off of her shirt. "You?"
"Percy," Percy didn't like fighting. He stuck out a hand for her to shake. His mom always did this when meeting new people.
Annabeth eyed his hand warily, but then shook it.
"How about we build a sandcastle together?" Percy suggested. "You're really good at sculpting it, but I wanna decorate it."
Annabeth began nodding slowly. "Sounds like a plan."
Percy nodded and dashed off to get decorations.
Grover stood there awkwardly while Annabeth shoveled sand into the blue bucket.
"Well?" Annabeth stared at Grover expectantly.
"W-What?" Grover asked nervously.
"Go get some molds or something! Don't just stand there!"
"Yes, ma'am!" Grover skittered off.
Annabeth smiled, pleased.
She packed the sand tightly into the pail by hitting the top with the back of the blue shovel.
"Grover, why are you staring at that tin can all funny?" Annabeth heard Percy ask from across the room.
Yup. Another story.
Actually, this is to make up for Thalia's Great Prophecy.
It hasn't been updated in ten thousand years, so maybe this little story will make you readers less angry? -hopeful smile-
I'm working on it, seriously. I just have an enormous block. It's huge.
But when you review saying, "UPDATE NOW PLZ" or "hurry up and update or i will hunt you down", it REALLY freaks me out.
The readers have it so easy. But when you give me a review like that, all you make me wanna do is come find YOU and hit you a couple times with a good ol' frying pan.
Alright? Can we all review like human beings? Thanks. :)
Review as always.
-Sky