disclaimer: anything you recognise is not mine
for anyone who ever wondered why.
Blue balloons floated to the sky.
The swing set creaked under Percy's weight, his face screwed up in concentration as he traced circles in the dirt with his shoe.
The park was as empty as a plate of cake after his dog, Mrs O'Leary, had set her sights on it. The little boy squinted around, adjusting the toppling party hat on his head.
The party had started three hours ago.
The only movement in the park since then had been his mother busily setting out plates and starting up barbeques, smiling in that beautiful way of hers, reassuring him that people would turn up. It was his sixth birthday, his friends and classmates would be here.
He hadn't wanted to break the sorry news that classmates and friends didn't exactly belong in the same sentence in his vocabulary. Vo-cab-u-la-ry. Annabeth would be proud of that one…
He cast his eyes over to his mother, who was now sitting on one of the benches, looking around the empty park- probably only just realising its apparent, well, emptiness. She swivelled her gaze to find his own, and a brilliant smile immediately took over her face. Like nothing was wrong. Like the park was full and brimming with laughing kids and cake and the best birthday party of all time.
Percy smiled back.
His mother was the most beautiful person on the planet. The greatest human as well, proved by her easy grace as she stood up and ran to the swing set, kneeling in front of him. Her soft hands came up and caressed his cheek, wiping away a stray smear of blue icing.
"Happy birthday, Percy." Her eyes were twinkling, as though she held all the secrets to the universe. As far as Percy was concerned, she did.
His lips tipped up in a crooked smile as he flung his arms around his mother's small frame.
"Best birthday ever," he attempted- and failed- to wink at her.
His mum laughed to the heavens, and Percy knew the stars danced just for her. She stood up and pushed his swing back and forth, sending him soaring through the air, erasing the twinge of hurt that came from knowing that his friends weren't really his friends. Not that he had expected them to be. He could hardly blame his classmates for keeping their distance.
Especially Annabeth Chase. Though he had thought- well… hoped, more like- that she might make an appearance today. Just to show that he wasn't completely invisible next to her princess curls and calculating eyes. Her eyes that owned the storms; and Percy knew more than anyone to stay clear of their path. Even if he maybe-sorta-kinda-okay-a-lot wanted her to look at him. Just once.
He huffed. Scrawny, awkward and dumb compared to the Annabeth Chases of the world, it was no wonder he didn't find himself swarming in attention.
But Percy didn't mind. Not really.
Because he had his mother.
And she was the best person on the planet.