Disclaimer: I have no rights to the Percy Jackson series. Rick Riordan has given a small liberty for us to use his characters unofficially on this site and that is all it is. Fan-fiction.

.

I rubbed my sweaty palms against the fabric of my pants. Breathing a little shallow was not doing me any good. I felt light headed which made me start taking deep breathes.

Come on, dude! You can do this. Just sit next to her and say something!

I was beyond nervous. If someone ever heard of me acting this way, I'd be the laughing stock of the school.

But really, Annabeth Chase could have anyone tongue tied.

And there she was, sitting with the few friends she preferred to have as company at the lunch table outside on the grounds. It was a bright day and the sun shone through her hair making each strand glow like pure gold. It accented her face with the tan she had and made her eyes stand out even more than it usually does, which in my opinion, made her look stunningly lethal.

My courage was cowering in the Outback.

Annabeth Chase did not date. Period. She, the most beautiful girl anyone had ever laid their eyes upon, did not date.

Many boys had asked her. And equal number was shot down. And she seemed very serious about the way she talked to everyone. I had seen Mac from Math class being let down gently and now they're friends. I had witnessed the shock-and-awe kick she had given Josh the Football Jock when he had shoved her into the lockers in anger at her refusal. I had seen most of the talks, how the guys were always told, 'No.'

And now I, being the grand idiot who didn't want to learn from the experiences of others, have decided to take the plunge. It was like a rite of passage. Ask Chase out on a date and be rejected.

"Jackson?" Keegan Solt, my co-captain of the Swim Team, raised an eyebrow. The rest of our friends, sat around the table, sniggering at me.

"I'll give you the first step. Get up and walk towards her." Keegan said. I swiped my hand at his head.

"Why don't you go ask her, Solt? I snapped while the others started laughing. They were clearly remembering what happened when Keegan had actually asked. It involved the school mascot costume and a loudspeaker. For the sake of my friend's dignity, I will not explain and leave all you readers guessing the calamity that had taken place.

He scowled and threw his bagel at me, the most vicious form of grenades from the cafeteria.

I got up. Lance Marrow whistled.

I need new friends.

I felt absolutely weird and awkward, dragging my feet to her table. Annabeth sat with three other girls from her Chess Club and Debate Teams. They had their heads bowed over a book from which discussed in indoor voices. It looked so serious like Presidential secrets, that I almost turned around and marched away.

I made fists of my palms and try to steel my nerves. Just ask her politely. She'd say 'no' nicely, and it'll be done with. I wouldn't be sitting all day with an ice pack between my legs like Josh or Keegan had.

Be a man, just ask her. You like her, so it's natural to ask someone you like out on a date, right?

I stopped when I was close enough. I cleared my throat.

None of the girls seemed to have heard. I could imagine all my friends, laughing and falling over each other like hyenas and dominoes.

"Annabeth." I called out.

The four girls turned around. They had very intense faces as though they were verifying E=MC2 .

But the moment they realized it was me, their expressions changed. Two of them looked very excited. The third leaned in to whisper something in Annabeth's ear. The latter nodded and got up.

"Hi." I squeaked out. She blinked. She had concentrated grey eyes like storm clouds. I stared at them for too long and didn't hear what she had told me.

"Um, what?"

Annabeth hesitated. I almost went into shock. Never, in the history of our high school lives have I seen Annabeth Chase looking edgy.

"You're the captain of the Swim Team, right?"

"Yeah." I mumbled. Then I straightened up and said it again properly. She knew who I was. That was a start. Of the end.

"Good. It's just that, I went searching for your coach this morning and I couldn't find him. You see, I need to take an extra course to fill my minor credits and most of the ones I've checked are already taken. If you can personally talk to Coach Manfred, for me… please? I really need this."

She was pleading with me. I've died and gone to heaven.

"Yeah… Yes, I'll definitely tell him. I mean, he won't be back until next week, so I'll have to call him. Or if you wait until next Monday, we can explain the situation. He'll understand. Uh… can you swim?"

"Yes. I know the basics, nothing fancy. But I can hold my own in a race."

"Good." I smiled. She smiled back.

.

"You got her to join the team?!"

I was the hero, of course. I go searching pathetically for an unattainable date, I come back with a guaranteed long-lasting friendship which could easily turn into something more.

"Dude, you're the man!" Keegan crowed, slapping me on the back. "Coach will definitely say yes! Chase in the Swim Team! Hah, Rodney will be after your guts!"

I rolled my eyes. Josh Rodney, Football Quarterback, sad victim of Annabeth Chase's self-defense. "I didn't actually ask her out –"

"No probs. You know how it's gonna go now." Keegan gloated.

"…. how?"

The guys sighed like they were tired of me. "Oh man. It's going to be like those chick flick movies my Mom watches! You and Chase become friends, you build a strong base, a relation, and the next thing we know, you're making out behind the bleachers, where Rodney will catch you and be so jealous, his heart will burst and he'll die!"

We stared at Keegan. He looked almost delirious.

"Boss? You okay?" One of the boys asked. Keegan blinked and looked at us. "What?"

"You went psycho for a sec."

"Blame my sisters."

.

Next week, Coach had no objections. Chase was as athletic as she was smart and nearly everyone knew this. She tore through people at track races and it was pretty obvious that her muscle tone was good enough for swimming.

After school, Keegan, a few others and I waited for her. She would be the only girl on the school's team since all the previous female members had already graduated the year before. Tragedy, yes, but the story was going to change.

I thought over to what Keegan had said. If I did spend enough time with her, would we bond? She did already know of me, so it wouldn't be too farfetched to assume she had taken a bit of interest with me…

I tried not to adjust my speedo. Coach was talking with her right outside the girl's shower rooms.

I tried not to imagine her in the swimsuit. One piece, obviously, but she was Annabeth.

I tried not to think of her like that. It wouldn't be right.

"Damn." Keegan whispered and I knew she had stepped out. I stared at the blue water, trying to focus my talent and energy when suddenly a pair of legs, girl's legs, blocked my vision.

I tried to stifle my groan.

"So, you're the captains?" Annabeth asked happily. She sported a red and black swim wear which looked like a life-guard's suit. Her body was all curves and muscles and out of the corner of my eyes, I saw one of the guys slip out of his seat from the benches and fall to the floor.

"Yeah." Keegan said. He threw an arm around my shoulders proudly, the incident of Annabeth aiming her heels for his manhood, weeks before, forgotten.

"Thanks so much. I really needed this course." She sat next to me (my conscience made me take my eyes off of her thighs.)

"Annabeth, you're so close to being the Valedictorian. Why would you need extra credits if you're already in the top ten?"

She looked away for a second. Then she forced a smile onto her face. A curl of her hair strands fell in front of her and I struggled to not tuck it behind her ear. "About that, it's embarrassing, but I had to leave school two years ago for an emergency. I just caught up on all the projects last year; I'm filling up on my credits and community service this semester. If I finish them all, then I'll have an excellent shot at Valedictorian."

"What made you leave high school?" Keegan asked, pushing me backwards to look at her properly.

Annabeth looked irritated at that. I laughed nervously and said, "Keeg's kidding. It doesn't matter what happened, Annabeth. You're doing your best to graduate and that's really amazing. Lots of people wouldn't even bother to take on all the assignments from previous semesters while the rest of the class already has their boats full."

She smiled. "Thanks Captain."

.

I would say Annabeth was good at swimming, but then, it would be insulting her.

She was brilliant. She had an excellent form which only needed a few adjustments to make her perfect. She moved fluidly in water, pun intended. It was like watching a water snake and it wasn't a creepy simile at all.

When she reached the end, she turned vertically and kicked off from the wall, smoothly. She seemed professional. We watched her in awe and the first thing I said to her when she got out of the pool was, "We are definitely gonna bag the Strom Trophy."

"Pardon?" She said, toweling her wet hair which had darkened to amber. She really was amazing to look at.

"It's an interschool competition held at the YMCA club. Pretty rad, actually. Teams all over the country compete."

Annabeth lowered her towel. "I didn't think about competing in anything like that. I just joined the swim team for my credits."

I tried not to feel let down by that. "Come on, Annabeth! It'll be so much fun. We don't have to win, I mean, we have to try our best but the point of the competitions is charity."

She looked interested in that.

"80% of all profits actually go to Children's funds all over the country into orphanages, adoption agencies and rural homes. Sure the competitions get intense at times, especially during the finale, but everyone knows the real cause and proceeds."

She brightened at that. "I didn't know that. It sounds like a really good way to raise cash."

"Yeah. Some are in it for the trophy and fame. We don't get medals, but it's a pretty big deal for all of us. The charity makes us feel better doing it."

I gave her a reassuring smile and I think that did it. She said, "Cool. I'm in."

.

We practiced for four months. Keegan and I made sure to not over-stress the team but at the same time, no slacking amount possible. Keegan was in charge of ramming every free slot of their time table with water time while I corrected their techniques, showed them tricks to adjust to their own styles and gave moral support.

It was why Coach had appointed the two of us as captains. Keegan alone had a hot head and the week I was in charge, no one did much of practice than play in the water.

We ran the team well, since we rarely butted heads.

On the day of the competitions, on the two hour journey to the club, Keegan and the rest of the douches pushed me towards Annabeth in the front of the bus for the entire ride.

She had wireless headphones on with a tiny iPod concealed partially in her hand. I didn't know what kind of song she was listening to but her eyes were closed and she seemed so engrossed that I kept quiet listening to all the whoops and laughter from the back of the bus.

The driver and the Coach were busy talking about the latest soccer trials of the school with the rivals while the Coach's young wife was flipping through a fashion magazine. Most of the trip went in this way until Annabeth opened her eyes and turned towards me. The movement was so sudden that I jerked.

"Yes?" She said.

"Huh?"

"Co-captain, you remind me of someone else."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

That was all the conversation we had.

By the time we reached the building, highly outlandish for the YMCA, we were all on our nerves.

.

I'd say all the rounds went well for us. Four of us got into the semi-finals of several of the tests. Annabeth into the freestyle - girls, Keegan into the freestyle - boys, Lance into the backstroke and myself into the butterfly.

Initially, I would've taken backstroke but since I was the best from our team in the butterfly style, I really had no choice.

It was probably why I came third in the semifinals. It was another couple of hours for the finales and we were resting around the separate shower rooms for each team.

"Ready for the end?" I joked with Keegan. He laughed and then took me to the corner, near the lockers.

"I think Chase is near the bleachers, watching the other races. Perfect time to make your move."

I stared. "Now?"

"Yes! Go! Be all romantic and stuff."

Easier said than done. I was good at being her friend, but trying to smooth talk? I'd rather have my legs tied to a dumb bell and be thrown into the pool.

I dragged my feet to the main room, which held one of the bigger Olympic sized pools. There were crowds from other schools rooting for the contestants in the breaststroke, finals. I watched in amazements at the speed and agility of one boy who seemed miles ahead of the others, he was clearly a winner.

Catching the sight of Annabeth seated next to the Coach and Mrs. Manfred, I dropped next to her, pretending to be exhausted by the hot showers.

"Hey, having fun?"

She grinned. "Yeah. I've been waiting for this. I couldn't catch any of his other races, but this I just couldn't miss."

I looked into the water. The race was done when one of the boys reached the edge with the grace of a fish and climbed out, the auditorium going up in screams. He didn't look familiar to me, but it was clear that he was the one everyone went crazy for in most of the previous hours.

I shook my head a bit and said, "Full of himself, don't you think, Chase? Chase?"

I blinked. She wasn't next to me. I looked around but I couldn't spot her. Where had she disappeared off to?

I got up to go back to the showers when I caught her hair, flipping out of sight at the other end of the room down a corridor. I frowned, not understanding why it seemed like she was ditching us. Had she met a friend? Did she get a call?

Dawdling in the slowly emptying room did not do me any good since I was starting to get weird stares.

The Coach yelled my name and I jumped.

"What are you standing there for?"

"Uh… sorry, I just have to go somewhere. BRB!"

He shouted about team-man-ship but I just had to know where Annabeth had gone. I raced down the steps and reached the grounds outside. It was empty, but it was the only place she could have gone from the stairs. I looked around, feeling a sense of frustration rise up in me when I heard a giggle.

It was the kind of close-quartered sound that would take place in privacy. I ignored my conscience and walked around the building and saw Annabeth and the winner of the latest race, kissing so ferociously, I thought they were both going to collapse for lack of air.

It was when the initial stage of shock had passed that I realized that she was actually kissing someone. And it was not me. It was some black haired opponent of another school team. Goode, was it? That had to be treachery or something, right?

I cleared my throat. The couple didn't look up. Nobody ever hears me when I clear my throat.

Maybe I should call them out?

I hesitated.

They were slowing down their kisses. The boy had one of his hands around her back, but the other held her face while she had wrapped him tightly around the neck. They were moving tenderly, he kissed her forehead and they opened their eyes to gaze at the others' soul.

I left.

So maybe there was a reason why Annabeth Chase didn't date. She was unattainable and I, Jackson Croft, figured it out.

As you have read, I am melodramatic. I never sought after her again.

.