So this is something completely new I'm doing. It's a very serious story and it's going to deal with some darker, more mature topics in later chapters. This is taking me out of my comfort zone, but I'm going to try it and hopefully I'll do a good job on it. And, hopefully, you'll come to enjoy it.
Disclaimer: I do not own PJO!
"Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for."
-Epicurus
I ran through Central Park. Sweat was pouring off of me, slicking the back of my neck and causing my arms and legs to feel clammy and cold. My face, on the contrary, was burning from the eighty-degree heat overcoming me from the sun's hot rays. My thighs felt like lead and my calves like jelly from all the intense running I was doing. It was hard to stay in shape in New York when food was all around you.
Thankfully, my daily jog was coming to end as soon as I came up around the bend by the main plaza in the center of the park. I huffed as I pushed my legs farther to end my torturous journey sooner rather than later. I felt a burst of relief as my finish line came into view. I was going to make it!
That is, until my right calf decided to suddenly Charlie Horse.
With a surprised yelp, I practically skidded to a stop as I hopped on my left foot, keeping the pressure off my calf. My muscles twitched and contracted. It felt like they were being pulled apart and messily stitched back together. I felt hot tears fill my eyes as I winced and hobbled over to the nearest bench.
"Mother—" I cursed as I plopped on the wooden bench. I leaned down and started messaging my calf. I needed to take the jogging—sprinting, rather—down a bit.
After a few minutes of cursing and stretching my calf, I was able to walk. However, after sitting down immediately after my vigorous run, my muscles had tightened up and now I was sore and barely able to move.
What a great day it's going to be.
I hobbled back through Central Park, down the street, and entered my apartment. I trudged up the stairs as the blast of cold air conditioning hit my face like a ton of bricks. However, this ton of bricks was refreshing. I took in a deep breath as the air dried up my sweaty skin.
I made it to my apartment—Apartment 4C—and stepped inside. I threw my keys into the tray by the door and went into the living room. On the window sill across the apartment was my cat.
It's a strange story, really. One day last summer, it had been really hot out, probably almost a hundred degrees. It was windy, though, so I had opened the window to let some fresh air in. I had gone to the bathroom and when I came back, there was this cat lying on the tile in my kitchen. It scared the living hell out of me, but I didn't really mind. I gave it some water and ever since it's been coming and going here as it pleased.
I opened the window and she jumped into the apartment gratefully. She rubbed my legs with a greeting purr and wrapped her tail around my legs. Then, she slunk off into the kitchen. I rolled my eyes and was about to close the window when something below caught my eye.
In front of the apartment was my landlord and some man. They seemed to be arguing intently about something. Worried, I quickly closed the window and hurried down the steps.
Once I arrived outside, I found Mr. Gallo still arguing with the same man.
"Mr. Gallo," I interrupted as the Italian started waving his hands around. I stepped between him and the dark-haired man, surprising both of them. "What's going on?"
"Oh, Annabeth!" he exclaimed, his face red. Even though my name was three syllables, he was always able to pronounce it like it had five. "This-ah boy. He is a snitch-ah!"
I raised a brow. "How? What did he do?"
"He claims-ah to be associated with-ah Miss Beauregard."
"Silena?"
He nodded, crossing his arms and sneering at the man behind me. "But-ah I do not believe-ah that Miss Beauregard would-ah associate with-ah the likes of him-ah."
"Hey!" the man exclaimed.
I had to stifle my laughs. Mr. Gallo was Italian, and him being that, he looked after his friends pretty well. I shook my head. "I'll take him up myself, Mr. Gallo. You don't have to worry."
He still held suspicion in his eyes, so I quickly grabbed the man's wrist and dragged him into the building.
Once inside the building, I looked up at the man. My heart stuttered and dropped to my stomach.
The man before me had dark hair that fell slightly into his eyes. His skin was light tan. He was tall, at least six foot, and he was wearing a white shirt and khaki shorts. And his eyes…
I would remember them forever. They would be eternally engraved in my mind's eye.
They were beautiful. They were sea green and deep, full of emotion. I felt myself being dragged towards him as I stared into those eyes. I could feel myself getting pulled closer, like he was beckoning to me.
We stared at each other. He smiled a bit as his brow furrowed slightly. "Have we…met before?"
I slowly shook my head. "No…" I would've remembered those eyes.
"Oh…" He ran a hand through his hair, breaking our eye contact. He cleared his throat and I stepped back a bit, my face heating up with a delicate blush. "Um…I'm Percy. Percy Jackson."
He grinned and held his hand out. I smiled, mentally berating myself as I realized I was still in my sweaty jogging outfit. "Annabeth Chase."
I started leading him up the stairs, remembering how Mr. Gallo said he knew Silena. "So…you know Silena?"
"Yeah," he replied with his silky voice. "She's my cousin."
For reasons unknown, that lifted my day. I was afraid he would say boyfriend.
I mentally slapped myself and tried to focus on what he was saying.
"…Every summer I come down and we spend it together."
Silena had just moved in this past winter, so I wouldn't have known this. In fact, I barely knew her at all.
"Sounds fun," I replied. "So where do you live?"
"Well," he chuckled. "Here in the summer, but all the other days of the year? I travel wherever. I sightsee. I'm like a hitchhiker."
I laughed a bit. We landed on the third floor where Silena's apartment was located. "Well, here you go."
"Thanks."
We fell into an awkward silence. Not a fan of them, I said, "Well…I'm one more up. I'll see you around."
He blinked. "See you…"
I gave him one last look, his eyes burning into mine. Then, I turned and hurried up the steps back to my apartment. I quickly entered my apartment and closed the door with a heavy sigh. I leaned against the door, closing my eyes and listening to my pounding heart.
I heard a meow beside me and found the cat on the table beside the door. I sighed. "Well, Kitty, I'll probably see him throughout the whole summer…"
I shook my head and rolled my eyes. I was so hopeless.
I got into the shower and afterwards changed into some shorts and a t-shirt. Just as I exited the bathroom, there was a knock on my door. Brow furrowed, I opened the door.
Pleasantly surprised, I blinked as Percy stood before me, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.
"Percy?" I asked.
"Look, I know we literally just met, but would you like to go out sometime?"
I blinked. I felt my heart skip a beat. His words finally sunk into my head. I slowly smiled.
"Yeah…I would."
He seemed shocked by my answer. He gaped at me for a second and then grinned. "Great. Great. Uh…tomorrow? At eight?"
"Sure."
"Alright." He turned to leave but tripped over his untied shoelace, nearly falling flat on his face. I giggled as his face turned cherry tomato red. "Gah…stupid shoes…" he mumbled as he gave me a small wave and walked down the stairs.
I stared after him for a second, smiling to myself. Maybe it wasn't such a bad day after all.
From then on, things in my life were great. Percy and I went on our date and everything was going well. For the whole month of May that I knew him, we dated. We seemed perfect for each other. He was the one. I could feel it every time I was with him. My skin would tingle, my heart would stop, and I'm pretty sure I've blushed more in that one month than my whole life. My stomach would drop and I would just get this sensation all over my body that told me this was it. This was the real deal.
By the end of the month, I was in love with him.
He spent some nights with me, each one more amazing than the next. I'd be lying if I said we kept it PG-13. Maybe once or twice that happened, but usually when things got going, well…it was hard to stop.
There was one night that was so special to me. I would never forget about it.
We were in my apartment giving Percy's other home was a floor below with a cousin living there. Anyways, we were lying in my bed. It was about three in the morning. Neither of us could sleep, so we just laid there, enjoying each other's company.
Suddenly, Percy started sitting up. I sat up beside him and stared at him. I gripped the covers to my chest and looked at him, concerned. "Percy? What's wrong?"
He bit his lip and looked up at me with those bright green eyes. I felt my body trembling as he pinned me with his stare. It was soft, yet full of so much emotion it was impossible to pull away.
With a flash of skin, he was on top of me, kissing me roughly and gripping my arms in a grip so tight it almost hurt. Confused yet pleasantly distracted, I had no choice but to wrap my arms around his neck. I pulled him closer, gripping his black hair and running my nails down his back. He slipped his tongue into my mouth, his hands loosening their grip and running down my bare chest and stomach.
Just as soon as it started, he pulled back, staring at me. Breathless, I mumbled, "I'm confused."
Percy chuckled and kissed my neck, biting my collarbone and probably leaving marks all over my neck. He stopped and sighed against my skin, tickling me. He rested his head against my chest and it took me a minute to realize he was listening to my heart. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and asked again, "What's wrong?"
He was silent for a long time. I was on the verge of falling asleep when he finally said, "I have something to give you."
I blinked and watched as he sat up. He reached down from the side of the bed and rummaged through his back pack for something. When he came back up, he had a black box.
My breath hitched and my heart rate sped up. "Percy," I started, my voice shaking with fear. "No. It's too soon—"
"Don't worry," Percy interrupted, placing the box in front of me. "It's not an engagement ring. Well, not yet, at least."
Brow furrowed, I opened the box to find an expensive looking ring sitting on the velvet inside the box. It was an engagement ring…
"I'm still confused…" I mumbled.
"It's a promise ring," he clarified. That's when I understood exactly what he was saying.
"I…" he struggled, his brow furrowing as he took my hand. "I love you. It might seem crazy because we've known each other for only a month…but you're the one I want to spend my life with. I can't even bare to think about living without you."
I smiled and leaned forward to kiss him hard, pouring my emotion into that kiss. He pulled back and smiled. "So, I'm giving you this ring, for when we're ready. I'm promising to stay faithful to you. It won't be a hard promise to keep." He smiled wryly and I took the ring out of the box, examining its silver band and its single diamond placed in the middle of a silver square.
"The thing is…I still have to travel. I feel like…I feel like there's something I have to do. I don't know what, I don't know where, but something."
I looked up at him and saw the steady look of concentration on his face. His brows were tight together. However, they suddenly smoothed out. He stared up at me. "So, when we're ready, I want to marry you. Will you marry me?"
I laughed and shook my head. "Of course." I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around him and pressed my lips against his. His strong arms wrapped tight around my waist, holding me close. I moved my lips in synch with his, running my hands down his face and to the hair at the nape of his neck. I felt his hand run down my shoulder and to my side, across my bare, flat stomach.
We pulled apart, resting our foreheads against each others. His sweet, hot breath washed over my face, overcoming my senses.
"And you don't even have to wear it as a ring," he smirked. "You can…put it on a chain or something."
I smiled. I pulled back and rummaged through the bedside drawer until I found a silver chain. I looped the ring through it and then clasped it around my neck. I flipped my hair over it and adjusted it. It fell a little below my sternum. I fingered it, smiling softly.
"It's beautiful."
Percy smiled. "Yeah…"
I looked up into his eyes. They were so beautiful, so hypnotizing. How was it that I lived without them? How could I live without them in the winter months when he was gone traveling? It was going to be hell.
I lurched forward, straddling his waist and running my hands through his hair. I hovered over him, staring into his eyes. "Thank you."
I didn't give him a chance to reply. He grabbed my hips roughly as I leaned down and kissed him deeply, pouring all my love, all my gratitude and sorrow from my soul to his. This winter was going to be hard; right now, I needed the comfort.
He leaned back and pulled me down on top of him, pressing me to his bare, muscled chest. He ran his hands down my back and moved his kisses down to my neck. I sighed happily and kissed him again. I pulled back and mumbled, "I love you."
That was the last night I saw him.
So, like I said, different. This is rated M because there will be a lemon or two, there will be mentions of rape, cutting, and murder. Like I said, deals with dark topics.
Thanks for reading and please review!
-Akatsuki Child
