Oneshot
We sat under the cool shade of the willow tree, eating sandwiches.
I leaned against the tree, chewing on the last of my sandwich, and stared at him contently. The breeze rustled his hair. I sighed dreamily.
He rubbed his hands on his jeans and looked at me.
"I really like you, Annabeth." Percy said.
"Nooo, really?" I replied sarcastically, grinnning.
"Hey!"
I laughed. "You know how I am."
Then he snorted and gazed out at the open, empty, grass field.
"I-I'm really happy. Just think about it-no more monsters. No Kronos, no wars, no danger...for centuries! It's just you, me, and, and..." I said euphorically.
Percy half smiled and looked down. I could tell he was hiding something.
"Percy, what's wrong?"
He looked up at me with sadness in his big, sea green/blue eyes. It crushed me.
"You're right. This is a good thing. But-I'm still Percy. I still have dyslexia and ADHD. When I go back to the normal world, it's just gonna be hard again. But this time-I can't just go to Camp Half-Blood again and start all over. My adventures are done. I don't know what I'll do."
I froze. He had a point. I'm dyslexic too. Plus, my life with Dad is really complicated. We were two teenagers headed for doom. Neither of us have been able to hold down regular school. We wouldn't go to college, or get jobs...we'd live in refrigerator boxes down in subways.
Tears welled up in my eyes. My future would be a disaster. Percy understood. He quickly hugged me and said, "Don't worry. You're the smartest person I know."
"Not with dyslexia, I'm not!" I snapped. I put my head in my hands and wept. "I'm nothing without Camp Half-Blood."
"Yes, you are." He said comfortingly. "Who was the one who saved me from being a guinea pig for the rest of my life?"
"Me, but-" I said.
"And who figured out Aunt Emmy was really Medusa?"
"I did," I whispered in realization.
"And, who figured out the mystery of the riddles before we got to Hephaestus?"
"Me."
"So," Percy stood up and held out his hand. "if you can do all that, what's so bad about getting a job?"
He grinned in that way that makes me melt. I smiled and took his hand. I rose to my feet and accidentally crashed into him.
Lips to lips.
And we didn't pull away.