It was five days until Valentine's Day and Percy still didn't have a date. He had tried everything, but no one wanted to be the Valentine of a geek. Flowers. Candy. Songs. Everything. He was about to give up.

"Annabeth!" Percy whined to his best friend, "What am I going to do?"

"How should I know, Seaweed Brain? I don't have a date either," Annabeth replied slightly annoyed.

"Oh right. How 'bout if neither of us can find a date by Friday the 13th, then we have a movie night at my house?" Percy asked hopefully.

"Of course, Perce, I wouldn't miss it for the world. Unless I get a date that is," she replied jokingly.

They parted ways, Annabeth heading to Architecture, Percy to Marine Biology. Perce tried to concentrate during class, but his mind was in an entirely different universe. He was daydreaming about the one, the only, Rachel Elizabeth Dare. She was the most popular girl in school. The one all boys chased. The one who had just broken up with her boyfriend. The one who was on the market. She was the girl Percy had had a crush on for as long as he could remember.

Annabeth thought Rachel was stuck up. Percy didn't really care what Annabeth thought about this subject. This was his love life, not hers. Percy was at a loss. Who would want to go out with a stick-thin geek on Valentine's Day? Finally, he decided to ask Rachel. There was no harm. Except for the fact that the girl Percy liked could reject him. That would hurt. He started rethinking his plan.

Briiiing!

Before he could get that far, the bell rang. Percy ran to lunch to talk to Grover, his other best friend. He already had a date for Valentine's, his girlfriend Juniper. Percy needed his advice though.

"G-man! I've got to talk to you. Like now!" Percy almost yelled as he entered the cafeteria. Grover limped over to Percy. He was born with a condition where his leg muscles would always be weak.

"What's up, Perce?" Gover asked worriedly.

"Well, you know how Valentine's is in five days? Yeah, so I don't have a date. I think I will ask RED out. What do you think?" Percy rushed the entire thing out.

"I think you should go for it before she's asked by anyone else," Grover replied thoughtfully. Rachel entered the cafeteria at that moment.

"Okay. I'll do it now." Percy walked determinedly over. "Rachel, can I talk to you for a sec?" he asked, suddenly nervous.

"Sure," she said, stepping away from her friends.

"I was wondering-," he began. "I was wondering if you would be my Valentine."

"Oh, Percy. I'm so sorry. I'm going out with Octavian," Rachel said, genuinely sorry.

"Oh, okay. Whatever. See you around," Percy said, turning and walking away. He was fuming, but didn't want Rachel to see. Octavian. The quarterback. The ladies man. The guy all girls want. The one who stole RED from under my nose.

"How'd it go?" Grover asked when I sat down. "By the look on your face, I'm going to guess not well," he continued.

Percy nodded, not feeling like talking. He sat sullenly, barely touching his lunch. When Annabeth arrived he barely even looked up. This was a first. Percy was always the most excited when she showed up.

"What's wrong, Seaweed Brain?" Annabeth asked as she sat down next to Perce.

"He was just rejected by Rachel," Grover said, knowing Percy wouldn't want to relive that.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Perce."

"Why are you sorry for Kelp Head, Owl Brain?" Thalia yelled as she exited the lunch line with her tray.

"I asked Rachel to be my Valentine and she rejected me. She's dating Octavian," Percy said bitterly, spitting out the last word.

"Octavian," everyone said, spitting out that name, once again. They hated him, or the idea of him. The popular people always picked on them. Rachel was the only one who'd ever been slightly nice to them.

Percy fell back into a sullen silence. His friends kept talking around him, but they sounded like the teacher from the Peanuts. He just went through the motions for the rest of the day.

It was Valentine's Day. Percy hadn't even tried to get another date. It had been a horrible five days. Luke Castellan had asked Annabeth out, so Percy would be spending Valentine's alone. He felt like crap. Percy walked through the halls, trying to avoid all lovey dovey stuff, but of course, everyone was exhibiting way too much PDA. He skirted around all the couples.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Wise Girl!" Perce yelled in Annabeth's ear.

"Hey, Seaweed Brain! Happy Valentine's Day!" she replied happily.

"Are you excited for tonight?" Percy asked dejectedly.

"Yeah, I'm really looking forward to it," Annabeth said as she got her books out of her locker. "See ya at lunch," she called over her shoulder as she walked to homeroom.

Percy walked sullenly through the day. Soon enough, he was back at home, playing Call of Duty. He killed robot after soldier after robot. All thought was left behind. He absent-mindedly shot everything. Nothing survived the rampage.

4 o'clock came and went. So did 5. As did 6. At 6:15 on the dot the doorbell rang. Percy paused the game and ambled over to the door. It swung open. A tear-soaked girl in a grey skater dress. Percy pulled Annabeth into a bear hug and closed the door. They stood there for what felt like hours, her sobbing, him comforting.

They finally broke apart. Annabeth had stopped crying. Her eyes were still red and watery though.

"Sorry," Annabeth said in a shaky voice.

"Don't be sorry. Why are you here anyway? Shouldn't you be off with Luke?" Percy asked, concerned.

"I should, that is if my date hadn't stood me up," she said, still her sarcastic self.

Percy wrapped her in another hug. "Well, I guess we'll have to have that movie night after all," he said, trying, and failing, to act sad.

"Is the poor baby upset he'll have to spend the most romantic night of the year with his best friend?" Annabeth asked mockingly.

Ignoring the last comment, Percy walked over to the cabinets next to the tv. He opened them to reveal tons of DVDs. "So, Wise Girl, the usual?" he asked sarcastically as he pulled out The Princess Bride, A Few Good Men, The American President, and Finding Nemo. Annabeth's favorite Rob Reiner movies and Percy's all time favorite and the only movie he ever got to pick. She nodded as he placed the first DVD in.

Percy sat down next to Annabeth. She snuggled up next to him, like normal. They didn't realize this wasn't what normal best friends do. As The Princess Bride played, they quoted line after line after line.

"Inconceivable!"

"As you wish."

"Have fun storming the castle!"

"Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."

"Life is pain, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something."

"Mawage. Mawage is wot bwings us togeder today. Mawage, that bwessed awangment, that dweam wifin a dweam…"

"I'm not a witch, I'm your wife. But after what you just said, I'm not even sure I want to be that any more."

"You've been mostly-dead all day."

"It just so happens that your friend here is only MOSTLY dead. There's a big difference between mostly dead and all dead. Mostly dead is slightly alive."

"Sonny, true love is the greatest thing, in the world-except for a nice MLT - mutton, lettuce and tomato sandwich, where the mutton is nice and lean and the tomato is ripe."

They laughed at all the right times. They knew the entire movie by heart. The last scene played. Westley and Buttercup kissed as Peter Falk narrated.

"Since the invention of the kiss, there have been five kisses that have been rated the most passionate, the most pure - this one left them all behind."

Percy was come over with some huge emotion. He saw how beautiful Annabeth looked with the light of the tv reflected off her tear stained cheeks. She looked like she was half goddess. Percy went for it. He leaned in and kissed Annabeth. And she kissed back. And this kiss, well this kiss, it left them all behind.

Fin.