Cave of love – Percabeth High school oneshot

Author's note: Hey! This is my first Percabeth fanfic in which Percy's a loner and Annabeth is a kind of popular girl. It's in Annabeth's POV. Enjoy!

I brushed my blonde hair and tied it into a single plait. Today was that camp Mr. Roberts had been talking about. He was our Science teacher, and every year he took his students to a camp to understand more about nature. I was excited, because all we ever do is read books in class. This time we're actually going to see nature.

"Did you pack everything?" My dad called. He's an English teacher in my school, Goode High.

"Yeah. Can I take an extra book?"

"Sure. A small one."

My dad drove me to the camp site.

"Have fun, sweetie."

"Yeah, dad. Bye."

I met up with the other girls. I was only interested in books, but this group decided I looked pretty and introduced me to the world of fashion. I don't really care about it though, I just do what these girls tell me. They're nice and I know they genuinely care about me. There are a few bookworm friends of mine too.

"Annabeth!" Helen called. "Sophie, Hannah and Jo are waiting!"

I laughed and ran to them. I noticed a black haired boy who was at the very back, and obviously wasn't too friendly.

"Soph, who's that?" I asked.

"Oh, him? He's Percy." She waved it off and soon we were having fun.

Later, in the girl's dorm, I held the book I brought in my hand. I hadn't read it yet. It was a small encyclopedia, a gift from my cousin Magnus Chase. The lights were switched off, so I couldn't read. Teachers were walking around outside.

Hmm.

I crept out and hid behind a tree, book and flashlight in hand. A teacher was coming! I frantically searched for a place to hide until..

Aha! A cave, sitting right behind the bushes! Not likely anyone's going there.

I quickly crept in, and I saw…

Percy!

I was about to scream, but he put his hand on my mouth.

"Shh! Don't give away this good hiding spot."

I looked around cautiously.

"Who else is here? And how come you're sitting here in this cave?" A small light flickered from a torch.

"No one else is here. And I love coming to lonely places. Now why are you here?"

"I came to read this book because the lights in my dorm are off."

He peered at it. I noticed he had green eyes. Sea green. I could drown in them.

"Sorry, I'm dyslexic. What book is it?"

"It's a small encyclopedia."

I read out a bit to him, and I noticed it was getting cold. The teachers were still out, though. I shivered.

"Um," Percy said. "You know, i-it's getting cold. Why don't you… c-come a bit closer?"

I noticed a red tinge on his cheek. Cute.

I came a little closer, and I bet he could see the red on my cheeks.

I read out a part about sea horses, until my mouth got dry and my eyes hurt. We talked about some stuff.

"Why are you a loner?" I asked. Oh gods, that was rude!

"Um, m-my dad left me and my mum before I was born. My mum married a man called Gabe who-" He covered his eyes. "Sorry, I haven't told anyone about it before." He removed his hands.

"Well, your turn now."

"My mom left when I was pretty young, and my dad and I, we've only got each other. Sometimes he gets a little rough because life has been hard on him," I showed him a big scar on the inside of my arm. "And sometimes he totally forgets about me."

Percy sighed. "It's better hating someone entirely than hating and loving them at the same time, right?"

I nodded.

"M-my dad.. He gave me some bad news the other day," I said, trying to hold in my tears.

"What is it?" Percy asked, concerned.

"He's got c-"

I couldn't hold it in anymore. I burst into tears.

"Cancer. Fatal." My voice trembled. I heard a sniffle. I turned and saw Percy. He was….

Crying?!

"W-why are you crying, Seaweed Brain?" He turned at the nickname but he said nothing.

Suddenly he…

He hugged me.

Both of us were crying a lot. I took in his sea smell, and finally realised that someone knew what I was going through.

He knew.

A while later, he wiped my tears. He took my encyclopedia.

"A bedtime story."

He read slowly, and I knew what a pain it was because I was mildly dyslexic too. But this story was different. He read about the sea, and he made up his own story about us being pirates and his smelly step-dad being the enemy and our remaining parents being the heroes. Before I knew it, I was fast asleep.

On his shoulder.

He blushed and smiled, and rested his head on mine. The book fell from his hand.

The next morning, we woke up at 5 or so because it was still dark. I was woken with a slight nudge.

"Annabeth! Wake up! We better go to our dorms! I think it snowed. You'll catch a cold!"

He was right, but I felt very warm thinking about last night.

We headed back to our dorms, and I lent him that encyclopedia so we would have an excuse to see each other again.

We became best friends, and later a couple. I married him after college. My dad pulled through, and he married a lovely woman. Percy's step-dad left, and his real dad came back.

Oh, there goes little Coral. I better do something before my daughter gets in trouble. Or ask Percy, because Collin is wailing.

And I'm going to be late for work, as a teacher in Goode High. A science teacher.

Tomorrow is camp. I wonder which lucky students will find the "cave of love"?