You're sweaty. There's no denying that sweat is slowly trickling down your forehead no matter how many times you wipe it off. As you start thinking about the sweat you start thinking about if you smell bad, which makes you start to panic, because, Hades no, you can't be smelly. Not today.
You can just imagine all the ways they will kill you if you're sweaty and smelly and having a panic attack.
It would not end well. And just thinking about that makes you start to panic more, which makes you start hyperventilate.
You blame it on the lack of sleep you got last night because you were worrying and stressing about not worrying.
You're pretty sure everyone can hear your heart beating, since it's practically trying to dig its way out of your chest. But you're not really noticing it because you're trying not to sweat.
Stopsweatingstopsweatingstop sweatingstopsweatingstopswea tingstopsweating.
Apparently your brain isn't connected to your sweat glands, because they aren't listening. Or maybe you just need to be more forceful.
Youbetterstopsweatingorelseyoubetterstopsweatingorelseyoubetterstopsweatingorelse.
It doesn't work.
Giggles snap you out of your thoughts. It doesn't take you long to realize that it's a few guys giggling. It distracts you for a minute. You look to your left and see all the guys watching you. The giggling is upgraded to a full out laugh.
"His face!" Grover chokes out. What's wrong with your face?
Jason cracks up more, "He looks petrified."
Oh.
You stare and they laugh more.
"Chill, Percy. You're freaking me out," Leo says.
"They're going to kill me," you groan.
Your pain seems to be an invitation to laugh more. You need better friends.
"I'm sure they aren't going to kill you for sweating," Jason says, reassuringly.
"They are evil," You seeth.
That morning they showed up at 9am on the dot and woke you and Annabeth from your cuddling session that was your last cuddle as a normal couple. They ruined it by banging on the door and yelling. And the squealing.
Thalia gave you a glare as she said, "If you aren't there by 4, Perseus, I'll castrate you myself."
You were there by 3:45.
You weren't sure why you were in a church (neither of you are Catholic-Christian, whatever), maybe it was because it would be neutral ground. Or it could have been the fact that the architecture was, as Annabeth put it, "simply amazing." So they just had to come here.
It could possibly be it was the only place big enough to hold both of your families, plus their egos.
Around noon the idiots off to your left showed up and said they had to "get you ready" which basically went like this:
"Percy, your tie goes around your neck."
"Sweet Hephaestus, Percy, how did you put your shirt on backwards?"
"... How did we not notice before?"
"Where'd his pants go?"
Then Piper showed up which went a little like this:
*Cue scrutinizing glare*
"You're not wearing your tie right. I can just tell."
But Piper didn't know how to tie a tie so they called Rachel who said, "How would I know how to tie a tie? I'm a girl."
Even the guys didn't know how to tie a tie. So they risked it and went to YouTube. Three replays of the same video later, they finally got it. You were ready.
Sort of. You aren't ready for this.
Your groom's men stopped laughing.
"Don't worry, everything'll be fine." Grover pats you on the back. "Crap, Sally's crying again."*
You look over to where your mom is sitting. She looks beautiful in the aqua dress she bought a few weeks ago, but the skin around her eyes are red and puff. Paul looks awkward as he rubs circles on her back.
"My baby's all grown up." She says between sniffles. Paul catches your eye and pleads for help. You shake your head and quickly look away. Paul will have to man up and deal with it himself. You have enough to deal with.
Like, not sweating.
"Two minutes," Leo announces.
"Hey, Perce," a voice comes out of nowhere and it's really close to your ear.
"WHAT THE-" you notice it's just Nico. "DON'T DO THAT YOU LITTLE-"
"He's stressed out," Leo explains to Nico.
"I can tell."
For some reason Nico decides he's going to give you a pep talk, which goes a little like this:
"You're the man, Percy, you got this."
"You just have to say 'I do' and not manage to pass out."
"You got this. Even you can't mess this up."
You aren't sure if he's secretly insulting you or if it's genuine.
Rachel, from the back, sticks her head out the door. She looks around and gives someone a thumbs up while mouthing something you don't catch.
You were never the best at lip reading, which is probably why you got detention a lot in middle school.
"You got this," Nico says one last time, giving you a hard slap on the back.
Jason peeks out around Leo. "Rachel says Annabeth's here and you have like one minute to get yourself together."
One minute? You can't pull yourself together in one minute. No.
Gods, you're still sweating like a pig.
Why can't your sweat glands just listen to the simplest commands?
(You don't do a pit-smell-check-thing because there's too many guests and Athena is glaring enough as it is.)
Then- the music starts. The colour drains from your face. That was so not a full minute.
You wipe at your forehead. Stupid sweat.
The doors open. First, is Thalia. She refused to wear some frilly dress and ended up wearing what looked like a silver toga. The one thing that ticked off Annabeth the most- every bride's maid wanted a different dress, so in the end Annabeth let them pick their own.
Next is Piper, who you hear was actually going to wear her "PJ" outfit that she still wears time to time ("I'm reminiscing in the old days okay? Leave me alone.") but Annabeth put her foot down. She ended up buying a dress, but putting her own flare on it. Her shoes were particularly odd. Combat boots, her new "thing'. At least they weren't Crocs.
Rachel follows. She, like Thalia, had a toga type dress. But she covered it in paint splats and the occasional doodle, in which you think is Sharpie. She actually wears heels which are painted to be "galaxies."
You're pretty sure she got that from YouTube.
Rachel is the bride's maid, which you think is Annabeth's final immature way of saying, "ha, he's mine."
Last, is Annabeth. She comes out and immediately, your breath is gone.
Now your lungs are little traitors too. Stupid body parts.
You can't help but stare, she is the most beautiful thing you've ever seen. Aphrodite doesn't even compare. You'll risk being blasted, saying that.
Before you know it, she's standing in front of you. You still stare.
"Hi," she says.
"Uh."
Grover kicks you.
"You look beautiful."
She smiles. Then her eyes narrow. "Are you sweating?"
You want to kick yourself. "No. It's water."
"Why would there be water on your forehead?"
"... I'm sweating," You admit.
"Well, stop."
Then the ceremony begins. It's not actually a priest, or anything. It's Hera. Yeah. She demanded she had be the one to marry the two of you, being the goddess of marriage and all that.
You were to afraid to turn her down.
"Do you, Percy Jackson, take Annabeth Chase as your wife?"
"Um, yeah-" Insert foot into mouth. "I mean, yes. I do."
Since you were looking deeply into Annabeth's eyes at the time you seem them narrow when you said "um, yeah."
Then it's Annabeth's turn and Grover hands you the rings. He makes sure you don't drop them.
Why are your hands shaking so much?
The moment you've waited for all day finally happens.
"I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride."
And you do. It lasts so long that someone in the back lets out a "wooo!"
When you break apart, blushing, Annabeth says, "You taste like sweat."
Everyone hears, and everyone laughs.
Stop sweating.
*Supposedly, at my parent's wedding my dad's mother wouldn't stop crying. I'm not sure why considering they weren't very close, nor did they have a very good relationship. *pffft* Mothers.
25wtpo fans- I'M ALIVEEEE- and getting over a bad bout of writer's block/ lack of motivation/ winter depression/ lack of sleep. (The last one I'm still working on. Oops. I always forget to go to bed.
And seriously, what's going on with ff lately o.o (I changed my font to Times New Roman and I've been writing "TIMES NEW ROMAN BIATCH!" on all my docs xD AND WHAT YOU CAN HAVE MORE THAT ONE CHARACTER WHATTTTTT
(Last thing, I swear. The title is 'The March' because of the traditional song you play at a wedding, where the bride is walking down the aisle is called The Wedding March.)
