" HELLO STRANGER "

In which they learned to live in the moment. (May also be an alternative ending to Crimson Snow)

oOo

Annabeth watched him as he sat all alone by the park bench. It was a cold winter day and she somehow knew he'd be here. Maybe that was because he always was. A lot changed about him. He wasn't as loud or as obnoxious as he used to be. He didn't laugh, he didn't talk, and he didn't smile. Not even once in the millions of times Annabeth had seen him. Percy didn't seem to sense or see her, so she moved and sat in the empty space beside him.

"It's a beautiful day, isn't it?" She asked. Unlike the past, Annabeth was the one who usually starts a conversation nowadays.

"Yeah." His voice was low, almost inaudible.

"I'm Annabeth, by the way." It was practically routine when they did this—like someone had written a script and they were merely following along and reciting the lines.

"Percy." And then follows the silence.

"Can we be friends?" she dared ask.

"Aren't we already?" he sounded amused as he flashed her a small smile, a fraction of the smile that she longed to see.

Annabeth cracks a small smile in return and they began making small talk, chatting about topics that ranged from just about anything to everything. By the end of the day, both of them sported a face-splitting grin and flushed faces from the laughter they shared. But then Percy stood and bade farewell, it was getting late and his mother would be worried if he didn't come home on time. And so he left, with a promise of a tomorrow to come and more laughter to share.

oOo

The next day, Annabeth came later than usual. But still, she saw him sitting on the same seat he always occupied. And so, she did what she had become used to—she approached him.

"Is this seat taken?" She asks softly.

"No." Annabeth smiled and sat down. There was a moment of silence before she spoke again.

"It's a beautiful day, isn't it?" And so, it starts once again.

"Yeah." He smiles slightly, looking up at the azure sky, "It is."

There was silence again. "I'm Annabeth, by the way."

"I'm Percy."

And the script goes on—two unfortunate souls caught in Fate's cruel game; It was an endless cycle of the same scenario, like a broken record that keeps rewinding— but there was no going back to start, there was no remembering. They learned to live in the moment… because that was all they had left.

oOo

1 | HELLO STRANGER