Okay, I have re-written this one three times now, but I'm doing it all again… so I hope you like this chapter now, when I have gone through it, and added so much detail etc that I could XD

This was previously called Mistakes, but as you can see, there was a name change as well as a profile change :D

The day Percy kissed me was one of the best days of my life. It felt like the world had disappeared and it was just me and him. Everything was perfect.

I was happy.

The war had just been won; Percy had defeated Kronos. Sure, Luke had died in the process, but I had lost him years before anyway. His death wasn't as saddening to me as it would have been back in the past, and although the innocent nine year old Annabeth still wept for him, I had a brave face on. The war was over, I was alive, Percy was alive, Thalia was alive, Nico was alive, Grover…

So many people had survived.

But so many had died too.

We'd burned the bodies of those who had fallen, and made the bead with their names, their memory.

We all cried for them, but dinner led to joy. The world was saved.

The war had been won.

Percy was mine, and I was his. That's what I'd thought at least… We'd kissed after dinner, after we'd shared the blue rock cake.

I was so free, so happy, and so alive.

Of course, happiness can't last forever, and the next day, he refused to speak to me. He walked away whenever I tried to communicate with him, stopped sneaking me looks out of the corner of his eye, and of course, acted like we'd never kissed in the first place.

He had never wanted me in the first place. The smiles, that kiss, all of them were mistakes, accidents. He never wanted me.

But I didn't want to believe it. I wanted him to want me. I wanted him to be mine and mine only. I wanted it to be just us. Like I'd thought we were before.

But we couldn't.

Because he didn't want me.

I'd tried and tried to get him to like me again. I'd done everything I could think of; helped translate English for him when he struggled, even though I was dyslexic too, I sent him blue cupcakes on random occasions, like I knew he liked.

He had gotten them; that much I was sure of. Hermes had taken them for me, but whenever I ask if he liked them, Hermes just shied away, disappeared off to deliver another package.

I know that he got them. I wasn't a bad cook; I knew that, Percy knew that, Zeus knew that, Hades even loved my cakes!

But I never once got a reply back from him.

It's been two years now, since that kiss. Percy talks to me now, kind of... But he obviously doesn't think like we're, like, dating or anything... He's acting like he did before we were even friends, distant, confused, afraid to be near me. It was like we'd never kissed, or at least felt like when a friendship exploded and you slowly tried to put it back together, even though you knew it could never happen.

Because he'd never wanted me.

But when he did finally start talking to me; it wasn't something I liked to have to experience even again, or even in the first place…

I sat on the edge of my bed in the Athena Cabin, swinging my legs as I stared at my knees. A tear fell down my cheek, dribbling just under my chin. I sniffed and hastily brushed it away, telling myself to be strong, to hold on to what little hope I had left, if any at all.

I'd heard Percy talking to Grover about some girl. I didn't catch her name, but I'd heard beautiful, smart, funny and... perfect. This girl was 'perfect' to Percy, and even better, her best friend went to his school, which was right next door to hers.

I had come to a conclusion that he'd kissed me from relief, that I wasn't actually what he wanted, I was just… I was there at the time; the first one he'd seen.

Even though he didn't want us to be together, we could still at least be friends right?

Wrong.

Apparently, I wasn't even worth a smile anymore.

I wasn't even worth a glace.

I was hardly worth a glare, but I did get that a few times, when I walked past him.

I heard a creak as the door to the cabin opened. I managed a small smile when I saw the approaching figure.

"Hey Nico," I sighed, relieved to see a nice, friendly face, considering not even Grover spoke to me anymore. He took Percy's side in the small 'argument' that seemed to be arising around us over the past two years.

"Hey Annabeth," he replied, sitting beside me. His eyes were tinted red and they were bloodshot, as if he's been crying.

He was dressed the same way he usually was; black t-shirt, black skinny fit jeans, chains, knife at his belt, skull ring. He'd filled out over the year; he was almost what you would call beautiful now.

I blushed; Nico was like my brother, and I was thinking these kinds of things whilst he sat beside me, on my bed, in my cabin, whilst we're alone.

I watched him, willing the redness to leave my face.

He looked up and caught my gaze. "I figured out something earlier..." he explained. I raised my eyebrows, "I'm in love with someone... but she can't love me back..." He looked up at me under his eyelashes, eyes filled with tears.

"Aww, Nico..." I sighed, hugging him, and then abruptly pulling away, gripping him by the shoulders, "It's not me is it?" I joked.

He looked up, eyes widening before he burst into laughter, "Gods, no! Ew!"

"Phew… Wait… Hey!" I shook my head, giggling.

"Not being mean or anything, but you're more like a sister to me… I prefer it that way, I'd feel awkward if we were to hook up." He laughed.

"Good, because you're my brother," I laughed. I rested my head on his shoulder and took a deep breath, "So who is it then?"

Nico rested his cheek on my hair and sighed, "Its Thalia."

I pulled back, mouth open, wide eyed, "But she's a huntress!"

"Exactly why we can't be together... Why she can't love me back..." A single tear made its way down his cheek, and I reached up to brush it off. I pushed his hair out of his eyes.

"That sucks, Nico, I sighed. He nodded and we both fell back onto my bed, groaning, "Love sucks… Why does Aphrodite hate us so much?" I tangled my hand into Nico's and we wound our fingers together.

"What's Percy done now?" Nico frowned, turning onto his side to face me. His eyes looking into mine with an intensity that I couldn't name.

"Only treated me like I'm not worth anything," I moaned, looking up at my ceiling, "He doesn't smile at me, only talks to me when he has to. He glares at me if he even has to look at me." I groaned and punched the mattress with my free hand, "He probably wouldn't care if I disintegrated into fifteen thousand pieces!"

"I'm sure he would-"

I laughed harshly and sat back up, "No offence Nico, but I don't believe you. I broke my shin last month, tripping over him whilst he was hanging on the beach, and he didn't even look at me." I shook my head at the memory, and Nico pulled himself up into a half sitting position, propping himself on his elbows. I carried on as if he hadn't moved, "It was as if I wasn't even there! He just carried on talking to Grover, ignoring me! At least Grover looked at me, even if it was with that stupid pity in his eyes!" I curled up into a ball and cuddled into Nico's shoulder. "I want my best friends back," I sighed.

"Hey, you've still got me, and Thalia whenever she comes by… and your brothers and sisters here," he replied, putting an arm around my shoulder and pulling me back down, hugging me tight into his chest. I looked up into his eyes.

"Thank you Nico," I said.

"For what?"

"Just for being here and make me feel so much better." I sighed, "You're the only person I can think of that is good enough to talk to. You're always here, and I owe you so much."

Nico smiled, "No problem, I'd help out anytime." He rubbed his hand up my back soothingly, comfortingly.

I don't know how or why what happened next did, but I ended up lying half on top of Nico, with my lips against his and his against mine. I wrapped my arms around his broad shoulders and shivered as he rubbed his hands up my back, under the material of my camp shirt.

We were so involved in the situation that we didn't even hear the door open.

"Oh my Gods."

Nico and I pulled apart and blushed, clearing our throats. I brushed my hair back and out of my eyes, pulling out the hair band and retying it back into a ponytail on my head. I was still bright red when Nico looked up.

"Percy?"

Uh oh... Percy caught them... so what shall happen next? Let me know what you think about it...

Thanks to everyone who reviewed this story the last two times I posted it: Lemonhead54 and Samantha00, Lily, Meanswell and another epiphany :D

REVIEW AND I'LL UPDATE FASTER! :D

Auralee x