"Now Percy, I have notified all of your teachers of your 504 so there should be no problems if you need extra time on tests or if you need to request an individual testing, but since we are a very big school if for some reason one of the them forgets or an issue comes up don't hesitate to have them call myself or Deborah Rynd-she's one of our professionals who oversees accommodations, you're on her caseload. Do you have any more questions?'
I blinked before realizing he was talking to me—don't get me wrong, the guy was nice and had been super helpful making sure I was comfortable with my schedule and everything. He went the extra mile to make sure my ADHD and dyslexia wouldn't get in the way of my education, and I'd definitely noticed how each sentence out of his mouth about the teachers, the extra-curriculars, and how "all of Percy's past expulsions won't be an issue, nor do we believe in not allowing a child an education at our institution for any reason" eased the tension from Mom's shoulders.
But seriously? We'd been in my new principal's office for two hours, and hades knows how antsy I was. Mom kept squeezing my hand with apologetic glances, and it's not like I could complain when she's the one who had to ride in a car from New York to California pregnant. If she could do that, and control her bladder long enough to even have this conversation, I could deal for now. Probably.
I'd tried so hard not to get expelled this time—really, really tried. And Paul tried to talk them out of it, but…well, there's only so much that can be done when there are claw marks all down the lockers and explosions that destroy an entire wing of the school.
I'd thought this would be it, the time that Mom let herself get angry at me for another mess up when I only had a year left, but she just gave me a tired smile and said she was proud I'd made it this long to begin with, and that we'd work something out. "Who knows," she raised an eyebrow at me with a smirk. "Maybe there will be a divine intervention."
I'd laughed it off, until the next day when I came from work home to her, Paul, and Chiron sitting at the table.
"Oh good, you're home! Percy honey, come sit down. I've had an idea, I was just talking it through with the boys." I snorted at her referring to a centaur that had been around for millennia and a middle aged English teacher as 'the boys', but sat down nonetheless.
"So, what's going on? Should I be worried?"
"Oh no, not at all. But I was thinking, the baby is going to be born soon, and you're going to go off to college in New Rome next year…" she trailed off, and Paul and I jumped into action like we did every time the tell-tale signs of her hormonal crying showed their faces, me grabbing tissues and him rubbing her back while whispering soothing words.
"I'm okay, I'm okay, I promise! It's just, well, obviously we won't really be able to come see you much, and while I'm sure you'd love to be here the travel would interfere with your education—and don't interrupt me Percy, I know we've been saying you'd come with Jason but he stays for weeks at a time and you won't be able to, we both knew that wasn't going to happen, and we only just got you back—and anyway, honey, I was just thinking maybe it would be better if instead of trying to find you a new school here, we all went ahead and moved to California now. The baby can be born there, you can get used to things before you have to make the college transition, and we don't have to worry about any of us trekking across the country all the time." She finally took a breath, and I'm pretty sure my eyes were popping out of my head." "So. What do you think?"
"Mom, we can't—I mean, I love you, and you're literally the best for even considering it, but I can't make you guys relocate—Paul still works at Goode, and you and I both know all the best publishers are in New York, and Chiron and camp need me—"
"Percy," Paul cut me off. "This isn't a hasty decision of hers. I've been talking about moving somewhere on the west coast one day since I was fifteen, I've always wanted to see what it was like. They need English teachers in California, too."
"And as for camp, you know in an emergency we can figure something out—we are the family of the gods, Percy. While of course we love having you and you've been invaluable as a friend, camper, counselor, and fighter, those are exactly the reasons why you deserve to be able to make one decision for yourself. The world of the gods kept you from your family, and from normalcy, for so long—let yourself be happy, Percy. You have the rest of your life to hassle this old horse."
I'd resisted further, of course, because we all know there's no way I could ask my family to relocate for me, but like always Mom won the argument, so here we were. By some miracle (and by some miracle I mean Athena doing a favor for once instead of threatening me—hope she can't see this), Paul found a job at a high school here within a week.
By an even bigger miracle (and this time I mean Aphrodite), the school he got a job at was Annabeth's.
Not that she knew it yet.
"Perseus!"
Mom's reprimand jolted me back, at which point I realized I still hadn't answered Principal Lombino's question, and my cheeks went red. "Uh, no, that sounds really great, thanks! Sorry."
He smiled back, and went to say something else when Mom gasped, pressing a hand to her stomach.
"Mom? What's wrong? Is it a stinging pain, a burning pain, a stabbing pain, or a constrictive pain?" I was on my feet, one hand on her shoulder and the other in my pocket, grabbing Riptide instinctively like I always did when there was trouble.
Two months in, Paul and I had looked up all of the common kinds of issues that could arise with pregnancy and made flash cards of the symptoms—it took a lot of time, and Mom rolled her eyes at us, but she made extra cookies and to be honest it was reassuring to at least think we could be more on the ball if something went wrong.
"I'm fine, Percy, really, the baby just kicked and it surprised me. You realize I've had a baby before, right?"
"Yes, but I wasn't there for that, this is all new to me. Plus, I was such a good baby." She gave me a look, but I continued with a grin. "So good, you could probably say I was heavenly." I cracked up while she shrugged at the Principal, rubbing the baby bump (mountain) unconsciously. Come on, kid, I thought toward the tiny human she was carrying. Do your big brother a solid and just like, edge onto Mom's bladder. It can be the first time we team up against the parents together.
Unfortunately, the baby either didn't hear or didn't care about my pleas, so it was another half hour before the principal rose to his feet and I hurriedly shook his hand before flying into the hallway, stretching and groaning and walking back and forth until Mom emerged two minutes later.
"Sorry that took so long, honey, I just wanted to make sure everything was in order, and it's a different state, and it's just been so long since we found a school that wasn't hesitant…you did really well, though. I'm impressed you were able to sit for so long." I flashed a grin her way, reaching to carry her purse as she scowled at me. It was an ongoing argument, but at this point she so resembled of a planet that she gave in most days when we tried to help her not have to carry things—and really, have you ever felt how heavy a woman's purse is?
"You're absolutely sure you don't want to swing by Annabeth's?"
"No, Mom."
"And you know she's going to kill you for not telling her, right?"
"Very true."
"And for being here a full three days before seeing her?"
"That'll get me a few extra stabs. Maybe a judo flip."
"Hm." She got into the car, and I knew she wanted to keep wheedling, but it was so hard to surprise Annabeth. Ever. You can't really sneak up on a girl who's basically a ninja and knows you better than you know yourself, you know?
"Mom, I know you want to hang out with her, but this way will be so much more fun! And it'll be worth it when she kills me to see her reaction."
"Well, just make sure you remind her not to get your blood on the new carpet."
~~~just a friendly line break wishing it were at the tlt musical in ny much like the author of this fic~~~
"So, what happened that made you move all the way here from New York in the middle of senior year?" Rosina asked as she and Shane led me to third period, having sparked a conversation in second concerning a mutual disdain for math. No sign of Annabeth yet, but being that this school offered a million different classes and about half of them were some form of advanced, that was no surprise.
I was still holding out for post-lunch, though; my time at Camp Jupiter got me a place in AP Latin, and the humanities elective was only offered in advanced and was basically straight mythology and Greco-roman history, so my fingers were crossed that one (or ideally, both) would bring her with it.
"Uh, we have family here," I mentioned. "And, well, I wanted to come here for college, and my mom didn't want me to be so far away when the baby was born."
"Aw, you're gonna have a younger sibling? That's the best!" Shane's face lit up. "I have three, and while I occasionally want to return them, I love them more than anything."
"Really? That's so cool! I've always wanted one; I mean, literally all of my friends have a bunch and I love hanging out with them and stuff, but it's been so long since I was born I never thought it would happen."
"That's so exciting! Do they have names picked out?" Rosina asked.
"Kind of. Mom says you have to ~see~ the baby before you know exactly which one is right, so she has a list that they'll pick from once the baby is actually born. Hopefully they don't sic the kid with something that provides as much ammo as Perseus, though," I joked.
My phone buzzed, and my mood skyrocketed at the thought of Annabeth—until I saw that it wasn't a text.
It was a snapchat.
"Schist," I mutter. If I snap her back, it would be all too easy for her to see where I am (and then subsequently track me down and kill me without my death being satisfactory after her surprise). If I don't, she'll think something's up—between how obsessed I am with my girlfriend, how little I seem to follow rules, and how desperately I search for excuses to procrastinate, I almost always answer her immediately.
"What's wrong?" Shane asks, peeking at my lock screen. "Who is…Wise Girl, and why are we worried that she's snapping?"
"My girlfriend," I rub the back of my neck sheepishly. "She, uh, lives here—I haven't told her we moved here yet, I wanted to surprise her in person." I open the snap quickly to her smile and a "morning, sunshine. how's the new school?" I lean forward and hold the Valdezified phone as close to my face as possible, sending a cheeky grin and a quick response, finding Rosina and Shane looking at me expectantly.
"She looks familiar," Rosina squints. "What did you say her name was?"
"Come on, Rose, California is a big state, it's not like she goes to this school—oh my god, you have the guilt face, she goes to this school?!" He accosts me halfway through the sentence.
"It's a possibility," I admit, blush all over my face.
"Oh, so we've just made friends with a dead man," Rosina deems. "So come on, who is she?"
"Who is who?" A girl slides into the seat next to mine, looking at them expectantly.
"Our new friend who's about to die's girlfriend, who goes to this school and doesn't know he moved here." I glare jokingly at Shane for ratting me out, but he sticks out his tongue and throws an arm around the newcomer. "Perce, this is Rashida. Shi, this is Percy, he's new from New York."
"Nice to meet you," she addresses me for the first time, with a megawatt smile I can't help but return. "So, what's her name?"
"Annabeth," I confess, fidgety because I don't know how to react if they don't like her (who could not like Annabeth? But still, what if?), or worse, if they're friends with her and don't know who I am.
"Wait—Chase?" Rashida's eyes widen.
"Yeah," a little smile appears on my face. "We've been together for a year and a half now, but we've been best friends since before that so it just feels like forever."
"You're really good friends with her, right Rashida?"
She nods. "Yeah, have been for a while, except for last year when she kind of…disappeared." Her eyes move to me. "You're the camp boyfriend? The one she leaves class to…" she trails off meaningfully, glancing around her.
"To call during her… yeah." I frown, thinking of how often both of us have had to sprint to talk to each other to avoid a panic attack in the middle of class, work, meetings—post Tartarus has been rough. We're both really lacking in sleep, but being sleep deprived feels better than closing our eyes a lot of times. Still, when we get out in time to IM or call is much better than when we don't—then we're alone, and it's Tartarus all over again without the one thing that kept each of us sane.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to bring up something bad, it's just…I worry." Rashida bites her lip. "You help, though. Even just on the phone. I don't get it, and I don't know what it was, but if you really are that boyfriend…I'm glad she has you."
I give her a small smile. "Thanks. It goes both ways, though. And days when we're both happy…" I open my phone to show them my wallpaper, a mid-action shot my mom took while Annabeth and I were laughing, throwing flour at each other in the kitchen while she attempted to make cookies while I cooked chicken, and my "helping" her turned into a food fight.
"Well, if you can survive that class you can survive anything. Ms. Worthington is a really wonderful person, but as I'm sure you noticed her classes are prime napping hour," Rosina told me.
"Rose, come on, it's really not that boring—she's so knowledgeable!" Shane encourages, Rashida nodding in agreement.
"Of course she is, but I think the way she teaches would be much more successful, and much more valued, at a university, where the students are as passionate about it as she is instead of only taking her classes to graduate."
"That's fair. I still think you should pay attention more, though—or at least pretend to."
"Fine, fine," she conceded. "I promise I'll try. And I have apologized to her for it before, and she was one of the two teachers I got presents for last year—Hannuka for her, Christmas for Essine."
"Okay, okay, you're off the hook," Rashida allows, blowing a kiss to her and poking me. "Come along, lover boy, your girlfriend sits with me at lunch and I want a front row seat to this rendition of the old gladiator fights."
I laugh and follow her into the huge (GINORMOUS) cafeteria.
"So, juniors and seniors are allowed to go off campus to eat, but only juniors really do because seniors just don't care and don't feel like wasting the gas and dealing with the traffic. And I mean we're probably one of ten schools in the country whose food isn't completely shitty, so why not take advantage of it, you know?" She tells me a little more about herself and asks a couple questions about me before dropping into a seat at a long table where quite a few people are already sitting.
"Hey, Rashida. Who's this?" I open my mouth to answer, but hesitate, unsure of whether or not I feel like trying to tell them all I'm Annabeth's boyfriend without her here.
Luckily, Rashida swoops in and saves me the trouble. "This is Percy, he's new from New York and super cool, you guys are going to love him."
"Hey," I wave, receiving a few greetings my way as the rest of the table files in.
"Q, where's Annabeth?" A girl across the table from me asks someone a few seats down.
"Right here, sorry!" My favorite voice speaks nearby, "Guys this is Freya, I'm giving her a tour before she starts tomorrow. Freya, this is Lida," a wave, "Vincent," a smile, "Q," 'hi!", "Percy," I wave, holding back a laugh, "Rashida," another wave, looking amused, "and Carlos," a nod and a smile. "Freya is a sophomore, so don't scare her off," she scolds, sitting down and starting to talk to Freya.
No one else speaks, though, and I can see their eyebrows bunching up in confusion, looking from me to Annabeth a few times without speaking.
"What in the gods' names has you people so spooked?" she asks abruptly, looking away from her charge. "Q? Percy? If one of you doesn't tell me what's going on I swear I'm going to lose my—" her words cut off, and I can hear the click in her brain as she slowly turns back to me.
"Perseus Jackson," she says slowly, quietly—the steely death voice I normally hear right before monster dust fills the air.
"I love you?" I offer, hoping if I remind her before the threat she'll be less murderous.
"What in hades are you doing here?"
"Now, before you get to the part where you stab me a bunch of times till the point of me calling myself Caesar, my mother wanted me to tell you that she had no part in this and that she told me to tell you and she would prefer if you could please not get my blood on the carpet."
"Percy," she pinches her nose, "she told you to tell me what?"
"And also as my last request I would like to ask that you design me a mausoleum? Or a monument, your prerogative."
She eyed me, so I continued. "Um, so, when I said I was starting at a new school I might have meant this one and my family might have moved to California for good?"
Her eyes widen, and I can feel the rest of her table's eyes on us in confusion, looking as engaged as they would be if they were watching a movie. "You moved to California."
"Affirmative."
"Sally is here."
"That's also true."
I can see her clench and flex her fingers, her mind whirring as she processes it all, and she wants to smile but that doesn't mean she's not mad because I know—have always known—that Annabeth Chase hates surprises. Nothing throws her off balance quite like they do. I stand up and walk closer to where she sits, and her friends look baffled, but I lean down and wrap her in a hug from behind. "I love you."
She lets out a deep breath, and the tension in her body subsides. "You are so lucky you made a literature pun and used SAT words."
"I told you I'd use the study book when you bought it for me," I reminded her with a smile, planting a kiss on her cheek. "Surprise."
She untangles my arms from around her and stands, turning to pull me into a real hug, and every part of it is familiar—it's home. Our chins tucked in each other's shoulders, breathing in each other's scents: we're alive, we're okay, we're together.
"For the record, me designing our mausoleum isn't even a question," she whispers, and a lump forms in my throat. "I love you, Seaweed Brain."
"I love you too, Wise Girl." I pull back, locking eyes with her. "To hell and back."
A small smile builds on her face, and she turns back to the table, interlocking her fingers with mine and motioning for Carlos to scoot down so that I can sit next to her.
"Guys, this is Percy Jackson, my boyfriend," she tells her friends, and I feel my chest grow warm like it does every time she says my name, or introduces me as her boyfriend.
Lida appraises me. "This is the godly puppy with the state title in swimming?"
I raise my eyebrows at Annabeth with a grin. "Godly puppy?"
A/N: Thanks so much for reading! I apologize to anyone reading my longer Annabeth Goes to Goode fic, I know I haven't updated in a while and I'm awful for writing this instead of updating that, but I only had time for a quick one chapter (not actually bc I'm really avoiding Russian hw by writing this) and I didn't want to get people's hopes up that I would be ble to start updating regularly again; plus, I was inspired and couldn't get this plot out of my head. I love y'all dearly, let me know how you feel about this one!
So, the thing is, while I was writing this I couldn't decide how I wanted Annabeth to see Percy, so there's an alternate version of the final page below! Check it out and tell me which you prefer.
"Q, where's Annabeth?" A girl across the table from me asks someone a few seats down.
"Right here, sorry!" My favorite voice speaks nearby, and I sit up straighter in my chair. One girl glances at me quizzically—right, I'm the new guy, she thinks I'm just trying to make a good impression on a gorgeous girl. "What'd I miss?"
"Well, Lida is going on a date with Troy, Vince heard back about his scholarship, Rashida has her first day of work tonight, and we have a new student amongst our numbers," a guy who introduced himself as Q informs her, gesturing to me at the end.
She looks up with a smile, ready to introduce herself to the new kid—and then freezes.
"Annabeth? You okay?" Vincent asks, and she blinks, her eyes clearing as she narrows them at me—and I'm thinking gods this girl scares me but also gods if she looked at me like that for the rest of my life I'd still feel lucky.
"I'm fine, sorry." Her lips pull up—again a smile, but this her calculating one, a subtle difference that honestly took me a few years to figure out and probably sends no flags to her mortal friends—but hades, that's the smile I see right before monster dust goes flying. "I'm Annabeth, it's nice to meet you—what did you say your name was?"
I grin, shaking the hand she's held out. "I didn't, but it's Percy. Percy Jackson."
"Is that short for Percival?" She asks innocently, and I scowl in my mind.
"Perseus actually, like the demigod. I've been told he and I share many attributes."
I can feel her partially wanting to push me into a river and partially wanting to kiss me till graduation, but she just taps her chin. "Perseus. How interesting. You know, I think I might have met a Perseus before, actually—I can't believe there's more than one."
Her words sparked a memory and my grin grew wider, "Oh I can assure you, I'm the one." I lean toward her, repeating back those words she said the first day we (sort of) met, all those years ago. "I must be."
"Damn it, Percy, you had to go there?" she exclaims, her voice light just before she chucks a closed carton of milk from her tray at my head. Reflexes finally good for something at school, my hand snaps up to grab it, before slicing it back through the air at her.
She catches it, unsurprisingly, before settling a glare on me. "Do you want to tell me what in hades you're doing here before or after I separate you from your extremities?"
"Come on, Wise Girl, don't be hasty—if you cut off my arms you can't hug me anymore. You would be deprived. Also, Mom says hi, she told me to tell you, and could you please keep my blood to the tile only so it doesn't stain the new carpet."
Her mouth curves upward. "Sally is so—wait. New carpet?"
I cringe. "In our new house. Here. In California. Where we live now."
Her jaw physically drops. "Wait—permanently? Sally, and Paul, and the baby are gonna live her?"
"Yep," I nod. "They, um, since I got expelled again, Mom figured it would be best that we were all in one place, since we'll be here anyway and it would be hard to move or travel with a newborn…"
I can see her mind still whirring at top speed, and I can feel the storm coming soon.
"Also, quick reminder that I love you and I only didn't tell you because I wanted to surprise you because you never get to feel the fun of surprises since you're brilliant but I love you and I'm so glad you want to date someone like me because you make my life infinitely better? And you missed me so much while I was kidnapped and now since we've been apart that you aren't mad? Because you love me? And you know Piper's mom would be soooo mad if you were upset with me for not telling you that she might give you one of those perma makeovers or put me into a suit or some nonsense like that?"
I rambled a bit, but I could see when she decided to stop being mad, rolling her eyes and getting to her feet—at which point I hurried around the table to hug her as tightly as is humanly (or half-humanly) possible.
"I love you. Even though you really are a Seaweed Brain."
"That's all I ask," I mumble into her hair.