Percy was lying back on Annabeth's bed, doing something random on his phone, while she sat up, engrossed in her laptop, designing complicated stuff that made Percy's head explode.
Annabeth was struggling with her design. She just couldn't get it right, and she was frustrated. She sighed loudly.
"Grr, why won't this work," she muttered.
Percy sat up and rubbed her shoulders. "What's wrong, wise girl?" he asked.
"Just this design I'm working on for Olympus. I can't get it perfect." He continued to rub her shoulders. "Mm, that feels good," she said, leaning into his hands.
"Come on, let's do something fun," he said, after a few minutes, his ADHD brain bored from doing nothing for so long.
"No, I have to finish this. Be patient." She knew she wouldn't be able to rest until she'd completed the design perfectly.
"I've been patient all day! I want to do something entertaining now," he grumbled.
"Please tell me you're not making that obnoxious face."
"Which one?" he asked innocently.
"You know which one. The I'm-a-pitiful-little-puppy-dog, pouty-lip one."
"You just don't like it because you know you can't resist it," he smirked.
"No way."
"Yes way."
"No."
"You know it's true."
"Ha, no."
"Oh, yes."
"Ugh, alright, fine, yes, it's irresistible. Now shut up and let me work."
She relented with one look at his pouty face, as he'd known she would. "Fine," she said with a dramatic sigh. "I guess I can finish this later."
Percy smiled brightly, perking up instantly. He jumped off the bed eagerly and she followed a bit more slowly, as if she were trying to prove that she'd still rather be working. He pulled her tightly to his chest, kissing her cheek.
"So, what do you want to do?"
Annabeth could feel Percy's warm firmness as she breathed in the salty smell of him that she had always found heady. Much to her annoyance, she found herself blushing as she looked up, hearing his question.
"Hm, let's get some food."
They headed downstairs and Percy immediately went for the cookie jar, which his mom often kept full of blue cookies.
"Hand me one of those—Wait, what's wrong?" Annabeth asked, seeing his crestfallen face.
"We're out of cookies!"
Anyone else probably would've laughed, but not Annabeth. Instead, she grabbed an apron and tied it around her waist, pulling back her curly hair into a messy bun and preparing to fix the serious problem of being blue cookie-less.
"Well then, we'll have to make some," she said determinedly.
Percy brightened immediately and pulled out his mom's cookbook from the cupboard above the stove.
"Okay, you get the ingredients out and I'll mix them together," she said, brushing some stray hairs out of her eyes.
Twenty minutes, a few messes (all Percy's fault), and many chocolate chips stolen while Annabeth's back was turned later, the cookies were safely in the oven.
"Now what do we do?" Percy asked, dodging Annabeth's smack for taking another chocolate chip.
"Now you help me clean up," she said.
"And stop eating those!" she added as his hand reached out for yet another one.
Surprisingly, Percy actually pitched in and helped clean up the filthy kitchen, maybe because he had made the mess in the first place, or maybe because he knew Annabeth wouldn't give him any cookies if he didn't help.
Regardless of the reason, when the timer went off, the kitchen was pristinely spotless. Annabeth pulled the cookies out of the oven and swatted away Percy's hand.
"Stop it, you'll burn yourself."
"You know, I think that's a risk I'm willing to take to get my cookies sooner," he said seriously.
She laughed. "You're adorable. And stupid. But mostly adorable."
He grinned. "I know."
While the cookies cooled, she kept him occupied by talking over some of their favorite memories from the past few years. The battles and scars and friends they'd lost were the memories that most often haunted them, but today they instead focused on the good memories. Annabeth dissolved into laughter about the time when Percy had been turned into a guinea pig by the sorceress Circe, which he insisted was frightening and demeaning, not funny. He found himself laughing too, though, because the cookies were warm and a laughing Annabeth was the most beautiful Annabeth and he was happy.
Snow was falling outside the window. The sweet scent of cookies wafted through the air. Laughter and love and happy memories filled the kitchen. Everything was perfect, at least for the present.