"Annabeth!" Percy screamed. He shot upright in bed, tangled in his blanket and drenched in sweat. He was breathing heavily as he tried to shake off the remnants of the dream.
The door flew open, slamming against the wall as a blur of green pyjamas and blond hair hurtled through it and over to Percy. Annabeth skidded to a stop next to the bed, dagger at the ready.
"What is it?" she demanded, a fire in her gray eyes. "What's wrong? Are we under attack?"
"No," Percy said, closing his eyes. His head hung down limply, evidencing his exhaustion from the recent insanity. "Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you. It was just a dream."
"Just a dream?" Annabeth said, giving Percy a dubious look as she put her dagger on the nightstand. "Are you sure it was just a dream?"
"Yes."
"Because you know our dreams our rarely 'just dreams.' It might be important, Percy. You should—"
"It was just a dream, Annabeth!" Percy snapped. "Just a stupid bad dream, okay?"
Annabeth's eyes filled with shock and hurt for a moment. She folded her arms protectively around herself. Percy finally glanced up at her for a moment, looking infinitely guilty.
"Annabeth..." he began. He dug his knuckled into his forehead, kneading random circles. "Sorry. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you like that. I'm sorry."
"It's okay." Annabeth climbed up next to him, leaning her head on his shoulder. Her arms snaked around his shoulders, and Percy took a deep breath. He always loved Annabeth's scent. It was like the ocean and parchment and cookies and everything nice in the world. He didn't think he'd ever get tired of it. "Percy?"
"Yeah?" He mumbled into her hair.
"Why did the dream bother you so much?"
Percy took her hand, pulling away from Annabeth slightly so he could look at her better. "Because…" he swallowed. "Because you died."
"Oh…Percy…"
"There have been so many times I thought I'd lost you. And yesterday, when we were fighting the manticore—have I ever told you how much I really hate those guys?—when you vanished underneath it for a minute, I thought I'd really lost you. Forever."
"We made it through the end of the world and amnesia and even Tartarus together, Percy! There's no way you're going to get rid of me that easily," Annabeth told him, looking at him fondly. Percy pulled her to him tightly.
As Annabeth smiled, burrowing her face into his neck, she whispered. "I'm never going to leave you, Seaweed Brain. Get used to it."
That night, they clung to each other tightly, each one acting as the other's lifeline as they slept. And neither of them had any more nightmares.