I stare at the stick in my hand.

My chest feels like it collapsed. I'm suddenly deprived of oxygen, and I take a deep breath, trying to remember to breathe. My mind spins, and I sit down heavily on the chair. I feel dizzy, all of a sudden; lightheaded. My thoughts bounce in a thousand different directions, and I close my eyes. Pull it together, Annabeth.

I do my best not to cry. I had faced a thousand monsters undoubtedly worse than this, and yet it felt like this was the biggest obstacle I had faced yet. There were so many unexpected variables here. So many things that could go wrong, and I was so young. I bit my lip.

A thought occurs to me then. I feel like the air has been squeezed out of my throat. I swallow, inhaling sharply, trying to get the blood in my veins moving again. I close my eyes. What will Percy say?

I do cry, then. A single tear leaks out of my eye, trailing down my cheek. I suddenly feel very cold, and unwanted goosebumps rise on my arms. I start sobbing, and then wipe my tears. I was head counselor of Camp Half-Blood. I smiled bitterly to think of what my cabin mates would say if they saw me in tears right now. I hardly ever cried.

I looked down at the pregnancy stick again, registering the positive. That didn't necessarily mean it was for sure, of course. It could be a faulty stick. It could be something completely different. It could be wrong.

Even as I made up the empty reassurances, I knew that they were wrong. The reason that I had checked was because I was suspicious in the first place. The throwing up, the nausea, all of the symptoms were showing. I put a hand self-consciously to my middle, biting my lip. It wouldn't be secret for long, at least that part was obvious. I groaned. My stomach would show, and I would probably chew a hole through my lips.

Finally, I stood. I took a deep breath, steadying my thrumming heart. I would tell someone. Not Percy, I thought with a wince. Not him just yet. I would tell someone who would listen, but not blurt it out to the world. Someone who would stare at me and consider my options, and tell me some decent advice.

I heaved a sigh. Where was Piper McLean and Hazel Levesque when you needed them?

I dried my eyes and looked into the mirror near my bed. I laughed, but it came out choked and strangled. This wasn't planned. This wasn't supposed to happen. I swallowed a lump in my throat. But it had.

I put my hair up into a sloppy bun and hunched my shoulders in resolve. I grimaced. I was about to unload a crapload of drama onto Piper and Hazel, but I just hoped that they listened.

I stepped outside my door into the bright morning sunlight. The vivid rays glared off of my eyes, and I looked at the ground. All I needed to do was find Piper and Hazel; they would know what to do. They would give me some good advice, and maybe I'd tackle Percy later…

"Whoa, Wise Girl, watch it."

Oh, shit. Really?

I looked into his bright green eyes. That stupid grin of his was plastered on his face. My heart thumped wildly. There was no way that Percy was going to buy it if I said I was fine. He would know instantly.

My only choice? To flee. I admit that I am rather ashamed.

"Oh, hey, Perce," I said, my voice coming out quick and- fake. Shit. "I- uh, said I would do some- uh, paperwork for Chiron, so- yeah. Gotta go, sorry!" I began to make a run for it. I could see the Big House beckoning. It wanted me to escape.

"What the hell?" Percy began.

Oh, shit. He was the father of the baby that I was going to have. I almost had a seizure at that one. Percy Jackson was a father and he was just standing there, this cute expression on his face. I was borderline having a cardiac arrest, which would not bode well for the baby. I gulped. The baby. The one he was a father to. Oh, shit.

"Uh- paperwork. Late," I managed, speaking in monosyllables.

Percy raised his eyebrows. "Annabeth Chase? Late? Is that even possible?"

It is now, Percy Jackson. Let me go before I have a coronary. Please. "Yes. Yes, it is. Bye, Percy," I said as I stumbled backwards. "See you later!" Hopefully not, but, then again, he didn't need to know that. Percy just stood there, blinking twice, as I all but sprinted towards the Aphrodite and Pluto cabins in New Camp.

I prayed that he hadn't noticed anything unusual, but, then again, he knew me better than I probably knew myself. And I was pretty damn sure that a total stranger could've waltzed in on that situation and thought something was up. I bit my lip, tasting blood. That's what you get, Annabeth, I thought to myself.

It was on this train of thought that I slammed into someone else.

"What the hell? Watch where you're going!" Leo snapped before he saw who it was. His eyes widened. "Uh- no offense. No offense at all. In any way, shape or form, I swear."

I felt like crying. "No problem. Um- gotta go," I said, my voice wobbly. I needed to break down in front of understanding girls, not terrifying looking boys with wide eyes.

"Uh- are you okay, Annabeth?" Leo asked, scratching the back of his head nervously. He looked more than slightly uncomfortable. I was at the end of my rope. I would like to have avoided an epileptic seizure, but I guess that was just too much to ask for.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine," I said, the tears welling up in my eyes. I was not going to break down in front of Leo Valdez. For one, the poor boy looked like a deer caught in the headlights. Oh, shit. That phrase was becoming familiar. Leo would definitely tattle on me to Percy. Percy would kill me.

"Yeah- okay," Leo said.

"Wait, Leo," I said, my voice thick with almost-tears. "Please don't tell Percy."

Leo raised his eyebrows. "Are you having a fight with him?"

Oh, Leo. A fight would be so much more preferable right now. I quirked an uneasy smile. "Uh- yeah. Something like that, I guess."

He scrunched up his face. "'Something like that, I guess'? Annabeth, you're either fighting or you're not."

Oh, shit. Here we go again. "Um- paperwork for Chiron- gotta go," I said nervously, holding back the sobs that rose in my throat. I ignored Leo's protests and sprinted off. Leo was going to tattle on Percy, I just knew it.

I kept on running, trying to keep my eyes ahead of me. That made two boys that I had run into in the past what? Three minutes? I stifled another sob. I was so close to just bawling my eyes out in the middle of the cabins, right here, right now.

Fortunately, I ran smack-dab into the middle of Jason. I'm actually not sure which one is worse.

"Annabeth?" Jason queried, holding my shoulders out at arm's length.

I squeezed my eyes shut, letting out a few tears. "I- I have to go," I croaked.

I was being childish and stupid. A part of me screamed inside to go back to Percy and cry it all out to him, but the other part of me- the dominant part- told me to run for my life towards Piper and Hazel. I did not want to talk to Jason shitting Grace right now, thank you very much. I had a shitload of drama to unload onto his girlfriend.

"Hey- Annabeth, what's wrong?" he asked gently, his blue eyes piercing.

I took a shaky breath, and gave the only reasonable answer. "I'm late for a meeting with Chiron," I blurted.

Jason raised an eyebrow. "Just how late are we talking, here? I mean- two days? Two months? I'm a bit confused."

So was I, Jason. I'm an extremely hormonal and pregnant girl, and I needed a shoulder to cry on, except for it needed to be a girl shoulder. Got it? A girl shoulder. And, unless you want to get a gender switch, dear boy, which I doubt Piper would appreciate, get. Out. Of. My. Way.

"A really long time," I said, thinking to nine months. Gods. Nine months. I let a sob escape from the back of my throat.

"Jeez, Annabeth. Do you want to go see Percy?" Jason asked concernedly.

"No," I said quickly. "No, nope, I'm good. Actually, I really do have a meeting, so I really, really have to go," I said.

"Annabeth-" Jason began, but I was already running.

I finally reached the door to the Aphrodite cabin. I hammered on the door, sobbing the whole time. I was no longer semi-composed, or barely holding it together, now I was just a train wreck.

"Oh, Annabeth, hun, whatever is the matter?" Drew asked, venom dripping from her every word. Of course the nationally elected Beauty Queen Bitch just had to open the door, admitting my sorry ass in.

I resisted the urge to scream. "Where's Piper?" I asked, my voice trembling. "I really need to talk to her. It's important."

Drew smirked. "Why, hun, Piper's in the Pegasus stables with some girl. What was her name? Hyena?"

Oh, Hazel. I wanted to cry. More running. A shiver ran up my spine. Gods, that meant I might run into Percy. I couldn't keep it together in front of him, not again. I would collapse in front of those big green eyes. I did half the time anyway, without the threat of a baby looming over my head. Stupid Percy Jackson and his eyes.

"Thanks," I muttered, whirling around. I would march up to them and cry and sob and wail and bawl my eyes out, and then they would tell me it was okay. Then I would get Percy alone and explain to him the predicament I was in.

I turned around and ran.

For once, I kept my eyes ahead of me. I wanted no repeats of crashing into people who had probably already tattled on Percy, resulting in me having heart failure this very minute. I took a deep breath. Percy.

And behold, I ran into someone anyway.

"Whoa," Frank said.

Come on. My eyes watered. "Look, Frank- I really gotta go," I mumbled.

"Uh-huh," Frank said, catching me in my efforts to bolt. He looked at me, a worried expression on his face. "Are you okay, Annabeth?"

No. No, I wasn't. I'm trying to be okay, except for all of you people are getting in my way. Really. Move, Frank. I am pregnant, and I need womanly comfort. I am communicating with you telepathically, and you will understand me. "Fine. Just peachy," I said, my voice cracking. Another tear slipped out of my eye.

"Uh- no. I don't think you are." Frank looked nervous. "Percy would kill me if I left you like this, you know that, right?"

I bit back a brittle laugh. "If he doesn't murder me first."

"What? Are you two fighting?" Frank asked bewilderedly.

I was tempted to be all like, 'No, Frank. We're not. I'm going insane because there is a living person inside of me and Percy is the father. And Percy doesn't know it yet, because I have yet to accept the full multitude. So please, let me go dump emotional baggage on your girlfriend and run like Forrest Gump so that Percy doesn't catch me. Please.'

Alas, I didn't.

"Uh- something like that," I said, the same answer I gave to Leo. "Let's just say that he's quite angry right now."

Frank backed up, his eyes wide. "Yep. And coming up right behind you, if you care."

"Not funny," I muttered.

"Nope, I'm serious. Look!" he said, pointing to a very anxious slash furious Percy searching for me in the crowd of demigods.

Oh, SHIT. "Gotta go. Bye," I said, sprinting off. I could not handle Percy Jackson and his beautiful eyes. I couldn't, I couldn't, I couldn't. Shit. I hoped he didn't see me. Shit, shit, shit…

Thank gods I made it to the stables without incident.

I stumbled in, getting strange looks from several people. Arion was there, and Hazel was feeding him lumps of gold. Piper sat on a hay bale, and they were chattering on. The scene had such a peaceful setting that I almost felt bad crashing it.

Almost.

In my defense, I was having a very stressful day, okay?

Ignoring the strange looks I was getting from onlookers, I physically threw myself into Piper's arms, and then Hazel's. I really let all hell loose then, too. I howled in lamentation, blubbering out my true feelings. Everyone stopped what they were doing to stare. Annabeth Chase doesn't cry often, and when she does, I know most people feel an obligation to go run and get Percy Jackson before he kicks their asses for not telling him about Annabeth Chase's emotional breakdown.

"Whoa, honey, are you okay?" Piper asked gently.

I just shook my head no and sobbed even harder.

"Is she okay?" Hazel asked quietly over the top of my head.

"I- don't know," Piper responded carefully.

I don't know either, Pipes, don't feel bad. I'm honestly a mixed up smoothie of about a thousand different emotions, and right now, I just needed to cry. I didn't need to explain, I didn't need to complain, I didn't need to manage chopped monosyllables in desperation; I just needed to cry.

I did that for a long time before a pair of warm hands and a gentle voice that I knew very well wrapped around me. Despite my inner conflicts, I sagged against him, leaning my head at the hollow of his throat.

I look up to see Hazel talking to Percy guiltily. Backstabber. She tattled on my boyfriend. My very sweet boyfriend, nevertheless, who I was now hugging tightly, but she still tattled.

"What happened?" Percy asked in low tones.

"I don't know," Piper said. "She just came in here and started crying. I don't know what happened."

Percy sighed, resting his chin on my head as I continued to cry. "Thanks, Hazel, for getting me. And thanks, Piper, for letting her cry."

"No problem," Hazel said in a very small voice. "Is she- is she going to be okay?"

"I hope so," Percy said. "I'm going to go yell at her now," he told her, and then scooped me up.

Oh, shit. No, Percy, no. I couldn't handle those sad looks you gave me. I couldn't. My mind whirled, and I came very close to actually throwing up on him. I really couldn't handle this right now. Not now, not later, not ever.

"Percy," I whispered between sobs, "let me down."

"I don't think so," he told me.

"No, really. Let me down. I'm going to throw up," I told him, my voice stronger.

"What did you just say?"

I felt the puke coming up in my throat, and I literally jumped from his back and heaved my insides out. I'm not sure how long I threw up and cried, but it seemed like a very long time. I know the other kids didn't appreciate it either, though the stables were mostly evacuated. Percy, probably telling the other kids to get the hell out of the horses' asses.

Finally, I stopped, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand. I was still crying- I thought that was a record for my longest sobbing streak. Sad, really, but I just crouched there, by a pile of my own retched up food, crying my insides out.

Percy put his arms around my waist and lifted me up. "Stop," I whimpered. "Please."

Percy put me back, running a hand through his hair. I averted my gaze. Those damn green eyes of his were staring at me, making me feel worse, if at all possible, than I already was. He looked at me for a long time, until my sobs just became rackety breaths.

Percy then outstretched his hand. "You okay?" he asked, his eyes searching.

I didn't trust myself to speak. "No," I said quietly after a long pause.

"What happened, Annabeth?" he queried, his voice breaking. A shard of guilt stabs me. I never thought about my actions really affecting Percy, and I feel horrible.

"Is there somewhere we can talk? Privately?" I ask him. I want so badly just to collapse into his arms, but I couldn't. No more crying. Not for a while, at least.

Percy's face crumples. "If you're breaking up with me, than you can just tell me, you know."

What?

Wait, WHAT?

"Oh, Percy," I began.

"No, no, really, I get it. It's fine, Annabeth, don't worry. Completely okay. I swear. It's not a big deal," he rambled, though it was very clearly a big deal. He continued his endless stream of conversation before I finally snapped.

"I should hope we aren't breaking up, as that would lead to an awkward childhood for the baby," I snapped.

The effect was like a grenade.

Percy froze. "What?"

I took a deep breath. "Percy, I'm pregnant."

There was a long silence, and then Percy sighed. He reached over and hugged me, holding me securely in his arms for a long time. I breathed in the familiar scent of his shirt- homemade chocolate-chip cookies and ocean, a bizarre mix that suited him.

He pulled away and rolled up my t-shirt, exposing my belly. Percy looked down at my stomach. "Hello," he said quietly to my stomach.

I felt my eyes water.

"You and I need to talk," he said, still addressing my belly. "You see that lady, there?" He jerked his thumb towards me. "The pretty one with the tears? Yeah. That's your mom."

I was crying now, a sniffling.

"You're stressing your mom out, which is why we need to talk. You see, mister," he said, poking my bellybutton, making me laugh, "I happen to love your mom very much. I hate to see her cry. I know you're probably going to come into this world in a few months, and I'm a little scared, to be honest. Your mom is, too. You probably are as well. I've got a tip for you, though. You have no reason to be the slightest bit scared. Would you like to know why?"

I was full-out crying again, looking down at Percy.

"Because you've got a hell of a mom. And trust me, I know, she'll be a great one. I can just tell these things, considering I'm your dad. So, if you could do me a favor, I'd like you to tell the pretty lady up there not to worry, because she's being ridiculous. She is going to make an amazing mother, even if she doesn't know it yet. Think you can do that for me?" Percy asked, his voice cracking. "Thanks. I knew you'd come through for me." He rolled my shirt back down, and I cried, little, pathetic little tears.

Percy kissed me then, a good, proper kiss, and held me for a long time. "You're positive?" he asked.

"Yeah. Pretty positive," I replied, holding onto him tightly.

Percy sighed, stroking my hair. "You'll make an excellent mom, Annabeth. I know you will."

I smiled, and then widened my eyes as a thought occurred to me. "What are we going to tell everyone else?"

Percy just laughed and tickled me gently. I laughed. "You worry too much, Wise Girl."

"I know. Someone has to worry, now that we're a family," I replied.

"We were always a family," Percy whispered into my hair.

We stayed like that for a long time, wrapped in each other.