How Luke Met Annabeth and Thalia
Chapter One: Concrete Angel
Luke walked by some boys. Their names were James and Zach and they were known for being bullies to some degree.
Suddenly he noticed a beautiful girl around his age. She had black hair and she was looking down sadly. She was wearing a yellow dress. He had seen her before, but he never noticed how very pretty she was.
She walks to school with a lunch she packed
James and Zach laughed.
"Hey, Thalia!" called James.
Nobody knows what she's holding back
The girl, apparently named Thalia, looked up. She seemed surprised that he had spoken to her.
"Seriously, you're gross," Zach sneered. "You wore that same thing yesterday!"
Wearing the same dress she wore yesterday
She hides the bruises with the linen and lace
Thalia looked down and walked away, even sadder this time. She looked so sad, it made Luke want to cry.
Oh…
During lunch, the girl called Thalia sat by herself. Luke knew that feeling.
He wanted to run up to her and hug her, but he was worried about what James and Zach might do.
The teacher wonders but she doesn't ask
Thalia ate her sandwich. She noticed that her sleeve had rolled up; she quickly pulled it back up.
I hope noone saw, she hoped inside her head. That's a nasty cut Mother gave me last night. Speaking of which, I wish I had worn my hat. Mother pulled some of my hair out last night. Wow, a mother's love can hurt.
It's hard to see the pain behind the mask
Bearing the burdon of a secret storm
When he was on his way home, Luke couldn't resist. He stopped her.
"Hi," he greeted. "Your name is Thalia Brown, right?"
Thalia nodded, quite surprised.
"I'm Luke Castellan," he introduced. "Want to walk home with me?"
"Yeah, alright," she answered far too passively.
About three minutes later, Thalia fell down, hit her face on the sidewalk, and started crying.
But something was wrong. She was crying harder then a person who did that normally would. It sounded like she had already been about to cry.
"Are you ok?" he asked, helping her up.
She looked straight up at him. He noticed her eyes for the first time. They were a startling shade of green.
Sometimes she wishes she was never born
Thalia burst into tears again.
"You seem so emotional," he pointed out, hugging her.
"I don't know why I'm telling you this, Luke, I really don't," she sobbed. "My mother is an alcoholic and heroin addict. And she's abusive, Luke! She abuses me! She bites me and hits me and…" She rolled up her sleeve, revealing several bruises, burns, scratches, and maybe even a little scar. Luke gasped.
Through the wind and the rain
She stands hard as a stone in a world that she can't rise above
But her dreams give her wings and she flies to a place where she's loved
"It's ok," he comforted. "You don't have to go back to her. You can come home with me. My mother isn't exactly perfect, either, but she won't hurt you. We can call the police and your mother will go to jail and it'll be fine."
"I'm worried about what she'll do to me if I tell," Thalia blubbered.
"Come inside," he offered.
Before she could respond, he grabbed her hand and took her to his house.
"Mom, I'm home!" he yelled.
A woman with red hair came up the stairs.
"Terrible fate!" she screeched, her eyes glowing green.
Luke glanced at Thalia, still crying in his arms.
Concrete angel
"You don't seem scared," he whispered.
"That's nothing compared to some of the things Mother's done to me," she whispered back.
Somebody cries in the middle of the night
The neighbors hear but they turn out the lights
Luke and Thalia went to the phone. Thalia dialed 9-1-1.
"I'm Thalia Brown," she told the person. "I'm being abused by my mother, Maryann Brown."
A fragile soul caught in the hands of fate
When morning comes it will be too late
After a while, she hung up.
Through the wind and the rain
She stands hard as a stone in a world that she can't rise above
"Oh, thanks so much, Luke!" she exclaimed.
But her dreams give her wings and she flies to a place where she's loved
Concrete angel
I am so proud of myself, she thought. I can't thank Luke enough. Oh, and I'd really like to get rid of Mother's last name. It's bad enough I look so much like her. How about…Grace! That was my great-grandmother's name!
"No problem," he answered, smiling.
The police came and arrested Thalia's mother. Thalia was happy.
A statue stands in a shaded place
An angel girl with an upturned face
Her name is written on a polished rock
Luke considered Thalia the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. She probably thought she was ugly, like lots of girls seemed to, but she was so perfect.
"You're a life-saver," she said.
A broken heart that the world forgot
She hugged him again and cried.
But this time, they were tears of joy.
Through the wind and the rain
She stands hard as a stone in a world that she can't rise above
But her dreams give her wings and she flies to a place where she's loved
Why did I keep that secret all this time? Thalia wondered.
Concrete angel