Percy's POV

It was the most beautiful day. The sun was warm and bright, and the sky was as blue as my mother's cookies. A slight breeze carried the salty scent of the ocean into the air. I leaned against the railing and focused on the green waves lapping up along the side of the boat.

My focus was disrupted when someone gave me a gentle peck on the cheek. I turned and smiled at my girlfriend, Annabeth. She smiled back.

"Hey Wisegirl."

"Seaweed Brain."

I studied her. Her blonde curls floated gently in the wind. Her eyes were a dark gray, but they weren't as intense and aggressive-looking as they usually were. She seemed calm and happy, and I liked seeing her that way.

I couldn't resist the urge any longer, so I caught her in a bear-hug and spun her around. She laughed and I kissed her slowly on the lips. She tasted like strawberries. We pulled away and just stood there with our foreheads touching.

"I love you." I whispered.

She grinned. "I love you too Percy."

Suddenly, a door creaked open behind us and a pale boy with jet black hair emerged. He smirked. "Get a room guys. You're grossing me out."

I chuckled. "Sorry Nico."

"Where's everybody else?" asked Annabeth.

"Grover and Juniper are Iris-messaging Tyson on the other side of the boat. Hazel, Frank, Katie, Travis, Thalia and Connor are below deck watching Psych. I have no idea where Clarisse and Chris are." Nico replied.

"Well, we should be approaching a sandbar soon. Do you wanna get the others and take a short swim?" I asked.

Nico grinned. "Absolutely." Then he turned and hurried down the stairs to retrieve the other demigods.

...

Annabeth's POV

I ran down the stairs leading to the room I shared with Thalia and Katie. The door was closed, so I knocked.

"Who is it?" Thalia called in a singsong voice.

"It's me." I answered.

The door opened and a girl with straight black hair and lots of eyeliner smiled back at me. "Welcome Annabeth." she said as she curtsied and stepped back to let me in. I rolled my eyes. "You're weird Thalia."

She raised her eyebrows. "Is that so?"

A girl with long brown hair and lots of freckles appeared behind Thalia. "Yes, Thalia. But we love you anyways."

"What's not to love?" Thailia dramatically batted her eyelashes and fanned herself with her hand.

I plopped myself down heavily on the bed and sighed. "What's wrong Wisegirl? Not up for a swim?" Thalia said.

"You're so clueless Thalia. She's thinking about Percy." Katie laughed.

My face grew hot. "Am not!"

"Whhhhaaaaatttttever Wisegirl." Katie teased.

Thalia pulled a navy blue tankini with little white anchors all over it from her suitcase. "Cute suit Thalia!" said Katie. She frowned. "Mine's a one piece.." She waved a green suit with tiny hibiscus flowers decorating the front in the air.

"It's still cute!" I assured her.

"Thanks! What's yours look like?"

I was suddenly embarrassed. Why did I buy it? Reluctantly, I pulled it out of my duffel bag.

Thalia gasped. "ANNABETH!"

"I know, I know...I just won't swim." I said quickly.

"No! Annabeth! Go put it on!" Katie encouraged.

They rushed me into the bathroom. Slowly, I dressed myself and slid out of the bathroom. Both Katie and Thalia clapped hands over their mouths. "Annabeth! You're GORGEOUS!"

I was suddenly confused. "What?" I croaked.

"It's perfect on you!" Thalia exclaimed.

"It's not too...revealing?"

"No! Omigosh..just wait 'til Percy sees you!"

I looked down at my swimsuit. It was a coral pink bikini. The top was strapless with a little gold ring holding it together in the middle. I looked down at my bare legs, stomach, and shoulders and suddenly lost all confidence. I couldn't wear this. I had never showed off this much of my body before, and I wasn't ready to.

"You know, I think I'm gonna change into something else..." I started for the bathroom but Katie caught me by the arm. "Oh no you don't."

Thalia put two hands on my shoulders and shoved me toward the door. "Okay, listen closely Annabeth. You are going to climb those stairs. Then you are going to walk to the deck. Then you are going to make Percy's heart stop." I began to protest but they overpowered me and steered me to the stairs. I whimpered.

"Puppy face doesn't work on me Annabeth. I thought you would have learned that by now." Thalia told me bluntly. Katie giggled. "I can't wait to see Percy's face!" My efforts were hopeless. I stopped struggling and went limp. "Ugh." I muttered.

We reached the deck and I got butterflies in my stomach. I turned back to my friends. "Guys-please!" I begged.

Thalia smiled sweetly and cocked her head. "Poooorrr Ann-eee-beth! You'll thank me later." She shoved me onto the deck.

I felt like I had just stepped into a spotlight. The guys had been leaning against the rail chatting, but the second I emerged they went silent. Nico raised his eyebrows. "Annabeth?" I blushed. The Stoll brothers turned and gave synchronized whoas. Frank, Chris and Grover just stared in shock. Percy was facing Grover and still oblivious to me. He seemed confused. "Grover? Guys?" He waved a hand in front of Grover's face. "Dude?" Grover nodded towards me and Percy turned.

His face lit up and his mouth transformed into a mischievous grin. He must have seen the doubt on my face. "You're beautiful Annabeth."

The butterflies diminished and I couldn't seem to suppress my smile of relief. I ran and threw my arms around his neck and buried my face in his shirt.

He laughed. "You ready to swim?" I pecked him on the cheek. "Yeah."

"HEY WAIT FOR US!" Clarisse, Hazel, and Juniper bounded up the stairs. They were all dressed in bikinis with beach towels thrown over their shoulders. I waved. "Hey guys!"

"Cute suit Annabeth!" Hazel told me.

"Yours is pretty cute too." I replied. Hazel was wearing a cream top with blue beads embroidered into it. The bottoms were the same shade of blue as the beads.

She smiled. "Thanks! I got it 15% off at TJ Maxx."

Travis rolled his eyes. "Well, that's cool and all, but can we swim now?" Katie came up behind him and gently shoved him over the edge. Unfortunately for her, he grabbed her by the wrists and a few seconds later we heard a splash followed by the sound of giddy laughing and giggling.

The rest of us threw our towels over the railing and slid off our shoes. Percy pulled his t-shirt off over his head and lazily dropped it on the deck. My heart skipped a beat. I mean, I knew he must have had abs from all of the hard training he does at camp, and I'd seen him shirtless before, I'd just never noticed. He took my hand and lead me to the edge. "Jump on three." he told me. I nodded. We counted down, and just before three, I shoved him. He let out a surprised yelp and tumbled into the water.

"Hey!" he yelled when he came back up. I giggled and jumped in after him. The water was cool on my skin. Percy swam over and pulled me close. "Cheater." he whispered as he kissed me gently. This was going to be a great spring break.