The ride to the airport had been painfully awkward. Annabeth's dad had hugged her tentatively, like he was scared if he hugged too hard Annabeth would get freaked out and bolt, which she might've done now if she wasn't on a plane 36,000 feet in the air.
Now she had her headphones in her ears and her eyes closed, trying to think of a plan for the summer. She didn't have any friends in California. Maybe she'd go to the beach and learn how to surf, or go kayaking, if people still did that. But then she remembered that she didn't really like the beach. So maybe planning out the summer was going to be a little more difficult.
The six hour plane ride flew by, surprisingly. One awkward car ride later, and Annabeth was at her home for the summer.
Her fathers house never ceased to amaze Annabeth. Every time she laid her eyes on it, it took her breath away. The Victorian style house had been made years before, but was re-done to make it look a bit more modern. The architecture inspired her, which was one of the reasons she decided to visit her dad for the summer.
Her father grabbed her bags and led her into the house and to her room. The house felt so familiar yet so foreign. She saw no sign of her step mother or siblings yet, which was fine with her.
A wave of nostalgia hit her when she walked into her old room. Everything looked exactly how it was the last time she was here. All of her drawings still hung on the walls. Her bed was unmade and clothes were strewn over the floor. It was like she never left.
She walked over to the nightstand and picked up a small black box.
"Is this?..."
Her father smiled. "Open it."
Inside the box was a silver owl necklace. It was small and cheap, probably cost 10 bucks, but it meant the world to Annabeth. She smiled and shook her head in disbelief.
"I thought I lost this! How did you find it?"
"You left it behind last time you left. I know how much you love that thing, so I made sure to keep it safe until you ca-"
Annabeth cut his sentence short by tackling him in a hug.
"Thank you."
"Listen, Annabeth. I know that last time didn't really, uh, work out. But this is your home, never forget that."
"I know. So, where are the twins and..."
"Helen took them to her parents house for the weekend. It's just you and I. Do you wanna go see a movie or something?"
"Um, actually I thought I would go to the beach for a little while. Is that okay?"
"Yeah sure. I'll leave you to unpack."
Once her father left, Annabeth put away her things and tidied up her room. She thought about her father. They were getting along so far. She wondered how long that would last, especially when her step-mother came home.
Once she was finished, she threw a bathing suit on and got dressed in a tank top and shorts. She wasn't even sure why she was going. Nevertheless, she grabbed her things and started the 15 minute walk to the beach. Along the way, she stopped at a shop to buy a surfboard. If she was gonna do this, she would be commited.
The beach was crowded; typical on a Saturday. Annabeth sighed. Huge crowds annoyed her, so she made her way down to a less populated area. She laid her towel down in the sand and settled into it, relaxing a bit. She looked out into the ocean, which was a pretty blue green color. A few people were surfing, so Annabeth observed them, trying to learn their technique.
One guy definitely stood out. He rode the waves with such ease, he looked like he was born to surf.
Annabeth took off her clothes, exposing her gray bathing suit. She grabbed her board and walked to the shoreline. She watched the boy surf, following his movements, studying his feet placement, how he adjusted to accommodate bigger waves.
Once she more or less understood how surfing worked, she stared at the waves, trying to get up the courage to try it. It couldn't be that hard, could it?
"You know, most people who stalk me are a little less obvious about it. But then again, most of them aren't as pretty as you. Percy Jackson." The surfer guy held out his hand to Annabeth.
Trouble
That was the first word that came to her mind when she looked at him. He was, well, sexy.
He had dark windswept hair and gorgeous eyes the color of the sea. His toned muscles and six pack abs that made her want to run her fingers across his chest and explore every inch of him.
The thoughts she had made her feel unfaithful, like she was cheating on Luke. And that made her feel guilty.
Percy cocked his head. "So are you going to continue admiring me or are you gonna shake my hand?"
Annabeth glared at him. "No, I'm not going to shake your hand. If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go surf now."
"You've been standing here for a while. Looks like you've never surfed a day in your life."
"Oh, so you've been watching me, too."
Percy shrugged. "Well, you're beuautiful. Kinda hard not to notice you."
He gave Annabeth a look. A look that made her insides melt.
He cleared his throat. "Anyway, I could teach you."
Annabeth knew what she should say. She should tell him no, then leave and forget she ever met him. Forget that this handsome, flirtatious guy had just offered to teach her how to surf. Because, even though she'd only met Percy Jackson five minutes ago, she new she shouldn't befriend him.
"You're in luck, Annabeth. I'm kind of the best surfer around here. I'm the perfect person to teach you."
Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Whatever, I just have one rule. No flirting."
"Ok, no flirting." Percy winked at her. "Let's get in the water. I'm gonna teach you everything there is to know about surfing. You're going to be an expert by the time I'm done with you."
A/N: I'm going to be updating this story every Saturday. I might update earlier if I finish the chapter early. I wanted this whole story to be in Annabeth's POV, but please review and tell me if I should do Percy's too. Thank you for reading.
