This is a bit shorter chapter than the last. Its really a filler to be honest. Still I hope you like it and you know the review button…yeah see it staring you down…you so want to press it. If you do it makes me happy and I'll keep writing…yaaaay!

Chapter 2

The journey out was quiet and the roads were mostly empty. I drove as fast as I could without breaking the limit. If I got arrested because of speeding Annabeth would never let me hear the end of it. I twisted the dial on the radio for some decent music but there was nothing to my liking so I just opened the glove compartment and popped in a Paramore CD. As "Misery Business" came on through the speakers, I hummed along and couldn't help being a little happier now that I was out. In about 10 minutes I will be with my girlfriend and whatever had been bothering me for the last few hours would be gone, at least for a while.

I was so lost in my thoughts that I almost missed the turning for the Annabeths. While she was attending boarding school she still preferred to spend time at her dads…and mine. I jerked the wheel at the last second round the corner and nearly drove the car straight into a parked car on the corner. I heard disgruntled shouts from people on the side walk.

"Hey watch it!" one yelled at me. I held my hand up in apology and tried to park reverse my way out. Unfortunately there was a car waiting behind me so that route was pretty much taken. Shit…I took my attention away from the car for a second then stalled it. I could hear the 'tuts' from inside the car; some people looking at me with irritation in their eyes and others just simply laughing. I turned the key and started again

Eventually I managed to get the car to move and back on the road. I drove another couple of blocks and veered into a side road. I parked up a just in front of her house and cut the engine. I got out of the car with enthusiasm I could not contain. What I saw next took my breath away. Sitting on the edge of the pavement was the most beautiful sight I have ever seen. Now I know I may be a tad biased, after all she is my girlfriend but still I could not believe how…hot she looked. She was wearing a dark blue satin dress with a blue flower pinned just below her left shoulder. Her blonde hair was straighter than usual but curled up at the ends. It held a small yellow bow and another yellow flower pinned in her hair. She wore a tad more makeup than usual but not too much so that it took away the beauty of her face. She was wearing lipstick…that was unusual. As she noticed my vacant expression she laughed and took a step towards me.

"Put your tongue back in your mouth Sea weed brain" she scolded though I could definitely hear a teasing note to her tone.

She took one step closer to me. I could see her lips shining as a dazzling smile spread on her face. Her perfectly white teach showing themselves.

"If I knew I'd get this reaction just from a skimpy dress and some makeup I would have done this years ago." She laughed again.

"Uh huh" I managed to get out. She just chuckled and looked down to the floor then back up at me. I shook myself out of this trance

"You don't look so bad yourself Percy" she said with a cocky grin. With that she reached out and pulled me even close to her. I could feel her body warmth through the thin satin. Through the evening light, the orange sun blasted her face, reflecting in her grey eyes. I leant forward and we kissed, our lips melting into each other, flowing into a rhythm neither one of us wanted to stop. Eventually she broke off, still with her body touching my skin, with a dazed look on her face. She looked flustered.

"Um…err" she tried to get words out but I couldn't. I laughed. It was usually me that had this problem.

"Yes Annabeth?" I asked innocently. She blushed and looked to the floor.

"Uh…nothing". She laughed nervously.

"So…we should go or we'll miss the reservation" she said obviously trying to change the subject. I have to admit, it was fun watching her fall over her words.

"Yeah sure…but first…" I leant in and kissed her again before showing her to the passenger seat. I then got in the drivers seat and started up the ignition.

"So…Paul let you borrow the car then?" I stayed silent. I heard her whisper under her breath.

"I guess not then." I smiled, which in turn made her smile. I guess the last few years we didn't have much to smile about.

We drove for the next couple of minutes in silence, except for the background noise of the CD player. Occasionally we would steal each other glances and our eyes would meet. Sometimes we would pass streets that we remember and our smiles would fade momentarily. Nothing could lighten the fact that too many lives were lost defending this city. We kept passing stools where automatons used to be perched. The mortal public had tried to round them all up with the help of Hermes (which by the way they had no idea about), they still hadn't found all of them. There were thousands…some of them may never be found. In some places there were cracks streaking through the ground like a fissure. Mortal's probly put this down to an earthquake but it was evident to me and Annabeth that this was the work of Nico and his father. Thank the gods they were on our side. In other places there were huge chucks taken out of the walls of a random building. Looking towards downtown New York I could see the entire top of a sky scraper cut in half. Damn that stupid Drakon.

It was a good ten minutes before one of us broke the silence.

"Percy?" Annabeths voice jolted me back to reality.

"Yes?". I asked back.

"You mind telling me exactly where you are taking me?...or is it some kind of big surprise?". She said that with some bitterness that I couldn't help but laugh at. Being a child of Athena and all she prized knowledge and when she didn't know something however small it would bug her. As the laugh escaped my lips I could her growling next to me. This only made me laugh harder.

"Seriou-! "

"Okay okay!" I interrupted stopping her from going into one of her rants. Trust me when she gets going it takes a while to get her out again. Then again I can't really talk. I sighed.

"We are going to this restaurant called Bluefield's. My mom used to take me there as a kid sometimes on my birthday…Gabe hated it because of the cost but neither of us cared…I guess that's what made the idea appeal to us…so…well…I wanted to take you here because…well…I wanted to share part of childhood with you…" I couldn't say anymore. I knew how pathetic I sounded. I was starting to get emotional. I what I hadn't told her was the fact that I have not returned to this place since before Camp Half-Blood. The last time I went in here was, well the day before I me Alecto the Fury. The day before my life changed. I looked over to the passenger seat next to me briefly and saw something I didn't expect to see. Annabeths face was pointed to the floor. She wiped her left hand across her face. When she looked at me again her eyes were red and glazed, she had been crying. These were the kinds of tears I could stand, tears of joy.

"Oh perc-"she couldn't even talk. I didn't want makeup to start to running on her face and I handed her a tissue and shh-ed her, keeping my eyes on the road so I didn't crash. She leant her head against my shoulder. I could smell a flowery scent in her hair. Ok stupid thing to say since there WAS a flower in her hair but still, I inhaled slowly, taking in her smell.

After a short while she unburied herself from my shoulder. She couldn't stop smiling. Luckily her makeup had been waterproof she just wiped her face and looked pretty much as beautiful as before. She took two deep breaths. She was about to say something when I pulled up the car.

"We're here" I breathed. We had pulled just outside the restaurant overlooking lower bay. The restaurant looked just as it had the last time I had went there. Sitting on above the entrance was a big neon blue sign with "Bluefields" written on it in a kind of calligraphic style script. The doors were a dark black brown mahogany wood colour. . As soon as I left the car I could smell the fresh smell of roast chicken, gammon, all sorts of food. It smelt of home. I could also faintly smell the air of the sea, the salt feeling its way through my windpipe like a breath of life. The sea was my favourite place to be. I darted round to the other side of the car and popped open the door.

"After you my lady" I said in a posh voice.

"Why thank you kind sir!" she answered back in an equally pompous manor. I took her hand and helped her out of the car. When she was out I used my free hand to close the doors and click the lock mechanism on the car keys. I heard the familiar beep beep. With that we slowly walked the few short steps to the door.

"This is the place?" she said in awe

"How can you afford a place like this?"

"You look beautiful" I whispered into her ear. She blushed and then looked my dead in the eye. She opened her mouth to say something but closed her mouth just as quickly. I didn't realise we were at the door until the doorman's voice interrupted my trail of thought.

"Do you have a reservation?" he said in a bored voice. I looked up to a balding man wearing a suit brandishing a clipboard. His tone much reminded me of Dionysus, the wine god. I never liked that god much. He obviously thought that we were just a couple of insolent kids trying to get into a fancy restaurant without a reservation.

"Of course" I said in an irritated tone. He arched an eyebrow at me and then took a look at my girlfriend. He did this for several seconds before turning back to his clipboard.

"Name" he said impatiently.

"Jackson" I answered. The guy started to scan quickly down the clipboard. He clearly wasn't very thorough; he just wanted to appear like he was doing his job. When he found my reservation he eyed me up and down again and scowled at me.

"Right this way" he said waving his hand in a "come here" gesture. We both followed the man inside. Our date had finally begun.