The next morning, Percy and his mom made the long (in his opinion) drive back to their apartment in Manhattan. Despite her son's constant pleas to remain on the beach, Sally Jackson had successfully managed to pack all of their belongings as well as her overactive son into their small car, and they set off. As the car pulled the two of them further and further away from paradise, Percy could only stare out the window mournfully as the endless ocean grew more and more distant, until he could no longer see it, no matter how much he squinted. With a sigh, the young boy turned his attention back to the car, and already his mind was on their next trip.

"Mom, when can we go back again?" he asked, gazing innocently up at his mother with green eyes identical to his father's.

Sally glanced up at her young son through the rearview mirror, mentally sighing at how much he looked like his father. And when he asked about the beach, she was reminded of earlier days spent with Percy's father at the very same beach, and his love for the water.

She managed a small smile, but kept her eyes on the road as she replied, "I don't know, baby. With you starting school next week, it's going to be pretty hard to find the time to get back up here. But we'll see. Maybe if you're extra good this year we might find the time to come back."

This brought a smile to Percy's face, and it warmed Sally's heart to see such a simple thing bring so much joy to her son. If only she, too, could be transported to simpler times, when all that mattered was when they would get to go to the beach next. 'It won't be like this for long, though' she told herself. Soon Percy will be older, and he'll have so much on his mind that visiting Montauk will be the last thing on his mind. But she told herself to not think of Percy getting older, of him becoming a man and graduating and eventually leaving her all alone. She knew that he would never mean to hurt her (he was too much of a momma's boy to do so), but it wouldn't make his leaving any easier. Sally knew that there would come a time when one day another woman would need him, even more than she did now, and she would love him and care for him as much as she did. But, until that day came, Percy was all hers.

Two hours was a long drive with someone who had an attention span the size of Percy's in the back seat. After the phrase 'Are we there yet?' had been uttered several hundred times, the Jacksons finally returned to their apartment. Percy, who couldn't stand sitting still in the car for any longer, immediately threw open the door and ran to the building. Sally, taking her time as she unloaded everything from their car, noticed a moving truck across the street, right in front of the house which their old neighbors had recently put up for sale. Her curiosity peaked, she gazed across the road, trying to catch a glimpse of who their new neighbors would be. Seeing no one, she walked over to where Percy was standing impatiently, and together they made their journey up the stairs to their apartment.

After putting all of their things from the beach away, Sally made a batch of chocolate chip cookies, adding blue food coloring to them (an inside story between her and Percy). As they cooked in the oven, Percy, as if summoned by a sixth sense, wandered into the kitchen and sat down, waiting for the small packages of deliciousness to finish. When the timer finally went off, Sally pulled them out of the oven so they could cool, and swatted her son's small hand as it reached out in the hopes of snagging a cookie.

"No, Percy," she said gently. "We have some new neighbors, and I made these for them. You can have some another time."

Percy pouted. Not only did they have to leave the beach, his favorite place in the entire world, but he couldn't have any of his mom's blue cookies. This was turning out to be a terrible day. And, to make matters worse, his mom decided that the two of them should go over to welcome the new people across the street.

Pulling on his jacket and shoes, Percy took his mother's hand as they crossed the street, making sure to look both ways before the crossed, just as she had taught him. When they reached the house and his mom knocked on the door, Percy could tell that someone had indeed moved in. There were boxes everywhere, and the place reminded him of his room before his mom forced him to clean it.

A few seconds later, a familiar tall, blonde man came to the door, and smiled at the two of them.

"Hello Sally, long time no see, huh? And Percy, my boy, do you remember me?" the man said warmly.

Percy gazed up at the man, trying to remember where he had seen him before. Suddenly, it dawned on him; this was Annabeth's dad. And if this was Annabeth's dad, then that had to mean…

"PERCY!" a joyful cry interrupted Percy's train of thought. He looked behind the blonde man, and saw Annabeth running towards them. Grinning widely, he ran over to her and gave her a hug.

"What are you doing here?" he asked her, wondering what on earth she was doing in a house that someone had just bought.

"What do you mean, 'what am I doing here?' We just moved here, Seaweed Brain. The real question is, what are YOU doing here?' Annabeth looked at her, her gray eyes shining with happiness and knowledge.

Percy, taking a moment to comprehend what she had just said, replied, "Oh, uh, me and my mom live in the apartment building across the street. She made some cookies for our new neighbors and made me come with her, so yeah, here I am."

Annabeth laughed, and Percy was happy that he and Annabeth now lived so close to each other. It would be nice to have a friend at school, and someone who could help him with his homework.

"Did you just say that your mom made cookies?" Annabeth asked, and Percy's stomach rumbled, even though they had just eaten a few hours ago.

"Yeah, and they're still warm, so the chocolate chips are still gooey," he replied mournfully, thinking of the lost deliciousness that Annabeth would get to enjoy.

"What's with the long face?" Annabeth asked, noticing Percy's dejected look at the mention of the cookies.

With a sigh, Percy replied, "We brought the cookies for you and your dad and there's none left at home for me. And I love my mom's cookies."

Annabeth just laughed, and Percy was upset. How dare she laugh at him not being able to eat cookies! She was the one who got them, she didn't have to watch her friend eat them right in front of her.

"Oh Seaweed Brain, you don't think I'll let you have some? Of course I will! What are friends for?" Annabeth told him.

Percy smiled softly, glad once again that Annabeth was his friend. He was so lucky that Annabeth had moved here, and he knew that they were going to friends forever.

"Thanks, Wise Girl," he said, genuinely thankful to Annabeth.

With a nod in return, Annabeth turned around and motioned for Percy to follow her. And together, the two of them ran down the hall, in search of blue cookies.