3 days later and here i am again hell yeah! this chapter is a bit longer and i think is my favorite so far? yup :

songs to listen to for this chapter!:

Flute (Original Mix) by New World Sound & Thomas Newton
Turn Down For What by DJ Snake feat. Lil Jon
Levels by Avicii
Don't You Worry Child by Swedish House Mafia

A Little Party Never Killed Nobody

4
Percy

It was just his shitty luck. One second Percy was kicking it off with Annabeth and the next she was avoiding him like he was the plague.

Running a hand through his hair, he glanced around the cafeteria with sharp eyes. He spent most of the day trying to pick out the pretty blonde from the crowds in the halls or even the darker corridors of the less habituated buildings.

"Percy?"

Glancing over his shoulder, he frowned when it wasn't Annabeth standing there, even though the voice was clearly male.

"Hey man," Percy muttered as he clasped Leo's hand in greeting, "How's it going?"

"Nothing bro, just been busy at the shop. They got wicked shit here! But hey," Leo watched him carefully, "You okay?"

Leo was a good friend, if not goofy half of the time and Percy appreciated his sudden acute awareness of his mood.

"Ya' got that whole droopy dog face going on." Leo snickered and Percy rolled his eyes, "Yeah thanks Leo. But hey, you haven't seen Annabeth, have you?"

Leo clicked his tongue like he often did and a couple girls who passed by giggled, stealing looks at the both of them. Percy was half expecting to be blown off by the guy in front of him in favor of chasing after those girls, but he was shocked to see Leo not even give them the time of day.

Instead Leo's eyebrows furrowed in thought and snapped his fingers once, successfully catching Percy's attention to the current situation. "I did actually! I was walking out of the workshop with, uh," he cleared his throat, "s-some friends, and she was following this woman up the stairs."

Percy frowned. The workshop was in the less habited buildings of the school and he never even thought to look at the second floor, since it seemed to be inhabited by locked, I.D. badge checking doors.

"Huh, thanks then." Percy nodded and flicked his skateboard down against the cafeteria's white title, placing a foot on it in order to roll away when Leo's hand grabbed his shoulder.

Percy glanced at him, confused and blinked to see the younger guy shuffling awkwardly. "Perce," Leo started, "How do you get a girl to like you? Like, uh, I met this girl and she's kind of the bossiest, snottiest chick on this planet but…"

Grinning wide, Percy chuckled. "Just, aim to hang out with her at first, annoy her but make her laugh. Though still respect her boundaries yeah?"

Leo nodded and flashed him a wide grin. "Thanks."

"No prob!" And with that, Percy pushed off and rolled quickly through the open-air cafeteria, drawing some attention that was quickly brushed off as he slid through the open doors to the green.

Whatever was going on with Annabeth, he was determined to find out. In seconds he slid up to a tall beacon-like building that loomed over the large circular green courtyard that sat in the middle of the circle of campus buildings.

It was by far the biggest and oldest of all the buildings and Percy's eyes narrowed at the flags drifting softly in the breeze. He shoved his board into his backpack, letting it stick out loosely behind him. Percy took the stairs two at a time and pushed open the dark front doors into the hallway, passing by a couple of workshop students as he made his way up the stairs at the end of the hall.

The second floor was cold and the windows on the left looked out on the courtyard menacingly, the flags billowing level with them. His fingers trailed over the wall and his lips curled into a frown as he felt the wall more closely.

"Metal walls…?" He mumbled but continued on, his skin prickling at the stillness of the corridor.

Trying to keep as quiet as possible, because it felt more natural than storming around, Percy crept down the hallway, looking at each card locked door that he passed.

He could hear no sounds from any of them, until he reached the fourth door from the right.

Glancing down the hallway he counted six doors, the largest being the one at the very end of the hallway. Drawing his attention to the fourth door in front of him, he leaned in to press his ear to the cold metal and listened as carefully as he could to the soft murmuring in the room.

"…Annabeth…can't…" He could barely make out anything else as he curved closer to the door. Closing his eyes to try and see if that could help, he pushed gently against the door and almost tripped backward in shock as the door drifted inwards a little.

No alarms went off as the door opened slowly to reveal a large study. It was quite cozy looking and lined with furs and huge bookcases. It was an odd jump from a cold metal hallway to a big, almost European-like study.

The voices were louder now and Percy crept as softly as possible into the room, dancing around bookcases as he followed the voices to the very back, where a cold fireplace arched out behind a midcentury antique desk.

Peeking around a bookcase, he gulped.

Annabeth stood in front of the desk, staring hard at the woman in front of her.

Percy squinted, trying to catch a glance at the woman sitting behind the desk. Annabeth blocked his view completely and he dangerously teetered furthered around the bookcase.

"Mother, please." Annabeth said finally, "Don't be like this."

The woman stood calmly and Percy sucked in a quiet breath. Despite her dark hair and taller, broader physique, she held a striking resemblance to Annabeth, though seemed colder and more calculating.

"Annabeth, it is simply how it has to be. You can't fraternize with him. What would your father think? You'd ruin all his hard work."

Percy saw how Annabeth frowned in unhappiness and his lips formed a solid line. What was she talking about?

"I can and will take over his company, mother," Annabeth spat, "It's not like a boy will distract me completely from things like that!"

Annabeth's mother balanced her fingers on the edge of the table. "Silly girl, don't underestimate what love will do. Besides, how could you…fraternize with the son of Poseidon! You know what he did to me."

From Percy's spot, he could see the grey eyes of Annabeth's mother hardened sharply. But he couldn't shake the name she said. Poseidon…? It seemed familiar to him and his fingers curled tighter around the dark wood of the bookshelf.

"That was ten years ago!" Annabeth waved her hands in exasperation, "And why does that matter? I thought we were talking about Percy here and yet you bring up Pose-!"

Percy frowned at his name. What? Why were they talking about him and what did this Poseidon guy have to do with him? His eyes trailed down to the plaque on Annabeth's mother's desk, eyes widening.

Athena.

What in the hell? It couldn't be the same Athena right? There was no way-

"Don't you get it! You're my daughter, the smartest one, at that! And yet here you are-"

CLANK!

Percy jumped out of his skin as his board smacked the bookshelf over his shoulder, the heavy sound reverberating in the room and calling Annabeth's and her mother's immediate attention to the eavesdropping boy behind the bookcase.

He met Annabeth's grey eyes and gulped at the confusion in them, before glancing to her mother's and almost yelping at the angry fire in them.

"You-" The hostility behind her voice made him backpeddle instantly, scrambling to flee. Athena took two large steps around the desk and toward him before Annabeth grabbed her upper arm.

"Mom, no!" She gasped, pulling her mom back, though her eyes burned straight into Percy's, practically screaming at him to run. In a second, he took off, sprinting out of the room and down the stairs before scrambling out of the building.

Something in his gut yelled at him for leaving Annabeth behind, especially with her mother so angry but man he did not want to become the main course of Athena's dinner that night.

His run turned into a light jog eventually when he reached the opposite side of campus. It was starting to get a little darker in the sky and the amount of students on campus was depleting with the second.

So many questions raced through his head, pulsing with the heartbeat trapped in his chest. Who was Poseidon? Why was Athena so angry?Why was Annabeth talking to her mother about him? What didn't Annabeth understand?

He brushed his sweaty bangs out of his face. This was one of the most complicated courtings of his life, even though he didn't have many. But something in the back of his head made his body ache at the thought of dropping Annabeth and ceasing their contact.

She was amazing, and cool to be with, and these questions – they needed answers. And Percy was beyond determined to figure out what exactly was going on.

As he walked back to the Psi Omega house, all the questions dissolved into a dull background and he lifted his head to the darkened clouds as it began to rain, letting the cool drops trail little paths down his cheeks.

.

Friday was always Percy's favorite day. Well maybe second, you can't pass up a lazy Sunday. But regardless Friday was a favorite definitely.

Despite not having a single class that day, he still woke up early. It was hard getting much sleep when Leo's room vibrated the whole house with his heavy bass music.

Whenever the beat dropped, the house practically moved and Percy grinned as he walked down to the kitchen after his shower. Travis and Connor brushed past, arguing about a shirt, but paused to greet Percy with devilish grins.

"Where did you disappear off to yesterday, Percy?" Travis smirked, "Finding a sappy corner to make out with a certain blonde?" Connor laughed as Percy's face paled.

He coughed and rolled his shoulders back. "Oh shut up," He grumbled, "Move it, you're in the way of my OJ."

Travis scooted out of the way as Percy opened the fridge. Man, he wished he had been off making out with Annabeth instead of catching her mid-convo with her mother.

"Travis, you know Percy is slow about moving in," Luke appeared, stealing the OJ out of Percy's hand, "He was probably off day-dreaming or swimming at the school pool."

Percy snapped from glaring at Luke for stealing his OJ to excited, "Dude there's a pool? What, no, where?" Travis and Connor laughed and walked away as Luke rolled his eyes.

It took Percy a good hour before finding the pool. But he was determined and it was a beautiful day so he didn't mind much. It was right by the main building, a huge indoor pool with white columns. It reminded him of a Roman bathhouse and it made him grin when he noticed no one was there.

Dumping his stuff in the men's locker room, he strode out to the pool in his trunks and dove in without a second thought. He loved the water, he lived for it and as he sank to the bottom of the pool, his mind drifted as he watched the light glimmer and gleam at the water's surface.

Rome University had a pool too, but much smaller and he spent day after day swimming there. It was where he liked to think most and where he was happiest.

Gliding through the water as smoothly as a fish, he swam laps until his arms ached with stress and his lungs burned.

People called him a mermaid sometimes, or joked that he was a fish. When he was young, he went out and got his lifeguard license at just 15. It was pretty impressive apparently and Paul once told him if he had stayed at a high school for longer than 6 months, he might've had a chance at becoming an Olympic swimmer.

But Percy didn't want to be the next Phelps or anything. He only liked competition in small amounts, and he didn't want to ruin his almost sacred pact with the water.

He let himself float on the surface, gently rocking with the water. He wasn't sure how long he spent there but when he climbed out, the sky was already dimming slowly so he took a short shower and cleaned up, leaving the pool house with a towel around his shoulders and a wet t-shirt.

As he turned the corner, he stumbled into a small girl, almost knocking her down.

"Shit sorry!" He gasped, backing up to give her room. She looked up at him and brushed her hair out of her face. "You're Percy, right? Grover's friend?" She asked curiously and Percy blinked, realizing he knew her.

"Yeah. And you're Juniper right?" He smiled at her, "Grover talks a lot about you. You should swing by our party later!" She blushed a bit and shrugged, "I'm- um- not much of a party girl."

Percy laughed. "Still come anyways, yeah?" He patted her shoulder and started walking away. "See you there, Juniper!" She waved at him and he continued back to his house.

He hadn't really seen Annabeth since yesterday and the idea that he would be partying at her place in close to two hours made him a bit jittery. Hopefully he could corner her and ask her about what happened…

After all, I do deserve some answers right? He thought to himself, stretching a bit.

By the time he reached the house, it was less than an hour till the party and it was clearly evident that half of the frat was in shambles. Now, they had been the party kings of New York City for as long as Percy had been in college but he's never really seen so much rampant nervousness among his brothers.

"Uh…" Nico stood in front of Leo with his eyes narrowed.

"Come ON, Nico! You're like half gay, tell me which one!" Leo shoved two shirts into Nico's face. The black haired kid stepped back and frowned at the comment. "Olive colored one. Also don't call me half gay."

"Sorry bro." Leo rushed away to stuff his other shirt away and Percy laughed as he walked up to Nico.

Nico glanced at him and huffed. "You smell like chlorine."

"Pool."

"Yeah I figured. Go get ready or else Luke might yell at you. He's being weird. Suddenly all huffy about appearance right now." Nico grumbled, fixing the vest he was probably forced to wear.

Percy went upstairs, drying his now very wavy hair so it wasn't so damp. His stomach was starting to flutter even more as he picked out clothes. Navy boxers, black jeans, belt, a loose blue shirt, and he was pretty much done dressing. Pulling on shoes, he stared in the mirror long enough that his eyes glazed over.

Small flashbacks to Annabeth sitting in class blended with memories of his mother and stepfather. He rubbed his face and sat on the edge of his bed.

"Come on Jackson." He mumbled to himself, questions floating around like little birds did in the cartoons when a character was dizzy.

The soft shadows of his room stretched and creeped back as the sun disappeared and the headlights of cars illuminated in his room. He could hear the faint noises of car doors slamming and laughter from the street. Glancing to his left, he peered out of the open doors of his balcony to watch dozens of people climbing the lawn of the Alpha Epithymía house.

Lights glinted off beer bottles and huge kegs that appeared from cars were greeted with cheers. With a surge of confidence, Percy hopped off his bed and walked downstairs, watching Charles fixed the cuffs of his shirt and the rest of his boys gather slowly.

Percy stuffed his hands in his pockets and the single natural motion commanded the attention of his friends as if they were waiting for him. He glanced at all of their faces and his lips tugged the corners of his mouth into a smirk, a motion mirrored by each of them.

"Let's go."

.

The second he stepped on the sidewalk on the other side of the street, with his Psi Omega boys behind him, he could feel the block buzzing with energy. He smirked at those who glanced at them and ascended the steps to the Alpha Epithymía house, a couple girls standing by the door giving them the eyes.

Stepping into the mansion, he glanced around. A live DJ spun tracks at the top of the stairs, making the whole place buzz with heavy bass and loud music. People were drinking and laughing and dancing everywhere. The two grand double doors under the stairs were opened wide to the huge backyard, where it was filled with even more people. He could even see people hopping around and being pushed into the pool.

"This beat is fucking sick." Jason shouted over the music, just as the beat dropped and the place erupted with dance and screams. Percy was about to dive right in when a hand slapped onto his chest and glanced down to see Drew, Thalia and Piper there.

"Glad you guys could make it." Drew called out and Percy nodded, "Have fun you all." She smirked at them and before he could blink, he was in the middle of it all.

The music pounded, the drinks were godly and he felt almost weightless. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Nico and Jason get dragged off by Piper and Thalia.

Luke stuck with him and together they found more beer, watching Travis and Connor try and pick up ladies.

"Dude, have you moved in on Annabeth yet?" Luke called and Percy shook his head, gulping down some beer. Some girls fluttered by and purred at them, but he kind of brushed it off.

"Are you thinking of trying to?" Luke asked and Percy only half-heard him, trying to look through the crowd for said blonde.

"Percy?"

"Yeah." He finally responded, "Probably, because I think I-" Before he could finish, in walked a huge crowd of people he instantly recognized as their crowd from NYC. And at the front was Rachel.

"Percy!" She spotted him instantly and he opened his arms as she came barreling in for a hug.

"Hey Rachel, what's up?" Percy grinned at her, Luke nodding his own greeting. She looked pretty in her shorts and simple tank top and he stepped back to grab a beer and hand it to her.

"The drive up here was crazy!" She laughed and was about to continue on her story but a glimmer caught Percy's eye and he watched with wide eyes as Annabeth descended from the stairs.

He wasn't sure if the music cut off anything that Rachel or Luke said or if it was himself because his eyes were intently locked on Annabeth. She wore a shimmery gold dress that clung to her body like glue and her hair was down for once, curly and fanning out as she walked down the stairs.

People came up to her, boys cat-called, he could faintly see drinks being offered, but her eyes roamed around the crowd like she was looking for someone. "Percy?" His attention snapped back to Rachel, who seemed confused since both Percy, and apparently Luke as well, had turned away to catch a glimpse.

"Uh…Yeah Rach?" He tried not to glance back at Annabeth, tried to turn his attention fully to Rachel but his mind was begging him to look again. "Well I was thinking maybe…we, I," Rachel's voice wavered and he subconsciously blocked her out. He could feel it; he could feel Annabeth's eyes on him.

Sure enough, he looked up to see Annabeth looking at him with those gorgeously intense grey orbs. He stared back at her, holding her gaze. "Rachel, Luke, I'll…" He trailed off, "be right back."

As if the crowd parted for him, he reached Annabeth easily. She looked like she was going to run, try to get away from him but she stood her ground. "Hey." He didn't mean to lean into her but he did, his empty hand lightly touching her elbow.

"Hi Percy." The way his name slid out of her lips made him shiver slightly, "We need to talk."

He nodded slowly and without a word more, she dragged him upstairs. The music seem dulled in his ears, everything dull besides the feeling of her hand pulling his wrist, her hair brushing softly against the dress, how she would glance back at him with serious, unwavering eyes.

They moved fluidly around couples making out and people drinking and dirty dancing, and he became faintly aware that she was pulling into an empty room.

He watched her close the door, the music slightly muted now. Instead of making her way back to stand with him, she turned and leaned ever so softly against the door. He placed his beer can on the desk close to him, keeping his eyes on her.

A million questions popped into his head, and though he had thought so much about each of them, his mouth was suddenly numb. She was quiet and he was unsure if he should be too.

But then, "I'm sorry." Annabeth murmured, tucking her hair behind her ear, "For storming out on you and for that whole thing with my mother."

He nodded slowly, looking down at his shoes before looking back at her. She raised her head to meet his eyes and his mouth went dry. His curiosity forced him however to continue. "Why?" He cleared his throat, "Why was your mother so mad at me?"

Annabeth blinked and sighed a bit. "To be completely honest, I'm still not very sure. My mom, well she's a very secretive person. I know I'm missing something, something that's right in front of me, but my head is blank as to what."

She loved being in control of things, she was always on top of anything and he could tell she was troubled. He shoved his hands in his pockets and watched her carefully.

"Then," he continued, "What did I do to make you, uh, storm out on me?"

She laughed out of her nose and rolled her eyes. "You're so naïve, Jackson! God, when you mentioned Rachel I was a little rattled. I didn't want to stand in between a couple or anything and- "

"A couple?" He cut in, thoroughly confused now, "You think Rachel and I are a couple?"

Annabeth blinked at him. "Um…yeah. Aren't you?"

"No!" He burst out, "Gods no. She's a good friend, one of my best friends actually but no we're not dating." He grimaced and shook his head. "That's weird to even think about."

Percy didn't catch the look of relief on her face and instead scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Alright," She breathed, "I'm glad because I don't want to mess anything up with what we have…"

He looked at her and her suddenly flushed cheeks. His eyebrows shot up and he almost grinned at her flustered face. "What we have?" He asked teasingly, "What do you mean, Chase?"

She balled up her fists and huffed at him, eyes narrowing. "Oh hush, Percy," She stepped forward and poked his chest.

"I will not hush." His hands lifted out of his pockets, "I want to know what you think we have." He looked at her, studying her face. He could feel his own cheeks color. This was not what he was expecting to talk about when he came up here with her.

Annabeth's lower lip shook and he realized how nervous she seemed to be. "I'm not sure…" She muttered, "We just…flutter around each other or something."

Percy was suddenly very aware of how close they stood to each other, and Luke's mocking words of 'you know Percy is slow about moving in' echoed in his ears. Her finger hovered away from his chest and she glanced away.

His heart jumped into his throat and before he could back away from the metaphoric cliff, he dove right off of it, his arm closing around her waist. She faintly gasped, stiffening as she glanced back to his face.

"Annabeth, let me kiss you." He breathed.

hell yeah here we goooo
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