Don't let my obnoxious line breaks ruin the mood I try so hard to create.
Disclaimer: I do not own Percy and Annabeth simply because they own each other ;)
Chapter 3: Back in Time
All my life, I've never liked the smell of hospitals. The first time I ever visited one was when my mother was on her deathbed. I was so young and naïve, hardly able to realize what was going on. My mother, so broken is disfigured with the curse of sickness, whispered to my family in hushed tones.
"It's going to be alright, Annabeth darling," she'd whisper hoarsely. "I'm going to be fine."
My father sat with his head in his hands, hiding his tears from the rest of my mother's family. I remember being so lost and confused until my father explained to me what was going on. She's dying, they would all say as they individually whispered prayers over her head.
"She was so young and never had the opportunity to live a full life", my father would often tell me in the aftermath.
Pancreatic cancer was the culprit of the crime that dimmed the light in my father's eyes and caused me to make irrational decisions later in my childhood. It had silently crept into my mother's body and left no survivors. Hospitals remind me of my mother and her final days of life.
The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was the sickly cream colored walls, confirming my suspicions. I was indeed in a hospital. Why? It only took a few seconds before flashes of the previous night entered my mind in a hurricane of confusion. I glanced down upon my body and found no injuries, simultaneously doubling-over from intense pain coming from my head. I reached my hand up to my face and gasped as I felt a huge welt forming on my forehead.
Oh my gosh
I started hyperventilating, causing my heart rate monitor to speedup tenfold. In the bed next to me, Percy was passed out lying down with numerous medical contraptions surrounding him. He looked so content, with his mouth opened slightly, drooling on the hospital pillow. I almost smiled until I noticed the dark ring around his left eye and the cast assembled on his right arm. My heart rate monitor started beeping even louder, causing me to freak out even more than I already was. Percy woke up quickly upon hearing the loud sounds of my monitor.
"Annabeth, calm down! It's okay!" He shouted.
A pair of nurses rushed in through the door, relieved when they realized that I had only just woken up and wasn't further injured. I eyed Percy as the women propped my back up onto a hard pillow and detached the heart rate monitor and IV from my arm. What happened, I mouthed. Explain later, he replied, emphasizing his mouth movements causing me to subconsciously giggle. The women said something about waking up and exited the room.
"Did you just giggle?" He asked, talking aloud as the door closed. I scowled.
"You drool in your sleep," I commented, changing the subject. He blushed adorably, noticing the wet spot on his pillow. Did I just say adorably?
"You had a concussion," Percy added, obviously trying to change the subject again. I strained my mind to conjure up the happenings of the previous night.
"Let's go clubbing!"
"Whoa Annie, awfully nervous."
"After you, birthday girl."
"Don't run away, I won't bite."
I gasped as I realized where I had last been and who had been there with me. "There was a man," I said, not providing the particular details about how I knew him. "He…h-h..he...," I stuttered.
"It's okay Annabeth, he isn't coming back," Percy reassured. "He's actually in jail right now for being over the age to enter a teen club. He also was faulted for being intoxicated, earning him about a weeks' worth of sentence."
"How do you know all of this?" I asked.
"The man and I got in a fight...," Percy started, biting down on his lower lip considering something carefully. "He pushed you down and you passed out. We both beat each other down pretty good but one of the owners stopped us and I explained the situation. The police and ambulance arrived and they took the man away. You and I are here because you had a concussion and I," he glanced down at himself precariously. "I'm not exactly in the best shape," he finished.
Wow, even with all those bruises and a hospital gown he still looks sexy.
"Shut up," I muttered under my breath. Of course, he heard me say this out loud because I'm just that good.
"What?" He's even cuter when he's confused.
"Nothing, I just have a headache," I replied, a small blush coloring my cheeks. What was I thinking? What kind of drugs did these people put me on? "What about our friends?" Maybe if I ask more questions, I'll stop thinking. Hah, fat chance- I never stop thinking
"They all went home, according to plan, to Silena's house. But, there is a pretty obvious flaw in that plan," he mumbled, distressed.
"Us," I whispered. "My dad is going to kill me when he finds out that I'm in the hospital again," I groaned, my headache noticeably worsening. "What time is it?"
"Like two in the morning," he replied casually. "Thanks for waking me up, by the way." Guilt surged through me as I processed his sarcasm coated words.
"Sorry, I was confused! How would you feel if you woke up in a hospital and didn't know why?" I apologized quickly, knowing how much the boy in front of me had helped me in the past few hours. I stood up and walked towards his bed, ultimately deciding to sit at the foot of his bed crisscross style. I smirked when his heart rate sped up. "So I make your heart speed up?"
"Well, you are kind of scary," he laughed. That earned him a whack in the head. "Ow! Do you not see where we are? I'm injured already- I don't need to stay here any longer than necessary." I took another glance at him. One of his arms was under the sheets and this other was resting on top of his knee. I tightened the blanket that I had brought from my bed around myself tighter upon noticing the thick white scar running up the length of his arm. My breath caught in my throat when I realized how careful I needed to be to avoid letting people see all my scars. If I had been further injured, they would have been able to see the train-tracks of white lines crossing every square inch of my body. I noticed how I was still in my clothes from the club while Percy had changed into the standard hospital gown, most likely because his injuries were more physical.
"Where did you get this?" I asked, running my finger down the line on his arm. He shuddered at my touch. I deciphered the look on his face and knew that the next words out of his mouth would be lies.
"A childhood ocean accident. I got a bad injury helping my dad harvest some oysters," Percy answered smoothly. If I hadn't seen his face before he replied, I would have believed him. After seeing how uncomfortable the subject made him, I dismissed it quickly and asked another question.
"So how do you suppose we should get out of here before the morning?"
"I don't know," he shrugged.
"Oh come on, Percy! You seriously can't think of anything?"
"You're supposed to be the smart one, not me!"
"Well there is one thing…" I smiled, an idea quickly forming in my brain.
SALLYTOTHERESCUEDUNDUNDUN
"Mom, slow down! You're gonna get us killed!"
"Just a second Percy. Geez, since when do sports cars purposely try to ride the curb and then slow down to like 20. I mean come on!" The first thing I discovered about Mrs. Jackson was that she preferred to be called Sally- and then that she had an extreme case of road rage. I flinched as she pressed her hand down on the horn repeatedly.
"Mom you're embarrassing me!" Percy hissed. I couldn't help myself from laughing.
"Fine, I'll change the subject. So you're the famous Annabeth?"
"Mom!"
"Percy talks about you all the time…"
"Mother!"
"It's okay Percy, let her talk. I'd like to hear all about-" I laughed as Percy buried his head into his hands. "Okay okay, I'll stop. Thanks again for getting us out of the hospital Sally. I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't," I admitted, changing the subject.
"It's no problem Annabeth, just make sure it doesn't happen again you two. I don't exactly enjoy waking up at two in the morning to receive calls about my injured son," Sally said before turning her head around and glaring at Percy.
"Mom eyes on the road!" It was going to be a long ride.
ANDSOMETIMEPASSES
Upon reaching Percy's apartment after a wild ride, Mrs. Jackson started showing me around their home. I couldn't stop myself from droning on about the architecture of their old style apartment building upon reaching lobby until I realized that nobody was really listening. Where did all this energy come from? During the drive, Mrs. Jackson had helped us create a plan for the next day. I would stay over at the Jackson's house until it the morning so Percy could drive himself and I back to Silena's house. Sally gave me some of Percy's extra clothes to sleep in and led me towards his bedroom.
"Really Sally, it's okay. I can sleep on the couch," I reasoned. She had already offered her home up to me and I didn't want to ask for too much of the Jacksons. Strangely, I already felt at home in the unfamiliar household.
"Annabeth I don't mind, you need to get some sleep." Why did Percy have to be so nice? I felt myself frowning as I watched him yawn.
Ten minutes later, I found myself sitting on Percy's bed in the dark. Normally I wasn't one to give in to over-generosity, but I realized I was only keeping Percy and his mom from sleeping even longer by fighting about it. As comfortable as his bed was, I couldn't find myself able to fall asleep.
"Can't fall asleep?" Even in the dark I could still see the smirk plastered across his face as he whispered through the door cracks.
"You too?"
"We don't exactly have the most comfortable couch...," he replied, settling himself next to me on his mattress, his face illuminated by the subtle pool of moonlight spilling through the window. I took this moment to look at him in more detail. His dark hair, tousled from his attempt at sleep, hung just above his eyes. I couldn't help but feel like he was looking through me with his crystalline sea-green eyes as he met my gaze. He was so familiar, like I'd known him in another life or something. I felt strangely comfortable around him, like I'd known him my entire life instead of just for a few months. "Annabeth?"
"Yeah?"
"Want to play a game?" Of course he would want to play a game.
"What kind of game?" I questioned, curious.
"How about twenty questions?" I sighed and conceded to the request.
"Alright." I could feel him smile without even looking at him.
"So Annabeth, what do you want to be when you grow up?" As if he didn't know already.
"Are we five Percy?"
"No. Good use of your first question, by the way."
"That doesn't count!" I scowled before answering. "I want to be an architect and design buildings. What about you?"
"Well, when I was younger I wanted to be an Olympic swimmer. Now, I'm not so sure…"
"What changed your mind?" I can't see myself not wanting to be an architect. It was what I always wanted- to build something permanent.
"I hurt my shoulders pretty badly, sports injuries. The physical therapist told me that I needed surgery and my mom couldn't afford it. I haven't swum since." In a flash of moonlight, I saw something flash across his face. Was it guilt? I nudged his shoulder reassuringly and tried to change the depressing mood I'd managed to create with my question.
"Don't let it get you down. There are lots of other jobs that you could do in that field like marine biology or oceanography. You don't have to be the next Michael Phelps you know."
"Favorite color?" He was quick to recover.
"I like green," I replied quickly, almost blushing. Just thinking about his eyes makes me like that color so much more. I shivered as another memory flashes through my mind- more green eyes. I shook it off and formulated a question. "Favorite food?"
"Blue cupcakes," Percy replied, nonchalantly. Of course he would like something so bizarre and particular. "With blue coke, of course," he added.
"Do they even make that?"
"If they is in reference to my mother then yes- all the time. We've got a full stock of blue food coloring in the kitchen." I laughed.
"Any more questions, Percy?" He pondered for a moment before speaking.
"If you could go back in time, what would you change about your life?" I would have never run away from home. I would have found some way to help Seaweed Brain escape. I would tell my mother to get herself checked for cancer before it took over her entire body. I would go back to the club and knock the terrible man senseless for all the pain he's caused me. I would have not cried and shed tears over problems that I always knew, deep down, could never be solved.
"So much," I admitted. "Almost everything- too much for me to explain."
"You don't have to talk about it," he murmured, staring at my face in the way that I had stared at his own earlier. I felt myself breaking down, my façade of perfection and togetherness fading away quickly. I was falling, falling, falling. Suddenly, my heart jolted in excitement as I felt a hand grasp mine, keeping me from tumbling into the depths of darkness that hid behind all the lies. "The past is the past, let's just move forward. Together," He said, giving my hand a hopeful squeeze. I sighed and smiled as his arm wrapped around me. Everything was so natural with him and I really liked it. He was so gentle and cautious and was exactly what I needed from a boy who had seen me at my highest and lowest points throughout the past few months. After being so strong for everybody, I needed someone to just help me let go.
"Together," I whispered. I felt myself lying down onto the mattress that suddenly felt like a cloud. "I think I'm going to go to sleep now. Night Percy." My eyelids were quick to close on their own.
"Do you mind if I stay here for a few more minutes? I promise I'll be out as soon as I start getting sleepy." I didn't even ask why.
"Sure, it's your bed anyway," I muttered, wrapping his sheets around myself tighter. They smelled like him, a scent I was quick to enjoy- one of sea salt and mint. I heard the bed creak one last time as he settled himself next to me.
For the first night in ages, my sleep was dreamless. With that information alone, I knew that he had broken his promise.
READ THE BOTTOM PLEASEPLEASEPLEASE
IMPORTANTE SECTION BELOW: [A MUST READ]
AWHHHH wasn't that cute? I decided that I needed a filler chapter in order to bring Percy and Annabeth closer for further events. You can't exactly trust someone with your life unless you actually know them. I am seriously considering making the next chapter Percy POV, so tell me how you guiiise feel about that.
Also, I am officially doing a favorite review portion at the end or beginning [depending on my mood, of course] of the chapter. If I ever get to 100 reviews, I'll have some kind of benefit for the 100th reviewer and soforth.
In addition to this, ANY questions you post WILL be answered and ANY suggestions you PM or review will be CONSIDERED. I am going to start to try to reply to reviews but my life is craycray so we will see how that goes... ANYWAY
Favorite Review of the [Previous] Chapter:
Oh my goodnessness. That was mind blowing ~Mighty Ruler of Gummi Bears
I try
PS. Can you all PLEASE stop reviewing: update, the day after I post the chapter! I mean, I get it if a month has passed and you wanna troll me, but seriously? I want FEEDBACK not demands. GET IT? GOT IT? GOOD.
Kbye, loove AE