A/N: Well this got a bit out of hand.
Without a Trace: Chapter 6
Percy was so not feeling the love.
The flight had took about seven hours.
Seven goddamn painful hours.
His back ached, he had a killer migraine going on, and he was hungry. Nico could agree on the last one. Airplane food sucked.
As soon as they got out of the airport and had their stuff ready, Nico hailed a cab and told the driver to hit it to the nearest fast food restaurant.
They were currently a block away from Percy's condo, where Percy was expected to stay at. He didn't want to think about that. He had asked Nico if he could maybe stay at his place, but Nico told him that he didn't have an actual place. Nico was more of a freeloader.
Percy guessed that maybe staying in his condo wasn't a bad idea. After all, maybe being around his stuff and actual room could unveil more memories. It could give him more clues to this puzzle.
But now wasn't the time to think that, he had some pressing matters to attend to right now.
The driver stopped in front of the place. Nico took out his wallet and paid the driver, ignoring Percy's protests that he could pay.
They soon got out of the car, grabbing their luggage from the trunk.
Night had fallen in the city. Thankfully, there were lights around that made it possible to look around. Percy took the opportunity to absorb the details of the building. The only word that came in mind was the word grand. Percy was no expert in architecture. While he didn't know architectural slang, he did know the basics. The building was tall, an unavoidable presence. It had solar panels in the roof, and it appeared that every inch of space had windows. Some of the windows reflected the light from the inside. Balconies zig-zagged their way in the building.
Percy's apartment in Alaska had been modest and small. He knew he lived in a condo, but Percy couldn't help but think how different his two lives were starting to look like.
"Don't worry, only a few people will be there," Nico assured him, misinterpreting Percy's look.
Percy ignored him.
"I'm serious. There's only about seven people. I knew you wouldn't feel comfortable with a Welcome Back party."
"Thanks," he muttered.
~0~ ~0~ ~0~
He stood in front of the door. Before he could knock, the door opened.
In front of him stood a middle age woman, older than he was. She appeared to be in her late forties, the gray evident in her black hair. Her blue eyes were filled with tears, a hand covering her mouth.
"Oh god," she whispered. She looked at him from head to toe.
Percy stood transfixed in front of her, unsure of what to do.
"Is it okay if I hug you?" she asked him, her eyes blurry with wetness. It was evident she was trying to pull herself together.
He numbly nodded.
He closed his eyes as she enveloped him in a tight hug and a sweet smell of tea hit his nose. She was shorter than him, her small frame fitting against his own. He instantly felt protective of this woman. Cooking odors and the sound of a lullaby, whose words he couldn't quite make out, filled his mind.
And it was surreal for Percy that he was hugging his mom.
He hugged her tighter and she squeezed back.
Nico cleared this throat. "Now I don't mean to interrupt this crucial bonding experience but I would like to get out of the cold."
"Oh come here you," she playfully growled at him, pulling Nico into a hug. She whispered in his ear, thanking him. He nodded, acknowledging her words.
Percy stepped inside the condo. He could see a group of people inside the living room, staring at him. He ignored the stares and concentrated on Nico. Percy's wasn't sure what to do. He wondered if he should leave his luggage here or take it to his room, which he had no clue where it was.
A man stepped forward and walked towards him. He had thick brown hair and a bounce to his step. He had a kind smile and his worn brown leather jacket softened his features.
"Here I'll take these for you," he told him, grabbing Percy's luggage and duffel.
"Thank you," Percy said in relief.
"Hey, what about me?" Nico protested.
"I'm sure you can carry it by yourself," the man replied, already walking away.
Nico grumbled, throwing his duffel to the floor.
"Hey Percy!" a boy greeted him. He looked about fourteen, tall frame and long limbs. He had shaggy brown hair and warm brown eyes.
Percy guessed this was his younger brother.
"Hello," Percy politely said.
"You don't remember me, do you?" he guessed. In another time, his older brother would have walked towards him and ruffled his hair just to annoy him. Never would he just vaguely acknowledge him.
"I uh," Percy licked his lips. He looked at Nico for help.
"Tyson, that's enough," another man firmly said. He came up behind Tyson and gripped his shoulder. He was obviously Tyson's father and that probably made him his father also. Looking at his face, his suspicion was confirmed. Percy was the spitting image of this man, they had the same green eyes and black hair. Not to mention their features were almost identical.
"Hello Percy. I'm Poseidon, your father. It's nice to have you home," he smiled, his eyes crinkling in the corners.
"Thank you. It's uh nice to be back," Percy nodded.
Looking around, he noticed someone else in the background. A very blonde someone. He was surprised she hadn't talked to him earlier but he guessed she wanted him to come to her in his own time.
She met his look, her eyes searching his face.
"Annabeth," he breathed out.
The others fidgeted, some looking away from them as if to give them privacy.
She took a step forward and another until she was standing before him.
"Hey," he hesitated.
"Hi," she half-smiled.
He kept staring at her, not being able to find the right words to tell her what he was feeling.
Someone cleared their throat. "Well I'm Grover. Grover Underwood. Your partner-in-crime and part time comedian," he informed.
Percy looked away from Annabeth and stared at Grover.
Wearing a Star Trek shirt and some black framed glasses, he looked relatively harmless. He was shorter than Percy and skinnier. While Percy at least had some muscles from working out with Frank, Grover was a bit scrawny.
"I remember you!" Percy exclaimed.
"You do?" he asked, eyebrows raised.
"A bit," he shrugged, "I think we were drunk and went fishing one time?"
"Oh yeah! Dude that was awesome," recalled Grover.
Percy also remembered some of their fights about Star Trek and Star Wars. Most of those arguments ended pretty nasty.
"Everyone sit down," Percy's mom ordered. "It's rude to just stand there staring."
The open and spacious living room they were standing at was decorated with impeccable taste. The floor was dark brown hardwood, a coffee table was set in the middle on top of a white rug. A framed mirror hanged on the wall reflecting back the tall floor lamps. Framed pictures and small plants were on top of the floor cabinets. The pictures featured family members and Percy and Annabeth together. The brown sofa with navy blue pillows faced the flat screen, the arm chairs on the opposite side and a matching brown La-Z-Boy on the other side. Flowing white curtains covered the windows around the walls. Painting of landscapes hung around the room. A beautiful grand piano was set against a wall, the bench a leather light brown. A twisting black and white staircase led the way upstairs.
Everyone moved to their respective seats. Percy could hear Grover whispering "he remembers me!".
"Come on Percy, you can sit with me," she said, grabbing hold of his hand and dragging him towards the couch.
Percy sat wedged between his mom and Nico.
"So I'm guessing we're supposed to talk about this," spoke Percy.
"That's the general idea, yes," Grover answered.
"Well what did Nico tell you guys about me?" asked Percy.
Sally took a deep breath. "He told us about how he found you in Alaska, I think, and you were in a coma for six months. How you didn't remember anyone."
Percy squeezed her hand.
At that moment the man who had offered to carry Percy's bags to his room returned.
He sat in the couch arm, taking Percy's mom's unoccupied hand.
Percy stared at it. When she noticed his stare, she breathed out a laugh.
"Stupid me. Percy, this is Paul, my husband," she smiled.
"Your husband. I thought Dad was your husband." Percy looked at his dad to see his reaction.
Poseidon uncomfortably looked down.
"Your dad and I divorced when you were twelve. A year later, your dad was with someone else and Tyson was born. I married Paul when you were fifteen," she explained.
"Right, I knew that," he muttered.
"It's great to see you again," Paul told him.
"Thanks. Anyway, it's true, I lost my memory-" he started.
They spent a while talking about this or that. They had many questions but Percy had more.
If it were up to them, they would have stayed all night and morning talking. However, Percy's mom, whom he later found out her name was Sally Blofis, reminded them that Percy was here now. That he needed time to think by himself, and they should let him rest.
They all begrudgingly left, a few deciding to stay over after asking Percy and Annabeth if it was alright. Percy's dad and brother had left a while ago, Poseidon mentioning that it was way past Tyson's bedtime.
Nico had taken him to his room, promising that Annabeth would give him a tour tomorrow.
That was another big surprise for him. Apparently Nico had failed to mention that Annabeth lived with Percy. It seemed that he used to have a pretty serious relationship with her, considering she had her stuff all over the place. She had told him that she could stay somewhere else if he was uncomfortable. He rushed to tell her that no she didn't have to leave. That yes, he was perfectly fine with her staying. He knew that she didn't quite believe him but she let it go, much to Percy's relief. He already felt like shit because he didn't fully remember her, the last thing he wanted to do was kick her out of her home. Because this fancy condo was definitely more her's than his'. At the moment, he didn't exactly feel at home.
Throughout his talk about his adventures with Frank and Hazel, both Grover and Annabeth had gotten a slight bitter look in their faces. He almost wanted to stop talking and asked them what was wrong. But he didn't, because the answer soon came to him. It was obvious they were feeling left out. Years of being the ones Percy raved on about reminded them that they were a big part of his life. Then you yank out Percy, the best friend and boyfriend, from the equation. Add the fact that when you finally see him again, he has no memory of you. Shake lightly and there you have it people: the craptastic situation he's in. No wonder they were feeling bad. Any normal person would have ran for the hills by now. But even though he didn't quite remember them, they still stayed by his side. And Percy will always be grateful for that.
He couldn't have asked for a more supporting audience than he had. He didn't know what he had been so worried about earlier. Sure, he hadn't met the entire family and friends but so far, they seemed pretty nice.
And ironically that made Percy feel even more shittier. When Nico told him who he was, all he had worried about was Annabeth. What she was going to think about him, if he would be able to love her, blah blah blah. He acted like a goddamn chick. He had moaned and groaned about this or that. He hadn't stopped to think about his parents or his kid brother. Not that he regretted thinking about Annabeth. The truth was that his nervousness multiplied a thousand times whenever she looked at him. But still that was no excuse. Never had it occurred to him how worried sick his mother was, how much his father missed him, or to top it all of how much his brother needed him.
For Percy, it was the strangest thing that someone needed him. It was a position that scared him. The idea that someone blindly put his trust on him, that Percy's happiness was their happiness also, was pretty darn new for him. But Percy was persistent and determined. He promised himself that he wouldn't disappoint them. He would make sure to set things right.
That's why after trials and errors he found himself in the middle of the night knocking on Annabeth's temporary room. Turns out that Annabeth and him used to sleep in the same room together. He almost had a heart attack when he found out. With some embarrassment, he had politely asked her if she could maybe stay in another room for a while.
He was praying to God she didn't shout at him for waking her up this late. With his luck, her sleepy mind would probably think he was a burglar and try to beat the stuffing out of him.
The door opened. Annabeth came out, rubbing her eyes and wearing a men's shit and some pajama bottoms.
"Hey. What are you doing here?" she yawned.
Percy tried hard not to yawn back. "I couldn't sleep."
"So you decided to wake me up at two a.m.?" she questioned.
"It's just that we didn't talk that much and I decided we needed to…well talk."
Annabeth thought for a moment. "Come on in," she said at last, moving out of the way.
Percy entered the room. He noticed a few things as he looked around: big messy bed, clothes thrown over a chair, pristine white walls, and a clock ticking.
"Sorry about this," he gestured around the room.
"It's fine. I wasn't surprised considering you don't know who I am," she closed the door.
"Yeah, about that, I'm guessing Nico didn't tell you I never exactly forgot you."
"He maybe have left that information out," she offered.
"He seems to be doing that a lot," he muttered.
She sat on the bed, crossing her legs. "Go on," she encouraged.
He sat at the edge of the bed. "Look, when I woke up at the hospital I had no clue where I was or how I got there. I didn't know the answers to the questions they asked. All I had was the name Percy and a brief memory. You were in it…I saw your face and called you Annabeth. It was nothing, really, but I still held on with two hands. You were sort of like this beacon to me."
"Thank you. I guess it's safe to say that no guy has ever called me a beacon before," she slightly smiled.
"Right," he chuckled.
He looked down briefly, then focused his attention.
"Hey, isn't that my shirt?" he asked.
"What? No," she said quickly.
"I think it is. I remember wearing it when we were at an arcade. And the reason it was so special was because it had a koi fish on it."
"You remember that?" she bit her lip.
"Well yeah. I was watching this documentary about koi fishes, Frank's obsessed with them. Next thing I know a new memory was unlocked," he shrugged, "But hey, don't change the subject."
Annabeth played with her fingers. "When you left, I was a mess. Not a day went by without missing you. I couldn't sleep, I couldn't really focus on anything. Until finally Sally gave me this whole speech about how I wasn't doing anyone a favor by messing up my health. She told me you wouldn't want this for me. And I just - I snapped. I started screaming at her and throwing things around. Grover found us crying in each other's arms. Ever since then I've been trying to do what's right. I don't miss a single work day and I clean up after my messes. I have trouble sleeping sometimes, and I took up the habit of sleeping in your shirts. The smell of you has worn out though."
Percy fisted the comforter. "Well I don't know if I should feel touched or worried that I don't have any shirts left," he joked feebly.
"I'm sorry," she said out of nowhere.
"For?" he asked.
"Everything. I'm sorry you were in a coma. I'm sorry you lost your memories. But I'm mostly sorry you don't remember me," she tried to smile.
"Hey, it's not your fault, ok? Nothing that's happening is your fault. Sometimes things happen, and they suck. But that doesn't mean it's your fault," he stressed.
"Majorly suck," she repeated.
"Besides, you're not the one that should be feeling sorry. I got a confession to make," he admitted.
She signaled at him to continue.
"Keep in mind that I didn't know you were my girlfriend, alright? So there was this girl back in Alaska, and she liked me. I stupidly asked her to hang out with me and it wasn't until later that I realized she might had interpreted it as a date. Nothing happened, I swear. I have no feelings for her and she thinks I'm an asshole," he rushed.
Annabeth froze. "Did you have sex with her?" she forced out.
"What? No!" he protested.
"Did you kiss her?' she pressed on.
"Well…," he trailed off.
"Percy," she warned.
"She may or may not have tried to kiss me but I didn't let her. I couldn't kiss her."
"Couldn't? So what, you wanted to kiss her?"
"No, I didn't, okay? Can we please stop with the interrogation?"
"Percy, I'm trying to be sympathetic and understanding about this. But it's starting to be really hard since all I want to do is punch you right now," she gritted her teeth.
"So do it." Annabeth gave him a look. "No, I'm being serious. If it'll make you feel better, punch me."
Annabeth hesitated a bit but then reached over and punched him hard on the arm.
"I'm really sorry. Not only for this, but for everything. You don't deserve this, and I'm so sorry," he confessed, trying not to wince.
Annabeth ignored his apology, rolling her eyes at him. "You know, you should get a tattoo of your full name along with 'Annabeth Chase is my girlfriend'. Just in case."
"I'll think about it."
She yawned. Percy looked at the clock, deciding it was time he left.
"Goodnight," he sighed, standing up.
"Wait," she said, grabbing his arm.
He looked at her.
She let go of his arm slowly. "I want you to know I believe in you. I know you'll soon remember us all. I have faith," she whispered.
"Thank you, Annabeth."
"First time you said my name," she mumbled, crawling under the covers.
"For the record, I haven't had sex with anyone."
"Get out," she ordered, turning around to hide her smile.
He looked at her, shaking his head, and closed the door after him.