Disclaimer: I don't own these books.

Luke woke up early the next morning, remembering where he was. He looked at his girlfriend next to him, who was snoring softly. He had fallen asleep with an arm over her stomach, reminding her that she was perfect to him. Kissing her forehead, he slipped out of her bed and walked down the hallway.

Jason was in the kitchen, making coffee. "Morning!" he said as he washed his hands.

"Morning, Jason." Luke replied, rubbing his eyes and sitting down at the table.

Jason sat across from him, a slightly worried expression on his face. "I need to explain what happened last night." he said.

Nodding, Luke rested his elbows on the table.

"Every now and then, Thalia goes through this phase where she thinks that she's not good enough. She's really self conscious and sometimes she goes into these little states of eating disorders." Jason said, looking intently at Luke.

"Yeah, last night she said she wasn't going to eat." Luke said, twiddling his long fingers.

Jason sighed, resting his head in his hands. "She scares me sometimes." he muttered.

Luke rested his hand on Jason's arm, and he looked up.

"We'll take care of her together. She's gonna be fine." he said confidently.

Just then, the coffee machine beeped. Jason stood up and poured two cups, handing one to Luke.

"Thanks." Luke said, taking the mug. A few loud bangs sounded from the hallway, and Thalia ran in.

"Gimme some!" she said, pulling Jason's sleeve.

He sighed, trying not to laugh. "It'll stunt your growth, Thal."

She stepped back, gesturing to herself. "I'm already this short, so give me my coffee." she said, a tone of sass in her voice.

Luke laughed, drinking his coffee. Jason reluctantly poured her a cup, and she snatched it from him.

"Yaaay." she said, drawing out the word and sitting next to Luke. She looked over at him and burst out laughing.

"What?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. Clutching her stomach, she stopped laughing.

"Your hair looks like it exploded." she said simply, grinning and taking a sip of her coffee.

He laughed, smoothing his hair down. "You're one to talk, Thals." he said, ruffling her hair.

Smiling, she drank the rest of her coffee. Jason grabbed his keys and opened the door.

"Percy and Annabeth are picking me up, and we're going to Piper's. Be back later, okay?" he called, shutting the door.

"Okay!" they chorused, and Luke finished his coffee. "I've got you all to myself now." he said, a mischievous grin spreading over his face.

Blushing, Thalia shoved his arm lightly. "You've gotta go change clothes though, right?" she asked.

He nodded and took her cup, putting them in the sink. "Yeah, I figured we'll walk over there." he said, pulling her up from her chair. She stood with her body pressed up to his, looking up into his eyes. Leaning down, he pressed his forehead to hers, closing his eyes. Her hands tangled themselves in his hair and his rested on her waist.

Neither of them wanted to move, standing there in complete silence. Luke tried stealing kisses, but Thalia would pull away just before his lips met hers.

"Stop, and let me kiss you!" he half-whined after a few failed attempts, laughing.

She giggled, inching her lips closer and teasing him. "You're cute when you're frustrated." she whispered, turning and running down the hallway to her room.

Shaking his head and chuckling slightly, he plunked himself on the floor, sitting cross-legged.

After a few minutes, Thalia reappeared, dressed in dark jeans and a Green Day t-shirt. Sitting cross-legged as well on top of his legs, she locked her eyes on him.

He laughed, watching as her eyebrows furrowed and her bottom lip stuck out slightly in concentration. "What?" he asked as he wrapped his arms around her neck.

Giggling slightly again, she blew a piece of his blue-tipped hair out of his eyes. Leaning in to kiss her, he bit at his snakebites. She jerked her head back, but he caught it with his hands.

"Gotcha." he whispered, pulling her head closer to his slowly.

Their lips connected, and the same feeling of excitement and pleasure washed over Luke. Staying like that for a few minutes, Thalia smiled against his mouth.

Pulling away, Luke stood up and planted her on her feet. "C'mon." he said, walking to the door and pulling on his army boots. She slipped into her Converse, picking up her bag and his backpack. After fishing out his beanie and pulling it over her choppy shoulder length hair, she backed out of the door. Holding up his backpack, an evil grin spread over her face.

He walked out, sticking her key in the door and locking it. Pocketing the small piece of metal, he closed in on her, pressing her against the wall gently.

"You gonna give that back?" he asked, holding her waist so she couldn't escape.

"Are you gonna give me my key back?" she countered, staring him down defiantly.

Laughing, he turned and walked down the stairs with her at his heels. Taking his hand as they walked out into the street, she shoved her bag into his backpack and slung it on her back.

Fiddling with the key, Luke glanced sideways at his girlfriend. She was grinning at him, the mischievous glimmer in her eyes.

Falling behind him, she rested her hands on his shoulders, jumping up. He caught her legs, laughing as she snuggled her face into his neck.

"Geez Thals, a warning at least?"

he said, hoisting her up. She laughed, wrapping her arms around his neck as he walked.

After a few minutes, they reached his apartment. Setting her down, Luke pulled a chain out from around his neck. Unlocking the door with the key hanging from the necklace, he pushed the door open and ran up the stairs. She followed, shutting the door behind her.

He stopped at the door, waiting for her. Taking her hand in his, he knocked as he twisted the knob and walked in.

"Dem? I'm back!" he called, closing the door.

A woman in her mid-50's walked in, hugging Luke. "You scared me! Not telling me where you were going." she scolded, but lovingly. Hitting the back of his head, she pulled away and stretched her arms out to Thalia.

"You must be Thalia! I've heard so much about you!" she said, hugging her as well. She hugged back, smirking at Luke over her shoulder, who was blushing.

"It's nice to meet you." she said, pulling back and smiling.

"Thals, this is Demeter. She's taken care of me since I was 12." he said, wrapping an arm around the older woman affectionately.

Ruffling his hair, she laughed. "You look like you need more cereal, Luke." she exclaimed, grabbing a watering can from a small closet. "Well, I'm off to water the plants out back." she said, walking out the door.

"Cereal?" Thalia asked as soon as she was sure they were out of earshot.

Chuckling, Luke led her to his room and walked in. "Yeah, she's a little" he said, finishing the sentence by wiggling his fingers by his ears. Thalia walked around slowly, looking around.

The walls were black, and a few band posters hang on them. Climbing onto his bed, she looked at pictures that were taped to his headboard.

"I remember that day." she said, laughing slightly at a picture strip of the two of them. Her eyes flitted to another one of a young Luke with a tall woman. She didn't resemble him, but as she looked closer, she saw they had the same eyes.

"Is this your mom?" she asked softly, and Luke nodded. He rummaged through his drawers, pulling out a clean pair of ripped jeans and a Pierce the Veil t-shirt.

"I'll be right back." he said, walking out and down the hall. Following him silently, Thalia slipped into the bathroom after he did, pressing her back against the door. His shirt was already off, revealing his toned chest.

"Go away!" he exclaimed, laughing. She shook her head, running her eyes down his body. His jeans hung low on his hips, and the waistband of his boxers showed over the top.

He thought she looked adorable, pressed up against the wall with her mouth open a tiny bit as she scanned her eyes over his body.

"You're checking me out, Grace." he said, walking towards her slowly.

"Am not!" she protested as he rested his hands on her hips. Her hands rested themselves on his chest, and she tried to keep eye contact.

He kissed her softly, pulling away to nuzzle his head into hers. His hair tickled her nose, and she giggled.

"At least close your eyes." he said, turning and walking away from her. Placing her hands over her eyes obediently, she smirked as she peeked through her fingers.

He laughed, knowing what she was doing but continued to strip anyways. He kept his boxers on, wiggling into the other pair of jeans. Holding his t-shirt in one hand, he walked over to her again.

"I think you'd rather me stay like this." he said, watching as her finger traced his abs.

Nodding, she smirked confidently. He let her explore his chest for a minute before slipping on his shirt.

"C'mon, we're going to the park." he said, laughing as she mock-pouted. "I'll push you on the swings." he bribed, and Thalia grinned happily.

"Our couple-place." she said, pulling him out of the bathroom and picking his backpack up in his room.

He smiled, nodding. "I like that." he said, pulling the beanie over her black-lined eyes as he ran out the door.