Hey guys! So Sorry for the wait. Two words: Writer's Block. I'm sorry.
That being said, this chapter is... pretty bad. Not much happens and I almost didn't post it, except that there is some important scene-setting information that will be important for future chapters. But it's a filler and it's probably pretty boring. Next chapter will be better, I promise.
Annabeth
There wasn't much that was exciting about the first day of school, other than that it was the first day of school. And really, as you got older, it became less and less exciting.
All day, I'd sat through the same lecture, over and over, as one teacher after another had handed out syllabuses and had proceeded to spend maybe ten minutes actually going over the course before spending another thirty going over their classroom rules; rules that didn't actually change from one class to another and would either be followed or wouldn't, regardless of the spiel the teacher gave to go with them.
I glanced at the clock on the wall above the door for the umpteenth time and sighed quietly, moving to rest my head on my hand atop the desk while Mr. Wallace, my AP economics teacher, droned on about his strict no cell phones during class rule. The clock hands were moving exceptionally slowly. It also didn't help that this was my last class of the day. I was almost out of here.
I actually didn't hate school the way most demigods, Percy included, did. I didn't particularly enjoy it most of the time, especially with all the added struggles that went with the territory of actually being a demigod, but with Athena's blood in my veins, I could never completely hate a place that provided me with the opportunity to learn things. However, the first day really did little for me and I was bored.
And judging by the looks on the faces of the kids around me, I wasn't the only one.
I'd tried to pay attention, I really had, to be respectful, but gods, I'd been sitting through the same speech all day, and it just wasn't happening.
Goode itself didn't seem too bad. It was a big school, but so far the teachers seemed pretty nice. And I didn't know any of the students except Percy, but that was okay. Having mortal friends was difficult when trouble followed you the way it did us. I'd had a few in other schools in the past, but I'd never been able to get close to them the way I could with kids at camp.
My schedule this year consisted of almost all advanced classes, which was how I liked it. In fact, the only course I was taking this year that wasn't AP, and which I'd never attempt to take as AP, was English. I mean, I could speak it fine and write it well, as far as grammar was concerned, on a good day. But having dyslexia made spelling nearly impossible and reading in general not the greatest, so I stuck with the normal level for that. Which was fine because Paul, being an English teacher, had pulled some strings and had gotten me into the same class as Percy.
Now I wasn't a clingy, needy girlfriend that needed to be near him every second of every day or anything like that, but after the summer we'd had, I wasn't necessarily ready to be without him for the entire seven hours every day in a foreign school either. Tartarus had taken its toll, and while we did a good job at hiding it, there were some wounds that only time could heal, and healing was easier together. I just felt better around him.
Plus it was nice to know someone in class. Especially since, because our schedules were so different, Percy and I had different lunch periods.
I shifted again in my seat, leaning back and crossing my arms over my chest as my mind wandered. Almost against my will, I wound up thinking about Percy. I was pretty sure he was in Chemistry right now, and for sure, he was bored out of his mind.
I thought about camp, and the recent war, and how so much had changed as a result of it. Our friends, old and new, who were scattered about the country right now for the year. The ones we'd lost…
And I put the breaks on that train of thought before it could get any farther. That wasn't a topic I wanted to think about. The number of friends we'd lost over the years was just too depressing to dwell on.
Mr. Wallace was still rambling about how late work would not be accepted, which seemed slightly unnecessary. We were seniors in Advanced Placement. We didn't really need to be told that we needed to hand assignments in on time. Or we shouldn't have to, at least. I tuned him out again because I was getting annoyed. Mortals' methods of doing things did that to me sometimes. I was my mother's daughter, I couldn't help it.
I thought back to the conversation I'd had with my dad the day before last. It had been over a year since I'd seen him, and he wanted me to visit. "Maybe over Thanksgiving?" he'd asked, "You have a few days off school then, right? You could come out here. I'm sure the boys would love to see you; Theresa too. I miss you, Annabeth. We all do."
I hadn't given him a straight answer. It wasn't that I didn't want to see him. Things had been better between us the last few years, but he didn't know very much at all of what had gone down over the last year, and I wasn't sure I was ready to answer a bunch of questions yet. And while he wouldn't necessarily mind it if Percy tagged along for the visit, I guessed it probably wouldn't be his first choice, and I was not ready to be on the opposite side of the country from Percy yet. Not again.
It also slightly annoyed me that I was always expected to go to him, that he was never willing to make the trip to New York to visit me. Though, in all fairness, it was probably easier-and cheaper-for one person to travel across the country than for four to. But still.
But he was Frederick Chase and that was just how he was. I'd learned over the years that if I wanted any sort of relationship with him, I'd have to be willing to compromise.
Mercifully, the final bell rang then, breaking me out of my thoughts, dismissing the class, and cutting Mr. Wallace off mid-sentence. I gathered my things and followed the students out the door.
Lockers at Goode were assigned based on last name and grade. Percy's, though it was somehow in the same hallway as mine, was still a good distance away. Despite this, he was waiting for me at my locker with his backpack slung casually over his shoulder, meaning he'd already stopped by his own and packed up for the day before I'd even gotten to mine. I blamed it on the fact that his last period classroom was closer to here than mine was and he knew these hallways better than I did.
"Hey," I greeted him casually, shifting the binder and textbook I carried to one arm to turn the combination lock with my other hand.
"So I've determined that chemistry is going to be the death of me," was his response.
"Well that's a shame," I answered, fighting a smile as I opened my locker, "To think you've survived this long only to be taken down by element naming and stoichiometry."
Percy blinked as I slung my own bag over my shoulder. "Stoikey-what?"
"You'll learn how to do it. It's not actually that hard." I closed my locker and put the lock back in place before turning to face him. "Are we still getting a ride home with Paul?"
"Actually," Percy said, "I saw him on the way to sixth period and apparently there's this last minute meeting he has to go to after school. He said we could wait for him if we want, he'll be done hopefully in an hour. Otherwise we can take the bus." He didn't look particularly pleased at the idea. "Or walk. It's up to you."
"I don't mind walking if you don't." The apartment was only a little over a mile away. We could easily walk that.
Percy grinned. "I figured you'd say that."
"You know me too well, Seaweed Brain."
We were almost out of the building when we both stopped and turned at the sound of Percy's name being called. "Percy!" A skinny, perky girl with dyed-blonde hair rushed over to us. She paid me little attention. "Percy! Hey! It's so good to see you!" she said, and I kind of wondered if she planned to hug him or something. Judging from the way he looked at her, his eyebrow raised just the slightest bit, I doubted that would be well received. She continued, oblivious, "I'm glad you're back! We were all so upset when you left last year! It was kind of a big deal around here!"
"Uh, thanks," Percy told her.
"No problem!" the girl told him happily, "Well, I've got a bus to catch. Just wanted to say hey! See ya around!" And with that, she turned and was gone a second later, lost in the sea of students making for the exit.
Percy just watched her retreat, looking shocked and confused. "Do you know her?" I asked, amused.
He shook his head. "No, and that was really weird," he commented. I couldn't help but laugh at his flabbergasted tone. As far as anyone knew around Goode, Percy had moved unexpectedly across the country last year to live with distant relatives for undisclosed reasons and that was all, though surely people had made up their own explanations.
"Come on," I said, still smiling as I grabbed his hand, "Let's get out of here."
We got home about half an hour later, where Sally was waiting eagerly to hear all about our first day of senior year. It was hard to say whether she was disappointed in the lack of things we had to talk about.
I wasn't though. The day had been boring and uneventful, yes, but over the past few years, uneventful days had become my favorite kind. And besides, Percy and I were going to be together in New York for the entire school year. I was sure the Fates had plenty in store for us and I was happy to enjoy the relative peace while it lasted.
For those of you who have not taken high school chem, stoichiometry involves determining the number of products and reactants in a chemical reaction... which still probably means nothing to you, but it's a real thing. I promise.
Anyway, thanks for reading. I'm sorry for the bland ending, and really the bland everything else too. Let me know what you thought (be gentle). Ideas are always welcome.
