(A/N: This chapter is based off of CrazyPeopleLikeMe 's idea!)
Time Skip: One Month
It had been one month since the whole Luke incident, and Annabeth was so happy it seemed to good to be true. But it wasn't. With Percy's arm slung over her shoulders, the two walked into the restaurant. Tonight, they were going on a double date with Percy's "bro" Jason. Jason happened to be dating one of Annabeth's best friends, Piper! The two girls planned the whole thing, and just told the boys when to show up.
Piper and Jason were already waiting inside when Annabeth and Percy walked in. Annabeth was stunned, as Piper was almost ALWAYS at least five minutes late for everything! "Pipes!" Annabeth squealed, running over to hug her friend. Percy and Jason did their "bro" handshake. Then the two pairs walked over to their table.
"So, Pipes, how've you been lately? I feel like I haven't seen you in forever!" Annabeth exclaimed.
"I've been really good. I mean, how could I not be with this eye candy on my arm?" Piper responded with a wink in Jason's direction. Annabeth giggled at Jason's fake offended expression.
With an overdramatic gasp, Jason said "EyE CANDY?! That's all I am to you? Kay then. Love you too." Piper smiled, and told him she loved him with a kiss on the cheek. "Annabeth, please tell me treat Percy with a little more respect."
"Who? Percy? Hmm I know that name… OH! Yeah! That's my eye candy's name! Percy's great." Annabeth finished with a smile, while the rest of the group doubled over in laughter.
Percy shrugged. "Damn straight, I'm great. Hehe, that rhymed." He gave a little boyish laugh. "So, Jason, how's the pizza parlor doing?" Jason beamed.
"Well, earlier today, I got promoted to assistant manager! It won't go into effect for another two weeks, because the current one has to leave. Crazy, right?!" Annabeth and Percy told Jason how awesome that was, and Piper sat there hugging him- clearly having already known this- like the proud girlfriend she was.
The group chatted for another fifteen minutes before the waitress came to take their order. She looked familiar to Annabeth, but Annabeth couldn't place her. I mean, Annabeth didn't have any red-haired friends… But she did have some red-haired enemies. Looking at the name tag she realized who it was, Rachel Elizabeth Dare. (A/N: I thought about ending it here, but I realized that this chapter would've been WAY to short, so let's go!)
Oh god. She hadn't seen Rachel since her 10th grade year, and she hoped to never see her again. Annabeth PRAYED to any and all gods that Rachel didn't recognize her. Annabeth may have been classy enough to not start something, but Rachel sure wasn't. Awkwardly, Annabeth had to order without making eye contact. As soon as Rachel left, the entire group looked at her. "Okay so out waitress is my tenth grade nemesis, and though I won't start a scene, she probably will."
Percy looked at her. "Come on, tenth grade was such a long time ago! No way is she still bitter about it."
Piper gave him an odd look. No, these two fought like cats and dogs. I vaguely remember Rachel trying to frame Annabeth for arson?" Annabeth nodded grimly, confirming it was true. The two boys looked at each other and shared a look that said, Whoa that is one crazy chick. "So yeah, let's say the two had a rocky past. Let's try to keep it on the down low that Annabeth is here. Let's pretend it's some random blonde chick, instead of a girl Rachel hates."
"I'd like to think that I'm the girl Rachel hates the most. Because if she hated someone more than me, than they're probably dead. See, Rachel has, erm, anger issues. Supposedly, she went to a therapist and got everything fixed. I'm assuming she did, as according to Facebook she has over 1,000 friends, goes to one of the country's best art schools, and has a job here." Everyone looked a little more reassured at that. From there, dinner went smoothly. No more mention of Rachel, just the covering up of Annabeth being there. Everything was going perfectly, until dessert. A few minutes as Rachel left, Annabeth went up to go to the bathroom. She turned her back on the kitchen, failing to see that the dessert was on it's way. Failing to see Rachel was right behind her. Failing to notice her as she stood up. Noticing her finally, when she bumps into Rachel, causing her to spill the chocolate lava cake on herself. For a solid ten seconds, a stunned silence fell over the five. Then the screaming began.
"YOU! IT WAS YOU, ANNABETH CHASE! WHY CAN'T YOU JUST STAY OUT OF MY LIFE?! UGH I BET YOU PLANNED THIS ON PURPOSE DIDN'T YOU!" Rachel shushed Annabeth as she tried to defend herself. "THIS IS A NEW LOW, EVEN FOR YOU!" On that note, she grabbed a chunk of the cake on her shirt, and went to smash it into Annabeth's hair. Thankfully, at this moment, the manager came running over.
"Rachel! What are you doing? Were you about to ASSAULT a customer?" the manager asked. Rachel had no answer. "That's what I thought. Come with me, NOW!." Without a word, Rachel followed him, still with the cake in her hand. The four were left staring after them, clearly shaken up.
About ten minutes later, the manager came back to the table, minus Rachel. "I am so terribly sorry about the way my waitstaff acted. Can you please explain what happened?"
"I was getting up to use the restroom," Annabeth started, "I didn't realize Rachel was standing behind me, so when I stood up, I accidentally knocked into her arm. This caused the plate to go backwards, smashing the food into her shirt." The manager nodded.
"Yeah, I figured something along those lines had happened. Again, I'm terribly sorry about this. We have just… removed Rachel from the staff. I'll have a new dessert brought out, and all of your food tonight will be on the house. Also, just in case you ever feel like coming back, here is a $100 gift card." he said, handing the card to Annabeth. The four were stunned by the mans actions. They had just assumed they were going to get a free dessert, not all this!
"Thank you so much. I think we'll be back again. The food here is great, and with a manager like you, I doubt these incidents happen often." The manager blushed at the compliment.
"Well, uh, thank you. I'll get right on that dessert."
When the dessert finally came, the four dug in, incident forgotten. Annabeth smiled softly to herself, thankful that Rachel Elizabeth Dare could no longer ruin her life. And that dessert was to die for! She looked out the window to her left. Sitting there was Rachel, crying on the phone with someone. Piper caught her stare and looked, causing the rest of the group to do the same. "You know, I kind of feel bad for her." Annabeth said. The other three gave her a skeptical look. "Okay, fine. Maybe I don't. But, gods, can you blame me?!"
"She's just as bad as you said she was!" "That girl is psycho!" "Knew I never liked her." Those were the responses that came from Percy, Jason, and Piper. Annabeth grinned, knowing she couldn't ask for better friends.
