Chapter 10

Clarity

Percy

The worst thing was that he couldn't swim.

Seeing Luke's arrogant grin in the hallways everyday and his teammates looking at him with pity, Percy felt angrier than ever. Even when Coach Hedge told him that it wasn't a permanent expulsion from the team, if of course he could swim later, Percy felt like his old life at school had vanished. After his accident, everything had changed. He was no longer the punk everyone feared and the best swimmer at school. It was as if his whole identity was stripped from him, leaving him wondering what he could do next. He wasn't a particularly good student; his whole future relied on his swimming skills. Now that this could well be over, he had little left of him.

But he had Annabeth. That was another major turn in his life. No one had expected valedictorian Annabeth Chase to be dating someone like him. To be true, they had little things in common. Though they had one important thing. They were crazy for each other.

Percy was not used to having such a relationship. His previous girlfriends never really interested him in the way Annabeth did. And he wasn't used to let anyone know about his feelings. He preferred to show the world the mask of his usual indifference, he preferred to be the tough guy with no emotions rather than let them anyone know who he truly was. Because if he had shown his emotions, he could be hurt. And that was something Percy wouldn't like to repeat again in his life. But the thing is that somehow Annabeth managed to bring out the best of him in every situation. He wasn't used to the closeness of their relationship. His grade in English class started dropping because he couldn't focus on anything but Annabeth sitting right in front of him, twirling her golden hair in her hand or winking at him during class. He had become used to holding her hand all day in school and sitting beside her at lunch. His only goal everyday was to make her laugh, because that made him happy too. Most importantly, his friends have noticed the change in him. It wasn't just the fact that he relied on crutches to work or that he had stopped swimming. It was that by becoming a couple with Annabeth, his whole personality had altered. For the better, of course. He had abandoned his permanent scowl and seemed more care-free at all times. Percy thought he was very lucky that he had found Annabeth in one of the toughest periods of his life. Without her, he would have gone insane.

After the last lesson of the day, Percy grabbed his backpack and headed to the swimming pool. It was Friday, so Annabeth had training after her lessons and they had agreed that he would be waiting for her to go to the movies afterwards. It was hard for him to watch his teammates train without him but he got to watch Annabeth in her swimsuit so that made up for it. Percy walked slowly towards the pool, avoiding the stares he got in the hallway. Thankfully, he still maintained his 'wolf stare' so nobody said anything to him or worse, help him.

The smell of chlorine hit him as he entered the pool. Percy breathed heavily and closed his eyes for a moment. He had missed swimming so much it actually physically hurt him to stand aside in the bleachers while the others trained. Percy set his backpack beside him and watched Annabeth and Luke compete in the 100m freestyle. Percy noted with pride that Annabeth was getting much better than when she first entered the team. He tried not to stare too long at the way her legs were moving because then he would probably start to drool, so he fixed his eyes on the other swimmer. Luke narrowly won, but Annabeth didn't seem distraught by it. Luke raised his hand for a high-five and she obliged. He was smiling at her, but Percy couldn't make out if she was smiling back. He gritted his teeth, annoyed by the gesture. He wanted so bad to throw one of his crutches at Luke, but he decided against it. After all, he was technically still the team captain and Percy thought that breaking his co-captain's head would seem like bad team spirit. He settled for promising to himself that he wouldn't miss any of Annabeth's trainings anymore.

Just then, Annabeth noticed him sitting there. She waved at him, her grey eyes sparkling. He felt himself grinning uncontrollably. God, she must think I am such an idiot Percy thought, forcing himself to stop waving back at his girlfriend like a madman. Also, he hoped that she hadn't noticed him staring at her when she got out of the pool. Great, an idiot and a perv.

Coach Hedge approached him when practice was over. Percy was waiting for Annabeth to change in the girl's locker room, so he and Coach were alone in the pool. He looked at him with a hard stare in his eyes, but with no pity. For that, Percy was thankful.

"So, Jackson" said Coach with his usual grumpy manner. "How's your leg?"

"I'm going to the doctor tomorrow for the check-up. He said that I might need to have another surgery" Percy replied.

The Coach hesitated before answering, which seemed odd to Percy because the Coach never held back on anything he had to say. "Look, kid, you are the best swimmer on the team. I know that, you know that, the whole team knows that. But, if you keep missing training you will be left behind. And then, Castellan will take your place. Permanently."

Percy stared at the Coach for a moment, dumb-founded. "But…but I can't do anything about it. It's…"

"I know, Percy" the Coach cut him off. "And I really hope that you will be back with us. But until then I have a whole team to take care of. They need someone with strong leadership. Someone who can motivate them."

The last words rang a bell in Percy's head. He smiled triumphantly. "Annabeth almost beat Luke today." He started carefully.

"So?" asked Coach, raising his eyebrows.

"So, she's a good swimmer. And she is a strong leader. Annabeth's a member of the student council. She knows about this kind of stuff. She will be much better at it than Luke, I am sure of it" said Percy. His heart was beating loudly from the excitement.

Coach Hedge scratched his beard. "Hmm, it's not a bad idea, Jackson, but Luke is on the team far longer than Annabeth. Perhaps I will make them compete and then we'll see"

Percy nodded smiling and the Coach left, scribbling something on his notebook. He walked towards the parking lot, deciding to wait Annabeth beside her car. A few moments later she appeared on the sidewalk, wearing a pair of jeans and one of his sweatshirts, which he had given to her when they started dating. Her hair was pulled back in a messy bun and she wore no makeup. She looked great.

"Hey" she said casually, wrapping her arms around him. Percy closed his eyes, inhaling the smell of her lemon shampoo deeply. She perched on her tiptoes and kissed him.

"You were great today at practice. Like a mermaid" Percy said teasingly, pulling one loose strand of her golden hair in his finger and twirling it.

"Shut up" Annabeth said, blushing. "Get in, before I change my mind and leave you here"

Percy laughed at the look in his girlfriend's face and got in the car. He didn't want to tell her that she might as well be captain of the swimming team because he had talked to Coach about it, so he didn't mention anything at all about swimming.

"It's the first time I am letting a girl drive me anywhere. You should be honored" Percy informed her pompously, relaxing in his seat. "But I must admit your driving is…adequate."

Annabeth gasped surprisingly, elbowing him in the gut. "Only adequate? I'm sure I am a much better driver than you, Jackson. Besides you never even owned a car."

"Okay, okay you are a very good driver. You are only slightly worse than me. Happy now?" asked Percy, rubbing the spot where she had hit him.

"Not quite. Driving you requires payment" said Annabeth, as they reached the cinema. She parked the car and looked at him expectantly, a hint of a smile tracing her lips.

"Payment?" Percy asked her confused. "What kind of payment?"

"This kind" Annabeth whispered, leaning close to him and pressing her lips against his. Percy felt himself melting in her. He swore that sometimes when Annabeth kissed him, he couldn't remember his own name. She placed her hands on either side of his face and traced the outline of his jaw.

"I think I am okay with that" Percy said with a raspy voice. Annabeth smiled sweetly at him, almost shyly. Percy pressed a last kiss on her forehead and got out of the car.

He had already sat in the theater when he saw Annabeth approach, balancing two big popcorn boxes in her hands. Percy felt a pang of guilt when he saw her struggling, but she was adamant about him doing anything. Annabeth started to say something when she was just a few feet away from him but he would never know what it was, because just then she tripped, the popcorn boxes spilling on the floor. Without thinking, Percy instinctively surged forward to keep her from falling too. He caught her from her elbow.

Wait.

He caught her from her elbow.

Percy realized that he was standing. He was actually standing. Without the help of crutches. He let go of Annabeth. He still stood a little wobbly on his feet, but he stood. Percy looked at Annabeth, who was staring shocked at him.

"Percy…?" she started, a smile forming on her lips.

Percy couldn't stop the grin that spread in his face. His head practically swam with relief. He couldn't remember much of what happened later that evening. He did remember that he and Annabeth had rushed straight to the hospital, his mother crying tears of happiness when she saw him walking and the doctor saying that he would be able to swim again in a few weeks, providing that he was very careful from now on and his mum saying that she was buying him a car instead of a motorbike now.

There was one thing that still scared him, though. When they were at the hospital and they had found out that he would be able to swim again, he first noticed Annabeth's face. She looked like the best thing in the world had happened to her.

He had come this close to telling her he loved her. But he couldn't do that. He had never said that to anyone before in his life. He didn't want to tell her anything this important without being sure of his own feelings before. It wasn't an ordinary person. Annabeth had quickly climbed at the top of the people her cared for. Percy couldn't identify what exactly he felt for her, but he would make sure that he would figure it out. He was scared that he might hurt himself in the process. But she seemed worth it.

A/N I hope you enjoyed this chapter! It will take a while for me to update again but I will make sure it is before the end of July! Please review and follow!

.

.