A/N: Thanks for being so patient with me guys. You'd know if you follow the IGAB tag on tumblr that my vacation was less than stellar and it got me off my game. If you want to know what's happening with the story, please check out my tumblr page (flyingcrowbar) or at least follow the STM AU tag.

In happier news, my near and dear friend Dan wrote a fic about the last chapter (I know, it's so meta I could scream with glee). Go check it out! He's son-of-rome on tumblr!

Also, super huge shoutout to Meg (anxiouspineapples on tumblr) for her fanart for Chapter 20 as well. It floored me. Needless to say, I am amazed I have such talented friends and they should be loved forever.

As always, special thanks to my beta Kat for telling me when I'm being stupid and for Mari always being my muse.

Without further ado, Chapter 21... ^_^

Annabeth never remembered her dreams, and that didn't really bother her. She simply liked waking up and cozying herself into her blankets, pressing her back into the mattress, and stretching her toes as the last moments of unconsciousness faded away. She rolled over and buried her face into the pillow, sighing into it, and then snapped her eyes open.

She knew that smell - the chlorine, the Old Spice, the musty, dried up drool.

It smelled like…

Percy.

With a yelp, Annabeth barrel rolled out of bed and fell to the floor. She untangled herself from his blanket and rocketed to her feet. Her heart was a jackhammer against her ribcage. Percy was nowhere to be found, but she had been in his bed. Of course he would have noticed! He wasn't that dense. How did he react? What did he think? Where was he anyway?

Annabeth scrambled to her desk and snatched her phone from atop her stack of books. She opened up a text chat with Piper and furiously typed, I just woke up in Percy's bed.

When she got no immediate response, Annabeth pressed her hand to her forehead and tried to recall how she ended up there. She remembered getting up during the night, going to pee, and heading back to bed... but she must have gone into the wrong one! Her thoughts were compressing in her mind like a black hole, impossibly heavy and draining, leading her down into a place where she wasn't sure she could escape.

Her phone chirped and she read Piper's response.

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY (laughing emoji) (kissing emoji) (heart emoji) (clapping emoji) (eggplant emoji)

Annabeth was too impatient for this texting thing, so she called Piper instead. Piper picked up on the first ring. "Yay!" she sang again, and Annabeth started pacing. "I knew you two would hook up eventually!"

"Not yay, Piper. This is not a yay situation." She then told her what had happened, how it was all just one big misunderstanding.

"See? Even your subconscious wants to get with him."

"But I can't!"

"Why not? You're obviously in love with the guy."

"I'm not in love, I just… like his qualities."

"I know love, Annabeth. You are in love."

Annabeth spun on her heel and tromped to the other side of the room. Somewhere deep down she knew Piper was right. Every time she saw Percy, even when he wasn't doing anything at all, she felt her heart swell. But her feelings toward Percy could threaten her very existence at this school. Why did her stupid heart have to get in the way of her future?

"So why don't you just tell him?" Piper asked. "That's one less thing you'd have to worry about."

"It's not that easy."

"Nothing is easy at first. Just do it! Rip it off, like a band aid." Piper sensed Annabeth's hesitation and continued. "You know you've still got me as a friend, and Jason. And we'll support you no matter what. Seriously, what's the worst that could happen?"

"That he'll hate me," Annabeth said. She couldn't help it that her voice cracked. Was she really getting emotional over a hypothetical outcome? Perhaps Percy meant that much to her…

"He's not going to hate you. At most he's going to be… shocked."

Annabeth tsked when she chuckled. "That's putting it lightly."

"What's worse? Lying to him forever or telling him the truth?"

"Telling him the truth."

Piper sighed. "You know, everything would be a lot easier for you two if you'd just open up to each other. I know Percy. You do too. He's not the kind of guy you're worried he is."

"Alright…" Annabeth said, feeling a lecture coming.

"You're making yourself sick over this."

"No, last night I had the flu or something."

"That's not what I meant. You're stressing yourself out. Just relax. Breathe."

"You'd be stressed out too if your life was on the line."

"Your life is not on the line."

"That's easy for you to say. You're not the one facing jail time if this blows up in my face."

"I hear lady jail is pretty fun."

"Piper, Orange Is the New Black is not real."

She could practically hear Piper smiling on the other end. "Damn shame."

"I'm hanging up now," Annabeth said, her lips quirking as she smiled too.

"Seriously," Piper said, "I think you need to tell him, but it's your call."

Annabeth grew quiet. She knew Piper was right. This whole charade was tearing her apart inside. Maybe he would hate her less if she told him sooner rather than later? But then everything would be over and she'd have to move back home and face her father, and probably a judge, and go back to being Annabeth Chase, the person Percy Jackson despised.

"Percy likes you, that's for sure," Piper said.

"He likes Andy."

"And don't you think Percy would want Andy to be honest with him? Because he's worried about him? Because he cares?"

Annabeth didn't feel like answering, not when she would have to admit that Piper was pulling on a loose thread in her mind, unraveling her temperament with each tug. She glanced at the clock near Percy's bed and found that she had a little over five minutes to get to class.

"I have to go. I'm going to be late," she said. It was a welcome subversion from having to continue the conversation.

"Alright, do that. But just know, I'm here for you."

"Thanks, Piper. Really."

"Any time. I'm on your team every day of the week."

Annabeth laughed.

"Good luck!" And with that, Piper hung up.

Annabeth burst into Mythology thirty-four seconds late. The room was quiet except for the scratch of writing utensils on paper. Winded and disheveled, she nervously patted her curls down on her head, and crossed in front of Chiron's desk who looked up at her with a smile.

"How fortunate for you to have joined us. Just in time to take a pop quiz."

He handed her a sheet of paper with questions on it and gave her an encouraging nod. Annabeth apologized quietly and slinked to the back of the room where her desk was empty and waiting.

Percy, head bowed low over his quiz in his usual seat behind hers, glanced up and brightened at the sight of her.

Her stomach plummeted, but in a good way. A way that made her smile like her lips were numb and flushed.

She sat down and put her backpack under her desk then pulled a pen from within. She looked over the questions, trying to focus on the task in front of her, when she felt a gentle tap on her shoulder.

"The color is back in your cheeks," Percy whispered, close to her ear.

Annabeth swallowed hard. It was as if all of her guts had migrated to her throat. She looked straight ahead, unsure she'd be able to meet his eyes. "Um, about this morning…" she whispered.

"It's alright. You were totally out of it."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize. I'm glad you're feeling alright. You look good… er, better."

Her cheeks started hurting as she smiled and fought down the heat on the back of her neck. By the time she mustered the strength to thank him, she found him rosy as he stared at his quiz.

Percy's character died horribly with a blood curdling scream as the video game told him he failed about the sixteenth time on the level. Taking the second to restart, Percy leaned forward from his beanbag chair and reached to the floor to take another cookie from the tupperware at his feet. He pinched it between his teeth just before he started maneuvering his character through the map. Usually at this time of day, he'd be swimming laps with his teammates, but he was adjusting well enough to civilian life. He had been meaning to play this video game for months and only now was he getting to it. But boy did he suck at it.

The door opened behind him and Percy tilted his head back to look. Andy walked in and Percy's heart leapt. "Hey," he said around the cookie so it came out more like "Unh."

"Hey," Andy replied. He liked seeing Andy looking well and smiling. As Percy turned back to the game, Andy moved to his desk and put all his stuff down on the chair.

"Want some?" Percy asked, swallowing his cookie quickly. He held out the tupperware filled with more. "My mom sent a care package. Homemade."

Nothing beat a little taste of home. Percy had been tempted to eat the whole thing himself, including the banana bread muffins, hand-cut fudge, and his mom's signature puppy chow - all of them aqua blue, as usual, but then Andy would be missing out.

"That's really sweet of her to do that," he said, taking one.

"Was that a pun?"

Andy paused, the cookie halfway to his lips. "Unintended." He bit into the cookie and his eyebrows disappeared underneath his hair.

"Like it?" Percy asked, already knowing the answer.

"It's amazing!" He finished the cookie in another bite.

"My mom is the best," he said, offering the tupperware again. Andy took a second one, but Percy couldn't help but notice a slight downturn on Andy's lips, like an unpleasant thought had crossed his mind. Andy wore his emotions like a t-shirt. It was obvious that Andy hadn't gotten a care package since he'd started attending Bolt, but Percy didn't want to make a big deal about it. His mom could bake double next time to make up for it.

"Tell her I agree," Andy said, nodding as he ate another cookie.

Percy grinned. "Why were you so late anyway?"

"Tutoring."

Percy felt a twinge of jealousy, even when he was just joking, "I thought I was your only padawan."

"You want me to tutor you in quantum physics?"

Percy waited a beat. "If it's not the thing with Scott Bakula, I'll pass."

"What?"

"Quantum Leap. It's a TV show…?" Based on Andy's blank expression, it was a dud. "Nevermind."

Andy snickered and stretched his arms over his head. "Well, Jake Mason wanted a review. It's the least I could do." Percy recognized the name, but he didn't think he had ever had a class with the guy.

"Then how about you take a break from all this studying and play a round with me." He held up a second controller.

"No, thanks. I've got to prep for AAAAAAARRRRRRGGGHHHHHH!"

Percy lurched and jumped to his feet. Andy kicked his knees high and scampered over to Percy, scrambling on top of him, practically standing on his shoulders, and grabbed onto Percy's face so he could barely see a thing. "Andy what-!"

"WHATTHEFUCK! WHATTHEFUCK! WHATTHEFUCK!"

"Andy-" Percy tried peeling Andy's hands away from his face, but his grip was like a vice. Together they stumbled as one as Percy balanced Andy on his back. "Andy, let go!"

Andy did but only to wrap his forearm around Percy's throat and he squeezed his legs around his waist so he'd be as high off the ground as possible.

"Dude!" Percy gasped, choking.

"KILL IT! KILL IT!" Andy screamed.

That's when Percy saw the tarantula crawling out from underneath Andy's desk. "Hey! Arachne!" Percy gagged. "I think she likes you."

Andy didn't seem to like the idea. His eyes were huge, as round as his mom's cookies. Percy could feel Andy's heartbeat against his head. He was truly panicking.

"You're choking me," Percy wheezed, struggling to breathe.

Andy let him go and whacked his elbow into the side of Percy's head as he flailed about when the spider started crawling towards them. Dazed, Percy walked them over to the ladder on the bunk bed and deposited Andy there. Andy scrambled all the way up onto his mattress and clung to the edge like it was a magic carpet ready to take him away from here.

Percy turned his attention to Arachne, slowly inching her way across the rug in the middle of the room towards the door, like she wanted to go back to Nico's room. Too much adventure for such a little thing.

From his sweatpants, Percy pulled out his phone. He dialed Nico's number and waited. When Nico answered, Percy spared no time. "Hey, Nico. Arachne is here."

"Your room?"

"Yeah, she was just under Andy's desk."

"How'd she get there?"

"Not sure. Maybe she needed to stretch her legs. She has eight, you know…"

"Is she hurt?"

"No, she's fine. Want me to pick her up and carry her-?"

"DON'T!" Percy held the phone at arm's length when Nico shouted. "I'll be there in fifteen minutes. I'm across campus."

"Sure thing."

"What's that noise?"

"Huh?" It was only then did Percy notice Andy hyperventilating. He was hiding under his blanket, the edge of it wrapped around his face like a little old lady, taking huge rattling breaths that made his face go all red.

"Is that Andy?" Nico asked.

"Yeah."

"Is he okay?"

"Umm… Define okay."

"Tell him I'm really sorry. I should have warned him. I didn't know he was afraid of spiders."

"Neither did I." Percy put the phone to his shoulder and turned to Andy. "Nico says he's sorry about Arachne."

Andy just stared at him, tears brimming the edges of his eyes.

Percy put the phone back to his face. "Andy says it's cool." He didn't want to make Nico feel guilty. It wasn't like he did it on purpose.

"Just keep Arachne safe until I get there, okay?"

"You got it."

With that, Percy hung up. He went over to the tupperware on the floor and emptied the rest of the cookies into his hand and then placed the container over Arachne. But when Arachne crawled, so did the makeshift cage. It slid across the floor toward the door which made Andy whine like a hurt puppy.

Thinking quickly, Percy put his gaming controller on the top of it to weigh it down. The container was too heavy to move.

"Better?" he asked.

Andy didn't say anything except nod.

"Not a spider person?" he asked, a smile slipping across his lips. Andy didn't seem to find it funny, so Percy's smile fell quickly. He climbed the ladder and swung himself out when he was halfway up, like a sailor on a mast, and looked down at the trapped animal. "It's just a spider. It's not like it's a… a… What's worse than a spider in your opinion?"

"Nothing. Literally nothing. Except failure."

"Failure isn't an actual thing." After a pause, he said, "You know what I mean."

"Yeah, but failure doesn't jump on your face and eat your eyeballs out."

"That bad, huh?"

Andy nodded. "I know it's dumb, but my friend's older sister once told me that tarantulas lay eggs in the ends of bananas and ever since them I have to cut them both off."

"Or you could just not eat bananas."

"Potassium. They're good for you."

"Yeah, but they're gross."

"They're not."

"They are! The sound they make when you chew them? It's like, what's up with that? And why's it gotta be all mushy before I put it in my mouth?"

"That's what she said."

Percy's smile found its way back to him. There's the Andy he knew and… yeah. "I sort of walked right into that one, right?"

Andy smiled too. He lowered the blanket from his head and took a deep breath. He was calming down. "Sorry I freaked out on you back there. Thanks for keeping a level head."

"Don't thank me. Tupperware to the rescue. Now it's just an excuse to eat all of these cookies in one sitting." Percy perched his butt on the edge of Andy's bed, keeping his legs on the ladder, and cradled the cookies close to his chest. He held out another one for Andy to take. "Besides, we're all afraid of something."

"Not like that."

"I'm scared of flying… and riding bicycles." He hadn't told anyone that before. It was kind of an embarrassing thing to admit. Then again, it would even out the embarrassment level of the room - Andy afraid of eating the ends of bananas, Percy afraid of a mode of transportation a kindergartener could master. It was easy for the blush to come to his cheeks.

"You serious? Your parents never taught you?"

"Grew up in New York. Didn't really need to. Plus my mom was always working."

"Is she a baker?"

"No. She works at Sweet on America. It's a candy store."

"Oh cool. Well she's really talented. Tell her she should make a cookbook."

Percy nodded. "It's what I've been saying for years. But, uh, my step-dad Gabe isn't exactly on board. He thinks it's a waste of time."

Andy grew quiet and took another cookie, as if to spite Gabe. "I don't think that should stop her. Is he writing the book?"

"Fair enough. But Gabe can be really… persuasive." He rubbed his wrist at the memory of a particular night when Gabe really wanted his way, sending Percy to the ER for it.

"Sounds like a jerk," Andy said. If only he knew.

Percy cracked a smile even though it was really difficult to do. "Kinda the reason I don't drink either."

"Oh, jeez." Andy was putting the pieces together. Percy's home life wasn't exactly ideal, not when an abusive alcoholic roamed the halls. Percy vowed that night in the ER that he'd never ever drink, anything not to turn into Gabe.

Percy hadn't really thought about it much until now, but if Gabe ever found out that Percy might have a crush on Andy, he'd probably do something worse to him than ending up in the ER. He shuddered at the thought. Just when Percy was starting to feel better about himself, Gabe had to come and ruin it from 2000 miles away.

Percy shook his head. "But whatever. Gabe is a shithead." He wanted to change things up, get talking about something better. "What about you? Your folks?"

Andy wrung his hands thoughtfully. "My dad's a professor over at UCLA."

"Oh yeah? What kind?"

"History."

"So it runs in the genes, all those brains," Percy said, taking a bite from another cookie.

Andy flushed. "I guess…"

"Got any brothers? Sisters?"

"Nope. Just me. Two step brothers though."

"Really? I thought Leo told me something about a hot twin sister…"

Andy took a moment, like he was holding his breath, and laughed. But it was a weird laugh, like he was trying too hard. "Oh that? No, no. No no, no. No. Nope. No, no. No. No. No no, no. Nope. No. No. That was, uh, just Leo being Leo."

Percy smirked. "I knew Leo was full of shit."

"So," Andy said, clearing his throat and holding up a cookie, "why blue?"

Percy grinned. "It's sort of a tradition in our house."

"Oh yeah, I remember you mentioning that a while back. You never explained though."

Percy shifted so he was fully on Andy's mattress. "When I was really little, I lost a race. Didn't even place. I worked really hard that year too which sucked. I cried all the way home. To make me feel better, my mom whipped up a batch of blue waffles because it was better than 'a silly blue ribbon anyway.' It's been our thing ever since."

"Yeah, but it looks like you've improved after," Andy said, jutting his chin toward Percy's wall of victory.

Percy turned to look at it too. Whenever he had a race, his mom was always there, cheering him on. Some of his best memories were of him standing on the starting block with his mom waving a banner in the stands, cheering for him at an embarrassing volume. Well, maybe to any other kid, it'd be an embarrassment, but she was his mom. She was all he had. But now he was in California and she was on the other side of the country, all alone with that monster. Guilt seeped into his veins like sludge. But Percy was here because maybe one day he'd be able to get her out of that hellhole. "Yeah…"

"How'd you get started anyway?"

"You're kinda chatty today. What happened to stoic Andy from the first week you moved here?"

"You're keeping me distracted. I don't want to think about that… thing." Andy pointed to the tupperware where the shadow of the spider lingered.

Percy pulled his upper lip away from his front teeth as he took in a breath. They were tip-toeing into a touchy subject, but Percy didn't want to be rude. It was an innocent question, so he'd give an innocent answer. "Um, well, my mom said I started swimming before I could even walk. She and my real dad took me to the beach all the time and I would just kinda flail there." He mimed little baby arms being not much use in the water. Andy laughed. "But I didn't really learn how to swim proper 'til I was a little older. My mom says I took after my dad real fast."

"How'd they meet?" Andy chewed on another cookie.

"Hawaii. My dad was a native."

Andy made a noise showing interest. "New York is pretty far away from Hawaii."

"Yeah, you're telling me. He moved there with us just after I was born. He stuck around for a bit, but, uh… He's not really in the picture anymore."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Andy dropped his hands into his lap. Percy couldn't bring himself to look Andy in the eyes, but he knew what was there - the sympathy, the worry - and Percy didn't want any of it. "We don't have to talk about it, if you don't want to."

"Nah, it's okay. I don't really remember him much anyway."

Andy was quiet. Percy knew things had turned awkward. He hadn't meant for that to happen. His history was just a series of facts.

"My mom's not around either... I mean, she's still alive... but I'm sorry," Andy murmured again.

"You make it sound like he's dead," Percy said, fighting to keep a light tone in his voice. It was convincing enough that he even tricked himself.

Andy scrunched his brows. "But you kept referring to him in past tense…"

"Yeah, well, I mean, I don't really know where he is. When I was really little, one night he just split. I didn't really notice it at first. But for my eighth birthday I asked for my dad as a birthday present and it was only when my mom smiled at me all sad and said 'maybe, kiddo' that I realized he wasn't coming back."

It was like word vomit. Once he got going, he couldn't stop. But he kept that smile because maybe he could dismiss it all as one big joke.

"Percy…" Andy said, barely above a whisper.

"He's probably got some other family out there, one he's happy with. And, I know it's dumb, but I have this stupid fantasy that if I win a gold medal at the Olympics, he'll recognize me and he'll leave that family and come back for me and my mom and we'll all be together again like before. So I swim so I can show him just how proud he can be of me because somewhere inside I think maybe it was something I did and I need to make it right."

"Percy, please…"

Percy's smile broke. His cheeks itched and when he brushed them with the back of his hand, his skin came away warm and wet. Christ, he thought, furiously burrowing his eyes into the crook of his elbow. Pull yourself together, dude.

He trusted Andy not to judge him, and instead he was judging himself. Andy must think he was such a baby, crying in front of him. What a disaster. He took a breath and gathered himself up to look at Andy again. He could tell he looked like a mess just based on the way Andy was watching him: his brow furrowed, his lips puckered, his hand outstretched on the mattress in between them, like he wanted to reach out to touch Percy but stopped himself short. Percy's heart did a cartwheel.

"Are you okay?" Andy asked.

Percy swallowed, his throat tight, his words thick, and said, "Yeah. I'm fine."

Andy's fingers twitched into a fist. Instinctively, Percy wanted to reach out and take it, pictured what it would feel like with his fingers intertwined with Andy's, but then Andy pulled his hand away and brought the blanket back up to his shoulders, like he was cold.

There really wasn't much else to say, not after Percy had made a fool of himself. He'd be blushing because of Andy if he wasn't already blushing out of shame.

"I know there are a lot of people who care about you, and if you ever need anything, just say the word," Andy said, his voice soft.

"I've never told anyone that. Not my mom, not even Grover or Jason. I, uh - thanks. For letting me rant."

"Sure," Andy said, with a small smile.

Percy caught his eyes and nodded. But Andy's lips fell a little, his eyes getting distant. He blinked a few times and stared down at his lap then took in a deep breath. Whatever was on his mind was fraying his demeanor. He twisted the blanket in between his fingers, working his lip in his teeth.

"Percy, I -" Andy's breath hitched, like a hiccup, and he held it. Percy tilted his head, curious. The air was electric, making Percy hang on the promise of a single word. Was this it? Was this the moment that Andy admitted he liked Percy too? The bed thing was not a happy accident. It couldn't be. All Percy wanted to hear was that Andy liked him back. "Listen, I need to-"

But then the door burst open and Nico flew into the room looking like he had sprinted across campus, which he probably did.

All Percy had to do was point to the container on the floor and Nico let out a gasp of relief. He lifted the tupperware and cooed, "There you are! I missed you so much! I was so worried about you!"

Andy buried his face under the blanket again at the sight of the spider, but Nico was cradling it in his palm like a kitten. Mid-turn, Nico looked up at the both of them and his eyes fell on Andy. "Uh, thanks for finding her, Andy."

He simply grunted in response and Percy's smile snuck back.

Then Nico noticed Percy and his red-rimmed eyes. "You okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. Andy was just telling me a really good joke."

Nico's eyes flickered between him and the lump that was Andy and then to Percy again before he left.

"Is it gone?" Andy asked, his voice muffled.

"You're safe. Eyeballs uneaten."

Andy whipped the blanket off of his head, his curls a poofy mess and let out a breath. "That's not funny."

"It's a little funny."

Andy's gray eyes flashed but there was no heat. A small smile even twitched the corner of his mouth.

"So, what were you saying before?" Percy asked.

Andy untangled himself from the blanket and put a hand to his forehead. He took a moment before he sighed, "Oh, nothing. I was just going to say I need to, uh, take a shower."

"Oh, uh, yeah, sure." Percy stood and climbed down the ladder and Andy quickly followed. When Andy's feet hit the floor, he turned and almost bumped right into Percy, who was moving towards his own bed. Together they stood, facing each other, unsure of who would move out of the way first, stuck at an impasse. The air got hot, like Percy was baking in a summer day's sun, and he fumbled for something to say but came up empty.

"I'm just gonna-" Andy said, pointing.

"Yeah, you better-" Percy said, dodging out of the way.

"Sorry."

"No, I'm sorry."

"No, me."

"Okay, um, have fun." Percy said. Wow. Fumbled on the one yard line. Have fun? In the shower? What the hell, Percy, you moron.

He plopped down on his mattress and tried not to stare as Andy gathered his pajamas and moved to the shower. When Andy looked over his shoulder at Percy, Percy tried to act like he hadn't been watching, and got up and went back to his beanbag chair with his abandoned video game. He turned it on and started playing again, still consciously aware of the fact that Andy was moving around the room. Then the bathroom door closed and Percy rocked his head back to stare at the ceiling, wondering when, if ever, he'll be able to hold Andy's hand for real.

A/N: Not sure if this'll be the last chapter of the year, since both Christmas and New Years fall on Thursdays. Leaning towards that to be the case, but we never know. I do have the next two weeks off from work so... We'll see! Thanks for reading and thank you so much for your support!