Chapter 29

Annabeth

I was sitting on my bed, staring at the necklace Mom gave me. She had gone to check on my wedding gown, and I was trying to think about the things Poseidon said. If he knew I was the princess his son was betrothed to, then why didn't he tell me? He also said he knew who his son was. Why didn't he tell me who he is?

Suddenly, I heard knocks and I looked up, trying to find who was knocking. I thought I heard the sound coming from my glass window, but when I looked, there was no one. Feeling alarmed (for some reason), I hurriedly put the necklace back to its box and hurried outside. My room was in front of the garden, so maybe whoever was knocking was still in the garden (because I was sure somebody did knock).

But nobody seemed to be there. I encountered two guards coming from there, but they didn't stop to talk; they just bowed and continued their way. So I went there myself. I stopped at the spot which was under my window, and sure enough, I saw some of the vines Thalia and I were accustomed to use as a ladder to my room before were not sticking to the wall like they should be, and then I knew somebody did climb up. But how did that somebody knew I used those vines? They were attached to the wall and looked as inconspicuous as a rock. Unless that person was smarter than Aristotle, that is.

Then I heard voices── men's voices, talking somewhere farther. I started to make my way to the sounds, but then I froze in my tracks. Lying on the ground in front of me was a cap. Slowly, my heart thrumming, I picked it up and gasped.

It was the cap I gave to Percy on graduation.

I heard the voices talking again and I grabbed Percy's cap, walking to where the voices were. But just as I took another step, I felt a hand grip my arm, and I turned to see Mom's face, her gray eyes wide with concern.

"Annabeth," she said. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," I said quickly, letting out a sigh of relief. "Nothing, Mom."

"Why are you in here?" Mom asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Just… getting a whiff of fresh air," I lied. "You know; before the 'bridal shower' and the… main event."

"Are you nervous?" Mom asked gently.

"I guess," I said. Women only get nervous on their special days. This wedding is sure as heck not special.

"What's that?" Mom asked, pointing to Percy's cap on my hand. I swallowed.

"Oh," I said, trying to think of something to lie about. Think, think, think… "It's, uh, a cap. I bought it from a boutique in New York. I thought it looked stylish."

"Why are you bringing a cap on your walks?" Mom asked, steering me away from the garden ("I want to go anonymously!" I replied). I looked behind my shoulder, but I couldn't hear the voices anymore. So I let Mom lead me away until we arrived at my room.

I changed into another dress, this time a red one. Just as I pinned my hair back with a bobby pin, there was a knock and the door opened, revealing Luke's handsome smiling face.

"Hey," he said, walking over towards us. He gave Mom a hug and then he hugged me, too.

"Hi," I said.

"Excuse me a minute," Mom said, smiling at Luke and me. "I'll go see if your dress has arrived already."

"Again?" I asked, and Mom rolled her eyes, a gesture I've seldom seen her do.

"I must make sure that they did not flaw it," she said matter-of-factly. "I myself designed it."

"I'm sure it's beautiful, Your Majesty," Luke said, smiling.

"Thank you, Luke," Mom said. "I'll be back." With that, she left and closed the door behind her.

"You're lucky to have Queen Athena as your mother," Luke commented. I raised an eyebrow.

"Why?" he shrugged.

"I don't know. It's just that… well, my mom's dead, you know. You're lucky to have a mother, in general."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it." I sighed and sat down on my bed.

"How do you feel?" Luke asked, sitting on the chair next to my bed.

"I don't know," I replied. "Nervous? Sad? Angry?"

"Suicidal?" Luke suggested. I smiled.

"Probably. I mean, don't you feel the same way?" Luke looked out the window and sighed.

"I've learned to accept things the way they are," he said softly. "Maybe you should, too, Annabeth. I don't want any of us getting hurt just because we try to fight the inevitable."

"That's easy for you to say," I said, maybe a bit too sharply. I blushed and cleared my throat. "I'm sorry. But Luke, you gotta understand me."

"You liked a boy." That wasn't a question. Luke didn't seem angry or anything, but it surprised me.

"How── how did you know?" I asked.

"It's true, isn't it?" Luke said, facing me. "You met someone in New York when you were there, and you like him, until now. Maybe you're even in a relationship with him. That guy you danced with on Homecoming? Percy Jackson, right? That's him."

"I…" My voice faltered. "Luke, I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I just──" But Luke just smiled.

"You don't have to say sorry to me," he said. "Annabeth, I could feel what you feel. You're not the first princess I've been engaged to." I frowned.

"I'm not?"

"Oh, you're the tenth," Luke said. "I started getting promised to princesses when I was just sixteen. There was even one time where I almost got married when I was seventeen. That was when I felt what you feel right now. I wanted freedom. I didn't want what I had back then. I'd understand if you broke the rules."

"Still. I hope you forgive me," I said. "When Octavian caught me and Percy, just before he beat us, he kept yelling, 'Infidelity to the prince!' What, am I committing adultery or something?"

"Wait, what?" Luke said, frowning. "Octavian… he beat you?"

OOOOOOPPPPSSSS.

"Uh, no?" I said, laughing nervously. "I never said anything like that…"

"I heard you, Annabeth," Luke insisted. "What did Octavian do to you?" But before I could open my mouth to answer, the door opened and Mom poked her head in.

"Annabeth, Luke? The party's starting."

~oOo~

The soiree ended earlier than I thought it would. All Luke and I did was just to smile and nod and laugh (if necessary) with whoever greeted us. Of course, we also pretended we were a happy couple. Like we weren't in an arranged marriage.

Now I was sitting in my chair in front of the mirror, staring at my made-up face and hair, waiting for Mom to come inside with my wedding gown. I stared at the way my stylists did me today; light pink eye-shadow on my eyes (I guess they wanted me to look "innocent"), a faint blush on my cheeks, and a light pink lip color. They did my hair in a loose bun, letting some of the curls escape so the hairstyle looked more natural.

I tried not to think about what was going to happen. Luke and I were going to get married. We were set off for Hong Kong after the wedding. And no, we were not doing things normal married people do on honeymoons.

Most of all, I thought about Percy. Was I ever going to see him again? And what about my friends? Thalia? Have they already accepted this? Have they learned to just give in to the fact which I couldn't even assent?

I felt a tear trickle down my cheek and I wiped it quickly, careful not to ruin the make-up. I heard a knock and the door opened, revealing Mom's smiling face.

"Here's your gown," she said. I turned to see the two stylists wheel a mannequin in. My eyes widened at the sight of the gown it was donning. It was absolutely beautiful.

It was immaculate white, with a lace bodice and a sweetheart neckline. The top was simple and sheer, and the skirt, although quite huge and voluminous, was simple, with neat ruffles with pearls and white roses.

And I realized what Mom planned me to look like── from my simple make-up to my simple gown. Everything was humble but beautiful at the same time. She wanted me to look like a sweet, innocent bride; a young girl who married the love of her life and was happy with it. I figured if I looked the way Mom wanted me to, it would hide the pain I was feeling right now.

"Well," Mom said, smiling. "Let's try it on you, shall we, dear?" I nodded and took off my robe, and then they helped me get on the dress. It was comfortable and felt soft on my skin, and I turned to look at the mirror and smiled. Innocent or not, I did look pretty.

After fitting on my shoes (thankfully they were flats), Mom opened a box and held out a silver jeweled comb the size of my hand.

"Here," she said, pinning the comb on the back of my head, just above my bun, to pin the veil on place. "This should do it." She looked at me, and for I saw tears forming in her eyes.

"Mom, what's wrong?" I asked. Athena doesn't cry. She never does.

"I'm sorry," Mom said, wiping her eyes. "It's just that… you're so grown up already. My little princess is gone."

"Yeah," I said quietly.

"I apologize for this," Mom said. She touched my cheek. "Annabeth, you're still a young girl. You have a bright future ahead of you. You could have done many things if you didn't get married." Took you long enough to realize, huh? I thought, but I bit it back. I have never seen Mom so emotional before.

"It's okay," I said, trying to smile. "Princess responsibilities, right?"

"Thank you," Mom said, smiling. "Thank you for understanding, my daughter. One day, you are going to be a good queen. I am sure of it."

"Uh, thanks," I said. The idea of being queen has never dawned on me before. I have always thought Mom would be queen forever. "Um…" The door opened and a butler stuck his head in.

"Pardon me, my lady," he said. "But I just wanted to inform you that the wedding will start in five minutes." Mom nodded at him and turned back to me.

"Well," she said, smiling, "let us go, shall we?" I forced a nervous smile and followed my mother outside the room.

The wedding was held someplace in the middle of the garden, where they set up a pulpit and chairs for the guests. I guessed Mom wanted my wedding to have loads of flowers, because that spot happened to be abundant in a lot of white flowers.

When I stopped just outside the wedding place (Mom said that the bride should not be seen until the ceremony has started) I saw a lot of people sitting in the chairs, and they were all dressed elegantly, in different-colored dresses and tuxedos. I saw Luke on front, wearing a black tux and looking exceptionally handsome, although the nervous smile on his face kinda made him look like a crocodile just bit his bum (sorry, Luke).

Finally, after two minutes, the preacher (or whoever was going to wed us── who weds royals, anyway?), a man dressed in white and gold, started talking and then before I knew it, the church organ was playing the wedding march and Mom squeezed my arm with a smile, and then I was walking down the aisle, holding my bouquet of white lilies with my sweaty hands and trying not to step on my gown.

I have dreamt of weddings before. When I was still a kid, I imagined my perfect wedding── a beautiful gown, many visitors, the perfect wedding place, and of course, my groom. Sure enough, when I started walking, all the people stood up and looked at me, smiling appreciatively. I saw Poseidon somewhere in the middle, standing next to his wife and his son. When he caught my eyes, he half-smiled, and it somehow reminded me of somebody.

Yeah, sure; beautiful gown, check. Perfect wedding place, check. Lots of visitors, check. So, I did get my perfect wedding after all. But when I saw Luke clearly now, smiling at me genuinely, I felt my stomach drop, because I realized that there was one factor in my perfect wedding that was missing. And I could never have it.

I tried to stall time by purposely slowing my steps, but I could see the pianist getting impatient (he was adding more force to the keys). Playing wedding marches must have been boring. Finally, I stopped at the middle of the altar with Luke.

"Hi," he said quietly.

"Um, nice tux," I offered.

"You look beautiful."

"Thanks. You too."

"I look beautiful?" I had to stifle a laugh, and the preacher cleared his throat.

"Do you, Luke Evan Castellan…" he rambled on, but I zoned out. I remembered what Percy said at the call, "Don't say anything until you see me."

Could it be possible that… he was here?

I was about to turn around, but then Luke said, "I do." I couldn't believe at how firm his voice sounded. He must have accepted the reality, like he said, a long time ago. The preacher turned to me.

"Do you, Annabeth Rose Chase, take this man…"

Don't say anything until you see me.

I closed my eyes.

I love you, Wise Girl.

The preacher finished talking and was looking at me expectantly, but I didn't hear a word he said.

"Annabeth," Luke muttered under his breath. "Say yes."

I opened my mouth, but no sound came out. I looked at the preacher's eyes, and I could see that he was trying to prompt me, kinda like: listen, kid, I know this is not your choice, but I'm kinda sick of weddings and let's get on with this.

I looked at the crowds and their expressions, and I could see that they were all waiting for me to say those precious two words. I saw Mom in the back. She was looking at me worriedly. I saw King Hermes. He was smiling at me encouragingly. I saw Poseidon, but his eyes only read, do what you must.

And then I saw somebody else behind, and my heart jumped.

Percy started walking towards the aisle, wearing a black tux. His hair was disheveled (as always) and his eyes were kind of bloodshot, but when he smiled at me, I thought he had never looked so handsome. He was right now, anyway.

But what was he doing here?

I realized it too late. The people all turned to him, including the preacher and Luke. Nobody tried to stop him. I didn't know why. And I didn't know what was going to happen after he opened his mouth and said something, loud and clear.

"Stop the wedding."

Oh. Hey there.

So I won't be explaining why it took me so long to update because I guess everybody knows the reason why teenagers can't make their stories their top priorities for the moment: school. So, yeah.

I wouldn't take long and I'm supaah tired, so review and have a nice day. Peace out :)

-Bluecookies19