"Annabeth!" Someone called. Looking up from laying down the mattress on Percy's bedroom floor, Annabeth frowned.
"Yes?"
There was the sound of heavy footfalls, and Sally waddled, smiling, into the light of the empty doorway. In her hand she grasped a cell phone, which she held out to Annabeth.
"It's your dad."
"My dad?"
"Yeah."
"Oh," Annabeth took the mobile, and held it tentatively to her ear, almost nervous, as though it would gnash its teeth and bite out like a feral beast.
"Hey, honey!" Came a bright voice on the other end, "how are you doing?"
"Er," Annabeth reached in her mind for something to say in answer to her father, "I'm good. Why are you ringing?"
"Was that wrong?" Frederick replied tartly.
"What? No. Course not."
"Alright. Just wanted to see how you were. Do you have everything?"
"It's been four hours."
"Do you have everything?" Her father pressed. Though Frederick could not see, Annabeth shrugged.
"Hope so. Anyway, I have to go."
"Alright, fine, if you don't want to speak to your father. See you later, Annabeth, have a nice trip."
"Thanks. Bye - wait. Make sure Bobby and Matthew don't use my computer."
Frederick chuckled on the other end of the line.
"I'll try. Bye."
"Bye."
There was a resounding beep as Annabeth hung up, and passed the phone back to Sally, smiling her thanks.
"All good?" Percy asked, reclined on his bed. Annabeth nodded. For her part though, Sally frowned.
"Is everything all right between you and your dad?" She inquired. Annabeth smiled tiredly, looking up at the elder woman.
"Yeah," she confirmed, "it's good. I just... I don't know, I just don't want him ringing me every five minutes. I guess."
"He is your father."
"Yeah, I know."
Sally offered a small twitch of the lips, then said, "I'm gonna go and unpack."
"Do you need help?" Annabeth asked. Sally dismissed this with a wave of her hand and a kind smile.
"I'm all good, but thanks"
"Alright."
Between them, Percy and Annabeth managed to successfully put together Annabeth's bed, despite the harrowing fatigue weighing down on each of them. Once they were done, Percy threw himself down on his bed and yawned widely.
"I'm tired," he complained.
"Me too." Annabeth agreed. She picked herself up off the floor, and lay down on the covers besides her boyfriend, biting back the grin creeping onto her lips. The shafts of light filtering in through the window cast shadows on the wall, and Annabeth's eyes chased them up and down, relishing in the beautiful patterns they created. As she traced their path, her eye caught on the mirror. In the reflection of the glass, Annabeth could see the image of the room she was in staring back at her. Already, it was rather messy. Suitcases and bags marred the pristine polished wooden planks of the floor, and an assortment of textbooks, paper and two cell phones sat innocently on the desk. At her side, Annabeth felt warm fingers curl around her's.
"I think I'm gonna go to sleep," Percy mumbled. Annabeth turned her head to look at him, and frowned.
"I thought you wanted to go swimming?"
"Uh, in an hour. Two."
"Suits me just fine," Annabeth murmured. Her voice was slurred slightly, still ravenous for rest, despite that slumber in the the car. So Annabeth, deciding to succumb to the merciless talons of sleep, rolled onto her side and shut her eyes. She felt someone curl up besides her, and warm arms wrap around her torso, holding her close. Wether those hands around her were for warmth or comfort or simply affection, Annabeth did not know. But she arched into them, glad for the body heat cleaving the winter chill, and smiled.
Presently, the sound of Percy snoring softly, filled the air. The noise was like the steady beat of one's heart. In fact, if Annabeth listened hard enough, the steady thumping of Percy's own heart was faintly audible against the cage of his ribs. It was consistent and calming. Like the soft waves of the summer sea tumbling down onto the sandy beach, or the incessant rhythm in a favourite song. Annabeth forced herself to breath in sync with the relentless beats, so that she and Percy became almost one. The exercise sapped the marginal amount of energy she had left, lulling her into a hazy mindset were nothing that crossed her mind made sense. So with this to pull her under, Annabeth smiled, nestled closer against her boyfriend, and allowed herself to fall into the realms of her dreams. But this time, they appealed. This time, her dreams inhabited the body of something kind and sweet, rather than the ruthless beasts they preferred so much more.
Dimly, Annabeth ... aware... hushed voices.
Sometime... there was... clutter of...
A... chirrup pierced the... of...
...Soughing...the wind.
"Are they still asleep?"
"Yes."
"Let them."
"Poor children."
"Still?"
"-Love."
"That and..."
"-Time is it?"
"Late."
It was a long time before Percy and Annabeth eventually woke. Only several hours later, did Annabeth finally find herself with her eyes open, staring about the bedroom trying to place were she was. Ah yes, in Montauk, lying... lying besides Percy on an unfamiliar bed. Sometime in the past stretch of hours, a quilt had been draped over them - so Annabeth discovered as she propped herself up on her elbows, and made to push herself of the bed - and the warmth it gave off made Annabeth want to melt right into it. There was an incoherent mumble at her side, and she turned.
"What time is it?" Percy murmured into a pillow. Annabeth shrugged, and sank back down into the covers; sought for his hand. A small smile broke onto his mouth, and he pressed closer to her. Annabeth bit her lip, as a tremor passed through her body. She wanted to hug him close and closer and closer. To not let go, and just sleep away all those hours of slumber she had missed. She wanted to kiss him, too. Kiss him until her body tingled with a thousand nerves set alight. In fact nothing was stopping her-
The door creaked open.
"Are you awake now?" Paul asked, bustling in. Bleary eyed, Percy and Annabeth raised their heads and nodded in unison.
"Its eight in the evening, so don't blame me when your sleeping schedule is completely distorted."
"I'm a teenager," Percy stated, "my sleep schedule is always messed up."
Paul pointed a finger at his stepson.
"You have a speech to write," he said, "for Grover's wedding. You need to find the time."
"Ugh." Percy sighed somewhat dramatically, and burrowed back into the bed. Leaning against the doorframe, Paul laughed.
"Do you guys want to go out to dinner tonight, or should we eat here? If you plan on moving at all from that bed."
"Er," Annabeth looked to Percy for a response. The son of Poseidon beamed.
"We can eat out? That'd be great. I mean, if it's no trouble."
"What do you want to do, Annabeth?" Paul asked. Annabeth became suddenly acutely aware of the awkward circumstances, and blushed. She supposed it must look a bit strange to Paul. Not in anyway that was, quite frankly, sexual, but just the image of the two children curled around each other, sleeping for all their worth. Maybe it was slightly rude, on her part too. She was a guest, after all, and most guests didn't have curling up besides their boyfriend and sleeping for hours, top of their bucket list as the first thing to do on vacation. Not after an only three hour car ride, anyway.
"I don't mind," Annabeth said, heaving herself upright, "whatever suits you, I guess."
"We'll go out to dinner then," Paul affirmed, "It's too much of a hassle to cook as well."
Sally came in then, and observed the scene with an amused glimmer in her eye.
"So what's been decided?" She asked.
"We'll go out to eat," Paul told his wife, "Maybe that pizza place. You like pizza don't you Annabeth?"
"I'd be crazy not to - I love pizza."
Percy laughed quietly into the cushion, then turned, sliding himself up in haste. He let out a small, startled little noise, no doubt as to the dizziness he had surely just succumbed to.
"You okay?" Annabeth asked, squeezing his hand beneath the cover of the blanket.
"Yeah. Just a little nausea. We should get out of bed."
"Yeah. I'm going to get dressed into a fresh pair of clothes and - gods-dammit it's freezing."
"We'll just have to grin and bear it," Percy grimaced as he ripped the quilt off. Sally chuckled, and jabbed over her shoulder with her arm.
"I'm going to go and change, too, we'll leave in half an hour."
"Alright," Percy said through chattering teeth.
Annabeth knocked on the door of Percy's room in quick succession. She was dressed now, having done so in the bathroom, and felt considerably warmer in her parka and hat.
"Yeah, come in," a muffled voice on the other side said. Annabeth pushed open the door and came in to see Percy tugging on his jacket. He grinned at her, throwing up his hood.
"Nice coat," he said.
"Is that an attempt at small talk?"
"No, it me genuinely complimenting your outfit."
"Why, thank you. You don't look too bad yourself."
Percy smiled in mock grudgingness. He crossed the room in a few short strides, and came to a pause besides Annabeth.
"Is that the highest praise I'm gonna get?"
Annabeth twitched her lips. In all honesty, Percy looked stunning. But she wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of saying that. Instead, Annabeth simply drew herself up and pressed a quick kiss his lips. Well, her intention had been for it to be quick. Instead, Percy laughed, and pulled her tight against him. A delicious warmth washed over Annabeth's body. Percy's arms held her close, gentle yet strong, wrapping her up in an embrace of passion. When they finally broke apart, Annabeth looked up at him.
"Does that answer your question?"
Percy didn't say anything, only pulled her into him again, and kissed her again. He let her go with a mischievous smile on his countenance.
"That I'm beautiful? Yes, it does."
"Idiot."
The walk to the pizzeria was beautiful, and almost ethereal. As the party traipsed along the surf of the beach, shoes dangling in one hand, the other surreptitiously grasping a lover's, the briny air was crisp and sharp, digging mercilessly into the seldom patches of each person's exposed flesh. The night was Stygian black, contrasted only by a a smattering of stars that brought it to life, and this pitch dark sky fused together with the inky sea somewhere in the hazy horizon. Percy and Annabeth walked slightly behind the adults, basking in the serenity of the breathtaking night. Though it was chilly, from the place where their fingers linked, a perpetual warmth spread through Annabeth's body, and beneath her toes, the sand was soft, the wind running its elegant fingers through her hair with almost feline grace. There no sound, save for the murmur of the waves, the sighing of the wind and the scraping of stars across the sky.
"This is magical," Annabeth breathed. Somewhere far, far ahead, the lighthouse stood haughtily, its powerful beam purging the land of shadows. For fleeting seconds, the rocks at its foot would be illuminated, jagged like teeth, and then the shaft would sweep on, nibbling away at the dark landscape. Percy squeezed her hand tighter.
"I know," he whispered, as though afraid a voice an octave louder would pierce through the calm glamour the night had cast. Percy glanced up to the sky, his gaze combing the stars, and the constellations: A familiar centaur, a ruthless giant of a hunter, a girl shooting arrows across the embellished black blanket.
"I know," he repeated. Annabeth waited for him to say something more, but all that followed was an empty, powerful silence.
The pizzeria was bubbling with laughter and merry exchanges, that were audible from two blocks away. When they finally drew up before it, Sally opened the door, and an alluring heat billowed out of the shop and into the moonlit streets. Desperate for that little sliver of warmth to pick them up in gentle arms, the group bundled into the foyer in a tangle of limbs.
No sooner had they crowded into entrance hall, a flustered waiter was upon them. He greeted the Jacksons - and Annabeth - pushing his hair backwards with one hand, and beckoned for them to follow, weaving through the throngs, combating them with practised ease. Only Annabeth could match the perfect grace of the waiter, moving like a current in a stream through the crowds. Near the back of the shop, he indicated to a square table accommodating five, and was gone without preamble. Percy was first to react. Letting out a contented sigh as he slid into his seat, he picked up the menu, and began to leaf through it, as rabidly as one might devour a good book. Annabeth peered over his shoulder, scanning the options too.
"What do you want to eat?" Percy asked her.
"Olive pizza, I guess - as usual."
"Why do you love olives so much?" Percy glanced up at her, his eyes laughing, bright as candles. Annabeth snorted.
"I think it's inherent," she laughed. Her companions all chuckled softly. The amusement of a group who were not obtuse to not understand the pains of the joke, but knew also they were welcome to laugh, as such comment had been jovial and light-hearted.
"Well, while you may love olives," Percy said, "I can assure you that I do not enjoy eating horses."
Annabeth smiled sidelong at him, trying to repress the giggle tickling her throat.
"You know some people do eat horse, right?" She said. Percy looked surprised, then that expression fell away, giving a wide berth to mild horror.
"Seriously?"
"Yep."
"That's cruel."
"It's just as cruel as eating the pepperoni you are about to devour."
"Touché."
Five minutes later, a waitress tottered over to them.
"May I take your orders?" She asked in a light Italian accent. Sally smiled, and placed the menu delicately in the centre of the trestle table.
"Yes please. Um," she turned to Paul and frowned slightly,"Do you want Margherita?"
Paul nodded, his lips upturned.
"Okay, er," Sally said. "That would be, one Margherita, two Pepperonis, and an olive pizza, please."
The waitress took note meticulously, then said curtly, "And to drink?"
"Oh," Sally flitted her eyes to her husband, then back to waitress, "We'll share a bottle of wine, whatever you recommend. And Percy, Annabeth-?"
Percy leaned forwards slightly, "Could I have a Coke please. Annabeth, do you want that too?"
"Uh," Annabeth began, "yeah. Thank you."
There was the sound of pencil scratching on paper, and with a sweep of an arm, the waitress gathered up the menus. She nodded once, then stalked away, back through the maelstrom of noise and rapturous conversations.
The clicking of heels cut through Percy and Annabeth's conversation. The waitress was returning, juggling in her arms the pizzas.
"Enjoy," she said as she lay the food down, but her voice held no emotion, as though this was just routine. Which, Annabeth supposed, it was: 'Take order. Give it to kitchen. Bring meal to table. "Enjoy." Back through the sea of people. And repeat.' It must get very tedious after the whole day spent doing the same thing. That same routine over and over so that soon it would become just a monotonous buzz in one's life. Annabeth almost felt sorry for the waitress as she watched her retreat back to carry out this uneventful task again.
Promptly, Percy began to guzzle his soda. He still looked slightly tired, despite their long sleep. Beneath her lashes, Annabeth watched him furtively. He was beautiful, even now, going about the meagre path of necking a drink. The moonlight coming in from the skylights kissed his face, accentuating his jawline, that reached up to the curve of his ear. His lashes hung over sparkling green eyes, and his lips, pressed over the rim of the glass, seemed suddenly unfamiliar, and so tempting.
Annabeth was shaken from her stupor, when somebody's hand passed her the pizza wheel. She looked quickly away from her boyfriend, and took the cutter, smiling her thanks. For a breath of a moment, Annabeth ran the wheel absentmindedly over her napkin. As though she could scratch away any hidden words the cloth may contain. Then, swiftly, she cleaved the pizza in half, then another half, then another. Once she was done, she slipped it to Percy, and tried as hard as she could, to not get distracted by his calloused hands as he cut the pizza with an entrancing sort of expertise.
As per usual, the first bite of pizza was the first bite of heaven. Annabeth took a chunk out of it, taking pleasure in the way the chilli oil tickled her tonsils, and the cheese filled her mouth. At her side, Percy did the same.
"Wow," he said through a mouthful of sourdough, tomato, cheese and pepperoni. Annabeth nodded in agreement, and took a swig of her beverage.
"Had a nice Christmas?" Paul asked her suddenly. Putting her glass back down on the table, Annabeth frowned slightly.
"It was alright," beneath the table, she squeezed Percy's hand, "Percy's present was great. Oh yeah, that reminds me. I brought gifts for you all."
Paul blinked, and smiled broadly. "You shouldn't have," he teased, "but thank you so much!"
Annabeth waved her fork - why they had forks in a pizzeria she did not know - in the air casually. "It was the least I could do. And did you have a good Christmas?"
"Yes," Sally put in, her lips creeping upwards, "it was very lazy. Spent sitting around the hearth, drinking egg nog."
Annabeth had a sudden image of Hestia, goddess of hearth and home, and felt her bones warm pleasantly.
"I'm jealous," she sighed. Percy laughed quietly, and took another bite of pizza.
"It was boring," he assured her, "Mom took my phone, saying 'Christmas is family time.' I had to revert to losing at scrabble with Paul. Yeah, I missed you a lot, too."
"Well don't make me feel guilty for not being there," Annabeth laughed, "I missed you as well."
Percy grinned into his glass, the tips of his ears coloured a not-so-subtle shade of puce. He lifted it to his lips, and as Annabeth watched demurely, beneath her lashes, she thought he might drink, drink such a mundane thing as soda, so that he could drown in his deluge of emotions, and hold them tight. Or perhaps that was a ridiculous thing to say, on the account of Percy being a son of Poseidon and therefore unable drown. Percy looked up to find her staring at him, and raised his brows inquisitively. It was Annabeth's turn to blush, turning back to her food in the hope it would cover the fierce red of her face. There was a slight laugh, and Annabeth glanced up to see Sally, chuckling as she looked between them. Then it was both their turns to flush as scarlet as a fire.
"Right," Paul brushed a few crumbs off his lap, and looked to his family, "shall we ask for the bill?" He raised his hand, and signalled to the waitress, who pouted, nodded slightly and disappeared back into the depth of the shop. Annabeth's eyes followed her path, then shifted, landing again on Percy. He leant back against his chair, a satisfied smile creeping up his face. And Hades, he looked beautiful, so beautiful it were as if he were Eros himself. Like an angel or a god or the delicious vibrance of a sunset sky. In this light, his eyes were almost opalescent, alternating between hues of sea green and rich blues. Annabeth's breath caught in her throat. And here, though they were surrounded by the music and the voices and hundreds of bodies packed against each other like sardines, it seemed to Annabeth that it was only she and Percy. Everyone else... infinitesimal, insignificant; melted into a hazy mist around them. Vaguely, she was aware of a warm hand wrapping around her's. A familiar, warm hand. It squeezed her fingers. Again. Again. Squeezed them just enough times so that it became like the constant rhythm of a heart beat. Squeezed them so that she was reminded of just how much she loved him. And Annabeth was drowning then. Suffocating as love wrapped its tentacles around her, held her close. An arm snaked around her shoulders, tugging her against a warm body. A voice was laughing, rumbling, thunder over head. A gorgeous chuckle that had seen so much and heard so much and lived so much. And if it were possible, Annabeth wanted to reach out and embrace that silken laugh: clutch it to her chest and never let go. So that in those frequent times of darkness, she could be reminded over and over of that boy and that heart and that soul that made even the bleakest of lives worth living.
"Annabeth?"
Like glass, Annabeth's thoughts were shattered. Her reverie broke, falling and scattering across the ground.
"Are you okay?" Sally asked, peering worriedly through her lashes, "You've gone very pale."
Annabeth blinked, the fall back to earth jarring her bones. She forced a smile, and pushed back a strand of blonde hair.
"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied, steadying her voice, "just got a little distracted."
"Do you need some water?"
Annabeth rubbed her eyes, and stifled a yawn. She shook her head slightly.
"No, it's fine. Don't worry."
The cool chill of the winter night was an embrace after the choking heat of the pizzeria. Annabeth stepped out onto the sidewalk and took a deep breath. Her thoughts had cleared now, the mist which had caused her to suffocate in the reckless grip of love had lifted, and she found herself grinning against the mellow moonlight glow. Instinctively, Annabeth reached subtly for Percy's hand. He took it, pressing close against her.
"Alright?" He whispered. Annabeth nodded, and smiled into the darkness.
"Fine- you?"
"Good."
"Good."
Percy tugged on her hand, and they followed Sally and Paul across the road, to the strip of beach hemming the coast.
As Annabeth walked, she felt the stars' burning gaze upon her. At her side, Percy kicked up sea spray, laughing delightedly as he shaped it into breathtaking images that caught in the porcelain moonlit light. A dolphin first, cutting through the air, then a fish slashing at the darkness, a whale, a bird. Annabeth beamed, her eyes glistening in amusement.
"Isn't that draining?" She asked. Percy let his galloping horse fall to sand, and looked up, chuckling.
"Nah, not really," he said. The droplets of water rose again, morphing now into a dancing couple. Annabeth watched, mesmerised. Before her, the couple waltzed, spinning around each other with flawless grace.
"I wish I could do that," Annabeth whispered wistfully. Frowning, Percy glanced up at her.
"It's just water," he breathed, "it doesn't accomplish much, being able to make a pretty shape out of sea spray..."
"Yes, but everyone else has cool powers, water and air and fire and charmspeaking and-"
"-hey!" Percy protested, "you led us all through the whole damned mess of that quest. We wouldn't have been able to accomplish a gods-forsaken thing without your brains." He tapped her on the head lightly, and laughed quietly, "Brains of the operation, right?"
Annabeth rolled her eyes. She stared fascinated, as the one of the dancing figures dipped the other. Percy furrowed his brow, and the couple became more detailed. A billowing gown swirled its way around one figure, and on the other a long cloak blossomed in the shadows. Percy allowed them to dance and dance their way through the air, until they crept onto Annabeth's shoulder. She laughed with childish glee. The couple began spinning down her arm, their light feet tickling, sending pleasant shivers up her body. Percy too, was chortling. He let the figures waltz down to her hand, then leap into an iridescent ribbon of water, that snaked its way around her body like a dog after its own tail.
"Percy!?" Cried a voice, "Annabeth!?"
"Huh?" The pair looked up sharply, the string of water arced down to the ground.
"Hurry up!"
"Right, coming!" Percy called back.
In her pyjamas, Annabeth lay idly on her mattress, inhaling her book. Somebody knocked quietly on the door.
"Decent?" Percy whispered.
"Yeah," Annabeth mumbled back, aware of the fatigue dragging her down. The door creaked open, and Percy stumbled in, clearly exhausted. His hand fumbled blindly on the wall, until he found the light switch. There was a click as he pressed it, and the room was flooded in instant darkness.
"Don't fall on me please, as you trip your way back to your bed," Annabeth laughed from the floor, placing her book besides her.
"Mm, I'll try," Percy murmured, the smile audible in his voice. Tentatively, Annabeth watched the dark silhouette make his way to his berth. The bed groaned as he eased himself down.
"Tired?" Annabeth asked.
"I have a lot of sleep to catch up on."
"Likewise."
Percy yawned, and seemed to be about to lie back on his bed, when he seemed to change his mind. He propped himself up again, and lifted himself from his bunk. Annabeth's brow creased.
"Perce? Okay?"
"Yeah, I just-"
Percy crouched down, and suddenly, his green eyes were before her, gleaming in the shaft of starlight coming in from the window. Somewhere in the distance, a car hummed its way down the road. "-forgot to say goodnight," he finished. An endearing smile flickered on his countenance. Not allowing him the satisfaction of being first, Annabeth hooked an arm around his neck and kissed him hard on the lips. He hugged her tight, as though fighting to keep her, him and this shattering world together. To keep it from melting in the heat of this kiss. When they broke apart, a beam of moonlight cast onto Percy's lips, revealing a broad smile.
"Goodnight," Annabeth purred. A mischievous twinkle gave sudden fruit in Percy's eyes. He leant forwards and allowed himself to kiss her again. Initially, Annabeth made a small sound of protest, but then relented. She leaned into his warmth, let herself be taken again by this kiss; shivered, painstakingly aware of Percy's cool hands, braced on her bare arms. Annabeth was not sure for how long the second kiss lasted, only that when they finally came apart, Percy smothered a giggle.
"I wanted the honour of kissing you first," he breathed. Annabeth sighed in mock exasperation. She watched him climb back into his bed, as he turned and let the sheets wrap around him like a snare. Then a hand fell purposefully from the mattress, and Annabeth curled her fingers around it as she she into that peaceful, glorious slumber she had so coveted.
