DISCLAIMER: I OWN NOTHING. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. ALL CREDIT GOES TO RICK RIORDAN, DL, and JESSICA BURKHART!

Review Responses:

BookishDreams: Thank you so much!

~LittleMissReader36

intense ukulele: Be careful what you wish for, lol. Even though it's a chapter late, I hope you like it. Thanks!

~LittleMissReader36

XxEpicFrenchFryxX: Me too!

Thanks!

~LittleMissReader36

Guest: Yes, I will try to update as much as possible.

~LittleMissReader36

Hello and welcome back to this story! Hopefully y'all enjoyed the shorter wait between chapters.

CHAPTER 13

I Saw Red

Annabeth's POV

"Annabeth!" Luke called.

"Luke!" I screamed.

He ran over to me and crushed me in a warm embrace, kissing me on the lips. Pulling away he breathlessly spoke again. "I'm throwing a party at my house next weekend. Want to come?"

His pleading blue eyes stared into my soul, begging me to agree.

"Sure I will. Wouldn't want to miss a party now would I?"

He took me back in his arms, holding me tightly. "Thanks, Beth."

"Anytime," I whispered, claiming his lips once more.

— A Week Later—

I had called Silena up after he asked me to his party, and she said that she would accompany me. We went dress shopping beforehand, her wishes, of course. However, I ended up finishing something I really liked and just had to have.

After stepping out of my steaming shower, the strawberry scent of my body wash hugged my skin. I blow-dried my hair then slipped the dress over my head. Silena would be coming over to help get me ready, and since I didn't have really any experience in that department, I wanted to give her a blank slate. Sitting down on the chair in front of my vanity, I texted her.

Anna Beth:

Where r u?

Silena:

Coming! Gimme a minute!

I clicked my phone off, satisfied by her answer.

When she showed up about five minutes later, she set about getting me ready. She, of course, was already ready. Her hair spiraled down her back in soft curls, and her makeup was done perfectly. No doubt she did it herself.

As I wasn't very big on makeup, I wasn't exactly sure what she'd done, but from what I could see, it accentuated the bright blue of her eyes fairly well.

Once she'd finished my makeup, we left. I gave her directions to Luke's house, and she teased the scarily accurate way they were given.

When we got there, many of Luke's friends had already arrived, including Drew. I didn't know if they were friends or not, but I knew that they'd been spending a lot of time together. It had started after Luke had already asked me out, so I decided not to question it. I had a feeling it was nothing, and I trusted him.

An elbow in the side by Silena brought my attention back to the present. "Luke's eyeing Drew pretty closely. Are you guys still on?"

"Yeah. They're just friends."

"I hope so. C'mon, let's go say hi." Taking my hand, she dragged me over to where Luke was standing.

"Luke, your girlfriend's here."

Silena's voice was slightly edgy, and I couldn't help but wondering if she knew something about him that I didn't.

"Wha… oh, hi, Beth!"

He turned around, holding me tightly in his arms and spinning us around. Pulling back slightly, he pressed a light kiss to my lips. "I'm so glad you're here." He whispered, putting me down.

I looked over at Silena and winked. "Told ya so," I mouthed. She rolled her eyes and ambled away from me. I assumed that she was going to talk to Charlie, as she'd been eyeing him the same way I eyed Luke before we started going out.

Luke and I talked about nothing, anything, and everything in between before I noticed that he was, in fact, eyeing Drew. Without him noticing, I whipped out my phone and sent Silena an SOS text.

My phone went off seconds later, and I excused myself from Luke, telling him that my mom had called. He waved me off, clearly not hearing a word I said.

I left him there, wandering off to find Silena. Once I did, I told her that she was right and that Luke and Drew were probably more than friends.

I began to sob into her shoulder, and she held me tightly, reassuring me that it was going to be alright.

Distantly, I heard the song change to Def Leppard's "Love Bites," and couldn't help noticing how well it fit my situation.

Seconds after it started, Rachel approaches us and grabbed my arm, steering me in the direction of Luke's room. "He wants to apologize," she whispered. "In private." Then, she left me standing in front of the closed door. I hesitated, not knowing if I should proceed or not. The rational part of me knew that Rachel was lying. That part of me knew that whatever I was going to see in there, it was going to break my heart further than it already was.

However, the part of me that was smitten with Luke begged to differ. He loves you it whispered. Following that side instead, I eased the door open.

Song Tribute- "I Saw Red"— Warrant

What I saw froze me in my spot, shattering my heart beyond recognition. Luke and Drew were wrapped around each other, kissing with the same passion he once showed me. At the angle I was at, all I could see was Luke's face and the undeniable expression of pure pleasure.

I slammed the door into the wall, wanting to make my presence known.

"Beth…" his voice was soft, but there was no sign of regret. Not even an I'm sorry could be heard.

*" I knew this would happen. I knew it, but I tried to convince myself that it was just me. That you really liked me. I can't believe you, Luke. I always knew you'd go to her." My voice was soft, yet stronger than what I thought I possessed.

"Beth... please..."

**"I don't think I'm going to love you anymore."

I softly closed the door behind me, coming out just in time for the last lines of "Love Bites."

"If you've got love in your sights, watch out. Love bites."

This chapter may or may not have been inspired by Jessica Burkhart's Little White Lies.

*- I don't own this line. It comes from chapter 26 of Jessica Burkhart's Little White Lies.

**- I don't own this line either. It comes from the song "I Saw Red" by Warrant.