A/N: The end is near, for real this time.
Chapter 31
Annabeth
Present Day
Apart from feeling a hundred nails digging into my skin every time I twist, turn or even breathe, I'm fine. My body feels very stiff and sore, probably because I haven't gotten up from bed for quite some time now, I feel physically drained to do anything but blink. Mentally, though… mentally I don't think I have ever been so active ever. I have these thoughts that I can't get out of my head, more like questions that I need to be answered, but so far only Jason and Piper have been here and visited me in the hospital.
Where was he?
According to Piper the surgery went fine, there were no complications apart from the fact that my heart stopped beating for a while but the doctors said that they managed to get me back just in time. I was out for two days and today was the fifth day and hopefully my last day in the hospital before I can get out of this hell hole.
But, where was he? Why didn't he come and visit me yet?
I haven't even seen my scars yet. I know I was stabbed in the stomach but I don't remember it happening. All I can remember from that day is Percy and I infiltrating the warehouse, getting to Piper and then my mind goes blank.
There is no one in this world who can answer my questions but Percy. How did I get stabbed? I'm a good fighter, I have been training for the past couple of years, were my dad's men really that good?
"Hey Annabeth, good to see you're up" Piper said as she waltzed in with a cup of coffee in her hand.
"Is that for me? Please tell me that cup of coffee is for me"
It's true, although I do my level best to deny it, I do turn into a zombie without my daily dose of Java and right now, I'm in a five-day deficit.
"Nope, no coffee for you, doctor's orders" Piper said as she took a seat beside my bed and placed her cup as far away from me as she could. Not that I'd lunge and take it… Yes, yes I totally would. "Annabeth before I forget, did Percy leave an overnight bag here? Jason told me that he'd meet me here. Did I miss him already?"
What! Percy was meeting Piper here at the hospital. He was ready to do chores for my brother and my sister-in-law but not come see me after recovering from an accident! He was never like this. He never failed to show me how much he cared for me.
Just then a cell phone went off. I saw Piper rummaging her purse as she held out her phone "Oh never mind Annabeth, that's him" Piper said before she answered.
"Yeah, I'm already here" she said.
I could literally feel my blood boiling. At this rate, they may have to do another surgery on me to make sure everything is where it's supposed to be.
"Yeah, she's awake… Percy just come inside okay!" Piper said as she cut the call and put her phone back in her purse.
"Hey" the door opened to reveal Percy as his hand tightly held onto the door handle.
"That's my cue, I'll give you guys some time"
"Piper no, it's okay-" Percy said as Piper stood up and headed towards him.
"Just talk to her, okay?" she said and left the room.
Percy looked horrible, he had huge bags under his eyes, his hair was messy, not the good tousled messy hair, but the 'he hasn't touched his hair for quite some time' messy. He was wearing sweats as if he just woke up and drove here.
"So…?" Percy asked as he closed the door behind him and leaned on it.
"So?" I replied and stared him down, but he didn't even look at me, he didn't even meet my eyes.
"H...How are you feeling?" he asked timidly.
"Cut, the crap Percy. I have been in the hospital for five days and today you show up? That too just because Jason asked you to be his delivery man? Do you not care about me? Why are you pulling away?" I asked.
I could feel the tears in my eyes threatening to fall but I needed answers. Percy however refused to meet my eyes.
"Why can't you even look at me Percy? You are the only person who can tell me what happened and how I got stabbed, why are you behaving like this?"
Finally, Percy looked up.
"You… you don't remember?" he asked.
I shook my head as I wiped the tears away from my eyes. Percy took a few steps forward and sat by my bed.
"Um… you got stabbed, which you probably know"
"Why are you stalling?" I asked. Why was he so nervous? He was never this nervous around me, except for the time we spent on the beach and our occasional run-ins since then.
"I just… I just can't, okay!" Percy yelled.
Percy never yelled, at least not at me. He looked away from me as he wiped the tears in his eyes.
I reached forwards to grab his hand but winced as my wound made its presence known. Percy saw me flinching and leaned closer. I saw Percy taking a huge breath before he turned to look me in my eyes.
"Why is it that we find new ways of hurting each other?" he asked.
I took his face in my hand breathing through the pain of my wound as I stroked his cheek. I had no answer for his question. I don't think anyone in my position could have an honest answer for this question.
It was like we were forced to stay rivals.
Like someone was rooting against us.
"Annabeth, you know what's worse, I thought you were dead and I couldn't even say I… I… you know" Percy whispered.
I remember that, he tried to say that he loved me when we were trapped in that container back at the warehouse, but at that time, I couldn't hear it. I wasn't ready to hear it fearing that if something were to happen to him, I wouldn't be able to live with myself. I was a part of the reason that he died because it would have been my father's organization that killed him. I didn't even think, if something happened to me, he would have to go through the same nightmare. And by the looks of it, he had been going through that nightmare.
"I love you Percy"
I saw the hope flutter back in his eyes as he leaned in closer to me. His hands cupped my face as he leaned in closer. I closed my eyes in anticipation of feeling his lips on mine.
But he didn't kiss me.
I opened my eyes and saw that he had retracted back in his chair. I was sure that he was going to kiss me.
What happened? What happened in the goddamn warehouse that broke him so much? I gently took his hand in mine as he looked into my eyes.
"Stay the night" I whispered.
"I have been since the past few days. I was just outside of the door"
I pulled away suddenly causing a sharp pain that flooded inside of me.
"What? All these days if I would have just opened that goddamn door, I would have found you drooling on one of the chairs?"
He nodded.
"You should have come in," I whispered.
And again, Percy diverted his eyes from mine and nodded.
"Percy?" I called out to him "Come back to me"
"I'm trying" he whispered as he settled back in his chair.
"God! If Piper hadn't conned us, I wonder how long it would have taken for us to talk to each other"
"A long time that I'm glad we aren't wasting. Wait a minute, does she know about us?" Percy asked.
I could see his eyes getting all serious.
"She sensed some attraction between us"
"Sensed?" he questioned as he laughed. A sound that I have been craving almost as much as his lips.
"Her words not mine"
Percy was making small talk. I could feel that he was being distant from me, but I don't want to push it. We just reconciled. We were finally talking to each other about real things. I don't want to throw all of that away especially after these five seconds of happiness we had in comparison to the five years of torture.
I shifted a little bit towards him breathing through the pain that came with it. It wasn't that I wasn't given pain killers, I had the morphine drip right next to me but I didn't want to abuse it. Besides I'm a big girl I can tough it out.
"What are you doing? I can come closer to you. You don't have to shift here" Percy said as he moved the chair as close as he could. I could see he was struggling to sit on the little chair and now that the chair was halfway inside of my bed, he was struggling to find a comfortable position.
"I'm making room for you" I said as I shifted to the left side of the bed.
"Annabeth Chase, I'm not having sex with you in the hospital. At least not when you are in so much pain" Percy said as he stroked my cheek with that smug smile on his face.
"Why does your mind always go in the gutter, just lie down beside me won't you?"
I saw Percy wasting no time and walking towards the other side of the bed. Percy removed his shoes as fast as could.
This guy!
He knew I would complain about having shoes in bed even if it was in the hospital bed and removed his shoes without any prompts from me.
I pulled back my blanket and waited for him to join me. I could feel new energy radiating through my body as he put one arm under my head and the other around my waist, making sure that his movements didn't cause me any pain. Honestly, the jolting did hurt but I wasn't going to show that on my face. Especially since he seemed a little off.
"Annabeth?" he whispered in my ear.
"Yeah?" I asked.
I turned my head to look at him. He had a very serious expression on his face, an expression that I wasn't used to.
"I finally got my side of the bed back," he said as he laughed.
This guy!
Yes, I know. Years ago, both of us wanted to sleep on the right side of the bed and he let me have the side. But look at him right now, being so smug.
"Technically, this is a single bed, so there is no right side or left side"
"Sure, whatever makes you happy"
"You don't get it! There is no side!" I tried explaining it to him.
"All I'm saying is that I'm sleeping on the right side of this single bed" he said before he snuggled closer to me and closed his eyes.
A/N: The end is only a few chapters away.
