Hey guys! I hope you enjoy this next chapter!

Percy felt like he was dying. It had only been a week without Annabeth- more than they'd ever spent apart, and he literally felt like he was being castrated.

He looked up at the sky- and although it was a bright blue- a beautiful color, it seemed ugly- even worse, disgusting. But, he had to get out, he couldn't let himself turn into a dead-beat- he couldn't fall off ladder, reducing himself to nothingness.

Practices were starting the next week, and classes did the week following, and although it wasn't a great college, he still needed to work hard.

The thing was, Percy knew he wasn't going to get out of this place. He knew he would stay here for the rest of his life- like so many other people had, but he still wanted to try.

He continued walking down the street, his mom had told him to get groceries, and sent him to the supermarket with a list. He had already bought the groceries, they were heavy in his hands, and he was headed back home.

He passed by a couple walking their dog, two boys smiling brightly at each other, and it seems like the world is against him. Like the universe is trying to tell him something, that something being that he's an idiot, and it's his fault he's suffering. Everyone around him is happy, in love, together, while he's miles apart from the person he cares about most.

His hand tightened around the groceries as he gets a glimpse of what looks like a girl- with tanned skin and a pixie cut, accompanied by a leather jacket. Shit. He's been trying to avoid Thalia, but he guesses that it's inevitable they'll see each other.

As she seemingly sees him to, she starts sprinting over, and Percy braces himself for impact.

"You're a jerk." Thalia said as she approached them. "You didn't deserve her in the first place, and then you made her cry? What the hell Percy, why?"

Percy stood, looking over her head- she was fairly short in comparison to him. He didn't say anything, and kept the groceries in his hands.

"Answer me," Thalia snarled. "What the hell Percy?"

Percy continued to look over her head. "I have to go." He said, and tried to walk away.

Thalia held him back, pushing him away. She grabbed his shirt to make sure he didn't move away. "Answer my question Percy. Why did you hurt her? You guys were so in love."

"Please Thalia, stop. I-I can't," He said, defeated. "Let me go."

She slapped him. Not in the face- on the chest, but nevertheless it hurt. Again, like a baby, he wanted to cry. He knew he didn't have a right to, not in this situation.

"I hate you so much right now." Thalia told him, before she pushed him away one more time, and walked in the opposite direction. "Why would you do this?" She shook her head. "It's so dumb, god, you and Annabeth, you were perfect." Percy winced at the mention of her name. "Why the hell would you ruin that?"

Yeah, he thought, I hate myself too. This was just further proof that the world was against him. The universe could have waited a while before it threw Thalia in his path, but maybe it was better everything was over with.

Once he returned the groceries home, he went on a social media cleanse. He first checked Annabeth's page, to see if she had deleted any of her stuff of him, and when all the recent photos of the two of them, hugging, kissing, smiling were gone, he decided it was the right thing to do.

As he went through each post, he realized how hard it was to do this- to delete these memories, and that whenever he tried, he would take a trip through memory lane, one that just ended with him getting more hurt.

He could call a friend to do it. That would help things go by smoother. He wouldn't be sitting on his bed, like he was now, for hours, finger hovering over a single picture's delete button.

To delete, or not to delete, that was the question.

He left his phone on his bedside table, social media untouched. All the photos were still there, and just because they broke up, didn't mean that he had to take them away. They would soon be flooded out by new pictures, and nobody would remember the relationship that once was.

Years in the future, maybe he and Annabeth could laugh about the whole situation (he wasn't betting on it). But who was he kidding? Years in the future, Annabeth would be out traveling, or in LA, or doing something cool, while Percy would be stuck here teaching swim lessons and working at a bed and breakfast or something.

He hoped that he would see her one more time. Because as long as they weren't together, there would always be a little gap in Percy's heart.

Maybe she wouldn't even remember him. She'd be so caught up in her old world, she wouldn't think to have Percy cross through her mind. It probably wasn't as big of a deal as he thought he was. Years later, when Annabeth was talking to a person that actually deserved her, she might pause, trying to remember his name, and laugh to him about how he broke up with her.

And Percy would be here, alone, thinking about her, because Annabeth didn't deserve him. He was lucky to have gotten someone like her. Smart, beautiful, funny, sarcastic, kind Annabeth.

Annabeth, who would help him study for the upcoming test. Annabeth, who wouldn't mind waiting for him at the swimming pool, Annabeth, who made the funniest jokes. Annabeth, who was everything.

And Percy had this little, sick, hope in his heart, that he would somehow claim a little piece of her heart. A small, little piece, that she would remember him by. Her first love, that was what he was. But hopefully, not her last.

Because Annabeth deserved more than that. Annabeth deserved everything.

So yeah, Percy's pretty much an emotional mess right now. That'll get fixed up… eventually. For now, he's just a tiny bit screwed.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I'm happy that you guys are enjoying the story! Next chapter comes out Monday!

What do you think so far? What do you predict will happen in the future? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the reviews!

TheLil'Lion