It was a Thursday night, and Percy hustled his ass over to Annabeth's place right after his practice got out.
He got to the front door and knocked before coming in, seeing Mrs. Chase in the kitchen and Bobby and Matthew playing a video game in the living room. He greeted the boys before going over to their mom, giving her a smile.
"Hi, Percy," she said to him with a warm smile, turning away from the stove. He could tell that she was in the middle of cooking dinner from the smells arising from the pans on the stove as well as her bright-colored polka dot apron. "Hi Mrs. Chase," he greeted as he rested his hands on the straps of his backpack. "Is Annabeth upstairs?"
She nodded and smiled as she turned back to the stove. "Yep, she's in her room. She's been up there since she got home from practice." There was something in her voice that Percy couldn't place, and it almost sounded like worry. It was gone in a second, though, so he figured he must have over-examined it. "Head on up, dear."
He thanked her and took the stairs two at a time, locating Annabeth's room before knocking and heading inside. Percy had no idea whether or not Annabeth's parents trusting him enough to be alone in her room with her with the door closed was a good thing or a bad thing.
Was he being friendzoned by her parents? Shit. That would be a new low.
Aside from that tangent, Annabeth's room was about how you think it would look. Nice and spacious, painted a light grey with white furniture and trim. Well organized, clean, and smelling of some kind of air freshener she had plugged into her wall. Above her desk she had numerous pictures, awards, and medals strung up along her wall. He had found out that she only displayed the important ones, meaning the All-State certificates, her state runner-up medal, big tournament medals, all of that stuff that no one else had.
When he walked in, Annabeth was laying down on her bed, playing on her phone. He heard some music playing from a speaker on her desk. She looked up as he walked in and gave him a soft smile. "Hey, Perce," she said as she sat up, rubbing her eyes a little.
He smiled and closed the door behind him before he set his backpack on the end of her bed. "Hey. You look busy," he teased as he sat down beside his backpack, leaning over to rifle through it. He heard a slight chuckle before she swatted the side of his head as she stood up.
"Definitely," she agreed as she moved over to her desk and slumped into her swivel chair, reluctantly opening her calculus textbook. He smiled and leaned back against the wall, settling his own textbook beside him and his notebook on his thighs. "Well, ready to get started?" he asked with a grin as he fished out a pencil. She nodded and sighed, giving him a soft smile. "If we have to," she murmured to herself before she grabbed her own pencil and the two got to work.
It wasn't long before Percy lost every single bit of motivation to do his homework. Usually it took a lot longer for him to zone out, but that day he even wasn't feeling it when they started.
At the moment he realized it, he was laying down on her bed, holding his literature book and trying to focus enough to read it. Annabeth was at her desk in her chair, spinning around aimlessly while she stared up at the ceiling. She had some random music playing quietly from the speaker, and Percy found it infinitely hard to focus.
He finally just set his book down on his chest and looked over at her, biting down on his lower lip. She looked lost in thought, with her fingers laced over her stomach and her eyes trained upwards, staring at nothing. When he came over, he'd gotten some details out of her that her and Luke had another fight, though nothing specific.
"You look like you've got something on your mind," he noted as he gave her a smile. He knew it was bothering her and he really wanted to listen. They'd both been there for each other a lot since they'd started hanging out more. She looked up at him, her grey eyes stormy and thoughtful, giving him a bit of a smile. "C'mon, Chase. Out with it."
She visibly hesitated for a moment before she slowly nodded and turned to face him, her brows furrowed a bit. "Well...I don't know if it's just me being crazy and overreacting or if it's him being an asshole."
She gave him a helpless look. "I don't even know, Percy," she complained, dragging her fingers through her loose blonde curls. "He just...he said he had two classes today, and then he'd call me when he was done. And we said goodbye and everything and I sat there waiting for him to call or text me all day." Her brow furrowed even more than it already was. "He got out of class at like one, Perce. It's almost seven now and he hasn't even texted."
She groaned and leaned back, glaring up at the ceiling as if it was the reason Luke hadn't contacted her. "It's not like he works or does anything after class. And honestly? It wouldn't bother me this much if it didn't happen literally every day." She looked up at him with a sigh, her expression kind of sad. "I get he's busy, but...even during his free time he doesn't want to talk to me."
Now, Percy didn't know a lot of things. And girls? Yeah, he had no clue. But if he did know anything, it was Annabeth.
While he'd been listening to her, he had slowly sat up and set his book aside in his backpack, sitting on her bed with his legs crossed. When she finished, he hesitated to consider his words before he began to speak. "Honestly, that's just something you have to talk out with him," he said carefully. "Like...the only way it's gonna be fixed is if you just go and talk to him and tell him what you're thinking."
She listened to him intently, her brow still furrowed. It hadn't lessened by the end of his sentence, though. "In theory, you're right," she admitted as she spun around in her chair once more, stopping herself with her feet when she faced Percy again. "But Luke has this thing where, sometimes, he doesn't like to think anything is his fault." She groaned. "He's my boyfriend, Percy. I feel like he should make an attempt to talk to me."
The runningback nodded in agreement, still debating with himself on what to say. It upset him that Luke was taking her for granted like this. Several times she had jokingly stated that she talked to Percy five times as much as she talked to her own boyfriend, which got laughs from anyone who was around to hear it. Percy and Piper were really the only ones to know how much it truly bothered her, though.
"He does need to make an attempt," he reassured her. She got quiet again, and spun around in her chair. She didn't even sigh or make any kind of noise. When she turned in her chair to look at him again, she had tears in her eyes.
His heart broke into a thousand pieces at the same time as he saw her struggling to hold them back. He opened his arms to her and it wasn't a second later that she was out of her chair and into his arms.
Percy was one of those people who was really empathetic towards others. The second someone else was hurting in any way, he started hurting himself. He was already a mess when he saw the tears in her eyes, but the second she flew into his arms and began crying into his chest, his heart broke even more.
"Hey, it's okay," he said softly as he wrapped his arms around her gently. "It is. Even if it's not right now it's going to be." For someone who was good at empathy, he really sucked at comforting people.
He wanted to tell her how amazing she was and how she deserved the entire world and how he wasn't treating her right. Yet even with so many things to tell her, he was still at a loss for words.
She gripped his shirt and pushed herself so tightly against his chest that her cries were muffled. He didn't think she wanted anyone downstairs to hear it. Eventually, Percy just stopped trying to think of things to tell her. He just sat and held her in his arms, running his fingers soothingly along her back and shoulders.
He always remembered his mom doing that to him when he was a kid and he came to her crying. For the most part, it seemed to work.
She eventually stopped crying, either having run out of tears or was just too tired to actually keep it up. They sat there together for a while in complete silence. She had leaned back to rest beside him against the wall, her eyes trained on something across the room that wasn't actually there. He kept his arm around her, sighing softly to himself.
He really didn't understand why she kept going back to him. He ignored her and sometimes it didn't seem like he even respected her. Well...maybe he was biased. But still. He didn't really know what to do at this point. What could he do? Her boyfriend was treating her like shit.
He was deep in thought with himself, his fingers absentmindedly running up and down her upper arm, when she let out a soft sigh and moved away from his side, standing up.
She wiped her eyes and looked away from him, her cheeks tinted a light pink color. "Well, uh...dinner should be ready about now," she said softly, tucking some loose hair behind her ear. He just nodded a little and cocked his head to the side before he stood up beside her.
It was kind of funny. Their height difference was a lot bigger than he had originally thought.
She looked so sad still and it broke his heart. Before she could do anything, he leaned down and kissed her cheek gently. "Uh...listen, if you ever need to talk again, I'm here. No matter what." That statement actually got a bit of a smile out of her, and she nodded. "Thanks. But..." she hesitated before she looked up at him and gave him a look. "Seriously, fish face. If you tell anyone about this, you're dead." He grinned and shrugged.
"I wouldn't dream of it."
There was nothing louder to Percy than the roar of a crowd. But the second he focused on a play or the ball or something on the field, it all went away.
They were in a huddle, him and his teammates gathered up in their white and blue jerseys, covered in grass and dirt stains. Jason had an intense look in his blue eyes, barking out a play to them.
They all nodded and clapped once in sync before they headed over to the line, everyone getting ready. Percy rocked back and forth on his heels, jumping a bit and getting ready to go. He settled in as everyone waited and watched for the snap. As soon as the ball was actually snapped, Percy took off running.
He easily passed by the guy who was supposed to be defending him, leaving the kid in the dust the second he got the chance. He looked over his shoulder as he pumped his arms, seeing the ball spiraling towards him. He reached up to catch it, smiling to himself.
This was gonna be easy. Or...he thought so, at least.
That kinda got messed up when his fingers closed around the ball and it slipped through, hitting the ground. He heard the entire crowd erupt into groans and he skidded to a stop, staring down at the ground.
He heard whistles and the laughter of the red and white clad fans in the Mustang section of the bleachers, and his face burned.
He'd just botched the third down conversion.
Again.
He heard the loud tweet of the whistle as some of his teammates ran in, Leo included. He would be the one punting. He'd been doing that a lot this game. He slapped Percy on the back as he jogged off the field, and once he got to the sideline, his anger and annoyance overtook him.
He removed his helmet and threw it at the ground, letting out a yell of frustration. "What the fuck is wrong with me?" he growled to himself, raking his fingers through his damp hair. He plopped down on the bench and buried his face into his hands.
He couldn't make a catch tonight. He couldn't even run the ball. He couldn't do anything. He had lost his team more yards than he'd gained. He felt terrible.
What made all of this even worse is that it was a home game. Having his school and his town see him failing was worse than actually failing in and of itself. Especially since Annabeth was here.
Well...Annabeth and the rest of the Goode students. But mostly Annabeth.
Through his fingers, he saw someone stop right in front of him, though he didn't look up at them. He didn't even want to speak. He heard that someone clear their throat, and he finally raised his head, grimacing when he saw Coach Hedge standing there with an annoyed look on his face.
"What, coach?" Percy asked as he glared over at the scoreboard, which showed the Mustangs with 31 and the Sharks leading with a measly 34. There was six minutes minutes left in the fourth quarter, so it was definitely make-or-break time for the Sharks. And he couldn't do a damn thing to help.
"Kid, take it easy," Hedge said to him in a surprisingly quiet voice. "Getting that angry doesn't help anyone. And it certainly doesn't help your case if there are any scouts here tonight."
Percy quickly realized that his coach was right and let out a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose with his fingers. "Shit," he muttered to himself. Hedge sat beside him and looked out at the field, where the Sharks' defense was making easy work of the Mustangs and getting a sack on the quarterback.
"Coach, I sucked tonight," Percy mumbled to him. "What if this is the game they caught? And they just decided that I wasn't worth it because of how I played tonight?" Hedge gave a small smile, something that the runningback had rarely seen from him. "I wouldn't worry, kid. Your numbers speak for you," he said as he readjusted his Sharks cap on his head. "Just take it easy. Coach said for you to just sit there and calm down."
He patted Percy on the shoulder before he stood, giving him that typical Hedge glare. "Oh, and also? Don't throw your damn helmet. The next time I see you mistreating team property like that, I'm gonna make you run sprints until something comes out of both ends."
Percy just grinned and saluted his coach. "Yes sir," he said as Hedge rolled his eyes and stormed off, though Percy could have sworn that he saw a smirk on his lips.
While his conversation with Hedge made him feel a little better, it didn't last for long. He still felt angry and frustrated, and it made it worse that he wasn't getting put back in during the game.
So, he did as his head coach wanted. He stood there with his teammates on the sideline, drank down a bottle of water, and watched the game. They ended up pulling out a win, neither team scoring again in that fourth quarter.
They shook hands and Percy stalked off towards the locker room, gripping his helmet firmly by the face mask. After games, Percy was usually greeted with cheers and slaps on the back and high fives, though this time everyone seemed to avert their gaze.
They all knew he played terribly. At the thought, his cheeks burned in shame. He ducked his head and pushed through the crowd, heading towards the school and the locker room. There he could at least be alone for a bit. But, of course, someone grabbed onto his jersey and stopped him from going any further.
He turned, about to quickly dismiss himself, when he was met with a sheepish smile and a gorgeous pair of stormy grey eyes. Annabeth. He found himself at a loss for words as all the embarrassment and shame he had felt fame rushing forward all at once. She must have been able to tell, because she looked around before grabbing his arm and pulling him towards the school. The doors were unlocked so the players could get inside to the locker room, and the pair headed in.
They got inside the doors and the blonde immediately looked up at Percy, her eyes full of worry and concern. "Are you okay?" He nodded, though he felt a lot more okay before she had asked that.
Often he found himself repressing whatever feelings he had. The stress, the worry, the anxiety about his performance in games. He had all this pressure on him. He was supposed to be this legend, and it was his understanding that legends didn't make mistakes. Sometimes he felt he had more mistakes than positive things happen during games. Tonight definitely didn't help him at all. It was overwhelming.
She must have seen that intense sad look in his eyes that he just couldn't push down, and gave him an understanding look. "Come here, Perce," she said to him in a soft voice as she opened her arms to him.
He didn't even hesitate before he leaned down to hug her, burying his face into her neck. He was in all his football pads, so her arms barely fit around him, but it was comforting nevertheless.
He let his helmet drop to the ground with a clunking sound and gripped her hoodie in his fingers. He felt emotionally drained at this point. He didn't know how he should feel, but right now it was too much.
It was way too much for him to handle.
He relaxed in her arms, his face tucked against her shoulder and the fingers of her right hand buried in his hair. He just closed his eyes and sat there with her.
Outside the doors they could hear the marching band still playing the Goode fight song, the thrum of the crowd exiting the stadium, the noise of cars peeling out of the parking lot, but it didn't matter to either of them.
Once he felt mentally stable enough, they separated. Annabeth kept a hand on his upper arm, her brow furrowed in worry. She didn't even have to say what she was thinking, he understood. She thought he didn't need to worry, and that it's okay to have an off game sometimes.
In no way did he agree, but he didn't want to argue with her.
She gave him a smile and patted his arm. "Alright, go and get changed. I'm taking you to a party and getting you drunk." He couldn't help but crack a small smile as he nodded, sighing softly as he bent over to pick up his helmet.
"Sounds like a plan to me."