v. Annabeth

Annabeth doesn't know what she expects, but her eyes still widen with surprise as she sees the familiar neighborhood she had once been part of. It feels almost like dream; like she's traveling back in time where everything was okay and life was pretty easy. She longs for the days when there were no screaming fights and talks of divorce; days when there were only playdates and spelling bee nights with her parents.

"You still live in the same neighborhood?" she asks as she turns to Percy. Her grip tightens on the steering wheel as memories flash back when she passes the old playground they used to frequent when they were kids. A lot of it is still the same; the rusty swings, monkey bars, and the bumpy slides, except these are now well-worn with rusts and chipped paint.

"Yeah. Same house, same place. Nothing's really changed," he says.

Except us, a bitter voice in her mind says. She kind of agrees to it.

Nothing's really changed except us.

Strangely enough, her throat doesn't close up on her like a chain has been fastened to her neck. What she feels, however, are pin pricks of disappointment and longing for the past that could've been their future.

Whatever. Their relationship now is merely defined as two classmates conniving for their mutual benefit. Annabeth doesn't need to worry about him being her friend.

Five minutes later, she pulls up to the Jackson's little driveway. Then she's staring at the door she used to hold a key to. To be honest, she thinks it a bit surreal.

She turns to Percy. "Is Sal—is your mom home?"

"Y'know you can still call her Sally. And no, mom is still at her job in Sweet America."

"She's still at Sweet America? It's been five years now."

"Yeah. She got promoted to a manager."

"That's really great!"

"I don't think so. She doesn't sneak candies for home anymore," Percy says as he closes the door behind her.

"No more blue jellybeans and gummy bears?" Annabeth jokes absent-mindedly, her mind still catching up to the changes around the house. She doesn't think she'd seen that cactus plant before. Her eyes glance back to see Percy staring at her.

"I didn't think you'd remember," he says.

"It's—" She starts, but stops herself. How does she say that this is one of the things she remembers absentmindedly? No. She doesn't have to say it. "I still see you eating those during lunch."

"I don't know if I should be glad that you hate me enough to pay attention to those things," he comments, jokingly.

Annabeth shakes her head at him. "Don't be." She gestures to the space between them. "This arrangement between us, this doesn't make us friends, okay?"

Percy shrugs and tucks his hands to his jeans. He nods at her. "Okay, sure."

"I'm glad that's understood." A silent moment passes. "Can I see your room?"

"I think you know where it is." Annabeth stares at him, expectantly. Percy stares back.

"Okay. That was supposed to be your cue to lead me to your room," she says as she crosses her arms. Ugh, he can be so annoying sometimes.

"To plan?"

"Yes, to plan."

"Oh—okay," Annabeth hears him mutter as he leads her to a room on the right wing.

Oddly enough, a lot of it stayed the same—the trophies from the local swimming competition collecting dust, the faded navy blue colors of the walls filled with posters some she used to know, and others she didn't. There were frames too; photos of him when he was a baby, on his 6th birthday, and a lot more with his mom. There were some too with her, back when she was still so naive—so disillusioned about the reality of life. Annabeth chooses to ignore those.

In between the spaces, she sees the new things in his life she isn't privy too. The blue hairbrush she's half sure isn't Percy's, Save the Earth pamphlets sticking from the leaves of an old math textbook, and some photos of him with the people she always see him eating lunch with (plus some worn t-shirts and boxers! on the floor that he not so subtly kicked out of sight. Good thing she managed to master her poker face, otherwise she would've turned into a firetruck).

There are some things that stayed the same, but a lot of it are new to her. If a part of her feels sad, she doesn't show it.

Percy scratches the back of his head, looking sheepish. "Sorry, it's messy," he mutters under his breath, embarrassed.

"When are you not ever," Annabeth comments offhandedly and takes a sit on the messy bed. Then she takes out her bag and pulls out the sheets of paper she'd just printed earlier. If they are going to do this fake dating thing, then they are going to do it right. She isn't just going to pass a half-assed homework, no matter of what kind.

"What are those?" he asks.

She picks up a piece of paper and hands it to him. "I've drafted a contract for this fake dating agreement. Basically, we follow all the rules in this contract otherwise, the agreement is terminated."

Percy stares at her warily. "You mean, we follow your rules?"

"You can add some of your own. And then if you don't agree with some, we can discuss it here."

Fake Dating Agreement

The parties undersigned agree to follow the rules laid out in this contract. A violation of one leads to termination of the agreement.

Rule 1: No sex.

Rule 2: No cheating, despite the relationship being fake.

Rule 3: Neither of the parties should disclose the agreement to others.

Rule 4: No feelings should be involved.

Annabeth startles when she hears Percy laugh. "What's funny?"

"Why did you even include the last rule? I'm pretty sure we don't have to worry about that."

"I'm just making sure you don't develop any feelings for me. I can't have you running after me once this thing ends."

"You're funny, Chase." Then, he signs his name on the space provided for him. He gestures to the papers lying on his bed. "What's on the rest? Surely, it's not another contract."

"Lesson plans," she answers with pride, as she lays out the papers in front of him. In a bold, Cambria 12 point font, the words "Fake dating lesson plans" are printed on the papers, and underneath it, "Lesson 1: Grooming."

Percy looks at her incredulously, like she'd just sprouted two heads. He picks up the papers in disbelief. "I thought there aren't supposed to be learning materials since this is gonna be a hands on approach."

"Yeah, it is hands on, but we need a guide. This is important in monitoring your progress." Her hands dig into her bag for some more papers.

"Progress? Do I also get a report card or something?" he asks, sarcastically.

Annabeth raises her eyebrow at him. Did he not think this through? "As a matter of fact, yes."

"Seriously?!" Percy sits up so fast she worries he might get a concussion. But then she remembers that he has a thick skull.

"Mhmm. You get points depending on your practical exam, and I'll give you a grade for your performance."

"You're kidding me, right? A practical exam?"

"Yes. It's a test on how well you can execute the things I'll teach you. Basically, it's just like going on a date with grades as part of the requirement."

Huffing, Percy reaches for a paper on his bed. "I didn't know dating has to be this hard."

"Well, you've got to exert some effort if you want to win the girl. Besides, you have to practice dating me if you want to have the experience."

He cranes his neck toward her. "Huh. Do I get points if I make you blush?"

Annabeth makes a face at him. "That will be a tough requirement seeing as I hardly blush. I think it's safe to say that you'll fail if that's the case."

Percy squints his eyes at her. "What little faith you have in me, Chase. Besides, you're a tough nut to crack."

"I know. And the objective of these lessons is to win the girl over," she says with a smirk. She hands him the paper for the first lesson. "Let's get started."

"Now?"

"Now."

They stare at each other, unblinking. He gestures to the paper in his hand. "Am I supposed to read this aloud or—"

"Do you really need to wear your glasses all the time?" Annabeth cuts.

Percy frowns as he thinks it over. "Not all the time. I just need them for studying."

"Good." Then, she grabs his face and plucks the glasses away. With a quick onceover, she assesses his new look. "Now, you look more human."

"Did I look less human before?"

"More like a hooligan, yes."

He rolls his eyes at her. "It's nice to know that your mouth still doesn't have a filter—"

"Minus 10 points," Annabeth mumbles as she writes something on a piece of paper.

"Hey, wait—what?!" He takes the paper in her hands and sure, there is the -10 mark on his score sheet. "Why would I get a 10-point deduction?"

"You should know better than to be rude to a girl, Jackson."

"Hey, but you were rude to me first—"

"Additional 5 points ded—"

"Okay fine. I'm sorry for being rude."

"You're not sincere but I'll take it." She glances at his messy hair and decides that there's no way they can fix that. "Also, don't try putting on some wax on your hair. Last time you did, it was a disaster."

"I thought the wax was a nice touch."

"Wax may make your hair look good, but girls don't really appreciate it when they get the sticky substance all over their hands."

"But why would they even want to put their hands on somebody else's hair?"

Annabeth huffs impatiently. "It's just a thing we like to do."

"To run your fingers on my hair?"

"Not your hair. But yes, we generally do like that." She checks off a tick box in her paper: Fix the hair. "Don't you have other clothes aside from those loose shirts and jeans?"

Percy frowns as he stares at his dresser. "Well, I do have a couple of button-downs and some smaller shirts."

"Can I see those?" she asks. With a nod, she steps in front of his closet and makes an inventory of his clothes: a dark green shirt, a few more shirts similar to what he is wearing at the moment, various button-downs, and a couple of his washed jeans. Based on his wardrobe, she might have to accompany him some time to the shopping mall.

She takes the dark green shirt and hands it to him without glancing back. "Hey. Can you try this on for me?"

He picks it up, and she continues browsing the closet. Hmm, maybe the baby blue button-down will work as well. She remembers seeing him wear that once, but the ugly and itchy looking sweatshirt ruined the look. She turns to him. "Also, can you—oh."

Planes of bronze greet her eyes. Even though he has his back turned to her, that doesn't stop her cheeks from flushing as she realizes he's shirtless. She turns her back immediately before he can even register that she's seen him.

Okay. So, it's not like she hasn't seen a shirtless guy ever. It's just that, well, it's hard to reconcile the scrawny little Percy to this muscled man standing before her.

Whatever. That doesn't change the fact that he's still an annoying prick who happens to be insanely good at swimming.

"I'm done. Looks like you picked one of the smaller ones," Percy says, as she turns around to face him. Well, the shirt isn't small, as he liked to believe. It just so happens that it fits his form better than the loose fitting ones he liked to wear. The dark green also brings out the colors of his eyes and provides a nice contrast with his bronze skin. To put it simply, he looks better in it than his previous clothes.

"That fits you better," Annabeth comments as she pries more shirts from the closet. "You can try wearing some of these as well."

One end of his lips move in a half-grin, as he looks at her. "That's the first compliment I got from you."

"And probably the last one if you keep that shit-eating grin on your face."

"Harsh."

"Just honest. Anyway, your closet is basically hopeless. We'd have to go and find real clothes for you some time," she says.

"I thought you hated shopping."

Annabeth scrunches her nose. "I do. But, as I said, you're hopeless."

"Your lack of faith in me is very reassuring."

The glare she sends him is enough to make him shut up.

"I think that concludes our grooming lessons for now. Next lesson would be about knowing what to say," she says, ignoring him. Her eyes dart back to the paper in her hands. "You get a grade of 20 points for now."

"20 points out of what?"

"50."

"20? Why would I only get 20? You said I looked good," Percy exclaims.

With an eyebrow raised, Annabeth starts putting back some of the clothes she'd taken out of the closet. They've only made little progress. "I never said anything about you looking good. Besides, you have a 10-point deduction, and you still have a long way to go."

Percy slumps back to his bed with a pout. "I wouldn't wish for a kid to have you as a teacher."

"If I were a teacher, I'd never wish for a student like you either," she retorts, as she picks up her bag. "And oh, before I forget, your homework is to read Lesson 2. It's on your desk."

"You're giving me homework? You're impossible."

"Also, don't forget everything you've learned today." Annabeth grins at him. It feels nice bossing him around sometimes. "See you tomorrow, boyfriend."

She steps out and gently closes the door behind her, but not without first hearing mutter, "Why did I even agree to this?"

Her smile widens.

A/N: Hi, I am back! I'm sorry for being inactive for about 3 months, but I've got a new chapter up. Although, I know that this isn't long enough to make up for the lost months, but I hope you liked that little banter they had and the beginnings of their first fake dating lessons. Also, I had to end it here since I think it will be better to write the next chapter on Percy's POV, which I haven't started yet.

Anyway, let me know what you think of this chapter. Bye!

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