Soooo welcome back. I have explanation for my break in writing, but to hell with it for now. I'm just glad for whoever is still out there reading this.

Chapter 5

"Yo what's up?" Percy stuck the phone between his ear and his shoulder while he pushed the box away from him quietly. His voice echoed off the cold cement and steel narrow space he was crouched in. The neat stately pile of brown cardboard boxes in front of him seemed sort of ominous now.

He couldn't remember what was in each one. It was a treasure trove full of diamond memories hidden between thorns. It helped filled that nagging hole burrowing deep in his chest. That heavy emptiness that clouded his life every so often.

"Nothing much," Annabeth answered nonchalantly. "Just figured we could grab some lunch if you're not busy."

She sounded like she was in a car making mindless circles.

"I'm… I'm uhhh." Percy grimaced and mournfully looked into the abandoned hallway of the storage unit he was sitting in. The garage like door was wide open, and let in that stale white electric light that fueled his sorting. Achy moans would distantly float through the halls as if the building itself was crying from lack of people.

"I'm kinda busy at the moment," Percy muttered out his lie. He hated lying to Annabeth. "You free tomorrow?"

"Naw, I got that dumb meeting. It could've just been an email, but apparently Bryan's a moron so I'm stuck."

"Oh," Percy added intelligently. "Well there's always breakfast and dinner so unless those get recalled or something we could probably get together for one of those."

Annabeth laughed over the line and Percy couldn't help but smile softly to himself.

"Recalled? Seriously Seaweed Brain?"

"Hey, you know ever since my car got recalled back in college its shaken me," Percy joked. "I mean if something as big as a car can get taken back what does that say about food? About meal times? About the freaking sun? Nothing is permanent Miss Chase, we gotta keep what we have close while we have them."

Annabeth went into a quick silence, and Percy found himself staring at a large rust stain crying red into the cement wall in confusion.

Did I say something off?

"Annabeth?"

"Call me that again." Her tone was slow, her voice was thoughtful and there was an element of melancholy in there that made Percy's heart twist.

"Call you what?"

"Miss Chase."

Percy held his breath. A knot of unease stirred around his stomach for a bit before he swallowed heavily regripped the phone.

"Miss Chase?" he repeated shakily.

He knew she was thinking, duh, Annabeth was always thinking. It was her pause, the rhythm of her breath, her silence that told him it was emotion thinking.

"It's funny," Annabeth finally answered. "I hated it when my divorce lawyer calls me that, but… it's not a bad thing is it."

Percy let go of his breath.

"Yeah. Yeah it isn't."

"When my divorce is finalized, could you do me a favor Perce?"

"Anything," Percy answered ardently.

"Could you take a day off and just go on a road trip with me? I'll seriously need my best friend on that day."

He hated that loose mellowness Daniel pushed on her. How it seeped into her words with such a quiet insecurity made him mad.

Daniel made her insecure by rattling her pride. He hated that, he hated him.

"Of course," Percy said. "Just name the day, and I'll bring the snacks."

"Thanks Percy, you're the greatest."

The greatest isn't good enough for you.

"Well, what are best friends for," he sighed.

The cardboard box to his left had a clippet of bubble wrap sticking out of it. Percy popped the exposed bubbles mindlessly as he shifted the phone from one ear to the other.

"So what's got you so busy today?" she asked.

Percy shrugged automatically before muttering into the phone. "Big order. Lots of donuts with little cat faces. Old Jeffree McAdams is retiring and the police crew want to give him a little send off party."

It wasn't a complete lie. Old Jeffree was retiring, and his fellow officers were throwing him a party. Percy just left out the part where he completed the order yesterday, and the party was that morning.

"Huh, Officer Jeffree struck me more as a dog person." Annabeth pondered.

"It was an inside joke or something." Percy continued to pop the little bubbles till the tiny space of plastic was limp and flat. Curiously he tugged the box to him and pushed back the slightly damp cardboard flaps.

A bright collection of porcelain easter eggs the size of his fist, and delicately decorated with little painted rosettes and baby blue lace designs were lovingly packaged inside. They had little dorky gold peg legs he thought were so bizarre as a kid, and each one was hand painted with rosy children or flowery fields in full spring and fresh easter.

They opened up to little carousels, or fake jeweled flowers, or little fairy tale scenes by the clasps belted around the girth of the egg.

"Makes sense I guess." Annabeth finally muttered. "Need any help? I could dip the donuts if you need me too. I could try my hand at painting faces too but I assume you want to keep your good reputation."

"No, no no, it's fine." Percy stammered. "Just go home and get some sleep if you have the afternoon off."

"I can't, Daniels at the house getting the last of his stuff, then the real estate agent is going to be showing it to a few buyers."

"Aha," Percy nodded along absentmindedly. His eyes still stuck on the little eggs all nestled deep in the box.

He was never allowed to touch them as a child. They were his mom's sacred collection, partially passed down from her grandparents, and partially obtained through sunday antique store hunts.

Percy always got a cupcake if he found one. A blue cupcake, with chocolate sprinkles.

The best part was making the cupcakes. The best part was always making the cupcakes.

Percy wasn't surprised that he grew up to be a baker.

"Piper is at an appointment and the rest are at work so all I got is you my friend. You sure you couldn't slip away for a quick lunch?"

He was tempted now. He wanted to be there for her.

But… that empty hole in his chest was dragging him down today. He didn't want to leave the quietness of the locker around him. He needed his time too, and that was okay.

"Sorry Wisegirl," he tried to sound extremely apologetic. (which he was, he was just emphasising it greatly) "Alison can't do this all by herself."

He picked up a single egg and cradled it in his hands. His mother's warm smile and the distant hum she sang as she worked ingredients into cupcake batter made his heart whine softly. He missed the smell, he missed the jokes, he missed the reassurance and the shelter. More importantly he missed her, and every year that longing and missing grew more and more intense. She was his world for that firecracker beginning, and he didn't have that anymore.

He wished he could hug her one more time.

"Liar," Annabeth said over the phone.

But her voice was chorused by a soft tone behind him. He turned and caught the sympathetic grey eyes of Annabeth as she stood there leaning against the frame to the locker. She had caught him in his lies.

Percy put the egg back gently and hung up the phone. In shame he hung his head as he fidgeted with the bubble wrap again.

"How did you know where I was?"

Annabeth stepped inside the locker and sat cross legged next to him. She observed the eggs from a distance but didn't dare touch them.

"You were getting quieter, it was that time of year again and you weren't at the bakery. Figured you must be here."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

His fidgeting hands picked up a different egg this time. A purple and gold one with a little wind up pedal on the bottom. Lovingly, he twisted the gold nub and listened as the sharp clicks rattled on the inside before opening it up and watching the little ballerina figurine twirl in its center.

A delicate melody chimed through his ears as the figurine twirled over and over.

It reminded him of vending machine chocolate and hospital jello. It reminded him of the way the sunlight hit her IV bag, and how her thin vien webbed hands used to sway to the sound of the little ballerinas dance.

This was the egg that sat next to her on the pale wooden table in the hospital. She croaked along to its sweet song for as long as she could, and when she couldn't sing she hummed until one day the humming stopped.

Percy's eyes watered and he clutched the egg a little tighter.

"I can't believe it's already been ten years," he said softly. "That's a long time."

Annabeth squeezed his arm and scooted closer to him. "It is," she agreed.

He choked down the thickness that swelled in his throat and turned his face away. It was always Annabeth's sympathy that made him crack. Her way with words, her tones, her eyes all bled with a soothing care for him that chipped away at his dams.

"So, lunch?" his voice cracked.

Annabeth's hand found the side of his jaw and turned his face towards her. That serious, beautiful, care focused face.

"You always do this," she said. "You don't need to hide when you feel bad. If would be a nice change if you actually called me up when you needed someone."

The hole in his chest absorbed the Annabeth vision butterflies real fast. Made him feel emptier.

"I know." His voice sounded sullen.

"Why don't you?"

"I just… don't?"

"Percy."

"It's just… I feel like I'll drag everyone else into my stupid pit if I say anything. Everyone has their own problems. You're getting divorced! You shouldn't have to listen to me."

Annabeth rolled her eyes in a loving manner and slung an arm over his shoulders.

"Oh you sweet adorable little man child," she hummed. "I will gladly swan dive into that pit of yours to drag your carcass out if you would only just tell me when you're in it."

The idea of Annabeth swan diving when in reality she was a chronic belly-flopper was enough to make him break a smile.

Even if it was a small smile, it helped settled his insides. Maybe even fill them a little. However, he turned his face away again. Embarrassed of his own emotions. How she was rescuing him when she was going through such a tough time.

So much for being the knight.

"Thanks."

"No problem Seaweed Brain. Just stop forgetting that I've got your back okay?"

"Okay." He pushed the box of memories away and laced his fingers together shakily as he stared at the oil stained cement below him.

It's cold.

"I guess we should get going if we want to beat the lunch hour," he said.

Annabeth scoffed gently and scooted herself in front of him in a very decided way. Confused, he stared at her full grey eyes until she leant forward on her knees and used the sleeve of her sweater to wipe the tears off his cheeks.

He wasn't even aware he was crying.

"We're not going to lunch," she informed as she cradled his face with her soft hands. "We're going back to your place, and we're going to watch six blue planet documentaries in a row."

Her eyes were swallowing him whole. Filled with a comradic tenderness that pegged his heart against his chest.

"And we're going to have popcorn and candy and whatever else we can find at a gas station minimart and you can tell me all the names of those bizarre looking sea creatures before the narrator does. This is Percy mental health day 101."

My God he loved this woman. Loved every little detail about her.

Annabeth used her thumb to wipe away one more stray tear. "And then we'll just sit on the couch and cry if we need to cry or tell goofy jokes if we need to tell goofy jokes. Okay?"

Okay.

Percy reached out and tugged her into a crushing hug. Burying his head in her shoulder, and refusing to answer because he knew his voice would crack if he tried.

So he nodded, and held onto her. His tears scorching down the tips of his cheeks and landing in the crook of her neck.

Annabeth gripped him tightly refreshing smell of her lemon soap rivaled the odor coming from the damp locker surrounding them. She ran her fingers through his hair and said nothing right back.

And no one said anything for the next twenty minutes as all they did was hug.

Hope you enjoyed. Again leave a comment if you have any suggestions.

You guys are my champs if you're actually still reading.