Hello my amazing, dedicated, understanding, marvelous readers! I'm back! I know it's been forever, but I can promise you I'm finishing this story. It has been an absolutely insane semester at school. I'm finishing up my finals, but everything has been online lately, and it's been hard to adjust. It's a crazy world we're living in right now. I hope all of you are staying safe and healthy. I know at least for me being at home in quarantine has given me more time to write. More than just this story…read my author's note at the end for a BIG SURPRISE.

On another note, this was supposed to be the last chapter of The Rink but I literally started writing and I couldn't stop ( I swear I've said this is the end a billion times already-but I mean it this time) so this is now the first chapter of a 3 PART ENDING. So get in, put your seatbelts on and get ready for what is possibly the biggest Percabeth overload ever! …This chapter is sad tho just a warning. The other 2 parts aren't as intense.

Review Responses:

Mr. Stoll: Ouch sounds painful. I remember when I started skating as a kid, I was terrified and I wouldn't leave the wall. Glad to hear you gave it another chance and it's amazing that it's my story that helped you!

AllTheDamShips (Guest): Thank you so much! 7 hours? Wow that's dedication. I'm way ahead of you on both things that you mentioned ;) haha. Enjoy this update!

I REPEAT: READ MY AUTHORS NOTE AT THE END FOR A BIG SURPRISE

Disclaimer: Don't own

Annabeth felt the smooth curve of the ice beneath her skates. The brisk wind blowing her hair black that had escaped the bun she put it up into. The blue quarter zip long-sleeve she was wearing hugged her body. A pair of black leggings accompanied the look along with her white skates. She spread her arms out as she skated around the large circumference of the ice rink, skating sideways along the edges and occasionally throwing herself into a jump. The ice crunched under the blade of her skate each time she came down. She stumbled more than once, distracted by the fact that any second now she was going to be sharing her tragic past. Frustrated with herself for missing yet another jump, she turned up the volume of the song playing through her headphones.

She didn't notice him come in. He smiled as he walked further into the arena, admiring the blonde figure skater practicing the sport she loved so much. She stared down at the ice determined, gaining speed before performing a triple Lutz. She sighed in defeat even though he hadn't seen anything wrong with the move. Then again, he was a hockey player not a figure skater.

She finally looked up after what seemed like hours but in reality, was only a few minutes. She saw him almost immediately, her grey irises zeroing in on the boy in dark jeans and a black hoodie holding a stuffed duffle bag at his side where she could see a small hole with hockey skates sticking out from not being zipped up all the way.

"Percy" She voiced, her words echoing inside the empty arena as she took the headphones out of her ears.

The raven-haired male grinned, staring at her before shoving his duffle bag next to hers near the bleachers and walking over to the railing outside the rink. Annabeth skated over to him, stopping when she got to the railing on the side with ice. Before she could say anything else, he leaned forward and kissed her lightly. His touch was warm from having been in the locker room while she stayed and practiced in the main rink.

"Hey Princess" He greeted after he pulled away.

It was a Friday night and both teams had gotten out of practice a little while ago. Annabeth had requested to stay a little longer than usual because she needed time to think and Christina let her. They didn't have practice tomorrow till late afternoon instead of the early morning and Christina had trusted her to lock up when she was done. She had texted Percy to meet her whenever he was done. She was tired of keeping stuff from him. He tried not to show it for her sake, but she could tell he was worried and that in itself made her feel guilty. Now was as good a time as ever to tell him how she'd been feeling since her final performance at Nationals.

"Hey" She whispered back in return, gripping one of his hands in her own and intertwining their fingers before resting them on the railing. She concentrated on the movement of their fingers, refusing to look him directly in the eye.

Percy furrowed his eyebrows in concern. He placed a finger from his free hand under her chin, shifting her gaze to meet his. His eyes widened when he noticed the shine in her eyes from a buildup of tears.

"What's wrong?" He asked immediately, his hand coming up to cup her cheek comfortingly as he searched her face.

She was quiet for a minute, staring into his sea green eyes and gripping his hand tighter. She felt a lump forming in her throat as her eyes welled up. She hated crying. It showed weakness and vulnerability. Only a handful of people had ever seen her in such a state.

"I just…I-I'm so sorry Percy." She finally replied, trying as hard as she could to keep her voice from breaking or her tears from falling.

Percy stared at her in shock, not understanding why she was apologizing. His thumb rubbed across her cheek. "What-"

"You've been trying for days to get me to talk to you about why I've been…the way I've been. You've been so sweet and understanding yet all I've done is s-shut you out and told you to drop it. I thought I could just get through it on my own, but I was wrong. I don't want to keep anything from you, that's not how relationships work. I just…I d-don't-" She hiccupped at the end, biting her lip in attempt to keep the tears at bay. Percy cut her off, dropping her hand and surprising her when he hopped over the short railing that had been between them. Sneakers on and everything. Somehow, he hadn't slipped on the ice.

He pulled her into a tight embrace, and she wrapped her arms around him. Her breathing became shakier and she buried her face into his chest. "Shhh. It's ok." He soothed her, rubbing small circles on her back.

"I want to tell you. I want to tell you e-everything" She said in a muffled voice from being completely enveloped in his arms. She felt him nod in response. They stayed that way for a while.

Percy stared at her patiently as the two of them sat side by side facing each other on one of the bleachers in the ice arena. He held her hand in comfort and she squeezed it lightly. Their knees touched from their close proximity. She took a deep shaky breath.

"I don't know where to start." She said nervously. Percy responded by rubbing his thumb across her knuckles. Annabeth sighed, moving her eyes up to meet his.

"You already know the story with my dad. The man who got me into skating. My biggest supporter who ended up abandoning me." She started sadly, trying her best to summarize the story she'd told him so many nights ago on their walk home.

Percy nodded, intertwining their fingers as he listened. His full attention on the blonde in front of him. He saw her look down once again in deep thought. When she hadn't said anything for a few minutes he broke the silence.

"Your performances are for him though aren't they?" It was a dumb question. He knew the answer to it without needing confirmation, but Annabeth still nodded her head.

"No matter how hard I try I can't forget him. Every day there's a moment where my mind wanders and I imagine what my life would have been like if he was still here. Maybe my mother wouldn't be so hard on me all the time about school and he could have made her see how I value skating. Maybe he could have taught me to drive instead. He could have listened to my rants about how much I hated Rachel and well…the star player of the hockey team." She paused, the smallest of smiles flashing across her face. Percy smiled back, remembering the stupid rivalry.

The smile on her face faded as soon as it appeared. "But…he's not here. I just…I want to forget so badly. Why do I still think about him when all it does it make me upset? Why can't I just let him go? W-why do I still choose to do performances for him when all it does is hurt me? W-why can't it just s-stop? I-I want it to stop Percy….I-I…" She couldn't stop the tears this time. Little by little teardrops fell down her cold cheeks as she breathed unevenly.

Percy lurched forward and wrapped his arms around her for the second time that night. She leaned her head against his chest and she felt him rest his chin on top of her head in their sitting position. He ran his fingers through her blonde curls as her left cheek stayed pressed against his shoulder and she looked out at the ice.

"He's your father Annabeth that's why. You try to forget him because of all the terrible things he's done but in the end he's still your dad." Percy spoke after a minute, his chin still resting in her head.

Annabeth closed her eyes, her eyelashes wet with tears. She sniffled and pressed her face further into his shirt as his arms tightened around her small frame. "I-It just hurts Percy. It hurts so much. I just want to know why. Why did he leave? H-he was here and then he was just g-gone. I can't…I d-don't understand-" She sobbed, unable to continue the sentence.

Percy soothed her, digging his hand further into her hair that had long since fallen out of its bun. His other hand was wrapped around her tightly as he whispered words of comfort to her.

"I know it hurts. Trust me I do. I would give anything to know why my dad cheated on my mom. Why he still went on that stupid fishing trip instead of staying to work things out. I think about it all the time too. But…sometimes we don't always get answers. It sucks but that's the reality of it. We may never know why they did the things that they did."

Annabeth hiccupped as the tears continued to fall from her eyes. His voice was so steady, so comforting. Knowing that he had such a similar situation to her made her feel less upset and angry at herself. There was no one else who could make her feel the way she felt in that moment.

"It's ok to still think about him though Princess. Without him you wouldn't be the person you are today. The amazing figure skater I get to call my girlfriend. That experience has helped shape you and I know that I would never change a single thing about you."

Annabeth felt her heart warm at his sweet words. She lifted her head from his chest to look him in the eye. His green orbs stared into her grey ones slightly red from crying. She pecked his cheek, her lips lingering on his skin before she pulled back.

"Thank you Hockey Boy." She muttered, her voice slightly cracking as she tried to get across how grateful she was to him.

Percy nodded, resting a hand on her thigh and running his thumb across the fabric of her leggings. She felt goosebumps on her skin from his touch. He closed his eyes for a brief moment, sighing as he uttered his next words. "While we're sharing…there's something else you should know about me…about my past."

Annabeth stared at him curiously, she placed one of her hands on his chest and he held it there.

"I don't want there to be any secrets between us. Not anymore." Annabeth nodded, agreeing with the statement before he continued.

Percy took a deep breath, eyes fixated on her. "Even though it seemed like I was the type of person who got wasted at parties and skipped school because of a hangover…that wasn't true. I just made people think that I did because they associated it with my image and popularity status. Truth is I don't drink or smoke for that matter and there's a reason for it." He started.

Annabeth waited for him to continue. Flashbacks to him at Silena's party replayed in her mind. She saw him holding a solo cup, but never once did she see him take a sip. She remembered asking him about it on the roof of the rink and he told her that it was a whole different story. She could tell whatever it was it troubled him.

"Summer before sophomore year. Before all the Luke and Reyna drama but after my dad died. My mom, she met this guy a few months before the end of freshman year…Gabe. He was really nice at first. Coming over for dinner at least once a week and asking my mom about her day. She really liked him I could tell. But then…I don't know I guess his true colors came out."

Annabeth felt her stomach drop as she tried to figure out what her boyfriend was leading up to. The look in his eyes, the tone of his voice. She tried to piece it together and when she did, she hoped to all the Gods that she was wrong.

"He started spending more time at the apartment. Spending the night often. Eventually my mom asked him if he wanted to move in and he did. For the first couple weeks of summer everything was fine but then he got more…comfortable around the house. He went out to the liquor store constantly. It got to the point where he was drunk more than he was sober and if he wasn't drinking, he'd be smoking with his buddies in the living room."

He paused and Annabeth breathed shakily. Please, no. She begged, realizing more and more what the story was leading up to.

"One day he got really angry. Started yelling at my mom and threatening her. I was on my way back home from practice and when I walked through the door to the apartment, I saw him…hitting her. He was stumbling around drunk out of his mind gripping her arm in one hand while I saw him smack her across the face with his other. She was crying, telling him to stop but he kept yelling at her for I don't even know what. I stepped in as soon as I saw him. I pulled him away from her but that only made him angrier."

Annabeth brought a hand up to cover her mouth, the tears welling in her eyes as Percy continued whilst staring down at his hoodie.

"Gabe may have been a drunk idiot, but he was strong. Managed to get a few blows in. Luckily it was summer, so I didn't have to make up a lie about how I'd gotten into a fight with someone in our grade and received a purple eye. It wasn't too long after that that it became a regular thing. The beatings, the yelling, throwing empty bottles of beer on the wall. I protected my mom each and every time I could. She tried kicking him out, but he threatened to hurt her through harming me."

Annabeth felt a stream of new tears fall down her cheeks. She shook her head, her vision becoming blurry. "Percy-" She croaked but he interrupted her.

"Eventually we found out he'd done time in prison before. When he wasn't home, I called the police and since I had evidence all over my face of the things he'd done and my mom confirmed it, the officers arrested him as soon as he got back. He was out of our lives. Sentenced to jail for life from all the other things he'd been charged with too. We never talk about it. My mom and I. Almost like we're…afraid that he'll somehow come back. I can tell she still thinks about it sometimes. It's a part of the past we can't erase."

Percy closed his eyes for a moment, a singular tear falling from his eye. The sight made Annabeth's heart break even more than it already was. He wiped it away before looking into her eyes for the first time since he'd started the story.

"I made the decision that summer that no matter how bad things got I would never drink or smoke. I saw what it did to him…to Gabe, what it made him capable of. I never want to be that person, that monster that hurt my mother. Drugs are a constant reminder of him, and I don't want to be anything like him or have anything to do with him." He finished.

Annabeth sniffled, wiping a couple stray tears from her cheeks. Gods she had never been more emotionally exhausted in one night. Instead of saying anything right away she settled for hugging him again, burying her head into his neck as he gripped her tightly. Small quiet sobs escaped her body as Percy turned his face into her, copying her position. She could feel his breath against her neck, shaky and deep.

"I'm so sorry." She whispered into his skin, placing a light kiss into the crook of his neck.

Percy didn't say anything in response, instead pulling her even closer and shutting his eyes tightly. Her lips grazed his neck every so often and he breathed in her lemon scented shampoo.

He knew it in that moment. Hell, he had known it for a while now, but he was absolutely certain when they held each other on the bleachers that night in their ice rink. She was damaged and he was damaged. Neither one of them was perfect and they never would be. They had scars of a haunted past that would stay with them forever. But sitting there with her in his arms, having shared every part of his life with her. The good, the bad, the ugly. He knew. There was no one else and there never would be.

He pulled away after several minutes but only far enough so that he could lean his forehead against hers. She wasn't crying anymore but her eyes were still red-rimmed. Percy thought she looked beautiful. He saw her close her eyes and he stared at the long lashes against her skin. Her breathing was still uneven as it fanned across his face.

"Hey Princess?" He said lowly, waiting for the blonde to open her mesmerizing grey eyes.

"Yeah?" She said back, using the same volume in her voice as him. She blinked her eyes open, meeting the sea green ones that took her breath away every time.

Percy brought a hand up to cup her cheek, keeping his forehead against hers as he looked at her. He whispered his next words so quietly she almost missed them.

"I love you"

Annabeth sucked in a breath, her heart rate picking up as she tried to process what he had said. "You-"

"I love you Annabeth Chase." He repeated louder this time, cutting her off.

If there was one thing he didn't want her to be uncertain about it was this. She had to know without a doubt that he was in love with her. He would say it a million times more if she still didn't understand.

Annabeth stared deeply into his honest eyes. An indescribable feeling coursing through her veins as he looked at her. She replayed the words in her head. Hearing him say it did the opposite of cloud her mind. For once she knew exactly what she wanted and what she was feeling. The boy in front of her, the guy she had hated for so long who had somehow wormed his way into her life. The guy who understood her more than she thought anyone ever would, who had similar life experiences to her. Who listened to her and comforted her whenever she needed him. Who made her smile and laugh constantly. No one had ever made her feel like he did.

A memory surfaced in the back of her mind.

"Maybe you're not as awful as I thought you were."

"I know. I'm awesome right? Just don't fall in love with me Chase."

"Don't think we're gonna have an issue there Jackson."

If only she could go back and tell herself how wrong she had been.

"I….I love you too Percy Jackson." She whispered back after a few seconds had gone by. Nothing had ever felt so right to say in her life.

She saw his face break out into a grin and she tried desperately to keep the smile on her face at bay. He leaned in closer, their noses touching and the space between them miniscule. His hot breath blew across her face and she sighed.

Finally, he closed the distance, bringing his lips to hers gently. It was a soft kiss, neither one of them in a rush to deepen it. Percy held her face as if it was the most fragile thing in the world. Annabeth smiled into the kiss, the sad emotions leaving her shoulders as he brought her in for another kiss. Their noses brushed every so often. She had never felt so safe.

When they finally pulled away Percy stared at her before possibly the most cheesy but romantic idea came to him. Annabeth furrowed her brows when his eyes lit up. He stood up, grabbing her hand and pulling her up with him.

"I'll be right back. Stay here." He said excitedly to her.

"What are you-"

"Do you trust me?" He asked before she could finish her question.

She smiled. Not even having to think about the answer before she said it. "Always"

He beamed at her response, not able to stop himself from pecking her on the lips one last time. "Don't move" He whispered against her lips.

Part 1 of the finale complete! Let me know what you guys thought. I realize there might be some holes in the way I explained Percy's extra backstory. It proved to be very challenging, so I hope I at least did a somewhat decent job explaining the Gabe situation. But they finally said I love you! Only took 41 chapters but they finally said it lol. What is Percy up to? The last 2 chapters will not be as sad I promise! Also, on another note, I do not write smut/lemon. I know a few of you asked me that and the farthest I go is writing the buildup but that's it. Just wanted to clarify that.

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Storyboard for The Rink: look up the_writing_maniac Pinterest account and find the board titled "the rink {storyboard}" You can also find it on my account.

Ok now the moment you have all been waiting for…

NEW STORY ALERT-NO THIS IS NOT A DRILL

I REPEAT NEW STORY ALERT!

Introducing: Time After Time

Full Summary:

Annabeth Chase was a sucker for literally anything to do with the 80's era. Instead of listening to the newest pop songs, she was reliving the past with classic old school songs. In place of skinny jeans and crop tops, she wore baggy thrift store jeans and vintage t-shirts. Her best friend Thalia always joked that she wasn't born in the right time period. All she's ever wanted was to experience the past and to fall in love. When things take an impossible turn will her dream actually become a reality? An adventurous journey, an impossible summer love story, a heartbreaking choice. Percabeth AU and OOC.

I've already starting writing and editing it so please let me know if this sounds like something you would want to read! I'm a sucker for old school music and lifestyle so what better way than for me to express that than make a story out of it? Please review your thoughts! I will most likely have the first chapter published around the time I publish part 2 of this finale. Love you all!

REVIEW, REVIEW AND REVIEW!

-M