A.N/ Hey people. I'm back with Ch.4 as promised! You all are really amazing guys… I appreciate the 580+ views to my first fanfic itself. Also, sorry to inform you that this might me the last chapter of this story unless you guys want me to continue this. If you want me to continue then review or send me a private message!
I don't have a beta so there would be minor mistakes, please bear with them, sorry. 3 days ago, I read the first 3 chapters and they sound so badly written to me ughhh… I hope you guys don't find them that way hehe. By the way, this chapter is the longest one with over 7k words so take your time!
Disclaimer: PJO and HOO are owned by Uncle Rick
Chapter 4:
At home
It was almost 3:30 when I came out of my room. I had finished all of my homework so that I could spend the entire remainder of the day with her. I had cancelled my swim practice today. On any other day, Mom would have raised hell if I would have, and even I don't like to miss my practice. But today, she was all too gracious when I told her that Wise Girl was coming. She immediately got down to baking cookies.
I went into the kitchen to find her there, sitting on the counter, watching something in her phone. "Whatcha doin', Mum?"
"So, you've finally come out of your room."
"I finished all my homework and assignments."
"You what?"
"Jeez, Mom. I do study."
"I know that. But you completing all your work so you could spend the day with her is just cute." She said and I blushed, looking away.
"To answer your question, I was just scrolling through the news."
"Cool. Annabeth would be here at 4."
"I do remember that, Perseus."
I glared at her. She always used my full name when she teased me. "Fine. Where's Paul?"
"He's in the study, grading some papers."
"Oh, I hope it isn't mine." I laughed. "I barely solved that one. I was too tired."
"He told me." She smirked. "You need to really study. Good thing Annabeth's with you now."
"We aren't together."
"Yet."
"Tease me all you want."
"I'm your mother, Percy. I know you love her already. I can see it in your eyes. I know that look well. Don't hide from me, you never have."
I sighed. "Yes, I am."
"So, are you going to tell her that today?"
"I don't know, Mom. I had decided to…" I paused. "But now, now I just feel that I don't want to force her into something or even rush her. I want to do it all at her pace."
"I've raised a good son." She said and her eyes were warm. She reached over and ruffled my hair.
"That you have." I smiled.
"And oh, Me and Paul are going out to dinner, you remember that, don't you?"
"Fu…" I started but she glared. "Fudge?" I gave her my "I-can't-help-but-be-cute smile" and she laughed.
"I take it you forgot then. We're going to dinner at one of my friend's place, who works with me."
"Now that you've told me, I remember. When will you go?"
"About 6. And we'll be back by 9 or 10."
"Woah."
"Yes, I know. But she just had a baby—"
"Mum, that was almost 7 months ago."
"Doesn't mean that I don't want to play with her. So, we'll be late."
"Fine."
"You have the house to yourselves." She smirked. "Use protection in case you do any funny business."
I groaned. "Mom!"
"What? I'm just warning you. I would love to be a grandmother someday but not so early."
I groaned again and she laughed at my expense.
"We're just friends right now. And I don't think Annabeth's that kind of girl."
"By that kind of girl, you mean Vanessa."
I made a face and she laughed. "Why you dated her is still a mystery to me."
"Same." I sighed. Just then the doorbell rang and I sprung on my seat. A smile marring my lips. Mom laughed.
"You look so adorable and in love."
"Not now. Not in front of her."
She laughed again as I headed for the door. Before opening, I looked at myself once. I was in my swim jersey and black sweats, barefoot. Fuck it, I opened the door.
There she stood in front of the door with a smile on her face. "Hey."
"Hey yourself." I breathed. Gods, why was I so nervous. "Come in."
She nodded as she entered.
"So good so see you again, Annabeth." Mom gushed and took her into a hug.
Annabeth seemed startled. But she closed her eyes and returned the hug. I knew that Annabeth had family issues. She had never experienced the love a family gave and the feeling of being loved.
Well, that was about to change.
"Good to see you too, Sally."
They both released each other.
"Percy, if you want you can head to your room to talk. I'm sure you would want privacy." She smiled. "I'll bring in the cookies there."
"You don't have to bring them in, Mum. I'll get them when we're hungry. I'm sure, you have to get ready."
"I do, thanks."
I nodded at her and leaded Annabeth to my room.
"Wow." She said. "Your room is still blue. Is it the same one?"
"What?"
"Your room. You had described it to me as blue. So, you live in the same place as you did when you were 12?"
I was shaken. "You remember?"
"I have a sharp memory, Seaweed Brain. And I think I remember every little detail you told me."
I don't know why but that made my heart sore. At least I was important enough to her to remember details about me. "No, it's not the same place. Paul and Mom bought this house after marriage. I repainted the room. It was white all over. But hey, it's not totally blue."
"Yeah the other colors shades of blue." She threw me a look and laughed.
"And you'd seen it yesterday, Wise Girl." I pointed out.
"I didn't pay that much attention. I was dizzy and then you." She waved her hands around.
"What about me?"
"You being Seaweed Brain." She gave me a look that said 'duh'. "I think with all the information, I didn't quite look at your room."
I nodded at her.
She was looking spectacular in a black sleeveless top, ripped jeans and white sneakers. She sat down on my bed and I sat down beside her. "You're looking beautiful, Wise Girl."
She blushed on cue. "Thanks." She seemed to do that a lot around me.
"So, what do you want to talk about?" I asked.
"Anything and everything. But tell me about your friends."
"You know Jason, Frank, Hazel and Grover. I met them in high school. Frank and Hazel were already together when I met them. Grover is pretty cool and is laid back. Jason, I met in the swim team."
"That's nice. You seem pretty close."
"We are. Don't tell anyone, but Jason secretly likes Piper."
"No way! She has a crush on him too."
"I know that already. Just Jason is oblivious."
"You're the most oblivious person I know, Percy."
"Why!"
"Practically every girl on the campus is drooling over you and you have no damn idea about that. They're so beautiful and you don't even glance at them."
"They're not worth the drama and time. I think I've had my share of drama queens. And also, they aren't beautiful to me."
"Then who according to you in the school is beautiful?"
"Let's see. There's this one girl."
"Who?" She asked, now intrigued and turned towards me.
"Can we first just lean on the pillows, my back's aching." I suddenly became aware of the pain in my lower back. I had maybe stretched a muscle or two there really hard while working out in the morning today.
"Sure, are you alright?"
"Just some muscle stretches. Nothing too fancy." I smiled and leaned back against the pillows laying across the headboard of my bed. I stretched my legs forward and she did so too. It was a comfortable position. More comfortable if my arm would've been around her, but everything at her pace.
"So, who's that girl?"
"She's shorter than me. I used to think before that she was cute but now, she's fucking beautiful. She's a blonde and has gray eyes."
A smack rang out in the room. "Ow, Wise Girl, that hurt. I said rubbing my chest." Here I was, trying to flirt but I ended up earning a smack across my chest.
"Seaweed Brain." She grumbled. "You got me all caught up in the answer and then you joked." She mock glared at me and I chuckled.
"I wasn't joking." I said seriously.
She looked at me for a second but then she looked away. I decided to change the subject. "So, tell me how you're liking it here?"
"It's good. Feels good to not feel like a burden every day, feels free. The people are nice here and I'm glad I met you."
"How many times over are you going to say that?"
"Till the time that I actually believe that I've met you for real. I'm still having trouble believing this."
"When the fates play their cards, what can we do except play along." I shrugged.
"True." She leaned into the pillow further. "It's really comfortable in your room."
"I know."
"So,"
"So what?"
"Tell me why you dated Vanessa."
I groaned. "Why do we have to ruin our day by mentioning her!"
"I wanna know."
"Fine, I'll tell you if you tell me about your ex boyfriends."
"Okay." She agreed easily. Gods, I was hoping for a no. "I dated one guy—named Luke. He was a classic jerk."
I waited for something. I gestured her to elaborate further if she wanted to know why I dated Vanessa.
"So, I thought I loved him and he did me, but no. That just wasn't true. We were toxic. Fighting all the time then making up. Finally, I broke up with him when he raised his hands to slap me during a fight."
My hands balled in fists. This Luke guy wasn't going to stay alive for long now.
"Hey, relax, let me complete. I stopped him, obviously and kneed him." She spoke casually.
"You what?"
"I kneed him in the balls."
"Wow." I laughed.
"Yeah, you better remember that, Jackson."
"Oh, I hope I don't be on the other side of that knee." I laughed and she laughed with me.
"I was stupid and young. I mean I'm still young but not stupid. He was the first guy and I quickly thought that he was the last one, even though I was practically close to hating him by the end. Why I lost my virginity to him is now beyond me." She laughed bitterly.
"I guess we both have had made some stupid decisions and dated classic jerks and bitches." I joked.
"Now tell me about your stupid decision." She smiled.
"I told you half the story yesterday."
"Tell me the remaining half. Why did you actually date her?"
"I was maybe just trying to get over someone who I couldn't have. So, I settled for anything, even that bitch. Sure, there were other nicer girls but she was in the limelight then. She didn't let any other girls even near me. Of course, I got to know that much later, after we broke up. For one month it was just texting, phone calls and meeting occasionally. I knew I avoided her most of the times but I still dated her. Pretty fucked up. Most of the times we met at night at her house. I thought that maybe sex would help me get over but I was so wrong. Didn't make it any easier. The girl I was getting over was just not going out of my head, still won't. Now it's stronger than ever." I stared of into the distance. I had said far more than I should have. But I wanted to tell her now. That I had loved her since I was 12 even though I didn't understand the sense of that word then like I do now.
"Did you lose your virginity to her?" She asked me.
"Sadly so." I said.
"Yeah, cause that's really sad. Did she too?"
"No. She had a couple boyfriends before me. The other jocks in school. There are a few. Of course, I am not a jock in that sense of word, but no one asked me before labelling me."
"But you're the best, so she wants you, and she thinks that maybe because she was your first, you still want her."
"Exactly. But I don't."
"I know that. Who would want that! Ew." She wrinkled her nose and I laughed.
"You look adorable like that." She just glared at me and I laughed some more.
"Who was the one you were trying to get over?" Just when I thought she forgot about that, she asked me the dreaded question whose answer was laying on my bed bedside me.
"That's a story for later, I think." I got up. "I'll bring you some cookies." I went out the door, walking swiftly.
"Just so you know, Seaweed Brain, I won't forget to ask you even though you change the subject or run away again."
I chuckled. I would have to tell her. Little did she know that I would never run away from her. I would just keep running towards her no matter how far she went.
I went into the kitchen, which was thankfully empty, and the picked up the cookies which were neatly placed on a plate on the kitchen counter. I nearly ran my way back to her, not wanting to lose any time now. It was paranoid of me, but I couldn't help it at all.
"Here." I said, placing them on the bed between us and climbing up on it again.
"You still have blue cookies?" She chuckled.
"What do you mean by still?" I mock glared.
"You had told me about the blue food." She laughed.
How did she remember every fucking detail! On second thought, even I remembered every detail about her and her memory is way stronger than mine. "That's my mother's way of saying—"
"Everything is possible." She nodded, interrupting me. "I remember that too."
"You are impeccable, Wise Girl." I said and gestured to her to have the cookies.
We talked continuously for the next hour or even longer than that, while eating cookies. We spoke about anything and everything. From our preferences then to now, our pet peeves, most loved things—every minute thing. We were getting to know each other all over again. And I was even more in love with her. How could I not be? She was perfect. Every little thing about her was. The way she spoke, laughed, chuckled, glared and the little freckles on her cheeks were just adorable. They weren't many but still were so cute. They contradicted the intelligence in her eyes, by being so endearing.
Finally, a knock sounded on my door, interrupting a story she was telling me about her in school.
"Yeah, come in." I said with reluctance but I hoped it wasn't too palpable. Mom opened the door and stepped inside. Paul was just behind her.
"Hey you guys, having a good time?" Mom smiled her kind smile. Actually, every smile she gave was kind and one filled with love.
"Yes, we are. You're looking great." I complimented her. She always looked amazing but today more so.
"Yes!" Annabeth gushed.
"Thank you." Mom smiled again. "We just came in to tell you that we're leaving."
Annabeth gave me a confused look. "They're going out to dinner at one of my Mom's friends." I explained and she nodded.
"Have your cell on you." She said in a way that only moms could pull off and I mock saluted her. "We'll be late. Take care and have fun you guys."
"You too, Sally and Mr. Blofis."
"It's just Paul outside school, Annabeth." He said and smiled at her
"Paul, then." She smiled.
"Bye, you guys." I waved at them and so did Wise Girl. They closed the door behind them.
"So, you complete that story?"
"Nah, its fine. I talked a lot more than you."
"That's definitely not true! We both spoke a lot." I laughed.
"We did. But it just doesn't seem enough."
She can't get enough too? Her words made me smile involuntarily. "Yes." I agreed. She smiled at me too. I relaxed. I didn't know what I was so tense about. Maybe because you're going to tell that girl you love her after meeting her for almost 2 days after 5 years! A voice in my head sneered. It wasn't pleasant so I chose to ignore it completely.
"What are you staring at?" She said and I realized that I was.
"Ohh, umm, no, not at you. I was just thinking something else." I shook my head.
"Oh." She said and leaned back. But then she suddenly jerked up and turned towards me. Huh? "Hey, you never did tell me who you were getting over!"
I gave her a confused look. "The girl. You dated Vanessa to forget her. Who is she?" I wanted to groan loudly and I held myself back but she caught that too. "Don't groan." She smirked. "I told you already that I won't forget."
"It's not really that important." I said.
"Come on, Seaweed Brain! I'm your best friend, aren't I?"
"Yes, you are." But I don't want to ruin our friendship just yet. Ohh, I'm in such contradictions. I want to scream out to the world the love I had for this beautiful girl but at the same time I was afraid that I would scare her off. I didn't want to do that.
Fine. Maybe I would just give her the truth of whatever she asked. I was going to tell her one day or the other. I would never be just friends with her. Well, maybe if that was what she wanted. Then I would shove my love down and be any damn thing she wanted us to be. Friends? Best-friends? Anything she wanted.
"Then tell me!"
"I don't want to scare you off." I looked down. I hated being so vulnerable. But I was at a par win-lose situation.
Her demeanor changed at that. "Why would you scare me off, Percy?"
"I don't know, I just…" I didn't raise my eyes. The air in the room swiftly changed to something more deep, vulnerable.
"Hey," She said. "look at me." I didn't still. She turned my face towards her. "Look at me."
I raised my eyes. "What do you want to know?"
"Who was the girl you couldn't get out of your head?"
Now or never. I breathed and closed my eyes. As soon as I breathed out, I opened them again, staring into the stellar and intelligent, unique shade of grey that could ever only belong to one person in this entire world. "You, Wise Girl." I whispered.
There it was. Out in the open. Bared to her. Now that the words were out of my mouth, I felt like a weight was lifted off my shoulder. I felt free, I felt high—high on the love I felt for her. This was the only confession inside me which I had held on to, for years together. Now it was there in the air for her to know, for the entire universe to know.
She was still there, looking into my eyes. That ought to be a good thing, right? At least that was what I was telling myself.
"But, Percy…" She whispered. She was disoriented, not having expected that at all. I understood that. This was not at all something that she would've known beforehand because this didn't make sense to a third person. It only did to me. Very much.
"I know, I know, Annabeth. This is unexpected. And it's a shock. I'm sorry, I told you this soon but hey, don't think of it as a burden. There's no pressure on you at all, okay? If you want to be just friends, I'll be the best damn friend you've ever had. Anything you want, Wise Girl. Anything for you."
"You're right. This, this… is totally… I'm surprised. Too surprised to actually…" She paused again. "Gods, I've never been speechless."
"I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad one. I'm so sorry, Annabeth. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. I just… you asked who it was and I just couldn't lie to you. I never would lie to you. I just don't have it in me. But I should have just diverted the subject or something and maybe—"
My embarrassing babbling was interrupted as Annabeth's lips crashed down on mine. It was so sudden that I didn't even have time to comprehend it immediately. My lips just stayed there motionless until I realized what was happening. She was kissing me.
Wise Girl. Kissed. Me.
Without another thought I returned her kiss, still thinking that she would push me away after this. My hands went to her face, to cradle it gently, to let her know that I adored her, that I respected her choice. I poured all my emotions into the one kiss, never letting her feel the pressure of my feelings.
After a few moments she pulled back. My head was a mess. A fucking mess; my thoughts scattered like the bright sunrays in broad daylight—could be seen, but never could be caught.
"That was…" I started.
"Unexpected too." She completed. "I just…"
"We both have our wits scattered right now, don't we?" I said and she nodded.
"I think we need to talk, Percy." She said after another moment; her voice a whisper.
"We do."
"Why don't you start? Please?"
"Anything, wise girl. I already said that. I'd do anything for you." I said and she smiled at that. I started talking, giving the explanation of my love because it was needed. Being in love with a girl you didn't even know the name of was complicated. On top of that, you hadn't seen that girl in reality for 5 years. You just knew how she was.
"Annabeth, I… when we first met 5 years ago, I felt like you were the first person to understand me, apart from my mom. The person to really get me. You listened to me and gave me advice even though we were just 12 years old. You were intelligent and wise and I was stupid." I smiled to myself. "We talked on for hours. About you, about me. Whenever someone else would tell me something about them, I would often tune off, bored. But with you, I clung on to every word you said and I still remember all of them. It was special for me, very much. I don't know why it was.
You were so stunning, now more so. I had felt the itself that I could listen to you talk all day. I was amazed with how much you trusted me, with every single thing. About your parents and your school, your ADHD and dyslexia which we have in common. I had never felt so much rage in my entire life when you told me how your stepmom treated you. I never told you then, but I nearly wanted to hunt her down and accost her."
"Woah." She whispered. "I'm sorry, go on."
"If you remember you did most of the talking and I did the listening. You knew about the little things in my life—like the blue food and that my father was not a part of my life and I had a step-father. I left things other than that purposefully. I didn't want your pity and besides, watching you talk was intriguing, I don't know why."
"Tell all the things you left out." She said and I looked at her. "Don't hide from me now, Perce. Look at me and tell me."
I sighed. "My father and my mom met on a beach in summer. They stayed together for the summer, fell in love and I was conceived. But my father, he's not from here. He's from a different country. He asked mom to shift there with him. But she declined. She simply didn't want to. She thought of asking him to give up that country and shift to the States for her but she could see how that was impossible. They were at a stalemate. So, they broke up. He's never visited me. We together stayed at my grandparents for a while but after they passed, we were on our own. My mom was so young but she still provided for me. She's the best. We were not well off at all. So, my mother married a guy named Gabe. He was absolutely disgusting with a really bad odor." I wrinkled my nose, still remembering the scent. "I think we're off topic, aren't we?" I asked.
"No. Don't change the subject. As you know many things about me already, I want to do the same. You were my best friend too, Percy. Tell me, why did your mother marry him?"
"She never did tell me the real reason and we don't talk about him because it makes her unhappy. But I think it was because she wanted me to have a stable home, a school, friends. He was fucking horrible. He abused my mom." My fists clenched into balls at the memory. "Hit her, insulted her. All I could do was watch. Well, sometimes I used to trouble him but that resulted in my mother getting hurt more so I stopped that immediately. He hurt her so much, Wise Girl."
"How did he die?"
"Liver failure. He was a heavy drinker. Always a beer in his hands, day and night even during work. He died just after I came back from our camp—after about 2-3 months of that."
"I'm sorry."
"I'm not. I was so fucking glad that he died. A part of me hates me for thinking like that but he deserved it. He deserves to rot in hell for treating my mom the way he did. When I met you, I felt like I could forget about him, the trauma; when you spoke. It was a breath of fresh air. When I came back from camp, the situation was worse. Gabe was angry that Mom used money to send me to camp rather than giving it to him so he could play poker with his friends. He abused her a lot more. At that time, the only thing keeping me sane was you. Your photo and your smile etched in my memory. The only thing keeping me from murdering someone when I was just 12."
I laughed mirthlessly. "I wanted to laugh, you know, when he died. I fucking hated that I wanted to. It's disgusting, I know, but true. It was finally over. You got me through it." I smiled and traced her hand.
"How?" She asked. She had no idea, did she?"
"Because just your smile would be enough to bring one on my face too. You were at the ends of every thought I had, not interrupting but just being present. Like a guardian angel. You were in my dreams, keeping the Gabe of my nightmares away. Like a dream catcher. It took me years to realize that what I felt about you was love and not just any other feeling.
"But I knew I would never meet you. The thought troubled me so much, Wise Girl, I had never known that kind of pain. So, I tried getting over you. Sex, trying to be the life of the party, but nothing. You just wouldn't leave. So, I immersed myself into sports—swimming just because I could be distracted and not think about you every now and then. But at night, I just couldn't avoid it. There was never a day when I failed to look at your photo before sleeping. You were the thought that started my day and ended my night, Annabeth, still are. I love you, always have and always will. But I know, this is a lot. This doesn't happen with people. That this isn't rational at all. People can't fall in love like this, but I did. And there's no pressure on you Wise Girl, like I said, anything you want." I said, staring into the depths of her eyes, trying to convey how I felt about her.
"Why didn't you tell me about your step-father back then?"
"What difference would it have made? I didn't want your pity and I was too stubborn then. I still am, I think; according to Haz, Frank, Jason and Grover. They know about you. Not to this magnitude, no. But they know that I have had a crush on you forever but that's just about it. The only person who knows everything is mom."
"I wouldn't have pitied you. I would have helped you. Gods, we were both so stupid. Just because we didn't share numbers and names… we could have saved ourselves and the lost time."
"When things would get just a bit over the board hard, I wished I could see you. There were moments I would have given up years of my life just to see you smile at me for real once again, Wise Girl." I said and her eyes brimmed with tears.
She tried to blink them away but one fell from her grasp, rolling down her cheek. I caught it between my fingers. "Don't cry, Annabeth, please. Did I do something wrong?" She nodded her head 'no' and started sobbing. "Come here." I said and pulled her into my arms. She immediately grabbed me and pushed her face into my chest sobbing hard. I had never been comfortable consoling someone but with her, it came naturally to me. I caressed her hair. "Wise Girl, what's wrong? Don't worry." I whispered in her ear.
"I'm sorry."
"No need to say sorry."
"It's just that, no one has ever said words so sweet to me." She whispered against my chest; her voice muffled.
"You deserve them all."
"Gods, I hate to cry." She said.
"I know, I know. But that doesn't make you any less strong, you know. It's okay to let go once in a while so that when you gather yourself, you'll be stronger than you were before." I said, caressing her hair.
"Do you really love me?" Gods, I wanted to keep her in my arms always and protect her even if she could hold her own. She never knew what it was like to be loved.
"Always have, Annabeth. And I know that you don't love me, it's okay. It is really. I don't expect you to give your declaration of love or anything. Even I wasn't going to tell you right now but you asked and I couldn't lie. One thing you must always remember, Wise Girl, is that I would never ever lie to you."
"I know you'd never lie to me. I just don't know… It's not… it doesn't feel rational to be in love with you after all these years."
"Hasn't anyone told you? Love isn't rational, Wise Girl. But I want you to think it through. I want you to think about what I said and what you feel about that, okay?" She nodded. "Just like I told you my entire side, you think yours through and then tell me. I'll make coffee for us till then and give you some privacy. Is that alright?" She nodded again and pulled away.
I gave her a smile and got up to make coffee. I strode into the kitchen, my head a clusterfuck. Did I do a mistake and tell her? Did I go to fast? Did I… the thoughts went on and on. I shook them away. Now it was her turn. I couldn't change what I had said now. I sighed and got the coffee going.
After it was done, I poured it into 2 mugs and went inside again.
"Here you go." I said as I handed her the mug and scooted beside her.
"Thanks."
We sat in silence for a couple of moments; drinking coffee. It wasn't an awkward silence at all. Yes, it was filled with unanswered questions but it was still content. We were just content with each other's presence. The rest was just the details. She being here with me was enough for me.
"You make a nice cup." She broke the ice.
"Huh?"
"The coffee," She explained. "it's nice."
"Thanks, I guess."
"I'm surprised that it isn't blue."
I chuckled. "Your jokes haven't changed a bit, Wise Girl."
"They're better than yours." She threw me a look and I laughed.
"Your laugh hasn't changed at all. It's just deeper, though."
"Yours hasn't either." I countered.
She sighed. "Percy… even after 5 years, I thought we would have changed. But we haven't, you know. It feels the same. The same kind of companionship and content. It feels like nothing has changed yet so much has."
"We are the same still. Things have changed around us; not between us." I said. "We've just grown up. We're the same persons, just our outlooks are now wider and slightly different."
"When did you become so intelligent, Percy?" She smirked.
"Since you've been in my thoughts every night."
A soft gasp left her lips. "Wow." She whispered subconsciously and then cleared her throat. "I think I'm ready to talk."
"Are you sure Annabeth? Its no big deal really—"
"It is a big deal, Percy. They're your feelings. They are important. And so are mine. But unlike you, I just don't wear me heart on my sleeve. That's why I took time. There are some things you don't know about me like I didn't about you. And you should know them. Because first," She paused and her eyes softened. "you're my best friend. Even after all these years."
I smiled at her and placed my hand on hers gently. Just an affectionate gesture. "Okay. Whatever you're comfortable with." I lifted my hand, wanting to give her space while she talked.
"Now, you just sit there and listen. I'll do the talking." She ordered and I mock saluted her.
She laughed loudly at that and I just gazed at her beautiful laugh. I could watch her laugh all day long. But first, I needed to hear what she wanted to say.
"When I met you, I thought you were extremely stupid." She said and I chuckled.
"So, what changed?"
"Oh nothing. Now I've just come to like that about you. Its endearing really, in a very different way." She gave me a warm smile. "I don't know what made me trust you so easily. But I found you to be someone who would just listen to me because no one ever did, you know? That meant something to me. You became my best friend in a matter of moments just because of that and I thought I could tell you each and everything about me. And I did at that time. things were a bit simple with me when I was 12 than with when you were 12. Things got worse for me later."
"What happened?" I asked instinctively.
"I'll come back to that later." She waved me off. "When I went home again from camp, I was very happy. So very happy because I got to talk to someone about everything and even learn about them. I had never had a friend apart from my step brothers. But they were, after all brothers, and my stepmom didn't really allow them to speak much to me. I was so happy for 2-3 days that even my stepmom couldn't deter my mood. I decided that I would ask my father to call you. That entire day I gathered courage to do that. But just as I was about to enter his office to ask him, I realized that all I knew about you was that you were Seaweed Brain and you were my best friend, you lived in Manhattan. Nothing more than that. That's when it came crashing down on me. I think I knew that I didn't have that information about you but I just hadn't realized that. I was so sad."
"I'm sorry." I said.
"Not your fault. Like I said, we were both kids and stupid. Unlike you, I didn't even have your photograph. I had given you mine but you didn't have one of yours. I could only see you in my memories. You had become my ultimate definition of a best friend because no one measured up to you. How you managed to raise the standards so high in mere hours is a mystery to me. Just like you, there was never a day when I didn't think of you or smile at some memory." She smiled. But then her smile disappeared.
"Things started getting hard when I was 15. Helen, my stepmom, started starving me or giving me leftovers and such. I used to throw a fit about that. But the day I got that my dad simply didn't care, I lost the fight. Rather, I lost the will to fight. There was nothing left to rebel for when the one person that was supposed to love me didn't even care if I was healthy or no. But then I met Luke in school. Typical bad boy, motorcycle and all. But he was disgusting too. Of course, I realized that much later. He used me for sex and now, with hindsight I think I just craved the physical connection and someone saying 'I love you' to me." She paused. "I was 16 when me and Luke broke up. I was devastated at first because now I wouldn't hear that I was loved. I knew the love was fake but the words just made life easier to bear, you know. I was just fed up with Helen and my Dad and Luke. So, one night, I snuck into the kitchen and stole all the foods, stuffed them into a bag with some clothes and my study material."
"You ran away from home." I whispered.
She laughed humorlessly. "Yes, I did. For full 5 days, I was living besides a garbage can, alone. All I did was study. To keep my mind off things. But then they found me. My dad, I mean. He took me home and raised hell. I threw a fit too, threw things around and all. Helen slapped me for stealing food." She chuckled again, darkly. "I just stood there and told my dad that I would earn a scholarship to Goode High and I'll be out of his hair forever. He accepted. So, I studied and studied and earned the scholarship. This was the cliffs and notes version, and also very badly worded, of my past."
"Annabeth, I—"
"I'm not finished yet. That was my past. Now about you." She said and turned her body fully towards me. "The five days that I ran from home, all I did in the night when I couldn't sleep was think about you. I imagined life with you. Just happy and colorful. I imagined how it would have been if it were you instead of Luke. If we were a couple and all. That kept me going, Seaweed Brain. You kept me going. Otherwise I would have probably been still rotting somewhere."
"You would have found a way, Wise Girl."
"I don't know what I feel for you Percy, is love or not. I never knew love, I still don't." She looked down.
"Look at me, Annabeth." I said and she looked into my eyes. I held her face in my hands. "I know you don't love me and that is okay. I'm fine with that. As long as I have you by my side, I have nothing to worry about and I don't want anything more. I can be just friends too." I smiled and looked down.
"I didn't say I wanted to be just friends." She said and my eyes snapped back to hers.
"What?"
"I want to see where this goes. I always imagined life with you, Percy. I never got to experience it. I want to do that now."
"Are you sure, Wise Girl? I don't want to force anything on you. We'll do everything at your pace."
"I'm sure. I like you Percy, more than just friends and I want to date you. I know that this shit is complicated but it's ours. And that's enough for me" She smiled and did too. "See, I had to say that. You just couldn't."
"Hey, that's not the case. You didn't give me a chance."
"I'm giving you one now." She pointed out.
"Annabeth Chase, would you go out with me when you're free sometime. It would be my extreme honor." I said and she laughed.
"Shut up and kiss me." I did.
I pulled her to me and gently pressed my lips to hers. I nibbled the corners of her lips and then swept my tongue across her lower lip, asking for permission. She opened her mouth and our tongues met, tangling into each other. Her hands went to my waist and she pulled me closer. I didn't think that was possible. We kissed for some more moments and then I pulled away to catch my breath and let her catch hers.
"I'm going to show you how it is to be loved, Wise Girl. I'm going to give you so much love that it won't fit in your heart. I'm going to show you how special you are. I'm going to show you that I love you and chose you over each and everything daily. I'm going to love you. Always. Don't forget that." I whispered against her lips and claimed them again.