Sorry I updated so late, I've been very preoccupied.
Chapter 6:
"ok, how bout a game... truth or dare", celeste grinned.
"me?", percy asked, "umm dare"
Celeste looked bummed and then she changed her mind, "kiss the person next to you"
" wh-what!", percy blubbered, "I haven't even had my first kiss yet!"
" alright,alright! On the cheek"
Celeste confidently inched closer to him, she looked beautiful, not my type but pretty all the same, she had your conventional looks: pale blonde hair, tanned skin, bright blue eyes. Any guy would be crazy to think she wasn't pretty, and she was wayyyy out of Percy's league, that's for sure. I watched, sure that Percy would kiss celeste, he was too stupid to see that the real beauty was sitting right next to him. glanced over at Annabeth who had a scowl engraved onto her face, she was looking between Percy and celeste as if deciding who would make a better punching target. Personally, I wouldn't mind her throwing a punch Percy's way. I just didn't understand why she was so mad... maybe she was jealous... hmm... no,no, the Annabeth I know never gets jealous... she's probably disgusted by Celeste's weird behavior if anything. I mean, sure, it was benefitting me, doesn't mean it isn't revolting... seeing my childhood friend drool all over this criminal. Whatever it's not like she has a crush on him, she just finds him slightly cute.
Percy swallowed, his eyes flitted from celeste to Annabeth, her behavior hadn't gone unnoticed by him. His cheeks were a deep shade of red and so were his ears. Finally, he turned over to Annabeth. He quickly pecked her on the cheek. It took all I had to not get up and teach him a lesson, he could have easily just done the same to celeste but he had to choose Annabeth. Annabeth blushed slightly and said, while looking at celeste somewhat triumphantly, "Percy your turn"
He looked dazed for a moment, "oh,um, yeah, Joshua".
"truth", Joshua answered
"hmm, what's your biggest fear"
Joshua blinked, uh oh, I knew that look, "I... I don't-"
Great, above all questions Percy could have asked he just had to ask this one.
Joshua pursed his lips, "I- I don't want my grandma to die"
Percy cursed, in a. language similar to the one Annabeth always cursed in, maybe they were related after all.
"sorry Joshua...i didn't realize..."
"yeah, no, it's ok", Joshua was looking at the floor, "ok, moving on, Annabeth, truth or dare"
"truth"
"alright, is the person that you like in the room"
Annabeth's cheeks turned pink, "yes". She kept her eyes focused on the floor.
Yes! I knew she liked me... I have had my doubts but it's so obvious!
I looked around the room and Joshua and celeste looked shocked, they looked back and forth between me and Annabeth, occasionally glancing at Percy. He had a weird look on his face as he stared at Annabeth, he was blushing like crazy but he also seemed confused. He turned his head toward me and raised an eyebrow up, I didn't understand what he was trying to say so I just ignored him.
Harper stayed quiet, her lips were stretched into a thin line, the flames that usually burned in her eyes had taken a dull and rusty hue, as if they were dying out.
"I didn't think you cared about thing like that", Joshua wiggled his eyebrows, "so who's the lucky guy?"
Annabeth glared at him, "shut up"
"c'mon wise girl, please?", Percy looked at her with a pleading look in his eyes, like a baby seal.
I didn't understand how he was allowed to nickname Annabeth, she always punched me when I did it.
"the question never asked me to, seaweed brain", Annabeth rolled her eyes.
"leave it to you, to get all technical, owl face", percy muttered,
"what was that, kelp head"
Percy sighed, "nothing"
"woah", I interrupted, "your just gonna let him insult you like that, Annie"
"first of all, don't call me Annie, I don't like nick names and second of all its not an insult, it's just a nickname "
"if you don't like nicknames, how come you let him call you wise girl"
She shrugged, "its mutual, he's my best friend"
"him?!"
"yeah"
"how?"
"we just are"
I nodded my head politely but I couldn't believe it, this random guy was her best friend? he probably didn't even care about her.
"how did you and Percy meet?", celeste asked
"at a camp"
"I thought you ran away?"
"I did, I lived at the camp, that's where I met Percy"
"Percy ran away too?"
"no, I met him at camp during summer, he came to live there during the summer"
"wait so when did you guys meet"
"few months ago, in June"
"that's confusing, what kind of camp lets you live there"
Annabeth just shrugged with an uncomfortable look on her face.
Celeste nodded her head suspiciously. I don't blame her; I mean was she wrong? She turned her head toward Percy, all thoughts of truth or dare forgotten, "so what school do you go to?"
"um, Meriwether college prep"
"wow", Joshua commented, "sounds classy, how long you been going there?"
"um not too long, I just started this year"
"and you've lived in Manhattan your whole life?", celeste took the wheel.
"uh yeah", Percy had a panicky look on his face and kept glancing at Annabeth who didn't seem to know what to do. I caught on to this, I knew what I should do.
"so, Percy", I asked nonchalantly, "you change schools a lot?"
"uh, yeah"
"how many schools have you been to"
"quite a few", the worried look in his eyes had been replaced with a hard and unreadable look.
"why?"
"is it any of your business?"
Percy pov
What was this guy's problem? Did I do something wrong? I mean mortals aren't that bad but I doubt this guy would get it if I told him I'd been expelled from all the school's I'd ever been to.
"you got something to hide?"
I resisted the urge to get up and push him.
"no", I gritted my teeth, Annabeth put a hand on my shoulder and frowned in Ethan direction.
"Ethan, are you ok?", she sounded tired and I immediately felt guilty, I should have tried to make it work. I knew she was already having a hard time living with her parents and I didn't want to make her life any tougher.
"yeah, I was just wondering...", he let his sentence drift off but he shot me a glare, "how come you know Percy, he doesn't really seem like..."
He didn't finish his sentence but I got what he was trying to say, "like a good friend to Annabeth", I finished it for him. I sighed, "around nine, does that satisfy you"
His eyebrows shot up comically, "what, how?"
"I was expelled"
He shot a questioning look to Annabeth, "ok, so you play any sports"
I grinned, "I love swimming"
"same!", he looked at me suspiciously, "are you on the swim team or anything?
Being a total loser at school made it hard to be on the swim team, "or anything", I decided.
He had a smug look on his face that creeped me out, "next time you should come to my house, I have a pool"
I nodded my head in agreement, I expected Annabeth's friends to be well off, I didn't expect them to have pools. I shifted in my seat uncomfortably.
"how come Annabeth's never mentioned you?", harper asked.
"Annabeth's never mentioned me?"
I looked over at Annabeth who shrugged, "you guys didn't ask"
Ethan's pov
Annabeth had served all of us dinner, including her brothers, I'm pretty sure she wouldn't have minded eating later. Too bad Percy was arguing with me so much. Now she was setting up the sleeping bags in her hall.
All of us had changed into comfortable clothes and we were getting ready to go to sleep. I walked downstairs to find Percy and Annabeth laughing and talking to each other. Both of them had already chosen their sleeping bags, conveniently right next to each other
Oh no, I wasn't letting that happen. Over my dead body, Percy and Annabeth wouldn't be sleeping next to each other. I promptly plopped on to the sleeping bag next to Annabeth and just waited.
Percy finally seemed to have realized I was sitting next to Annabeth, "uh yes Ethan?"
"I can sit here, can't I?"
"yeah I guess"
Harper and celeste walked down together both laughing, but harpers eyes were distant and constantly shifting from celeste to Annabeth. harper stopped celeste and quietly whispered something to her, I couldn't quiet catch it, but I was honestly getting tired of all the secrets. Celeste nodded in understanding.
Celeste took the sleeping bag next to Percy while harper came walking toward... me?
She sat down lightly and said hi to me, but I noticed that she avoided eye contact.
"is something wrong", I asked her.
"I don't-", harper faltered and then sighed, "I guess, I'm just sad"
I was startled. Harper never spoke about her feeling or anything personal. Now that I think about it, I barely know anything about her. I don't even know where she's from.
"oh, why?"
"there's this g- there's this person that I like"
I waited for her to continue. She didn't.
"so? Why are you sad?"
"I don't have a chance with them, never in a million years"
"so?just work hard! Who is this mysterious boy anyways"?
Her expression was more crestfallen than before.
"it's- it's complicated"
"c'mon, look at me! Look at how hard I'm working to-", I looked around and lowered my voice, "to get Annabeth"
Her rusty eyes flared; the flame was extinguished as quickly as it came. She hissed, "its not as simple as that"
"what do you mean, don't be a wimp"
"not everyone has it as easy as you, Ethan"
No one had noticed the exchange between me and her thankfully, but I was shocked to the core. What was she talking about? I could hardly call my life simple. I've been struggling to get Annabeth and suddenly some idiot shows up and steals her. That is hardly simple.
"what are you talking about?"
She rolled her eyes, "I don't have time for your kiddish problems Ethan"
My throat tightened up, I looked away from her. She stalked over to Annabeth and gently tapped her on the shoulder. I couldn't hear what she was saying exactly but she was probably asking for directions to the bathroom.
I tried paying attention to something else. Joshua and Liam were having a serious discussion on whether mermaids were real; Annabeth and Percy were still joking around. She was probably only spending a lot of time with him because she hasn't seen him in a while. Hmmm, maybe I could try speaking to them. I edged closer to them; they were joking about something. I leaned in, I couldn't hear exactly what they were saying but I caught a few words. Something about a talking poodle? And... if looks could turn you into stone? Hmm that's weird.
"what was that?", I asked as politely as I could
They both started, as if they didn't realize I was there.
"nothing much", Percy replied.
"oh, hmm", I nodded my head skeptically
"what's a talking poodle? Is it some sort of code for something?", I said it teasingly but they started looking uncomfortable.
"it's bad to eavesdrop", Percy stated.
Fair point.
"so, we're just gonna go to sleep then?"
"yeah"
I scoffed internally; everyone knew that nobody actually slept during sleepovers. Sure, you may turn of the lights, but the best conversations take place in the dark. I had to be a part of Annabeth's.
"when?"
"once they settle down", Annabeth gestured to our friends.
It was true, most of them were still talking and hadn't completely adjusted yet.
"what do I do then"
Percy's eyes shifted to something behind me, "you can speak to harper, she's sitting all alone"
I frowned, that wasn't what I was hoping for but I didn't think that I should argue now either, so I walked over to harper and sat beside her.
She was sitting with her legs pulled to her chest.
"mind if I sit here?"
"it's your sleeping bag anyway, loser"
I ignored the insult.
"right... did you really mean what you said earlier?"
"it really isn't any of your business"
"but it is. You got mad at me, what did I do to you?"
"you wouldn't get it"
Her voice was strained and her eyes were glassy, I wouldn't let that stop me; I needed to know. I wouldn't be kept in the dark.
"maybe I would, this is about your crush isn't it"
"how long did it take you to figure that out"
"he's in the room isn't he"
She looked down.
I smiled, "I knew it", she glanced at someone behind me, I immediately turned around. Pretty sure she had looked at Annabeth. Strange.
A weird expression had come over a place, panicky, as if she were going to throw up.
"so, who is it"
"none of your business"
"if you don't tell me right now, I will tell everyone that you like someone in this room"
"you wouldn't"
I stood up, she dragged me back down, "Ethan, NO, what are you-"
I said it more seriously this time, "tell me who it is, otherwise I'll tell all of them- and I can tell when you're lying so don't even try"
She looked like a deer caught in headlights.
Her chest was rising and sinking rapidly.
"it's... Annabeth"
