So! New chapter! I wrote this A/N before, and I hope I posted this on time lol
Credits to my coauthor, MANation, as always.
Enjoy the chapter!
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If you had asked me what I thought Heaven was this morning, I would not have answered with, 'getting the greatest massage of my life from my janitor while trapped in an elevator together,' but here we are.
Percy wasn't kidding before- he definitely knew what he was doing. Whoever his ex had been didn't know what they were missing. It was almost enough for Annabeth to pity them. Almost.
"So… do you like it," Percy asked nervously.
Annabeth had meant to give a more composed response, but all that came out was a deeply contented, "Mmmm."
They sat in silence for a while, and for the first time it didn't feel awkward. At least, Annabeth was too far gone to notice if it was.
Still, she was confident something had changed between them today. Their relationship was different now, for better or worse. She had trusted him with things she hadn't told anyone but Silena about, despite barely knowing him.
She got the feeling Percy just had that effect on people though. She wondered how often he had total strangers giving him their sob stories or confessing their greatest mistakes and deepest regrets.
Annabeth subtly leaned into his touch because this massage felt really good. "Why aren't you a masseuse? You're way better than the one at the mall."
Percy's hands stilled for a heartbeat, but resumed movement as if nothing had happened.
"Uh, I've never really thought about it, I guess. Plus I think you need to get certified or something?" She could feel him shrug behind her.
"You should still look into it, I think you'd do well," she said, tilting her head back.
He shrugged again. "Maybe, if it's cheap enough. I don't have a lot of extra money right now."
Annabeth's eyes shot open. The way he said it, so matter-of-factly, made her remember not everyone lived off a six figure salary and comes from wealth. He's working as a janitor, of course he doesn't have extra money.
She felt guilty; hopefully he doesn't feel embarrassed. His hands never hesitated or changed pressure though, so she assumed he was alright. She wondered if he'd just accepted that was what his life was, and frowned.
"You alright?" Percy asked tentatively. "You're tensing up again."
"Oh, I'm fine," Annabeth said dismissively, "just thinking about some things I need to take care of."
Percy began being more firm, and Annabeth nearly forgot what they were talking about. "Okay, well for now how about you stop worrying about whatever it is, okay? Just try and relax. I figure we won't be doing this again, and I'd hate to think you're paying for subpar massages," he said jokingly, though he sounded a little nervous.
"We could," Annabeth blurted before she could stop herself. She blamed her openness on how good she was feeling, but his hands immediately froze in place. She felt tension start to build inside her again, and embarrassment.
"I mean, um," Annabeth cleared her throat. "I mean that I could hire you as my personal masseuse. That way you'd have some extra money to do whatever you want with and I wouldn't be paying for subpar massages."
What am I doing? Annabeth was glad Percy couldn't see her face, because she was sure it was bright red. Is this even okay? Is this sexual harassment? Oh my gosh, what am I even doing?!
Percy cleared his throat behind her. "Um," he said quietly, "if you're serious… I'd be okay with that."
Annabeth sat up straight, still not looking back at him. "Of course I'm serious, I offered. I'll pay you, and I'll hire a tutor to help you get your diploma," she said, becoming more sure of herself.
Percy's hands left her shoulders. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, I can't let you do that," he said.
She finally spun around to look at him, his face still tinged red like she was sure hers was. "You can't stop me from doing that. And Chase Enterprises prides itself on taking care of its employees, including helping them through education. Even if you turn down the personal masseuse offer, I'm hiring you a tutor."
Percy opened his mouth to object, but Annabeth glared at him in a way that made him reconsider. Inwardly, Annabeth grinned.
Percy frowned. "I said I would do the massage thing, but at least let the tutor be my payment for that. I wouldn't feel right if you paid me for two jobs and a tutor."
Annabeth tapped her mouth with her finger, pretending to think about it. "That seems fair… but I insist," she said grinning.
Percy looked like he wanted to argue again, but wisely didn't say anything. Annabeth smirked. She always won arguments she really cared about. And of course she cared about this one - as the CEO, it was her job to take care of her employees.
"Thanks," he murmured softly, almost too quietly for her to hear. "Anna- Ms. Chase."
"You can call me Annabeth at work, too," she blurted out, cheeks flushing. "Since we're, you know, friends and all now."
Percy bit his lip, smiling tentatively. "Thank you, Annabeth."
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Percy wondered if Annabeth could feel the heat on his face through his hands (which were currently giving her a shoulder massage, oh gods).
He couldn't believe his luck. Friendship! Progress! In their… work relationship!
Focus, Percy, he reprimanded himself. You have got to give her the best massage of her whole life. She's paying me more than she needs to, so I have to do really, really well.
They'd settled back into silence, but Percy felt wired now. He had a way of earning more money, finishing his education and spending time with Annabeth. Percy would praise the god of faulty elevators, if he ever found one.
"I hope you weren't in a rush to go somewhere today," Percy added conversationally.
Annabeth waved her hand dismissively. "I was actually going to leave early for the day, and I texted Silena when the elevator first shut down, so I imagine she's called the people to come out and repair it."
Percy was glad she couldn't see him frown. He liked being trapped in an elevator with her. He sighed. All good things must come to an end, I guess.
At that moment, something Annabeth said clicked in his brain, and he groaned, burying his face in his hands. "Oh man, Beckendorf's gonna kill me."
Annabeth spun around. "Don't worry, you have a good excuse. If he gives you any trouble I'll talk to him."
Percy looked up at Annabeth's amused face. "Well, I forgot to tell him why I never came back with the tool he needed, and he was already in a bad mood today. I was supposed to be working with him most of the day today, and now I bet he thinks I just left early."
"Hey, it's okay," Annabeth said, rubbing his arm. "It's not like you really had a choice. I'll shoot Silena a quick text to tell Beckendorf you're trapped with me." Annabeth paused, as if remembering something. "But honestly, he probably got told the elevator was broken and figured out you were stuck."
Percy frowned. "I just don't like letting people down, ya know?"
The way she stared into his eyes, Percy could tell she knew. He figured that was something they had in common, though he wondered how she could ever let someone down.
"Well, for now don't worry about it. It'll be okay," she said kindly. Then, without warning she spun back around, sitting closer to him than she had before.
Percy froze, unsure whether to scoot closer or move away. Okay, no, this is fine. I've thrown food at her. Things could be worse.
Annabeth yawned. "Gods, I'm exhausted. Mind if I lay down a little bit?"
"Uhh, sure." Percy was confused as to why she needed his permission but if that was what she- oh gods. She leaned her head on his shoulder and despite his sudden hyper-awareness, he felt nothing more than a featherlight touch.
"Don't worry," she yawned, "I won't sleep. Just need to… rest for a bit. Been an exhausting week. You sure it's okay with you?"
Percy made a noise that could've been a denial or agreement; he wasn't sure either.
Annabeth sighed contentedly and closed her eyes. Percy stared at her face in a way that was definitely not creepy, admiring the way her face softened so much when she was relaxed.
It was very different from how he'd ever seen her (besides the coffee shop, but it was dark and it didn't really count).
After several minutes, despite what Annabeth said, she was asleep. Percy could tell from the rise and fall of her chest, the way her lips were parted slightly to huff out small breaths, and the way she seemed to have melted into him.
As he stared he couldn't help thinking to himself, man, I could get used to this.
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Percy's legs were sore. Annabeth hadn't been sleeping for that long, but they had been stuck in an elevator together for a while.
He gently leaned Annabeth against the wall so he could stand up and stretch his legs. "Gods," he muttered, "this would be a great time for the Beckendorf to fix the elevator… if he's realized it's not functioning, that is."
Spotting Annabeth's phone on the floor, he grabbed it and checked the lock screen for any text notifications - she had said she'd sent one to Silena.
Nothing.
Percy groaned and put his hand to his head. He put the phone back to where it was before, dropping back down next to Annabeth.
He sighed to himself. "Looks like we're gonna be stuck here for a bit longer, Wise Girl."
The, 'Wise Girl,' in question stirred in her sleep, reaching out to him. As she clutched onto his arm, Percy's heart fluttered.
Okay, maybe being stuck here isn't such a bad thing. It could definitely be worse.
Her grip on his arm tightened. "Why?" Annabeth mumbled. Percy jumped, thinking he'd woken her, but her eyes remained closed.
Annabeth stirred. "How could you do this to me, Luke? I trusted you…"
Percy tensed, his mood darkening. Luke, he thought venomously.
At first he'd thought Luke was a decent guy, even if he'd made some mistakes. Percy had even liked him, but after hearing about how he'd hurt Annabeth, how he'd led her on and let her down, he couldn't help but be furious on her behalf.
He could feel a storm brewing inside him, wild and violent. Calm down. He took some deep breaths, fists still tightly clenched.
Annabeth groaned, still restless in her dreams. She pulled herself closer to him. Percy tensed.
As she buried herself into his side, her expression cleared. She sighed.
Percy waited, but she didn't say anything else. Eventually he began to relax, leaning back against the wall as well. Her breathing was soft, and he enjoyed the sound of it.
Still breathing deeply, Percy closed his eyes. Despite Annabeth's proximity, he still began to feel tired; it had been an emotionally draining day. Before he knew it, he began to drift off alongside her.
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Slowly, Annabeth came into consciousness. She was snuggled up to someone warm, and though her position was uncomfortable, she still felt peaceful.
Then she began to remember her day and where she was, which meant there was only one person this could be…
Annabeth's eyes shot open, and her fears were confirmed. Percy's gently sleeping face was mere inches from hers. She would've enjoyed the view if she hadn't been so startled.
She shot up, and the sudden motion woke him up too. He leaned forward, looking dazed, like he'd forgotten where he was.
"Wha- where?" he asked, rubbing sleep from his eyes. His hair was sticking up in the back from where it met the wall.
"Still stuck in the elevator with me," she said. She smiled apologetically. "It looks like we both needed some sleep."
Percy grimaced, rubbing the stiffness out of his neck. "Yeah, sorry about that. My legs were getting stiff, so I had to move us around, and then you hugged me and I just kinda drifted off…" Percy was blushing, and Annabeth liked the way the red complimented the green of his eyes. Then she literally shook that thought out of her head. Inappropriate.
"It's okay, we both needed it. And usually I'm not clingy when I sleep, so sorry about that." She laughed nervously, looking away. She spotted her phone, looking to see how long they'd been asleep.
Whoa. It had been a few hours. Silena responded just over an hour after her initial text , and had left several messages since.
Oh my gosh, I'm soooooo sorry, I just saw this I've been talking to someone I'm so so sorry let me call right now
Hello Annabeth please forgive me they said they could send someone out today but it would take a while for them to get here
Are you okay? Hello? Answer me!
Annabeth I'm sorry please forgive me!
They said someone is on the way now!
Okay the guy just got here he says it'll take him a while to fix it. Again so sorry. Please don't be dead
Should be fixed soon!
The most recent text was from about 15 minutes ago. She smiled at her friend's obvious panic and quickly typed out a response.
Okay, cool. Thank you, Silena. And I'm not dead, don't worry. Just fell asleep :)
As she typed, she said to Percy, "Well, looks like we woke up at a good time; Silena says the elevator should be fixed any minute." She stretched and stood up.
Percy rolled his shoulders, groaning as he did so. "Who knew sleeping in an elevator was so uncomfortable?" he grumbled.
Annabeth smiled, reaching out a hand. "Quit complaining, I slept in here too and I feel fine."
Percy took it gratefully, standing up alongside her, closer than she'd anticipated. "I wonder why that is?"
Annabeth looked down, a slight tint to her cheeks. Butterflies fluttered, though his voice betrayed his innocence; she could tell he wasn't flirting, he was genuinely curious. She wondered if that affected her more than if he was.
Suddenly the elevator jolted, shaking them both off balance. She stumbled into him, causing him to fall back against the wall as he grabbed her arms to keep her from completely falling over. Just as they met each other's eyes, the doors opened.
There stood Silena with the maintenance guy- Beckendorf, right? She wondered if that was who Silena was talking to.
"Beth!" Silena squealed, scooping her up into a hug. "Oh, thank goodness, I thought you might've tried to do some weird smart thing and climbed through the vents like an amateur ninja!"
Annabeth stared sternly down at her. "Yeah, why didn't I? And I would've thought I'd at least be middle-level ninja, no?"
Percy detached himself from her slowly - very slowly. "I think Annabeth would make a great ninja."
Silena's eyes glinted. "Oh? Annabeth?"
"Um," Percy scratched his head, which Annabeth was coming to realize was a nervous habit. "Is it against office policy or something?"
"No…" Beckendorf talked for the first time, drawing out the monosyllabic word. "Not necessarily."
Percy sighed in relief. "Well, that's good."
Annabeth side-eyed Silena and just knew she'd be subjected to some weird girl talk later. No, she mouthed, shaking her head.
Silena just winked. "C'mon, Beth, let's leave the guys to their thing. We need to have a talk."
"Ugh," was all Annabeth could manage before she was dragged away.
"Uh, well, bye then!" Percy called out, waving awkwardly. "It was nice being trapped in an elevator with you. I mean, it wasn't nice being trapped, but we had a good time, well I did at least. Anyway, I'm going to stop talking now."
She fought a smile. "I know what you mean, and thanks for making the time in there bearable. See you around, Percy."
He smiled broadly. "Yeah. Catch ya later."
Annabeth winked. Looking forward to it.
