Hey friends! My a/n game is not very good, but I wanted to say tysm to everyone for the support! You're all amazing! And again, italics are flash-backs!

Disclaimer: Idk if I could ever come up with a character as amazing as Annabeth Chase. In short: I'm not creative enough to own pjo.

~headline: for the better, and for the worse~

…

Percy stares at Acropolis's message for what seems like the one billionth time in the day. He can't believe she opened up to him that much, him, a stranger, someone she doesn't even know.

Well, Percy wouldn't say they're strangers. Just because they don't know each other doesn't mean they're strangers. Though it's not entirely safe to meet people off the internet, it's actually inherently unpredictable Percy knows, somewhere in his head, that she's real. That she's who she says she is. He knows she's his age, and he knows she's a girl, but he doesn't know much else. Hell, she could be neither of those things he has no clue at all, but Percy assumes she's not lying. Her messages sound like teenagers messages would. Plus, what creepy sixty-eight year old pervert would run a pop culture blog. It's pretty much confirmed that she's being truthful when she talks about herself. And Percy's never had someone open up to him like that. Even with Nico, when his sister died. He assumed that they would have a serious talk, but Nico eventually brushed it away, and they never got to have that conversation. He's never talked about Leo's mother before either, at least, not in great depth. In real life, people avoid those topics, there's a taboo on them, but he guesses that changes when everything is anonymous.

There's something about talking online, speaking anonymously, that makes you want to share all of your secrets. And it's equally amazing and terrifying. For one, you don't know how the other person is reacting, if they're really sympathizing or judging, but at the same time having another person in your corner is nice, peaceful.

As much as he knows he's changed, hearing Acropolis actually talk about it was incredibly discerning. And she was his third freaking subscriber. How coincidental is that? She'd been with him since the beginning, he can't believe he didn't notice her before. When he was fourteen, and first making his youtube channel, he had gotten excited at ten subscribers and had obsessively checked his stats for days, looking at the different people who had started following him. How the hell hadn't he noticed the similarity before? Then again, she could have changed her email because people do that, obviously. Percy does that. Whenever he talks to Acropolis it's on a separate, personal account he created the day he found her blog post and decided to reach out.

There was always something about Acropolis that felt different. He'd talked to girls, he'd kissed girls, he'd hooked up with girls, but it all felt meaningless. It's an asshole thing to say, and Percy wishes it wasn't true, but it is. That's honestly how it feels. And now that he's with a real person, Calypso, he should be having some reaction, right? But his heart doesn't thump the way with her that it does with Acropolis when she sends him a funny or heartfelt message. It's not even close to that. There's something so different about her, he can't quite put his finger on it but it's special. Really, really special. At this point, he doesn't even care what she looks like. There's so many more things that are important than outward appearance. And although Percy knows that he lives in LA and that superficiality is practically it's motto, to be honest, he doesn't really care. He used to, a bit, but now he understands that when you're in love, it doesn't matter as much.

He doesn't even know why he's thinking about this, because he's never going to meet Acropolis. And although that really sucks, he can't get himself caught into a deep funk about it. He's thought about meeting her hundreds of thousands of times, but it's the kind of thing that's more wishful thinking than legitimate thought. Even if they met, there's no guarantee it would turn into something. Acropolis is sensible enough, so she probably just sees him as a random guy on the internet she talks to from time to time. Or maybe she doesn't think about him at all.

But then again, she did open up to him over said internet, which has to mean something. He can't just be a passing thought in her head.

Maybe he's overthinking it all. He probably is. There's not that much to it, other than the fact that meeting Acropolis in real life, would ruin everything. The sense of normality he had when talking to her? Gone. The comfort he had when talking about his problems? Gone. He'd have no one. No one his age, at least.

His mother, bless her, was the closest thing he had to a real life Acropolis. Which was weird to think about, because he loved Acropolis romantically, and definitely didn't feel that way about his mom. But the similarity between the two is that his mother never treated him any differently when he'd struck it big. All the traction he had gained didn't make any different. He's still just Percy, her little boy. His mother was the strongest woman he knew, she'd gone through absolute hell for him, and he adores her. His old step-dad, who he'd called "smelly Gabe," was emotionally, and eventually, physically abusive towards him and his mother, which had eventually led to him getting arrested. His mother had tried to shield him from it when he was younger, but at age twelve, he'd eventually found out. That's when he started guitar which had been his savior. The one thing Percy had all to himself, the one thing that shrouded him from the harsh reality of life.

One day, when Gabe had been in a particularly bad mood, he had punched his mother. Percy had been at school when it happened, but when he came back home, Gabe was gone, and her mother was talking to some police outside their Manhattan home.

…

Fourteen year old Percy holds his guitar case tightly in his hand, swinging it alongside him, as he exits the subway. School was… just as it always was, with annoying teachers, and even worse students. He's pretty low on the popularity rung, which is unfortunate, because it means he has no one to eat lunch with. Most days, he sits clustered in the second floor boys bathroom stall, eating the sandwich and bright blue cookie his mother always packs him. It was sort of a rebellion, since his step-dad, smelly Gabe is strangely, enraged by the idea of cookies being blue. He doesn't think that it was respectable. It seems by packing these for lunch, his mother was saying, "respectable my ass," back. He appreciates the sentiment, and appreciates the cookies even more. His mother is a brilliant cook.

As he turns a block, and crosses the street, he squints, seeing a couple of flashing lights ahead of him. As he gets closer, he sees that it's the police. At his apartment. Talking to someone.

What the hell happened?

Percy rushes over to the police, and sighs in relief when he sees his mother talking to them, alive, her face incredibly serious. He drops his guitar, and rushes over, pulling her into a hug. "What's going on mom?" He says into her hair. He is taller than her by now, standing several inches above her head.

His mother rubs his back melodically. "It's okay honey," she says, "I'm okay." There's something in her voice. Something that tells him she is very much not okay and that she won't be okay for a long while.

"Mom, what the hell happened?" He pulls away, and then feels his eyes widen as he sees the large black circle splayed on her eye. "Was this Gabe?" He stutters, in horror. Gabe is horrible, sure, but to stoop this low? "Mom— did he…" Percy trails off, not wanting to end the sentence.

Sally slowly nods, smiling weakly. She pulls him closer. "He's gone now. For good."

"But that doesn't change the fact that he—"

She cuts him off. "Things happen. Gabe's gone now, and although this happened," she gestures to her eye, "we're free."

"I'll kill him." Percy clenches his teeth, "I'll kill him!" He says louder, and the police around him turn, and look at him suspiciously. One of them starts to approach him, but then see's it's just an outburst, and turns away, talking to their companions once more.

His mother bites her lip, and shakes her head. "You can't say that around them. Look honey, I know this is bad, but we're safe now. He's no longer here. He ran away."

"What the hell do you mean 'he ran away'?"

Sally speaks very gently. "Well apparently, Gabe was dealing illegal drugs, without our knowing. So, when he was leaving, he left some small traces behind. The police are trying to figure out where he could have gone…" she continues speaking, but Percy doesn't listen. He's so overwhelmed with rage, because Gabe punched his mother. In the eye. And that— he can't process that. He can't process any of this.

He turns back, to see his guitar, right where he left it, several feet away on the dark pavement. And for some strange reason, he wonders if they still have a home. If they still have a place they can stay, safe. Because as he looks up at the old apartment, it doesn't really look like that. Eventually, the police question him, and take him upstairs. The house feels different now. All of Gabe's things are cleared out for investigation, which leaves the entire place pretty barren. He tries, he really tries to answer the police's questions the best he can, but it's so hard, because he's distracted by everything.

Once they're done, they're done, they talk to his mother, and the entire time, Percy wonders, "are they really on our side?" The way that they look at the two of them, it really unsettles Percy. After the police are gone, there's nothing that they can really do but re-decorate, and try to restart. Gabe is gone, which means most of the furniture is gone too, because according to the police, "it might have evidence on or within it." Percy thinks that's a load of bullshit, but since they're the police, he can't question it.

So they buy some cheap Ikea and Lowes furniture the next day. Percy doesn't go to school for two weeks straight, and a kid named who lives in a foster home a couple blocks away brings him his homework. Leo becomes his first friend, and they continue to talk even after he goes back to school. And once he does, everyone is weird about it. No one knows where he went, and Percy doesn't offer any answers. He doesn't owe them anything. At first, people act all nice around him, trying to get him to tell them what happened, but eventually, things go back to normal, and he hangs out with Leo. Life is still hard, but at least he has his mother, a friend, and a guitar. Three things that mean the world to him.

…

Percy doesn't like to think about smelly Gabe, as anyone who in the past has suffered from abuse would. He tries to block the man out of his mind, but it's hard. Sometimes, it's just talking to his mom that triggers it. He tries to talk to her at least once a week, because he's kind of a momma's boy. He wishes he could call her every day, but sometimes, things just get so busy, and he's overwhelmed with work. His mother seems to understand. He used to worry that she was lonely, but then she met a nice man named Paul, so that's a smaller concern now.

He still likes to check up on her, because although they've both been through trauma, she got a brunt end of it. There's so much she's done for him that he could never thank her enough for, so the least he can do is call. And he enjoys their talks. She's motherly to him, asking how he is, and if his song-writing is going well, and he gets to feel like a kid again. His mother doesn't baby him, but she doesn't act as if he's an adult, which he likes. Technically, he's still a teenager, but most of the time, he's not treated that way, so it's refreshing to have an adult who understands he's still a dumb kid who makes mistakes. Small mistakes for him can cost his reputation, and the news rarely acknowledges that he's a teenager.

Sighing, Percy shuts his phone off, and shoves it into his pocket. He leaves the apartment, sunglasses and hat galore, so he isn't easily recognized. He then enters his car, and begins to drive to the studio.

He remembers when he first got the car. It was when he was sixteen, and had just released his second album. It had gotten crazy popular, and although he'd already earned a lot of money, this had given him the opportunity to buy a Tesla. All for himself. And now he can drive himself anywhere he wants to go.

…

"Perry!" He's being woken up. In the middle of the night. First, he gets scared it's a crazy fan, but then realizes he recognizes the voice, and gets up. He grabs a shirt, because he's only wearing boxers, and walks to the door sluggishly, opening it to reveal Dionysus in all of his glory, grinning like an evil super villain. "Have you seen your hits?"

He'd just released his album yesterday, and since then, his phone was blowing up with notifications. Because of that, he had stayed away from it. "No," Percy yawns. "Are they any good?"

"Good?" Dionysus claps his hand like a maniac. "Percy, they're amazing."

Percy blinks. To be honest, he's more surprised by the fact Dionysus is calling him by his real name, than the fact his album is doing well. He has a pretty solid fan base, and he thinks right now, he has about five or six million followers. "Cool." He says. "I guess I should check my social media."

"Your numbers are up very high," Dionysus nods, "which means my numbers are up high too." Percy rolls his eyes at that, because it's a commonly known fact that Dionysus is only in the business for the money.

He walks over to his bedside table, and grabs his phone from where it's charging, loading up social media, and holy shit, he's just gained another five hundred thousand followers. "That was—" he sputters, in disbelief. "Fast. I guess I can afford a Tesla now. I have to call my mom." His ADHD is acting up a bit, and his mind is jumping from subject to subject.

Dionysus waves his hands in the air. "Do whatever you need," then, "but make sure you keep writing more hits."

Percy nods quickly, because that's what you're supposed to do with Dionysus. Don't argue, nod and smile. "don't worry about it." He tells him, and Dionysus puts a thumbs out, before sauntering through the hallway. Once he's completely gone, Percy shuts the door, and grabs his phone quickly, calling his mother. "Mom," he says excitedly to her. She's groggy, because it's much later there in New York, like three o'clock or something.

"What Percy?" She replies sleepily.

He pushes the phone closer to his ear, "my album's doing really well, apparently. I just gained five hundred thousand followers, which is crazy."

"That's amazing." His mother sounds proud. "I'm so proud of you baby, but it's three am in the morning here, and as much as I'd like to support you, Paul and I have to get some sleep."

Percy bits his lip. "Yeah, of course, sorry. I forgot about that." (well, he didn't). "I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

"Yes, maybe skype?" Sally suggests, "I'd love for all of us to get together. Perhaps bring Leo?"

He nods. "Yeah, okay, sorry for waking you up."

"It's fine Percy. I love you." His mom reassures him.

"I love you too." Percy replies, and then hangs up.

To be honest, although he's glad the album did well, he knows it isn't his best work. It's nothing like his originals, and it feels a little bit jaded to him, but he's glad that it's doing well. He's gotten a couple hate comments and messages, but he brushes them away, until three days later, when something even bigger comes his way.

That something being, a blog post called "The Percy Problem," which heavily critiques how he's supposedly "changed", by someone named Acropolis712. And from that moment on, he's linked to the author. A link that seemingly, won't ever break.

…

Percy doesn't like to think his personality has changed greatly, though Acropolis consistently critiques it. Sure, he's had a couple scandals in the past, and yeah, maybe he's kissed one to many stars his age, but in the grand scheme of things, that doesn't matter. They didn't matter to him at least. Although it's sad to say this, they were all distractions. Ways that he could get out of his head. Ways he could forget. Ways he could feel wanted. He knows that he has his mom, and his friends, but Percy wants to feel wanted in another way. Yes, it's a bit of a clingy behavior, but isn't that a part of the human condition? Wanting to be loved by someone? You could say he's a romantic, but not in the usual way. He's not falling in love with everyone he meets. Quite the opposite, really. In truth, Percy just wants to find a person, someone who really understands him, and stay with them. Forever. And he's found that person. There's just one big problem with all of it.

He doesn't know her in real life. Acropolis, Acropolis, Acropolis, it's like a mantra. His mind always finds his way back to her, and he can never catch a break from it. He's never met a girl like her. Hell, he hasn't even met her before, but still he's never gotten to know anyone remotely like her. With the business he's in, he rarely meets people that are remotely unsuperficial. Even Calypso, who is sweet and pretty has a vague undertone within her. She's nice, but because she's been raised under Atlas, Percy knows that there has to be something going on in her mind regarding looks. Or not. He doesn't know. He just knows that Acropolis values intelligence over everything. She's incredibly witty, and Percy actually gets to show his true colors with her. In truth, although he's not the best with words, which is ironic, considering his career, he's a bit of a nerd. He likes listening to audio books, and watching old fashioned movies. It's a guilty pleasure. When he was younger, his mother, who is an english major, always had them watch old timey movies when Gabe was out, doing whatever he did. Although they can be kind of boring, he has learned to enjoy them.

In short, with the publicity and the press following his every move, he doesn't get lots of chances to make friends. He can barely make lasting connections, which is probably how he got into a situation like this. Blank of ideas, as he rides to the studio in his car, all while in a fake relationship. It's definitely not the life as a pop-star anyone has dreamed of, but it's the one he's living.

…

~change is inevitable, but it's your choice whether that change is good, or bad~

I really really didn't want to include Gabe in this fic because I hate him so freaking much, but I eventually decided to drop him in, but he's going to be just there in flashbacks, because I really don't want to write about him in the present tense. And ew. I hate smelly Gabe.

Enough of my ranting! I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Lmk what you think! Stay safe and healthy! Until the next chapter!

Replies:

PurpleBunny5540: I actually update three days a week— Mondays Wednesdays and Saturdays. I'm glad that you're enjoying the story! RandomFanAuthor: yeah I agree. Ty! Aveerup: glad you like it, ty!

TheLil'LIon