Chapter 1: The news.
Percy Jackson-Chase held his son Charles' hand on one side and cradled the sleeping Zoe in the other. Charlie pulled at his father's hand.
"You always talk with Ms. Garti too long," the young boy complained. "Can we just get Liana and go?"
Silena Liana Jackson-Chase was the eldest of the Jackson-Chase children. Percy squatted down and hoisted his son up with his free arm. He carried the grumbling boy and Zoe into the elementary school. He made his way to the first grade classroom where Liana sat, stumbling through a book.
"Lia!" The girl glanced up from her book and raced over to her father. For not being much older than 6, the kid was fast. Percy kissed her on the cheek, quickly straightening to avoid Zoe's head hitting a desk.
"I hope you have a good day, Mr. Jackson," Ms. Garti smiled at Percy.
"You too, Ms. Garti," Percy replied, flashing her a grin before herding his children out the door.
"See, Charlie, that didn't take long," Percy told Charlie, setting his 3 year-old on the ground.
"Hmmph," Charlie said, annoyed about being wrong.
The Jackson-Chase's piled into the blue minivan and drove home. Percy climbed out first and was surprised to see Annabeth sitting on the porch, looking at some papers, then at her laptop, then back at her papers. Annabeth was usually in her office at this time, and today she had a meeting or something. She looked concerned, but put on a mask of calm when she noticed her family coming up the porch steps. She ruffled Charlie's hair, tickled Zoe, and gave Liana a hug. Then she kissed Percy before looking back at her work.
"I thought Mommy had a meeting today?" Charlie looked up at his father inquisitively with his blue eyes.
"I thought so too," Percy said, sitting next to his wife and putting an arm around her.
Annabeth leaned back and put the lid of the laptop down. As soon as she had relaxed, Percy tried to snatch away the paper, but Annabeth yanked them out of reach. Percy caught one word. "Year-round." Atleast, he thought that's what it said. It was hard to tell, being dyslexic.
Annabeth gave him a look that said 'We'll talk about it later.'
Liana and Charlie had already gone inside. They were awestruck by what they saw. Closet doors opened, mittens on the floor. Their mother's oh-so-secret blueprints she had been set to take to her architectural firm were strewn across the floor. The house was usually tidy, despite three young children living there. Liana looked confused but sat with her brother on the couch and read him some of her book. She struggled with some words, but she made those parts up. Soon, Percy, Annabeth, and Zoe followed the two inside. Percy looked more startled than his children. He looked at Annabeth meaningfully. She looked at him, not with power this time, but with pleading in her eyes. Percy gave up the act and asked, "What is going on?"
Annabeth sank onto the couch next to Liana. "Please, Percy, it can wait," Annabeth interjected, pretending to take interest in The Little Red Hen.
Percy didn't pry. He changed out of his aquarium T-shirt and cargo shorts, which were way too small. He didn't come back out of the master bedroom for the rest of the day. Once Liana was tucked into bed, Annabeth knew she'd have to face Percy. So Liana got to watch two episodes of My Little Pony and get an extra long bedtime story. At nine o'clock, Annabeth went to the bedroom. She stood outside the door for a few minutes before turning the handle. Percy saw the outer handle turn and swung the door open the rest of the way. Annabeth trudged inside, her loose ponytail slipping out, and went to shower. As long as she could hold it off, the better. But once she came out of the bathroom, Percy cornered her. "Listen, Wise Girl, we don't keep secrets from each other, right? So what's up?"
At that moment, Annabeth couldn't hold it together any longer. She only just managed to keep from crying, but her shoulders shook and her voice caught. "I-I got an… opportunity," Annabeth managed. But she couldn't finish. Shoving the papers into Percy's hands, Annabeth waited, her heart beating quickly, as Percy let the words on the paper sink in.
"Is that a v or a y?"
"Well, there's no such thing as a vear, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth reminded him with no humor in her voice.
That's when the words sank in.
"Annabeth, you can't leave for a year! We have kids. And what about me?"
"Percy, I'm thinking about you and the kids. And the money. We need the money, Percy," Annabeth said sadly, not meeting her husband's cold stare.
Percy shook his head, "No, you can't go, I won't let you! The kids need you here."
"I'm going," Annabeth told him firmly. "I should have done this before we settled down to start a family, but there's nothing to do about it now. I need this. We need this."
Annabeth slipped out of bed, cautious of Percy's sleeping form next to her. She put on a business suit, ran a comb through her hair, left a note on her pillow, and went downstairs. Everything was in place. Annabeth took her suitcase and carry-on from the hall closet and dashed to her car. It was sleek grey, with a silver owl logo. Annabeth checked for her folder of blueprints in the glove compartment, then turned on the ignition. The car's screen lit up, and a map appeared. Not glancing at the map once, Annabeth set the car to "silent" (a special touch she'd added) and drove to the airport. Sorry, Percy, she thought.
Percy woke to his alarm at six the next morning. He rolled out of bed and slumped over to his dresser. He put on his aquarium uniform, then went to say goodbye to Annabeth. But she wasn't there.