Sorry for the bad writing, and the bad spelling, but to be honest, right now, I just want to get this story over with and out of my hair. Sounds bad for a writer to say, right? Well, I guess I just want to get on with it and get on to Taken already.

Well, I am going to finish the story, just not with all the precision that I had planned before.

~GoGreen52

Chapter 33- The Plot

-Percy POV-

"Family of Annabeth Chase?"

I looked up to see a doctor looking around the room at the other families who were in the same boat as us.

I stood up, followed by Nico, Leo, Grover, and Juniper. I saw the doctor cock an eyebrow as he walked towards us, and asked, "You are the family of Annabeth Chase?"

Nico looked around at us, and I could see some gears turning in his head. Uh oh.

"Well, not all of us are here, Doc. So, could you get on with the results?"

Juniper giggled, followed by Leo and Grover's chuckles. Nico didn't really understand what the doctor was getting to- he didn't think we were all a part of Annabeth's family.

The doctor's eyes widened and he looked to his clipboard, then back at us. "Annabeth Chase is out of surgery, which went with a few complications, but everything should be fine now, and she is stable. Ms. Chase is out of the woods for now, but still has a bumpy road ahead."

I took a deep breath, taking it all in. What does he mean by complications? Is she awake?

"Is Annabeth awake?" I asked, looking into the doctor's eyes to see if he was really telling the truth.

"She should be waking up soon. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if she woke up now. The complications were minor, Mr. Jackson, and they won't affect her time in the hospital bed."

I nodded, smiling at that. Annabeth should be waking up soon, and that's great. Amazing, really.

"Excuse me, sir, but can you tell me what room she's in?"

I had to see her.

"Oh, of course. She's in room 232, to the left."

I knew where that was, and took off right to it. I was going to see Annabeth again, talk to her again, here her laugh again, and it was going to be an amazing time, doing it too.

I literally ran to the room, taking a good sprint, and paused right when I was outside. The curtains were closed, so I couldn't see in, and my hand was on the door knob.

What if she looks really bad? Could I handle it?

Thoughts like that ran through my head, until I heard the heart monitor, beating a steady beat. That's when I burst in.

It took one glance at her for me to go right to her side.

Annabeth was severely pale, kind of like the traditional ghost, and there were black bags under her eyes, along with several bruises and cuts on her face. I looked down at her arms, seeing even more dark bruises and cuts. The cuts on her arms were obviously deep and they looked like they were made for her to slowly bleed out...

I've seen too many criminal minds and CSI's for me to know that there were put there for her to bleed out. Luke went too far this time.

I held onto her hand, slowly and carefully caressing her face. Tears came to my eyes when she didn't move. She didn't lean into my touch like she used to, she didn't blush and look at me underneath her eyelashes like she used to... And it scared me.

"Annabeth, we all missed you. It killed me to figure out you were alive, and then, almost lose you like that... It was horrible. Thalia misses you... She gave me a kick in the butt when I was thinking the worst. I guess I should've known that you were going to be okay, I mean, you're the strongest woman I know, Wise Girl. You know, just me being a Seaweed brain and all."

I took a deep, shakey breath.

"This is all my fault, you know. You wouldn't have seen Luke again if it weren't for me. You wouldn't have gone through this if it weren't for me. I just wanted to tell you I am sorry. I'm really, really sorry."

I leaned my head next to hers on the pillow, all the while closing my eyes to take everything in. It was a few minutes before I collapsed into the world of dreams.

-Thalia POV-

Nico and Jason pulled away from me, and looked at each other. Both of them had a protective look on their face, obviously having Nico being my boyfriend, but I don't get why Jason had one, too. But to be honest, I sensed jealousy. So I sucked it up, and took a deep breath.

"Nico, meet Jason, my brother."

Nico looked between me and Jason, who's eyes were wide, and started laughing.

Jason looked at me, throwing a confused look, but I shrugged. I honestly had no idea what was going on in Nico's head. Maybe he was drugged? Huh. He could've been.

Nico, who stopped laughing noticing that we didn't join in, looked between the two of us with a wary look. "You weren't serious, were you?"

I shook my head back and forth, angry. "You know, Nico, the day that you finally go to jail for harassment, I'm not paying bail."

A small smile cracked on his face. "Yeah, 'cause you're going to be sitting next to me."

Jason, who was standing next to me, stifled a laugh. I elbowed him in the side.

"That's no way to treat your girlfriend, Nico. Especially after you just accused her of lying to you."

Nico's expression turned thoughtful. "So you were telling the truth then?"

At that, I will admit I did a face palm. Jason started laughing, not being able hold it anymore. He pointed his finger to Nico and I, and said, "You know, you two crack me up. I'm starting to understand how you two can be dating."

Nico smiled. "Thank you. It's nice to see someone inspired by my work."

I closed my eyes, pinching the bridge of my nose. 1, 2, 3, 4… Oh, what the heck, that's never going to work.

"Nico, I think he wasn't exactly inspired, I'm thinking he's more along the lines of amazed."

Nico glared. "Thalia, you're ruining my high!"

My eye twitched. I think I might need to kill him… after I force him to buy me some more food.

Deciding to change the subject, I moved on to Jason. "So, want to go see if Annabeth's awake?"

I made sure I asked Jason, not Nico, and locked arms with him. "After you, sis."

"Let's go bro."

We basically skipped down the hall, but after realizing that we didn't know what room number she was in, we turned around to see Nico, standing there, looking lost. "What room is she in, Nico poo?" I asked, holding back a laugh.

Nico rolled his eyes. "She's in room 232. And try not to run over any patients while you two skip. I really don't feel like paying any hospital bills any time soon."

I smiled, turning around to get to Annabeth's room with Jason.

Yep. Ruined his high.

"Ready Amigo?"

"Ready Amiga."

Yeah. We had a few complaints from that one.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

When we got to the room, I noted that the curtains were closed, so I couldn't see if someone else was in there. But knowing that the others figured out, along with Nico, that she was awake- there's probably someone in there.

I picked up my dignity, and slowly walked in the room, Jason behind me. I knew Nico was making his way down here, but probably making a few phone calls to Ms. Jackson or something along the way. I mean, he was smart enough to know that someone had to.

And he was smart enough that it wasn't going to be me. Or Percy. Or Grover… or Juniper… and probably not Annabeth. So yeah, he had to call her.

I looked around the room, annoyed at the door's creak, but kept my face calm. This is a hospital room- no one needs to see me when I get annoyed here.

Outside, maybe, but not here.

I paused as soon as I saw something that made my heart melt. "Awe!" I whispered, making sure I didn't wake the lovebirds up.

Percy was sitting on a chair next to Annabeth, and they were subconsciously holding hands. Jason looked to where I was, and smiled.

"I've never seen her like this," he whispered. "She looks so content. Even in her sleep."

I smiled at that. She just needs Percy.

I tore my eyes away from the two, and pushed Jason ahead of me. "We need to give them some time to sleep. They must be worn out."

The door closed silently, too, as if it knew that the two in the room needed peace.

I shrugged it off. Must've been a fluke.

-Annabeth POV-

I woke up to someone breathing on my face.

My eyes fluttered open, and I smiled when I saw the face of someone just inches away. Percy.

I looked around the room, trying to figure out where I was. I heard a steady beep, but at the moment it was slowly getting faster, and more intense. I looked at what was causing it, and sighed as soon as I knew what it was.

A heart rate monitor. The familiar smell, and whiteness of the walls made me sigh, yet again. I was in a hospital.

I tried to move my arm, but when it hurt a bit, I knew there was an IV in it. Turning back to Percy, I saw that he was sitting, or rather, leaning, on a chair that was next to my bed.

Flashbacks came back to me, as I tried to remember why I was here… what happened that landed me back in the hospital. I hate this place.

I felt a shifting next to me, and realized Percy was waking up.

"Annabeth…" he mumbled, seeing me awake.

I smiled, tears coming to my eyes. He sat up, holding my hand. "It's really nice to see you awake."

"Percy…" I smiled wider as the name formed on my lips. It felt good to be looking into his eyes... I felt free.

"So… how've you been?" he asked, shifting in his seat a bit.

My face fell, but I quickly covered it up. "Besides sitting in a hospital? Pretty good. But not great. You?"

He chuckled a bit, but his eyes looked pained. "I'm pretty sure you heard from Nico and Grover about that, though."

I smiled, remembering when I saw my friends again… and how they told me how Percy went back to his old ways. "Why did you, though? Why did you go back to being the Anti-Percy when you knew that it hurt your friends?"

Percy took a deep breath and shrugged. "When I thought you were dead, when I was told you were dead… something snapped. I don't know, like the anger that I've been holding since before we met… it just came out."

I slowly nodded, testing out my dizziness, and sighed. I never wanted Percy to suffer… ever. Even after we broke up, I didn't want him to hurt. I honestly don't really understand why he did in the first place.

Because he loves you, idiot.

Shut up.

You know it's true, hun. Don't deny it.

Well, he shouldn't… he deserves way more than I could ever give him.

You know he doesn't-

"Um… Annabeth?"

I snapped back to reality, seeing Percy looking at me with worried eyes. "Sorry," I mumbled.

He laughed, running a hand through his hair. It was all in disarray, like he was up all night running his hands through and pulling on it. Which he probably was.

Shut up.

"Let me guess, you were over-thinking things again."

I blushed. And why does he have to know me so well?

"Of course you were."

Before I could say anything in response, the door slammed open. I heard a loud creak, and flinched a bit.

Thalia, Nico, Grover, Leo, and Grover walked in the room, all of them smiling like they were little kids who just woke up on Christmas morning.

"Percy, come with us. We gotta get to the cafeteria and get some food before it closes," Nico said, gesturing for him to go with them.

My eyebrows furrowed as I looked at Percy in annoyance. "So… you didn't eat yet?"

Percy looked down, and at that point his stomach growled. Taking that as his response, I sighed, and used my mobile arm to punch him in the shoulder. What? The idiot deserved it.

"Go with them- I don't want you passing out from hunger on my conscious."

Percy slowly got up and walked out the door, followed by the boys, acting like a kid whose mom was sending him to his room.

I smiled a bit, closing my eyes and leaning back into my bed. Now for some rest-

"So… Annabeth… about you and Percy…"

My eyes snapped open, and I glared at whoever spoke. Thalia.

"Annie, you know we have to talk about this. Have either of you…"

"Made up? No. We haven't. Probably never will- I mean, seriously, after that dud relationship we had, who would come back to me? Percy is probably just feeling bad for me."

Thalia scoffed. "Of course he isn't. Percy loves you Annabeth. He absolutely adores you. You should've seen him when you were in surgery. He was seriously having a nervous breakdown. He loves you Annabeth. There's no denying that."

I shook my head, rolling my eyes. "Whatever Thalia. He really doesn't like me. I hurt him… I was the one who seriously messed him up. There's no way he loves me after all that."

There was a long pause, and I just stared down at my palms. I'm sure my face was red, the heart monitor going pretty crazy. I'm sure that if I didn't cool down soon, I might start bleeding out of those wounds again.

"Annabeth… just let me ask you one thing," Thalia spoke, sounding almost in a whisper.

"What is it?" I snapped.

You're just being stupidly stubborn.

Shut up.

"Do you love him?"

I looked from my palms to her face. It was soft, and caring. She looked like mom used to, when I was angry, and I didn't want to be angry anymore. A tear ran down my cheek.

I closed my eyes, trying to get my mom out of my mind. "I really don't know, Thals. I guess I still do, but at the same time, I don't want to hurt anymore."

My voice sounded like a little child. "I don't want to hurt anymore Thalia."

Tears started streaming down my face, and I looked back down at my palms, ashamed. Ashamed for feeling that way for someone who obviously doesn't feel that way back. Ashamed for dragging her into this… for crying in front of her about a lost cause.

I heard some shifting, and the door closing with that familiar creak.

She knew I wanted to be alone.

-Percy POV-

I really didn't want to go with the guys.

Annabeth was really the only reason why I decided to go. I'm sticking with the fact that I decided to go, instead of being forced to go. 'Decided'sounds manlier.

When we got the cafeteria, Nico had Leo and Grover go get us some food. They knew what he meant, and I guess I didn't…

Of course I didn't. No one tells me anything anymore.

"So, Percy… about Annabeth…"

I groaned, leaning back into my chair. Kill me now.

"Look, we have to talk about this. I mean, Annabeth is probably wondering when you're going to go ahead and make a move, man. You have to take a step forward. I mean, who knows? There might be a day where you're too late."

I gulped. I knew exactly what he meant.

It almost happened a few hours ago.

"I know, Nico. But what if she doesn't like me? I mean, if I go ahead and ask her, it could ruin any chance of us becoming friends… I just don't want to push right into it, you know?"

Nico nodded. "That's what I thought about Thalia. I was kinda wary about asking her out- but what happened? We're a couple, still going strong. That's what you need to do, take the leap."

I ran a hand through my hair. What if he doesn't really know what he's saying here? "Nico, seriously, you can't just ask a girl out when you don't even know if she likes you."

"Of course you can!"

I sighed, my shoulders slumping. I realize I wasn't going to win this fight.

I saw the others come back to the table, and before Nico could make any more comments, I decided to make them known. "Oh look! Food!"

Nico rolled his eyes, giving me a look saying, this isn't over, Jackson.

I just shrugged.

-Thalia POV-

I was sitting outside the room, my eyes closed, a few tears were slipping, though. But you should give me some credit- if you saw your best friend in a state like that, who wouldn't be crying. Juniper was sitting awkwardly next to me, not exactly knowing what to do.

I don't blame her, though. I would be the exact same way. If a friend of mine was crying for a reason I didn't know, I wouldn't pry… right away, anyways.

I heard some people coming down the hallway, and I heard Juniper get up from her spot next to me just to be replaced by someone else.

I heard the door creak, and creak again.

The voices around me died down, and I opened my eyes.

Nico was the only one in sight, and he was sitting next to me. I laid my head on his shoulder, and cried silently. I knew he was probably shocked. I mean, Thalia Grace, crying for an unknown reason? Yeah, that's a new one.

"Thalia? You okay?"

I looked up at Nico, sniffling a bit. "Does it look like I'm okay?" I asked, quickly wiping my tears from my face. I hated looking weak, but this was Nico. So it was okay.

"Actually no. But seriously, what's wrong?"

That's what I loved about Nico… he could be a complete oaf sometimes, but others- he was the greatest man alive. And I completely loved that about him.

"I saw Annabeth break down… she kept on repeating that she didn't want to hurt anymore, and it reminded me about my mom… she always said that before…" my voice choked. Only Annabeth knew what happened about my mom. About my dad… she was the only one who knew.

Hell, she was the only one who knew most things about me. Even Nico, who was my boyfriend, didn't know half about me. Which is pretty bad, if you ask me.

"Before what?"

I took a deep breath. No need to hold back now…

"Before she committed suicide, Nico. My mom jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge, after my dad left, and after Jason went missing. I was 18, my last year in high school. I didn't need to go into the foster system, thank God, but I did have to deal with the fact that my mother killed herself. That I easily could've stopped her- but I didn't."

Nico pulled me in for a hug, and I cried silently into his shirt. He was rubbing my back, trying to console me.
I pulled back, and looked up at him. "But I know now, that Annabeth needs to have time. She just misses Percy, and he loves her, doesn't he?"

Nico smiled, and nodded. "Well, she's not like my mom. She's not a lost cause. She loves someone who loves her back, but she thinks it's one-sided."

I looked back up at Nico, who had a knowing look on his face. "And what are you going to do about that?"

I smirked. "You know me too well. I may have to kill you, you know. But I need you for my idea, so it's going to have to wait."

"And what do you need me for, exactly?"

I smiled, my eyes twinkling. "Plan Percabeth."

Happy Easter, everyone! Hope you liked it!

~GoGreen52