Day 12 – January 5th
Percy
I woke to the whining of Mrs. O'Leary and sighed. Annabeth pulled me closer to her and I shrugged down at the dog. Mrs. O'Leary whined at me again and turned her head to the side, giving me her puppy dog eyes. I caved and tried to remove Annabeth's arms from across my chest. She stirred but settled quickly as I made my escape to let the dog out.
As I opened the door I was met with a wall of snow and suddenly I panicked. I ran to the front door, the small beast bounding behind me and was greeted by another small wall.
"Crap!"
Mrs. O'Leary ran past me and dove into the pile, biting and barking as she played.
As my eyes adjusted to the brightness before me, my heart skipped a beat. There was a lot of snow on the ground and the sky above me threatened to unleash more upon us. "Shit, shit, shit! This is not good!"
"Percy, close the door. It's freezing in here now!"
I turned to see Annabeth shivering in the bedroom doorway, a blanket wrapped around her as she tried to steady herself and wake all the way.
"What's wrong?"
"Hmm?"
"There's something wrong," she whispered, moving closer to me. "So tell me, what's wrong?"
My arm flew out to my side as I moved out of the way and showed her the pile of snow in front of the door.
"I have a ton to do today and to spoil some of your gift, I have a limo that has to get down here and get you to the ball and there is absolutely no way it is going to make it with all this snow!"
She lazily moseyed over to me, wrapping the blanket around me. There was a kiss on my cheek followed by her pulling my face back toward hers.
"Hey, relax. It's just the drifts," she said quietly. "Look," she continued, nodding back toward the front yard of the cabin.
I slowly turned to find our little mutt of a dog, chasing her tail in about half a foot of snow and I sighed in relief. I was beginning to stress and I immediately pulled my phone out to text Thalia.
Hey, how much snow did you guys get last night? Will you guys be able to make it out ok?
An arm snaked around my waist and I found myself leaning into her as I waited for Thalia to return my text. The phone buzzed in my hand and I kissed her cheek, leaving her to watch Mrs. O'Leary as she snapped at small flurries.
Calm down Seaweed Brain. The roads are fine and TWC swears there is no snow in the forecast until tomorrow. So breathe, feed her breakfast and we will be over with lunch and will take over. Just enjoy your morning.
A heavy sigh left me as I left a thumbs up for Thalia and then shoved the phone back in my pocket. "Come on babe, get a movie ready while I get breakfast going."
She smiled at me and my heart fluttered. She had no clue what was coming tonight and I prayed she wouldn't run away screaming.
Annabeth
"Get up sleepy head! We have a lot of work ahead of us."
"Ugh, Thals, tone it down."
"I don't have time. I have a baby that is going to start screaming to be fed here shortly, as well as you to get ready for the ball. The limo will be here at four-thirty and its one forty-five."
I heard the woman move around as I pulled the throw pillow over my face. The smell of whatever food that she brought with her made my stomach churn.
"Get up," Thalia growled, yanking the pillow from my face and dropping a Taco Bell box on my chest. "It's just a cravings box. Taco, burrito and some chalupa thing with those cinnamon twists you like. Now eat!"
The smell hit my nose and my stomach lurched once more, sending me flying to the bathroom. I managed to emerge several minutes, mouth rinsed, stomach calm, vision clear again as Thalia glared at me.
"What?" I shrugged, moving toward her.
"Soooo . . ." Thalia started in on me, "does he know?"
"Does who know what?" I dropped on the sofa next to Thalia and picked up my box, my stomach turning and rumbling in hunger at the same time.
"Oh God, really Annabeth? You're going to play that card?"
Truth was, I knew exactly what she was talking about, but talking with anyone about it made it all too real. The fight I had with Helen over this exact topic was why I was barely hanging on. Had things with my awful stepmother gone differently, had the yelling been about anything else, I think I would be in a slightly better place mentally.
Thalia rolled her eyes and released a huff of air, blowing her bangs out of her face.
"Whatever Chase. Just eat so we can get started. Silena and Piper should be here shortly."
I sighed and did as I was told, thankful that she knew me almost as well as Percy which caused her to quickly drop the subject.
I tried to shovel in what I could of the food but between the anticipation of tonight and Jasper's constant screams, I only managed to get in the taco and cinnamon twists before I felt like my stomach was going to betray me again.
Silena and Piper showed up at a quarter to three and immediately started in on Thalia.
"You have been here for an hour already and you have done what?"
"Hey, you don't have a screaming three-week-old on your hands and a person who has absolutely no desire to do anything to help me at this given moment!"
Silena backed away from Thalia and was about to start in when Jasper started screaming once more.
"And this, my friends, is why nothing has happened," I replied pulling Silena and Piper all of the way into the cabin. "And what the hell took the two of you so long to get here? Weren't you supposed to be here at two?" I questioned the girls only to have Silena yank my left hand to her face.
"What the hell Chase? When did this happen and why weren't we informed?"
"Owe, that's my hand –"
"– and you have another one. Now spill it!"
"He asked me on New Year's Eve. I haven't said anything because I wanted to wait until we had a chance to pick a date. Things have been insane this week with all of these gifts, the house, the moving, and then the ball tonight, which we should probably get ready for," I replied, hoping to ease off the topic. We had agreed not to mention anything until things settled and while I knew I could trust Thalia to keep her mouth shut after she found out, Silena . . . Silena was a whole other story.
Silena rolled her eyes at me and then smacked Piper in the arm, "Can you believe she didn't tell anyone?"
"I knew," Piper replied timidly as she then ducked behind me.
"What?"
"I knew. I saw the ring the other day at work. I figured if she wanted to say something she would have, so I didn't press the issue. Not everyone is you Silena. Not all of us like to post every last bit of our lives to the world."
Piper was on tiptoe, speaking over my shoulder and I couldn't help but smile as she said exactly how I felt about the whole situation.
Silena glared as us and then turned on Thalia. "Let me guess, you knew too?"
Thalia quickly shook her head no but Silena could see through the lie. She instead popped Thalia in the arm and moved to the bedroom.
"Y'all suck," she whined as she crossed the threshold. "Come on losers, we have about an hour and half before the limo gets here. Now move it!"
A sigh escaped me as Piper moved next to Thalia and whispered to Jasper. "She's mad at me, isn't she?"
"I'm not mad, Chase! Just a little disappointed you didn't tell your best friend you were engaged. Now move it!"
I could hear the sadness in her voice but I wasn't going to let her get to me. This was my thing. Mine and Percy's and everyone else deserved to know when we were ready, not when they felt they should know.
"Chase," Silena screamed at me again, causing Jasper to go off on another round of screams which then sent me marching off to the bedroom in an annoyed huff. 'This night better be worth it.'
Percy
"How many more of these dang things do we have to unload?" Luke whined, moving one of the large heaters to its new home for the night.
"Just two more of these, and then there are eight more in the truck over there. After that, we are done."
I looked down at my watch, it was two-thirty and I had just made it back with Annabeth's father, stepmother and brothers before the next round of snow hit.
"How on earth did you get this place decorated so fast?" Jason questioned as he struggled with one of the remaining heaters.
"Grover and Juniper were surprisingly helpful in getting this place prettied up." I looked around at the aqua tulle lined chairs with snowflakes and large white tulips on the aisle ends and couldn't help but smile. "Juniper was able to talk my mother, Paul, dad and Amphitrite into coming in and helping as well. Everything you see out here is because Juniper got it all together. Apparently she can be pretty persuasive when she wants to be."
"No kidding," Jason replied as he tried to take in the enormity of the task Juniper took on.
"So, how was the drive with the evil step-witch to be?" Luke questioned, quickly changing the subject.
"Silent. No, wait, it was silent up until it really started snowing and then she lost her freaking mind. It took Matthew chewing her out to get her to knock it off. I really wish I knew what the hell her problem was."
"Simple, she's jealous of your girlfriend."
"Umm . . . I think you are little off there, Castellan."
Luke and Jason both stopped on the spot, looking at me like I had two heads.
"Man, Helen is so jealous of Annabeth. Everything Frederick did was for Annabeth and to keep some sort of contact with her. I honestly believe that woman resents her for everything."
"You think so?" I questioned, cocking my head to the side and thinking about what Luke just said. "Like what?"
"Most definitely. And it was just everything growing up. Annabeth's mother moved her out to California and then Frederick moved them out there so he could be closer to Annabeth. Then he moved them back here when Athena moved the pair back. He didn't ask what Helen thought, he just did it because he had to keep a relationship with his daughter. I think all of that was enough to drive a wedge in there. I don't know . . . maybe I am crazy, but I really think that everything he did for Annabeth drove her nuts. Just make sure she keeps her mouth shut tonight. She could absolutely ruin everything you have planned."
I tried to ignore Luke's words and Jason's grunts of agreement but I knew deep down he was right. I didn't want to be walking on eggshells all evening and yet I knew that was what was going to happen.
"No, just get there! I will call to let them know you are going to be a little late."
"At least twenty minutes late, Mr. Jackson."
"I will let them know you will be a little late. Last I heard, the snow wasn't that bad on the island."
"I will do my best but please let them know I could be up to twenty minutes."
I let out a sigh and rolled my eyes. "Whatever you say Dave. Just get them here safely."
"Will do Mr. Jackson."
Shoving the phone in my pocket, I took a minute to look around the room. Everything for tonight was neatly in its place. I had our change of clothes for tonight in nice neat piles, and coming from me that was a plus. Normally I just dropped things and came back to them later or when I was out of clothes to wear. Which is where Annabeth came in. She was in charge of making sure I looked like a normal human being every morning and not the walking mess that ensued when I was alone.
The impending storm was making me nervous as I fiddled with the blinds of the window and looked out at the flurry of flakes that were falling all around the hotel. 'Shit, this isn't good!'
A knock on the door startled me and I quickly made my way to the door to see Annabeth's father through the peep hole.
I opened the door to his smile and I knew that something was wrong. It was the same smile Annabeth wore when she was trying to hide things from me. 'What is it with this family and hiding things from everyone here lately?'
"How you doing, son?"
"Trying not to throw up," I replied honestly, stepping aside and letting him in the room. "Just praying this goes off without a hitch."
"I've talked with Helen. She swears to be on her best behavior this evening. I have begged her not to ruin this for Annabeth. The boys have begged her and she seems to cave to them more than me. I think we are in the clear."
"That is a small load off my shoulders," I replied sadly, moving back to the window and watching the snow fall.
"Everything will go as planned."
"How do you know that?"
"I just know it will. You have put your complete heart and soul into tonight and my daughter. I don't think that the powers that be will ruin that now."
"You haven't had the week we have had," I mumbled under my breath, moving back to the window only to see the snow coming down harder. "I am just scared that everything is going to go wrong; that she will figure out what is going on and run away because it's not how she envisioned things and dear god, I should have included her in this. I shouldn't have left her out of anything! I should have just given her the engagement ring and then sat down with her and discussed a date that was important to us, not just gone with the twelfth day of Christmas. I should have gone house hunting with her and not relied on our friends and family and she most definitely should have been there when I signed the paper work for the house and got the keys –"
"– you're worried over nothing Percy. If she didn't want to be with you in any way, shape or form, she would have bolted ages ago. That girl loves you more than you will ever understand and hold up a second! You bought a house?"
"Why does everyone act like I am incapable of buying a house? Yes, I bought us, as in Annabeth and myself, a damn house!"
Frederick threw his arms up in the air, "Easy son. You just caught me off guard with that one is all. I had no clue that a house was on your list of gifts."
"Honestly, it wasn't until a couple of months ago. I didn't think it would be doable. But I found a really good deal and Annabeth doesn't know yet, but it is actually one of the first housing developments that Athena . . ." the words hitched in my throat and I sucked in a deep breath ". . . that Athena designed. I wanted her to always have a part of her mother . . ." I trailed off, watching as the snow fluttered past the window.
An arm draped across my shoulders and Frederick spoke quietly. "You know, you are the best thing that has ever happened to her. She needs you more than you will ever know."
"No chance in me getting you to tell me what happened while she came to visit you is there?"
"I am almost positive she will confide in you tonight. Just get through the wedding first. And I came to let you know the staff put the tent back up. The heaters couldn't keep up with the amount of snow."
"And you were saying that the powers that be wouldn't mess with our day . . ."
Annabeth
"Head up, you're going to mess up your curls!"
"Ugh," I groaned, lifting my head off the sofa cushion, wishing I could just nap for a few minutes. "They are natural Silena! Me laying on them isn't going to ruin them!"
"Shut it! I know what I am talking about," Silena whined, primping my hair once more.
"Where is that damn limo?" Piper asked, pacing by the front door. "We are going to be late."
"Percy text about thirty minutes ago. It should be here any minute. At least I hope it should be. The fact that it is this late really kind of worries me about the road conditions."
I couldn't sit anymore, so I pushed myself away from Silena's ever busy hands and marched up to Thalia, taking Jasper from her and immediately relaxed as the baby snuggled into my chest.
"Why is it that Percy is keeping in contact with you more than he is with me, you know his fiancé?"
"Present, Annabeth, present. You can't whine, cry, or complain about any of it. The snow just happened to throw a small wrench in the plans."
I wasn't actually listening to Thalia, but instead turned to look at my friends, all nervous in a strange sort of way and all wearing dresses very similar in color and design.
"Did you three shop together or something?"
"What?" Piper questioned, getting smacked by Thalia as she knocked her hand away from her mouth, stopping her from chewing on her nails again.
"You three are hiding something from –"
"– limo's here! Let's go," Silena cried, jumping up and grabbing all of our coats off the back of the sofa.
"You guys aren't telling me something. I know it!"
"Just give Thalia back her baby and put this on," Piper replied, draping the faux fur jacket over my shoulders.
The limo ride seemed to drag on forever. Now that I had been out in the cold and fought for five minutes to get my dress through the door without ripping any of the tulle, I was wide awake. It also helped that Jasper was screaming his lungs off, angry that he was forced back into his car seat.
We pulled up in front of Gurney's, one of the most expensive spa resorts on Montauk and I about died. Limos were pulling in and out of the drive, little girls were crawling out of their vehicles with their father's in tow, dressed like tiny little princesses, young couples, older couples, all dressed to the nines were also trying to race into the resort, all in an attempt to escape the snow.
"You ready?" Piper asked, a smiled plastered across her face as she moved closer to the door.
I could tell how excited she was simply by her demeanor. She bounced on the balls of her feet, hands clasped in front of her as she took in the scene before us.
I stuck a hand out and allowed her to help me out of the vehicle and a massive smile spread across my face as the five of us made our way to the door.
Had I been paying attention, I would have noticed Katie running around like a maniac snapping pictures left and right but the excitement of the ball had taken over as I took in every detail. We moved into the massive open lobby, following the flow of mini princesses and couples and I was stopped by Thalia.
"This way first, Blondie. We have to meet the guys and get photos and all of that fun stuff," she practically whispered to me and suddenly I felt like something was possibly wrong.
"Wait, what on earth is going on? They do pictures at the ball and carriage rides, which I am sure will be cancelled with all the snow, but you guys aren't telling me something!"
"Calm down, love. There is nothing going on," Silena laughed. "Percy just has some things set up before we enter the ball. First thing, pictures. The group of us and just you and him and what not. So follow me," she finished, linking her arm in mine and leading me over to the elevator.
We piled into the car, Thalia and Jasper taking up the space up front, leaving me crammed in the back and suddenly hot flashing, wishing I could get off the massive hunk of metal before I threw up all over the back of my friends.
The elevator came to a violent stop and I turned to face the wall for a moment, trying desperately to stop the churning in my gut. Gentle hands touched my waist and carefully pulled me out of the car.
"Come on Owlet, I've got ya."
I turned on my heels quickly, a little too quickly, but I managed to stay in just enough control as I threw myself into my father's chest.
"What are you doing here?"
"I am part of your present," he replied quietly. I felt him doing something with his other arm but I shrugged it off as I hugged him tighter.
"Is she with you?"
He sighed heavily, "You know she is."
"Does she have to be? I mean, can't you just do something for me for once and not let her ruin the moment, or make me feel absolutely horrible for even being alive?"
"I promise you, there will be no issues tonight. There shouldn't be any from here on out."
"You can't make that promise, Dad. You know she hates me," I cried into his shoulder, wishing the tears away.
"She doesn't hate you, Annabeth."
"Please Dad, she made her feelings about me known since you two met! She never bothered to get to know me. She was all hung up on the fact that I existed and that I kept you tied to mom. She really let me know what she thought of me and Percy just a few short weeks ago, or did you forget that already? I mean, because how could you not have heard that fight."
"Owlet, you need to calm down. Today is your day to be treated like a princess," he whispered, pushing a stray curl back into its place. "You don't need to be stressed out right now."
I gave him a cross look, crossing my arms over my chest and standing my ground, but from what I wasn't exactly sure.
"Yes, I heard that part of the fight as well. Now, come on. We have pictures out on the top deck. Now follow me and wipe that angry look off your face. Percy has set up something wonderful for you."
I closed my eyes and sucked in a deep breath and held it.
"That's my girl. Now, keep your eyes closed. I want to see your face when you see what that boy has done for you."
"Wait, I thought we were doing pictures?"
"In a little bit. Your first gift for tonight was me. Now, eyes closed and hang on. We're moving."
A groan escaped me as I did as I was told, stepping timidly as people bustled around us. "Good lord Dad, do you think you could walk any faster," I cried out, trying not to trip over my dress or anyone around me.
"Oh, you're fine. Now stop right here . . . and keep your eyes closed!"
I stood absolutely still as I listened to the movement and whispers around me. "She's beautiful Momma," I heard a little girl whisper as they tried to pass by my giant skirt.
A small smile graced my lips as I waited impatiently for my father to tell me to open my eyes.
"Okay, Owlet, time to open your eyes."
My eyes immediately popped open and I was bum rushed by an amazing sight. Before me was what I assumed was the top deck, draped with large clear tents and looking out over the bay. There were about twenty tables with soft aqua table cloths and silver sequin runners placed precisely in the middle. Vases in various sizes all holding stark white tulips that were spritzed with that same soft aqua glitter were wrapped in baby's breath with tiny silver snowflakes glittering despite the lack of sunlight.
"What on . . ." I trailed off, trying to take in the entire sight.
My heart was about to beat out of my chest, Percy had been up to more than I ever thought possible and my eyes wandered down the middle of the aisle and there was Percy, at the end of the soft aqua carpet that led to a makeshift altar. My hands flew to my mouth as I realized what was going on and my father had to grab me by the elbow to keep me from flying down the aisle at my fiancé.
Percy
My arms flailed at my sides, a terrible nervous tick I developed from my swim days. My neck cracked and I panicked as Thalia, Silena and Piper entered the tent without Annabeth. The time was almost here and I was beyond worried as to what her choice would be. I looked around the deck, a smiled at the group of friends and family that gathered and then the smile dropped as my eyes landed on Helen. Lord, that woman was going to be the death of me but as of now, Frederick was right and she was on her best behavior.
"She doesn't have a clue what is going on," Thalia let out in an exhausted sigh as she tried to calm Jasper on her chest. "I love the girl but it kills me that she hasn't figured this out, especially after you proposed to her the other day." She began to smack at me, one hand landing where ever it could, "What the hell were you thinking?"
"Owe, owe, Thalia! Knock it off," I cried out, trying to dodge her hits. "I was thinking that she needed that little peace of mind. Have you seen her lately? She is a total mess and I just needed to give her that okay."
Thalia softened and backed away from me. "I am praying this goes as planned Kelp Head. Now get ready. Her father should be bringing her to the door any minute."
The doors opened once again and there was Annabeth, standing next to her father, looking absolutely stunning. Her dress hugged her curves perfectly and my jaw dropped to the floor. She had never looked more beautiful. I couldn't take my eyes off her as she took in everything before her. She smiled and my heart jumped as her hand went to her mouth.
In a moment everything changed as she looked up at me, love in her eyes and then suddenly she was making a beeline for me, but Frederick grabbed her by the elbow, slowing her down and the look in her eyes was something else. Something I couldn't quite place at the moment.
The wedding march began to play and she slowed down, tears pooling in the corners of her eyes as she gripped her father's arm tighter. On the plus side, she wasn't going to kill me, at least not yet. She still wasn't at the alter yet, so there was still time for her to change her mind.
The pair stopped in front of me and somewhere the music stopped as the minister stepped forward.
"Who gives this woman to this man?"
Frederick smiled at Annabeth and then at me and answered, "I do."
A cough echoed in the crowd and he changed his tone, "We do; her brothers, step-mother and I give her to this man."
At that point, everything happened in a blur. She took my hand and I had to force myself to pay attention to the minister as he spoke to us. I couldn't pull my eyes from hers, the stormy gray they had been for the last couple of weeks had faded and they now shone like silver orbs. The tears that swirled around almost made them glitter in the light which pulled me in even more.
There was a squeeze of my hand and Annabeth nodded her head toward the minister and I turned mine to see him smiling at me waiting for something.
"Mr. Jackson?"
"Yes?"
The crowd behind me giggled lightly and the minister spoke once more. He spit out the vows waiting for me to repeat after him and I did so, making sure to not take my eyes off my bride as she beamed with each line. Everything moved in a blur as Thalia then stepped forward with a sleeping Jasper and a small white pillow tied to him that held our wedding bands.
"Percy, if you would."
I carefully untied the dainty white gold band and then took her left hand in mine. My heart suddenly felt like it was going to beat out of my chest and I was surprised that no one else could hear it, let alone see its erratic movements.
"Percy Jackson, repeat after me." I simply nodded, not tearing my eyes from hers as he started again. "Annabeth Chase, with this ring, I thee wed."
"Annabeth Chase, my Wise Girl, my love and best friend, with this ring," I whispered, slowing pushing the ring down her finger, "I thee wed."
Her right hand went to her mouth and for a moment I thought I had lost her. I thought she was about to bolt and all of my nightmares were going to come true. Instead she hiccupped and tried to keep her sobs of joy at bay and I breathed an internal sigh of relief.
It was now her turn as she quickly pulled the ring from the safety of the pillow and grabbed my left hand, holding the ring steady over my ring finger. The minster glanced over at her and she smiled through the tears that broke free.
"Come on, we don't have all day," she pleaded with the man of God and I couldn't help but laugh.
"Annabeth, repeat after me, Percy Jackson, with this ring, I thee wed."
"Perseus Jackson, my Seaweed Brain, my better half, my everything, with this ring, I thee wed."
I pulled her toward me, about to kiss the woman but the minister quickly stepped between us.
"Slow down a second son. I have to make it official!"
I smiled, and shrugged my shoulders slightly, embarrassment taking over for just a brief moment, but no one else seemed to notice. They knew how long we had been waiting, and how much I wanted to make her my wife. They knew that this was our moment and I knew they knew that as I looked out at the small group, tears in everyone's eyes, including the wicked step-mother Helen. I turned back to the minister as he placed his hands on his bible, smiling like a mad man.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I pronounce, Mr. and Mrs. Percy Jackson. You may now, kiss the bride."
I didn't waste any time and pulled her to me, cupping her face in my hands and resting my forehead against hers.
"I love you more than you will ever know," I whispered as she smiled at me.
"Get on with it!"
"Kiss her already!"
The voices of my friends rang out around us but I could only concentrate on her and her lips on mine as we made it official. Cheers rang out around us as she returned the kiss.
Annabeth
He pushed me away from him, turning me out and then moments later, pulling me back in. I couldn't help but giggle as we spun around the floor with the rest of the attendants of the Cinderella Ball.
The song faded out and a slow song began as he pulled me close, one arm wrapped around my waist and his right hand pushing the stray curls back behind my ear.
"How did you manage this?"
"What?"
"All of this?" I questioned him, flinging an arm out, encompassing the entire ball room. "I mean every last bit of today? How long have you been saving and planning for all of this?"
"Honestly, I have been saving since we started dating. I always knew you would be my wife one day and I always wanted to give you something special. This idea however hit me last year, just after we realized the ball was sold out once again and I couldn't take you. I knew this was what I wanted to do."
I looked around the room, our friends dancing, laughing and celebrating everything there was to celebrate and a genuine smile crossed my lips for the first time in what felt like weeks.
My moment was quickly ruined and my smile fell just as fast as it arrived when I realized that Helen was standing just behind Percy.
He sensed my uneasiness and turned his head in the direction I was glaring.
"Do you want me to stay? She really looks like she wants to talk. I won't leave you if you don't want me to."
My head was screaming at him to stay, but I needed to be a big girl and suck this up and tell her where to shove it after all this time. I placed my hands on his shoulders, steadying him. He looked like a wild animal ready to tear into its prey. It was quiet endearing but I needed to handle this. If I needed him, I would tag him in.
"I have this, Perce. Just let me . . ." I paused, trying to find the right wording for what was about to happen. A sigh escaped me and I kissed him on the cheek. "Just stay close."
He nodded and moved a few feet away as I took a few timid steps toward my step-mother. I stopped a few feet short of her and crossed my arms over my chest.
"Annabeth, I need to say some things to you."
I shifted, trying to calm myself, afraid that a screaming match might ensue. This was definitely not the place for that to happen.
"While your actions today don't forgive your previous ones, I do want to say that I am sorry and that I hope you forgive me."
"Why on God's green earth would I forgive you?" I almost clasped a hand over my mouth at that comment but she deserved what was coming to her.
She was taken aback and shook her head. "Your father almost left me."
"Good. He should have done that years ago."
"Are you seriously going to wish divorce upon us?"
"What do you want, Helen? Today is my day. It is not the time for you to start throwing all kinds of trivial family shit in my face. Do you get that? Of course, you don't! You were the one that broke up my family! You are the one that seduced dad, and while he and mom were having issues, you were the one that pressed the matter and drove the final wedge between my parents. Don't try to deny that either. Dad told me the whole story when I was ten."
The look of shock on her face was priceless, but the release I was suddenly getting from the years of pent up anger was beyond words.
"You tortured me; hated me for everything Dad did for me. I am his child, and I come first, just as he puts the boys before you. Don't know if you actually notice that or not? I doubt it because you are so self-absorbed to notice anything other than what doesn't go according to your plans which is why you two fight like cats and dogs."
"Listen here –"
"– no ma'am. I am done taking orders from you. Dad deserves so much better than you have ever given him. I deserved better and I got better in Percy. I will not let you ruin this night for me. That man over there," I nodded my head in his direction and gave him a weak smile. He quickly changed position and started toward me but I shook my head and he relaxed back into his previous stance. "He knows how to treat a woman, and not just me, but any woman he meets. We may have done things out of order, but I don't know what you are basing that on since you were pregnant with the twins before Mom and Dad even had the divorce papers signed."
"I simply wanted better for you. I always have."
"You have a very odd way of showing it, Helen. I can forgive you, but that does not mean that I will ever forget the things you have done and said to me. I appreciate the effort, or lack thereof, seeing as how you tried to make my night about you. It's a step in the right direction I think, but we are going to leave it at that."
Tears pooled in the corner of her eyes and I wanted to feel bad for her, but in that moment, I just couldn't. My soul, however, felt free and relaxed for the first time in years.
"Now, if you don't mind, I am going to enjoy the rest of this evening with my family, friends, and most importantly, my husband. Good evening, Helen."
I turned back toward Percy and almost skipped back to him when a voice rang out behind me.
"I am sorry, Annabeth. I am truly sorry."
I stopped dead in my tracks. A heavy sigh left my body. I refused to acknowledge her. I wasn't going to play into her games anymore and finished making my way to Percy.
He held his arms out to me and I decided it was time to tell him everything. If he could do all of this for me, I could do this one thing for him. As I reached him, his arms immediately wrapped around me, covering me in a warm cocoon. I pulled him toward me even more and kissed him lightly on the lips.
Another slow song started and he slowly began to guide me around the room. "Did everything go okay? I mean you didn't come back in tears, so that has to be a good thing right?"
A smile washed over me. "She tried to apologize. Years of torment and she thinks that I am just going to forgive her in one fell swoop and everything will be okay. I have learned that it is okay to forgive her but I don't have to forget and most certainly don't have to act like everything is okay."
He whispered in my ear, spinning us around the floor, "How long have I been telling you this?"
"I know," I whispered back, "sometimes I just need to figure things out in my own time."
We spun around the floor, eyes only locked on each other. In that moment there was no one but us anyway. It was perfect. We were perfect. That was when I leaned in, kissing him lightly on the lips before spilling my guts to him. I prayed he could hear me over the music and in that instant I knew he could as I felt him go limp for a moment, only to tense before he spoke.
"Are you serious?"
Worry seeped into my veins and I nodded slowly, only to be pulled back into his embrace. "I love you more than you will ever know, Wise Girl!"
A sigh of relief escaped me, followed by tears of joy. Our lives were complete.
AN
Sorry. Sorry, sorry, sorry! I know it's been like a year. Again, sorry! Between work, family and just total writer's block, I didn't have it in me to even finish this. You can thank my beta, the love MrsPercyJacson3 for getting my butt in gear and making me finish this and for editing!
Enjoy, and there will be a special epilogue here soon. This one I can guarantee because it is finished. Miss Beta just needs to do her thang!
Hope you enjoy!