A/N: THANK YOU FOR REVIEWS! I never realized how many mistakes I have, it hank you! I'll fix them at some point, and I'll work on formatting... Had no idea it was all screwy. Salsa, sorry for the lack of updates. school is back in session, and they've taken my 4-day weekend I was supposed to get next week, so there might not be any extra chapters. on a good note, however- it's getting easier to write. After chapter 16 or 17 I should be able to post more chapters more often. Now, onto Percy and Annabeth's date!

Disclaimer: My poor Nico baby wouldn't be alone if I was Rick Riordan.

"This is so amazing!" I exclaim from the balcony of the Empire State Building. There's a thin fog, a whisp of white over the sun-streaked sky. Oh gods, I don't think I've ever seen anything so beautiful. The view from the 86th floor is just magical.

Percy smiles. "It's something." We stand there for a few moments, taking in the view. "So, why this building? Out of dozens of taller, more sophisticated places, why this one?"

"The way they built it led the way to modern architecture. The first skyscraper. It stands for the dawn of a new era. The older stuff is amazing, but this... There aren't words."

"I can't begin to understand, but it's an amazing sight." We spend hours in silence, watching the fog grow thicker and the sky darker. At some point, Percy grabs my hand.
"What time do we have to go back?"
"No specific time. You ready to go?"

I shake my head. "I have to get Thalia shampoo."

We stay until the security people kick us out, and then we insist on stopping in the gift shop. I pick up a scaled model of the skyscraper, Percy gets a collection of postcards, and we find something else.

A little gem for Thalia- a T-shirt that says "my parents went to the Empire State Building and all I got was this stupid shirt." Once we get back to the house, we'll take a fabric marker and cross out the 'parents' and write in 'best friend and her boyfriend'.

We stop by a Target on the way back. "I'll be seven minutes." I call, shutting the car door behind me. The store isn't crowded, so I might make it in five. I have to go to the ATM, and when I'm there I realize- this is the perfect opportunity. Remember the escape. Remember your dream. Instead of withdrawing $20, I take out the maximum amount- $200. I'll stuff the rest in my bra or something so Percy doesn't see it. If he finds it there, his questions about the money will be the least if his problems.

I find the shampoo aisle, then Thalia's favorite kind. I take it to the checkout, and make it out of the store with forty-five seconds to spare.

Sliding into the passenger seat, I toss the bag into the backseat. Percy turns the iPod on, and I lose myself in the music. I need to tell Thalia about my escape plan.

Once we make it back to the house, it's late. Percy drops a yawning Annabeth off at my door. "Thanks for today," I whisper. "I had fun." I yawn again.
"I had fun, too. Go to sleep, Wise Girl." Oh, how I want to obey. I'm tired- it's nearly 10:30. But I need to talk to Thalia. I'd better get coffee.

I grab Thalia for a Discussion ten minutes later. And I spill everything about the plan to escape.

"You're leaving?" She asks. I nod. "When?"

Do I have an answer? "I don't know."

Thalia sits, wordless for a few moments. "Why?"

I take breath. "Because I don't want to get married to someone I hardly know. We've been here for three weeks, Thals. And I'm just not ready."

Again, a blank face, then another question. "Will you ever be?"

"I don't know." And I don't. I was always very certain of what I wanted in life, but Percy doesn't fall into the system. He isn't in the same category as Carol, but he isn't in with Thalia, either.

"Are you leaving me behind?" Her voice rises and eyes widen.

"No! I mean, it's your choice. If you want to stay, I can't make you leave." I've already made you move here.

"I'm coming, whether you want me to or not." That's Thalia, loyal and ready to face the unknown if it means she's not alone. "So- when do we start getting all that stuff ready?"

I grin, and we start that second.

Six cups of coffee and three hours later, we have a basic layout plan. Not very detailed, just a rough sketch of things. "Remember, this is flexible. Things could change in an instant, and we need to be ready for that."

We've picked a leaving date- the night before the wedding. As Thalia described it: "it's perfect. Soon enough that you have enough time to get away- no one's going to bother the bride getting her beauty sleep, after all- but far enough away that you have time to prepare."

We've packed backpacks- each with $100 and a change of clothes, though we'll add more- and stuffed them into Thalia's closet.

We aren't sure where to acquire identification of plane tickets; those are a little harder to get on time. We're definitely leaving the country, though we don't know when. They may suspect that, and look for us in planes and boats.
I'm to keep up the ruse with Percy- plan the wedding as if nothing was wrong. Act like I always have. Never let any one suspect a thing.

The getaway car is going to be the hardest. "They've got security around here. Major security. We won't get far on foot." Thalia has a point.

"Do you know where we can get a car? An inconspicuous, cheap car in good condition?"

Thalia smirks. "I think I do. Leave that to me." I'm not sure about this, but she tells me to relax. "I might even be able to pitch in a driver, too."

Driver? A driver? She's got to be shitting me.

And so the brilliant Escape Plan is set into motion.

Thalia
I'm not surprised that Annabeth wants out. I'm just surprised she hasn't tried to leave already. My biggest fear was that she would leave me behind when she did.

Luke mentioned wanting to get out, too. And that's when I know that we're meant to escape together.

Annabeth keeps sucking back coffee like it's the most delicious glass of Sprite, even though she hates the stuff. I can't blame her, though- she looks dead tired. But she need to go to sleep- I'm supposed to meet with Luke in twenty minutes. "Annabeth," I say gently. "You ought to go to sleep. If you keep drinking coffee you'll get sick." Which is true- she can stomach almost anything, but more than three cups of coffee will make her throw up. I speak from experience; late night studying went wrong and I, being the maid, was deemed the person to take care of her. Carol was such a bitch. She only noticed Annabeth was sick when she didn't come to the table, and even then the only comment made was about her. 'I work to make sure we have a family breakfast, and the insolent girl thinks she can skip out.' That was the second time she tried to kick me out. I ended up screaming profanities at her; "Don't ever repeat this." I'd whispered to Matthew and Bobby before calling their mother a self-centered, uncaring turd-monkey bitch. I'd almost gotten sacked, but it was worth it to hear Annabeth's laughter from the top of the stairs.

"Not sleepy." Annabeth mutters into my pillow. I sigh. She's ready to crash.
I pull her up. "Yes you are. Come on, into your room. Let's go, Annabeth." She shuffles her feet across the carpet. I sigh. "Come on, lazy ass." Annabeth falls to the floor and whines. Not this again. Though she might say otherwise, Sleepy Annabeth is also Temper Tantrum Annabeth. "Come-" I grunt, dragging her body across the hallway. "On-" She's fighting me. "Lazy-" She won't let go of her doorframe. "Ass."

"Bu I don' wanna go t' sweep." Annabeth whines. She'll argue until she passes out from exhaustion. And I don't have time for that. Ten minutes.

"Look, Annabeth, you need to go to bed. How about a deal?" I pause, trying to think of something that could persuade her. "You... Go to bed, and tomorrow morning you can have as much coffee as your little heart desires." Which will be zero ounces. She nods and crawls into her bed, falling asleep seconds after her head hits the pillow. I cover her in a blanket, turn off the lights, and run down the stairs to the rec room to meet Luke.