"Leo, shut up!" I yelled, throwing a pillow his way. He insisted on using a new method to wake me up every road game, and this week, in San Diego, Leo shook my shoulders to get me up and talked in Spanish endlessly in a monotonous, high-pitched voice to make sure I couldn't fall back asleep.

Leo dodged my pillow and continued on his rant on who-knows-what until I finally sat up and put on sweatpants.

"Dude, was that really necessary?" I groaned.

Leo shrugged. "I'll say it was. You're about as hard to wake up as a teenage girl on a Saturday morning after a party."

"Shut up."

Leo put his hands up. "It's true, man. Would you rather us turn down the thermostat?"

"For what?"

Jason laughed. He'd been so silent I hadn't even noticed him there. "Nice DJ Snake reference, Percy."

I shrugged. I hadn't even noticed what I'd said, but looking back on it, it was a pretty clever play on words by yours truly.

"What were you even talking about?" I asked Leo.

"A lot of things, actually," he said. "Including what I'm sure you think about Annabeth."

"And those thoughts are…?" I asked, with a twinge of mock anxiety.

"Do you want the PG-13 version or the uncensored version?" Leo asked.

I slapped my forehead. "PG-13, please."

Leo sighed. "That was exactly none of it. We all know your mind isn't that clean, Percy." To be honest, I wasn't that perverted. At least not by twenty-one-year-old guy standards. I was still a virgin despite all the temptation I faced during college. Even though I was a party animal at times, I had the presence of mind to know my first time should be special.

On the other hand, I was a young man. All the stereotypes about guys my age being perverted applied to me, too.

"Shut up. On to more important things, any news from Coach Douglas?"

"We're having breakfast as a team at the diner on 57th," Jason said. "Leave your equipment on the team bus."

"Got it," I told him. "What time?"

"Fifteen minutes or so," Jason said.

"Oh, I forgot to ask you something," Leo piped up. "In all seriousness-" he began, then laughed out loud when he realized he was trying to be serious. He took a minute to calm down before continuing-a minute Jason and I spent banging our heads against the wall repeatedly. "As I was saying, how's it going between Annabeth and you?"

I shrugged. "Well, I guess. We're definitely making progress."

"What do you consider 'progress'?" Jason asked.

"Holding hands and hugging so far."

"She knows you're a big shot, right?" Leo asked, fluffing his hair.

I shook my head. "Not yet."

"Dude, you gotta tell her," Jason said. "Lying's not cool."

"I know. But how am I supposed to tell a girl who practically worships Percy Jackson that the guy who's dating her is the same person?"

Leo raised his hand. "Ooh! You gotta pull an Elvis, bro. That'd be smooth. Walk up, all slick and everything, and say, 'I'm the real Percy Jackson, girl.'"

Jason waved his hand. "Don't listen to him. He's stuck in the eighties."

"Am not!" Leo protested. "The circular saws back then flat-out sucked."

Jason eyed him strangely. "What I was going to say was that you should just give it to her straight," Jason said. "If it makes her hate you, there are a million other girls that you can choose from."

I stared at him. "Don't you understand? I want something long-term, not a short fling. I want Annabeth to be that girl."

"Damn, someone's in loooooove," Leo said in a sing-song voice.

"Damn, someone needs to shut up," Jason scolded him. I gave him a fist bump, chuckling. "As I was going to say before Leo interrupted me again," Jason continued, "go for it, man. Long-term or not, it's better done sooner rather than later."

"I guess so," I said. "Nico told me the same thing."

"See?" Jason told me. "What are you waiting for?" He had a point there. I wasn't waiting for anything.

"I guess you're right. Valdez, we ready to go yet?"

Leo checked his watch. "It's time, brothers. Let's rock!" Of course, Leo had to mimic playing an air guitar to prove his point. Jason and I gave each other a look saying, What are we gonna do with him?, before following Leo out of the room.

"Percy Jackson, how do you feel about your team's victory today?" a reporter asked me, as I was walking off the field, into the locker room. Our team dominated the San Diego Chargers, 34-7. I threw for four touchdowns and no interceptions, and Leo tacked on two field goals. Our defense stood up strong, and the game was practically decided when we led 28-0 by halftime. I was actually benched for the last six minutes so our backup quarterback could get in on some action.

"I feel great," I told her, grinning. "Our team came out there and played a great game against a very good San Diego team. I'm glad we're headed back to New York with a victory."

"You played with a passion we don't see much of in this league any more. Did you have any special inspiration going into the game today?" he asked.

I shrugged. "I guess I wanted to play well for my-my team." Shoot, how did I almost just slip there? Annabeth was watching me on TV right now. I'm glad I didn't say my girlfriend. "Nothing too special. I'm just a passionate guy."

"We've realized, all right," the reporter said, as we approached the entrance to the tunnel leading to the locker room. "How did your team stay prepared and come out strong today despite traveling across the country two days ago?"

"It's just jet lag," I said. "No big deal. It's no big deal. Yeah, it ain't no big deal. We've got the best team in the league, right here right now." I wasn't sure about that, but I had to be confident in order to hope to succeed against opposing players at the highest level. It wasn't high school anymore, where people could halfheartedly win. It took a winner's mentality as well as physical prowess to succeed in the National Football League.

"You sure showed that today, Mr. Jackson. Thanks for your time," he said, as he walked away.

As I walked into the locker room to change into street clothes, I realized something when my eyes glanced over my phone. I hadn't texted Annabeth yet. And it had been five days.

Shoot.

Cursing myself, I turned on my phone and sent a message to Annabeth.

Me: Sorry for the late message Wise Girl. What days/times next week work for you? I'm good for Monday and Wednesday evening, and Tuesday and Thursday all day.

God, I was a horrible person. Annabeth probably thought I didn't care. That wasn't true at all. I did care about her. I cared a lot about her. I was just a forgetful person.

Annabeth texted back quickly last time, and she did the same this time.

Annabeth Chase: It's all right. Tuesday evening and Wednesday evening work for me. What do you have in mind?

Me: How does ice skating for Tuesday evening sound?

Annabeth Chase: That'll be fun. It's been a while since I've skated, though…

Me: It's fine, if I can do it you can. I'll pick you up at six?

Annabeth Chase: Sounds good. I need to be back by eleven but besides that anywhere in that range works.

Me: See you soon, Wise Girl.

Don't worry, they won't win everything. What's the fun in that? I promise they'll have their share of struggles...

Question of the Chapter: Who's more perverted, Percy or Leo?