Sorry I didn't upload for so long. I've been super busy with homework and school stuff.

Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson or anything else you recognize.

Chapter 4 – Galentine's Day

~oOo~

Wednesday, February 14th

"Shit!"

I squint my eyes but imminently shut them again when I'm met with light. I groan as I turn over in my bed, not ready to wake up.

"Frick! Frickity-frick-frick."

I open one eye to see a Piper quickly scrambling to do something on her side of the room. Groaning again, I shift so I'm sitting up.

"Piper," I mumble, "What time is it?"

Piper spins around, her eyes wide with shock. "Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry, Annabeth. I didn't mean to wake you." I just blink at her. She stares at me for a minute before jumping slightly. "Oh sorry. You wanted the time... right. It's 7:38."

I continue my half-awake-half-asleep squint for a while longer. When it finally registers I groan for the 3rd time that short morning. "Why?" I whine, "Why is it so early? Today is my late day."

Piper flinches slightly, probably knowing I'd be like this. "Sorry, again. I guess I didn't really fall asleep last night."

"Again?"

"Again," She confirms, "But the good news is I finished planning our Galentine's Day." She said a bit too enthusiastic for me.

A sarcastic, "Great," was my response. I've never really cared for those kinds of holidays. I had a few boyfriends throughout high school and earlier in college, but nothing special. Plus, in my opinion, Valentine's Day was just a day for boyfriends to spend tons of money on chocolates and huge stuffed bears for their girlfriends. There was not point. And Galentine's Day? Well, Piper, sometime during Valentine's Day, would make these plans for us girls to do some cliché activity together. Not really my scene. I only did it since Piper insisted that it was "tradition".

"Oh shush! I actually made good plans this year." Cue scoff. "But since you all appreciate my ideas oh-so-much, it's going to be a surprise."

"What?"

Note: Something worse than knowing what Piper has in plan in not knowing.

"Yes, but just go back to sleep, little one." Piper said as she patted my head. "Just be ready by 6 tonight for the plans."

"Okay..."

~oOo~

"Piper, come on! We are all ready." I heard Thalia call up the stairs to Piper. I was currently sitting on the edge of a chair crossed legged, reading a book – Harry Potter if you must know. I looked up at Reyna who just shrugged and rolled her eyes.

"One minute!" Came the response. "I'm just about done... and there!" Piper came rushing out of our room putting something into her bag.

Piper wearing a white, short sleeve shirt with a big, read heart in the middle. There was white text in the heart that read 'Love Always Wins'. She was also wearing ripped jeans with her signature red converse. Her choppy, brown hair was down with its usual feather and braid. Thalia was wearing her normal ripped black jeans, Green Day shirt, black jacket, and black combat boots. She had in her few ear piercings. Her hair was like how it always is - right above her shoulders with a few blue streaks to match her eyes. Reyna was wearing her black, Adidas joggers with school sweatshirt. Her long, black hair was pulled into a loose braid.

I was wearing a soft yellow sweater that was too big for me – it kept sliding down my shoulder. I also had on black leggings with my signature white converse. I had on a grey scarf that was lazily put on when I was cold earlier. My hair was in a messy bun that rested on the top of my head. My big, nerdy glasses rested on my nose. I was too tired to put in my contacts that I normally wear. Piper had told me, I'm not sure about the other girls, to wear something comfy yet cute. "You need to look good, but in a 'lazy, I don't care' way." Her words, not mine.

Piper looked at me and sighed, "What is your nose buried into this time, Miss Brainiac?"

I rolled my eyes at her. "Harry Potter and my nose wasn't buried," I mumbled.

"Keep telling yourself that. Anyways, are you ladies ready for tonight?" Piper asked excitedly.

Sarcastic, "Yeah"s and "So much"s came in reply.

"Come on, girls! Where's your enthusiasm?" Piper tried again.

"Apparently with you," Reyna grumbled. I snickered when I hear it.

"Hmph. Well, come on anyway. It's going to be a surprise and starts at 7." Piper said turning her back to us, putting on her winter coat. She grabbed her keys and walked out of the front door. The rest of us made eye contact and followed Piper out the door.

"I call shot gun!" Thalia quickly claimed, rushing to the passenger's front car door while putting on her leather jacket.

I laughed quietly and shook my head. Piper was already in her car and had it started. Reyna opened the back door and slid over to the driver's side. I followed in after her and closed the door behind me. Piper put the car into drive and started on down the road. Thalia soon turned on the music. A Maroon 5 song, Sugar I think, was playing. Thalia crinkled her nose but didn't change the station.

About 20 minutes later, Piper announced that we were almost there. I looked around and noticed we were down town. In fact, we were on Broadway. I looked to my left and saw big buildings with musical sings on their front. My eyes shot up to the rearview mirror. Sure enough, Piper was watching me. We locked eyes. I could tell she was smiling. Soon, I was too. I laughed and let my head drop back. I looked at the roof of the car. Slowly, my eyes made their way back to Piper's. Piper's shown with happiness and a little bit of slyness. I hoped mine was showing how happy and thankful I was. I can't believe Piper actually did this. Take us to a Broadway Musical. Not only have I never been to one, but it's on the bucket list.

Thalia and Reyna watched our little exchange in silence, but their faces expressed their curiosity. I looked at my two friends then back at Piper. We had come to a silent agreement to tell them about our little bucket list later.

Piper quickly pulls over having seen an open parking spot. We all get out and look up. Piper had chosen Wicked. We were currently outside of Gershwin Theatre.

"No!" I say breathless. This was one of the most popular musicals in Broadway and Piper had managed to get us tickets on such short notice.

"I guess having famous parents have its perks," Thalia said. Piper just shrugs in reply. She motions for us to follow her inside.

We walk into this lobby area. Straight ahead there are 2 staircases going up to the left and right. On the right side was wooden ticket booths. People are lined up to get some. To the left are a few more, but not as much. On the far wall is a big booth for merchandise. There's a backdrop of the poster with the Wicked Witch in black and a side of the Good Which in white. There's t-shirts and hats hanging. There are more on the table along with other things like posters and light up wands. It's smaller than expected yet bustling with people.

Piper expertly leads us to a line. She talks to the woman. I'm still awestruck that we are here. Having lived in New York for my adult life, I've never really seen much tourist things. A few minutes later, Piper hands us our tickets and we go upstairs to the left. On the floor it's plain. There's door for bathrooms, closet, and open ones to get into the theater. Outside of the theater doors are some men to take your tickets. Then, in front of the stair case coming up from the lobby, that we are currently on, are 2 sets of escalators, one going up and one going down. Piper walks over to the escalator going up and steps on. Thalia, Reyna, and I follow like lost puppies. The 3rd floor looks the same. Here Piper leads us to a door with a "E" on top. She hands the man our tickets who rips the ends off. He then hands us each a little booklet for the musical. Then, he points us in the direction of our seats. We go down a few steps so we are right on the edge of the balcony. We each sit on our own seat.

I look over at Piper and tell her thank you. Then I look at the stage. Gosh, it's so amazing. The stage its self is empty. It has a curtain/backdrop of a map with a green glow in the middle. Above that is a huge dragon. It's black and has wings that you can tell are able to move. On each side of the stage, the walls are gears. There are some wooden platforms. On our left I can make out some stairs. It almost looks like a clock. All over the whole thing, there's soft, blue lights. Seeing the whole things, it's breath taking.

I look around and see all of the people here. There are a few families, but mainly couples. Go figure. But, it's pretty full. Then, I open the booklet. I read a bit about the musical, some background information and about the cast. I'm interrupted when the lights blink. I pull out my phone and shut it off. I see the others do that too. I reach over and nudge Piper, sending her a big smile before the lights turn off.

~oOo~

"Oh my gosh. I cannot believe how good that was!" Reyna exclaims as we stand up, applauding the amazingly talented cast.

"I know right!" I respond looking at her. The show had been wonderful. The cast was so talented. It was so well produced. I just can't even describe it. It was definitely a different side to the classic Wizard of Oz.

After the curtain shuts, the house lights turn back on, we gathered up our things, turned our phones one, and made our way back up the stairs – as well and fast as we could. Once we got there, we headed for the escalator like everyone else. We finally made it to the floor below us after about 8 minutes of slow, painful moving of the people around my friends and me. When we got to the top of the stair case, my breath caught. People were everywhere and so many of them. I quickly took out my phone and snapped a picture. It looked like a sea of heads, of people.

You're probably thinking Why is the person who lives in New York City so awestruck by the amount of people? Well, the reason is because I grew up in a small community. I may have lived in big cities most of my life, but that doesn't mean I grew up in "the city". For example, I live in a condo with my 6 friends. At campus, people are in classes and I don't live there. Yes I go on the streets, but there the people are moving at their pace with space between one another. Here, it seemed like everyone was squished together, like sardines. My point being, tons of people are packed together in a little space.

After quite a bit of pushing and getting pushed, we finally made our way outside. The cool air was welcomed on my warm face – it had been hot and squished in there from all of the people. We head onto the sidewalk. I noticed it was darker now. I glance at my phone. The time was now 9:43 pm. No wonder it was dark. We walked down the street to Piper's car. We climbed in and Piper drove off.

~oOo~

"Can we go to the usual before we head home?" Piper asks us.

"Seems good to me, right?" Reyna answered. Thalia and I hummed in agreement. Piper nodded and headed to our favorite place.

Only 5 minutes later we were there. Our favorite place was this little café called Olympus Café. I liked the name and thought it was cool and unique. It was on the lower 2 floors of a 5-story building – the top 3 were apartments. It was the normal grey, concrete building. There was a big sign that had Olympus Café on it. On the ground level floor, the wall was basically all windows. On the second-floor window sills, there would normally be plants in the spring, summer, and early fall.

Inside, the walls were a white washed brick. There was accents of wood like on trim. Straight ahead was a big, wooden counter that stretched to the right. The wall part was this cool accented metal. Behind it was the kitchen. It was open so you could see what they were doing. It was also a bar seating. All across the front were booths. On the left there's 2 tall tables and one short table. One of the tables sat on a little stage. Sometimes Hestia had musicians come in for live entertainment. Next to the counter and stage was this old, black, circle stair case that lead upstairs. Upstairs was this book store. The walls were exactly like the first-floor. There's lots of window for natural light. In 2 corners are beanbags, blankets, and comfortable couches. The shelves were piled with books. Since I knew the owner well, she let me check out the books like a library. It was 15 minutes from campus and only 10 from our condo. They had the best hot cocoa and milkshakes. There was a loft that was a little book store. I loved coming here to hang with my friends, study, or just relax.

Piper parked the car across the street and we all got out. The cold wind nipped at me. I hugged my sweater to my body. I had forgotten a coat when we left the house earlier. We made our way across the street and into the little café. The delicious smell of homemade pastries and books greeted us. We smiled to the owner and sat down in our usual booth. Soon, the owner, Hestia, came over with 4 hot chocolates. I smiled gratefully at her.

"So, what did you guys think of the musical?" Was the first topic to come up by Piper.

"It was so good!" Came Reyna's answer.

"Yeah, I liked it," Agreed Thalia.

"It was amazing!" I exclaimed, "The architecture of the stage. How they designed it and had it set up. The whole theater in general was amazing..."

"Okay, we get it. You're an architecture nerd." Thalia said from beside me. I smiled sheepily.

"I guess I sort of have to agree though. The stage was pretty amazing." Piper softly defended me.

"Yeah, the whole production was," Reyna imputed.

"It was definitely a different side of the Wizard of Oz," I said.

"Yeah, it was." Thalia agreed.

We sat there for a while sipping our hot drinks. Piper caught my eye. I knew what she wanted – to tell them about the bucket list. I nodded once.

"So, you were probably wondering about me and Annabeth's reacti-" Piper started.

"Annabeth's and my reaction," I muttered. It was a habit I had of correcting other's grammar.

Piper just continued, "Reaction to when we pulled up in front of the theater." Thalia and Reyna nodded their head. "So, a few nights ago, Annabeth and I had a talk. It was the day we watched Moana. After you went to bed, I took Annabeth over to Central Park. We sat on my car and listened to-"

"Anyways," I interrupted her again. "We were talking. I told her the full story of my experience at the hospital. I not going to say it again since you already know and its too long. But, Piper got to thinking about some things." I motioned for her to continue on.

"Basically, I thought it would be a good idea for Annabeth to have some fun. My thoughts were that she will be having to go through Chemo and hard times. It's going to be all bad, bad, bad! instead of good, fun, good! So, I said, 'let's make a bucket list'. At first she looked at me weirdly because I had out of now where said that. But, I explained and we thought of quite a few things. We can show you later if you want." Piper explained.

Then I took over again, "So, one of the things we wrote down was 'have a Galentine's Day' - Piper's idea, plus it's tradition. Another thing was 'see a Broadway Musical'. I had said either Lion King or Wicked. Remember this was only, like, 2 days ago. So, you can imagine my surprise when I saw Piper had managed to get us tickets to Wicked in 2 days."

"So that's why we acted the way we did when we pulled up in front of the theater." Piper concluded.

Reyna was looking thoughtfully out the window. Thalia was just staring at her drink, hand absently tracing the rim of the mug. They were processing the information, not just our reaction information, but the information of the bucket list. The information that I was actually going to die and wanted to have fun and do cool things before I do. Piper and I waited patiently for one of them to speak.

"I understand... and like the idea." Reyna spoke slowly. She looked from Piper to me. "I think it's a good and cool idea to know what you want to do."

I glanced at Thalia. I wasn't sure how she was taking this. Like I had mentioned before, we're practically sisters. I think she was realizing that this was real. I reached my head down to squeeze hers.

"I don't want to understand, but I do." She said at last, not moving. I nodded.

"I'm going to pay for our drinks and talk to Hestia." I said getting up. I had a feeling that the 3 of them needed to talk. They could relate to each other more than I could. I mean it's their best friend that's dying. For me, it's just me.

I made my way over to the counter with my little satchel. I sat on one of the stools. Hestia was washing some dishes and had her back to me. Hestia was another friend of mine. She was in her thirties but looked like she was 19.

"Anything new?" I asked knowing she would understand.

Hestia turned to face me, "A new - well, it's actually an older book but we just got it – Rick Riordan book. I think it's called something like Perry Johnson and the Olympians. I read it a few years back. Easy read, but definitely recommend it." She finished.

I smiled gratefully and headed up the stairs. The books were in alphabetical order, so I went to the "R"s. Soon, I found the book that was recommended. I read the back and nodded, happy with the new find. I made my way back down stairs to pay for the drinks. I set the book down on the counter to dig in my wallet for cash. I handed the money to Hestia and she just looked at it.

"No, take it. I will not put up with this each time. I'll take your treat twice a month like we agreed, but not with my friends." I scolded her. I've been coming here for over 3 years twice a week, at least. Hestia and I grew close and within that first year, she insisted that I shouldn't have to pay every time I come since I was such a loyal customer. I just told her that I should. She wouldn't hear about it, so we came to a compromise. She would treat me to a free drink twice a month and I could check out any book.

Hestia sighed and took my money. We talked for a bit after that. I asked her about her Valentine's Day and she asked me about mine. We talked about my school and her business. I was about to tell her about my cancer, but the girls came over. Sure enough it was time to go. I said goodbye to Hestia and we left. The 4 of us piled sleepily into Piper's car. About two blocks later, I realized I had left my book on the counter in the café. I told Piper to pull over. I quickly jumped out and ran back. I felt my checks and nose get pink from the cold. But, soon I was in the warmth of Olympus Café.

I rushed in and smiled weakly at Hestia who was looking at me in amusement. I grabbed my book. I backed through the door and turned around in a rush only to be knocked down. I stood up and brushed myself off.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry. I was in a rush and didn't see where I was going. I'm," I looked up and grey met green. The green eyes weren't normal. They were bright, almost emerald, but they had hints of blue that made them look sea green. I don't know how to describe them. They're an amazing color, swirling with emotion. "Sorry," I breathed out.

The man I ran into looked about my age. He had those green eyes. His hair was a raven black and messy as can be – windblown mixed with bedhead. He had a sharp jaw line and chiseled facial features. He was a whole head taller than me, probably 6'1"ish. He had a lean and muscular built. He was smarter than me by wearing an actual coat. It was unzipped and his shirt was blue. He was wearing jeans and white with black striped Adidas sneakers. We stood looking at each other for a while until I remembered that I basically ran out of the car with no explanation. I jumped a little and my eyes grew wide when I remembered.

"I'm so sorry that I ran into you. I need to go," I said moving around him. I started running toward Piper's car. I looked behind me to see the strange man still standing there. He bent over to pick something up. He straightened out and turned around, towards me. Then, I looked back forward. I quickly got to Piper's car that was still, thankfully, parked there. I hurriedly opened the door.

"I'm sorry I ran off. I forgot something at the café," I quickly explained while buckling in.

Soon we were driving off again. I couldn't help but look back toward the café, silently wondering about the man. Little did I know then what an important role the mystery man would have in my life or the book that I forgot.

~oOo~

A/N

So here's finally the fourth chapter. I'm sorry that I didn't update for a while. I've just been super busy with school and homework. Soccer starts soon and I have a few big projects coming up, so I won't be posting that often. Once again, sorry about not updating, but I hope this chapter makes up for it. I mean it's 3,931 words. I think that's the longest chapter yet.

What did you all think? I thought I could hit 3 birds with 1 stone in this chapter (Yes, I'm aware that the saying is actually '2 birds with 1 stone'). I got the Galentine's day and explaining the bucket list to Reyna and Thalia. I also had them start the bucket list with not only Galentine's day but also going to a Broadway Musical. Then I introduced their hang out place and got a sneak peak of the mystery man (I'm sure you all know who it is).

So, for the musical I've actually been there. This summer my grandma took me to see Wicked. I tried to describe it how I remembered. As for that little bit on the people, I had to throw that in there. When we were leaving, it was packed. People were pressed together all trying to get out. On the top of the stairs, it literally looked like a sea of people and I took a picture. First of all, I'm not used to that many people in one area. Second, it's a different kind of packed than on the streets on NYC or even in the Theatre.

Olympus Cafe is obviously not a real place. I described and created it to how I would want an awesome hang out cafe place to be. It's sort of the perfect fit for Annabeth too. i mean a sick book store in a loft with a delicious cafe down stairs. I described it to be a sort of rustic modern maybe. I don't really know, I was watching Fixer Upper earlier and maybe that's where I got my inspiration from.

Review, review, review!

Hope you enjoyed it!

-Anne