A/N Okay, so some of you were confused about why I was writing this when I'm not even close to being done with the Never-Ending Labyrinth. Well, I'm going to be writing this as I go, okay? So don't worry. Also, just for the record, I'm not copying ANY stories with The Never-Ending Labyrinth, 'kay? Please stop bringing it up. Thanks for your reviews! Here's chapter two!
Last Chapter:
"Who wants to read next?" No one volunteered. Surprise, surprise.
I glared at everyone and took the book from Abby. I was about to start reading when Jina walked in with a platter of chocolate chip cookies, filling the room with a mouthwatering aroma.
"Cookies!" She said, but it didn't matter. Everyone was stampeding toward her before she could even finish speaking. I got there first and grabbed about five, popping the first one in my mouth while it was still hot. Shit. Maybe a little to hot…okay, way too hot!
I spitted out the cookie and sprinted to the kitchen to get some water. I came back to see everyone laughing, including Jina. I rolled my eyes. What caring friends I have.
"Whatever. Let's just get this over with."
"Chapter 2: Photo time!" I mumbled. Great. This part.
"…sie. Josie! JOSIE!" I slapped the screamer and rolled over. "Shit! Wake up!" I sighed and rolled back over to face the dream intruder. It was Percy and he was holding his red cheek and muttering, "Shit, shit, shit," under his breath.
Everyone started laughing. Some of them even gave me high-fives. I looked over at Percy and saw him glaring at me.
"Oh, get over it Seaweed Brain, you know I'm not a morning person!"
He chuckled. "It wasn't even morning, Annabeth. It was, like, 1 in the afternoon." I stuck my tongue out at him while the others giggled at our childish antics.
"What?" he should know that I'm not a morning person.
We both smirked at each other. Then we glared. Then we both stuck out our tongues. Then we both raised out eyebrows. "Stop that!" We shouted in unison. I turned to glare at our friends. Abby, Alyssa, Miranda, and Thalia were all rolling on the floor holding their stomachs and had tears pouring down their faces. Wanting to spare myself the embarrassment, I quickly started reading again.
"We're here." I looked out the window. Oh. So we were.
Pushing Percy out of my way, I stood up and stretched. I noticed that he had changed into black skinny jeans with a black NaRae t-shirt.
Silena raised her eyebrow. "Noticed?" She put air quotes around it.
"Whatever," I rolled my eyes. Again.
"Oh, come on Annabeth, lighten up, would ya girl?" Cameron said. Ya, I know he sounded a little off…well, just so you know, he's gay.
I grinned. "Sorry guys. But hey, how would you feel if all your thoughts were being read to all your friends and you couldn't do anything about it?"
Alex scoffed. "Hon, please. How bad could they be? Unless…you know…you're a little pervert…" She winked.
Abby and Scott grinned at each other and snapped. (A/N The snap will be explained later in The Never-Ending Labyrinth) They held each others glance for a little longer than necessary before turning away, both of them blushing. Hmm…looks like some matchmaking is in order…
NaRae was only the best singer/rapper/actor of all time. He was like my idol. Anyways, he had his hair swiped into an emo cut, because he was supposed to be the tall dark and handsome type. He isn't like that in real life, but someone in the band had to, according to our manager Heather Boss, and he wore it best. His shoes were, of course, black converse.
Grover was the "sensitive" guy. You know, the one that all the girls love. He shaved his beard, straightened his hair, dyed it strawberry blond, and always wore a hat. Instead of wearing a Rasta cap like he always used to, he wore an Eddie Bower hat. His shirt was white and Eddie Bower brand, he wore bright blue skinny jeans, and, you guessed it, Eddie Bower shoes!
The members of JPR were looking at Grover like he was a total freak. Their glances seemed to be saying, how are we friends with this guy? His style is totally lame!
Luke was, like, the skater boy. He was wearing a white wife-beater under a grey DC hoodie and plaid Bermuda shorts. He had white and green DC's on.
As for me, I was like the leader, don't-mess-with-me type.
"Really?" Abby asked. "I would've said something more like, the punk-rocker chick, or something."
"Well, what's your amazing title, then?" I questioned.
"Depressed emo kid that has nothing better to do than write songs, duh!"
…I should probably just start reading…
I slipped on my blood red converse and gestured to the guys. "Let's get this over with. I wanna see everyone before the photo shoot at two." We walked through the bus doors only to be attacked by fans. Some guys in black suites ran over to us and made a pathway.
The tallest one said, "Hello, Ms. Salix. We'll be your body guards while you're here." Ooh, that's right. I didn't tell you where here is. Well, we just drove all the way from Reno, Nevada to Seattle, Washington. I know, right?
"Your thoughts make you sound like you're thinking to someone. Its really…odd," Beckendorf pointed out. I just shrugged. It was probably just whoever wrote this.
I shook the guard's hands. "Josie Salix. Thanks for the help." He just nodded.
We walked through the crowd with the help of our body guards and entered the hotel. The second I walked into the hotel, I was tackled by Silena. "Thank the gods you're finally here! Thalia was trying to kill me!" I stood up and looked at Thalia questioningly. She just shrugged.
"She tried to make me wear pink."
"Oh, no! PINK? IT'S THE APOCALYPSE!" Percy yelled dramatically.
"Hey! Don't be hating on pink!" Scott pouted. "It's my favorite color!" Abby and Alyssa chuckled, like this had been an inside joke a while back, but the rest of us had no idea how that was even remotely funny, so I just read on.
I rolled my eyes at that. Of course. "So, how's fame been treating ya? Any recent monster attacks?"
I shook my head. "Nope. It's weird, I haven't seen a single monster since we became famous. It's probably because we're always surrounded by mortals, so our scent gets covered."
Silena scoffed. "You are, like, such a child of Athena. You need to stop thinking once and a while!"
I glared at my friends as they all started laughing at me again. "Sorry, Annabeth," Abby said. "It's just, we weren't there at the beginning, so we're hearing all this for the first time…" My glare softened. Fair enough. But I will get revenge…
Bianca cut in. "She can't help it. She was born to over-analyze everything." I scowled. I Heard laughter behind us and we all turned to find the boys muffling their laughter with their hands. My scowl turned into an all-out glare, and they all flinched.
Grinning, I turned back to the girls. "Anyway…the fame is awesome…most of the time. It would probably be better if I wasn't the only girl," I answered Thalia while looking pointedly at them.
"You know Annabeth, we would, but you guys are doing so great, we, like, wouldn't want to ruin it." Oh, now Clarisse decides to talk. Glaring, I turned to the guys.
"Well, let's go get our keys." Percy held out his hand with five keys inside it. "Or not." This was where I took charge. "Okay, so it looks like we're all on the fourth floor. Fang, Recav, and Stid will share room 401, me and Thals room 402, Clarisse and Chris in room 403, Silena and Beckendorf in room 404, and Nico and Bianca in 405." I winked at Clarisse and Silena and they blushed.
The said girls glared at me, telling me they still hadn't quite gotten over that. Chris and Beckendorf, on the other hand, smiled at me appreciatively, then shot each other sly looks. Ugh. I don't even wanna know.
"And, break," Chris cut in.
Scott slapped him a high-five, and they both grinned. "Way to break the tension, man!"
We all laughed then went to our rooms. Thalia opened our door and I went in. I plopped our stuff on the floor just before my cell rang.
"Hello?"
"Annabeth, its Heather. Will you all meet me for dinner at Bucca de Bepo after your shoot? You should probably bring your friends, too. I have news." In case you're confused, Heather knows our real names because she's a demigod, too. Daughter of Apollo. Very pushy.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Miranda asked, glaring at me. I smiled sheepishly at her.
"Pshh…nothing…"
"Tell me!"
"Exhibit A," someone whispered, but I couldn't tell who.
"Well, why can't you tell me now?"
"You should all hear this." I gulped. That didn't sound good.
Percy glared at the book. "Ya, it wasn't good. It was awful."
We all smirked at him, but didn't say anything more.
"Well, okay, if you're sure."
"Yup, see you then."
"Bye." I pushed the end button.
"Who was it?" Thalia asked me.
"Our manager. You know Heather, that daughter of Apollo, right?" She nodded. "We're all going to meet her at Bucca de Bepo after our photo shoot. Apparently, she has news that's too big to share over the phone." She just nodded again. "Why you so quiet?" She shrugged. "Okay, who is he?" She shook her head. "I'll just keep guessing till you tell me. And if you don't, I'll assume the worst." She just shook her head again. "Get ready," I said with an evil grin.
"Nico?"
"Pedophile."
"Luke?" Head shake.
"Grover?"
"Hex no!"
He glared at her. "What do you mean by that?" She didn't answer him.
"It's not Chris or Beckendorf, is it?"
"No, no, no!" I gulped. That only left one person.
"Percy?" I whispered.
A few people raised their eyebrows.
She made a gagging sound. Good. Not him.
Now everyone's eyebrows were raised, so I just pretended I didn't see them and kept reading.
"Wait, the only one you didn't seem disgusted by was Luke…" I gasped. "YOU LIKE LUKE?" Some daughter of Athena I am.
Luke looked at Thalia in surprise and she blushed.
"YOU LIKE PERCY?" maybe…
They same thing happened only this time, it was Percy looking at me and me blushing.
"NOO! I don't! We're just really good friends.
"DENIAALLLLLLLL!"
But you…I can tell you're crushing on someone, and I know for a fact that someone is Luke!"
She sighed. "It doesn't matter. He doesn't feel the same." Wow. Never heard that one before.
That got some chuckles and head nods from people. I could've sworn I heard Thalia mutter, "Hypocrite…"
"Thalia, do you have any idea how many people think that about people they like? How many times is that actually true?"
"Most of the time."
"I mean when they've known each other almost their whole lives."
"Oh…almost never…"
"Exactly! So, don't lose hope! Wanna hear my new song? It's called Miss Independent. I need someone outside the band to hear it."
She chuckled. "Why not?"
I grinned and started.
Abby and the rest of her band looked at me with pleading eyes. "Will you please sing it?" I sighed and nodded.
Miss independent
Miss self sufficient
Miss keep your distance, mmmmm
Miss unafraid
Miss out of my way
Miss don't let a man interfere, no
Miss on her own
Miss almost grown
Miss never let a man help her off her throne, so
By keeping her heart protected
She'd never ever feel rejected
Little miss apprehensive
Said oo, she fell in love
What is this feeling taking over?
Thinking no one could open the door
Surprise, it's time,
To feel, what's real
What happened to miss independents
No longer need to be defensive
Good-bye, old you
When love, is true
Miss guarded heart
Miss play it smart
Miss if you wanna use that line you better not, start, no
But she miscalculated
She didn't wanna end up jaded
And this miss, decided not to
Miss out on true love, so
By changing her misconception
She went in a new direction
And found inside she felt a connection
She fell in love
What is this feeling taking over?
Thinking no one could open the door
Surprise, it's time,
To feel, what's real
What happened to miss independents
No longer need to be defensive
Good-bye, old you
When love, is true
When miss independent walked away
No time for love that came her way
She looked I the mirror and thought today
What happened to miss no longer afraid
It took some time for her to see
How beautiful love could truly be
No more talk of why can't that be me
I'm so glad I finally see
What is this feeling taking over?
Thinking no one could open the door
Surprise, it's time,
To feel, what's real
What happened to miss independents
No longer need to be defensive
Good-bye, old you
When love,
When love is true
Miss independent
I opened my eyes and heard clapping at the doorway. I turned my head to see all the girls—besides Thalia, who was next to me—applauding with grins on their faces.
I rolled my eyes. "'Sup, guys?"
They laughed. "The guys were annoying us, and we heard you and Thalia screaming at each other. We were about to knock, but we heard you singing, so…" Bianca rambled.
Then Silena had a mischievous glint in her eye. "So, Annabeth, who was that song for?"
I glared at her and she put her hands up in the universal sign for surrender. "Sorry, I just assumed," she said defensively.
I glared. "No one. It was just an idea that popped into my head, as were most of my other ones."
"Sure…" she trailed off.
I shoved them out. "Come on, I have a Photo shoot to go to. You guys can come if you want, otherwise you can chill with Chris, Nico, and Beckendorf."
"We'll go with you!" They all shouted in unison.
Chris, Nico, and Beckendorf all pouted at the same time. Ha. That's not odd at all.
I smirked and tried to walk past them when Silena stopped me.
"You aren't seriously going to a photo shoot wearing that, are you?"
I raised my eyebrow. "They do your outfit and hair for you there. You of all people should know that about photo shoots, Silena."
She blushed. "Oh, right. My bad."
Silena was glaring like she was shocked that I had the nerve to think that part. I smirked.
I smiled and walked out. "Let's go"
***One painfully long car ride later***
"Ahh, finally," I breathed in the warm Seattle air. We'd be getting pictures taken that would be put on posters and t-shirts, so I was thankful for the nice weather. A woman that I assumed was the photographer walked over to us.
"Hello, I'm Sandi Brown. Ms. Salix, your friends can wait in those chairs. You will be going with Kelly, who will pick out your outfit and do your make-up and hair." I nodded. A girl about a year older than me walked over and shook my hand. "Hi, I'm Kelly Davis. I'm assuming you're Josie Salix?" I smiled.
"Yup, that's me." I heard Silena giggle and I flipped her the bird behind my back.
I got a couple pats on the back and a few of the guys (and the other band) were all chuckling. "My stage name isn't that funny, Silena," I joked.
She rolled her eyes. "I was just giggling because it was so weird to hear you of all people respond to a name other than Annabeth, Wise Girl, Owl Head, or Princess." I glared at her and everyone was laughing.
"Okay then. Right this way." She led me to a huge trailer. When she opened the door, all I could see were clothes. Well, that, and a vanity at the end. She looked around and grabbed some bright orange skinny jeans, a teal and purple plaid Tripp vest, a green and black plaid woven shirt, and some bright green converse. I tried it on and it didn't look that bad. She straightened my hair and put in some non-permanent green streaks in it. I might get those permanent. Then she added some mascara, blush, and lip gloss, because that's all I allowed her to do. To tip it all of off she had me wear a purple and green plaid fedora. It was awesome.
We walked out and I showed my non-band member friends. They smiled and gave their approval. I walked over to my band buddies to see what they had on. Percy had a black Hanes shirt with some neon red suspenders, and black skinny jeans with purple neon vans. He looked so good, and I mean really good.
All the girls looked at me knowingly and I was quick to avoid their looks.
His hair was ruffled like he just woke up but somehow tamed. I smiled and stared; he caught my eyes and winked.
Clarisse glared. "YOU LIE!" I just rolled my eyes.
I felt my face go hot. Luke had some neon red skinny jeans with a neon purple shirt. He had some neon blue skinny jeans and neon vans on. His hair just looked like they straightened it, making it look a little longer. Groverwore a shirt that was checkered with neon yellow, white, neon blue and neon pink. He had a black loose tie around his neck. He had some regular black jeans on, with white converse; he had his drumsticks in his hands. In all, we looked incredible.
That was when Sandi walked over. She looked at me. "Josie, you're first. Come up on stage." I did as I was asked and was handed a microphone with a stand. "Good. Now, let the microphone hang at your side. Yes, just like that. Now ball your hand into a fist, put it straight up in the air, and look up with your eyes closed. Perfect." She took the shot. "Okay, now let it hang on your other side and lean over it stick the opposite hand up. Okay, now close your eyes and pretend to be screaming 'hey' into the microphone." I did as she asked. She took the picture, smiled, and told me I was done. She also said I could keep the outfit. I thanked her and walked off the stage.
Abby looked up slightly and rubbed her chin like she was trying to imagine it. I gave her a few seconds to think, 'cuz it obviously wasn't easy for her, and she finally grinned. "Those poses are totally epic!" I chuckled at her choice of words. Typical Abby. Her and her friends in school always use the words "epic" and "fail". Oh, and "slow". Its become almost a habit for all of them.
Percy was next. He was holding a blood red electric guitar. I went and sat next to Thalia. All the girls grinned at me. "What?" I asked.
Everyone looked at me, eyebrows raised. "Slow much?" See.
"Don't play dumb 'Josie', we saw him wink and you blush. What happened?" Silena asked, her grin somehow getting even wider.
"Nothing. He saw me looking at his outfit. I looked at all of theirs though, so it wasn't like I was checking him out. He was just being his immature self."
Clarisse rolled her eyes. "Seriously Wise Girl, we may not be children of Athena, but we aren't dumb. Nice posing by the way."
Abby grinned. "I know, right!" Everyone rolled their eyes, including me. We didn't want to burst her bubble and remind her that she was talking to a book.
It was my turn to roll my eyes. "Whatever. Look, they're finally finishing." I was right. Sandi took one more picture of Grover and then he hoped off stage.
"Okay, let's get going." I nodded and we hopped in the van. Time to go meet Heather.
I exhaled. "Well, that was embarrassing. Who's next?"
Thalia made a face. "I guess I'll read." I nodded and tossed her the book, which of course, she missed. Scott was about to say fail, but I gave him a death glare and he stopped. Ha. That's right. Feel the glare!
A/N Sorry for the late update. Review!