Distant Memories

"…To this day, I wait for you. I wait for you, because I love you. I don't think I will ever stop loving you. It's sad, since you won't remember me. As I watch your retreating back for the last time, I have to bite my tongue to stop myself from running after you. I want to run after you and tackle you to a hug and kiss you and tell you that you mean the world to me. But I can't and I won't. Because I love you too much.

I just wished that I could have told you how I felt about you, rather than dance around the question , pretending that everything was going to be okay. Because it's not.

If I ever see you again, just know that I never forgot about all of the times we spent together, all the memories we created and all of those special moments we shared. If I ever see you again, I hope you will remember me. I know it's selfish, but I just pray that you can return my feelings.

Happy endings don't exist, only in fairy tales, so I won't hold my breath.

But a girl can dream. So in the hopes that you can find me again, just like you promised - I love you. Please come back home…."

Annabeth Chase sat at the desk, her hand starting to cramp. It was a routine she had gotten used to. Who wouldn't, if they were repeating the same procedure for the past three hours. A person would come up, she would smile at them, they would give them their book and she would sign it, usually followed by a photo. It was tedious. Her face was beginning to ache from smiling.

Don't get her wrong, she was very appreciative and overwhelmed by the support she was receiving, but she could handle only so much. She never knew writing those memories would get noticed, let alone become a best-selling book.

In countless interviews, she would be asked how or where she got her inspiration from, and she would tell them that she based it on events in her life. It wasn't the exact truth, but it was close enough. She wasn't going to announce to the world that it was about her previous life. That would cause too much trouble for her.

It wasn't unnatural to remember events that happened in your previous life. Especially about your soul mate. In fact, it was common to remember small details about your soul mate. Some remembered the other's name or the place they first met or even their place of death. Annabeth just happened to know more about her past life than the average person.

But she didn't want to tell anyone that. She didn't want anyone to know that her entire book was based on how she and her soul mate were forced to part, never seeing the other again. She remembered that vividly. The way tears fell down her face or the way he tried to fake a smile, promising to meet each other again. His words echoed in her mind.

It was his parting words that stuck in her mind. She could never get away from them, always haunting her. It was his words that forced her to write it all down, to the best of her ability. His promise to meet her again motivated her to relive that bittersweet life. She wrote down every detail she remembered, whether it was how his eyes always lit up when he saw candy or the way his laugh could brighten her day. She wrote it all down, not wanting to forget him. Her angel.

She shook her head at those fond memories and called over the next person in line. The girl had curly brown hair and a permanent blush on her cheeks as she eagerly placed the book in front of her.

"Hi!" the girl blurted out excitedly, "I just wanted to say, you are an amazing writer and that I wish I can be as good as you! You are my inspiration and I wanted to thank you for making my life so much better!"

"I'm glad I helped you in some way. I'm sure one day you'll write something amazing. I'll make sure to buy a copy when the time comes," Annabeth replied with a smile. It was a standard response to a statement like that. She hid a chuckle as the girl practically bubbled with happiness and she flipped to the title page. She scribbled down her signature in a black pen. "Here you go! Thank you for reading!"

"Thank you so much! I'm so happy I got to meet you!" With that, the girl skipped away, and the next in line moved forward.

She missed him. Which was ridiculous since the last she saw him was about seventy six years ago, not that she was counting or anything. It wasn't their fault they were forced to leave each other. The war needed him. So he had to go. But she had wanted him to stay. She remembered crying and begging him to stay with her. She remembered sobbing in his chest as he told her the news. But the pain wasn't as strong as the moment when she found out he had died in battle.

Looking back, she wondered why she never confessed her undying love for him. Then again, it wouldn't have made much of a difference. He would have still left, and it would have made leaving even harder than it already was. But what would have happened if she had kissed him. When they were both holding each other in front of the fireplace, what would have happened if she had let go of everything and listened to her heart and kissed him. She often wondered how differently things might have gone. She might have not regretted so much of her life if she had just done it. Just pressed her lips against his and tell him that he meant so much to her.

But she hadn't, and she had missed out. He had died and she never told him about how she had felt. Years and years of regret and anger and a dull pain in her heart.

She was an idiot.

Annabeth glanced at her watch and suppressed a sigh. She still had another half an hour before her break. She took a sip from her drink bottle and waved the next fan over. It wasn't so much she hated the books signing, it was more that the atmosphere was tense. The crowds were loud and there were a couple of people who were too demanding. It wasn't fair to make a judgement because there were a few rude customers, but she never enjoyed being surrounded by people.

She massaged her hand while a couple walked on over. She still had twenty minutes to go. And by that time, she was getting quite sick of seeing the splash of green colour on the front cover. Every time she saw the colour, a small fraction of her mind would conjure an image of the most beautiful pair of eyes, the shade that not even ink could create.

Another book was placed in front of her and she flicked through the pages, her fingers already working to find the right page. Her eyes scanned the familiar title, Distant Memories, and a little fragment of her heart cracked. The tip of her pen touched the page and it glided across the paper, in an elegant fashion. She was just about to return the book when she noticed something written on the next page. Curious, she flicked over and she was met with the printed words of her dedication, In the hopes you will find me again, just like you promised, I dedicate this book to you. Usually, she would read that accidentally and try to block out the tsunami of emotions that threatened to knock her off her feet, but instead, her eyes were drawn to the messy handwriting underneath that sentence. Few simple words were enough to take her breath away.

She read and reread the phrase three times before fully processing the words.

"I'm sorry I took so long, Annabeth. But a promise is a promise, right? I told you I would find you again."

Her heart jumped into her throat and she dropped her pen and jerked her head upwards, meeting the stranger's gaze. The same eyes. The same smirk. And his voice…

"Hey… Long time, no see…" he said with a small smile. Oh god his voice. His voice was deeper than she remembered. But that was to be expected from a twenty five year-old man. However, he had the same tone of playfulness he had all those years ago. Annabeth couldn't breathe. He was there, standing in front of her.

She sat frozen, disbelief written across her face. "P-Percy?" Her voice was weak, barely audible, not wanting to sound too hopeful.

"I just wanted to say, I love you. And I wished that I could have told you that before I left." His black, messy hair fell across his forehead as he dropped his gaze from hers.

Her heart pounded and she slowly rose from the table, hands shaking. "Is that actually you… After all this time, is that really you?"

"Who else would ever call you Wise Girl?"

Her legs almost gave way at the sound of her old nickname. The book signing forgotten, she stood up to full height and stared at him. Her gray eyes explored every inch of his face, memorising his features. "Percy.. Oh god I missed you!"she whispered, tearing up at the end. He opened his mouth to reply but she reached over and grabbed a handful of his shirt and pulled him close, crashing her throbbing lips against his. He let out a surprised squeak but she felt a hand cup her cheek. She kissed him, tasting the saltiness of his lips. It only lasted a couple of moments before Annabeth pulled away, her eyes shut and her heart beating rapidly.

" I love you…" she murmured, tears trickling down her face.

"I know," Percy stroked her cheek with his thumb and attempted a smile, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I took forever to find you again. I only remembered your name and nothing else. You always told me I had a bad memory."

"But you're here…"

"I read your book and everything came back to me. Oh god Annabeth, I'm so sorry…"

Annabeth took a shuddering breath and shook her head, "It's okay… I just missed you so much! I just… I just wished I told you that I loved you..." Words poured out of her mouth, none of them making any sense.

Percy just shushed her and he threaded his fingers into her hair, gently combing through her blonde locks. She quivered in his arms, her hold on his shirt never loosening. She was terrified that he might disappear if she even thought about letting go. She tried to keep it in, she really did. But years of pent up emotions came flooding out at his touch. She sobbed into his shoulder and her muffled cries wracked her body.

"Please don't leave me again…" she sniffed. He rubbed her back reassuringly.

"I promise, Wise Girl."

She pulled away from his slowly, tears staining her face and her eyes flickered with new found hope. She gazed at him, with adoration and she finally let the corners of her mouth tilt upwards, offering him a shaky smile. Her bottom lip trembled.

"Stay with me, Percy."

"I'm home again, Annabeth. I would never leave." He planted his lips on her forehead and she swallowed thickly. "Although, I should move. I'm holding up the line."

It was then she remembered about the book signing. Her eyes snapped open to see many confused and gawking faces peering at them. She blushed and cursed herself for breaking down in front of her audience, but as she looked at his face again, she found herself not caring. She let go of his shirt and let her hand slide down his arm to take his hand.

"Come behind the table. Can you wait until I finish? Please?" Annabeth murmured. Percy let out a small chuckle and nodded. He squeezed her hand in reassurance and hopped around to the other side of the table. He twisted his head around and his face lit up at the sight of a stool. He sat down, giving her an encouraging grin and waved at her to get on with the signing. In response, she bit her lip and tentatively smiled back, wiping the tears away with a tissue.

Annabeth took a deep breath before putting up a brave face and sitting back down in front of her fans. Sniffing slightly, she announced, "Sorry everyone, for making you wait." She took another couple of breaths to calm down and continued, "I just met someone… special again…"

She could hardly concentrate. She ignored the whispers and the stares she received and forced herself to keep signing books for another fifteen minutes. The redness in her eyes disappeared after a few minutes and her smiles became much more genuine. But she couldn't keep her mind focused. Every time she finished signing a book, her eyes would flicker back to where he sat, and he would give her a smirk or a grin or an eye roll.

And for the first time in many years, she had a reason to smile, a reason to be happy.

"…Happy endings don't exist, only in fairy tales, so I won't hold my breath.

But a girl can dream. So in the hopes that you can find me again, just like you promised - I love you. Please come back home…."

AN - Aaaannnndddd cut.

I have no idea where this came from, but it wasn't too bad (I think). I hope you enjoyed this one and if you did, please leave a comment below telling me which part you liked the best. Also please tell me if there is something I should edit or need clarifying. The very first part in this story is basically the ending to Annabeth's "book", in case anyone was wondering.

Question time - What is your favourite book and have you been lucky enough to meet the author?

Until next time, bye!