Chapter 11

As the bus drove away, Percy heard a voice call out to him and Tyson. "Hey!" Annabeth was walking down from the mansion. Over the last few weeks, it had become their custom to meet after the boys got home from school.

Tyson laughed and ran up to her, hugging her. She smiled and waved to Percy. "Are you excited?" she said, walking up to him.

"You have no idea!" he exclaimed.

"Well, I do remember how ecstatic I was to finish the fifth grade," she pointed out. Tomorrow was the last day of school. Percy longed for the freedom of summer.

They walked into the Jackson's house. Annabeth grabbed an apple from the bowl as the boys slung their backpacks onto the table. Over the past three weeks, Annabeth had become a part of their daily lives. She was over at their house often. She ate with them a lot, and some times even spent the night. The subject of her staying with the family had tentatively bubbled to the surface, but Annabeth had refused to talk about it. That was fine with Percy. He like things just they way they were.

Annabeth was, in a few words, his best friend. At school, Percy tried not to talk to people too much. He had slow-moving friendships with a few of the kids, but nothing very profound. Annabeth was the only one he could be himself around.

Both of Percy's parents, especially Sally, had taken a liking to Annabeth. Sally tried her best to be a sort of surrogate mother. There were times when Annabeth pushed her away, but more recently, Annabeth seemed to be getting used to it. It was almost as if she was slowly becoming a normal girl again, instead of the damaged, heartbroken girl they had found nearly a month ago. She had even altered her sleeping schedule a bit so that she could see the family.

There was one thing that happened when Annabeth was around that confused Percy, though. Whenever she was close to him, his heart would begin to beat a little bit faster. When she sat down next to him on the couch and their knees touched, the contact was the only thing he was aware of, though she didn't even seem to notice it. Whenever she smiled, his stomach twisted itself into a pretzel and then untwisted itself again.

He had talked to Grover about it over the phone (in the strictest of confidence, of course.) Grover's diagnosis was as plain and simple as they come: "Sounds as if you like her." But Percy knew that couldn't be true. He had "liked" Rachel when they first started going out, and it was nothing compared to this. He had "liked" cheerleader Kelli Thompson when she had kissed his cheek at the fourth grade Christmas party. No, this wasn't a simple "like".

When Percy had asked Grover what he should do about it, Grover's solution was straightforward: "Tell her." Percy had tried unsuccessfully to explain to Grover that things such as this weren't so easy, but Grover didn't seem to understand.

"Plus," Percy had pointed out. "I do still have a girlfriend."

"Percy!" Sally snapped him out of his thoughts. "You and Tyson need to pack your bags."

"Why?" he questioned.

Sally didn't answer him. Instead, she turned to Annabeth, smiling broadly. "Annabeth, we want you to come on a trip with us!" she announced.

"A... Trip?" said Annabeth uneasily.

"Not a big one. Just a weekend trip to Gray Harbor to visit my parents. Gray Harbor is only about half an hour away from here, so you wouldn't be traveling far," explained Sally.

"I thought people didn't know about Annabeth our friend!" said Tyson.

"We can tell my parents you're a family friend. It's the truth," said Sally, the hopeful glint in her eye making her look ten years younger.

"I think it's a great idea," Percy chimed in, leaning on the table. "I mean, when was the last time you left Summerville, Annabeth?"

Annabeth looked down for a moment, as if the kitchen's tile floor held the answers to her questions. Then she looked up, and grinned. "Alright," she said. "I'll come."

Sally clapped her hands in delight and hugged Annabeth. Annabeth looked a bit shocked for a moment, but slowly returned the hug. Then Sally took Tyson by the hand and led him away. Annabeth turned to leave and Percy followed her.

"So, you finally get to get out of this place," said Percy, walking alongside her as the trudged up the hill. "Even if it is only to Gray Harbor."

"I've never seen the ocean before," breathed Annabeth, her eyes shining. "What's it like?"

"It's kind of blue-ish green. It's cold. It's wet," said Percy.

"Alright, I get it," laughed Annabeth, gently knocking his shoulder with hers. "I mean, what is it like to you?"

"It... It makes you feel small. Like, no matter how big you are, the ocean will always be bigger than you. And it... It's selfish. The little waves the lap at the shore always want something, and they always get it. If you don't watch out, the ocean will swallow you whole."

Annabeth turned her quizzical eyes on him. "What do you mean?"

Percy shook his head. "Nothing." Doing his best to change the subject, he reached down and plucked a violet from the hillside. He sat down on the grass. "I can see why the named this place Violet Hill," he joked.

Annabeth sat down next to him. "That's only part of the reason. During the civil war, cemeteries were referred to as 'Violet Hills'. The Civil War was also around the time when the supposed murder of the 'Ghost Girl' happened. An old village elder cursed the hill with that name, and it stuck."

Percy grinned. "Silly me, thinking it had been named for a Coldplay song."

Annabeth laughed. They sat in silence for a moment, just picking violets and tying the stems together. Then, all of a sudden, Annabeth began to sing.

"I took my love down to Violet Hill; there we sat in the snow."

Her voice was quiet and soft, as if she didn't dare go louder.

"All that time she was silent and still. So if you love me, won't you let me know? If you love me,"

Annabeth looked up and Percy realized that their faces were inches apart. He could feel her breath as she sang the last line.

"Won't you let me know?"

He just sat there for a minute, then backed away slowly. He took the chain that they had been knotting together and placed it on her head, creating a circlet of violets to go with her blonde hair. He awkwardly stood up and scratched his neck.

"I'll, um, see you tomorrow, I guess," he said stupidly.

Annabeth nodded, as if in a daze. "Yeah," she said.

Percy turned and half-walked, half-jogged back to his house when he got to the door, he turned around to see Annabeth sitting in the same spot, staring at nothing, the violet crown still on her head.

Wow. That chapter was super fun to write. I love romance!

Today's song is for Luke in his last moments.

Wide Awake by Katy Perry

Special thanks to Mystica Tempest for the theme song. I really especially like this one, because I think it fits perfectly. If you've got any theme song suggestions, let me know!

I'm thinking of changing the story summary so it won't be so boring. Any ideas?

Even if you hated this chapter more than you hate Brussels sprouts, more than you hate extra Geometry homework, more than you hate Cora on Once Upon A Time, let me know! Review!

-Rebel