Chapter 13
IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Guys, I know I've said this before, but seriously; I know Annabeth's eyes are gray. I swear I did not make a mistake. It is part of the story. Thanks for your lovely reviews, I really enjoy them, but could please stop reminding me what color her eyes are? I promise, the reason will be explained towards the end of the story. ;)
"Come on, Percy!" called Tyson gleefully. He and Annabeth were wading in the shallows near the rocky beach. They had arrived at Percy's grandparent's house yesterday. His grandmother seemed to like Annabeth enough, and his grandfather- Well, his grandfather didn't really say much, so nobody could tell.
Percy didn't say anything. He just sat on the rocks, keeping his distance from the water. He refused to go anywhere near it. Not after everything that it had done to him. He was content with just sitting back and watching Annabeth. She seemed so entranced by the water, as if it would help her find something she was missing.
Just to clarify, he didn't hate all water. In fact, he had been the star on the swimming team back in New York. It was just the ocean that really got to him.
"Percy!" groaned Annabeth. "You're not just going to sit there the whole time, are you?" she said.
"There's no reason not to," he mumbled.
He watched as Annabeth's face lit up. "Alright, you asked for it!" Before Percy could realize what was happening, Annabeth's hand went down under the water and pushed forward. Cascading droplets of seawater were tossed at him.
"Hey!" Percy jumped up, momentarily forgetting his own contempt for the water. He leaped into the shallows and began assaulting Annabeth with handfuls of water.
She squealed and began splashing him even harder, but she was no match for him. At one point, the waves that Percy was sending her way grew so large that she fell down. She was completely soaking wet now, so it didn't matter that she was sitting in the freezing cold ocean water.
Percy laughed and offered a hand down to help Annabeth up. She grabbed his hand as if she was accepting the help, but then coyly dragged him down next to her. The wrestled on the ground for a while, until Percy finally remembered that he was supposed to despise the water.
He wordlessly left Annabeth in the water and sat down on the rock beach, allowing his feet to stick into the water. Annabeth trudged up and sat down next him, stretching her legs out into the water. "Why do you hate the ocean so much?" she questioned.
"It's been too unforgiving," muttered Percy.
He glanced at Annabeth. Being the expert that she was, she normally seemed to mask her emotions well, but Percy was almost certain that he saw a flicker of hurt pass through her eyes before she maintained control.
He sighed. "Look, I'm sorry. It's just..." It was now or never. He either told Annabeth about his dad, or she would never find out.
"My dad," he blurted out before thinking twice. "My real dad, not Paul. He... he was in the Navy. When I was little, whenever he had time off he'd take me out on his motor boat. We'd go just far enough offshore that we couldn't see the mainland, and bring out the picnic Mom had packed for us."
He wasn't sure if Annabeth was listening, but he refused to allow himself to look at her, so he just stared out over the ocean.
"After we ate lunch, Dad would take out this pack of cards that were all shaped like diamonds." Percy smiled at the memory. "We'd play all sorts of card games. My favorite was War, although Dad never seemed to like that one."
Percy heard Annabeth make a small noise with her throat, but he kept talking, no matter how many times his voice hitched. "He could do this lame magic trick. Telling me to pick a number, finding the card. Then he'd fold it in half, making a huge crease. He'd put it in the middle of his palm, make a fist around it, and tell me to blow on it. When he opened his fist, the card was always gone. I found it in my pocket afterwards, completely flat, not one hint of a crease.
"When it was time to go home, I'd get so tired that I would fall asleep right there on the boat. Dad always carried me on his back all the way from the docks to our house. "
"What does this have to do with the ocean?" Annabeth whispered hoarsely.
"That was when I was younger. When I had just turned eleven, my dad got called overseas. That same year, the government told us that he was missing. His ship had practically fallen off the face of the Earth. His crew, his ship... And him. They were all gone. People said that the most likely thing that had happened were they all drowned. Everyone said just to accept that he was gone.
"I won't, though. I won't accept that he's gone, not ever. He's still alive somewhere, Annabeth. I can feel it."
He finally forced himself to look over at her. A single tear was tracing it's way down her cheek. "I hate the ocean," Percy whispered. "Because it stole my father from me. But I love it... Because you reminded me how amazing it can be."
Annabeth didn't say a word. She just gently laced her fingers into Percy's. He couldn't help thinking how soft her hand was. And together, they sat on the beach watching the sunset, both lost in their own thoughts.
I know, I know, it's been forever, and you guys deserve a better chapter than that for the wait, but truthfully, I'm just a person who rushes her writing. Shikata ga nai. (If you know what that means, tell me, and I will put your name in the next chapter because it's an awesome phrase:D)
Today's theme song is for Percy and Annabeth:
If I Lose Myself by OneRepublic
Special thanks to Mystica Tempest for the theme song! (You give the best suggestions, Mysti;) )
Review!
Oh, and sorry for my little rant at the top there.
-Rebel