Disclaimer: No one is as awesome as Uncle Rick. Including me. Characters belong to him.

"Get off me, Thalia," Annabeth grumbled, shifting in the bed to throw the other girl off her. The weight fell off of her, and Annabeth heard a light thud, and she knew her manager most likely landed on her feet.

"You need to wake up. We're late." Thalia sounded impatient.

"Not like that's anything new," Annabeth mumbled, snuggling back into the comfortable duvet. It was true; she'd been famous for nearly 9 months now, and most of the time her arrivals would be several minutes off schedule. She'd been warned that it was dangerous to have a reputation like that in 'the Hollywood biz' but Annabeth ignored the warnings.

It wasn't about the reputations. Sure, fans and money were a pretty good bonus, but it'd always been about singing. And soon her talents branched out into acting ( though most of the time she heavily criticized her own work) and the money and fan supply tripled over a span of a couple months.

Thalia had been with her every step of the way as her manager. Even when she was judged for not completing college, Thalia still supported Annabeth and helped her through the challenges of fame. The original plan was: get enough money to finish school, then get out. But before she knew it, she'd been sucked into Hollywood life, her dreams of becoming an architect.

Every once and a while the reality of it all would hit her with full force and left her thinking: wow, I'm really famous. What she even found more dumbfounding was the fact that she'd managed to make a 24/7 career out of a few hobbies she thought she was okay at. Nothing spectacular. But everyone seemed to think differently, as if she really did have serious talent.

Annabeth hadn't realized she'd dozed off until her eyes shot open and she feel off the bed, screaming bloody murder. She was soaking wet and freezing, and her skin turn bright red with goosebumps rising.

Thalia stood in the doorway, laughing so hard she could barely speak properly. "Had to...wa-wake you...late." The bucket in her hand clattered to the floor as she held her sides.

After she'd calmed down a bit, she whistled to get Annabeth's attention. "We're late for the very important interview. But at least I gave you a somewhat shower."

Annabeth stared at her, her eyebrows knitted. And then it clicked. She had an interview with very important people who could probably crush her if she made a fool of them and showed up late. "Shit, Thalia!" Annabeth yelled, running to find pants while simultaneously brushing her hair.

"Don't yell my name like that; I tried to wake you up." She held out a skirt and Annabeth made a face, but she didn't have a choice, so she snatched it anyways. A few seconds later Annabeth was out the door, a brush stuck to her hair as she pulled down her navy and white tight fitting top that she hated. Her flats were held in her mouth as she pulled the shirt down, and Thalia handed her a few mint and Listerine strips.

This was what most of her mornings consisted of. They had Annabeth's makeup in the car too, so she'd look somewhat decent instead of showing up looking like a zombie with pale skin, chapped lips and dark circles.

As she finally settled down in the car, she couldn't help but wonder what she'd be asked about in the interview. She was new to the industry, she had talent, and she was somewhat dull compare to her other famous peers; what did that leave for the fans? Little to the imagination.

So it'd be inevitable if she was bombarded with questions about rumors that they'd most likely made up themselves. She'd learn a while ago that the trick to acing interviews was to never directly answer a question, and think about your words very, very carefully.

She was a strategist, so that was relatively easy to do. Who would've know that Hollywood was a minefield?

Gwen, her publicist, had made a huge deal out of this, even setting back to back alarms on Annabeth's phone. Although it was one of those teeny-bopper type gossip shows, the hostess was no one to mess with.

She said that her hope for succeeding in the business piggybacked on this, mostly because she had hyped this up with the fans. Everyone who remotely knew of Annabeth Chase was most likely watching this.

Two minutes late. That's all it took to make Annabeth an enemy of Tammi Empsai, the hostess of this very important interview.

"Welcome," Tammi said, leaning forward in her chair to give Annabeth a hand shake. While her tone was light and amused, her ice blue eyes glittered dangerously and her ice cold hand tightened around Annabeth's. She let go a few seconds later, but not without leaving little dents in Annabeth's palm with her talons for nails.

"I'm so glad to have you on my show," She smiled cheekily when the camera focused on her, but it dropped the second it was focused on Annabeth.

As soon as Annabeth arrived, she was shoved onto the set and in a chair, while Tammi took her seat across from her. The way she studied her reminded Annabeth of the way someone would study an opponent, looking for weakness.

"Um, yeah, I'm really glad to be here," Annabeth smiled as sincerely as possible and laughed. "This interview has been literally all I've been talking about for the week."Of course it wasn't true, but she was told to milk it for the audience. "Make it seem as if you would've died had you not been able to be here."

The interview was very invasive, asking her about very personal questions, but she could handle it. And as it rolled to a close, Annabeth couldn't hello bu think it's been way too easy.

And then Tammi leaned in a little, flicking her long blond hair off her shoulder. "Okay, so let's cut to the chase: we know you're secret."

Annabeth's heart seized, and she felt the smile falter for a second, but she quickly covered it with a confused look. "You know, I don't think I'm sure what you're talking about." Tammi smirked. It seemed evil to Annabeth, but she knew on screen it'd probably look all-knowing and confident.

"You've recently turned 19, right?" She asked, and Annabeth nodded.

Tammi tapped her pale cheek with a perfectly manicured talon. "So I couldn't help but wondering...have you ever gone to college?"

Annabeth had been almost certain she'd ask something else, something involving a green-eyed mistake she'd made a long time ago. Annabeth let out a little puff of air and pretended to be thinking. Of course Tammi already knew the answer to this question. She was just dragging it out for the viewers.

"Um, for while, but things got complicated." Shit. What happened to 'think before you answer questions'?

Tammi raised an eyebrow and glanced at the camera. "Complicated? How so?" She patiently waited for Annabeth to gather the answer to the question, tapping her finger silently. A smug look was plastered across her cruel features, thrilled to have caught Annabeth Chase off guard.

"Well," Tammi's eyes glanced down at Annabeth's fidgeting hands, "I mean, it was all so overwhelming, with the school work and a recent break up and money problems with my family. I just couldn't keep up with the drama and my work." She was treading on dangerous waters now. She wondered if Tammi noticed her mistake, but of course she did.

The hostesses eyes glinted with satisfaction. "Oh, money problems, you say? Is that why you've been working so hard since you first came up? To get money?"

Annabeth's eyes widened. She was failing this interview. No wonder Gwen had made such a big deal about briefing her about what was most likely to happen. "No, no, of course not." She sighed, as if it was a hard subject to talk about. "That's just part of the reason; I'm trying to support myself and my family, so they can live comfortably. So my brothers won't have to worry about not finishing college like I had. But the other part- I just really love what I do. I mean, I find it amazing that I was so privileged to have such amazing fans that I do."

Tammi put a hand to her heart. "So noble. But you also said something about a break up...?"

Shit. No, they couldn't make her talk. Could they? If Annabeth wanted to continue having fans she would. She took a breath, and looked up weakly at the camera, almost as if she were preparing herself. This was probably the only part of the interview that wasn't an act.

She hadn't addressed the 'Percy' question in a couple years. She couldn't make herself do it. Thalia never pried, but she always thought Annabeth was avoiding that topic. She was, but it wasn't something she liked to say out loud. It made Annabeth feel like a coward, running away from the massive problem that occupied a chunk of her heart.

"Wow, um, I'd never thought I'd be talking about him again. Uh, yeah, my boyfriend and best friend for years kind of ended it suddenly on graduation day. I'd kind of been distracted after that-"

"Because of heartbreak?" Tammi was eating this up. Annabeth nodded stiffly. "Yeah, and it somewhat interfered with my studies. I really did love him more than I thought. But I'm over it now," She said hastily. Why was she opening up to the whole world about her biggest secrets, do you ask? Annabeth was wondering the same thing.

"How sad," she pouted. "Rumor has it this mystery man is Percy Jackson? Thoughts?"

"Ah," She nodded. "Yeah, that's him. We were really close when we were younger, but I guess as we got older we drifted from each other."

"So you're still in love with him." Tammi concluded. Then she turned to face the camera, "Is there love in the air for Annabeth Chase and Percy Jackson? What about his girlfriend? Possible Percabeth! You've heard it here first-"

Annabeth's face paled. "No!" She yelled. Startled, Tammi turned back to her. "I'm over Percy. He's great and all, but I no longer harbor feelings for him. He's probably happily living his life somewhere that doesn't involve me and I'm totally happy for him. We're close friends. Nothing more." She rushed, her face flushing. She wasn't sure if this was true.

As said before, she'd never asked herself about him again. No if's, and's, or but's.

Tammi looked unconvinced. "Right. So, one sided Percabeth. Do we have a love triangle on our hands, folks? Is Percy the reason Annabeth left college? To pursue her dream, and a possible chance to reconnect with the hottie Percy Jackson? Find out next time, on Allure."

Annabeth had decided there was no point in interrupting again- she was already screwed- and let Tammi finish her conclusion. Tammi yelled "That's a wrap!" and a bell rang.

People started rushing around, no longer paying attention to the two women on set. Annabeth stood up and started walking away, but stopped herself. She approached the hostess, who was too concerned at fixing her make up in a compact mirror to notice her.

Annabeth tapped her shoulder, and Tammi's cold eyes looked up at her and narrowed, flashing with annoyance. "What was that?"

"When?" She asked innocently, her face smug and saying 'oh, this is going to be good'. "Just now. You completely twisted my words, and made me look like a lovestruck little girl that wishes for nothing more than to be with Percy."

"That's because that's exactly what you are. Little girl." She emphasized her words, and Annabeth started reciting the numbers of pi in her head until she calmed down.

Tammi couldn't have been that much older than Annabeth. Maybe 25. But either way, if ego counted for age, Tammi would be too old to remember when she was born. Her fingers clenched and unclenched at her side.

"And what do you mean love triangle? He has a girlfriend" She demanded, but she wasn't sure she wanted to know the answer.

Tammi rolled her eyes in disgust. "What, do you live under a rock?" She pulled out her phone. "No, I'm to busy being a love-obsessed little girl, remember?" Tammi made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a hiss, and her eyes seemed to glow with hatred.

She'd always heard the latest news about Percy, but it wasn't like she was stalking him. It was hard to avoid him, because he seemed to be the golden boy of Hollywood and everyone felt the need to talk about him. Whenever she'd see his face, she wouldn't dwell; she'd simply think: oh, another stuck up celebrity, and went on with her day.

She turned the screen to Annabeth, who caught her breath. In the picture, Percy was standing with a woman, his hand around her waist. He wore a suit, his hair gelled back, and Annabeth couldn't help but realize how mature he looked, yet he looked the same but five times more handsome.

The woman next to him looked almost exactly like Tammi, but her skin was mocha brown and flawless. Her curly brown hair had been pinned back, and she seemed to stand with a certain intimidating elegance, one that'd make anyone fall for her. She wore a well fitting strapless purple gown that matched his tie. While she looked like royalty, a big smile plastered on her face, her dark eyes glittered dangerously, seeming to say: don't cross me.

"This is Kelli. My twin sister. And if you say anything about either of our races I will gut you like a fish." Annabeth nodded mutely, still slightly shocked. "They're not really dating yet, but they will be. I have a feeling this interview really helped push them in the right direction."

Okay, so on top of twisting Annabeth's words and starting a rumor, she was simply doing all of this because it was helping her sister get Percy. "What was the plan, to have Percy see what a stalker I am then have Kelli swoop in and take him from me?"

Tammi looked like she had enough. "Please get out of my face," she said, standing up. Annabeth huffed, but stood back anyways, watching as Tammi walked away. She walked with a limp, and her maxi dress lifted high enough for a second to show a shiny leg, and she realized it was a prosthetic.

Wow. Hollywood was a pageant, where everyone was trophies and flaws- if you have any- was showcased to be shamed. And that's when she realized that everyone in 'the business' had flaws they were ashamed of. No matter how much you died your hair and acted all happy and had plastic surgery, there were still things you couldn't change.

For Tammi, that was her prosthetic. For Annabeth? Her heart was a big flaw that she wished would just get out of the way, just as much as Tammi probably wished she could be normal.

"Talk to be, Annie." Thalia pleaded. Annabeth turned her back to her manager and faced the wall. "I swear I had no idea that they'd ambush you. Gwen warned me something would happen, but I didn't know this- shit, Annabeth, I screwed up big time!"

Silence.

"I didn't want to do this," Thalia said, and she turned to the buttons on the elevator and pressed every one of them. "Thalia-!" Annabeth yelled.

"Ha! Annabeth, tell me you're not mad at you." Annabeth huffed, sitting down on the floor. Might as well. They were going to be there for a while. "I'm not mad Thalia. It's just- Tammi kind of resurfaced important questions that I didn't ask myself. I'm kinda in shock."

"Well, I might as well tell you now." Annabeth looked up at her manager. "Okay, so you know the unnamed film directed by Chiron Cenaur? Well, he wants you for the leading role."

Annabeth stood up, her spirits getting lighter after being so thoroughly crushed by the hostess who knew exactly what she was doing. "Seriously?" The Cenaur Project, as being known by curious fans, had been named number one movie of the year. New York Times had even said you'd be an idiot to pass up the chance to audition.

"Are you sure? He wants me?" She knew Chiron. She'd worked with him several times, and at one point he'd been her acting coach.

"Yes." Her smile dropped. "Now for the bad news. The, um, other leading role."

Why was Thalia acting like this? It wasn't like she hadn't worked with people she didn't like before. Unless... Annabeth's face paled and she slowly shook her head. "No, Thalia, don't tell me you did."

Thalia looked like she truly regretted the decision for the pain it caused her best friend/client. "I'm sorry, Annabeth. But next week, you'll be starting on the movie of the year with Percy Jackson as your co-star."

Update 6/1/15: Okay. I'm not sure what happened to the original chapter Four. I might've deleted it on one of my previous updates. That being said, I had to remake this chapter solely from memory, which was absolute torture. I tried my best, but my memory is absolute crap. Sorry those of you who stumbled along this huge error and still continued reading the story. I love you!

A/N:

Okay, so should Annabeth have a boyfriend? If so, who?

AlicTonksHPJ: thank you so much! Um, I don't really have an updating schedule, but I'll try for every week.

PiperGrace938: Sorry, but its not an Annabeth/Jason fic.

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~Greekfreak302