Disclaimer: I do NOT own Percy Jackson.

A/N: Hi, guys! I've finally decided to update. I'm sorry, it's been well over two months since I've updated this story, but I'm trying to finish This Wasn't Supposed to Happen first. So, forgive me.

Annabeth's P.O.V:

When Annabeth woke up, she was in an unfamiliar room. Her vision was blurred, and her head was pounding. She didn't know where she was, but the first thing that came to her mind was, I want to go to sleep again.

But why had she been sleeping here? Her neck felt heavy, and she forced herself to open her eyes wider, wincing as she adjusted to the bright lights in the room.

Machines were beeping around her, and she faintly hoped for it to stop, even though it was obvious the sound wouldn't.

Finally, when her vision came to focus, Annabeth looked around.

The walls were pale white, the floor was tiled, and she was lying in a bed.

A hospital bed..

Suddenly, Annabeth noticed a figure sitting off to the side, in what seemed like a chair. She quickly pulled herself up, her sore muscles aching as she did so.

The figure must have noticed her movement. They stood up, and walked closer to Annabeth.

A second later, she saw the striking grey eyes come into her view.

Athena.

"Annabeth?" Her mother said, relief flooding into her voice. "I'm so glad you're okay!"

"Mom?" Annabeth croaked, her throat dry. "What happened?"

For a second, Athena stared at her. Then, she sighed. "You passed out, honey. The doctors say you had a temperature of 104. Why didn't you tell me?"

Annabeth looked back at her, suspiciously. Had she really been that sick? It all rushed to her, packing, the boxes dropping, the massive headache she'd had.

She shrugged. "I guess I hadn't noticed."

"I'm so glad you're okay," Athena repeated, her voice softer.

I'm not.

"Where's dad?" Annabeth questioned, and Athena visibly tensed.

"He's..busy right now." Athena said, her voice forced.

Raising an eyebrow, Annabeth asked, "With what?"

"Nothing," Athena replied. "Don't worry about it, Annabeth."

"Okay, well. When are we leaving to New York?"

Athena looked as though she hoped Annabeth wouldn't ask that question. "Annabeth-"

Before she could answer, Annabeth was overcome with a series of loud coughs. She felt like something was stuck in her throat, and tried to cough it out, but it ended up being her saliva. She tasted something like metal inside her mouth, but pushed it back down.

Sighing softly, again, Athena told Annabeth, "I think you need some rest. Go to sleep, once you wake up and your reports are fine, we can leave and go home."

But where was home?

The next time Annabeth woke up, nobody was in the room with her. She looked around, hoping that somebody would at least be there so she wouldn't be alone.

When nobody was, Annabeth ended up being slumped against the uncomfortable and rigid hospital bed, breathing softly.

She looked down at herself in the hospital gown, and shuddered, the thin piece of clothing not being enough to shield her from the cold room.

Even though it was July..what? 10th? 11th?

She'd stopped keeping track of the days.

Looking around once again, Annabeth spotted a whiteboard at the very end of the room, and saw that the days were checked off.

July 12th. It's July 12th.

My birthday.

She was sixteen today, and nobody probably remembered. Why would they?

Suddenly, the door creaked, and a head popped out. "Hello?"

When Annabeth didn't respond, the person entered the room, only to realize he was in the wrong room.

He had flowers in his hand, and a mop of messy, light hair. From what Annabeth could see, she guessed he was either a senior or in college.

When he saw Annabeth, his eyes widened. "This is the wrong room."

A smile twitched at Annabeth's lips. "I think so."

He looked around, uncomfortably. "Sorry, I was trying to find my girlfri-are you okay?" He broke off, finally realizing she was in the hospital bed.

Nodding, Annabeth replied. "Yeah. It's also my birthday today."

She had no idea why she said that, but regretted it.

He, however, had his eyebrows raised. "Really? Happy birthday to you, then."

She smiled at him, and straightened her back. "Thank you."

He glanced at the flowers in his hand, then gave walked over to her. "Well, here."

Annabeth watched him. "What?"

A smile. "For your birthday."

"But you don't even know me."

He shrugged. "So? Happy Birthday, uh-"

"Annabeth. My name's Annabeth."

"Malcolm."

She looked at him. "You know, people don't usually give strangers flowers. You obviously bought them for someone else."

"It's your special day. You deserve flowers. And I can easily get some more."

Shaking her head, Annabeth said, "I can't believe you're doing this."

He started walking towards the door, "Well, you seem pretty cool. Take them! Oh, and Annabeth?" Malcolm said, his hand at the door.

"Yeah?"

"I sincerely hope you aren't allergic to those followers."

Annabeth laughed.

"Sweetie?"

The sound woke Annabeth up, and she sat up, wincing.

Athena was standing above her, a fake smile on her face. "Ready to go home?"

"No," Annabeth said, her neck bones cracking as she stretched.

"We already went through your files and reports, you're okay, so you can go home now. I brought you jeans and a T-shirt to change into, then we're ready to leave."

Glancing at the table where she'd placed the purple and blue-ish flowers, Annabeth confirmed that seeing Malcolm, was, indeed not some sort of weird dream.

Athena followed her gaze. "I was wondering who gave you those."

"The nurse." Annabeth quickly replied.

Athena smiled, again. Annabeth was getting annoyed at the smiles, and felt irritation as she got up.

"That was nice of them," Athena said.

"Mom," Annabeth said. "Do you know the date?"

"It's the 12th," Athena replied. "Well, it's past midnight, so I guess you can say the 13th."

Heaving a sigh, Annabeth picked the bag that held her clothes up, and pointedly looked at the door. "Can you leave?"

Nodding, Athena adjusted her blouse and walked towards the door. "Oh, and just give me your gown once your done. I'll be outside the doorway." she said, shutting the door behind her.

Annabeth nodded, silently.

She threw the bag onto the floor, and sat on the bed, gripping the onto it tightly, forcing herself not to cry over such a small thing.

So much for a birthday.

Percy's P.O.V

Percy was, undoubtedly, terrified.

Well, he guessed, as terrified as you could be while sitting next to a pretty girl and eating popcorn.

The girl, Bianca, had sneaked him in, having seen Percy alone on the streets. Percy didn't exactly understand why a stranger had volunteered to take him in and then insist on giving him popcorn.

According to Bianca, she lived with her mother, Maria. That's all she had said. Maria worked as an ER nurse, so she was gone throughout the entire day.

But Percy wasn't worried about that. It was nearly morning, and he knew he had to leave.

How?

He had no idea.

"So," Bianca said, reaching out for popcorn. "What exactly are you doing on the streets at night?"

Percy shrugged. "Not your business."

"I know," she said, taking a break to swallow her popcorn. "But I'm curious."

"Why?"

"Well, why not?"

"You don't even know me."

She arched an eyebrow. "I know you enough to know you're running away from something."

Sweat trickled at Percy's spine. "It's not your business, Bianca."

She tilted her head to his backpack, lying on the floor. "I know I'm right, Peter."

"Look," Percy told her, removing the bowl of popcorn from his lap, then handing it to her. "I have to go."

She stared at him, intently. "Why?"

"I don't even know you."

"Well," she said, placing the bowl on the side table. "You decided to come in."

"And," Percy stood up. "Now I'm deciding to leave."

"You can't do that."

"Can't do what?"

Bianca sighed, exasperated. "Come in and then just leave. I need to know what you were doing out on the streets or else I'll call the cops."

Percy grit his teeth. "You're irritating."

She winked at him. "That's my job. Now, are you ready to tell me what's wrong?"

"No."

Bianca made a move to grab the phone on the table, and Percy immediately reacted. Striding over, he snatched the phone away from her hand, confirming that she couldn't steal it.

She leaned against the wall and stared at him, as if she expected him to say something.

"What?" Percy asked, not able to bear her glare.

"You have to tell me,"

Percy took one glance at the backpack lying on the floor, then at the clock on the wall. He sighed.

"Fine."

When he finished telling his oh-so-fantastic story, Bianca was staring at him with wide-eyes.

He didn't tell her about his Mom. Or why he'd left, or much about Gabe except the fact that Percy hated him.

"Wow," she commented. "That's..intense."

"Well," he said, "that's my life."

Throwing in a sarcastic smile, Percy tried to control the nerves in his stomach. She could still call the police. Tell them everything he'd just told her.

He had obviously regretted telling her.

"I'm sorry," she said, looking down. "I shouldn't have forced you to."

"I'll be leaving now." Percy said, feeling a surge of irritation go through him as he looked at Bianca.

"Okay," Bianca opened her mouth as if to say something, but shut it again, shaking her head.

Percy walked towards the door, kneeling down to pick his backpack up. He turned to Bianca, smiling slightly. "I'll see you, then."

"Hey, Peter?"

"Yes?"

"I hope you stay safe. Is there any way we can keep in touch?"

"I'll see." No.

A small smile. "Okay."

He stared at her for a while longer, before breaking eye contact. "Bye."

"Stay safe, Percy."

Dawn was something Percy always enjoyed.

Something about it made him think back to his mother, the lightness of the sky reminding him of the happy glint in her eyes.

The night always reminded Percy of how Gabe's eyes turned dark when he was threatening Percy, and the cruel smile he always had.

He stopped near a small bench located right outside of a huge library, and sat down, his heart racing. Setting the backpack aside, Percy leaned back against the bench, pressing his back against the hardwood.

He shut his eyes, all his muscles sore, and tried to think about anything else other than the fact that he had no idea where to go.

A plastic bag slid alongside the deserted road, the wind causing it to move in several directions, never remaining in one place. It was yellow, a certain type of yellow Percy couldn't exactly remember, but it was incredibly familiar.

Almost..blonde? The first thing that appeared in his mind was Annabeth's voluminous and curly hair that she always had up.

It resulted in him thinking of her beautiful and almost silver-like eyes, then back at her hair, and her wide smile.

When he finally realized what he was doing, Percy tried to clear his head, mentally scolding himself.

He hasn't thought about Annabeth in weeks. Why do it now?

Suddenly, he felt a presence sit beside him, and opening his eyes, Percy found that a complete stranger had decided to sit next to him, watching him.

"Uh, do you need something?" Percy asked, preparing himself to run. He braced his fingers against the strap of his backpack, just as the man laughed.

Percy took a good look at the man, trying to understand why he looked so familiar. He had jet black hair along with green eyes, that crinkled when he smiled.

"Relax," he said. "Does it look like I'll hurt you?"

Percy didn't stop gripping his backpack.

When the man realized, he sighed, and held his hands up, as if to surrender. "I'm not going to hurt you."

"What do you want?"

"I want to ask if you're okay," the man replied. "It's not everyday teenagers sit on benches at dawn looking like they'll pass out."

"I'm just waiting for someone," Percy lied. "You don't need to worry about it, anyway."

"What's your name?"

"None of your business."

"Well," the man said, smiling slightly. "I'm Poseidon."

A/N: I have literally spent days trying to finish this and I'm so sorry for not updating! Life is busy. But anyway, onto the reviews! :)

rhig122: I'm so grateful to have readers like you. This review is so kind, thank you so much!

theartnerd333: Thank you! :D I'm so glad you're enjoying it!

FirstBookworm: Thanks! I will have Percabeth, I swear. This is a Percabeth story, so it will be happening, I promise! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Guest: This is so sweet! Yes, they'll definitely see each other again!

IamCrystalClear: It'll happen in time, don't worry!

Guest: Hmm..guess you'll have to see ;)

alex ya bae: I know ;) Thank you so much for reading, al! Love you! :)

uneednotnomyname: Absolutely. I love your stories, they have me captivated. It makes me so happy that I help you. I understand how it feels to be lonely, writing is my escape, too. You can always PM me if you want to, you know. That's always an option. And, thank you so much! I'm smiling so hard right now, you don't know how much this review means to me, honestly. I hope you liked this chapter!

shattered owl: And I finally updated! :D Thank you so much! (Killer..)

marinaofthesea12: :) I'm glad you noticed, love.

Guest: I'm trying. :)

TheViolinWriter: Your reviews always make me smile! I love them! I'm so glad you like my story! (And I totally understand with the too lazy to sign in thing..believe me.)

greekgeekgirlbro: Thanks! I'm glad to be back too. I hope you liked this chapter!

Valdez-The-Repair-Girl: I think Bianca is totally underrated. I will always love your reviews. Thank you! I really appreciate you taking time to leave a review, honestly. I hope you liked this chapter! :)

Keep Smiling: I hope things are going well! Thank you! :D I hope you enjoyed this chapter, also!

CassylovesPercabeth: *updates two months later* I hope you still like this story! :)

AnimeAddict1059: Thank you so much! This review did inspire me, and I thank you for it. I'm glad you're enjoying my story, and I hope you continue to do so! You'll have to see what happens to Annabeth ;)

Greekly Chic Chick: Thank you so much!

And, that's it for the reviews! I hope you guys liked this chapter. I love you guys and thank you for sticking with this story! Keep smiling, xxx.