Oh, look! THREE CHAPTERS IN A ROW?! Wow, you guys must love me so much, right! Well, this chapter is going to be short. And the next one will be too. I have a warning for the next chapter though. PLOT TWIST. LIKE HUUUUGE MEGA EXTRAORDINARY PLOT TWIST. Read at your own risk, people. And the reason the next chapter will be short is not from lack of idea, but because I feel that what I put in that chapter is all it needed. Nothing more, nothing less. It has just enough to make its point. So good luck. I'll be updating it immediately after this one, which will bring you up to FOUR UPDATES IN A ROW before I have to start writing again. Buh-bam. So here we go!

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the PJO/HOO characters or books. All rights to Rick Riordan.

-Blair

Chapter 6

Annabeth's POV

I wake up the next morning to the sun in my eyes and cool morning air surrounding me. I sit up and feel dizzy, then realize that I'm out on a balcony with Percy, and I remember everything that happened yesterday.

Percy is still sound asleep beside me, and I'm afraid to wake him. He looks so peaceful, adorable, innocent.

I stare at him for a few moments and lay back down next to him. The mattress that must be out here, in a corner of the balcony, for this reason, 'sleeping under the stars' is surprisingly comfortable, like I could curl up in it and have it engulf me completely and take all my worries away.

I continue staring at Percy and begin running my fingers through his soft hair, brushing the little pieces that hang in his eyes away. I'm taken by surprise when he grabs my wrist lightly and brings it to his cheek, holding it there and pulling me against him in a tight hug that I can't seem to get out of. He kisses my forehead and I lay there with him, tired.

"Good morning, beautiful," he murmurs into my hair.

My heart skips a beat and for some reason tears well up in my eyes. No one has ever woken up with me and told me that. One, I'm not beautiful. And two, Luke is- was, hopefully- my first boyfriend, and well, we all know he wouldn't even send a wake up text with that, much less even say good morning.

I blink away the tears and reply, "Good morning."

Then I realize, it's the morning, and I wasn't home at all yesterday, and what is it today, anyway? Is it a school day?

Shoot.

I jolt up out of his grip and sit up. "Percy, what's today? Oh god, my parents are going to kill me. And school, oh no-"

Percy laughs. "It's okay, Annabeth. It's Saturday. You can relax."

I feel my face heat up. "Oh."

Percy chuckles and he lifts himself up to sit next to me. He casually wraps his arm around my shoulder and kisses my cheek softly. "What do you want to do today?"

I shrug. "My parents are probably wondering where I am."

"No need to worry about that, sweetie," a new voice says from behind us.

Percy and I turn around to see Sally standing at the sliding glass door, smiling at us. "I called your parents, and I know you'll hate me for this, but I told them everything."

"What?!" I screech, standing up, causing pain to stab my side. "You didn't! You can't! It's.. It's.. I.."

"Sweetheart, it's already done. They needed to know. There was no excuse for this."

Tears burn my eyes again and I try blinking them away, but they spill down my cheeks. "They're so mad..." I whisper, my voice raspy and terrified, covering my face with my hands.

"No, no, sweetie, no they aren't mad. They're worried about you. They care. They could never be mad," Sally's smooth, soothing voice says, and she hugs me. "They wanted you to stay here for a little while. There's been an emergency with your grandmother, and they called me last night, telling me to keep you here. They don't know when they'll be back, but they promised to keep us updated."

"How do you know their number? How do they know yours? How do they know you? Or how I'd be here?"

"I was friends with your dad when we were young. He was like my big brother. I looked through my old phone books and found his number, and called him while I was out and told him everything. Later on he called me to tell us they had to go."

"Oh..."

"I know. Surprising," she laughs.

Needless to say, we spend the rest of the day playing board games together and eating food, me in an oversized t-shirt of Percy's that goes down to my knees, and the others in pajamas. Before I know it, night has come and I'm climbing into Percy's bed, his fingers stroking my hair, and we're drifting off to sleep, yet again, happy.

TA-DA! Hope you liked it, sorry for the short chappie. Please review! Next chapter is up next. BEWARE!