Annabeth:
"Annabeth-"
"Percy, I'm not asking to move the baby's furniture in. I'm just asking to help paint," I crossed my arms, and Percy faltered.
I smiled, and I walked past him into my old office, which was now supposed to be the baby's room.
Since I was already eight months along, I should have already had the room all made up for the soon-to-be born Olive. But, with Sarah's Christmas Break coming soon, I hadn't had too much time for baby preparations. Instead, I had been getting things ready for her class Christmas party and Christmas itself, where I would be staying home due to not being able to take a newborn to California.
Percy and I had also debated on how we would decorate Olive's room. And, if it hadn't been for Sarah ending the argument by agreeing with me, we would be nowhere.
My plan had been simple, to follow the name of the baby.
The room would be a nice crème, which Percy and I would have to paint. And, where the crib would be, there would be a sprouting olive tree, with Olivia in an olive green cursive. The color scheme was mostly of greens, olive colored and a light spring green. And I had already bought everything for the room, including a specially made bed that could be used to look like a couch for reading stories and could be used for sleepless nights when they wouldn't stop crying.
I was so excited to have another baby, not as excited as Percy of course. But that would be almost impossible.
"Alright, but be careful," Percy smiled weakly as he handed me a paint roller.
I smiled as I started to color the light blue that had covered the walls before.
Percy had almost all of it done, but I still had something to do at least.
"What could happen while painting Percy?" I laughed as I began to paint stepping on the part of plastic where I had made a marker to tell me that I was going to put the crib there.
"Shut up, Annie," Percy smiled, and I shrugged with a smile as I stretched up high to make Percy mad.
"When do we need to pick up Sarah?" I asked, trying to change the subject.
Percy looked down at his Swatch.
"About two hours, but, knowing Sarah and Lyle, she probably won't agree to go home for tree," Percy shrugged with a smile.
After my falling out with Gina, Sarah and Carly had a big fight.
While their mutual friends were still picking sides, Sarah had finally decided to introduce herself to a boy in her class, who had been in a completely different than her, Lyle. It had taken them maybe five minutes to become best friends, and Sarah had quickly gotten along with his friends.
While I did feel a little bit bad for the girls that Sarah had ditched for them, I had to admit that I loved seeing Sarah this happy.
She had gotten along with the other girls, yes, but there was something different about her new friends. It was like she had finally found a place where she felt like she truly belonged, with other demigods and some extraordinary humans. Her old friends had been like clones of each other, as I now saw.
All with the same sort of faces. They all giggled and wore a lot of pink, even with their navy uniforms. And every single one of them was in love with the blonde guy from that Disney show (Austin and Ally? I don't know).
"Lyle is such a cute guy," I smiled as I thought of the little brunette, with those big blue eyes and obsession with Neosporin (the has a special pocket in his backpack to carry it).
"I guess," Percy clammed up, and I turned back to look at him.
"No?" I laughed.
"What?"
"You don't like Sarah hanging out with Lyle?"
"I don't know what you're talking about, Annabeth," Percy shook his head, but I knew my husband well enough to know when he was lying.
"Tell me I'm wrong here, but you," I aimed the paint brush to be pointed at him, "don't like a guy hanging around your daughter."
Percy stumbled, trying to say no, and I started laughing loudly, almost rolling on the floor laughing.
"They're eight!"
Percy tried to talk, but it came out broken and weird.
"I guess it makes sense. We were best friends. So, you don't want your daughter hanging out with a guy best friend," I tried to make it so that it made sense, but I still kept laughing, holding my stomach because I was pretty sure that the baby was laughing along with me.
Suddenly, while I had my eyes closed as I laughed, I felt something cold hit my skin.
I gasped as I looked at Percy, who had a hand slapped over his mouth in shock that he had actually done that.
"Oh my god!" Percy opened his mouth to apologize, but he stopped mid-sentence when crème paint slapped against his pale pink lips.
I laughed as he wiped away the paint from his lips.
He leaned down to the floor, where he picked up a smaller paint brush.
"You're dead," Percy laughed as he splattered the paint on my old San Fran tee shirt, and I continued to splatter my husband with the paint, making sure he was finally covered head to toe while my clothes were really the only painted thing.
After almost an hour of throwing paint at each other, we got a sudden reminder of what we were supposed to be doing when I leaned down an I was out of paint.
"Thank the freakin' gods," Percy collapsed on the painted plastic covers, reaching for a towel to take all of the paint off of his face, and I sat down with my legs tucked underneath me beside him.
"Do we need to pick up more?" I tried not to laugh.
"Just in case," Percy pointed towards the closet, where Rachael had already given us part of her shower gift by painting the door with an olive tree to measure Olive's height when she grew up.
Before Percy could object, I picked up the two heavy cans of paint and placed them both by the treys, putting the right amount in like I had seen Percy do before. And he was luckily too busy hurriedly wiping the paint from his body before it would set in and take hours in the shower to get off.
"Truce?" Percy smiled his dazzling smile as he outstretched his hand, and I took it when I suddenly got knocked off my feet and fell into his arms.
"Annabeth?"
I couldn't answer from the awful pains in my abdomen, I could only grip onto Percy.
"Annabeth, are you okay?" he worriedly asked, pushing my hair out of my eyes to look at me.
"I…I know this-" I stopped at another sharp pain, "when I almost lost-"
I stopped from another sudden pain, but Percy knew what I was going to say.
When I fell down the stairs and almost lost Sarah.
Midnight:
Sarah was falling asleep in my arms in the waiting room, but I was jealous that she could do so.
I was so tired, oh so tired.
But I couldn't even think about sleeping.
How long had I been sitting here after my wife had suddenly gotten terrible pains?
Six hours.
When was the last word I had heard about her condition?
Hmm… when I had first gotten here, they said they were probably going to need to have the baby born today, instead of the expected due date of January seventeenth that I had anticipated for my daughter. Then, maybe two or three hours ago, I had been updated that my daughter was definitely being born today.
Other than that, I was left in the dark.
I brushed Sarah's hair out of her eyes, and I looked around the Lenox hospital waiting room.
It was weird to think that, just about two years ago, I had come here to first meet Sarah and see Annabeth here again for the first time in years.
And now I was holding my daughter as I waited to find out if Annabeth and my soon-to-be born, if not already born, daughter were going to be alright.
I looked at the clock to see midnight pass minute by minute until I couldn't watch the clock anymore.
And then I saw my mom come through the Lenox door, trying to paint her face to not be worried, and I began to wake up Sarah.
"Sarah, your grandmother's here," I continued to lightly shake her until the seven year old sat up and started to rub at her grey eyes.
"But what about Mommy?"
"I think it's still going to be a while, and you should get some sleep, Cutie," I forced myself to smile, but it was weak.
"Hey, Sarah, you ready to go?" Sarah forced herself to smile, and I stood up with Sarah. My mom couldn't help it as she pulled me close into a hug, and I couldn't help but bury my face in my mom's shoulder.
"It'll be okay, Perce," she pushed some hair out of my eyes and smiled her mothering smile at me.
"I know, Mom," I nodded though I wasn't sure if I really believed it.
"Come on, Sarah. You look so tired," my mother took Sarah's hand and smiled down at her, and Sarah looked up to me, as if asking me if I really was stable enough to be left alone.
And I wasn't.
But I couldn't let Sarah know that.
"I'll call you tomorrow, promise, Sarah."
Sarah nodded, and she was starting to walk away when she stopped and turned back to me.
"Tell Mommy and the baby that I love them," Sarah pushed her hair behind her ear, and I nodded towards her smiling a real smile for the first time in hours.
"I will, Sarah."
Sarah smiled thanks at me, and Sally laced her fingers through her granddaughters, leading her off to take her home.
And I slumped back into the chair, putting my head in my hands.
And then I saw Dr. Marino's shining face, walking towards me, and I immediately stood up to meet her.
"Percy, she's doing great. Both of them," Dr. Marino smiled, and I felt a weight lift off my shoulders, "Annabeth is still asleep. And she will be for a while, I don't think she'll really be conscience until tomorrow. But your daughter is perfect. We got her out just in time, I don't know what happened. It was just like her body couldn't do the birth."
Thank you Hera.
"Well, she's alright. That's what matters," I tried, and this forced the thinking face off of Dr. Marino's face.
"Of course. If you really want to, you can meet your daughter. But, she needs a few shots. I'd probably suggest waiting for tomorrow," Dr. Marino told me with her pearly white smile.
"I should probably wait for Annabeth."
"You sure?" Dr. Marino smiled as she cocked an eyebrow, and I couldn't help but laugh for the first time.
"I have a feeling I'd make her sneeze," I held up my paint smeared tee shirt.
"You might have a point there."
"When can I come in tomorrow?"
"Well," she looked down to the files on her clipboard, "I can't really tell when the anesthetic will wear off. Should be about nine AM. But, with all she's been through, I'd say after noon."
"Thanks," I smiled with an idea.
They're okay!
And Percy has an idea?
Hmm… what is this seaweed brain going to do?
Next chapter, people meet the little baby, we name her, and we see Percy's surprise!