I do not own any of this. Percy Jackson belongs to the beloved Uncle Rick and the storyline goes to the amazing Michelle Do for her play of the same name.

Five Years Later

Percy entered the new bar with a little girl in tow. Smiling down at the little girl holding so tightly to his hand, he glanced around the interior. It looked so different than he remembered it five years ago. Grover did a good job with the renovations. It had taken him a lot of time and money to get this done, but it was his dream. And by the looks of it, that dream was paying off.

The outside was modern and upbeat. Welcoming to all ages and in a good part of the neighborhood. Five years ago, Grover's bar was just that, a bar. It was small and crowded and had only one restroom. But now, it was a fully functional bar and restaurant. The front was a classy but modern restaurant that served lunch and dinner, open until ten. Then on the right side near the wall, there was a ramp leading down to a split level. That was where the men could go and have a few drinks at the bar. All in all, the space was roomy but yet inviting and everything flowed together perfectly. Who ever the mastermind behind this entire design deserved a medal.

The place was busy. As it should be on the grand re-opening. Grover was milling around and greeting customers, but Percy knew that it wouldn't be long until Grover would want to get back to work, cleaning glasses and wiping down bar stools. Not waiting to be seated at a booth, Percy walked right up to Grover and clapped him on the back.

"Hey there old sport. Everything is looking gorgeous."

"Perce! Glad you like the place."

"Like it, it's amazing! The whole building is different."

"Yeah, well. I was planning on keeping everything the same, but Juniper had a friend in college that was an architect. Highly recommended, and so she pulled a few strings and I got the whole building reconstructed."

"Obviously whoever did this is a genius."

"Oh yeah, well hopefully you'll get to meet her. She's coming tonight to see if everything is turning out the way we envisioned it."

I was momentarily confused by Grover's comment stating that his architect was a woman, but this was a time of change. Women were empowered and could have a life of their own. Of course, if she was Juniper's friend, she had to be pretty amazing. I had only met one woman in my entire life that was spectacular enough to accomplish something like this, and she was long gone from my life now.

"There's my girl!"

I had almost forgotten who I had entered the bar with. I smiled down at the gorgeous little red-head that had previously been holding my hand, but was now clutching desperately at Grover's leg. Lilly was a beautiful little three year old that was the spitting image of her mother. Her strawberry blonde hair was tied up into pigtails and her green dress complemented her eyes perfectly.

"Daddy! I missed you!"

Lilly gave Grover the biggest kiss on the cheek I had ever seen, and was glad to see Grover so happy with his daughter. Juniper and Grover had met four years ago at a cafe and they had been inseparable ever since. Two and a half years ago, little Lilly was born and that is when they decided that Grover's little bar was not going to be enough of an income. Luckily, Juniper came from a wealthier family that invested in Grover's business and supported their decisions all the way.

"I missed you too, cupcake. How was your day at Uncle Percy's?"

"It was great daddy! Uncle Perce took me to the park and we got ice cream and then we watched the clouds and then we went to the new fountain and he let me throw a penny in to make a wish and then we watched the ducks in the pond!"

"Oh wow! That sounds like a busy day." Grover winked at me and tickled her sides that sent her into a giggling fit. He spotted Juniper at a table near the bar and gestured to Lilly. "Hey baby girl, how about you go over to mommy and tell her all about your day so you can eat? Sound good?"

"Yessssssss." She scrambled down from Grover's arms and ran over to Juniper who opened her arms and sat Lilly on her lap to hear her retelling of her day.

"She didn't cause you too much trouble did she?"

"Oh, never. My favorite goddaughter would never cause me any trouble." I joked around with Grover about Lilly being my favorite considering she was my only.

"Well that's good to hear. So, how have you been since you've been back in the states?"

I shrugged and gave him a nod. "I'm fine. I had enough time to unpack my bags before you dropped off Lilly on my doorstep asking for me to babysit so you could do some finishing touches up here."

Grover laughed and clapped me on the shoulder. "Well, it's good to have you home."

We talked an conversed for a few minutes about mundane and ordinary things. After Grover greeted a new customer that gave him a good review, we fell into a comfortable silence, until Grover brought up some unhappy memories.

"So, have you been to see her?"

I hesitated and sighed before nodding. "Yeah, I visited her."

"You seem to be taking it well."

"Well, it's been five years. So, I think that I've had enough time to get over it, but it's still hard to think about."

"Hey, you know that Rachel wouldn't want you to be grieving this long over her. She was giving one of the toughest fights of her life, but it was time for her to let go."

"I know, but it's still hard to let go of your first love."

"Believe me I know it. If something happened to Juniper I'd probably die. But you always were the stronger man, Percy. And I believe that your heart was healed and moved on from Rachel before you knew it. And by the time you came to realize that you would survive without Rachel, it was too late, and you were left alone anyway."

This was the one subject that I couldn't face. I could face the death of my wife, I could face the travelling over an ocean to get away from Manhattan, but I still had trouble thinking about her. Annabeth. Even to this day, her name sent a rush of happiness through me followed by a sense of defeat. I still hadn't forgiven myself for what I did to her, so I tried to run away from everything.

I didn't want to remember everything that had happened between us, so I returned all of the money that Frederick had given me, I said my goodbyes to Rachel, and I took off. I travelled around for a few months but ended up in England and that is where I had been for the past four years. While I was there I had written a book and was now a writer for the Manhattan Times. Now that I was back, I figured now was as good a time as any to finally face my past.

"So, wouldn't you agree that this place is brilliant?" Grover broke the silence that had fallen over us, and we now steered the conversation to safer waters.

"Extremely. Who did you say that your architect was again?"

"I didn't. I was waiting for you to ask yourself."

"Well, who is it?"

"Yeah, Percy, well, about that." Grover was fidgeting and acting as if he had too much caffeine in his coffee that morning. All of a sudden he wouldn't look me in the eye and there was a guilty look plastered onto his face.

"What did you do, Grover?"

Grover didn't answer, instead he just looked up, but he didn't look at me. He was looking behind me, over my shoulder at someone that had just come through the door.

I turned also and realized why Grover had that guilty look on his face. I saw the familiar princess waves first. They were pulled half up underneath a stylish hat that was now being taken with her coat by the maitre'd. After that I noticed her face, it hadn't changed except that it had matured. She no longer looked like a young, strong willed young girl. This was a mature woman who knew what she wanted, and would go to great lengths to get it. She was wearing a maroon dress that flowed around her legs and contrasted her skin perfectly.

Annabeth walked right up to Grover and I, all while looking around the bar and not seeing us. It wasn't until she was right in front of us that I could see her eyes. They were the same beautiful shade of grey that I remembered. They could still see right through me and leave me feeling bare and exposed.

We made eye contact and she stopped in her tracks. With a stunned expression at seeing me again I vaguely heard her say. "Hello there, Percy."

R&R