Oh my gosh. I'm so freaking behind on my writing. FINALS ARE JUST AROUND THE CORNER! Hopefully when I'm done with them I'll have more time to write and I can get my buffers back. But ugh. I've gotten obsessed with The Sims and that has become everything that I do. LOL!
So it's like 1am and I'm exhausted so I'm only gonna responded to like... 2 reviews... that cool? Alright.
A Faulty Spell Casting Demigod: No, you DIDN'T review on the last chapter. I was so disappointed. Ugh. And don't even remind me about work load. I just finished a project that me and my group spent weeks on preparing and oh my gosh, it was like... I just wanna get this over with! But... Yeah. :P
TheGReekGeek (Guest): LOL! Uncle Rick is cool though. I've started to pick up on his writing style so... I'm happy about that. And the Mythology thing? That's cool! I actually corrected my English professor when he said that Hyperion was a sun god. So the story goes like... We were reviewing for our midterm and he asked me to name a sun god aside from Helios and I answered Apollo immediately without a second thought and he was like "no" and I was like "yes." So we googled it and I was right. Then, I asked him what he had written as the correct answer and he said Hyperion and I told him that Hyperion was a titan and not a god and he was like, "Oh. I guess I learned something new." LOL! That was my story of the day.
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Percy Jackson and the Olympians... Obviously since I am in no way, shape, or form Rick Riordan.
"It looks like there's a new power couple on the rise in New York City," Giuliana Rancic from E! News reported. "Last night, Annabeth Chase, heiress to the multimillion dollar architecture company, Olive Branch Architects was seen having dinner with Percy Jackson, the man she was stranded on an island with just two weeks ago. Could last night's dinner just be a friendly get together or something more?" The woman with curly brown hair and piercing grey eyes shut off the television, not knowing what to feel about the news report and how to approach this potential issue. It was disconcerting to her because she always knew what to do, what plan to use. The woman never watched gossip shows on a regular basis but tended to keep tabs on them to see what her daughter was up to, more for the company's sake than anyone else's. She knew her daughter was capable of taking care of herself. That's how she was raised. It was the media that put her on edge. People with a lot of influence and power were always put in the center of the spotlight and watched with a careful eye. She knew that from experience. The woman would have to have a talk with her daughter to see what prompted a dinner date with Percy Jackson.
•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•
A pounding on her apartment door was not the way Annabeth Chase wanted to be woken up on a Sunday morning. She, grudgingly, rolled out of bed and made her way, slowly but surely, to her door and opened it to a flash of spiky black hair as her best friend, Thalia Grace pushed past the drowsy blonde into the apartment. "That guy isn't here, is he?" she asked, looking around as though she were searching for something.
Thalia was the eldest child of Zeus Grace and by her birthright, would be the heiress of his aviation company. But, Thalia always had this extreme fear of heights and could never gather enough composure to get on a plane for travel so she gave the company to her younger brother, Jason, who was a much better fit for the job. Instead, Thalia went to go work for her aunt, Artemis, who ran an environmental conservation company, and, because her Aunt never had kids, she decided that she would be passing it along to Thalia.
"What?" Annabeth asked, closing her door, still not quite sure about what was going on. "What are you talking about, Thalia?"
"That guy you were with last night. He didn't spend the night did he?" Annabeth stared at her best friend with a confused look on her face until her mind cleared and she understood the implication of the words.
"Oh, gods, no!" Annabeth exclaimed with a disgusted look on her face. Sure, at one point, if they lasted that long, she wouldn't mind thinking about doing that with Percy but their relationship was still new and she didn't want their relationship to be based on that, nor would she give herself up so quickly.
"Hmm," Thalia hummed. "I'm not sure if I should be disappointed or happy about that."
"Thalia!"
The black-haired woman laughed. "I'm just messing with you, Annie."
"Don't call me that."
"Oh, come on now."
"I don't mean to be rude, Thalia, but why are you here?" Annabeth asked, flopping onto her couch, already exhausted by her friend's visit.
"I wanted the deets!" said friend exclaimed. Annabeth wondered how Thalia had so much energy this early in the morning. Normally, she was the kind to sleep in until noon or later.
"About what?"
"About you and that Jackson guy!"
"How did you even know about that?" Annabeth asked, obviously confused.
"It was on E! News this morning," Thalia answered as though it were the most obvious answer in the world. Annabeth blinked.
"Since when do you watch gossip shows?" Annabeth continued, trying to deflect having to talk about the night before, as she knew that endless teasing would come from her best friend.
"I don't. But I was flipping through the channels and I was drawn to your E! News story." Annabeth rolled her eyes at her friend's dramatics. "And don't think I don't know what you're doing. You're trying to avoid the subject. So, tell me."
Annabeth sighed. "We were both off that night so we decided to go out to dinner. Nothing special, just… to catch up," she lied. Thalia narrowed her eyes.
"You're lying."
"Am not!"
"Yeah, you are. Nothing special, my ass. You two were walking out of Ambrosia and Nectar. That's one of the most prestigious restaurants in all of New York, maybe even America. Reservations take longer than you two have known each other. Who is that guy?"
"He's the guy I got stranded on an island with." Annabeth stood up and went into her kitchen to pour herself a glass of juice. Thalia followed.
"That's not what I meant."
"Then what did you mean, Thalia?" Annabeth asked.
"Yes, Thalia," said a new voice that made Annabeth's blood run cold. She looked past her best friend to see her mother standing at the doorway of her kitchen. "What did you mean?" Annabeth's eyes went wide.
"Mom!" she exclaimed. "You're here!"
"Yes, I am here, Annabeth. And it seems my intentions for visiting is similar to Ms. Grace's." Annabeth flinched.
"So… I'm guessing you saw the E! News story, too," the blonde heiress said weakly. As strong as a person she was, she could never stand up to her mother's much colder version of their similar piercing grey eyes.
"I did." Athena Chase stepped back, silently gesturing that they bring the conversation back into the living room. "So," she continued once they were seated. "This Percy Jackson boy. He's the one you wanted to see in the hospital, correct?" Annabeth gulped. She didn't think her mom would bother remember something like that. But then again, it was Athena Chase. Athena Chase always remembered details.
"Yes."
"So you finally got to see him?"
"Yes."
"And you went on a date with him?"
Annabeth hesitated. "Yes," she finally answered, knowing there was no point in lying to her mom. Thalia, who was sitting on the recliner, was simply watching the conversation between the mother and daughter with amusement, her head moving back and forth as though she were watching a tennis match, which wasn't surprising. Athena's next question, however, nearly shocked the blonde right out of Annabeth's hair.
"How was it?" Annabeth's eyes went wide at her mother's question.
"Uh… what?" she responded dumbly.
"The date. How was it? Was he respectful? Did he pay for the meal? Did he pick you up?" Those questions were questions Annabeth would have never thought to have heard coming from her mother's lips.
"Umm… Yes?"
"You don't sound sure."
"I'm sorry, Mom. I'm just a little confused is all."
"About what? Did you think I'd be mad that you're dating?"
"Yes?" Athena laughed. She actually laughed. Even Thalia went bug eyed.
"Darling. You're twenty-one. I can't keep you from dating anyone. But it is my job to make sure that you stay focused in your work. It is also my job to make sure that whoever you're dating is a proper fit for you. That means an extensive background check, an analysis of his motives, and other things of the like."
"Uh… Okay?" The 'extensive background check' and 'analysis of his motives' made Annabeth nervous but otherwise, she was happy that her mother did go all 'Iron Maiden' on her.
"I want to meet this boy as soon as possible." She pulled out her phone and unlocked it.
"What?"
"How about dinner? Tonight." The older woman looked at what Annabeth assumed was a calendar app before nodding. "Yes. Tonight is good. There are no other plans made for tonight. Call that boy and tell him that we'll be having dinner at the mansion." Annabeth's face paled. Her and Percy just started dating and he was already going to be meeting her family? Who knew what kind of embarrassing questions her brothers might ask or even her parents. They knew that she and Percy were stranded on an island for a week but they never really got around to talking about the details and if it ever came up, Annabeth changed the topic.
"Umm. I don't know. He might be busy. He's got a life, too."
Athena shook her head. "Nonsense. If he's serious about this relationship, then he would make time for you." Annabeth sighed.
"Call him, Annie!" Thalia encouraged, ignoring the death glare that the blonde heiress was shooting her.
"Yes. Give him a call right now," Athena agreed. Thalia handed Annabeth's phone to her. Annabeth stared at Thalia and her mom unbelievingly. This was probably the closest she'd ever get to the two of them agreeing on boy talk.
"You've got to be kidding me," she muttered before calling Percy's phone number (and putting it on speaker, another one of Thalia's suggestions, which, again, was seconded by her mother).
"Hello?" he answered on the third ring, sounding like he just woke up.
"Hey," she greeted awkwardly. "Did I wake you?"
"Huh? Oh uh… Yeah, but I'm glad you did. I kind of slept through my alarm." Annabeth nearly rolled her eyes with a smile before she remembered that she had an audience.
"You have an alarm on Sunday?"
"I try to have lunch at my Mom's every Sunday. I need the alarm to wake me up on time, but that doesn't always work." That time, Annabeth couldn't help but laugh a little.
"Then… I guess I'm not sorry." Percy chuckled, too.
"Did you need something?" he asked.
"Uh, yeah, actually. Our dinner last night was apparently featured on E! News this morning and now my Mom wants to have dinner with you. Tonight."
"Tonight?"
"You're not busy are you?" There was silence on the other line and Annabeth was sure Percy was having a mental breakdown or something. "Percy?" she prompted, hopefully bringing him back to the real world.
"Huh? What? Uh… No, no. No plans tonight. I'm free. Where, um, where should I meet you?"
"At my apartment. We'll head over together."
"Alright. I'll be there at six."
"Great."
"Bye."
"Bye." With that, Annabeth hung up the phone and looked up to see Thalia on the verge of doing some weird hybrid of squealing and laughing: something very un-Thalia like. Her mother on the other hand, looked as professional as usual, although Annabeth could see a slight glimmer in her eyes. A sign that, after listening to the call, means Percy is slightly on the CEO's good side. "There. He's free for dinner."
"I'm so coming," Thalia said. Annabeth's eyes went wide.
"No."
"Aw! Why not Annie?!" she complained.
"Because I said so."
"Mrs. Chase," the black haired twenty-two year old said, turning to the older woman.
"I'm not commenting on that." Athena stood. "Dinner is at seven, Annabeth." With that, her mother left Annabeth and Thalia alone.
"Can I please come?"
"No, Thalia."
"Ugh! Why won't you let me meet this guy?"
"You'll meet him eventually," she placated. "Just not today. Deal?" Thalia narrowed her eyes but sighed in defeat.
"Fine."
•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•
Percy nervously stood outside of Annabeth's apartment with two hangers in his right hand. In a few hours, he would be meeting Annabeth's parents. Everything was moving so fast. If this were a normal relationship, he and Annabeth would go on two or three more dates before meeting the parents were even considered, but in all fairness, he and Annabeth were never really a 'normal couple.' They'd met while on an island, and had a heavy make-out session before they even went on their first date. Oh, and she was the heiress of the biggest architecture company while he was a lowly marine biologist. Shaking his head to dispel his thoughts, Percy raised his hand and knocked on the door. He waited a few seconds before it opened up to Annabeth, who was wearing a nice blouse, dark jeans, and heels. "Hi," he greeted sheepishly.
"You're in jeans and a T-shirt," was her immediate response. "Why are you in jeans and a T-shirt?"
He shot her a sheepish smile and lifted his hand holding the hangers. "I didn't know what to wear." Annabeth rolled her eyes, but the smile playing on her lips told him that she was more amused than annoyed. She opened the door wider to let him in.
Percy found himself standing next to Annabeth in her room with the two outfits he had brought laid out on her bed, side by side. "So, you couldn't figure out what to wear?" she asked, a smile obvious in her voice.
"Just help me, please." Annabeth laughed at that and picked apart both of the outfits. She removed the long-sleeved undershirt from one of the hanger and held up the remaining green striped button down against his chest, cocked her head in a contemplative gesture before laying it back down on the bed. She then went on to inspect his jeans, and finally, his shoes. She pulled the nice shoes that he brought from the plastic bag attached to the hanger with the suit.
"Put that shirt and these shoes on. I'll be back," she said, before stepping out of the room to let him change. Two minutes later, he had the outfit on and Annabeth was knocking on the door.
"I'm decent," he called out and the door opened. Annabeth walked in and frowned slightly. "What?" he asked.
"Untuck your shirt and roll up your sleeves," she said, walking closer to him.
"Isn't this a little too unformal?" he asked as he did what she said. Annabeth laughed.
"Percy," she said once she calmed down, giggles still evident in her voice. "My family is rich, not royalty." Percy frowned.
"That's debatable." Annabeth rolled her eyes and stepped into his arms.
"Well, royalty or not, you don't need to worry about anything, alright? I'm sure my family will love you, just like I do." Percy raised a brow, a smug smirk growing on his face.
"You love me?" he asked, watching as Annabeth's eyes went comically wide, probably realizing what she had just said.
She seemed to think over a response in her head before she answered. "Even though we haven't known each other long, yes. I do," she finally said, a ghost of a smile on her face as though she were hesitant to share that tidbit of information. Percy rested his forehead against hers and placed his hands on her back.
"Good," he said, "Because I love you, too." They closed the distance between them and held each other, kissing each other, smiling in between each one.
When they finally broke apart, Annabeth placed one more kiss on Percy's lips and took a step back. "We should probably go," she said. "We've got quite a drive ahead of us."
"Where exactly are we going?"
"My parent's place."
Nearly forty-five minutes later (traffic was terrible), Percy found himself pulling up to a ginormous home. It was as large as his entire apartment building. He felt so small driving up in his little old blue Prius. He didn't belong in places like this. The entire situation got him thinking about how completely wrong it was for him and Annabeth to be together on a social standpoint. But, that revelation also made him feel lucky that he had Annabeth and that she deemed him worthy of a relationship.
As if sensing his thoughts, Annabeth's hand intertwined with his over the console and when he looked over to her, she gave him an encouraging smile. "Ready?" she asked as they pulled up to what Percy figured were the front doors.
"As I'll ever be," was his response. They stepped out of the car and one of the servants came up to take Percy's keys.
They had a valet service at their home? he thought. Seriously?
He handed the man his keys and met Annabeth at the base of the stairs leading up to the large mahogany double doors. "Wow," he murmured under his breath. Annabeth heard him.
"My mom designed the mansion," she said. "Some advice? Throw in a complement about the design, and you can feel better about being on her good side. But, don't over do it." He nodded in understanding and they proceeded up the stone steps.
When they reached the top, Annabeth knocked on the door and the two of them waited for it to be answered. A petite Asian woman opened the door and greeted the two of them, well, Annabeth mostly, and ushered them inside past the large foyer and into a living room type area. The two of them took a seat on the leather couch and waited. After a minute, Percy heard what sounded like a stampede and he was pretty sure that if the house was smaller, he would definitely feel the vibrations.
"ANNIE!" two voices yelled. Annabeth stood up and greeted two teenage boys that were nearly her size in a group hug. He was surprised that they didn't topple over.
"Matthew, Bobby," she smiled, pulling back. "It's been a while. How's school?"
"Ehh," one of them said.
"I like it," said the other. Annabeth turned around so that she faced Percy and her two brothers. Percy figured that was his cue to stand.
"Boys, this is Percy," she introduced. Percy smiled awkwardly. "Percy, these are my brothers: Matthew and Bobby." Percy took in the two teenagers. Matthew had shorter, cropped hair while Bobby's was slightly longer and shaggier. Much like Percy's own hair at fifteen. As long as they didn't get similar haircuts, he figured he could tell them apart fairly easily. He held out a hand to the two boys and Matthew took it with a strong grip while Bobby simply stared at him. Matthew nudged Bobby in the side.
"So…" Bobby asked instead, still not taking Percy's hand that was still hovering uncomfortably in between them. "Have you and Annie like… kissed?" Percy's already awkward smile faded, his eyes went wide, and dropped his hand. He could feel his cheeks getting warm.
"Bobby!" Annabeth chastised, her face equally as red. "That is not an appropriate question!"
"Come on now, boys," a new voice said. Percy was thankful that he recognized it as Annabeth's father. "Leave your sister and Percy alone." Everyone's head spun around to see the older man walk into the room with a smile on his face and a gleam in his eye. When he came up to them, he pulled Annabeth in for a hug. "How have you been? I haven't seen much of you," he said. Annabeth smiled.
"I've been good. Busy, but good," she answered. They pulled away from their embrace and Mr. Chase turned his attention to Percy.
"Percy," he greeted. "It's nice to see you again."
"The feeling is mutual, Mr. Chase," was his reply.
"Wait," Annabeth interrupted, a confused expression on her face. "You two have already met?"
"Oh, yes, that's right dear," the older man said as though he'd just remembered an important detail. "The day we took you home from the hospital, I went back to visit Percy. Just to see the man that took care of my baby girl when I couldn't." Percy didn't exactly know why, but he felt his face grow hot once more.
"I told you, Mr. Chase," he said modestly. "You're daughter was the one who took care of me."
"Is that so?" another new voice chimed in. Percy recognized the voice but only from documentaries he'd seen on the most powerful businesses in the world. It belonged to none other than Athena Chase. "Then how could I possibly trust my daughter with a man that couldn't take care of them when it counted?" If Percy's face was red from embarrassment before, it was as white as a sheet in fear now. Looking at the strong, confident, and intimidating posture of Athena Chase as she strode into the room sapped all of the good energy Percy was feeling. Her piercing grey eyes, so similar to Annabeth's own, but with a harsher tinge, made him want to cower in fear or hightail it out of the mansion all together.
Looks like complementing the mansion was out of the question, he thought.
"Mom," Annabeth complained. "We took care of each other. Percy is just being modest."
"Well I should hope so," the older woman said. "I want to know that my daughter is going to be well taken care of." She looked right into Percy's sea-green eyes, which caused a shiver to run down his spine. He swallowed thickly.
"Of course," he responded in what hoped he sounded like a confident tone.
Athena, thankfully, turned her attention away from Percy and changed the topic, announcing that dinner was ready. The Chase family made their way to the dining room, leaving Percy and Annabeth behind to follow. Percy blew out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. "Breathe," Annabeth soothed, rubbing his back.
"I'm trying," he said. "Your Mom is kind of scary."
"Yeah… She's an acquired taste." They began walking toward the dining room and saw that everyone had already taken a seat, leaving Percy the head of the table, opposite Frederick, and Annabeth to his immediate left, beside Athena. They took their seats and Grace was said before servants filed in with plates and food. Conversation filled the room while the servants worked and Percy was amazed.
Subtract the large mansion, the four women practically floating around the table refilling their drinks, the large chandelier handing above the table, and the authentic porcelain china plates, and Percy would have never guessed that this family was one of the richest families in the whole world. Sure, there were some differences in conversation topics that what he, his mom, and Paul, would talk about, and Athena seemed reserve on a few select discussions, but they were a family nonetheless. "Percy?" Annabeth asked, pulling him out of his reverie.
"What?" he blinked dumbly.
"We were talking about baseball and you were kind of just staring blankly."
"Uh, sorry," he said. "I'm not much of a sports fan. Except for swimming, that is."
"Is that so?" Frederick asked. Athena just watched him with an expression that Percy couldn't place.
"Yeah," he said. "My step-father, Paul, tried to get me into it but it never really worked out. But I've always loved to swim."
"Have you ever competed?" Annabeth's father continued.
"I did club when I was younger, then varsity in high school. I also competed in college." He could see all of their eyes widen slightly at that bit of information, sans Annabeth of course.
"What college?" one of the boys, Matthew, asked.
"NYU," he responded.
"And what did you study?" Athena inquired.
"Bachelor of Science in Biology with a focus in marine and aquatic life," he answered with pride. Athena could intimidate him on so many levels but he was proud of himself for picking his major and finishing it and no one was going to make him feel inferior about it. When he said his field of study, he could see a mixed look on the older woman's face. It was as though she wasn't impressed at all by his field of study, but impressed by his pride in his work.
"Could we see you race?" Bobby asked. Percy laughed.
"I don't compete anymore," he explained. "I just swim for fun or for a workout now."
"We could race you!"
"I'm sure Percy would kick both of your butts in a race," Annabeth smirked.
"Could he beat Michael Phelps?" Matthew questioned. Suddenly, all eyes were on the black haired swimmer. For two fifteen-year olds, they sure asked a lot of questions that Percy would expect from eight-year olds.
"Uh… at the moment, probably not."
"But you're saying you could," Bobby pressed.
"Maybe," was his response. "I probably could during the prime of the season when I swam my best." He could see Athena's eyebrow shoot up.
"Michael Phelps is one of the greatest Olympian athletes in swimming. What makes you think you could beat him?"
Percy shrugged. He didn't want to seem boastful but one encouraging look from Annabeth gave him a burst of confidence. "My record for the 400 meter freestyle is two seconds faster that Michael Phelps," he said.
"So why aren't you competing in the Olympics?"
"I didn't want to be under the spotlight and all the media and whatnot, so I told my coach that I wasn't interested. While I loved swimming and competing, I knew that that life wasn't for me. I wanted to be close to my mom and Paul. I never really felt the desire to on television and in the media."
"Interesting that you don't enjoy the spotlight," Athena said. "You do realize that dating my daughter will attract media attention, correct?"
"Yes."
"So what happens if you decide that you don't like all the attention?" Percy gulped.
"Mom," Annabeth interrupted, trying to step in. But Percy knew that he was slowly making his way to Athena's bad side and disapproval and while Annabeth could still date him, he wanted to know that he was on a good foot with both her parents. So he stepped in.
"No, Annabeth," he said, placing a gentle hand on hers, silently telling her that he'd handle it. "I've got this." He looked into Athena's eyes and called on every ounce of courage and confidence he had in his body. "Mrs. Chase," he began. "I've known your daughter for less than a month, but being stranded on that island together allowed us to learn about each other in ways that we normally wouldn't learn. And one thing I've learned is that, no matter what the circumstances are or what the situation is, Annabeth is worth fighting for. And, if she'll let me, I'll fight for her everyday, no matter what." He looked around the table to gauge the expression on the Chases' face. Both Matthew and Bobby were making gagging faces while Frederick had one of approval. Out of the corner of his vision, he could see Annabeth smiling up at him with pride and love. Then he settled on Athena's face. She was his biggest obstacle. She made it difficult to warm up to her but he could see in her eyes that she accepted his response and was impressed, if only slightly, by his little speech.
The rest of dinner, fortunately, went without another hitch. Athena warmed up ever so slightly, holding back on the biting comments and intimidating stares. By ten, Percy found Annabeth and himself standing outside, saying their goodbyes to the rest of the Chase family. "Drive safe!" Frederick called as the two of them climbed into Percy's Prius. He pulled out of their large driveway and made his way back to Annabeth's apartment, feeling better, knowing that although they'd gotten off to a rocky start, Annabeth's parents approved of their relationship. More or less.
And there you have it folks! Chapter 16!
What did you think about Athena? Shocked at her reaction? Let me know what you think in a review!
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