Don't Think So Much Annabeth
Chapter II: Where the Night Takes Us
"Thalia is your cousin? How come you didn't tell me when you saw me with her?" Annabeth questioned.
She was smiling, letting him know she was in no way angry. Thalia could be manipulative sometimes and she wouldn't be surprised to find meeting Percy was an elaborate set up by her. The fact she went back on her promise to let Annabeth have a quiet weekend seemed too suspicious.
"She may have mentioned going to the bar tonight, and I had hoped you'd be there. She had no idea I would be there." Annabeth tilted her head in question. Maybe Thalia didn't meddle too much.
They were sitting on the roof of a random building, drinking wine after finishing their simple waffle cones with vanilla ice cream from a small yet amazingly delicious dairy parlor hidden within the city. A couple of bottles of wine sat behind them in Annabeth's bag, one already almost empty. Their free hands were placed against the ledge for balance, only a few centimeters to separate them.
His left hand released the ledge for a second to rake through his hair, a nervous habit she'd quickly noticed. She chose to focus on his little quirks, rather than the fact they were tipsy and on the edge of a roof.
"Well, to be honest, I've seen you before tonight. I've seen you around with Thalia, and you just seemed so different from her. She's all aggressive and reckless, and you're the responsible voice of reason. You're so smart, and I thought you were just so interesting. I overheard Thalia telling someone she was going to the club tonight and decided I would make an appearance on the off chance we would get to meet." Under normal circumstances, Annabeth probably would have turned tomato red under the compliment, but the alcohol from the evening had her feeling bolder than usual.
"Thalia actually pointed you out to me, so you'll have to thank her later. I did notice your hair, eyes, and physique after a few seconds though." He feigned offense, and she couldn't help but laugh. The sparkle of mischief in his eyes told her he was amused.
"What about my hair, eyes, and body?" He gestured down his body to make Annabeth laugh again. She tapped on her chin in mock thought, pretending to take time in her answer.
"Well, let's start with your hair. I first noticed how dark it was—not many guys have dark hair like that, so of course, it caught my eye. Secondly, I noticed how it looked messy. Like an attractive messy." Annabeth ran her free hand through his hair, secretly enjoying how soft it was. Usually guys with hair like that had product in it, resulting in an inability to run her fingers through it.
Percy ran with her boldness and looped his hand in her hair to gently tug her closer. She leaned in, unable to fight her lips curling upwards in a slight smile.
"And my eyes?" He whispered.
"The color of your eyes is intriguing. I've never seen such a striking green color." She murmured, eyes glancing down to his lips by accident. It took a considerable amount of effort not to spout off statistics about green eyes being the least common color.
He put down his wine glass and turned, so his body was facing hers more directly. Percy cupped her face, which she leaned into. Her eyes held his, grey meeting green intimately.
"And the rest?" His voice was quieter, almost to the point Annabeth had to strain to hear him. A small smile graced her face.
"I can appreciate when someone takes care of their body, especially when they get rather desirable side effects such as these." Annabeth ran her free hand up Percy's arm, then back down his chest and briefly scraped her nails on his abs through his shirt. He hissed in a breath before grabbing her hips and pulling her away from the edge to hover over her.
He was close to kissing her neck, but Annabeth jumped when she heard a growl instead. Percy pulled back to look her in the eyes. Her heart was pounding, threatening to jump out of her chest and take the leap of faith off the rooftop.
"Everything okay?" She asked. He groaned and buried his face in her neck. His hot breath sent shivers down her spine.
"If I remember correctly earlier tonight, I promised this evening was just going to be having fun and talking."
His words cleared the haze of alcohol from her mind long enough to realize what situation she had just gotten herself in. She started to agree with him, thinking of all the possible outcomes to talk herself out of it, until Annabeth realized something. If she was trying to convince herself not to go, then she wanted to do it.
"I'm not trying to pressure you into anything, but don't over think it. Please don't convince yourself to do anything you don't want to." He pulled away, eyes showing nothing but honesty.
It was his concerned words that made her decision.
"I didn't promise anything, and you promised me fun and talking. We've talked, and now I want to have some fun." Annabeth wrapped her arms around his neck to pull him closer to her, their lips meeting in the middle. When they pulled apart, Percy's pupils were so blown his eyes appeared to be black. She was breathing heavily, all rational thoughts thrown out the window. When she shivered, Percy pulled away still looking lustful but concerned.
"Let's go somewhere else. You're cold." Percy sat back on his heels, pulling Annabeth up with him and rubbing her arms.
"My apartment sound okay?" He offered. She nodded, trying to bite back a moan from the delicious warmth he was providing. He smiled down at her after pulling them to their feet, sliding his jacket around her shoulders. While cute, her blouse was not warm.
"Come on." She couldn't stop smiling as they made their way down the stairs.
His apartment was very nice. Although, calling it an apartment almost was insulting to the nice décor and furniture. As they walked in the doors, she couldn't help but take in the subtle architectural details of the building and the room itself. Everything from the furniture positioning to the color scheme was aesthetically pleasing, and when she told Percy he grinned with pride.
"Do you wanna watch a movie?"
"Is that code for something else, Mr. Jackson?" She asked coyly, batting her eyelashes.
"It's code for I've got a bunch of Disney movie I really enjoy, and I'm wondering if you by chance like them too."
"Do you have the older one's by chance?" Her eyes lit up in excitement, and Percy quickly headed for a small cabinet under his T.V.
Minutes later, they were comfortably settled on the couch with popcorn and The Black Cauldron playing on his flat screen. It was one of her favorites, and the fact Percy had it made him ten times hotter in her opinion.
She'd talked with other men who believed Disney movies and other cartoons were for children, but she still loved them. Adult life was hard enough and being able to relax with a simple movie designed for children kept her sane some nights. Percy obviously felt the same way judging from his collection.
"I think we're almost out." Annabeth examined the bowl of popcorn between them. Stray pieces littered their clothing and the blanket tossed across their legs.
"Do we need more?" Percy's voice sent chills down her spine. It was low and husky, the arm wrapped around her shoulders pulling her even closer. She hummed in thought before deciding to attempt getting up for more popcorn.
Before she could get far, Percy grasped her arm and pulled her down on top of him. Usually, Annabeth would be able to keep balance, but the strength he used made her topple back onto his lap. She started to giggle uncontrollably, Percy grinning down at her. Annabeth brushed the loose curls from out of her eyes, meeting Percy's sea-colored ones staring at her.
"You're beautiful. You know that?" Annabeth burst out laughing again, shaking her head profusely. Wiping the tears from her eyes, she calmed down enough speak again.
"No, I'm not beautiful. I'm just a nerdy blonde architect from California." Percy leaned his head against the back of the couch and blew out a steady stream of air. He looked back down to see Annabeth grinning stupidly up at him.
"How can I make you believe me, Annabeth?" Her grin fell into a solemn face within seconds. The last guy who'd called her beautiful claimed he'd only told her it to get in her bedroom. She knew he'd been angry, but the words still nagged at her.
"Annabeth?" Percy looked worried. That look alone reassured her he was nothing like Luke.
"Show me." She whispered. Percy didn't hesitate to pull her back in for a passionate kiss.
Before Annabeth could even process what was happening, she found herself in Percy's bedroom. She squealed as he tossed her on the bed, joining her seconds later. His lips attacked her neck again, sucking and biting at any skin he could reach, hands roaming everywhere. With every moan, he attacked with fervor and she would moan again starting the whole process again. The chance of hickies popped into her mind at some point, but the pleasure she was feeling managed to, for the first time in her life, cancel out any reasoning she could create.
"Believe me now?" He muttered, tongue soothing the sting of his bite.
"Maybe I'm starting to believe you. I'm still not thoroughly convinced yet." Percy growled at Annabeth's response and he returned to his task eagerly. Eventually, he pulled away making her whine embarrassingly. She tried to tug him back, but he didn't budge.
"Annabeth, I need to you stop for just a second." That snapped her back into some semblance of a right mind, the lustful haze clearing from her mind. Hurt began to creep into her mind, and she bit her lip to keep from saying anything.
"Annabeth, please believe me when I tell you that I do want this. I want you so bad right now, but I have to be sure you're not doing this because of the alcohol. I don't want to take advantage of you." Affection flooded out any feelings of hurt, and she smiled gently. Percy was really turning out to be quite the gentleman.
"Anything I drank earlier tonight is hardly affecting me. Besides, trust me when I say you are not taking advantage of me. Haven't you already asked me that question?" Percy smiled before pressing Annabeth back onto his bed, her laughter echoing throughout the room.
~.~.~.~.~.~.
Annabeth woke up the next morning to what sounded like someone trying to break down the front door.
"Damn it, Percy, you had better open this door before I break it down! I know you went off with Annabeth last night and I want to know where the hell she is!" It was Thalia. She groaned until she remembered Percy was right beside her. However, she began to think he was a heavy sleeper considering he hadn't even twitched through all Thalia's banging. Lucky him.
"Perseus Jackson! You've got ten seconds to open the door! One! Two!" Annabeth scrambled to grab the first pieces of clothing she could find. She didn't doubt Thalia wouldn't break down the door when she got to ten. It was partially the reason she'd given her a key to her apartment.
"Seven! Eight! Nine! Ten!" Annabeth managed to wrench the door open right as Thalia was prepared to kick it down. She paused, one leg chambered to kick. Once she realized who opened the door, she put both feet back on the ground and grinned.
"So, this is where you ended up." Thalia scanned Annabeth with crossed arms and grinned.
"Usually I would work my way up to teasing you about sleeping with my cousin, but the fact that you have his shirt on and your pants from last night is motivation enough for me just to get right to it!" Annabeth looked down at her attire, turning red when she realized Thalia was completely honest.
"You cannot get mad, you started all this. We left the bar last night, originally just to talk and see the sights, but eventually, we ended back here for a movie, and I guess—" Thalia cut her off by squeezing Annabeth in a hug. After releasing her, Thalia held her back at arm's length, looking over her over again.
"I'm so proud of you Annabeth! Your first one-night stand! I'd ask how it was, but quite honestly, I do not want to know anything about my cousin's sex life, especially when it involves my best friend. Let's go and get some coffee, and… wait— do you even have a hangover? You don't look hung over." Annabeth started to open her mouth again to deny what she had done was a one-night stand, but quickly shut it once she realized that was precisely what it had been. Maybe? Percy had seemed to like her more than a one-night stand, and she definitely liked him.
"Aw, I was hoping you would want to stick around and hear every last dirty detail. Why the rush Thal?" Percy's voice drifted from behind her. He was standing in the doorway to the entranceway, the smirk that had driven Annabeth crazy last night on his face. He was shirtless but donned a pair of sweatpants that hung low over his hips.
He turned his gaze over to Annabeth, the smirk transforming into a genuine smile. It made her heart flutter again, and she let a small smile grace her face.
"Were you going to leave without saying goodbye, Annabeth?" He addressed her, and she turned bright red.
"I, um…"