The next morning finds her lighter, as if a weight had been taken off her chest. Percy had left a little bit after their conversation, clearly not in the best state given he had been drinking and fallen asleep. Jason had taken him home, but not before he shared a last discrete smile with her.

That smile is on her mind all morning and afternoon, letting her breathe a little easier. She still doesn't know what is going to happen, but she knows that it's okay. And all it took was one conversation.

If only they'd done this before, maybe everything wouldn't have blown up then. But it's in the past and there's nothing she can do about that now.

He head is so full of thoughts she doesn't register that Helen has asked her to take out the trash three times now. Trying to shake herself out of it, she grabs the bag and walks it to the curb.

The cold air feels refreshing as she unceremoniously dumps the bag on the ground and is about to walk back when she sees none other than the object of all her thoughts.

"Percy?"

He's standing with his hands in his pockets looking a little sheepish, as if he'd been caught loitering.

"Hey," he says quietly, taking a hand out of his pocket to give her a little wave.

"What're you doing here?" she asks, bewildered. She hadn't expected to see him so soon. Then again, she doesn't quite know what to make of the situation as a whole.

"Um, I was wondering if you wanted to grab a bite to eat?" The hand that had waved goes to the back of his neck and is she crazy or is he…nervous?

"Uh, sure, just let me grab…" she doesn't finish the sentence, just points to her front door and jogs away as soon as he nods.

Quickly grabbing her purse, she stops to look at herself in the hallway mirror. Running a few fingers through her hair, she curses. At least her leggings and sweater weren't bad, and her hair looks halfway decent after her attempts.

And though she was not prepared to see him, her heart is thumping in excitement and she can't help but smile at the fact they'll be spending some time together.

Stop it Annabeth, she tries to tell herself, he could be trying to tell you that he doesn't want to see you again.

But there's not enough time to really think and she makes it back down her driveway, breathless for a multitude of reasons.

"Okay, I'm ready," she says, stopping a few feet away from him.

Percy just nods, and they both stand there for a second of silence.

"Um…so where to?" she asks, breaking the silence. Okay so maybe she should be more nervous.

"Oh, right," he starts, "there's a new diner if you want to check it out? It's supposed to be old school."

"Sure," she replies, following him to his car parked a little down the street. He opens the door for her and she thanks him as she gets in.

It's weird. The formality, the fact that he's driving combined with everything they've been through.

"I heard they have good milkshakes," he says after thirty seconds of him driving in silence. "So I figured you'd like it."

"I'm sure I will," she replies, still a little baffled by how nervous he is. It's making her feel nervous too.

Thankfully it's a short drive and he pulls into the parking lot a few minutes later.

"Cali's," she reads the sign. "Sounds cool."

Percy leads her in, and they end up getting seated in a booth at the back by a window. She sits opposite of him and they start to look over the menu.

It feels so much like a date. And now that she's had the thought, she notices that he's made an effort to tame his hair and—

"What do you want?" he asks, cutting her thoughts short. He still hasn't looked up from the menu and she can't help but blurt out.

"Is this a date?"

He looks up at her and she feels a blush cross her cheeks as she tries to explain. "I just mean…you and me, here, it just feels—"

"Do you want it to be?" He asks. It's clear he's still nervous and she kind of hates it. It's like he's walking on eggshells, as if they haven't kissed and held hands and dated already.

"Yes," she replies after a moment, deciding it's best to be honest. She doesn't want to make the same mistake again. "Do you?"

He nods. "I…I figured I should do things the right way…" The 'since last time didn't go too well' is left unsaid.

She smiles at him, unable to contain her excitement. A first chance is rare enough, a second chance is something she isn't going to let go of.

"I appreciate that Percy, I appreciate the date," she tells him. Clearly, he's trying hard to do things the "right" way as he said.

And maybe she's impatient or impulsive (and maybe that's what got her into this mess) but she doesn't really think there is such a thing.

"Just…" she starts, trying to figure out how to phrase her thoughts. "Just remember that it's me, you don't have to worry."

Percy shoots her a small smile. "I think because it's you I have to worry."

She shakes her head. "I mean we already fucked up, it can only go up from here."

And for the first time he returns her smile in full and it's her first true breath of relief. She can't believe she ever hated that grin.

"You have a point," he says."

She leans back with a grin of her own. "Exactly. So…take two?"

And then he shoots her his signature smirk. "Take two. So…tell me what you want princess."

Oh, two can play at that game.

"You…I mean," she tries to hide her smile, "your menu…let me see."

-.-

Dating Percy the second time is even better than the first. And she's not really sure how that's possible, but the last two days have felt like paradise.

They've spent so much time together, falling back into flirting and banting so easily that it's like they never broke up. But it's better this time because for once they're on the same page.

She doesn't have to worry about treading carefully or wondering what they're doing or, most importantly, stopping herself from liking him because it's for a plan and not "real."

Because let's face it, she does like. And allowing herself to do that, knowing he is too, it makes a world of difference.

"Hey, what're you thinking about? You're staring." He ends the sentence with a knowing smirk. They're in his car as he drives.

"Just thinking how nice it is to be on the same page," she answers truthfully, a trend lately.

"What do you mean?"

She shrugs. "Well before I wasn't sure about how you felt, and I had to be careful but now…now I know what we are and what we're doing."

"I didn't know for the longest time," he admits. "I tried not to fall for you but after we were forced to work together, I just couldn't help it."

He glances over at her. "I wasn't supposed to fall for you princess."

"Neither was I," she admits. "You were so mean to me that Piper suggested I play you…" she pauses. She told him a few days ago but to really lay it out feels weird.

"Right, you mentioned…" he says, clearly waiting for her to continue.

"It would be my way of getting back at you for all the hurtful things you'd said and done to me," she says, looking down at her lap. "But I ended up caring…"

There's a silence that follows her words and she dares to look up at him. He's watching the road frowning.

"I'm sorry," he finally speaks up. "I didn't actually want to hurt you…I…I kinda liked you and so I just resorted to teasing you and pushing you since that's the only way you'd notice me. I didn't mean—"

"You liked me?"

Percy's cheeks turn a little red. "A little."

She leans her head against the headrest, letting out a small groan. "I can't believe you! So you were mean to me? Seriously?"

"I didn't want to like you…but look how that turned out," he replies in defense.

She shakes her head. They're both idiots. Percy parks at the pizza place and she gets out, a small smile still lingering on her face. Percy returns it and reaches to grab her hand.

But just as she's about to open the door, she sees Piper through the glass, waiting in the pickup area and freezes.

"What's up?" Percy asks, moving closer to the door just as Piper is about to turn around.

Immediately she pulls him to the side, against the brick next to the door. He half falls on top of her, and holds out a hand to brace his fall, effectively cornering her into the wall.

The door opens and she instinctively pulls him closer so that they're only a few inches away.

Percy is clearly confused but manages to speak anyway. "If you wanted to kiss—"

She quickly pulls him into a kiss to stop him from talking, hiding herself from view entirely.

As always with kissing Percy, she gets lost in it for a second before remembering what she's supposed to be doing.

Percy just blinks at her as they pull apart.

"Wow, uh," he clears his throat. "Feel free to do that whenever you like."

Her need to see if Piper is gone overtakes her need to explore his words further (but just by a little) and she quickly looks through the glass door again.

"What's going on?" Percy asks as she finally leads him inside after making sure Piper isn't there.

"I saw Piper," she says. "And I told her about the truce but I didn't tell her…"

Percy finishes her sentence. "That we're back together?"

Annabeth sighs, looking down. "Yeah."

She'd told Piper and Thalia about the conversation and the truce and how they'd somewhat made up, but the past few days of dates and kisses, those she had kept to herself.

"Why?" There is barely concealed hurt in his tone, and she quickly looks up at him.

"Because," she says grabbing her hand in an effort to reassure him. "I want this to be about us. It's all so…new, in a way. And I just don't want anyone else involved or knowing…just for a little while…"

"Please?" she asks, trying desperately to read his face.

"So you want to keep us a secret?"

"Just for a little while, as we figure us out, like this," she gestures to their held hands. "And then we can tell everyone."

Percy is quiet for a moment as they walk up to the counter. She's left waiting with bated breath for his response until after they order.

"Okay," he finally says when they're off to the side.

She looks up at him hopefully. He shoots her a small smile.

"I'm okay with keeping it just us for a while."

"Thank you."

"You can thank me with a kiss princess."

Which brings her back to the trail of thought she abandoned earlier, which was how much Percy liked that little move she pulled.

"By pulling you close against a wall?" she asks in the most innocent voice she can muster.

His gaze says everything his mouth doesn't.

A/N: And the plot progresses! Time for the next trope in this trope-filled fic, secret dating, which honestly should be done more cause it's lowkey fun. At least I hope you all are enjoying this fic! We're getting closer to the end and I really appreciate all the support I've gotten for the last few chapters!

Please comment! I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Thanks for reading!