Much had changed since Annabeth, Percy, and Grover had returned from their quest. Annabeth could feel it. The three of them were regarded differently at camp; They had earned more respect, people wanted to be their friends, even Clarisse could stand being in the same room as Percy without throwing a snide remark.
Things had changed with the three of them as well. They were closer knit than ever, spending their days with each other, sharing their meals with each other. A quest could do that to a trio, Annabeth assumed. When you almost died with someone, you became better friends.That was normal. That was how it felt with Grover, like their already strong bond had been strengthened further. But with Percy it was different. She couldn’t explain what was different, but she had started noticing things.
Annabeth puzzled this over as she walked towards the mess hall, the wind turning up the ends of her camp shirt and playing with the loose strands of her hair. She’d gotten it rebraided at Aphrodite cabin the night prior, and she was feeling pretty good about herself as she headed towards the open-air dining area, the camper’s voices immediately hitting her ears as soon as she got close enough.
She spotted Grover and Percy, sitting at the Poseidon table like normal. Technically, the satyrs were supposed to sit at the Dionysus table (and she was supposed to sit at the Athena table) but Annabeth had convinced Chiron that it was kind of sad to make Percy sit all by himself. The centaur had agreed to let Annabeth and Grover sit with him, until further notice. Another perk of just returning from a quest, Annabeth figured.
She got into line behind a few other campers who had been late getting here from their morning activities, mostly kids who had been working in the strawberry fields, which were close to the furthest reaches of camp. Annabeth had no excuse, she’d just gotten really engrossed in the book she was reading.
Annabeth offered a thank you as she was served a pile of spaghetti, moving along in the line and stopping at the fire at the end of the table. She quickly scraped a portion of her pasta into the flames, before hurrying over to the Poseidon table. She slid into her seat across from Percy and Grover.
“Hey,” she said.
“Where were you?” Grover asked between bites of pasta.
“Got caught up in my book,” Annabeth told him. “The one on art deco that I was telling you about.”
“Only you would be late to lunch because of an architecture book,” Grover teased. Annabeth swatted his hand. Normally, Percy would chime in here, but Annabeth noticed he was being particularly quiet.
He was looking at her, his blond curls falling into his eyes. He seemed really focused.
“What’s up?” Annabeth asked. It wasn’t often that Percy seemed fully focused on something.
“Did you get your hair rebraided?” Percy asked, eyes not leaving her, like he was still trying to figure it out.
“I did actually,” Annabeth replied.
“It looks nice,” Percy told her, shoving more pasta into his mouth.
“Thanks for noticing,” Annabeth beamed. She wasn’t used to having someone pick up on those kinds of things. Normally, nobody said anything when she got her hair done.
Percy turned to Grover and started talking about some volleyball game he’d played that morning, but Annabeth wasn’t really paying attention. Her mind was still running wild that he’d noticed a change in her hair. That he cared enough to mention it.
Still smiling, she picked up her fork, twirling some spaghetti on it. As she raised it to her mouth, she immediately pulled it back, a couple braids falling forward into her face, dangerously close to dragging in the red sauce on her plate. She pushed them back behind her shoulders, leaning forward to try eating again. She sighed in annoyance as braids slipped free from behind her shoulders, almost mixing with the noodles on her plate.
She didn’t have any hair ties on her wrist, probably because she’d been too excited about her new hair to worry about putting it up. Just as she was about to give up and hold her hair back with one hand and eat with the other, Percy held out a hand.
He wordlessly slipped a hair tie off of his wrist, holding it out for her to take.
He had such a sincere look in his eyes, so unlike what Annabeth was used to. There was no trickster glint, no laughter, no reprimand. Just pure sincerity. Annabeth took the hair tie, pulling her braids together and looping the band around until it was secure.
“Thanks, Percy,” she said, and she meant it with her whole heart.
“No problem,” Percy replied, turning back to Grover to continue regaling him with a run down of his epic, game-winning spike. He returned to his conversation so easily, like he hadn’t just rocked Annabeth’s world.
As she ate her spaghetti and half-listened to Percy’s story, her head spun. Her relationship with Percy had indeed changed.
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Annabeth’s hair was still pulled back with Percy’s hair tie later that day as she walked away from the clearing where sparring practice was held. She’d just spent the last hour practicing sword-fighting with the rest of the Athena cabin, not like there was much she didn’t know. She liked the practice though, especially since she couldn’t afford to get rusty.
She wiped sweat from her forehead and took a long drink from her water bottle, the summer sun beating down on her. She was supposed to meet Percy at the cabins so they could walk to their Ancient Greek lessons together. Annabeth was more interested in taking a shower and eating something than going to a class, but she was excited to see Percy again.
She saw him up ahead near the entrance to the Aphrodite cabin, waving. She couldn’t help but notice the way the sun wove through his curls, making them look like they glowed. She waved back, running to close the short distance between them.
“How was archery?” she asked once she was in his earshot.
“I hit the ground by the target this time,” Percy told her.
“Hey, you’re getting better!” Annabeth exclaimed, holding her hand up for a high-five.
Percy didn’t leave her hanging, even though he didn’t seem proud of himself.
“You’re good at almost everything else,” Annabeth reminded him. Then she added, teasingly, “the gods had to humble you somehow.”
“I guess I am pretty awesome,” Percy laughed, holding up his arms and jokingly flexing his muscles. Annabeth couldn’t help but notice that his arms were much more defined then they’d been when she’d met him, most-likely due to the months of sword fighting and training. She tamped the thought down and averted her eyes. Despite her mind being preoccupied, she laughed along with him anyway.
“Should we head over to the pavilion?” Annabeth asked. “Chiron wouldn’t like it if he were late.”
“Sure,” Percy said, then he held up a hand, like he remembered something. “One sec.”
He reached into the string bag at his back, rummaging around for something. His face lit up when his fingers closed around whatever it was. He pulled it out, and Annabeth saw that it was a granola bar.
Percy held it out to her. “I know you get hungry after sword fighting so I grabbed this from the mess hall.”
Annabeth took it from him, their fingers brushing together as her hand closed around the packaging. The touch sent a shock throughout her entire body, and she couldn’t seem to get words out.
“Thank you,” Annabeth managed, offering a smile. She wanted to say more, but she couldn’t seem to find the right words before Percy was walking away, heading towards the pavilion. She hurried after him, her head swimming. She couldn’t seem to form a coherent thought as she matched his pace, neither of them saying a word.
This was the second time that day when she’d felt something inexplicable about Percy. She couldn’t believe how well he knew her, how he seemed to be able to anticipate a need before she even knew she needed it herself. She looked over at Percy, who was busy kicking a rock as he walked, and blushed fiercely. Why was she suddenly feeling this way around him?
She tried to tamp down whatever she was feeling again, focusing instead on eating the granola bar Percy had brought her as they walked up the steps of the pavilion. She slid into a seat next to Percy, and tried not to notice when their knees knocked together.
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Annabeth was feeling ridiculously weird that day, and it drove her crazy that she couldn’t explain it. So, when Grover asked if she and Percy wanted to go for a walk with him that evening, she readily agreed. Maybe some time with both of them, like old times, would take her mind off of everything she didn’t understand. So, here she was, strolling through the forest with Percy and Grover, trying not to trip over fallen branches.
“And what kind of flower is this, Grover?” Percy asked, pointing at a small purple blossom protruding from the grass. An outsider might think that Percy was just humoring the satyr, but Annabeth knew that Percy was generally curious.
“That’s a wild violet!” Grover said excitedly. “They’re edible, and even have medicinal qualities.”
“Wait,” Percy said, pointing at the flower. “So I could just eat that if I wanted to?”
“I mean, technically,” Grover replied. “But it probably wouldn’t taste good.”
Percy seemed to consider it, but Annabeth shut him down, trying not to laugh. “Don’t eat the flower, Percy.”
Percy feigned sadness, running a finger down his cheek like it was a tear. Annabeth couldn’t help but laugh now. She thought that this was just what she needed, a casual time with her friends where they could let their guards down and be themselves.
They kept walking, Percy occasionally asking questions. Annabeth was content to just listen to their conversations, letting the day roll off her shoulders as she walked. The sun was setting overhead, and while the weather had been unforgiving earlier, it was pleasant now. That was exactly why she wouldn’t have expected what happened next if she’d been given a hundred guesses.
Thunder boomed overhead, and before anyone could react, the clouds burst overhead and rain began to pound down on the three of them. Percy, Annabeth, and Grover ran to take shelter underneath a tree, most of the water getting caught on the branches and missing them for the most part.
“Should we just make a break for camp?” Percy asked, wiping at the rain falling into his eyes.
“I’m going to head over to where the council meets, I have a couple things to talk about with them,” Grover told Annabeth and Percy. “But you two should probably try to get back to camp before any lightning starts.”
Annabeth turned to Percy. “Zeus is just petty enough to strike you down.”
Percy sighed. “You’re right, Annabeth. Let’s hurry.”
Annabeth took a deep breath, readying herself to step out into the rain. She really did not want to be soaked to the bone right now. She figured it was like ripping a bandaid off, so she quickly stepped out from underneath the tree, bracing herself to be pounded by rain. But the water never came.
She looked over at Percy, a confused look on her face. She gasped as she saw him standing next to her, hands raised. She looked on in awe as the raindrops fell at their sides, like there was an invisible force field surrounding the two of them.
“Let’s go,” Percy breathed. “I don’t know how long I can do this.”
They yelled their goodbyes at Grover and started running back where they came, Percy matching Annabeth’s pace even though he could probably go faster if he tried. Annabeth was still in awe that she wasn’t getting wet, the world around her soaked. She had so many questions.
She was careful not to slip as they left the woods, the grass surrounding the cabins wet. Her shoes sunk into the mud, slowing her down. Percy didn’t seem bothered, but he waited for her to get the hang of running on the uneven ground anyway.
Soon, they’d reached Athena cabin, and after wiping her shoes on the steps, Annabeth and Percy hurried inside. Her siblings were still at dinner, so they had the cabin to themselves. Annabeth breathed a sigh of relief when the door shut, and Percy relaxed, letting his arms fall to his sides as he plopped down on an armchair.
“Did you know you could do that?” Annabeth asked him, awe not leaving her voice.
“I mean, it makes sense that I can,” Percy explained. “I’ve just never tried it before.”
Annabeth thought about that, and realized that it was another thing to add to her mental list: Things Percy Jackson Casually Did For Me.
She couldn’t comprehend how in the past few weeks, Percy had just seemed to know when she needed things. He knew her so well, so unlike anyone she’d met before. Nobody had ever paid as much attention to her as he did. She was so grateful for it, for every small thing he did for her. The way it made her feel special, feel wanted.
She must have been looking at him as she thought, because his eyes were focused on the ceiling, like he couldn’t stand scrutiny of her gaze. As she looked at him, she noticed a slight twitch in his nose, and instinctively reached behind her for a side table with a box of tissues on it. She wordlessly held it out, and just as Percy took it, he sneezed.
He looked at her, a shocked expression on his face, and Annabeth was sure her face mirrored his. She’d anticipated him needing a tissue, and she couldn’t comprehend why. But, when she looked at Percy, the small smile on his face as he balled up the tissue and threw it in a nearby trash can, she realized she didn’t have to understand what was happening. Their relationship was changing, whether she knew why or not, whether she wanted it to or not.
And Annabeth realized then that all the while, she had been doing small things for him too.
