Luke and I arrived back on campus on October 20th. I dropped him off at his dorm with his luggage and then proceeded back to my dorm. I was greeted at the door by Piper who had dark circles under her eyes. 

"Hey, Annabeth," she said with a yawn. "You want some help with your bags?"

"Sure." I allowed her to grab my suitcase and walked inside. "Why are you so tired?"

"Shel and I spent all Fall Break planning for Halloween and some other stuff..." She yawned widely.

Ihad a nice time; my dad and I designed and started building a model of one of his favorite planes."

"Cool. How was Luke?"

"He was...interesting. He was on his phone the whole drive down."

"That's weird. Do you want to talk about it?"

I thought for a moment. "Sure."

Piper opened the mini-fridge by Reyna's bed, pulled out two cans of Diet Coke, and tossed to me. She also grabbed a family-size bag of Doritos and came to settle down next to me on my bed,

"Alright, what happened?" she asked.

I informed Piper of everything that had happened with Luke from the phone call with Chris to the to his sudden change in demeanor upon our arrival at my parents' house.

"And he said that he was talking to Chris to help him?" Piper sipped her Diet Coke.

"Yes," I said.

"That seems suspicious; it doesn't take five hours to arrange transportation."

"It could. Burbank is a busy airport."

"No, it's not. Burbank is a smaller airport, especially compared to LAX."

"So what? It was fall break for several schools, and it's a cheaper airport, so it was busy.

Piper sighed deeply. "I suppose."

I looked at her and thought to ask why she sighed somewhat irritably, but I decided against it. I just nodded, grabbed the remote, and switched on the TV. I flicked through the channels idly, lost in my thoughts.

I didn't understand why everyone was so adamant at splitting up Luke and I. I mean, I loved him. Could everyone not see that?

"Annabeth!" Piper said sharply, jerking out me out my thoughts.

"What?" I said blankly.

"Look at the TV!"

I glanced up. Piper had flicked to a CNN channel, and the reporter was just beginning a report on a issue at the JFK Airport from yesterday.

"Authorities informed us that a teenager by the name of Percy Jackson" -I spat out my Diet Coke- "attacked a flight attendant at Gate 4," the reporter said. "Two police officers rushed over and subdued the young man then arrested him. The flight attendant succumbed a bruised crotch but was not greviously injured. The following is footage from a JFK Airport security camera that recorded the attack."

"What?" I yelled. "Percy's been arrested?"

"Calm down," Piper said. "Let's just see what happened."

A square appeared and expanded in the upper right hand corner of the TV. It depicted Percy jumping to his feet with a furious expression and his attempt to storm off. Other than him and the flight attendant, there was also a male teenager wearing a CalTech shirt whom I didn't recognize within the vicinity. The flight attendant reached out a hand to grab Percy's shulder and stop his retreat. Although it was very diffucult to see, I noted that Percy's pupils dilated in sudden terror and his skin paled considerably, similiar to the reaction he had when in the prescence of his deceased stepfather.

I watched as Percy dropped his bag, ducked under the flight attendant's outstretched arm, and kicked him hard in the crotch. The flight attendant doubled-over with a yell of pain and cried out for help. Percy, clearly in fight-or-flight mode, drew his fist back to strike the flight attendant in the nose and almost managed to. However, two police officer seized his arms and kicked his legs out from under him. Percy ceased his struggle almost at once when he realized what was occurring. The officers handcuffed him and called someone on their walkie-talkie. A paramedic arrived soon afterward to examine the flight attendant, who was still cursing and screamin at Percy.

"Percy Jackson was taken to the Queensboro Correctional Facility," the reporter announced, as the recording vanished. "He is awaiting trial on the charges of assault."

I collasped back onto my pillow, and Piper switched off the TV.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"I'm going to call his phone. The police will have his phone and will most likely answer."

"That's not a good idea."

"Piper, I need to make sure he's okay." 

"Okay, just be careful. The call might be recorded."

"I will." 

I picked up my phone and dialed 646 - 571 - 8932. My call was answered immediately by a gruff voice.

"Who is this?" it asked suspiciously.

"My name is Annabeth Chase," I said cautiously. "I'm a friend a of Percy Jackson from CalTech. May I speak to him, please?"

"Why are you calling?"

"I would like to make sure he is okay. I saw the situation on the news" 

The officer seemed to consider my words. "Please wait a moment." 

There was silence from the other end for roughly a minute. I could hear muffled voices aruging and a sharp voice scolding another. The original voice snapped at the sharp voice, but ultimately, the officer arrived back on the line. 

"You may speak to him," he informed me. "You have 2 minutes." 

"Annabeth?" It was Percy's voice.

"Percy, are you okay?" My voice trembled slightly with anxiety.

"I'm fine. How are you?" 

"Worried about you. I saw what happened on the news." 

"I'll figure this out, don't worry. I called my parents already, and they're talking with our lawyer."

"Promise me you'll be careful, Seaweed Brain." 

"I promise, Wise Girl. I have to go. I'll call you as soon as I can." 

"Okay, bye. Please take care of yourself." 

"I will" -There was a brief pause on his end- "I love you, Annabeth." 

"I...I love you, too." 

 The call ended there. 

"What did he say?" Piper asked.

"He said he loves me," I said, guilt and regret flooding my system instantly. "And I said I loved him back."