"What the hell was I thinking?" I smacked my forehead. "What the actual fuck was I thinking?"

"Bro, it's okay," Jason said soothingly from on his bed.

"I'm such an idiot," I said.

"Got that right," Leo remarked.

"Dude!" Grover chided. "Not helping the situation! Perce, come sit down."

I obliged and sank onto the bed next to him, and Grover placed a hand on my shoulder.

"Look," he said, "I'm sure Annabeth knows it was a mistake. She's your best friend, right?"

"Right, but-"

"Then, she'll understand it was a mistake," Grover interjected firmly. "You already texted her an apology. Friends forgive. Just give her some time, like a couple weeks."

"Okay," I said, feeling slightly better. "Thanks, G-Man. I'll do that."

"Hey, I'm your best friend; it's my job to cheer you up and make sure you don't get your butt kicked."

True to my words, I abstained from going near Annabeth in the following weeks into mid-October. I moved my surfing location farther down the beach to give her space during her morning runs and stayed away from her dorm and favorite restaurants. To my relief, the tension appeared to ease slightly between us. She texted me good morning a couple of days before fall break began and said hello to me at a stop light.

"Annabeth has cooled down a bit," I told Grover.

"See?" Grover high-fived me. "I told you she would forgive you."

"I'm not sure about her boyfriend though. Jason told me that his sister Thalia told him that Annabeth told her that Luke was enraged and punched a hole in his dorm wall when he found out. Annabeth calmed him down, apparently, and got him not to seek vengeance on me."

"I wouldn't be so sure with Luke. Be careful if see him, Percy."

"I know."

The start of fall break finally arrived, and I was eager to depart to see my family in New York. I hugged and said goodbye to Jason and Grover. Jason was going with Thalia on a trip to Florida; Grover was driving with his girlfriend, Juniper, to Glacier National Park for a camping trip; and Leo was visiting his dad in New York, so he was flying on the same plane as me.

The two of us loaded our luggage into my rental car and drove to Hollywood Burbank Airport. The familiar hustle and bustle of travelers filled the air as we made our way through check-in and security. We reached our gate with 45 minutes to spare, so Leo agreed to go purchase us some snacks while I watched the luggage.

"Hi!"

I glanced up. The speaker was a teenage girl around my age with green eyes, frizzy auburn hair, and a freckled face wearing paint-splattered black jeans and an oversized t-shirt covered in doodles.

"Oh, hi," I said.

"I think I've seen you somewhere," the girl said. "Have you ever been to Cafe De Mama in Pasadena? I was there a few weeks ago."

"Oh, yeah," I said, straining my memory back to that very awkward day. "I remember you. Weren't you eating a muffin?"

The girl beamed. "Yes, I was. I'm Rachel Elizabeth Dare. Who are you?"

"I'm Percy," I said, shaking her hand. "Percy Jackson."

Rachel sat down next to me, and we started talking. She told how she was attending the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena and how she was going to school there to get away from her father, whom she didn't get along with. In turn, I told her about my abusive stepfather, my past with Camp Pine Haven, the meeting with Annabeth, and the awkwardness of the situation now.

"You kissed her while she's dating someone?" Rachel asked incredulously.

"Yeah," I said with major embarrassment. "It was a stupid move."

"Is she still mad?" Rachel asked nonchalantly, but I could tell she was eager to know.

"I mean, I think she's forgiven me," I said. "But there's definitely still some tension between us." Rachel said nothing more after that because the boarding had commenced. Leo and I were sitting in the A-59 range, so we had a bit of a wait. After about ten minutes, we proceeded onto the plane and settled into our seats.

"Who was that girl you talking to?" Leo asked curiously with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"Her name's Rachel," I explained. "She recognized me from Cafe De Mama, so we started talking."

"I thought you liked Annabeth," Leo said.

"Just because I'm talking to another girl doesn't mean I like her, Leo!" I snapped. "It was a friendly conversation between us; that's all."

Leo made an "I-don't think-so" noise in his throat, but I ignored him and stared out the window. I didn't pay attention to bustling into the aisle until someone tapped me on the shoulder. Rachel had settled in the middle seat between Leo and I, which, originally, had been an empty seat on the bookings.

Leo snickered. "Well, Percy?"

Rachel appeared rather baffled, but I just rolled my eyes. "Just ignore Leo. He can't meet any pretty girl without flirting or losing his shit."

Rachel blushed. "You think I'm pretty?"

"Yes," I said.

This compliment caused her to blush even deeper, making her look like a tomato with a red wig on. The plane surged forward, engines thrumming, and cruised into the air. Soon, the flight attendants began offering snacks and drinks to the passengers. I took a bag of pretzels and a Diet Coke. Rachel and Leo also acquired their snacks, and the two of them initiated a conversation with each other.

"Why are you going to New York?" Leo asked.

"To see my parents," Rachel said with pursed lips. "We need to take care of some...things that popped up recently. What about you?"

"I'm going to see my dad," Leo said.

They continued to question each other, while I allowed myself to fall into a stupor; I planned to take a nap during the four-hour flight. I did fall asleep eventually, and when I woke up, I discovered Rachel snoozing on my shoulder. I shifted my body in an attempt to not disturb her slumber, but apparently, she was a light sleeper or just in her twilight phase.

"You're really cute, Percy," Rachel mumbled. "You know that? I would love to date you. And since Annabeth is mad at you, I think that can happen."

She dozed again after that, leaving me with a crisis and a burning question: what the fuck do I do when a girl likes me and I kind of like her back, but really have my heart set on another?