Chapter 19 - First Date
published: Thursday, 16 April 2020

surprise ! irregular updates (at least one a week) before quarantine's got me on a writing streak and i've just finished chapter 25!

—*—

Annabeth mulled over her book as she ate her food absently with one hand, her other hand preoccupied holding 'Pride and Prejudice' up.

Her friends were late — she had no idea where — but she'd decided that lunch just couldn't wait.

Her gaze flickered to the door's entrance, as it had every few minutes, only to feel her stomach turn when a familiar brunette traipsed in.

Don't look at me, Annabeth repeatedly begged in her head.

Of course, Calypso spotted her almost instantly and waved at her brightly.

Annabeth wanted to crawl up in a hole and die.

Calypso had been here for a couple of days, and Annabeth had thus far successfully avoided her as much as possible. She didn't want to risk snapping at the other girl for no real reason.

"Where's Hazel?" Annabeth inquired, hopefully not sounding as hasty as she felt.

"Detention," Calypso said with a shake of her head and a bemused smile. "Apparently Percy and Frank made her late to class this morning. I was let off because I'm an exchange student."

They sat in awkward silence for a few moments as Annabeth studied the other girl. She seemed completely fine. Very sweet. Funny.

Why. Didn't. Annabeth. Like. Her.

"So," Annabeth started, trying to delve further into whatever she was feeling. "Being an exchange student, what is it like?"

Calypso shrugged as she pulled out a sandwich from her bag. She was vegan, so she brought her own lunch everyday. "It's fun, I guess. I miss my friends and family back home, but it's nice to meet new people."

"What do you think of us?" Annabeth asked curiously. She really was curious. What must outsiders think of them when they were all acting crazy?

"You're all wonderful," Calypso chuckled. "Hazel's really nice, and Percy's been welcoming, but the school environment here is so different."

"Really?" Annabeth said in surprise.

Calypso nodded, enthused. "There's much weight on social life, and it's like in the movies with rumours and gossip."

The knowing look Annabeth received made her wince. "Oh, you've heard the, uh..."

Calypso reassured her, "Don't worry, Percy already told me which ones aren't true." She paused. "Though, I'd like to hear it from you."

Annabeth averted her gaze to her food.

"Are you and Percy a thing?"

"No," Annabeth admitted. It was true. They really weren't. They were just friends, and somehow had managed to bring their own friends together. But they were just friends.

Why did that bother her so much?

"Do you like him?"

Annabeth swallowed. "No." The uncertainty in her tone was evident even to herself. "Do you?" she blurted out the question that had been on her mind the entire week. 

Calypso made a humorous noise in the back of her throat. "Well, I wouldn't say I like him. But he's cute, nice, and," she sighed. "Very clearly has feelings for someone else."

It was like someone had taken a bell and struck in inside Annabeth's brain. Calypso's words reverberated like a horrible chorus.

"I..." Annabeth was bewildered. She couldn't exactly demand as to why he hadn't told her. But she still thought they were close enough at this point that he could confide in her.

Hell, they'd spent most afternoons this week together at Walter's, couldn't he have at least broached the topic?

"It doesn't matter," she mumbled, but she could feel Calypso's disbelieving gaze on her.

Suddenly it changed. Calypso's eyes widened as she nudged Annabeth's leg under the table. "Hot, blonde guy, coming up behind you."

Annabeth furrowed her eyebrows. What?

"Hey, Annabeth, Calypso." None other than Luke Castellan, all blinding smiles and shaggy hair, slid into the seat between the two girls, winking at Calypso, who seemed surprised by his boldness.

"Luke," Annabeth said, surprised. "What's up?" She was pretty good friends with him — though nowhere as close as she was to her usual circle — from middle school, but they'd kind of drifted apart after he started hanging out with Matt Sloan.

She used to have the biggest crush on Luke. The kind that made her stutter and blush uncontrollably. Obviously, she'd gotten over it. Mostly because she'd known that he'd never go for someone like her.

"Well, I've been trying to catch you alone for a while," Luke admitted, a light flush coating his cheeks as he looked down embarrassedly. "But you're always with your friends."

Annabeth laughed. "Yeah, they're pretty much glued to me at this point." She braced herself for the questions about copying homework, the "no" already present on her lips before he'd even asked the question.

Luke ran a hand through his hair, seemingly working himself up to something. "I was wondering if you were free tomorrow night?"

Annabeth blinked once. Twice. Thrice.

The seconds of silence were her mind leaping into overdrive and trying to keep her jaw from dropping.

"Like, on a date?" was the least intelligent thing that could've burst from her lips, but still, it did.

Luke chuckled. "Yes, on a date." When she still didn't answer and practically gaped at him, Luke searched her features expectantly. "A date. As in, what two people do before they start a relationship?"

Annabeth shook her head frantically out of her reverie. "Right, no, yeah, I got that, yeah," she stammered. "Y-you're asking me out?"

"Y'know, for someone so smart, you sure take a while to understand a simple sentence," Luke said, his eyes sparkling humorously.

That made her roll her eyes. "Alright, calm down, I haven't said "yes" yet," Annabeth reminded him.

"Does that mean you're saying "yes"?" Luke said hopefully.

Annabeth could feel Calypso staring at her with disbelief. There was definitely something the other girl hadn't mentioned.

Should she say "yes"? She kind of owed it to the girl she'd been two years ago. This had kind of been her dream at the time. Besides, Luke was someone she actually got along well with, and she wasn't exactly on the lookout for anyone else.

As if on cue, her friends walked into the cafeteria, goofing around aimlessly. Annabeth's gaze instantly snapped to Percy's figure, the windswept hair and green eyes that portrayed so much emotion.

Immediately, Annabeth chided herself. Why was she thinking about Percy? He liked someone else — Calypso had been very clear on that. And most importantly, she didn't like him.

"Yeah," Annabeth breathed, the decision registering itself in her mind with a one-second lag. "I-I'll see you tomorrow then."

Luke seemed to deflate with relief. "Oh, thank goodness. I don't think a second has ever felt that long before." As he clambered out of the seat, Luke leaned down to peck her on the cheek. Annabeth felt her face grow hot as she pointedly ignored her friends looking over at them. "I'll text you."

As he walked away, Annabeth turned to Calypso with an astonished expression. "I didn't hallucinate that, right? Luke was here?"

Calypso was sending her mixed signals of both confusion and shock. "Yeah, definitely not your imagination."

Annabeth buried her face in her hands, a small smile growing on her face. The old her, deep down, was ready to race home and start planning what to wear.

A loud clanging noise alerted Annabeth to Piper and Hazel's arrival at the table. "Did Luke Castellan just kiss you on the cheek?" Hazel demanded.

Annabeth lowered her hand to give her friends a sheepish look.

+++++

"I'm so happy for you," Helen sighed, handing the bomber jacket and a thin scarf to Annabeth.

"I've been on dates before, you know that right?" Annabeth raised an eyebrow. 

Helen shrugged. "Well, yes, but nothing like this. You had the biggest crush on Luke."

Annabeth's mouth fell open. "What?" Her voice shot up an octave.

"Oh, honey, it was so obvious," Helen laughed. "You'd come home and gush about him every evening." When Annabeth went red with mortification, Helen assured her, "It was cute, don't worry."

Annabeth sunk into the sofa. "Yeah, it is a little crazy that we're going out," she confessed. "The old me would gone insane."

Helen raised an eyebrow. "The old you?" she echoed doubtfully.

Annabeth glanced over at her. "What?"

"Just that you're not the same person anymore," Helen reminded. "Do you even still like him?"

Annabeth hesitated before replying. "I don't know." She really didn't. "I plan on finding out tonight," she admitted.

"Oh, don't let me get you down," Helen said apologetically. "It's just...been a while since I've seen romance in action."

Annabeth pulled a face. "Dad's been gone a while, huh."

Helen swallowed. "Yeah, yeah, something like that."

"Honestly, it's just because I always thought you and Percy would get together," Helen suggested.

"Percy?" Annabeth snorted. "Why?"

"Well, you hang out practically every day," Helen laughed. "You talk about him a lot. And, well, I spoke to Piper when she came to pick you up the other day."

"Oh, Pipes," Annabeth hissed under her breath.

"Did she have a point?" Helen asked.

"I don't like Percy," Annabeth repeated. She'd said it so many times recently that it sounded almost bland to her ears.

Helen gave her a pointed look. "How did he feel about you and Luke going out?"

Annabeth paused.

Her friends had all been strange today. It seemed like Calypso hadn't been the only one who questioned her decision to go out with Luke.

When even Frank asked her about it, Annabeth had exploded and demanded to know why. Frank had admitted that he'd always been rooting for Percy and her to get together.

And as for Percy, well he'd been acting especially weird all day. Something had changed between them recently. Annabeth didn't know what it was, but it was like the air was more charged, she actually felt her breath catch in her throat when she'd seen him come out of the swimming pool, and he hadn't been speaking to her as much as they usually did.

At first, Annabeth had thought it was Calypso's fault. But after she'd made her peace with her on Thursday, Annabeth wasn't quite sure if she was imagining it all or Percy was actually being strange.

He didn't seem to keen on the idea of Annabeth dating Luke. When she'd asked him for an explanation, Percy had told her about some disturbing locker room talk.

Of course, she'd gotten mad at him for trying to bad-mouth her date, and accused him of believing rumours when they both knew that they shouldn't do that.

They hadn't spoken since.

"Fine," Annabeth replied blankly, looking away.

Headlights pierced through the blinds as Luke pulled up into the driveway.

Annabeth shoved Percy and all her internal conflict to the back of her mind. They could wait. Tonight, she was going to have fun.

"Bye, Helen," Annabeth called as she hurried to the front gate, checking for her phone and wallet.

As she slid into the passenger's seat and strapped in her seatbelt, Annabeth smiled at Luke. "Hey."

The date was nice, and everything a first date should be. They joked around, reminisced about the old days, and made promises to catch up more often. When Luke asked about how her friends had reacted to this, Annabeth hastily covered up with a half-truth and changed the subject.

He'd taken her to a cute American diner close by, and Annabeth had to admit that Luke cleaned up well. His button-up shirt and jeans were a combination to die for.

"Do you have any plans for post-high school?" Luke asked.

Annabeth shrugged. "I haven't really thought about it. I mean, I know that I'm definitely going to go to university. I haven't quite thought about what I want to major in or even start as a career, but maybe something in the business field."

Once upon a time, Annabeth had wanted to be an architect. To build something permanent. But she'd become sort of disillusioned with the job.

"I want to help people," Annabeth realised, thinking of the times she'd seen Percy bleeding on the ground. "People who can't really help themselves." She shook her head dismissively. "Look, it doesn't matter. I-it's stupid."

"No, it's not," Luke reassured her. "Really, if anything, you're pretty inspiring."

"Thanks," Annabeth laughed. "And what about you? Thinking about college?"

Luke shrugged. "Well, I hope to. But the only thing that can probably get me there is a football scholarship, so I'll probably have to put more time into it next year. Maybe attend college in another state, just to get out and explore a little."

"I get that," Annabeth told him. "But I'll probably stay within the country. I don't think I could survive being so far away from my family for so long."

In the back of her mind, Annabeth noticed that by "my family", she'd been referring to Helen and her brothers. She hadn't seen her dad in over a week.

"You have two brothers, right?" Luke guessed.

Annabeth smiled. "You remember."

"Of course," Luke insisted. "I used to play Legos with them while waiting for you before swimming classes."

Annabeth almost choked on her spaghetti. "Oh my gosh, I'd forgotten about that." They used to attend swimming classes together early in middle school, and Annabeth had vivid memories of canon-balling into the pool beside him.

"Has it really been that long?" Luke said in disbelief.

As Annabeth made to answer, a sharp buzz in her pocket alerted her to the chime of her phone.

"Oh, sorry, it's probably my mum," Annabeth interrupted apologetically. "Do you mind if I..."

"No, no, go ahead," Luke assured her.

Sending him a grateful look, Annabeth pulled her phone out and switched it on.

There were two texts from Jason.

Know you're on your date, but Percy's hurt. Gabe again. I think it's the worst one yet.

We're at Piper's. We've got it under control, don't worry.

Annabeth felt her heart plummet as a sickening gasp wracked her lungs.

"A-are you okay?" Luke asked, alarmed.

The rest of his words were a blur, as if she was underwater. Annabeth stumbled to her feet, clutching her phone as she desperately tried to formulate a comprehensible sentence.

Percy was hurt. Badly, according to Jason. Feeling guilt wash over her, Annabeth recalled the last thing she'd said to him.

They'd been fighting over her date with Luke.

You judged him too quickly, Percy! Frankly, I should've done the same with you. Maybe I wouldn't be here right now.

She hadn't stuck around long enough to see his reaction, but she'd seen him recoil almost instantly, hurt outlined on his face.

"Annabeth," Luke shot his feet, looking at her worriedly. "You look like you've seen a..." He trailed off when he saw what must've been a horrified expression on her face. "What is it?"

"I-I have to go," Annabeth stammered. "I'm so sorry, Luke," she wanted to smash her head into a wall.

How could she have been so stupid? Going out on a date with Luke when she knew damn well that she'd choose Percy over anyone?

"I can't do this," she confessed breathlessly. "I'm so sorry; I've wasted your time, and," she fished a few bills out of her purse. "Here, dinner's on me," she rushed.

"Annabeth, what-what's going on?" Luke said, bewildered.

Annabeth winced painfully. She had to get out of her. She had to see Percy. "I can't date you," she blurted out. Annabeth impatiently brushed her hair over her shoulder. "I'm sorry."

Luke looked about as confused as could be. "Why? Did I do something?" He hurried afternoon her as she walked as quickly as she could out of the restaurant.

"No, it wasn't you. It's me," Annabeth said, feeling like a horrible person. "It's Percy." She shook her head frantically. "I have to figure things out. I am so sorry, Luke, I-I shouldn't have done this."

She hailed down a cab with one hand as she gave him a tight hug.

"You'll find a better girl," Annabeth said firmly. "Who'll choose you over everyone else, but I just can't be that girl right now."

"Annabeth, wait—"

Annabeth disappeared into the cab, stumbling over her words as she gave the driver Piper's address and told him to step on it.

"I'm sorry, I'll explain everything later," Annabeth told Luke pleadingly as the cab sped off, leaving him in the dust.

Annabeth's heart hammered against her chest to quickly that she thought it would break through.

She would deal with Luke later, but right now — Percy.

Just his name sent images of green eyes and a lopsided grin hurtling through her mind. It made her shiver to think that anyone would dream of hurting that.

Percy made her smile. Made her laugh. Quite literally brightened up her day.

She felt empty, almost helpless without him at her side, and she hated it. Annabeth had ignored her feelings for far too long, and it just clicked, like the simplest puzzles.

And it was in that horrifying moment when Annabeth wondered, bewildered beyond belief, when exactly she'd fallen for Percy Jackson.