Chapter 6 - Monday Blues
published: Wednesday, 5 February 2020

Two weeks had passed since Annabeth befriended Percy Jackson.

She'd decided that tentative friendship was whatever they were doing. There was a certain ease that came along with his presence, and there was never a dull moment with him.

Despite the rushed manner of their relationship, Annabeth found herself in the position of confidante whenever she spent time with Percy at the coffee shop.

Because he didn't run in her circle, Annabeth didn't care about telling him secrets. It wasn't like he could tell anyone. He was like a personal, talking diary.  

They had also evolved from reluctant conversations to secret smirks across the classroom when no one was looking.

It was painful to ignore him in public, but Annabeth knew it was essential if they were to keep this up.

Percy's grades picked up; he even got a B in the most recent Maths test. It was a culmination of her efforts and tutoring, but the end result was because of Percy's determination.

As much as she would have never admitted it, Annabeth was proud of him. Percy was smarter than he, or anyone else, realised.

All of that made what happened on Monday so much worse.

They'd made it two weeks, but it seemed that that was all the time the universe was allowing.

Annabeth shoved her sports bag into her locker, struggling to fit her shoes and clothes inside the skinny compartment. Amidst her inward frustration, Annabeth absently noticed how silent her surroundings had become.

Her gaze flickered left and right to see that the students milling about the corridor had practically fallen silent when she walked in.

Giving up her fight with her bag, Annabeth stepped back and slammed the door to her locker shut. The loud noise echoed through the hallway, making a few students wince.

Quit staring, she wanted to retort. Shouldering her backpack, Annabeth turned on her heel and edged her way out of the hallway.

Red flag number two was the same thing happening in homeroom.

None of her friends had arrived yet — strange, since Annabeth was usually the least punctual — which left her sitting in a lonely seat amongst stares and whispers.

Mentally reeling through the events of the last few days, Annabeth wracked her brain for any gossip that might've resulted in this. She couldn't think of anything.

Last thing she'd heard was some sophomore having herpes.

A soft 'ding' sounded from someone's phone.

Their homeroom teacher — Mrs Lorenson — was an elderly, half-deaf woman who could barely hear the bell, much less a phone.

Annabeth watched surreptitiously as the owner of the mobile phone flicked it open, cast an astonished glance up at her before turning back to his friends.

Her heart picked up speed, and Annabeth suppressed the feeling of butterflies in her stomach. What was going on?

Caged in by judgemental stares of her fifteen classmates, Annabeth slumped further into her seat. She swiped her phone open and nervously texted Piper, where are you???

The bell for first period sent relief coursing through her, and Annabeth zipped out of there before anyone could even react.

Puzzlement coursed through her mind as Annabeth sat down in the Physics classroom. There it was again; everyone giving her weird looks.

There was a momentary commotion as Leo very dramatically burst into the classroom a few minutes late, his hair wild and eyes wide as he muttered an apology to the teacher.

As he swept past her desk, Leo sent Annabeth a bewildered glance. He collapsed onto his assigned seat tiredly and swivelled his head to give her a piercing we-need-to-talk look.

"Today, we will be conducting experiments to investigate rates of reaction," Mr Hurley announced, handing out sheets to the rest of the class.

Ananbeth's glance sidled to the vacant seat beside her. Her science partner Lana was absent today.

It didn't make much of a difference.  The experiment was one she had done before last year, so it wasn't anything new. Honestly, Annabeth preferred working alone sometimes; no one could slow her down.

The class gradually found a comfortable work-level bustle as everyone began their experiments. Annabeth made frequent trips between the ingredients cabinet and her table as she was the only one retrieving apparatus.

Struggling to reach the hydrochloride acid on the higher shelf, Annabeth tip-toed, stretching an arm up.

"Got it," came a familiar chuckle.

Annabeth threw a glance over her shoulder and was surprised to see Percy grabbing the vial for her.

She frowned. "What are you doing here?" Percy wasn't in her Science class.

Percy shrugged. "A 'thank you' would be nice." He reached out to collect the chemicals for his own experiment. "We ran out of stuff in our classroom, and Hazel beat me in rock-paper-scissors, so I was sent here to get the chemicals."

"I'm working alone," Annabeth informed him. "So I should probably get back to it if I want to finish."

"Fine, fine," Percy said in false surrender. "Priorities, right?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes, stifling a smile as she returned to her desk. She felt her expression collapse into a sombre one again when she caught Leo's eye on the way back.

When the bell signalled the start of second period, Leo practically sprinted to get to her first.

"What in the name of hell were you thinking?" Leo demanded.

Furrowing her eyebrows, Annabeth kept one eye on the classroom names and one on Leo. She turned to him exasperatedly. "What are you talking about? You've been giving me weird looks all class."

Leo seemed to stop in his mental tracks. "You don't know," he realised.

Annabeth frowned. "Don't know what?"

Their conversation came to an abrupt end as they stepped into the Physics classroom. Leo beckoned her over to an empty desk.

There were about twenty minutes of monotonous drone from Dr Pearson before she gave them a worksheet to do.

Annabeth pulled out her pen and started scribbling her name down, knowing that Leo would take this chance to continue their conversation.

"You haven't seen it, have you?" Leo whispered warily as they both set their bags down.

"Okay, you're seriously scaring me now," Annabeth hissed with a glare. "Would you stop being mysterious and tell me what you're talking about?"

Leo's eyes flickered to the teacher, who was glued to her screen.

Keeping his low tone, Leo said, "Beckendorf sent me a picture this morning; said he got it from one of the guys from the football team." He swallowed. "I heard somewhere that Drew started it."

As his phone flashed under the ceiling light, Annabeth squinted to make out the image he was showing her.

Her heart practically stopped altogether.

It was Percy and her at Walter's, sitting together in their usual booth. Her lips were frozen in a laugh as Percy made a face.

"Oh my God!" Annabeth choked.

The picture was taken from the street, probably someone who'd walked by and seen them together.

Leo's words echoed through her head like a tornado of muddled thoughts.

What in the name of hell were you thinking?

I heard somewhere that Drew started it.

I got it from Beckendorf.

Her hands remained clasped over her mouth as Annabeth tried her hardest not to explode into a flurry of panic.

"I didn't want to believe it," Leo whispered. "But then I saw you two in Chemistry — and then everyone's saying that you're dating — Annabeth, he's bad news!"

The room spun around Annabeth as the painful lump at the back of her throat expanded.

No, no, she mouthed silently.

Everyone knew. There was a picture. It had probably gone round the entire school by now. What would Jason and Piper say?

Her stomach turned sickeningly.

"No," she muttered under her breath. "This isn't happening."

Her hands slid down to the table to reveal a hysterical expression.

"Have you forgotten what happened last year?" Leo reminded her warily. "You punched him. He punched Jason. Don't tell me you've fallen for his 'charm'."

Annabeth twirled her hands into her hair and pulled frustratedly. "Shut up, Leo."

As he fell silent, she sighed painfully, covering her face once again with her hands. What was she going to do? Percy clearly hadn't seen it either — he would've mentioned something to her in Chemistry.

Everyone thought they were dating. All their friends knew now. The worst had happened.

She needed to think, and Leo was like a droning white noise machine.

"We're not dating," Annabeth's voice came out muffled behind her palms. She removed them and rested them on the table, biting her lip so hard she nearly drew blood. "I-It was a one-time thing. I was helping him with homework."

The evident relief that washed over Leo's face only made Annabeth sink further into her seat. Surely if her best friends thought so poorly of Percy, it was a bad sign?

"For a second there I thought you'd gone insane," Leo murmured. "Good to know you've still got your wits."

"That doesn't matter," Annabeth groaned inwardly. "If you've seen this, then everyone else has too." She ducked down, hiding behind a curtain of her curls. "I can't look anyone in the eye," she hissed through gritted teeth. That had to be why she'd been getting so many strange looks in the morning.

Now that she knew the reason behind the piercing stares, the circling hushed whispers became a lot more noticeable than before.

They didn't say much to each other for the rest of the class. Leo could sense her thunderous mood enough to keep his mouth shut.

Annabeth needed to talk to Percy. They had to sort this out before the situation got any worse — if it even could.

"How can I even face anyone?" Annabeth whispered miserably as the bell rang. Other students started packing their things up. "They probably all think I'm another one of Percy's trophies."

Leo frowned. "Well, screw them. Come on, I'll walk you to History."

Annabeth gave him a smile. "It's fine," she sighed. She needed some time to think anyway. "I'll see Piper there. Thanks anyway."

Despite her assurances, Leo was still reluctant when he turned the bend and left her alone in the corridor. Almost immediately, Annabeth felt regret creeping up on her. The stares were much more penetrative without Leo there to buffer them or distract her.

Keeping her head down, Annabeth shoved her hands into the pockets of her coat as she hurried towards her next class.

Tck, tck, tck.

The sound of familiar boots clicking along the ceramic tiles made her wince. Not long after did an Asian brunette fall into step beside her.

"Annabeth, haven't seen you in a while," Drew Tanaka drawled, the corner of her mouth twitching.

Clenching her fists, Annabeth forced herself to stifle down a retort. Drew was the most two-faced person out there. Annabeth didn't like to judge from rumours, but she'd had more than enough personal experiences with Drew to know that she was nothing but trouble. And that meant that she was only here to wind her up.

"So you're going for Percy, huh?" Drew noted. Her long black hair was in a messy bun today, and her natural make-up was done flawlessly to accentuate her charcoal eyes. No matter how horrible she was, Annabeth often found herself envious of Drew's easy way with guys. She always knew just how to flirt. "I never took him for your type."

Two more corridors, Annabeth repeated in a mantra.

"I mean, it's not my place to judge if you're hooking up with him," Drew chuckled. "But, you should probably remember; I was there first." She paused in her tracks, clearly expecting Annabeth to stop as well.

Obliging, Annabeth scowled at her. "What do you want, Drew?"

"Nothing from you," Drew said dismissively. "Sure, he'll toy with you for a few weeks. But just know that he always comes running back to me." Flashing a pearly white smile, Drew turned on her heel and disappeared into the History classroom.

Annabeth released the breath she was holding with a shudder. Drew was a nightmare. And the issue was that no one ever saw that she was. She was clever in that way — never being rude to her in front of anyone else, never bullying people obviously enough to be punished for it.

Piper was in the class with her, and Annabeth absolutely dreaded facing her. The bombardment of questions to come made her want to flee the school and snuggle into bed. Nothing could disturb her within the confines of her bedroom.

Unfortunately, she was a good student. Annabeth inhaled deeply before stepping into the classroom.

Gazes and torsos swivelled to rake over her. Everyone's thoughts were practically screaming at her. Drew's posture was a tell-tale sign of her triumph, and her smirk was poised at the ready.

Slut.

Another conquest.

Annabeth shuffled over to her normal seat, feeling tears prickling at the back of her eyes.

Piper was there too, fiddling with her braids as she watched Annabeth like a hawk. Preparing herself for the onslaught of disapproval, Annabeth winced.

"Are you okay?" came her whisper.

Surprise glinted in her eyes. "Been better," Annabeth mumbled.

Piper's concerned look cast a shadow on her. "I've heard some things," she hesitated. "But I wanted to hear the truth from you."

Annabeth stared helplessly at her. "It's complicated," she said finally.

"Are you dating?" Piper inquired.

Shaking her head, Annabeth relayed the most basic details; it was a once-off, they weren't dating and definitely weren't sleeping together. It felt like a practised speech she'd have to get used to soon.

"Percy Jackson is..." Piper's eyebrows furrowed. "He's not good, Annabeth. I mean, look, you're so perfect and so great, and he's just—"

"I got that," Annabeth snapped. She instantly felt bad, spotting the crestfallen look on Piper's face. "Sorry," she murmured. "I'm having a hard time. Everyone's saying things and..." She trailed off.

"The only person I'm believing is you," Piper told her firmly. "But you know that hanging around Jackson isn't a smart choice, Annabeth."

"I know, I know," Annabeth said impatiently. "Leo gave me the lecture." She paused, debating whether to argue about this.

Percy wasn't who they thought he was. But it was pointless to even try to change her friends' minds, seeing as this was probably it for them.

The thought of breaking it off with Percy made Annabeth sink further into a state of misery. Two weeks wasn't a lot, but over time, he'd become an unexpectedly good part of her day that she looked forward to.

"Jason's gonna kill me," Annabeth realised warily. "He's actually going to kill me."

Piper winced. "I'd say Percy's in more danger at the moment. Jason was furious this morning after Beckendorf showed the picture to us. He thinks Percy somehow tricked you into dating him."

Annabeth wrinkled her nose. "What?" She shook her head. "Forget it. Jason's too easily provoked. Remember the last fight we got into with Percy?"

+++++

The sight of the cafeteria made Annabeth's desire to hightail it out of there more prominent.

Rumours had spread like wildfire, and the tale twisted a little more with every person it crossed. So far, the most common assumption was that they were sleeping together. Somehow, Percy rose even higher on his throne, while Annabeth came out of this looking like a bitch.

She hated it. No one had ever said anything about her to this level. The entire school seemed to hate her, judge her, or make fun all at the same time, when she hadn't done anything.

"Tell me when it's over," Annabeth muttered as she stabbed a fry. Piper and Leo were congregated on their table in the positions of bodyguards, eyeing anyone who came near.

That didn't stop them from chatting away about Annabeth and Percy on their own tables.

Then the dreaded moment arrived when Jason slid into the bench across from Annabeth.

"What in the name of—"

"Let me stop you write there," Annabeth interrupted. She set down her utensils and glared at him. "I'm already having a terrible day, so you have one minute to get it out, and then you're not allowed to say anything about it anymore."

Jason took a deep breath.

"Have you gone crazy?" he demanded incredulously. "Annabeth, this is Percy Jackson we're talking about. The jerk who beat Leo up? Sleeps around with the entire population? Hates our guts?"

"Time's up," Leo said weakly.

Annabeth suppressed the urge to shout back at Jason. She couldn't afford to fight with her friends right now; she had too many other issues at hand.

"I'm not dating Percy," she told him. "He needed help with his homework and I felt bad. Believe me, it was as awkward as it gets."

"Didn't look awkward in the picture," Jason muttered.

"Well, it's misleading," Annabeth said snarkily. "You know, it's a little hypocritical of you to call someone else a jerk at the moment — so why don't you look at yourself and reflect?"

She stood up and pulled her tray up to her chest, stalking angrily away from the table.

+++++

Footsteps crunched in the soil as Jason sidled up to the tree. Annabeth refused to even acknowledge his presence, her eyes glued to the book open in her lap.

Another crunch as Jason sat down next to her.

Jason fiddled with the hem of his t-shirt. "I'm sorry. You were right. That was stupid of me." He exhaled slowly. "I shouldn't have said it."

Annabeth shut her book with a soft thud. "I get that," she sighed. "I know that he's bad, and I know that you don't like it. But it was one time. And it's not like I meant for you guys to find out."

"That's the thing," Jason pointed out. "I don't want you to feel like you need to hide things from us." He shuffled uncomfortably. "I just don't want you to get hurt. Percy's horrible, and I think it's a bad decision—"

"I'm not dating him," Annabeth interjected. "We're not even close to that."

Jason shrugged. "Whatever's going on with him, I was a crappy friend."

"You were," Annabeth told him, earning a chuckle. "And I can't lose any of you right now." She kneaded one hand into the other uncertainly. "It's crazy how quickly everyone can turn on you. I need my friends right now."

Jason wrapped an arm across her shoulders and pulled her in for a side-hug. She felt him murmur against her hair, "It'll be okay."