Absolute Mortality

Chapter 10

I was sitting in the dining pavilion with Piper on Friday after school.

"That Drew girl is so annoying," said Piper. "The second Jason and Reyna broke up she was all over him. It's ridiculous."

"Do I sense a little bit of jealousy?" I said.

Her eyes narrowed.

"It's fine," I said with a small chuckle. "I never liked her either."

"Anyway," she said. "Want to do something tomorrow?"

"Sure. Like what?"

"I don't know, something fun and new. This school is so boring. What about karaoke?"

"I can't sing."

"Not even a little?"

"You don't want to hear me try."

"Well then something else."

I spotted something over Piper's shoulder. Percy and Grover had been walking the track since classes ended but Percy separated from him and was headed straight toward me and Piper.

Piper noticed my gaze when Percy was about ten feet from us and turned.

"Oh," she said. "Hey Percy!"

"Hey Piper," said Percy. "Annabeth, do you have plans tomorrow?"

I glanced at Piper. "Uh, I do actu—"

"No," Piper interupted. "She doesn't." She had a strange gleam in her eye but hurriedly stood up. "See you later," she said then winked and walked off.

"No, apparently," I corrected. "I don't have plans."

"Great," he said with a smile. "Do you want to go out with me then?"

"Sure. I'm down for another 'strictly platonic' day."

"No," he said. "Not platonic."

"Oh." I was shocked and may have blushed."Are you asking—?"

"You out on a date?" He said then smiled. Butterflies were going ballistic in my stomach. "Yeah, I am."

I had no idea Percy saw me in that way. I mean, I'm not oblivious. I've seen him stare at me, but I figured that was just because he thought I was attractive. I'd not put my hopes so high as to think he'd actually want to date me.

Percy's expression turned worried and I realized I hadn't answered his question.

"Yes!" I said quickly. I gave a smile and put as much emotion into it as possible, so as to try and make him understand that my silence wasn't contemplation. "Of course I do."

He looked relieved. "Awesome! So I guess I'll pick you up around four?"

"Sounds good, Seaweed Brain."

He walked back to Grover grinning.

Don't ask me why, but my happiness turned into anxiety the next day.

"Don't worry," Piper said. She'd insisted on helping me get ready for the date, rejecting my refusals. She was currently brushing my hair, getting ready to straighten it. "You've practically been dating already."

"But it's going to be so awkward," I said.

"Why? You two have liked each other since day one."

"What if it doesn't go well? How could we still be friends after that?"

"Annabeth, I've never seen you like this. You're flustered, confused, nervous. You have a plan for everything and always get your desired outcome. Why is this any different? Just relax."

Surprisingly, I did. Piper can be very persuasive. "Alright, hair's done. Now for your outfit."

An hour later, there was a knock on my door. I opened it to see Percy in a pair of nice black pants and a pure white button up t-shirt. His hair was neatly combed and he held a single flower in his hand. He had a smile on his face which I returned.

"That's a dandelion," I said.

"It's the best I could find," he said before he gave a mock bow. "But I promise you won't find a finer dandelion on campus."

"How romantic," I said, taking the dandelion.

"You look great," he said. Piper had tried to get me to wear a dress but I adamantly refused. Instead, I wore a red blouse and compromised with a skirt that fell just above my knees. Piper loaned me both.

"As do you." I stepped out and closed the door behind me. We began walking side by side to the staircase.

"So what's the plan?" I asked.

"It's a surprise."

"Is it a picnic?"

He scowled. "Yes," he said through gritted teeth. I laughed.

"Do you not like it?" he asked.

"No," I said hurriedly. "It sounds perfect."

When we got to the cab he opened the door and stepped aside with a mock bow. "Milady," he said.

When the cab took off, I said, "You're not going to keep up this false posh act the entire date, right?"

"I just think a fine lady like yourself deserves proper respect," he said.

I raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, fine," he said. "Dropping the act."

About ten minutes later Percy paid the cabbie and we got out of the cab. We were now standing thirty feet from the river Percy had fallen into. This time there was a rowboat at the shore, big enough for four people.

Percy led me toward it. When we got closer, I noticed there was a board nailed on the two middle benches to form a makeshift table. There was a blanket atop the table and a picnic basket on top of that.

"You just trusted no one to steal this?" I said.

"I had it guarded," was all he said. We arrived at the edge of the river and Percy stepped onto the boat. I followed. He then took out a lighter and lit the candles I hadn't noticed that were nailed around the edge of the boat.

"Getting fancy," I said as I sat on one bench facing the picnic basket and Percy sat opposite me.

"That's me," Percy said sarcastically. "I just ooze fanciness."

He then picked up an oar and pushed us off into the water.

"I don't think these candles will stay lit long, " I said.

"We'll just have to enjoy it while it lasts." He then popped open the basket. "Dig in."

Inside was a loaf of bread, a plastic container filled with brown gravy, another container filled with shredded chicken and turkey, and there was a two-liter bottle of root beer. There were also several sticks of string cheese.

I stared at him. "How did you know?"

"I may have done a little research, on a search engine called ."

"You really went all out."

"I wouldn't call it 'all out.' It really wasn't much. Now tell me the story behind this."

"Piper didn't tell you?"

"Nope. All she gave me was a list and told me to bring the stuff on it."

"Figures," I said then grabbed three slices of bread. I started to string the string cheese as I talked. Percy copied me. "I told you how my mom died when I was two?" He nodded. "I said I didn't have any memories of her. I lied. I have one." I finished stringing the cheese and laid half of it on a slice of bread. I then covered it with turkey then soaked a second piece of bread in the gravy and put it on top. After that, I added the chicken, the rest of the cheese, and then a third piece of bread on top.

Percy stared at the sandwich in awe. "Why the string cheese?"

"I'm getting to it," I said. "The day before she died— or maybe week? I don't remember exactly, it was so long ago. Anyway, one day, soon before she died, my mother and I were at home doing something and I asked for something to eat. We didn't have much on hand. It was maybe a couple days after Thanksgiving so we had some leftovers but not much. From the fridge she collected turkey, chicken, brown gravy, and string cheese. And there was a bottle of root beer to drink as well."

"Why string cheese?" Percy said.

"From what my father told me, my mother was obsessed with it. She always made sure the fridge was stocked with it. He said she said she thinks it helps her think, I think."

"That was a confusing sentence."

"Was it?"

"Whatever. Go on."

"My father told me my mom was always a strategist. She was intelligent. She'd always find a solution to her issues. So that day, she took all the ingredients we had and invented a sandwich, this sandwich." I gestured to the one in my hand before taking a bite. My eyes rolled up into my head. I forgot how good it tasted.

Percy took a bite and had a similar reaction. "Okay, wow."

"I probably didn't even eat a quarter of it before I got full. It was difficult to even fit it into my tiny two year old mouth." Percy and I chuckled. I took another bite. "The memory imbedded itself into my brain because that was the last time I'd ever seen her."

"How did she die?"

I was silent for a moment. "She was a police officer. She died while attempting to arrest a pedophile."

We ate our sandwiches in silence for a moment.

"Genius idea, Piper," Percy said. "You know what a date needs? Sad stories."

I smirked. "I don't know. She knows a thing or two about these kinds of things."

Percy finished his sandwich and then I did too. He reached into the basket and brought out the root beer.

"Did you forget to bring cups?" I said.

"No," he said, looking around the boat. He then found two yellow plastic cups and said, "Aha!" he handed me one and poured both our drinks. He then raised his filled cup in front of him and said, "cheers." I clinked mine against his and repeated the word and we both took a sip.

"I'm tired of hearing about the past," I said. "Let's talk about the future. What do you want to do, you know, as a career?"

He contemplated. "I'm not sure exactly. Anything to do with the ocean."

"Why the ocean?"

"It's always interested me. My dad took me out on his boat once and I'd never felt as invigorated as standing on the deck with the sea mist in my face. But I particularly like the animals. So I guess a Marine Biologist? Or a churro guy at Seaworld."

I laughed. "That's the dream." He chuckled too.

"What about you? You mentioned architecture. Explain that."

"It makes sense to me. It's challenging, but everything seems to fall into place like a puzzle. A puzzle that when you finish, it gets you something permanent. I guess that's why. I want to make an impact, build something permanent. You know the Greek Parthenos?" He nodded. "It's been around for millenia. I want to be responsible for something that's still beautiful two thousand years from now."

"That makes sense. I don't think I'd have the patience for something like that."

I smiled then took a drink of root beer.

"You said you took martial arts too," said Percy.

"Yeah," I said. "As I kid I aspired to be like my mom. I wanted to be able to defend myself should the need arise, or take down a criminal. I took classes from age seven to thirteen. What about you?"

"Bullies were frequent at my other schools. I just wanted to look out for the little guy, so my dad put me in martial arts. From when I was nine to when I was fourteen."

"So I had more experience than you."

"You saying you think you can take me?"

"Yep."

"I beat my sensei."

"So did I."

"Alright, now you're just copying me."

We shared a laugh.

Percy and I were now back at school. It was around eight and we were on my dorm's floor. Percy and I stopped in front of my door.

"Thanks for the lovely evening," I said.

"No need to get so cheesy," said Percy. "As far as first dates go, this one was pretty great."

"First date? So you think there'll be another?"

"I hope so." He smiled. "Well, uh. . . I guess—"

I stopped his awkward goodbye by planting my hands on either side of his face and bringing his lips down to meet mine. It only tool him a second to get over his surprise and return the kiss.

I pulled away but his face still showed a little bit of shock.

"I've been waiting to do that," I said.

"Ahem," said a voice. I looked to the side to realize the door was open and Thalia was standing there. She had an amused smile on her face.

"Sorry," I said and stepped out from in front of the door so she could leave.

I stepped into the dorm and closed the door halfway. "I look forward to that second date," I said then closed the door.

I lay down on my bed, happiness enveloping me.

A/N: Double digits baby. Anyway, hope you enjoyed this Percabeth chapter.

Oh, and the bug is fixed so I can see new reviews again. Leave me one to tell me what you think of the story at this point.