Half-Blood High

Chapter 16

~0O0~

Percy kicked the ball into the net in frustration and glared at the ruckus the first years were creating on the sidelines, and decided none of the scrawny gits would get a spot in the East side's football team this year. His face felt unpleasantly hot and the socks he'd nicked from Frank's drawers this morning were large and scratchy and bloody uncomfortable, and a sudden bout of annoyance rose in him at the thought of the tall archer. Bloody git. All of them. Especially di Angelo.

"I take it there's been no progress?"

Percy rolled his eyes in annoyance as Nico strolled up to him, clad in black shorts, sandals and pasty legs on display, which he thought was an improvement from the usual cloaks the boy preferred to skulk around in. Perhaps that was how he had blended into the shadows last week as he spied Atlas assaulting him. Percy narrowed his eyes and concentrated on dribbling the ball between his feet, lest he jump the morose fucker.

"Shut up or I'll kick this ball into your face."

"Will would shoot you dead."

Percy snorted in disbelief, and Nico amended after a moment "Maybe not. But he'd be relatively pissed."

The final match between the East and West was scheduled for next Wednesday and with only a week left, Percy had been training his team with such unwavering determination, that Frank had told him at least half of the members had thought of quitting. He understood he was being unfair, but practicing was the only way he could let out his frustrations and anger, and when he stepped off the field, muscles aching in agony, her face still haunted him, made him drag his feet on the ground in exhaustion.

Chase refused to acknowledge his presence and it felt like he was in year one all over again, pulling pranks and being mean to her to get her attention, but this time around he knew it wasn't because he disliked her because of their parent's rivalry or because she was simply a swot, but it was because he missed her. What had started as a purely physical relationship had apparently turned into something much more confusing, and it gave him a little solace in knowing the fact that perhaps he wasn't the only one whose feelings had taken such a sudden turn of course. If what Di Angelo had said was indeed true, and Chase was refusing to speak to him because she had witnessed him with Atlas, then it could only mean she was at least a little jealous. Or if not, he would settle for her being possessive- anything really that would stop her from ending their meetings and leaving him cold with the company of only himself again.

He hadn't really realized it at first, perhaps because once he had finally managed to acquire her companionship, dubious in nature as it were in broom cupboards and abandoned classrooms, he had imagined it was merely a respite to years of torture that her presence had inflicted on him- he would take what he wanted, give her what she very obviously needed, and then they'd bid farewell on a rather unnoteworthy day, and it would have been as though they'd never exchanged a word. It wasn't supposed to affect him, or his life in any way, and certainly not in such an inconvenient manner, because though she hadn't sent even a courtesy glance his way for days, her lips still bid him adieu in dreams of red, intoxicated by her.

He knew it was all a simple misunderstanding, and the wretched fates had decided it especially funny to have her at that exact part of the castle to witness the most unfortunate two minutes of his life, but if he didn't take action soon, it would be something that he'd regret for a very very long time. If only she'd give him a chance, he thought morosely, mindlessly kicking the ball around, tuning out Nico's assessment about the first formers, then he'd make her understand- perhaps not only about Atlas but about himself as well.

"Fuck, Percy, don't turn around. And whatever you do, do not faint."

"What-" Percy had merely seconds to process Nico's sudden shift in mood before the black haired boy was crowding him, aimlessly kicking around at the ball and whispering with a sense of panicked urgency "Cheerleaders. Right. Percy don't look!"

Percy turned around so fast, he nearly pulled a muscle in his neck, and smacked Nico square in the nose, but the dark whimpering from the east sider held no importance to the green eyed boy, as he had spotted a familiar head of curly blonde hair among the gaggle of cheerleaders who had sauntered their way onto the sidelines, in hues of purple. She looked really good in purple, he thought morosely, and in green as well, and perhaps even better in his jersey, which he'd peel off ever so slowly-

He stamped his feet hard on the ground to snap out of the image his mind had produced, Chase clad in green, with bare shoulders and saucy eyes, and he managed to land his heavy spiked shoes right onto Nico's sandals feet. He winced a little as Nico swore bloody murder, eyes moist, and cradled an angry looking foot to his chest.

"You should probably ice that."

"No shit, you wanker." Nico snarled back, choking a little in pain as he hobbled on one foot "I should have just let you drop dead when you saw her. Fucking Will and his stupid notions of empathy-"

Percy pretended to listen as he stole glances at Chase, who seemed to have spotted him before she'd reached the ground, because she made sure she did not look towards the center of the field where he was standing, not even by accident. They did a few warm up jumps, and she looked absolutely ravishing in her high pony, and he wasn't sure but if he squinted hard enough he could make out that her lips were shiny- hopefully with that green apple lip balm that he liked.

"-and then Frank walked in on me in the shower this morning, told me to cheat on Will with him, and we did it right on your bath towel. Isn't that wonderful?"

"Huh?" Percy murmured absently, had Chase gotten a little taller? "Yes, that sounds wonderful."

Nico thumped him on the back "You could just walk up to her right now and tell her you want to talk. She can't run away without everyone taking it the wrong way."

"And what part of me, somebody who hates her, walking up to her for a chat, wouldn't be taken the wrong way ?" Percy rolled his eyes, shaking off the shorter boy.

"Oh it'd be social suicide for sure. I was just checking if you'd snapped out of Chase fantasy world." Nico scoffed "Honestly Percy, you need to do something soon, because right now you look like you're gonna devour her, and people are going to notice soon enough."

"She can barely stand to look in my direction, let alone actually talk to me." Percy breathed hard for a moment, and Nico watched silently as Chase resolutely looked forward at Selena, even when the rest of the team had turned around to watch the football practice, an eager Dare waving enthusiastically at the Captain.

"Whatever. I don't care." Percy grit out, turning away from the girls, and impressing upon the first formers on the other side, who had now gone frightfully silent, a basilisk like glare " Let's try out these puny gits."

~0O0~

"Who the fuck pissed off Jackson?" Piper wondered curiously, stretching her arms on either side, watching the East side tryouts in rapt attention like most of the cheerleading team. "Some of those kids are crying, Annabeth."

Annabeth hummed in reply, stealing glances at the raven haired boy, but even though he had burned a hole through her head when she had first arrived, he didn't bother looking over anymore as proceeded to murder his way through a line of green jersey wearing boys. Nico Di Angelo stood sullen, on the sideline, one leg propped on the spectator bench, and it seemed he was staring right at her. She looked away quickly, and felt pretty silly, because surely di Angelo had no reason to be looking at her at all. Like at all- it was well known the boy was gay and a group of cheerleaders would arguably be of least interest to him.

"I don't know." Annabeth quipped, heart racing. She felt tired. "Isn't that normal for Jackson- being an utter prick?"

"Well, yes." Piper hummed thoughtfully, unbraiding the edge of her braid. Annabeth felt uncomfortable in her high pony and itched to relieve her own hair, but the thought of the lack of air on her sweaty neck was unfathomable, so she let it be. She would run back to the tower after practice and have a good long soak, and she could finally let her guard down- for avoiding Jackson was proving to be a very difficult was all so complicated. "He's always been a right wanker, but haven't you noticed? These last few weeks he's- well not exactly changed but he's been less of a git, hasn't he? I mean, when was the last time he picked a fight with any of us?"

Annabeth stretched, and cringed when she felt her joints pop audibly, and Dare turned to give her a disapproving look. "I suppose he's just busy with school work. We've got the end of term exams coming soon."

"Soon? They're in six months, Annabeth, and there's a much more important event coming up next week." Piper glared at her and Annabeth groaned because she knew she wasn't going to like where this conversation was headed. "The ball Annabeth! And you still do not have a dress! Though, to be fair, Hazel hasn't managed to find one either, so I can't blame you alone."

"Pipes, I don't even know if I'm going." Annabeth sighed exhaustedly, eyes straying over to the football field, and winced as she watched Jackson hurl a ball right into the net, missing the goalie by a few inches. She really hoped no one figured out she was the reason for his sour mood.

"If you're concerned about not having a partner, Annie, don't worry. We'd just end up going as a group either way. Besides-" Annabeth narrowed her eyes at the way Piper was smirking knowingly at her. "-I heard, from a few Southsiders, that Castellan was planning on asking you to the dance. Remember that time he came to sit with us at breakfast? I sort of thought that was the case right then."

Annabeth felt her stomach plummet to somewhere between her legs, and recounted all the bad actions she had done in her life, and prayed that no God was handing out karma at the moment.

"Why is di Angelo slinging about here?" Piper asked suddenly, and Annabeth turned around to see Nico a few feet away from her, shoulders hunched as though he was trying to blend in, but he stuck out like a gross black wart in the sea of purple. "And what's wrong with his feet? It looks wonky."

He appeared to have heard them for he snapped his head in their direction, then seemed to regret that action immediately; he stared at them awkwardly for a few beats, then hobbled back to the field, careful to avoid Jackson's path of fury.

"These East siders, I tell you, Annie." Piper shook her head "They're nothing but trouble."

Annabeth really wished she'd remembered that before almost sleeping with one.

~0O0~

"I couldn't stand it anymore, Jackson, I had to know what they were talking about." Nico grunted in pain as he hoisted himself down onto the bench in the now empty locker room.

"Why? And you eavesdropped on them- in plain sight?" Percy had murder in his eyes- this was enough for Chase to think he was absolutely pathetic. He peeled off his jersey and took out the white shirt he'd bunched up in the locker. " What is wrong with you?"

"Look, we can argue about this all day or I can tell you what I heard."

A moment of silence.

"What?"

"Apparently Castellan plans to ask her to the ball. Where he is also planning to ask her out."

A loud bang echoed around the locker room " That fucking prick."

~0O0~

"-the yellow looks really good on you Haze, though maybe a darker shade?" Piper turned around, a pair of heels clutched in her hands, towards the shop assistant lurking in the corner "Excuse me, do you have any more shades of these? Preferably backless."

Annabeth stared morosely out the window of the tiny dress shop the three of them were cooped up in, all the way at the end of the street, so that the only view outside that the blonde could glare at was a desolate looking bench and a run over trash can. A single drop of water smudged the dust on the glass, and the blonde eyed the one umbrella that they had thoughtlessly carried with them, mostly due to Piper's ridiculous belief that she could feel the weather. Whatever. The first sign of rain, she was bailing on them. Or get soaked. Either way she didn't mind much.

"Did you find anything you like?"

Annabeth jumped at the sudden appearance of the elderly shop owner by her side, the top of her high gray bun barely grazing the blonde's shoulder. She looked down at the pale pink material that she had been mindlessly running her hand through for a good part of the last one hour, and tried to conjure a smile for the old lady's sake.

"Uh I'm not really sure-I'm just here for company really. They're the ones looking for dresses." Annabeth motioned towards her friends and immediately wished she hadn't, because Piper had just wrestled a beautiful olive gown over Hazel's head that had let out a very obvious ripping sound.

The blonde cleared her throat awkwardly, hoping to distract the old lady, before they were made to pay for it "I thought they were going for yellow."

"Your friend changes her mind very quickly." the woman waved a hand dismissively "Now for you- I would say red would be lovely on you. Or maybe some gray to really highlight your eyes."

The woman started pulling out various materials of a mix of colors, as Annabeth tried fruitlessly to stop her. It had been only a week since she had caught - no seen- Jackson and Atlas kissing, and it had felt like something inside her had shriveled up and died. She felt irritated and tired, and felt such a great loathing at the thought of speaking, it was a wonder her friends had managed to drag her down into the village for some ball dress shopping.

It ate her up- but she wasn't quite sure who to be angry at. Jackson who had kissed Atlas after having promised her- well he hadn't really promised her anything except scoping out a place for them to study- but it still made her want to sock him in the face and simultaneously hole up in her bed whenever she thought of him. Perhaps at Atlas for kissing him? But literally half the school wanted to snog the wanker, and it wasn't like anyone even knew they were dati- hooking up. Right hooking up.

The person of course that she was most mad at was herself- for reacting so jealousy, for snapping at Jackson that night, for being so irrationally moody all day- and most importantly, it seemed like she had cracked first and violated the very first rule of their arrangement- because she was quite sure she had developed feelings for the green eyed son of the devil. The nature of these feelings, though at most times very violent and unflattering, made her twist and turn in her bed all night and had her heart drop to somewhere by her legs. It was torture to pretend like he didn't exist, like this morning at the football ground.

"Now this red- it looks a little dark in here but that's due to the lighting" the old lady had extracted a deep crimson fabric and was laying it against Annabeth's torso, while the blonde struggled to decide if she even wanted to wear red to the ball. Or attend it at all.

"We're going for the green one- Oh Annie did you finally like something?" Piper had wandered back with Hazel in tow, both of them grinning ear to ear. Annabeth felt her irritation creep up higher and bit her tongue to stop snapping at them unnecessarily. They were only trying to help, she knew, but gods did she just feel like crap right then- and wanted to do nothing but take a long run to clear her mind.

They started prodding her, the three of them, and she was bathed in silks of all colors, with a generous amount of safety pin pricks.

"Definitely better than the last one-"

"I love the design on this one but can we get it in blue?"

"Let me see- I think that was the last of that design- but here are some lovely blue-"

"I don't know about this one- do you really think long sleeves-"

"How about green-"

"Shut up" Annabeth closed her eyes when the words slipped out of her, and tried to squash the anger bubbling in her stomach " I just- I don't feel really well. Headache. I think I'm going to go back to the castle."

Gods, and she was doing so well until this morning.

And she quickly made for the door, pretending to not notice the concerned look on her friends' faces, eager to bury herself under mounds of felt and pretend the world didn't exist.

She jogged past the bustling inn where she saw her classmates huddled over mugs of hot drinks and she felt a little more urgency to be alone. But it seemed like someone up above really hated her, for once she'd turned around the corner to the castle, a lone figure was leaning against the light post.

"Shit" Annabeth cursed and tried not to grimace as Castellan raised a hand at her, a huge grin on his face.

~0O0~

"Are you going to drink that Perce?" Frank made a swipe at the green eyed boy's drink who swatted his arm away furiously.

"Of course I'm going to fucking drink it." Percy snapped, clutching the cup protectively, though its contents tasted like nothing more than cardboard at this point. He ignored Nico's snort beside him as Frank held up his hands in surrender.

"Jeez okay. I'll just go get another one!" the burly boy muttered "Probably should get one for Hazel too."

Percy snapped his neck up so fast Nico flat let out a chuckle this time "You're meeting her here? Now?"

"Yeah" Frank said dubiously, edging away as though he were a bomb about to go off. "She's shopping for dresses for the ball with her friends. We planned to meet up later."

"Will her friends be joining us then?" Nico asked him in amusement, and Percy shot him a glare, though that was precisely what he had wanted to know as well. Chase was a master at evading him- he hadn't even known she was down here in the first place.

"I imagine they'd come in for something hot." Frank nodded thoughtfully, then eyed Percy meaningfully " But I'd doubt they'd join us since- you know."

"Since Percy has been a dick to them since year one?" Nico grinned, leaning forward and Percy hoped his feet still hurt. " Say Frank, don't Levesque's friends find it weird that she's dating you? Considering who you're friends with?"

Frank scratched his chin thoughtfully, while Percy pretended to be busy with his drink- the prospect of knowing what Chase's friends thought of him-and her too- from a different perspective would be rather interesting "I don't know. We don't really talk about it. I think they've always kinda hated him. Sorry Perce."

Nico nodded "Chase must hate him too right."

"Oh, especially her." Frank laughed before making his way to the counter, while Percy deflated in his seat. He wanted to smash his cup of lukewarm chocolate onto Nico's face, who he could feel staring at him in smug amusement.

"Percy."

"Fuck off Di Angelo, I'm not in the mood."

"Right. That's tragic really. Like I'd give a fuck. No, your little friend just passed by the shop. Alone. It looks like she's headed up to the caste."

Percy turned to the window immediately, and he spotted Chase turning around the bookshop to the path that led up to the castle. He jumped out his chair and was out the door the very next second.

"A thank you wouldn't hurt." Nico muttered as Frank made his way back with two mugs of hot chocolate.

"Hey where'd he go?" the boy asked as he settled down and swore in indignation when he saw the cup that his friend had left behind "And he didn't even touch that chocolate, bloody wanker! Where'd he hurry off to?"

"I suppose he has…personal matters to attend to." Nico paused for a moment "Is Levesque going to be here any time soon? I get the feeling we'll have a lot to chat about."

~0O0~

Annabeth fought very hard to keep a smile on her face, but the sight of Luke's expectant face only made her stomach churn and she wanted nothing more to disappear on the spot and somehow apparate right into her bed and sleep the rest of the day. It was so very tiring to hold conversations when she felt as though a cloud of misery was hanging over her head.

"Hey, Annabeth!" Luke grinned, jamming his hands in his sweater pockets to keep out the cold "Fancy a drink? Something warm perhaps?"

"Uh, I was just heading back actually." Annabeth shrugged apologetically, subtly edging around the boy "I'm feeling a little sick so I might as well just go to bed."

"Oh." Luke peered at her curiously, and she tried to muster her most brain dead stare that would convince him not a thought was going on in her head.

"Yes, well" Annabeth laughed a little shrilly when Luke did nothing but gaze at her for a full five minutes " I'm just going to get on then. It was nice running into you Luke. Have fun down there!"

She had scarcely taken more than seven steps towards the wrought iron bridge when Luke called out to her, but Annabeth pretended she hadn't heard, because frankly the wind was very loud and she also didn't care enough to stick around to face what she was sure was going to be an extremely awkward exchange.

"Annabeth." Luke tugged at her sleeves, wheezing, clutching his middle which Annabeth found strange. How could he be winded so fast?

"I have something to ask you. I'll make it quick." He panted and she steeled herself wearily- she really did not want to deal with this today. "Would you like to go to the ball with me?"

Annabeth fidgeted with her shoes a little, biting her tongue to appear as though she was really giving it some thought. She hadn't really considered attending the ball at all- especially after having endured countless dress shops today, for none of the clothes sparked any form of excitement within her, which did sadden her very much because she had thought they would help her snap out of her had been a week since she'd talked to him, and it was driving her crazy, because though she felt such an overwhelming sense of betrayal( which was sort of irrational itself) the sight of his earnest face in the crowds made her want to tackle him down and bury her head against his chest. Perhaps his hold on her was stronger than she had initially thought- maybe a little too strong because she was now hallucinating that he was walking towards her behind Luke, his sea green eyes looking murderous. No wait, he was -

"Chase."

She stared wide eyed at the raven haired boy, her heart had left its cage the moment he had come into her sight. Luke turned around, confused and on spotting Jackson, he grinned good naturedly and raised a hand in greeting. Annabeth wouldn't have noticed if Castellan had fallen head first into the icy river right then.

"Jackson!" Luke shouted merrily " Leaving so soon? You sick too?"

Jackson shifted his gaze to her immediately, his stony face breaking into one of concern. He stared at her for a moment, taking in her shocked face before turning coolly to Luke.

"Yeah." he said monotonously, and did not provide any further information as he stuffed his hands into his pockets and leaned against the light post beside him. Luke looked confused at first but then he cleared his throat and gave Jackson a meaningful look.

"We were kind of in the middle of something, so if you want to go ahead-"

"I'm fine here." the raven haired boy shrugged haughtily. " Continue."

The audacity. Annabeth clenched her fist in anger- who did he think himself to be? He went around sticking his tongue down random women's throats and was now interrupting her special moment? It wasn't special at all of course- she dreaded it really, but he didn't know that.

"Right. Maybe we should go somewhere-" Luke frowned, turning to Annabeth. " Oh I'm sorry, you aren't feeling well are you?"

"Uh I'm fine." she muttered, glancing between the two boys, one of whom looked hopeful and the other looked as though he was going to consume her whole.

It would be so satisfying to accept Luke's proposal, especially now that Jackson was watching. She had no idea if he would even care- but why was he hanging around like an annoying little dung beetle if he didn't even a little? It wasn't like they could attend the ball together anyway and they had both agreed a while back that the ball was complete shite. And once they'd done talking about it he had pulled a strand of her curl and told her it reminded him of a princess.

Say yes. Hurt him just a little like how he hurt you.

"I uh-" Annabeth cleared her throat uncomfortably- Luke still waited for her patiently, his blue eyes shining even in the dimness of the rain clouds. She lamented the loss of her old self- who had thought she was in love with him and would have been over the moon right now. It would have been so easy- her friends would have liked him too and considering the fact that he hadn't spent four years bullying her, she would have found peace in forming a relationship with him as well.

Your curls, Chase, have I ever told you? They remind me of those princesses in fairy tales.

"I'm already going with Leo, Luke. I'm sorry."

She ducked her head- it was the right thing to do. It wouldn't be fair to Luke to go with him only to spite Jackson. She'd tell Leo about it today- hopefully he didn't have a date yet.

"Ah that sucks." Luke sighed but he smiled at her softly nevertheless "Should have been faster eh? Save a few dances for me though?"

"Of course." She grinned back in relief, because she hadn't expected him to take it so well. She felt the happiest she had all week right then, and it seemed the prospect of rejecting Luke had also been a part of her agitated mood- perhaps because it meant that she really had moved on from her earlier feelings- earlier normal acceptable feelings- into the mess that she was in now. The happiness drained out quickly though as Luke bid her farewell and ran back to the village, leaving her alone with the East sider, who hadn't budged from his post.

She stared at him for a moment, and it reminded her of him kissing Calypso and she suddenly felt very stupid- here she had just turned down the guy she had liked since term one for someone who saw her as little more than a random body to feel up in a closet. She turned around and walked back to the castle, strides heavy, blinking her moist eyes.

"Chase."

She didn't stop and went straight for the stairs as she entered the stony foyer- mercifully warm and empty- when Jackson caught hold of her elbow. She turned around, prepared to give him an earful, but he surprised her by pulling her into a deep embrace, one hand wound tightly across her waist and the other buried in her hair, caressing the nape of her neck. She caught a faint whiff of hot chocolate on his scarf and for a moment pressed her face into his chest. Gods had she missed this. Missed him.

But she couldn't stay there forever and so she pulled away after taking a deep breath and he loosened his hold on her, though he didn't look pleased about it. He held up a hand as she opened her mouth to speak.

"I know you're upset Chase, and I've got a bit of explaining to do." he ran a tongue across his lips, shuffling his feet. He had dark circles under his eyes now that she could see him up close. " Let's talk somewhere a little more private."

Annabeth felt agitated and her body had wound up tightly- it felt as though she had subconsciously prepared for a knockout. But the earnest look in his eyes confused her. "The library?"

"No." he muttered " I've found a place. Follow me."

And he strode towards the left, away from the Great Hall and in the direction of the dungeons. Annabeth debated going after him- what could he possibly tell her that would make it alright? It wasn't as though he had done something wrong. She was the one acting barmy because she had caught feelings for him. Did she really want to own up to those embarrassing feelings? She wasn't even herself sure what they were. It would be so very easy to go up to the West tower and pretend none of this happened- but the thought of being frustrated and crabby like she had been the past week made her rooted to the spot. At least if she followed Jackson she would get closure- and if that helped or not was something she had no choice but to find out herself.

Jackson had the flashlight of his phone out to guide them as she caught up to him in the main hallway of the dungeons and neither spoke a word as he led her deeper into the darkness- a few torch lights still smoldered a little but it wasn't nearly enough to actually see anything. He took a turn, and Annabeth mentally noted the directions in case she had to leave first- she swallowed hard at the prospect.

Jackson finally stopped at a door at the end of a narrow hallway and twisted the battered knob open and Annabeth followed, holding her sleeves over her nose, expecting centuries of dust and mold inside.

But what lay inside surprised her- the room was clean- it smelled strongly of lemon cleaner. The stone floors were spotless and a cozy rug adorned most of it. There were two desks pushed side to side against one wall and on the other there was an old but well cleaned wrought iron bed. A single light bulb glowed fiercely to battle the darkness of the room but she noticed there were a couple of sconces on the stone walls.

"This is-" she trailed off, heady off the scent of lemon.

"It's a little dark." Jackson scuffed his shoes on the floor, hands shoved into his pockets once again "But I can put up some lights. So there you have it Chase- your study room."

Annabeth met his eyes and found it difficult to look away- it seemed time had left them out in the corridor and amid the shadows it was someone new staring at her- a version of Jackson she had never seen before. His face was tight and sea green eyes latched onto her with such intensity it drove her half crazy. Though he didn't utter a single word it seemed as though he was pleading with her to stay.

It didn't make any sense- though his snogging Atlas wasn't exactly a reason for her to believe that they're little secret meetups were coming to an end, the anger and sadness that the sight had left her with was disturbing enough for her to reconsider the whole pile of mess. Even if Jackson had no trouble keeping their relationship casual, as that was exactly what he seemed to prefer, it didn't seem she was on the same boat- not now anyway, and the only way she could preserve her mental health was ending her irrational attachment to him.

"It's great." she nodded, awkwardly twirling the hem of her shirt, unable to stomach the look in his eyes - unable to steady her heart enough to say the things that needed to be said right then , even though walking away from him was the most painful thing she could think of having to ever do in a long long while.

"Chase." he pushed off the wall and reached for her but held back a few feet away, and she wanted to do nothing else than bury herself in his chest, feel the softness of his sweater against her cheek and bask in the salty scent that always surrounded him as though he carried a little piece of the ocean with him. She wanted to stain him with her tears as she kissed him farewell. Gods she was pathetic.

"I need to say something Jackson." she said loudly "I think- I'm having a little trouble with-"

"I know what you're about to say Chase, I really do, so please let me explain, yeah? And then make your decision." he ran a frustrated hand through his hair but his eyes still pleaded with her to stay calm. To stay. And so she did because that's exactly what she had wanted- a reason to stay. " I know you saw me with Atlas."

Her eyes widened comically and she sputtered, cheeks flamed but he went on ignoring her embarrassment.

"I know you saw us kissing but believe me I had no part in it- she took me by surprise and I pushed her away right after." he paced the room "Atlas is-was a friend of mine from a long time ago and it looks like she still harbors some feelings that I do not return. And I understand why you would be upset-"

"No, Jackson." Annabeth shook her head "It isn't your fault- even if you did kiss her I had no reason to react-"

"- because I too would be very very upset if I found you snogging another block Chase."

The amount of times the breath had left her body was hilariously sad- surely he hadn't said - surely he didn't mean?

"Uh what?"

"I'm saying-" he shrugged and looked at her a little sheepishly "-perhaps we need to be a little more honest about our feelings. It seems the nature of this relationship had taken another turn-for the both of us."

She felt like she was in a dream. The things he was saying- it was what she had been hoping to hear desperately in dreams that she was too scared to think about come morning.

Heart hammering she stared at him, tongue tied- her thoughts it seemed, had bid her adieu and dashed out the door into the dark hallway. It didn't make sense- was Jackson really telling her that he might have feelings for her? Feelings that weren't entirely sexual in nature? He had hated her since year one. But then again, so had she, and here she was breathless in his presence. How had it come to this?

"I suppose you're right. "she sighed and fueled by his words, decided to share her own irrational feelings, even though they embarrassed and confused the hell out of her. "I didn't like seeing you with Atlas. I know it's stupid and not what we agreed on-"

"It's not stupid." Jackson interjected quickly, finally taking a step towards her. " I wouldn't like having seen you in a similar position. Fuck, I've lost the number of times I've wanted to strangle Castellan for flirting with you Chase."

"I'd noticed you didn't like him." She laughed lightly, and inside something warm was spreading through her- he cared. It was enough to make the utter misery she had been carrying around all week disappear. " Is that why you hung around while he was going to ask me to the dance?"

"I was afraid you'd say yes"

And she laughed- laughed like she'd never before in her life, and hoped if this was just a wishful fantasy that her tired brain had conjured up while she was asleep back in the tower, like how she had initially wanted to do, then she get to stay here in this dark musty room for a little while longer- with him. She felt light and ridiculously happy, and the intensity of these emotions would have rung warning bells in her mind, but at that moment, standing before the boy she liked, and the knowledge that he liked her back, was enough for her naive teenage self to forget the world.

"I missed that." Jackson sighed softly, a small smile on his face, and it looked refreshing in the absence of his usual smirk "Not that you've laughed like that with me."

Annabeth tilted her head curiously, replaying the few light moments they had shared "I haven't?"

The raven haired boy shook his head, lips still turned up, and she felt giddy when she realized he had not stopped smiling. He settled down on the bed. "You've always been a bit cautious when we're together- that is until now. But you laugh that way around your friends."

"I suppose I hadn't really noticed." she admitted, gazing around the room and added without giving much thought "They're really great, you know, once you get to know them. You'd get along great with them."

She was inspecting one of the desks, and at the silence that followed, she turned back to see him staring at her incredulously. "What?"

"You think I'd get along with your friends?" he sounded miffed as he kicked back his shoes and stretched his legs and then added, it seemed, for better understatement in a disgusted voice "With Grace?"

She rolled her eyes, and leaned back on the table, because this was getting ridiculous "And what's wrong with Jason, you're stuck up highness?"

He held up his hands, and the familiar sneer splashed across his face, but his eyes were still warm, so she knew he was just being an ass on purpose "Nothing at all. Just not a very big fan of the douche- the hair and teeth, and the way he's always serious about everything. And his glasses. I hate his glasses."

Annabeth was at a loss for words- she had expected many a number of insults- but this just sounded childish and though she knew it wasn't the real issue, but Jason's teeth? And his glasses, oh god, he would be devastated that someone didn't like his glasses.

"You sound like you're five, Jackson." she scoffed as she walked towards him slowly, and he straightened a little, watching her moves intently. "It's almost like your head's filled with seaweed."

"Oh yeah?" he murmured, his eyes dark as he pulled her onto his lap, and she wound her hands around his neck- it was all so familiar and scent, his warmth, his embrace. "Perhaps I need a little tutoring from the brightest girl in our year."

"Only our year?" she teased him as she slowly placed a kiss on his cheek, and curled her fingers through his raven locks.

"No, the whole school- or perhaps our age even. Whatever gets you to kiss me again, Wise girl." he nuzzled the crook of her neck, and she reveled in the warmth of his body.

"I like that very much. Very much indeed, Seaweed brain." and his protest at the name was forgotten as she kissed him deeply, lowering them onto the bed.

~0O0~

I am so so very sorry for not uploading in nearly a year. I know it completely breaks the flow and I am so very sorry again,

Annabeth is still a virgin - they haven't gone all the way yet.

I'm sorry for any mistakes- the copy paste option keeps deleting words for some reason so if you find any mistakes do let me know!

And please review and tell me your thoughts on the chapter and if you'd like to see more of any character in the future.

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