Disclaimer: I own nothing of Rick Riordan's.*

*Chapter 1*

(Percy)

Percy panicked when he first realized the brakes on his step-dad Paul's Prius didn't work.

He was taking Annabeth out to dinner, their first date since they reunited after Hera made him and Jason switch camps.

"Where are you taking me, Seaweed Brain?" Annabeth asked. Percy drove one-handed, the other entwined with Annabeth's on the console between them.

"You'll see," he said, smirking.

They were approaching a stop light. Percy gently pressed the brake, and the car rolled to a stop in front of the red light. Cars from the four-way intersection were crossing, moving so slowly that Percy wondered if they were doing it on purpose so that he and Annabeth would miss their date.

When the light turned green Percy pressed the gas and the car shot forward.

"You're going to make us crash!" Annabeth teased. Percy squeezed her hand.

Another light was coming up, at least 100 feet away. Percy pressed the brake again, but this time, the car didn't slow. He pressed it again and again.

Nothing.

Panicking, he left his foot off the gas, but the car was still going too fast. The light up ahead turned to red.

"What are you doing?" Annabeth cried. "Stop the car!"

Percy looked ahead, at the few cars still trying to pass the light before it turned red, and his heart stopped.

A huge log truck was racing forward, and at the speed it was going to how fast the Prius was going, the log truck was going to crash into them, head-on.

Percy swallowed. It was very likely that one or neither of them was going to survive this, and he didn't want to die not at least attempting to save Annabeth.

"Tighten your seatbelt," Percy ordered. The only way they could go was forward. To their left was more cars, and to the right was a pole, and a sidewalk of waiting pedestrians.

Obediently, Annabeth pulled her seatbelt strap so that it was tight across her body, allowing her no room to move.

They were almost to the light now, the log truck sped furiously, oblivious to everything, including Percy and Annabeth.

"Percy!" Annabeth cried. "Why haven't you stopped the car?" She gripped his hand so hard he felt the blood leave his fingers.

He only had one thing to tell her. They had only seconds now, and he was going to protect Annabeth's life, even if he lost his.

His eyes met hers. Hers were saucers, wide with shock.

"I love you," he told her, then yanked his seatbelt off and threw his body over Annabeth's as the front of the log truck rammed into the side of the Prius.

The collision was so great the Prius spun in the opposite direction, colliding with another car.

Annabeth's scream and the sounds of crunching metal peirced the air as Percy was flung back. There was a loud crack as Percy's head slammed into the window. With a daze Percy realized that the cracking sound wasn't the window breaking, but his own head.

Everything was blurry. Black spots swam in front of Percy's eyes, and his head hurt too much to feel any other pain.

Everything turned fuzzy as the world faded to black. Suddenly, he felt no pain. He was light, floating. It was a peaceful bliss, and he drifted into it with no fear at all.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

Everything seemed to go by so fast after they were hit by an oncoming log truck. Annabeth remembered fear flashing across Percy's face as he stared down at something at his feet.

She remembered seeing the speeding truck, but they didn't slow down enough in time. Then she remembered the collision itself. If Percy hadn't thrown his body over hers, she would have - should have - been killed on impact.

Right before he'd flung off his seatbelt and threw his body over hers he'd told her that he loved her.

He loved her. And now he was . . . dead? Unconcious?

She remembered watching through blurry eyes as Percy flew back, his green eyes widened, and his head hit the driver side window. She remembered the loud cracking sound, which she knew had not come from the window but Percy's skull. She'd seen his eyes droop, then close. But, worst of all, she remembered the blood. It ran everywhere, down the cracked glass of the window, down Percy's neck.

She cried as she forcefully shook Percy's knee, but he didn't move.

In the distance she heard the sirens of an ambulance. Taking off her seatbelt, she crawled over the console.

"Percy! Percy, wake up! Please, wake up!" she said, but Percy didn't even twitch. The sirens sounded like they were getting closer.

She scooted forward and lay over Percy's body, as if to protect it. She didn't want to move, so she buried her face in Percy's shirt and sobbed.

"Percy," she croaked. "Percy, get up. The ambulance will be here soon." She clutched at his limp hand hard, but he still didn't move.

She put her finger on Percy's wrist where his pulse should be but felt nothing. Was it her imagination, or was his hand already getting cold?

"Percy," she tried again. "Please."

Nothing.

She couldn't hear anything over the sirens. She thought she heard someone yelling, but she couldn't be sure.

"Please." Her voice cracked, almost hoarse. She lowered her head and clutched Percy's shirt, her head pounding.

Suddenly she felt a draft of cold air and she shivered, wrapping her arms tighter over Percy.

"Miss?" a man's voice said. Annabeth choked and turned away.

"Hey, we have one alive!" the man yelled. "Quick, we need a medic! A medic over here! Now!"

Annabeth heard weird sounds, a scrambling of feet hurrying across pavement. Then she felt a tug at her ankle.

"Miss?" the man said again. "Please, we want to help. We have to get both of you to a hospital right now."

Hospital? Maybe there was hope for Percy yet.

Or maybe it would be better to get him to Apollo, Annabeth thought. A god could help him even more than mortals could. But . . . they were already here. And they could use the Mist on the mortals later, if needed. But either way, Percy needed help as soon as possible. Which was now.

"Okay," she whispered. She pushed herself up to her hands and knees and slowly crawled backwards out of the car, staring at nothing but Percy's pale bloody face.

As soon as she was out she was swarmed with people. Someone - she thinks it was a woman - managed to get her onto a stretcher, putting an oxygen mask over her mouth and nose and squeezing her hand, murmuring to her, helping check for any major injuries.

Annabeth watched as they pulled Percy out of the ruined Prius. He hung limp in a man's arms. Annabeth tried to move, tried to get to him, but the woman pushed her back down. She was about to panic until they put him on a stretcher beside her. A man put an oxygen mask on Percy, waited a few minutes, then turned to someone Annabeth couldn't see and shook his head, yelling something Annabeth could decipher.

She watched as a man put two pads full of electricity on Percy's chest. "Clear!" he yelled. Percy's body jerked.

Please, Percy, Annabeth silently pleaded. Please, please, please. Wake up.

The man did it again. Nothing. Annabeth didn't want to see anymore. She closed her eyes, letting her mind drift.

The last thing she thought before unconciousness took her was, I love you too, Percy. Please stay with me.

She hoped he somehow heard her.