Disclaimer: All PJO characters belong to Rick Riordan.

Annabeth growled and threw her phone across her bedroom in frustration. Seriously? Did her stepmom not know how desperate she was? A string of the worst curses she knew flew out of her mouth, most of them in Greek. She directed all of them at her stepmom, who had basically told her to suck it up when she asked if she could get some tampons on her way home. Annabeth couldn't really "suck it up". She was slowly bleeding out and all she had were three pads.

She would have been able to drive herself . . . had she had a car. Unfortunately, her ever-so-wonderful father had borrowed it today so he could drive himself to work after his car had broken down. Annabeth leaned back on her bed and glared fiercely at the ceiling. How convenient.

She swore this was the gods' fault. Some god had to be mad at her (probably Hera) and caused her to start her period early. It was totally unfair. She had saved Olympus twice and gone on countless quests for them, and they rewarded her with this? Maybe she should adjust the size to Hera's temple on Olympus and make it a bit smaller. This totally had Hera written all over it.

Finishing her endless stream of curses, she dragged herself off of her bed and grabbed her phone. She tried to think of who to call. Piper, Hazel, and Reyna were all at Camp Jupiter, and Thalia was off with the Hunters. Her brothers were out with their friends and besides, they couldn't have handled buying her some feminine hygiene products. That only left Percy. Sighing, Annabeth fell back onto her bed and called Percy.

He picked up after the third ring. "Hey, Wise Girl. What's up?"

"I just started my period and I need you to come and bring me tampons." She said it all in one breath. Her cheeks colored. She wasn't sure why she was so embarrassed. She had been on so many quests with him that he wasn't necessarily oblivious to the fact that she had a period. And it certainly wasn't like she had never called him with this issue before. She had a couple times and he had always delivered. Besides, he was her boyfriend. They were graduating in a couple months and if they were going to live in New Rome together next year, he had to get used to doing things like this.

Percy's nervous laugh made Annabeth smile. At least she wasn't the only one who still got awkward when it came to things like this. "Okay. I'm at the grocery store right now, actually. What kind do you want? They have Tampax, Playtex, Kotex - hey, why do they all end in 'x'? That's so weird . . ."

Annabeth laughed. The dull ache that had blossomed in her stomach a while ago suddenly became much sharper. She got up off her bed and made her way into the bathroom. "I don't care, Seaweed Brain. Just grab whatever. When are you gonna be here?"

"Uh. . ." There was a faint rustling, like Percy was grabbing a box and putting in with his stash. "Well, I have to drop off some groceries at my mom's apartment first, so I'll be there in about half an hour? Maybe less?"

"Okay," Annabeth said, nodding, though she knew Percy couldn't see her. She rifled through the medicine cabinet. When she couldn't find what she was looking for, she cursed under her breath. "You want to grab some Ibuprofen also? We're out here."

Percy chuckled. "Gods, do you have anything there, Wise Girl?" When Annabeth didn't answer, he laughed. "Okay, I'll grab some Ibuprofen too. I've got to go now. Love you."

"Love you too," Annabeth replied and then the line went dead. She scowled at her reflection in the mirror. Gods, her stomach was throbbing. What had she done to deserve this? No tampons, no pain-relievers. Just her luck. She tromped back into her room, grabbed her favorite blanket, her heating pad, and her book, then walked downstairs and plopped herself down on the couch in the family room. Plugging in her heating pad, she nestled into the cushions and tried to get in some reading before Percy got there.

Percy arrived twenty-seven minutes later and Annabeth did everything short of run to the front door to let him in. He stood there, looking amazing in jeans and a blue long-sleeve shirt. He held a plastic bag in his hands and, to Annabeth's surprise, a box of pizza. She opted to ignore the box of pizza for now and focused her attention on the bag.

"Did you get them?" Annabeth questioned once they pulled away, moving aside to let Percy into the house.

He rolled his eyes and set the pizza and the bag on the coffee table. He pulled out a box of tampons and held them up for Annabeth to see. "I got them."

Annabeth smiled. "You're amazing."

"I know."

Annabeth grabbed the box then excused herself to use the restroom. When she returned, Percy was sitting on the couch watching TV, feet propped up on the coffee table, and eating a slice of pizza. Annabeth smiled and plopped down next to him, grabbing a slice of pizza herself. She scarfed it down in five seconds flat, then leaned back into the pillows, putting her feet in Percy's lap. He rubbed them and looked at her sympathetically.

"I'm sorry," he said. "You want some Ibuprofen?" He leaned forward and dug around in the bag, producing a small bottle of the miracle-worker. She sat up and grabbed the bottle, popping two pills quickly. Then she leaned back down and Percy resumed rubbing her feet. She had to admit it did feel good, even if the rest of her body felt horrible.

"This is what death feels like," she complained, pressing the heating pad as hard as she could into her lower abdomen. It was doing nothing to help. Of course.

Percy chuckled. "I really doubt that," he said in a teasing tone, which melted away when Annabeth glared at him. He cleared his throat. "Um, anyway, when you called me about your, ahem, 'womanly issues', I took it upon myself to be a good boyfriend and grab a few things for you. I call it a Period Pack."

Annabeth cocked an eyebrow. "A Period Pack?"

Percy ignored Annabeth's tone. "Of course, it included the pizza, tampons, and Ibuprofen," he said, and then produced three chocolate bars. "It also contains your favorite Dove milk chocolate bars." He put those back in the bag and dug out some more things, showing them off to Annabeth one-by-one. "And I bought your favorite movie, The Breakfast Club, since it was on sale, and I got some of the National Geographic magazines you like, and, of course, some M&M's for me."

Annabeth gave him a small smile and held out her hand. "A chocolate bar, please." Percy smiled and delivered. Annabeth opened up the chocolate and took a bite. Mm. Dove chocolate was, as Percy had said, her favorite. It could make anything better, even an early period. When she finished the small treat, she sighed in discomfort and shifted. Percy took notice and grabbed onto her leg, shooting her a worried look.

"You okay?" he asked.

Annabeth shrugged. "Cramps," she explained and Percy nodded in understanding. Then he put down his M&M's and held out his arms. A mischievous smile spread across his face. "I think cuddling with your super hot boyfriend might make you feel better," he suggested.

Usually, Annabeth would act disgusted and make some smart remark, such as, "I do not have a super hot boyfriend," but today, she felt like cuddling with him would make her feel better and she didn't really have the strength to argue. So she sat up and twisted around on the couch until she was nestled in Percy's arms with her back to him. He snaked his arms around her waist and leaned his head down, nuzzling her neck. Annabeth sighed and leaned into his touch.

"Doesn't this make you feel better, Wise Girl?" he asked.

Annabeth shrugged. "I guess. Still cramping, though."

Percy snorted at her response before his hands moved, slipping lower until they were a few inches below her waist. "Where does it hurt?" he asked. "Here?"

Annabeth moved his hands to the center of the pain and he started to massage the area. She sighed in content. Now that really did feel good. It was much more effective than any old heating pad, though whether it was because rubbing it actually helped or because Percy's hands in that sensitive area sent fireworks popping and distracted her from the pain, Annabeth had no idea.

"This feel better?" he asked and Annabeth nodded.

"Much," she said. Then, because she was in the mood, she leaned her face up and pressed soft kisses along Percy's jaw. Percy froze for a split second before continuing what he was doing, trying to act like Annabeth hadn't fazed him. It didn't work. Annabeth knew that she had a strong effect on him, so she slightly twisted in his lap until she had a better reach with her lips. She kept placing kisses along his jaw and over his face, her nose tracing lines over his skin. Percy shivered against her, so Annabeth continued. Percy's hands stopped rubbing and gripped her hips instead, pulling her closer. He slid down until he was laying on his side on the couch. Annabeth stayed cuddled up to him, smashed between his body and the back of the couch. She didn't really mind though. It was a surprisingly comfortable position.

Percy took his turn, leaning his head down to press kisses all over her face. One hand came up to cup her face while the other skimmed over the skin where her shirt had ridden up. She sighed in content again and when Percy pulled his face away from her, she slanted her lips over his, giving him a soft, warm kiss that went on for ages.

Percy pulled away and licked his lips. "You taste like chocolate, Wise Girl," he teased. Annabeth rolled her eyes, to which Percy laughed at before pressing their faces together and saying in a low, seductive voice, "It really turns me on."

Annabeth burst out into laughter. Percy should never ever try to be seductive. It just didn't work with him. And since she knew that he was just joking around with her, she decided to play along. "Really? Is that all that turns you on?"

Percy smiled and kissed her. "Really, everything about you turns me on," he murmured against her lips. Annabeth kissed him back for a second before laughing and pushing him away.

"Put in The Breakfast Club, you dork," she ordered. Percy grinned and did just that.

If you asked her, Annabeth would say that Percy and her had sat and watched it and enjoyed it. But in all honesty, Annabeth and Percy completely ignored the movie, cuddled up on the couch, whispering and laughing and kissing instead.

But no one had to know that.

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