Disclaimer: I do NOT own Percy Jackson.

i.

The pencil snapped just as Percy finished writing his sentence, and he sighed, glancing up.

The coffee shop he'd been sitting in was a crowded place, a small coffee shop at the end of his town. The sweet aroma of caffeine and vanilla filled the air, and the bustling of others as they bought coffee and things to help survive in the New York City winter.

Percy was sitting alone in a booth, staring at his now useless pencil. He took a sip of his coffee, relishing the feeling of the cool liquid as it slid down his throat.

A man cleared his throat, and Percy looked up, making eye contact with the electric blue eyes of his best friend.

Jason gave him a somewhat apologetic look. He gestured to the busy coffee shop, "Uh, Perce? Do you mind if I have a customer sit here? We ran out of seats."

Percy raised an eyebrow, but nonetheless nodded. Jason temporarily owned the coffee shop during the weekends, and on weekdays, there were other employees to take his place. Percy didn't really mind having Jason working on weekends. He received daily discounts for coffee.

"Sure," he said. "Who is it?"

Jason shrugged. He pointed to a woman standing a couple feet away from him, a laptop in her hand. Blonde curls had fallen from her messy bun, and her head was turned away from Percy.

Percy watched her for a moment, then nodded. "Sure."

"Thanks, bro." Jason called her over, and gestured to the seat across from Percy. He could feel her eyes on her, and a couple seconds later, she was beside Jason.

Percy studied her. She was wearing a white cardigan over jeans and combat boots. and smiled at Jason.

"Thanks," she told him, and smiled at Percy. When Percy saw her eyes, he almost dropped his jaw. Her eyes were the color of silver and stormy clouds, and were absolutely gorgeous Her smile was beautiful, and she slid across the seat in front of him.

"May I take your order?" Jason asked her, smiling politely.

As she gave her order, Percy couldn't help but be mesmerized by her voice. It was soft, yet steady and confident. He stared at her, mystified by the person who he'd known for barely two minutes.

"Is something wrong?"

Percy jolted back into reality, and realized he had been staring. He flushed, shaking his head. "No! Sorry. There was just..something behind you."

She glanced behind her, and then turned to Percy, eyebrows raised. When she spoke, her voice was laced with amusement. "I don't see anything."

"It must have..gone," Percy finished lamely, and scolded himself.

She grinned, "Can I get a name?"

"Percy," he squeaked, face burning. "Yours?"

She laughed, a melodic sound that Percy could listen to for all of eternity.

"They call me Annabeth."

ii.

Percy didn't stop thinking about those gray eyes the entire night.

He swore that it was only because she was a complete stranger and NOT because she was absolutely perfect. He'd only met her once, but as he got up and put on his pants, Percy found himself hoping that she would be at the coffee shop once again.

Yesterday, they'd talked for over an hour before Annabeth said she had to go. Percy couldn't stop the wave of disappointment as she got up to leave, but she promised him they'd meet again.

He almost said, "I hope so."

Now, as he drove to the coffee shop, he was afraid hoping was too much. Annabeth probably never even bothered to give him a second thought.

Why did he care so much, anyway?

Taking a tired sigh, Percy blinked and shut the engine as he parked in the now less crowded coffee shop.

When he entered, Jason was standing at the counter, and he was attending to a customer. He gave Percy a "give me one second" look, and Percy nodded.

He looked around, the smell of the caffeine and now pumpkin spice filling in his nostrils. Glancing table to table, booth to booth, he didn't spot Annabeth.

He pursed his lips, hopes dropping. But then he did see her.

She was sitting near the corner of the store, and he grinned. Her back was turned to him, blonde hair pulled up. Annabeth seemed to be intently focused on a book that was placed in front of her, and as Percy walked towards her, his heart sped up for no apparent reason.

Once he reached her, he placed a hand on her shoulder and she jumped up before turning to him. Once her beautiful eyes turned to face him, her face morphed from anger to realization.

"Percy?" She asked, shutting her book and turning to face him. "Where did you come from?"

Percy raised an eyebrow, "The door, Annabeth."

She rolled her eyes but was smiling. "Do you want to sit here?"

A burst of happiness flooded through Percy, and he tried his best to hide it. "Sure."

Percy took a seat across from her, spreading his hands out. "Do you come here often?"

This time it was Annabeth's eyebrows that were raised. "I just moved here a couple weeks ago. I'm going to go to Goode High School after winter break finishes for senior year."

Percy grinned. "You're lucky. There's still two weeks until break. And then you've got another two weeks away from school. But yeah, I go there too."

A sparkle glinted in her eye and she stirred her coffee, looking down. "Really?"

Percy nodded. "I can show you around."

She glanced up. "That would be wonderful."

Percy's gaze locked with hers, and he could see every little detail, every swirl and shades of gray, in her eye. He was mesmerized, and all too soon she coughed and broke the contact.

"Anyways," Annabeth said, sipping her coffee awkwardly. "How's Goode like?"

"It's cool," Percy replied. "But there's this one teacher, Mrs. Dodds, and she hates me. I'm telling you, she does."

Annabeth laughed, and watched Percy with a smirk.

"What?" Percy questioned, feeling suddenly self-conscious.

A smile broke out into Annabeth's face and she shook her head. "Nothing. You just seem like a troublemaker."

Percy narrowed his eyes, though it was in a playful manner. "I-"

Jason suddenly had arrived at their table, and he glanced at Percy, amused. "Hey, Perce. What made you decide to sit here?"

Percy shrugged, trying to play it off. He gave Jason a look that said "don't overdo this", and Jason nodded respectively.

"I don't know," Percy answered. "I just wanted to talk to Annabeth."

He stole a sideways glance at Annabeth and saw that his comment had caused her to blush.

Jason winked at him. "What will your order be?"

"I'll have a double shot," Percy said. "Thanks, bro. How much is it?"

Jason waved him away, "Nah, man. Just give me a dollar. You're fine."

Before Percy could tell Jason that he was crazy, his best friend walked away and behind the counter. Annabeth was once again smiling at Percy.

"What?"

"The relationship between you and Jason is cute. Are you two best friends?"

"Yeah," Percy said. "We are."

"So," Annabeth said, propping herself up by her elbows. "Tell me about yourself, Percy."

Percy had never had an interesting life. Other than the fact that his father had died in a boating accident, his life was the same. Growing up with his mom. Having a stupid excuse of an ass as a step-father. Working extra days to help save money for college. Trying to pass all his classes.

"I like to swim," Percy said, and cursed at himself for how boring that sounded.

But Annabeth seemed interested. "Really? Are you in any teams?"

"I'm in my high school swim team."

Annabeth chuckled. "You must be popular, then."

Percy shrugged. "Not really. Most of my friends are on the swim team, anyways. I don't enjoy popularity."

"You seem like someone who gets it without trying."

"Really?" Percy asked. He leaned over. "How so?"

Annabeth winked at him. "I can't say."

Percy laughed, a warm feeling spreading throughout him. "I like you."

Annabeth opened her mouth to say something, but once again, they were interrupted by Jason. He placed the drink beside Percy and waited as Percy dug around for a dollar.

Instead, he found a twenty. Shoving it towards Jason, Percy placed it into his hands. "Take it."

Jason gave him an odd look. "Why?"

"It's a tip," Percy said. "Now shut up and go attend your customers or something."

"Nice," Annabeth commented, a finger twirling around a blonde curl.

Percy nodded, though his smile probably gave it away. "Jason's awesome. He deserves it."

Annabeth nodded, and a silence settled between the two of them.

Wanting to hear Annabeth's voice again, Percy questioned, "Where did you live before you came to New York?"

"San Francisco," Annabeth answered.

For a second, Percy was surprised. Annabeth didn't seem like a Californian girl, but he knew her tan skin was not from anywhere near New York.

"How was that like?" Percy took a sip of his drink.

"California and New York are so different," Annabeth said. "The people in California said New Yorkers are rude and obnoxious."

Percy bit his lip. "Do you think that's true?"

Annabeth hummed. After a while of thinking, she responded, "I haven't met any obnoxious or rude people yet, so I have yet to answer."

"What do you think of me?"

The question seemed ridiculous, but it meant a lot to Percy. Too much, in fact.

The woman sitting across from him pretended to be deep in thought. She stroked her jaw, a motion which Percy found adorable.

"I think you're..interesting." Annabeth mused. "Getting to know you would seem cool."

She waited for Percy to say something, but Percy just stared at her. After a minute of expectantly waiting for him to a ask certain question, Annabeth sighed.

She stood up and gave a small smile to Percy. "Well, I'll see you later?"

Percy opened his mouth, then closed it again. Why was she leaving? He gave her a forced grin and bid her goodbye.

"Will I see you tomorrow?" Percy blurted out.

Annabeth shrugged, "Possibly."

Percy pretended like the single word didn't bring him a feeling of being let down. He, once again, cursed at himself. He'd obviously done something wrong for Annabeth to leave so abruptly, and a sick feeling settled inside of him.

He groaned and placed his head in his arms, wondering what exactly he'd said that made her leave.

After a couple of minutes of agony and annoyance, Percy felt Jason slip beside him. "Perce? Something wrong?"

Percy glanced up at his best friend, and saw that other than him, the store was completely empty. Other of Jason's workers, such as Leo Valdez, was attending to the main counter, sorting everything other. When he made eye contact with Percy, Leo winked.

"Where did everyone go?"

A smirk danced at Jason's lips. "You fell asleep for two hours. The shop is closed."

Percy's jaw dropped. "Seriously? I could've sworn it's been like three minutes!"

Jason shook his head, "Nah. So what's wrong? It takes a lot for you to go to sleep after a cup of coffee."

Percy groaned again, "I did something wrong to Annabeth."

Jason's eyebrows hit his hairline. "The girl you're in love with?"

Blood rushed to Percy's face, and he lightly punched Jason's arm. "Dude, I am not in love with her!"

His best friend put two hands up as if to surrender. "Okay, okay. So what happened?'

"We were talking and I said something and then she just got up and left!" Percy cried. "I bet she hates me. She'll never want to talk to me again!"

Jason watched him with an odd expression. A grin spread across his face and he started chuckling.

Percy peered at him, "What?"

"So much for not being in love with her, huh?"

iii.

(TW: slight mention of rape.)

The days passed, and Annabeth and Percy gradually became friends. They started talking everyday at the coffee shop, Percy coming to the shop everyday after school to see her.

And every day, Percy found himself falling for the blonde haired beauty a little more. There was just something about her that lured him in, and he couldn't say he didn't enjoy it.

Still, as much as he wanted to ask her out or be able to kiss her, Percy couldn't find the courage to do it.

As he walked down the streets of New York on a Friday night, Percy couldn't shake off the bad feeling rising inside of him that something was going to happen. He turned a dark corner, a shortcut to where his apartment was, and came face to face with Annabeth.

But she wasn't alone.

Two men were pressed up against her, having pinned her arms up above her head. They seemed to be whispering something to her, and Annabeth had her eyes shut.

When she opened them, her eyes locked with Percy's. Looking into them, Percy didn't see fear, he instead saw confidence.

Slowly, Percy walked over to them. It took everything he had to not break the men's jaws, and he tapped one man on the shoulder.

They were both blended into the night, with dark clothes that resembled a robber's. The man turned to him, and Percy almost gagged at his face. His eyes were bloodshot, wrinkles appearing on every inch of his face. The man's lips were drooped low, and he was repulsive.

The motion of the first man caused the second one to turn around, and they were so identical that Percy assumed they were twins.

The thought disgusted him even more.

Annabeth, realizing the opportunity, kneed both men in the groin, and just as they groaned, Percy punched each of them in the jaw. They slid down to the ground, clutching parts of their body.

Percy kicked them again.

In a second, they were up, but with a glance at Percy and a shake of their head, both of them walked away, muttering to each other. Percy decided he would report them as soon as possible now that he'd seen their faces.

He glanced at Annabeth, who had tears forming in her eyes. She sighed heavily, as if she'd been holding her breath.

Percy held his arms out, and, at first hesitant, Annabeth slowly walked towards him. He gave her a warm smile, and in a second, she flung herself at him.

She was shaking. Then, she was sobbing. Her head was buried in Percy's shoulder, and he rubbed her back, rocking her slightly.

They stayed like that for another minute, before Percy looked around. It was well past midnight, maybe even one.

"Annabeth,"

She pulled away, eyes slightly bloodshot. Her blonde hair was messy and carelessly thrown into a bun, and she sniffed. "Sorry. Oh my god, I'm sorry. I didn't mean any of this."

Percy shook his head, taking her by the hand. His fingers enclosed around hers, and he squeezed her hand. "Do you want to stay with me for the night?"

She shook her head, and Percy immediately hated himself for asking. Why would he question that, just after what had happened?

But when she looked up at him, there was nothing but sadness lingering in her eyes. "Could you just please walk me home?" Her voice cracked and she shakily pointed a finger down the street. "My house is the fourth one down."

Percy nodded, lacing his fingers with hers. "Annabeth, it's okay. I'm here."

She nodded and they walked towards the house Annabeth had pointed at. It didn't seem to be a mansion, from what he saw. Instead, it looked..cozy? Like a real home.

When they approached the house, Percy realized that all the lights in the houses were off. Uncertain, he asked Annabeth, "You sure you'll be okay?"

She offered him a confident smile, but it wavered. "I'll be okay.

Without thinking, Percy leaned down and placed a kiss on her temple. He gave her a parting smile. "Stay safe."

She kissed his hand, a small smile dancing at her lips. "You too."

iiii.

The next day after, Annabeth didn't come to the coffee shop. Nor did she the day after. Or the day after that.

A week had passed. It was winter break, and he couldn't help but feel the twisted feeling growing in his stomach. It was like a brick had settled at the pit of his stomach, dragging all his source of happiness along with it.

Until finally, Percy couldn't take it anymore. Something was wrong. He knew it. Mustering up all his courage, Percy walked to her house, remembering where it was.

He stopped directly in front of the door. It was 4 pm, and he'd waited for an hour at the coffee shop after school before coming here. For all he knew, this wasn't really Annabeth's house. She could have easily lied to him, then walked two blocks down to lose him. But there was one way he would know for sure.

Heaving a deep breath, Percy stepped up. He rang the doorbell, feeling the sound radiate throughout the house.

About twenty seconds later, a man who seemed just a couple years older than Percy opened the door. His bags was set into a thin line, gray eyes calculating as he gazed at Percy.

"May I help you?" His voice was tight and forced.

"Uh, is Annabeth here?"

"Why?"

"I need to see her," Percy replied, trying to ignore the blood rushing to his face.

The man leaned against the doorframe, scrutinizing Percy. "Why?" He asked again, a defensive tone edging onto his voice.

"We're friends," Percy explained. But I wish we were more.

The man was silent for a while before he sighed. "She's at the hospital."

Percy's heart dropped. "What?"

"Annabeth got into a car crash a week ago. She immediately went into comatose, and the doctors aren't sure when she'll wake."

A heavy feeling weighed Percy down. Annabeth had gone through all this, and he'd just sat there? Percy dropped his gaze to the ground.

"What hospital?" He managed out.

"Apollo's Hospital. A couple miles away."

"Okay," Percy breathed. "Thanks."

The man nodded. "I'm Malcolm, by the way. Annabeth's older brother."

Right. Annabeth had mentioned a brother.

Percy swallowed. "I'm Percy."

iiiii.

It had been years since Percy had cried.

He couldn't remember when he'd done it last. He didn't want to.

But sitting beside the woman he'd met just weeks ago, Percy couldn't control himself. The tears slipped unwillingly in his eyes, and he let them.

An aching emptiness was resting itself on his chest, and his heart felt as though it had been set on icy fire.

Annabeth lay on the hospital bed, her blonde hair spread out on her pillow. Her arms laid still to her side, pale and thin. Her face was a shade of white that Percy had never seen, and it pained him to not see her lively smile.

Everything about her was so..empty.

The lonely and depressing aura she gave off spread to Percy, and he sighed, looking at her.

Percy had, by some miracle, managed to convince the woman sitting in the front desk that he was Annabeth's "brother". He knew once she realized that he'd lied to her that he would have to leave,

Christmas was a day away. Percy promised himself that he'd find some way to ask Annabeth out on that day, despite his fear that she would reject him. And now here her she was, helpless.

There was just something about Annabeth, the way her eyes glimmered with a sense of life Percy had not seen for years, and the way her smile affected everyone around her. She'd had him interested in her the first day they'd met, and he'd been mesmerized by her.

He didn't know how long he'd sat there. Her family wasn't around, and Percy felt a pang in his heart to know that once he'd leave, Annabeth would be alone.

An idea popped into Percy's mind, and the gears began to shift in his head. He got up with great hesitancy, breathing heavily.

"Annabeth," he whispered, kneeling down slightly. His face was level with hers, and he grabbed her hand. "Please wake up."

Nothing. There was nothing proving that Annabeth was still alive, that some part of her was still living.

The thought made Percy sick, and he kissed her cold hand. "I miss you."

Then, with another soft kiss to her forehead, Percy stood up. He slowly left the room, trying not to focus on the repetitive beeps of the machines around Annabeth.

As he left, Percy noticed a nurse walking through the hallway, and he, stopping her, asked, "Excuse me? When do visiting hours end?"

She gave him a small smile, her name tag reading "Piper". "They end at midnight so in about eight hours."

Percy smiled back. "Thank you."

She nodded, and continued walking. "Anytime! Have a good day, and Merry Christmas!""

And with a "you too", Percy set off to find the nearest store that still held Christmas decorations in stock.

Percy shifted uneasily in his seat at home, shifting his food around, but not eating it.

His mom watched him with a skeptical gaze, worry lining her brown eyes. "Percy, honey? Is everything okay? You missed dinner, so I just wanted to give you something to eat. If you have trouble eating it, that's okay."

Percy told himself that he wouldn't break under his mother's stare. He wouldn't give up and tell her everything that was going on and he would most definitely NOT tell her about Annabeth. It wasn't her problem.

"Um," Percy said, "nothing, Mom. Don't worry."

He felt strange for lying to his mother, considering she knew he was lying. After staring at him for a while, she said, "I hope you're okay."

"I am," Percy told her, giving her a thin smile. "Trust me. I'm just excited about Christmas."

"You don't seem excited."

Percy sighed, lifting his gaze up to make eye contact with his mother. "Mom? Can I do something?"

Sally raised her eyebrows. "What?"

"I need to go get something outside," Percy said. "I'll be back soon."

Sally glanced at the clock. "Percy, it's 11:30. What would you be doing at a time like this?"

"Mom, I'll tell you everything when I get back," Percy promised. "It'll take me half an hour."

Sally narrowed her eyes. "It isn't safe out there."

"I'll be okay."

His mother shot him a weird look. Then, sighing, she stated, "You're exactly like your father. You know that?"

Percy grinned and got up. He kissed his mother's cheek, and grabbed his jacket. "I'll be back."

"Drive safely!"

When Percy got into his car (a present from his stepfather, Paul, who was away on a business trip), he checked the back seat to make sure all the decorations where there. Once sure, he backed his car up, turning the heat up and maneuvering through the icy streets.

It was 11:37. He had about 20 minutes, and trying not to rush, Percy drove to Apollo's Hospital. The eerie night, even on Christmas Eve, made him shiver, though the heating was on. He couldn't help but wonder what the 7 billion people on Earth were doing today, even those who don't celebrate Christmas.

He parked his car in the semi-crowded parking lot, and went to the back seats to retrieve his decorations.

There was a mistletoe, two strings of Christmas lights, and four snowflakes. Percy had bought them all when he'd left the hospital, wishing he could be kissing Annabeth under the mistletoe.

But wishes didn't come always come true.

Grabbing all the items, Percy managed to sneak in through the door, when the lady wasn't at her desk. Somehow, nobody seemed to notice -or care- that he was holding an enormous bag filled with decorations.

Percy went to Annabeth's room, which was numbered 231 and one the first floor, and softly opened her door.

The beeping noises of the heart monitor greeted Percy. He braced himself as be placed the bag beside her bed, and watched her again.

She looked like a princess. Everything about her was magical, and Percy had no doubt that everyone loved her.

Trying to ignore the aching of his heart, Percy grabbed his decorations and began to embellish the room.

When Percy was done, he gave himself a sad pat on the back. Overall, the room looked fantastic. The lights were decorated in a green and red pattern, but he had not plugged them in yet. The mistletoe was still being held in his hand, and he had stuck up the wall decorations everywhere.

Shutting the lights, Percy plugged both Christmas lights on, and watched them light up the entire room. The lights also illuminated Annabeth's face, giving her an extraordinary glow. Percy wished she could be conscious to see what he had done.

He pulled up the metal chair beside her hospital bed, and positioned himself so he was slightly higher than Annabeth.

Once again, her took her hand, feeling annoyed at the fact that her parents had not been by their daughter's side. Or, at least, her brother.

"Annabeth," he breathed, "you're so beautiful. I wish that I'd be able to say that in front of you. I wish that I had said it. Because, really, you are."

He paused for a moment, hovering his finger over her knuckles. "And, you know, I would really like to get to know you better. You seem like an amazing person. A unique person."

Percy was silent, then, unsure of what to say. "I hope you know that I will be hoping every single day that you wake up, because once you do, I'll ask you out. I'll do anything. Just, please." He broke off. "Please, Annabeth, wake up."

A lump formed in Percy's throat, but he kept going. "Everything about you is so wonderful. I don't know what I would've done if you hadn't sat in that chair weeks ago. I don't even want to know."

He kissed each knuckle softly. "You know what I do know, though?"

No response.

"I know that you'll get through this because you're strong. You're independent and fierce, and nothing brings you down. You're ANNABETH. And I adore you."

Percy looked out the window beside the hospital bed, and put his hand against the cold frame. The feeling spread through him, and Percy shivered, though he wasn't sure if it was the cold frame causing it.

Tiny snowflakes had began to fall, decorating the ridge of the window. Percy sighed, leaning his head against the window and shutting his eyes tightly.

Once he reopened them, Percy saw that more snowflakes had built on top of each other, and he stared at the parking lot beneath him.

Checking his watch, Percy saw it was 12:01.

He swallowed, glancing back at Annabeth.

"Annabeth," he whispered, "I have to leave. But I'll be back tomorrow, I swear it."

Percy cracked a smile, thinking of all the things he'd show her once she woke up. He'd introduce her to all his friends, and she'd be a part of their group.

Percy kissed her each finger softly, then gently placed her arm onto the hospital bed. She made no movement to indicate she was there.

He gave her a small, sad smile. Her eyes lingered in his mind.

"Merry Christmas, Annabeth."

A/N: Happy holidays! I hope you guys like this. Keep smiling, xxx.