Chapter Text
ANNABETH
The air is crisp as Annabeth walks into Poseidon’s Grotto, the campus coffee shop run by the nieces and nephews of the philosophy and mythology professor, Mr. Brunner. The leaves have begun to change color, washing the landscape in radiant reds and golds. She sets up her laptop at the corner table by the window and heads to the counter. The shop is practically empty aside from one stressed-looking kid in all black in the corner, so Annabeth can talk to the barista without interruptions. “Hey Thalia, how’s the internship?”
“Going pretty well. Artemis is the coolest boss I’ve ever had- don’t tell Brunner I said that , though.” Her eyes twinkle and Annabeth smiles and mimes zipping her lips.
“There’s more to that story, isn’t there?” She and Thalia have known each other too long to keep secrets.
“Well… there might be this girl…”
With anyone else, Annabeth would disregard this statement. At best, she’d smile and nod until they were through talking about it and then immediately forget every detail as soon as the conversation was over. Since it’s Thalia, Annabeth squeals. Overgrown Emo Kid looks over in disapproval, but Annabeth ignores him. “Tell me everything.”
“Her name’s Reyna…”
Annabeth leans on the counter while Thalia makes her regular, a caramel macchiato, and regales her with tales of Fellow Intern And Potential Lover Reyna Avila Ramirez Arellano, who follows the rules to the letter and constantly tries to impress Zoe, the manager of the nonprofit Thalia is volunteering at.
“Wait, so have you even talked to her?” Annabeth asks. She’s never understood why people got flustered and shy around crushes. She likes to be direct and honest. Keep things simple. She’s also never had a relationship, but she considers that fact irrelevant. There’s a formula for everything, even romance.
“Well… I don’t want to mess it up.”
“Thalia, you’re never intimidated by anyone. What is it about this girl that’s got you stuck?”
Thalia begins to answer, but the bell on the outside door rings and in runs her brother.
Annabeth steps aside to let Jason race up to the counter. “Thals, can you get me an iced coffee and make it quick? I’ve got a lecture across campus in five minutes.”
“Five? What, do you think I can just pull drinks out of thin air?” she grumbles, but she gets started.
Annabeth heads back to her seat, and Jason seems to register his surroundings for the first time. “Oh, hey, Annabeth! Professor Apollo asked me to tell you that he’s approved your request to audit that music class! But you gotta head over now. You’ve got-” He glances to the big sand dollar-shaped clock on the wall behind Thalia. “Three minutes. Do you know where the classroom is?”
Annabeth groans. “Unfortunately, yes.” She gathers her laptop and backpack. She’ll have to sprint to get there in time. She calls a quick good-bye to the Graces over her shoulder, heading for the door just as a young man with dark hair and startling green eyes whirls into the shop, apron slung over his own shoulder. He collides with her, hard, and they go down together in a tangle of limbs. Annabeth’s day sours like two-month-old milk. She’s going to be late to this class she didn’t even want to take with a wacky professor, and this guy is standing between her and a good grade. She is not going to make a bad first impression because of someone else’s clumsiness. “Excuse me,” he pants, scrambling away from her. He only proceeds to trip over her ankle and bang his knee on a nearby chair leg. She huffs and offers him a hand. They stand together, balancing on each other. Wow his eyes are green.
“Sorry,” he says. Annabeth can hear Thalia griping at him from behind the counter, but she’s already out the door.
THALIA
Percy throws his apron on and hurries behind the counter. “Way to go, Jackson,” Thalia admonishes him. Their friendship was built on the bedrock of mutual hatred and rivalry, and in the year since she’s known him, they’ve rarely gone one conversation without ribbing each other to death. “Clumsiest guy in town.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know,” he says. “Who was that?”
“The girl you so elegantly crashed into a second ago? Annabeth Chase. You don’t know her?” Thalia squinted at him. It wasn’t like him to look so unfocused.
“I’d remember if I’d seen her before.”
The kid in the corner stands abruptly and walks out of the shop. Jason, hand held out for his coffee, stares after him. “What’s with Nico?”