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Percy fought to suppress a groan as he threw back the rest of his beer in one gulp.
He’d been dragged to the bar with Jason and Leo, who had abandoned him almost as soon as they walked in the door, to find girls to dance with. He’d stationed himself at the bar by himself, which hadn’t been so bad until Reyna. She’d plopped down beside him, her wide smile and low-cut top making her reek of desperation.
She laughed loudly at something Percy said, which hadn’t been funny, leaning her head back and tossing her hair over her shoulder as she reached over and squeezed his bicep. Percy sighed quietly. He wasn’t stupid; he knew why this girl was here. Percy motioned for another beer while Reyna trailed her fingers down his arm.
“So, if you want to get out of here, my place isn’t far away.” She purred, too much alcohol making her more confident. Or at least Percy hoped it was the alcohol. He was running through a list of ways to tell her no thank you, without making her mad, when an arm was slung over his shoulders.
“There you are! I was wondering where you’d disappeared to.” A voice said excitedly. Percy furrowed his eyebrows at the voice. It was high-pitched, a girl’s. He looked over his shoulder into the stormy grey eyes of a girl he’d never seen before. When he glanced back at Reyna, she looked to be fuming.
“Looks like you already have plans. I’ll see you around.” She grumbled, hopping off the bar stool, only to be replaced by the stranger.
“Do I know you?” Percy asked, trying not to sound rude.
“No, but you looked like you needed a little help.” She mumbled, glancing over Percy’s shoulder towards Reyna, who was already looking for another guy to dance with. He just chuckled and smiled at the girl in front of him.
She was beautiful, but in a more subtle way than Reyna had been. This girl was a natural beauty. Her crème colored sweater and black skirt hugged her body nicely, but didn’t show too much; unlike Reyna, who’d seemed to take every opportunity to pull her top down and her skirt up. The girl tucked a strand of hair behind her ear nervously and Percy suddenly noticed that he’d gone too long without saying anything.
“Well, thanks. You’re like… my knight in shining armor I guess.” He joked, pulling a soft giggle out of the girl.
“Well, you make a good damsel in distress.” She joked back, then held out her hand. “I’m Annabeth.” He took it, blushing when her touch sent tingles down his spine.
“Percy.” He introduced himself. She smiled, her hands falling back into her lap. Annabeth’s princess curls bounced when she moved her head, making him want to reach out and touch them. The thing he kept focusing on, though, were her eyes. They were like two grey whirlpools, drawing him in enticingly, and making him want to know everything about her.
Percy could see Annabeth’s lips moving, but he didn’t process what she was saying until she waved her hand in his face, effectively breaking him out of his trance.
“Earth to Percy.” She said, laughter coloring her tone as she waved her hand in his face. He jumped, blushing when he knew he’d been caught staring.
“Sorry, what?” he asked, doing his best to pay attention this time.
“I asked you why you were all alone.” She repeated, running her finger around the neck of his beer bottle, drawing a line in the condensation.
“I came with my friends, but they blew me off. I haven’t seen them in a while.” He rolled his eyes, turning in his chair to see if he could spot them. After a glance, he snorted unattractively and quickly spun back around in his chair.
“What? Find them?” Annabeth asked, looking in the direction Percy had been to see what was going on.
“Reyna found Jason.” Percy said through his laughter. He turned back around and pointed them out to Annabeth. Reyna was grinding on Jason as he gripped her hips and they swayed to the music. It wasn’t hard for Annabeth to spot Jason, his blond head sticking up above most of the crowd. Annabeth laughed along with Percy, shaking her head, and rolling her eyes.
“I guess Attention Whore works on some guys.” Percy laughed, nodding in agreement.
“God, I think I’ll be sleeping on my mom’s couch tonight.” He groaned, not wanting to deal with going home to listen to Reyna and Jason having sex through the wall.
“You and Jason live together?” she asked, risking another glance over Percy’s shoulder at the couple.
“Not tonight we don’t.” Percy grumbled, shaking his head, and taking a sip of beer. She grinned, glancing down at the floor. When she looked up again, she spotted Jason walking over towards them, dragging Reyna along behind him.
“Look out behind you.” Annabeth mumbled, making Percy turn his head. His eyes widened and Reyna nearly stopped in her tracks, but Jason just kept heading toward them. His cheeks were flushed from alcohol and from dancing and his pupils were dilated so you almost couldn’t see the blue in his eyes.
“Hey, Perce! I’m gonna head home.” Jason said excitedly, flicking his eyes to look at Reyna, making sure Percy got the message.
“Got it. Have fun man.” Percy said, patting Jason’s shoulder, then turning back to Annabeth with raised eyebrows and wide eyes, while she tried not to laugh. When the couple was out of earshot, Percy and Annabeth doubled over laughing.
“Oh man, poor guy.” Annabeth laughed, shaking her head.
“He’s gonna get an earful tomorrow.” Percy mumbled. He didn’t say anything when Annabeth reached over and took a sip of his beer but instead scooted his stool closer to hers.
“What happened to your other friend?” she asked, setting the bottle back down.
“Leo? Who knows where he got off to. He disappears all the time. I told Jason we should put a bell on him.” he joked.
“Like a cat?” Annabeth asked, sounding amused. Percy laughed, tipping his head to the side, and resting his chin in his hand.
“Like a cat.” He agreed. They both laughed and Percy blushed when Annabeth casually touched his arm. Her fingers rested on his wrist, her touch making Percy’s entire body feel like it was on fire.
They talked and had a couple more drinks, which helped fuel Percy’s courage. He stood up from his stool and held out his hand to Annabeth.
“Wanna dance?” he asked, reaching up with one hand to push his fringe out of his eyes while shooting Annabeth a blinding smile. She blushed, butterflies filling her stomach as she felt like a giddy teenager again. She took his hand, nodding, and let him pull her onto the floor. The way the lights reflected off Annabeth’s hair and skin made Percy feel dizzy. She held his hands tightly like she somehow knew her touch was the only thing keeping him grounded. She led the way, swaying her hips to the music when Percy appeared to be frozen in place. She looked amused when he followed her lead clumsily.
“Do you not know how to dance?” she asked teasingly. She smiled up at him, effectively short-circuiting Percy’s brain. He’s pretty sure he said something really intelligent like…
“Uhhh… what?”
Annabeth just smiled wider and moved her hands to hold Percy’s waist. They moved together until Percy got more comfortable. Percy took one of Annabeth’s hands and spun her around until her back was pressed against his chest. She laughed quietly, tipping her head back against Percy’s collarbone. He rested his cheek against the side of her head, inhaling the vague lemony scent of her hair. Annabeth threaded her fingers with Percy’s, holding the hand that was pressed against her stomach.
Annabeth had only gone to the bar to get her friends off her back.
“You study too much.”
“You need to have some fun.”
“Seriously I think you forgot how not to live in your pajamas.”
Annabeth obviously never thought she’d have fun, much less meet someone; but she was completely and utterly charmed by Percy. His black skinny jeans, short-sleeved button-up shirt, and messy black hair made him look put together in a careless way that she found incredibly attractive. Not to mention his eyes. They were the color of seafoam and Annabeth swore they swam like the tide.
“You’re a pretty good dancer.” Percy mumbled into her ear, snapping her out of her daze.
“I’m sure you’d think so. Wouldn’t be hard to be better than you.” she teased, glancing over her shoulder and up at him.
“Hey! I resent that.” He griped, glaring down at her, but there was no heat behind it. Annabeth smiled up at him, leaning back into his embrace. He tried to maintain his irritated expression, but it crumbled when Annabeth beamed at him. He couldn’t help but smile back at her, squeezing her hip gently before spinning her back around so he could hold both her hands.
God! His smile. Annabeth was doomed.
They danced for a while longer, hardly taking their hands off each other, until they were both exhausted. They took a few steps back from the crowd, Percy peering at his watch and sighing.
“I should probably go if I’m gonna crash on mom’s couch. I don’t wanna wake her up when I come in.” he said, pulling his phone out to text her. Annabeth’s heart melted; him being this close to his mom was precious. She was about to sigh, resigning herself to never seeing Percy again when she got an idea. It was a stupid idea, but she’d had a few drinks and if she was being honest with herself, she’d been lonely a little too long to care. She laid her hand gently on his arm, stopping him from typing.
“If you want, you can crash on my couch. That way you don’t have to worry about your mom. And I’ve been told my couch is pretty comfortable. You know… if you want.” Annabeth mumbled, her confidence abandoning her halfway through her offer. Percy didn’t seem to care though. He grinned down at her, already pocketing his phone.
“How do I know you’re not some crazy serial killer and this has all been one big ploy to get me back to your lair?” he asked jokingly, poking her side. Annabeth giggled, rolling her eyes, and batting his hand away.
“I guess you’ll just have to trust me.” She shrugged, already heading for the door, glancing back over her shoulder to see if Percy would follow her. The surprising thing was that Percy did trust her. He’d never seen her before he walked into this bar and somehow, he felt like he’d known her his whole life. He smiled dopily and followed after her.