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Annabeth had been shopping with Piper for nearly three hours, and somehow Percy still didn't have a birthday present.

His birthday was a little over a week away, which should have been plenty of time considering Annabeth had known the date was coming since, well, his last birthday. She'd spent an embarrassing amount of the past month thinking about what to get him, making lists, crossing things off, adding them back, even asking Sally questions without making it obvious she was asking Sally questions. None of it had helped.

Percy was annoyingly difficult to shop for, mostly because he wasn't picky enough. He'd probably be genuinely delighted if Annabeth handed him a blue cupcake and told him she'd thought of him when she bought it. He didn't care about expensive things, never talked about anything he wanted, and whenever she tried to casually ask if there was something he needed, he looked at her like she'd asked him to explain quantum physics.

Annabeth had once flat out asked Percy what he wanted for his birthday and his response was a very loving, but extremely unhelpful, “Just you, Wise Girl.”

Which was why Annabeth had dragged Piper into Manhattan on a Saturday afternoon.

“I still think the watch was nice,” Piper said.

Annabeth made a face. “It didn't feel like Percy.”

“The jacket?”

“He already has a jacket.”

“People can own multiple jackets.”

“He has been wearing the same one for two years now.”

“The sunglasses?”

“He'd lose them.”

Piper stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and planted both hands on her hips. Annabeth made it three steps before realizing she was suddenly alone and turned around.

“Your boyfriend is impossible.”

“I've been saying that for years.”

“I'm starting to understand why Sally gives him food for his birthday.”

Annabeth laughed and waited for Piper to catch up.

Manhattan was crowded, which wasn't unusual for a Saturday afternoon. They'd wandered through what felt like half the city already, weaving in and out of stores while Annabeth rejected nearly every suggestion Piper made. The August heat clung stubbornly between the buildings, and even Annabeth had eventually surrendered and twisted her braids off the back of her neck. Piper had bought an iced coffee somewhere around hour two. Annabeth had stolen enough sips that Piper finally shoved the cup into her hands and bought another one.

They were somewhere in the Village now, though Annabeth had stopped paying attention to exactly where Piper was leading her.

That was probably her first mistake.

“I could just get him something from the camp store,” Annabeth said.

Piper looked horrified. “You're going to give your boyfriend a shirt he can get for free from Chiron?”

“He needs new camp shirts.”

“He'd wear a garbage bag if you handed it to him and told him he looked handsome.”

Annabeth's mouth twitched because, unfortunately, that was probably true. Percy loved doing things for her, whether that was making food, holding her, or wearing a trash bag just because she complimented him. She needed to find him something. She wanted to shower Percy with love the same way he showered her with it day in and day out.

They passed another row of storefronts. A bookstore, a tiny café, vintage clothes, some sort of record shop, and Annabeth was mentally reorganizing her list when Piper abruptly stopped again. Annabeth nearly walked straight into her.

“Would you quit doing that?”

Piper didn't answer, she was too busy staring through the window beside them.

The storefront was small and dark, with neat white lettering painted across the glass. Inside, display cases were filled with jewelry, framed photographs lined one wall, and a brightly colored sign advertised walk-in appointments.

Annabeth immediately knew where this was going.

“No.”

Piper hadn't even spoken yet. She slowly turned her head, and the grin spreading across her face was downright sinister.

“Annabeth.”

“No.”

“I haven't said anything.”

“I know that face.”

Piper grabbed her wrist and pulled her closer to the window despite Annabeth's protests. “Just look.”

“I can see perfectly fine from here.”

“Annabeth.”

“Piper.”

Piper ignored her and pointed toward one of the displays. “Belly-button piercing.”

Annabeth stared at her. “I'm trying to find Percy a birthday present.”

“I know. What could be a more perfect present than decorating that hot body of yours so your obsessive boyfriend will go crazy?”

“Getting a piercing on my body actually makes it a present for me.”

“Technically.” Piper's eyes flicked deliberately toward Annabeth's stomach before she grinned. “But you'd look insanely good with one.”

Annabeth barked out a laugh. “That's not a reason to put a hole in my body.”

“No, but it's a compelling supporting argument.” Piper took an innocent sip of her coffee. “Also, Percy would literally stop functioning. You know how obsessed he is already with your waist.”

Annabeth opened her mouth with a response already prepared, but nothing came out. She smoothed her hands down the front of her shirt, briefly pausing where her lower stomach was.

Piper's eyebrows climbed.

“Shut up.”

“I didn't say anything.”

“You're doing the face again.”

“What face?”

“The one where you think you've won.”

Piper took another smug sip while Annabeth looked back through the window.

It wasn't because of Percy. Obviously. She wasn't going to permanently alter her body solely because her boyfriend might like it. That would be ridiculous.

But some of them were actually pretty.

Annabeth had always pictured belly-button piercings as big, flashy things, but the jewelry in the window wasn't like that. Some pieces were tiny and delicate, barely more than a glint of silver. There were simple curved bars and understated gemstones that caught the sunlight without demanding attention.

And Annabeth could picture one. That was the problem.

“You're thinking about it,” Piper said.

“No, I'm not.”

“You're doing your architecture face.”

Annabeth tore her attention from the window. “My what?”

“The face you make when you're staring at something and mentally redesigning it.”

“I do not have an architectural face.”

“You absolutely do.”

Annabeth rolled her eyes, but her gaze drifted back toward the display. One piece in particular had caught her eye. It was a simple silver curved bar, a tiny light-blue stone set at the bottom. Nothing dangling from it, nothing overly sparkly. Just enough color to catch the light.

She really liked it.

“Oh, that one's cute,” Piper said beside her. “The blue one.”

“It's subtle.”

“Mhm.”

Annabeth glanced sideways. Piper's expression was far too innocent.

“What?”

“I didn't say anything.”

“You're thinking something.”

“I was just noticing the color.”

Annabeth looked back at the jewelry. “It doesn't mean anything.”

“I didn't say it did.”

“It's just blue.”

“Absolutely.”

Annabeth narrowed her eyes. “His eyes aren't even exactly that color.”

Piper's mouth fell open in delighted disbelief. “I didn't mention Percy's eyes!”

Annabeth froze.

“Oh my gods.” Piper started laughing. “You did that entirely to yourself.”

“Shut up.”

“You picked the one that matches your boyfriend's eyes!”

“I haven't picked anything. I said I liked it.”

“Because it matches Percy's eyes.”

“Because it's pretty.”

“And Percy has pretty eyes.”

Annabeth glared at her, mostly because that was also unfortunately true. Percy's eyes were stupidly pretty. A light blue-green depending on the light, bright when he laughed, darker when he was angry, and unfairly noticeable against his pale skin. Annabeth had spent years pretending she hadn't noticed them and then several more pretending she didn't notice them quite as often as she did.

She looked through the window again. The little blue stone sparkled innocently back at her.

Piper bumped their shoulders together. “Imagine his face.”

Annabeth shouldn't have.

She did.

Percy seeing it for the first time. Percy going completely silent. His ears turning pink. That particular expression he got whenever Annabeth wore something he liked and he was desperately trying to pretend he wasn't staring.

Her stomach did an irritating little flip.

Piper saw something change in her expression and grinned. “Oh, I've got you.”

“You have nothing.”

“You're imagining Percy seeing it.”

“You're insufferable.”

“And you're blushing.”

“It's ninety degrees outside.”

“Mhm, sure.”

Annabeth looked back at the shop. This was stupid. Impulsive. Completely unnecessary. Exactly the sort of decision she normally thought through for several days, researched extensively, made a pros-and-cons list about, and then researched again just to make sure she'd researched it correctly the first time.

Apparently recognizing that she'd pushed enough, Piper's teasing softened. “You don't actually have to. Seriously. It was mostly a joke. But if you like it, we can go inside and ask questions. You don't have to get anything done.”

That sounded significantly more reasonable. Research, now that was something Annabeth could do. She looked once more at the little silver piece with the blue stone before sighing. “We're just asking questions.”

Piper nodded solemnly. “Of course.”

“I mean it.”

“Absolutely.”

“We are not walking in there and immediately getting anything pierced.”

“I would never pressure you into making an impulsive decision.”

Annabeth stared at her and Piper lasted two seconds before grinning and holding the door open for them to walk inside.

Twenty minutes later, Annabeth was sitting on a padded table with her shirt gathered above her stomach.

“This is your fault.”

Piper sat in the corner looking delighted with herself. “For the record, you signed the consent form all by yourself.”

“I hate you.”

“No, you don't.”

The worst part was that Piper was right. Annabeth had done significantly more than ask questions. She'd asked about healing time, infection risk, swimming, cleaning, jewelry materials, exercise, and how long she'd have to wait before changing it. She'd inspected the studio until she was satisfied it was clean, checked their certifications, and made Piper sit patiently while she read every line of the aftercare information.

Somewhere during all that, asking questions had become choosing jewelry. Choosing jewelry had become signing paperwork. And now she was apparently doing this.

“Are you nervous?” Piper asked.

“No.”

“You look nervous.”

“I've been stabbed before, Piper.”

“Not in the belly button.”

“I've been stabbed in worse places.”

Piper gawked at her. “That is possibly the least reassuring thing you could've said.”

Annabeth laughed despite herself.

The piercer talked her through everything before beginning. Annabeth concentrated on the instructions, keeping still and breathing normally. There was pressure, then a sharp, hot pinch that made her suck in a breath. Piper's eyebrows shot up, and Annabeth immediately glared at her.

“Don't.”

“I didn't say anything.”

“You were going to.”

“I was going to ask if you're okay.”

“You were going to laugh.”

“I can do both.”

A few seconds later, it was over. Once everything was secure and Annabeth was allowed to sit up, she looked down.

Oh.

It was pretty. Really pretty.

The silver was delicate against her dark skin, and the tiny blue stone caught the overhead light whenever she moved. It wasn't nearly as dramatic as she'd imagined. If anything, it looked like it belonged there. Annabeth tucked her shirt higher and rested her hands on the curve of her waist. 

Piper appeared beside her and, for once, didn't immediately make a joke.

“Oh, Annabeth.”

Annabeth looked at her through the mirror. “That good?”

“That good. I think you actually just broke the hotness scale.”

A smile tugged at Annabeth's mouth as she looked down again. She genuinely liked it, which had made the decision surprisingly easy once she'd stopped insisting Piper's idea was ridiculous. But if she was being completely honest, Percy had swayed her more than she wanted to admit. The thought of surprising him for his birthday, and, admittedly, watching her boyfriend completely lose his mind when he saw it, had been the final little push she'd needed.

And judging by the tiny blue stone she'd picked out without even meaning to, Percy had apparently influenced more of the decision than she cared to examine too closely.

Piper met her eyes in the mirror. “So, what do you think Percy will say about his gift?”

“I still need to get him a real present.”

“I think you just got him one.”

“This is not his present.”

“You picked his eye color.”

“I picked blue.”

“His. Eye. Color.”

“I'm buying him something else.”

Piper grinned. “You're going to show him on his birthday, though, right?”

Annabeth paused. That hadn't actually occurred to her.

She looked at herself again, at the little flash of blue and the piercing she'd have absolutely no trouble hiding beneath her normal clothes. His birthday was only a week away.

Slowly, the corner of Annabeth’s mouth lifted.

Piper's answering grin turned positively wicked. “Oh, you already love the idea.”

“Don't tell him.”

“My lips are sealed.”

“And don't act weird around him.”

Piper looked offended. “I can keep a secret.”

“You told Jason about the Christmas present I bought him within six hours.”

“That was different. I was excited.”

Annabeth gave her a pointed look.

“Fine. I won't tell Percy.”

Satisfied, Annabeth carefully lowered her shirt again, hiding the tiny blue stone completely.

For the next week, Percy Jackson wasn't going to have a clue.

And Annabeth was suddenly looking forward to his birthday a whole lot more than she had been that morning.

Keeping the piercing hidden from Percy turned out to be significantly harder than getting it in the first place.

Annabeth realized this approximately four hours after returning to camp.

It wasn't that Percy was particularly observant about things like clothes. Annabeth could wear the same shirt three days in a row and there was a decent chance he wouldn't notice. But when it came to her, Percy noticed everything. He noticed when she was tired before she admitted it, when she was getting a headache, when something had irritated her, when she was quieter than usual. He knew when she was pretending to be fine and, unfortunately, had become very good at recognizing when she was keeping something from him.

And Annabeth had apparently underestimated how much of their normal relationship involved Percy touching her waist.

Not in any particularly deliberate way, well, most of the time. Percy was just affectionate, he always had been. His arms went around her waist when he hugged her from behind. His hand rested across her stomach when they were lying together. He tugged at her hips to press against his side whenever she sat beside him, rested his chin on top of her head, hooked his fingers through her belt loops when she tried to walk away from him.

Normally, Annabeth barely registered any of it. Now she was constantly aware of exactly where Percy's hands were.

The first evening, she'd escaped relatively easily. The piercing was sore enough that she'd been perfectly happy to spend the night in her own cabin, and Percy hadn't questioned why she didn't want to go swimming after dinner.

The second day was harder.

“You're not coming?”

Annabeth glanced up from her book. Percy was standing in front of her in swim trunks, his hair still flattened slightly from the sweat he was covered in after sword practice.

“To the lake?”

“Yeah.”

“No.”

Percy studied her, confusion written plainly on his face. “You always come.”

“I don't always come.”

“You came yesterday.”

“I did not.”

Percy's eyebrows drew together. “Wait. You didn't.”

Annabeth returned to her book before he could think too hard about that.

“I don't feel like swimming.”

“Are you sick?”

“No.”

“Headache?”

“No.”

“Did you hurt something?”

“No, Percy.”

He remained standing there. Annabeth could practically hear the gears turning in that girlfriend-obsessed brain of his. Finally, Percy leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to the top of her head. “Okay. I'll see you at dinner?”

“Yes.”

Another kiss landed against her temple, then he walked away. Annabeth waited until he was out of earshot before releasing a breath.

Beside her, Piper snorted.

Annabeth slowly turned her head. Piper was sprawled across the grass with a magazine open in front of her, sunglasses covering her eyes.

“You're terrible at this.”

“I'm doing fine.”

“You practically yelled no, Percy when he asked if you were hurt.”

“He asks too many questions.”

“He's your boyfriend.”

“He's too nosy.”

“He's worried about you.”

“He doesn't need to be.”

Piper lowered her sunglasses enough to peer over the top. “Then tell him you got your belly button pierced.”

Annabeth kicked her ankle. Piper laughed and returned to her magazine.

By day three, Percy had started noticing other things.

Annabeth changed in the bathroom instead of casually pulling on one of his shirts in Cabin Three. She wore slightly looser clothes so nothing rubbed against the piercing. When Percy suggested going to the beach, she suddenly remembered something she needed to help Malcolm with. She'd even slapped Percy's hand away once when he'd tried to steal a french fry from her plate and his arm had gotten dangerously close to her stomach.

That one had earned her a particularly suspicious look.

Piper, meanwhile, had become a menace. Every time Percy appeared, Piper looked at Annabeth. Every time Annabeth adjusted her shirt, Piper smirked.

Every time Percy put his arm around Annabeth's shoulders instead of her waist, Piper had to suddenly become very interested in something across the room so Percy wouldn't see her laughing.

Annabeth was beginning to regret involving her.

By the fourth afternoon, Annabeth had almost gotten used to the constant vigilance.

Almost.

She and Piper were standing outside the dining pavilion after lunch, arguing over whether they had enough time to walk into town before afternoon activities, when Annabeth heard familiar footsteps behind her.

She didn't think anything of them and that was her first mistake.

Percy's arms slipped around her waist from behind. Normally, Annabeth would have automatically relaxed into him.

Instead, his forearm pressed directly across her still-tender piercing.

Pain shot through her stomach and Annabeth couldn’t help but jerk away from him.

Percy released her instantly.

“Did I hurt you?”

The concern in his voice made Piper's eyes go wide.

Annabeth recovered quickly. “No.”

Percy stepped around her so he could see her face, his eyes filled with concern. “You just flinched away from me.”

“I'm fine.”

“Annabeth.”

“Percy.”

His eyes narrowed.

She knew that look.

Percy wasn't always the fastest person in the room when it came to solving puzzles, but he knew her. He'd spent too many years watching her lie about injuries and insist she was fine while actively bleeding for Annabeth to get away with that answer anymore.

His gaze swept over her as though looking for something visibly wrong.

“Are you hurt?”

“No.”

“Then why did you do that?”

Annabeth's mind went completely blank. She looked over at Piper who was standing directly behind him, being absolutely no help whatsoever.

Actually, judging by the way Piper had pressed her lips together, she was about five seconds from making everything considerably worse.

Annabeth needed an excuse. Immediately.

“I've been having some cramps.”

Percy's entire expression changed.

“Oh.”

Piper made a strangled noise. Annabeth shot her a warning look from around Percy's shoulder.

Percy didn't notice. Any suspicion he'd had disappeared immediately, replaced by that soft crease between his eyebrows that appeared whenever Annabeth wasn't feeling well.

“Bad?”

Annabeth suddenly felt terrible.

“Not really.”

“You could've told me.”

“They're just cramps, Percy.”

“I know, but-” His hand settled carefully against her hip. “Is that why you didn't want to swim yesterday?”

Annabeth hesitated for half a second too long.

Piper turned away. Her shoulders were shaking.

“Yes,” Annabeth said.

Percy nodded as though several days of strange Annabeth behavior had finally been explained.

Which was extremely convenient. And also made her feel slightly guilty.

“Come here.”

Before Annabeth could ask what he was doing, Percy stepped closer, turned her around, and slipped his arms around her again, this time much lower. One hand rested against her hip while the other settled over the very bottom of her stomach, safely below the piercing.

Annabeth nearly laughed from sheer relief.

“Better?”

She looked up at him. Percy was watching her seriously, that little crease of concern still between his eyebrows. “Yeah.”

His palm began moving slowly over her lower stomach, and Annabeth felt her eyes widen.

Oh, gods. He was giving her a massage. Because she had told him she had cramps.

The cramps she did not have.

“You don't have to do that,” she said, guilt starting to creep in now that her sweet, concerned boyfriend was apparently determined to treat her completely fictional discomfort. She leaned back into his embrace.

“I know.”

Percy's other hand rubbed gently along her hip, his thumb moving in slow circles, and Annabeth looked past his shoulder to find Piper with both hands clamped firmly over her mouth. Her entire face had gone red from the effort of keeping quiet.

Annabeth narrowed her eyes at her.

Piper shook her head desperately, silently communicating that she was doing everything in her power not to laugh.

Percy must have noticed Annabeth looking at something because he glanced over his shoulder. Piper immediately dropped her hands.

“What?”

“Nothing,” Piper said much too quickly.

Percy looked between the two of them, and Annabeth's heart sank when that suspicious little crease appeared between his eyebrows again.

“What?”

“Nothing,” Annabeth repeated.

“Why are you two being weird?”

“We're not.”

Piper made another choking noise, and Annabeth decided she was going to kill her.

Percy looked over at her. “Are you okay?”

“Perfect.” Piper cleared her throat and managed to rearrange her face into something vaguely normal. “Fantastic, actually.”

Annabeth gave her a look that promised violence before Percy's attention returned to her. His hand was still moving gently across her lower stomach, blissfully far away from the actual source of her discomfort.

“Do you want to lie down?” he asked.

“No.”

“I can walk you back to your cabin.”

“I'm fine.”

“Do you need anything?”

“Percy.”

“What?”

Annabeth couldn't help smiling a little. He was being so painfully sweet about this that she was beginning to feel like a terrible person. “I'm okay.”

He studied her for another second before apparently deciding she was telling the truth. Percy bent to kiss her forehead and then her temple, lingering there for a moment before pulling back. “Tell me if it gets worse.”

“I will.”

“And maybe don't do training this afternoon.”

“I'm doing training.”

“Annabeth.”

“Percy.”

His mouth twitched. “Fine. But if you don't feel good-”

“I'll tell you.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

That finally seemed to satisfy him. Percy kissed her once more, this time quickly on the mouth, before stepping away. “I've got sword practice. I'll find you after?”

Annabeth nodded. “Okay.”

He started backing away, pointing at her as he went. “Take it easy.”

“Go.”

“I'm serious.”

“Percy.”

He grinned and finally turned around.

Annabeth waited until he'd made it ten feet, then twenty, watching until his blond curls disappeared around the side of the pavilion. There was exactly one second of silence before Piper folded in half.

Annabeth immediately smacked her arm.

“Oh my gods,” Piper wheezed, stumbling sideways. “Cramps?”

“I panicked!”

“He was massaging you!”

“Shut up.”

“He was giving you a little cramp massage while you're standing there with a secret belly-button piercing!”

“Piper.”

“And you were just letting him!”

“What was I supposed to do?” Annabeth demanded, though she was already starting to laugh. “Say, actually, never mind, my imaginary cramps have miraculously disappeared?”

That only made Piper laugh harder. She grabbed Annabeth's shoulder to keep herself upright, and Annabeth shoved her away.

“You are never helping me with anything again.”

“I didn't do anything!”

“You were standing behind him looking like you were about to explode.”

“Because you told your boyfriend you had cramps so he wouldn't find his own birthday present!”

“It is not his birthday present.”

Piper finally straightened, wiping beneath one eye. “You might want to tell him that. Apparently he's already providing aftercare.”

Annabeth covered her face with both hands. 

This had been a terrible idea. A genuinely terrible idea, and somehow she still had several more days to survive before Percy's birthday.

When she lowered her hands again, Piper was watching her with an expression that immediately made Annabeth suspicious. “What?”

Piper's grin returned. “He's going to lose his mind when he sees it.”

Annabeth's stomach did that irritating little flip again. She rolled her eyes and started walking. “Come on.”

“You know I'm right,” Piper said, hurrying after her.

“I'm ignoring you.”

“Three days and he's already noticed you're acting weird. There is no way you're making it until his birthday.”

Annabeth glanced sideways at her. Piper only lifted her eyebrows, and Annabeth hated that she might have a point.

Percy knew something was different. He didn't know what yet, and the cramps excuse had bought her some time, but Annabeth knew her boyfriend. The second something stopped adding up, he would start paying attention to everything.

She just had to keep one tiny piece of jewelry hidden for a few more days.

By the fifth night, Annabeth had started to think she might actually pull it off.

Percy's birthday was still a couple of days away, and despite Piper's complete lack of faith in her, the piercing remained a secret. The cramps excuse had worked almost too well. Percy had stopped questioning why she occasionally shifted away when his arm came around her waist, apparently deciding that if Annabeth wanted to talk about it, she would. She'd even survived another afternoon at the lake by claiming she didn't feel like getting her hair wet.

Percy had looked at her like she'd grown a second head, but somehow, he'd let it go.

Tonight should have been easy.

Movie nights in Cabin Three were routine by now. Percy had somehow acquired an old television and DVD player that worked when they felt like it, along with a collection of movies that had slowly grown over the years. Some belonged to him, some to Annabeth, and several had been gifts from Sally after discovering exactly how many movies Annabeth had missed growing up.

It was their thing. One of the rare pieces of normal teenage life they'd managed to carve out for themselves between prophecies, monsters, and the occasional end of the world.

Annabeth was sprawled across Percy's bed while he crouched in front of the television, fighting with a tangle of cords behind it. At some point over the last year, Percy had seemingly grown another several inches, and even crouched on the floor he looked too big for the space between his bed and the dresser. His faded T-shirt stretched across his shoulders whenever he reached behind the television, muscles shifting beneath pale skin as he blindly searched for the right cable. His unruly curls were falling into his eyes, increasingly disheveled from the number of times he'd shoved an impatient hand through them. Her cheeks felt increasingly more warm the longer she watched him.

Annabeth had stopped offering suggestions five minutes ago after he informed her that he knew what he was doing, immediately followed by the screen going black.

“You definitely know what you're doing,” she said.

Percy twisted around to look at her. “Do you want to watch the movie or not?”

“I'd love to. Unfortunately, you've apparently killed the television.”

“I didn't kill it.”

“You touched one wire and it died.”

“Coincidence.”

His mouth pulled into the crooked grin Annabeth knew far too well, little smile lines appearing beside his eyes. He muttered something about unhelpful girlfriends and disappeared behind the television again.

Annabeth smiled down at her book.

This was easy. Normal.

The movie was finally working, the popcorn sat half abandoned between them, and Annabeth had reached the point where the denim shorts she'd worn all day were becoming unbearable. Percy had already changed into gray sweatpants and a T-shirt, because apparently only one of them had possessed the foresight to dress comfortably.

She shifted for the third time.

Percy's eyes immediately left the screen. “You okay?”

“Fine. My shorts are annoying me.”

“Take them off.”

Annabeth slowly turned her head toward him.

Percy, wisely, kept his eyes trained on the television, although the twitch at the corner of his mouth betrayed him.

“You have such a way with words.”

“You know what I meant.”

Unfortunately, she did.

Annabeth pushed herself off the bed and crossed toward his dresser. At this point, one of the drawers had become unofficially hers. There were a couple pairs of shorts, sleep pants, a spare toothbrush she'd somehow never taken back to Cabin Six, and at least three shirts that technically belonged to Percy but hadn't been worn by Percy in months.

She found a pair of soft shorts and changed into them before digging farther into the drawer. Her fingers closed around familiar faded cotton, and she pulled out one of Percy's old shirts.

Perfect.

It was ridiculously large on her. Most of his clothes were. Annabeth was on the shorter side, but Percy had gotten tall enough over the past year that standing beside him sometimes made her feel like she was even smaller. The top of her head fit somewhere well beneath his chin when he pulled her against him, and his shirts swallowed her accordingly. This one would fall nearly to the middle of her thighs.

Behind her, Percy made an annoyed sound at the television. “Did you seriously pick this movie?”

“You agreed to it.”

“I agreed because you said it was good.”

“It is good.”

“Nothing has happened for forty minutes.”

“Things are happening. You're just incapable of appreciating a plot that doesn't involve explosions.”

“I'm capable of appreciating plenty of things.”

Annabeth rolled her eyes and hooked her fingers beneath the hem of her shirt. She pulled the shirt over her head and tossed it onto the dresser.

“I'm just saying,” Percy continued, “if somebody doesn't get murdered or kidnapped soon, I'm picking the next-”

Annabeth turned around, ready to argue. She watched as Percy turned to face her instead of the TV and his sentence died.

Not trailed off. Not interrupted.

Died.

The change in him was so immediate that Annabeth didn't understand it at first. One second he'd been slouched comfortably against the headboard, complaining about the movie with the remote loose in one hand. Now every inch of him had gone unnaturally still.

His thumb hovered above the remote, his lips were parted around whatever word he'd forgotten, and a blond curl had fallen over his forehead, but he didn't even seem to notice.

Annabeth frowned. “What?”

Percy didn't answer, but his eyes had dropped lower.

Annabeth followed them down.

Past her exposed shoulders, across her blue sports bra, then down to her bare stomach.

Silver jewelry. Tiny blue stone.

Oh, shit.

She'd forgotten.

Completely, spectacularly forgotten that she had spent the last four days carefully hiding a brand-new piercing from the boy currently staring at it as though Annabeth had just revealed the cure to cancer.

She grabbed Percy's shirt and yanked it over her head.

The fabric fell around her in one enormous sweep, swallowing her almost comically. The shoulder seams hung several inches below her actual shoulders, the sleeves nearly reached her elbows, and the hem fell well past her shorts.

The piercing disappeared completely.

Percy blinked.

His gaze remained fixed on her stomach for another second as if his brain hadn't quite registered that there was now a shirt in the way. Then those bright blue eyes traveled slowly upward until they met hers.

“You weren't supposed to see that.”

“You pierced your belly button.”

It wasn't even a question. His voice had gone strangely low with disbelief.

Annabeth tugged unnecessarily at the hem. “Apparently.”

“When?”

“A few days ago.”

His eyebrows shot upward. “A few days ago?”

“Yes.”

“And you didn't tell me?”

The betrayal in his expression was so genuine that Annabeth had to bite the inside of her cheek. Percy had straightened completely, his long legs unfolding over the edge of the bed as he leaned toward her. The movement made the muscles in his forearms flex where he'd planted his hands against the mattress, but his attention never left her.

“It was supposed to be a surprise.”

Percy stared at her for a long moment before his gaze betrayed him again, dropping directly to the enormous expanse of faded cotton covering her stomach. He slowly rose to his feet and took a couple of steps towards her.

“Well,” he said slowly, “it was.”

Annabeth laughed.

His eyes narrowed. “Is that why you've been acting weird?”

“I haven't been acting weird.”

“You told me you had cramps.”

Annabeth winced.

Then his mouth fell open. “You didn't have cramps.”

“I panicked!”

“I gave you a massage!”

“I know.”

“I was worried about you!”

“I felt terrible!”

“You should!”

Annabeth couldn't stop laughing now, especially because Percy was trying so hard to look offended while simultaneously being incapable of keeping his eyes above her waist for longer than ten seconds.

She caught him doing it again.

“You can't see it anymore.”

His eyes immediately jumped to hers. “I know.”

“Then why are you staring at my shirt?”

“I was thinking.”

“About my shirt?”

Percy hesitated. “Maybe.”

His hand reached out, catching the hem of the oversized shirt. She slapped his hand away before he could move the fabric any further up her thighs, then pushed him back.

She shook her head, grabbed the bowl of popcorn from the dresser, and turned toward the bed.

She made it two steps.

“Wait.”

Her smile appeared before she could stop it. “No.”

Behind her came the unmistakable sound of Percy's feet moving against the floor.

“Annabeth.”

“Percy.”

“Wait.”

She kept walking. “Don't.”

“I'm not doing anything.”

“You're following me.”

“We're both going to the bed.”

Annabeth glanced over her shoulder and nearly laughed again. Percy was directly behind her, and with the height difference between them, she practically had to tip her head back to meet his eyes.

“You were just standing by the television.”

“I changed my mind.”

“About standing?”

“Yes.”

He said it with such complete seriousness that Annabeth snorted and climbed onto the mattress. She crawled toward the pillows and had barely made it halfway across before the bed dipped heavily behind her.

Percy had followed. Annabeth scooted farther away.

Percy moved after her.

She turned around, laughing. “Oh my gods, would you stop?”

“What?”

“You're chasing me across your bed.”

“I am not chasing you.”

Annabeth deliberately moved backward another foot.

Percy immediately followed, crawling forward on his knees.

The difference in their size became particularly ridiculous like this. Percy was all long limbs and broad shoulders, taking up what felt like half the mattress as he followed her, while Annabeth was slowly running out of bed to retreat across. His blond curls had fallen messily over his forehead again, and his face was beginning to flush, but there was something so boyishly determined about his expression that Annabeth couldn't even pretend to be annoyed.

She stopped and glared pointedly at him. 

Percy finally broke, “I didn't get to see it!”

“You saw it!”

“For like three seconds!”

“That is plenty of time!”

“No, it's not.”

“How long do you need to look at a belly button?”

Percy started to open his mouth, then stopped. 

His eyes drifted down toward the place where the oversized shirt pooled around Annabeth's hips before returning to her face.

“Yours?” He actually seemed to consider the question. “I don't know. Longer.”

Then the words caught up with him.

A flush climbed from his neck all the way into his cheeks, turning the tips of his ears red. Annabeth watched him realize, with growing horror, exactly how hopelessly that sentence had exposed him.

Her mouth slowly curved upward. “Mine?”

“Don't.”

“How interesting.”

“Annabeth.”

“I'm just clarifying.”

Percy groaned and dragged one hand down his face. His palm briefly hid the embarrassment, but when he lowered it, the lines around his mouth had deepened because he was fighting a grin.

“I hate you.”

“No, you don't.”

“No,” he admitted, looking at her again. “I really don't.”

Something warm turned over in Annabeth's chest, only growing when Percy's eyes inevitably dropped toward her stomach again. This time, instead of calling him out, she simply watched him. And suddenly, she understood.

Piper had been right. Not a little right, either. Completely, catastrophically right.

Percy liked it.

He really liked it.

Annabeth knew the way he looked at her. She knew the sleepy affection in his eyes when she woke beside him after accidentally falling asleep in Cabin Three. She knew the proud little smile he wore when she beat someone in training and the softer expression that appeared when he thought she wasn't watching him. She even knew the slightly dazed look he sometimes got when she dressed up or when they were alone, how his pupils would dilate as he continued to stare.

But this was something else.

His gaze kept wandering over her with almost helpless fascination. It lingered on her bare legs tucked beneath the enormous shirt, traveled up the faded fabric to her face, then inevitably returned to the place where the piercing was hidden. There was nothing subtle about him. Percy had never been particularly talented at hiding what he felt, and right now every part of him was broadcasting the same thought.

Annabeth suddenly felt significantly less embarrassed.

“You're staring again.”

Percy didn't bother denying it. Instead, his expression softened. He shifted closer, but this time the ridiculous chase was gone from him. “Come on.”

“Come on what?”

“Let me see.”

Annabeth lifted an eyebrow.

“Please?”

There was something unfairly endearing about the way he asked. Percy Jackson could stand nearly a head taller than her, broad-shouldered and strong enough to send monsters flying across an arena, but right now he was sitting in front of her with his hands carefully planted on his own thighs, looking almost boyishly hopeful.

Annabeth sighed dramatically. “Fine.”

Percy sat up straighter so quickly she laughed.

“Gods, you're ridiculous.”

“I know.”

She settled back against the headboard and gathered the end of his shirt between her fingers. The fabric bunched slowly around her waist until she lifted it just enough to expose her stomach.

Percy went silent again.

Annabeth watched his entire expression change.

The teasing disappeared first. His smile faded into something quieter as his eyes settled on the little silver bar. He leaned closer without seeming to realize he was doing it, one hand braced against the mattress beside her hip. From this distance, Annabeth could see the faint freckles scattered across his nose from the summer sun, the little crease between his eyebrows as he concentrated, the way his curls brushed his forehead when he ducked his head.

His eyes traced the exposed skin above the waistband of her shorts before returning to the piercing.

Annabeth suddenly became very aware of every breath she took.

“You've seen jewelry before, right?”

“Shh.”

Her eyebrows raised up. “Did you just shush me?”

“I'm concentrating.”

“On what?”

Percy looked up. The answer was written so plainly across his face that Annabeth almost regretted asking.

“You.”

Annabeth felt the heat crawl up the back of her neck.

One second he was an idiot chasing her across a mattress because he hadn't gotten enough time to stare at her belly button. The next he looked at her with those ridiculous blue eyes and pretty smile that made her forget every biting response she'd ever learned.

His gaze returned to the jewelry. “Is that a blue gem?”

“Yes.”

“You picked blue?”

“It was pretty.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Don't start.”

“I didn't say anything.”

“You're doing the Piper thing.”

“The Piper thing?”

“Looking at me like the color means something.”

A slow grin spread across Percy's face, carving those familiar smile lines into his cheeks. “Does it?”

“No.”

“Okay.”

“It doesn't.”

“I believe you.”

“You're incredibly annoying.”

“You pierced your belly button and hid it from me for five days.”

“Four.”

Percy's eyebrows rose. “That's somehow worse.”

His hand lifted, but Annabeth caught his wrist before his fingers reached her.

“Wait.”

Percy froze immediately. “What?”

“You can't touch it.”

The transformation was extraordinary.

His grin disappeared and his eyebrows pulled together.

His eyes dropped toward the piercing and then returned to her face with such genuine disappointment that Annabeth almost lost it.

“What do you mean I can't touch it?”

“It's still healing.”

Percy stared at her. “At all?”

“No.”

“For how long?”

“A while.”

“How long is a while?”

“Percy.”

His lower lip pushed forward. Actually pushed forward.

Annabeth narrowed her eyes at him.

“Are you pouting?”

“No.”

“You absolutely are.”

Percy folded his arms across his chest, which only made the entire thing more ridiculous. Annabeth's eyes briefly caught on the way his T-shirt tightened around his upper arms before she looked back at his face and started laughing.

“This isn't funny,” he complained.

“It is a little funny.”

“You show me this and then tell me I'm not allowed to touch it.”

“I didn't show you anything. You caught me changing.”

“You forgot I was here!”

“I forgot about the piercing.”

“In my cabin.”

“Yes, Percy.”

“You forgot I was in my own cabin.”

“I was distracted.”

“By what?”

“Your terrible movie commentary.”

“That sounds like a you problem.”

Annabeth kicked his thigh lightly.

Percy caught her ankle easily, one big hand wrapping around it before she could pull away. His grin returned, bright and crooked and entirely too pleased with himself.

The flash of blue at her stomach distracted him all over again.

Annabeth followed his gaze and watched his eyes settle on the piercing again, moving quickly as he studied every part of it. The silver bar, the blue gem, the way the jewel stood out against her smooth skin.

Percy apparently realized he'd been caught because his eyes slowly returned to hers.

“You really like it.”

His fingers went still around her ankle. Annabeth smirked.

“You do.”

Percy's ears started turning pink again. “I never said I didn't.”

“You've barely looked at my face for the past ten minutes.”

“That is absolutely not true.”

“Percy.”

“I'm looking at your face right now.”

“Because I called you out.”

He tried to glare at her, but Annabeth could see the embarrassment fighting with the smile threatening at the corners of his mouth.

“Piper said you'd stop functioning.”

Percy's expression changed immediately. “Piper knew?”

“She was there.”

“Of course she was.”

“She suggested it, actually.”

He blinked. “Remind me to thank Piper.”

Annabeth shoved his shoulder.

Percy laughed, rocking sideways with the push before catching himself with one hand. His curls bounced messily across his forehead, his grin widening until those little lines appeared beside his mouth again.

Annabeth's stomach fluttered.

Apparently Percy wasn't the only one with a staring problem.

His eyes returned to the piercing. “Did it hurt?”

“A little.”

His smile disappeared, his fingers beginning to tap absently against her ankle. “How much is a little?”

“It was a needle. Obviously it hurt for a second.”

His eyebrows pinched together. “And you voluntarily did that?”

Annabeth gave him a flat look. “I survived Tartarus. I can survive getting my belly button pierced.”

“Those should not be in the same sentence.”

“It was fine.”

“Did it bleed?”

“Barely.”

Percy's nose wrinkled, and Annabeth couldn't help smiling. There was something unbearably sweet about watching a boy who had seen her bloodied and bruised more times than either of them cared to remember become deeply concerned over a tiny piercing she'd willingly gotten in Manhattan.

He asked how long it took to heal, whether she'd been given instructions, if she had to clean it, whether it was the reason she hadn't been swimming. Suddenly all the little pieces of the last few days were clicking together for him, the loose shirts, changing in the bathroom, keeping his hands away from her waist.

When Annabeth confirmed all of it, Percy leaned back slightly.

“I knew you were hiding something.”

“Congratulations, Sherlock.”

“I thought it was something bad.”

The quietness of his voice took the teasing out of her almost immediately. Percy's thumb was moving absently over the side of her ankle where he still held it, his expression softer now. She suddenly understood exactly why he'd been watching her so closely.

She reached forward and touched his forearm. “Nothing bad.”

“I know that now.”

“Sorry.”

He shrugged, and the moment passed as quickly as it had arrived. His eyes dipped downward again.

Annabeth laughed. “And we're back.”

“What?”

“You're staring.”

Percy glanced toward the piercing as if he'd somehow forgotten he was doing it.

Then he smiled. Not embarrassed this time. Not even particularly apologetic.

Just helplessly pleased.

“I think I'm enjoying this way more than I should.”

Annabeth smirked. “The piercing?”

Percy looked at her as if she'd asked whether the sky was blue.

“Well, yeah, obviously.” His gaze moved upward, lingering on her face, and something in his expression softened. “But mostly you.”

Annabeth's heart did an annoyingly dramatic little stumble.

Percy shifted until his back rested against the headboard beside her, his long legs stretching almost to the end of the mattress. Annabeth's ankle remained loosely across his lap, his hand resting around it like he'd forgotten he was still holding her. From this close, she had to tip her chin slightly to meet his eyes.

He studied her for a moment, and somehow being looked at like that made Annabeth feel more exposed than sitting there with half her stomach showing.

“You're really pretty, you know that?”

Heat climbed immediately into her cheeks. “You're laying it on a little thick.”

“I'm serious.”

“I know.”

“You're always pretty.” His eyes flicked down toward her stomach before returning to her face. “This is just...”

Annabeth waited.

Percy's mouth twisted as he searched for the word.

“Distracting.”

She laughed. “Distracting?”

“Extremely.”

“You fought Kronos.”

“Kronos didn't have a belly-button piercing.”

Annabeth burst out laughing. “That's your argument?”

“He also wasn't my girlfriend.”

“I would hope not.”

“See? Completely different circumstances.”

Percy's grin widened, and he tugged gently on her leg until Annabeth slid several inches closer to him.

His eyes immediately wandered down again.

Annabeth shook her head. “This is going to become a problem, isn't it?”

“Probably.”

“Percy.”

“What?” His expression was all exaggerated innocence, but his smile ruined it. “You did this.”

“I did not do anything to you.”

“You absolutely did.”

Annabeth finally let the shirt fall back into place, the oversized fabric spilling over her stomach and hiding the piercing completely.

Percy's entire expression fell with it.

His gaze landed on the faded cotton now covering her stomach, and the disappointment that crossed his face was so immediate that Annabeth didn't even try to hold back her laugh. When he finally looked up at her, his mouth had turned downward in the faintest pout.

“Oh my gods.” Annabeth laughed harder, leaning sideways until her forehead bumped against his shoulder. “Your face.”

“Stop laughing at me.”

“I can't.”

“This is cruel.”

“You'll survive.”

Percy looked unconvinced. “Debatable.”

That only made her laugh again. Percy nudged his shoulder against hers in retaliation, but the smile tugging at his mouth ruined any attempt at looking genuinely offended. He was still watching her, though, those bright blue eyes occasionally betraying him by dipping toward the shirt before snapping back to her face.

Annabeth shook her head. “You are ridiculous.”

“Well, it's really hot.”

The words came out so casually that Annabeth's laughter stopped.

She lifted her head from his shoulder. “What?”

Percy's cheeks immediately colored, but apparently he'd decided he'd already embarrassed himself enough tonight that there was no point pretending anymore. “The piercing,” he clarified, rubbing the back of his neck. His curls shifted beneath his fingers, falling messily across his forehead. “It's hot.”

Annabeth raised an eyebrow.

“And pretty,” Percy added quickly.

“Good save.”

“I wasn't saving anything.” His eyes dropped again before he could stop them. “It can be both.”

Annabeth felt an absurd little flutter low in her stomach.

Percy noticed her expression and seemed to gain a fraction of his confidence back. A crooked grin appeared, deepening his dimples. “What? You're allowed to surprise me with that, but I'm not allowed to think my girlfriend looks hot?”

“I didn't say that.”

“Good. Because you do.”

Annabeth's cheeks warmed. “Okay, Seaweed Brain.”

“Just making sure we're clear.”

“We're very clear.”

“Great.” Percy leaned back against the headboard, looking entirely too pleased with himself now. “Because I'm having a fantastic night.”

Annabeth rolled her eyes, but she was smiling as she settled beside him. “You weren't even supposed to find out yet.”

“I know.”

“It was supposed to be a surprise.”

Percy shrugged. “It definitely was.”

“No, I mean-” Annabeth stopped.

Percy glanced over. She'd just remembered one fairly important detail she hadn't actually told him.

“It was supposed to be a surprise for your birthday.”

Percy's amusement vanished and he turned his head toward her slowly. “Wait.”

Annabeth immediately regretted opening her mouth.

“A surprise for what?”

She suddenly found the blanket across her legs extremely interesting. “Nothing.”

“Annabeth.”

She picked at a loose thread. Percy leaned closer, and from the corner of her eye she could see the suspicion growing on his face. “Wise Girl.”

Annabeth sighed. There was absolutely no way he was letting this go now.

“...Your birthday.”

For once, Percy had nothing to say.

When Annabeth finally forced herself to look at him, he was staring at her with an almost comical mixture of disbelief and delight. His eyebrows had climbed toward his forehead, his lips slightly parted, and Annabeth could practically watch the information settling into place behind his eyes.

“You got your belly button pierced for my birthday?”

“I got it because I wanted it,” Annabeth corrected immediately, heat crawling higher into her cheeks. “The fact that I thought my boyfriend might appreciate it was a secondary consideration.”

Percy blinked.

His gaze dropped toward her covered stomach.

Then returned to her face.

“Your boyfriend appreciates it.”

Annabeth covered her face with both hands. “Oh my gods.”

“Like, a lot.”

“I gathered that.”

“No, I don't think you understand.” Percy was laughing now, and Annabeth could hear the grin in his voice even with her eyes covered. “You apparently thought I was going to see that and be like, cool, nice jewelry-”

“Percy.”

“-when actually I'm trying really hard to be normal right now.”

“You're doing a terrible job.”

“I know.”

Annabeth groaned behind her hands. “Why did I tell you?”

“Because you love me.”

“Currently reconsidering it.”

“No, you're not.”

Unfortunately, the confidence in his voice was completely justified.

Percy's fingers wrapped gently around her wrists, and his laugh was warm against her hands as he tugged them away from her face. Annabeth resisted for half a second before giving in, only to find herself looking directly into bright blue eyes and an enormous grin. His hair was a mess across his forehead, his cheeks still faintly flushed, and the gentle dimples at the sides of his face had deepened so much that Annabeth's embarrassment softened almost immediately.

It was that exact look she had been waiting for, the one that made every second of Piper's teasing suddenly worth it.

Percy looked ridiculously happy.

And slightly turned on.

Judging by the way he was staring at her now, she'd severely underestimated how much he would enjoy it.

Percy's hands slid carefully down from her wrists. Now that he knew the piercing was still healing, he deliberately avoided the middle of her stomach, his palms settling instead against her hips. 

“Thank you for my gift, baby. I love it,” he murmured, his voice gentle and smooth, sending goosebumps across her skin.

His eyes softened as they moved over her face, and Annabeth knew that expression too. Percy released one of her wrists and lifted his hand to her cheek instead, his thumb brushing lightly beneath her eye before he leaned toward her.

Annabeth met him halfway.

“You’re welcome, Seaweed Brain.” 

Percy closed the space between them.

The first kiss was soft, familiar enough that she smiled against his mouth. Percy grinned too, which made the second one slightly crooked, his nose bumping hers before Annabeth caught the front of his shirt and pulled him back.

That one lasted longer.

Percy's hand slid from her cheek into her braids while his other settled carefully at her hip, and Annabeth could feel the smile disappear from his mouth as he kissed her again. There was nothing hurried about it, but something had shifted. Percy kissed her slow and deep, taking his time with her. His lips parted against hers, coaxing rather than demanding, and Annabeth melted into him, her tongue brushing softly against his as the kiss deepened.

He was warmer beneath her fingers, his cheeks still flushed when they separated for a breath, and his usually bright blue eyes had gone a little dazed.

Annabeth couldn't resist.

“What?”

Percy blinked. “What?”

“You're looking at me weird.”

“I'm not looking at you weird.”

Annabeth lifted an eyebrow.

Percy studied her for another second before giving up. “You're really hot.”

A startled laugh escaped her. “Percy!”

“What?” His face reddened even more, but he was grinning now. “You are. I already said it.”

“That doesn't mean you have to keep saying it.”

“I feel like I've actually been showing incredible restraint.”

Annabeth laughed into the next kiss, and Percy made an offended noise against her mouth before kissing her again anyway. His hand tightened gently at her hip as Annabeth's fingers slipped into the blond curls at the nape of his neck, and for a little while the movie playing forgotten across the room might as well not have existed. She moved her mouth gently against his, pulling him closer so he could settle just above her. Annabeth felt his heart pound wildly against her hand as she kissed him a little deeper, a little longer.

Eventually Percy pulled back just enough to look at her. Or, more accurately, Annabeth realized a second later, to look down.

She followed his gaze to where his enormous shirt had shifted slightly where it pooled around her lap.

Annabeth immediately knew what he was thinking.

“No.”

Percy's eyes snapped innocently back to hers. “I didn't say anything.”

“You didn't have to.”

“I was just looking.”

Annabeth gave him a flat look.

Percy's mouth twitched. Then, before she could stop him, his fingers caught the bottom edge of the shirt.

“Percy.”

“What?”

He was already pushing the fabric upward.

Annabeth stared at him in disbelief as he carefully gathered a few inches of cotton until her stomach, and the tiny flash of silver and blue he'd apparently been missing desperately, came back into view.

His entire face brightened.

Annabeth burst out laughing. “Are you serious?”

“Very.”

“You lasted, what, two minutes?”

“I tried.”

“You didn't try at all!”

“I kissed you. I got distracted.”

“That is not helping your argument.”

Percy wasn't listening anymore.

His eyes had settled on the piercing again, and Annabeth watched the grin slowly disappear from his face, replaced by that same stunned fascination from earlier. One of his hands still held the fabric carefully out of the way while the other remained safely planted on the mattress next to her hip, apparently taking the no-touching rule with deadly seriousness.

He leaned closer.

Annabeth laughed softly. “You've already seen it.”

“I know.”

“Nothing has changed.”

“I know.”

“Then why do you need to inspect it again?”

Percy glanced up at her through his eyelashes, his eyebrow raised and tone serious. “Do you actually want me to answer that?”

Annabeth opened her mouth but no words seemed to come out.

Percy's grin returned.

“That's what I thought.”

“You're such a teenage boy.”

“I am a teenage boy.”

“A very annoying one.”

“With a really hot girlfriend.”

Annabeth felt her heart race. “You need new material.”

“I don't think I do.”

Annabeth could practically see him physically fighting the urge to touch the piercing, to touch her. She watched as the hand next to her balled up into a gentle fist, as if it actually pained him to keep his hands off of her.

She narrowed her eyes. “You're thinking about it.”

“Thinking about what?”

“Touching it.”

“No.”

“Percy.”

“Fine.” His mouth pulled downward. “Maybe.”

“You can't.”

“I know.”

“You're pouting again.”

“Because this rule sucks.”

Annabeth laughed and leaned forward to kiss him before he could complain any further. Percy responded immediately, releasing the hem of her shirt so he could cup her face instead. The fabric slipped back down between them, covering the piercing once more.

When they separated, Percy looked down.

He watched the shirt settle and let out a long, dramatic sigh.

Annabeth laughed directly into his shoulder.

“So,” he said, finally meeting her eyes, “best birthday ever.”

Annabeth laughed. “Your birthday hasn't happened yet.”

“Don't care.”

“I still bought you an actual present.”

“Don't need it.”

“You don't even know what it is.”

“Don't care.”

“Percy.”

“What?” He squeezed her hips gently. “You got a piercing, it's hot, you're hot, and apparently I get to claim this somehow as part of my birthday. I'm good.”

Then his eyebrows lifted as though he'd just realized something. “Actually, wait. When it's healed, am I allowed to touch it?”

Annabeth burst out laughing. “Oh my gods.”

“What? That's an important question!”

“Your birthday present is officially revoked.”

Percy's arms immediately tightened around her hips. “Absolutely not.”

“You're impossible.”

“And yet you pierced your belly button for me, because you knew how much I would like it.”

“I did not-” Annabeth shoved at his chest, laughing when he barely moved. “That is not what I said.”

“Secondary consideration,” Percy corrected, looking unbearably pleased with himself. “I was listening.”

“I hate you.”

Percy's grin softened as he leaned closer, his forehead dipping toward hers. “No, you don't.”

Annabeth rolled her eyes, but she couldn't stop smiling.

No.

She really didn't.

When she settled against his side again, Percy rearranged himself around her automatically. One arm slipped behind her shoulders while the other rested low across her hips, safely beneath the piercing. Annabeth tucked herself into the familiar space against his chest, her head fitting beneath his chin while his fingers traced absent patterns against her hip.

She restarted the movie and moved comfortably against his chest, smiling when Percy bent to press another kiss into the top of her head. For thirty seconds, he even managed to keep his attention on the screen.

Then Annabeth felt him shift beneath her.

She tipped her head back to look at him and immediately caught his eyes pointed downward. Sometime while she'd been getting comfortable, the enormous shirt had ridden up perhaps half an inch, not remotely enough to reveal the piercing or even much of her stomach, but apparently enough to capture Percy's attention anyway.

Annabeth stared at him.

Percy slowly lifted his eyes to hers, and this time there wasn't even a trace of embarrassment on his face. No pink cheeks, no fumbling excuse, no attempt to pretend he'd been looking somewhere else. He simply raised his eyebrows, one corner of his mouth pulling into that crooked little grin as his arm tightened comfortably around her hips. His thumb gently brushed across the skin of her lower stomach, as if he was resisting every urge to touch the new accessory.

“What?”

Annabeth shook her head, fighting her own smile as she tucked herself beneath his chin again. Percy kissed the top of her head like he'd done absolutely nothing wrong, and she could feel the quiet rumble of his laugh against her cheek.

Piper had been right.

Percy Jackson was completely screwed.

Percy had a problem.

He'd realized this sometime around seven thirty the next morning, when Annabeth Chase walked into the dining pavilion and every coherent thought he'd ever possessed promptly abandoned him.

It wasn't even entirely the piercing's fault.

That was the really unfair part.

Annabeth had always been distracting. Percy had spent years trying not to stare at her before she was even his girlfriend, which had been significantly more difficult than he'd ever admitted. 

He'd noticed everything about her long before he'd been allowed to. 

The way her eyes narrowed when she was concentrating, the little crease that appeared between her eyebrows when she was annoyed, the way she tucked loose braids behind her ear when she was reading. He knew exactly what her laugh sounded like when something genuinely caught her off guard, how her nose scrunched when she was trying not to smile, and the precise expression she made before saying something that was probably going to get him into trouble.

Dating her had not helped.

If anything, dating Annabeth had made Percy worse.

Now he was allowed to look at her. He was allowed to reach for her hand and pull her into his side and kiss her whenever she gave him that little smile that made his stomach flip. He got to wake up after accidentally falling asleep beside her and discover her cheek squished against his chest, one of her legs thrown over his because apparently personal space ceased to exist once Annabeth was unconscious. He got to know what she looked like first thing in the morning, when her eyes were still heavy with sleep and her braids were slightly mussed around her face.

None of that had made him normal about her.

And apparently giving his already ridiculously pretty girlfriend a tiny blue gemstone in the middle of her already perfect stomach had been the final nail in his coffin.

Because there she was walking toward him.

Percy's spoon stopped halfway to his mouth.

Annabeth was wearing denim shorts that sat low on her hips and a cropped orange Camp Half-Blood shirt Percy was almost positive he'd never seen before. The shirt wasn't particularly dramatic. It showed a strip of her stomach between the hem and her shorts, which shouldn't have been enough to completely derail his morning.

Except right in the center of that strip of bare skin was a tiny flash of silver and blue.

Percy forgot about his cereal.

He forgot about breakfast.

He forgot, briefly, that other people around him existed.

Sunlight streamed through the open side of the pavilion and caught the little blue stone as Annabeth walked, making it flash against her skin. Her braids were pulled back from her face, a few loose pieces framing her jaw, and she was talking to Piper about something Percy couldn't hear.

Then she laughed. Percy's heart did the same stupid thing it had been doing around her since he was twelve.

Beside him, Grover cleared his throat.

Percy didn't hear him.

“Dude.”

Nothing.

Grover nudged his shin beneath the table.

Percy finally blinked. “What?”

Grover followed his gaze toward Annabeth and then looked back at him.

“She has a face.”

“I know she has a face.”

“You're not looking at it.”

His attention wandered despite his best efforts.

The piercing flashed.

He swallowed.

“I was.”

“No, you weren't.”

“I looked at her face first.”

“That doesn't make it better.”

Percy finally tore his eyes away from her long enough to glare at him. Grover was grinning around a bite of enchilada like this was the funniest thing that had happened to him all week.

“Mind your business.”

“You made it my business when you stopped eating.”

“I didn't stop eating.”

Grover pointed toward Percy's spoon.

It was still suspended uselessly in his hand.

Percy lowered it.

“Shut up.”

Grover snorted.

Across the pavilion, Annabeth looked over.

Their eyes met.

Percy knew immediately that she'd caught him.

He waited for the eye roll. Maybe the raised eyebrow she'd given him approximately seventeen times last night. Possibly the little head shake that meant you're ridiculous.

Instead, Annabeth smiled. Slowly and knowingly.

Percy narrowed his eyes.

Oh, she knew exactly what she was doing.

Piper leaned over and whispered something in her ear. Annabeth's smile widened before she looked back at Percy, and this time there was unmistakable amusement in her brown eyes.

Percy pointed at her.

Annabeth lifted her eyebrows innocently.

Piper started laughing.

Grover glanced between them. “I feel like there's something happening here that I don't understand.”

“Don't worry about it.”

“I wasn't worried.”

“Good.”

Percy returned his attention to his breakfast and made a determined effort to eat like a normal person. He lasted maybe fifteen seconds.

When he looked up again, Annabeth was walking toward him.

Fantastic.

She stopped beside the Poseidon table. “Morning.”

Percy leaned back slightly to look up at her. “Hi.”

Annabeth's mouth twitched.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“You're doing something.”

“I'm standing.”

“You know what I mean.”

“I genuinely don't.”

She was enjoying this.

Percy could see it all over her face.

He set his spoon down and reached for her almost on instinct. His hands found her hips, and Annabeth stepped easily between his knees as he tugged her closer. Percy immediately became aware of exactly where his fingers were in relation to the piercing.

Annabeth noticed.

“You know it's still there, right?”

Percy's eyes flicked downward. “Just checking.”

“You've checked twenty times since last night.”

“Could've fallen out.”

“That's not how piercings work.”

“You don't know.”

“I literally received aftercare instructions.”

Percy looked up at her. “Which you didn't share with me.”

“Because it's my piercing.”

“Still feels like information I should have.”

Annabeth laughed and rested her hands on his shoulders. From where Percy was sitting, he had to slightly tip his head back to look at her, which was an unusual reversal of their normal height difference. Standing, the top of Annabeth's head fit comfortably beneath his chin now, something Percy had become embarrassingly fond of. It made it easy to tuck her against his chest, rest his chin over her braids, or wrap himself around her whenever he felt like it.

Right now, though, he had a different problem.

Annabeth sighed. “Percy.”

“What?”

“My face.”

“I know where it is.”

“Do you?”

He grinned and tugged her closer until she had to brace her hands against his shoulders. “Want me to prove it?”

Before Annabeth could answer, Percy tipped his head back and kissed her.

Her surprised laugh disappeared against his mouth. It was quick, barely more than a soft press of lips, but Percy felt Annabeth smile before he pulled away.

“There,” he said. “Found it.”

Annabeth rolled her eyes, but her face had gone slightly warm. “Congratulations.”

“Thank you.”

Someone wolf-whistled from farther down the pavilion.

Percy ignored it. Mostly.

Annabeth slipped away from him to go make her offering, and Percy watched her leave.

Again.

He really did have a problem.

Unfortunately, the rest of camp figured it out almost immediately.

By lunch, Percy had caught at least four people looking at Annabeth's piercing. Most of them were probably just noticing that she had one now, which was completely reasonable.

Percy still didn't like it.

He and Annabeth were walking past the Hermes cabin when Connor Stoll came jogging down the steps.

“Hey, guys.”

Annabeth glanced toward the Hermes cabin. “Hey.”

Connor's attention swept briefly over her outfit before catching on the new piercing, his eyebrows lifting with obvious interest. “Looking good, Chase.”

Percy stopped walking.

Annabeth, forced to stop with him, looked up at his face and immediately seemed to realize what had happened. Connor apparently noticed too, because instead of possessing even the slightest sense of self-preservation, he grinned.

“Thanks,” Annabeth said, and Percy didn't particularly appreciate how amused she sounded.

He looked down at her. She was smiling. Then he looked back at Connor, who was also smiling, apparently finding the entire situation hilarious.

Yeah. No.

Percy's arm slid around Annabeth's waist almost on instinct, careful to stay above the healing piercing as he pulled her snugly against his side. She fit easily beneath his arm, the top of her head tucked against his collarbones, and when Percy glanced down, he found her already watching him. Her warm brown eyes were bright with amusement, lips pressed together like she was trying very hard not to laugh.

“What?” Percy asked.

“Nothing.”

Connor snorted.

Percy's attention snapped back to him. “Something funny?”

“Nope.”

“You look like something's funny.”

Connor held both hands up, still grinning. “I said she looked good, Jackson. Relax.”

“I am relaxed.”

The suspicious little sound Annabeth made against his chest suggested she disagreed. Percy looked down to find her biting her lip, shoulders trembling with barely contained laughter.

His eyes narrowed. “Oh, you think this is funny?”

Annabeth finally lost the battle with her grin. “A little.”

“Glad you're enjoying yourself.”

“I am, actually.” Her hand settled over the arm he'd wrapped possessively around her waist, and her smile only widened when Percy made absolutely no attempt to move it. She turned to raise an eyebrow at him.

Percy gazed at her for half a second before deciding there was a much easier solution.

He caught her gently beneath the chin, turned her face toward his, and kissed her.

Annabeth made a surprised noise against his mouth before immediately kissing him back. Percy kept it brief, partly because they were standing in the middle of camp and partly because he was aware Connor was still right there, but when he pulled away Annabeth was looking up at him with an expression caught somewhere between affection and disbelief.

“You're ridiculous,” Annabeth whispered when Percy finally pulled away.

Percy nodded down at her, entirely unapologetic. “Probably.”

Behind them, Connor groaned. “Okay. Point taken.”

“Good.” Percy glanced over at him, earning an immediate elbow to the ribs from Annabeth. “Ow.”

“That was obnoxious.”

“He was flirting with you.”

“He said I looked good.”

“Exactly.”

Annabeth leaned back just far enough to look up at him properly, a delighted gleam dancing in her pretty eyes. “I do look good.”

Percy opened his mouth, prepared to continue arguing, and then made the mistake of actually looking at her.

His irritation disappeared almost immediately.

Because, yeah. She did.

She looked really good.

His eyes traveled helplessly over the cropped orange camp shirt and the strip of warm brown skin left exposed beneath it, right down to the denim shorts sitting low on her hips. The tiny blue stone sparkled at the center of her stomach, catching the afternoon sunlight every time she shifted. The dip of her waist and how her hips curved out. Her braids spilled over her shoulders, framing a face that was becoming increasingly smug the longer Percy stared. He could stare at her all day, every day, and never get bored.

Annabeth knew exactly what was happening.

That was the worst part.

The pleased little curve of her mouth deepened as she waited for him to contradict her, already knowing perfectly well that he couldn't.

Percy sighed. “Yeah. You really do.”

Annabeth laughed, and Connor made a disgusted noise behind them.

“You two are unbearable.”

“Then stop looking at my girlfriend.”

“I wasn't-”

“You literally were.”

“Percy,” Annabeth warned, although the smile she was trying to hide made it difficult to take her seriously.

Connor looked between the two of them before shaking his head and walking away, muttering something about possessive Poseidon kids and how he'd only been trying to give someone a compliment.

Percy watched until he disappeared around the Hermes cabin before turning his attention back to Annabeth.

She was staring at him.

Both eyebrows were raised.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“You keep saying that.”

“Because you're making this incredibly entertaining.”

Percy's eyes narrowed. “You're enjoying this.”

“A little.”

“You're evil.”

“You knew that already.”

Annabeth rose onto her toes, one hand settling briefly against his chest for balance as she pressed a kiss to his cheek. Percy instinctively leaned down to meet her, the height difference between them making it easier, but before he could catch her around the waist again, she'd already slipped free of his arm.

He watched her walk away with a smile.

And then noticed someone else watching her too.

Percy's smile disappeared.

“Hey.”

A younger Apollo camper standing several feet away startled so badly Percy almost felt bad.

Almost.

Percy pointed at him. “Stop staring at her.”

The kid's eyes widened. “I wasn't!”

“Yes, you were.”

“I was looking at the piercing!”

Percy stared at him. “That's part of her!”

Several campers nearby started laughing, which only made Percy's irritation worse.

Annabeth had apparently heard him too, because she stopped a few yards down the path and slowly turned around. Her arms folded across her chest as she looked between Percy and the increasingly nervous Apollo camper.

The kid glanced at Annabeth.

Then Percy.

Then Annabeth again.

Percy could practically see him deciding whether honesty or self-preservation was more important.

Apparently, honesty won.

“Dude,” he said, lowering his voice as though that somehow improved the situation. “Your girlfriend's hot.”

Percy's eyebrows shot upward.

“What did you just-”

He stopped.

Because he'd looked at Annabeth.

That was a mistake.

She was standing several yards away in the afternoon sunlight, obviously listening to every word. Her weight had shifted onto one leg, arms still folded comfortably across her chest while she watched him with one eyebrow raised. A light breeze stirred the ends of her braids against her shoulders, and the little blue stone at her stomach caught another flash of sunlight.

Percy's brain betrayed him immediately.

Well.

He frowned.

The kid wasn't exactly wrong.

Actually, the kid was annoyingly, objectively correct.

Annabeth was hot.

Percy knew that better than anyone.

He turned back toward the Apollo camper, much less certain of his argument than he'd been five seconds ago. “Okay, yeah, but that's not the point.”

The kid's nervous expression cracked as he started laughing.

Percy frowned harder. “What's funny?”

“Nothing.”

“You're laughing.”

“Because you just agreed with me!”

“I didn't agree with you.”

“You literally just said-”

“I said that's not the point.” Percy gestured toward Annabeth as though the distinction should have been obvious. “She's my hot girlfriend.”

That did it.

Annabeth folded over laughing.

Not a quiet little laugh, either. She actually bent forward, one hand braced against her knee while the other covered her mouth.

Even some of the campers who hadn't been paying attention before were laughing now.

Percy looked around at all of them in disbelief. “Why is everyone laughing at me today?”

“You make it really easy!” Annabeth called.

Percy abandoned the Apollo camper entirely and crossed the distance between them. Annabeth was still laughing when he reached her, brown eyes bright and cheeks lifted with it, and any irritation Percy had been holding onto immediately became significantly harder to maintain.

Gods, she was so pretty.

He wrapped both arms around her hips and pulled her against him. Annabeth stumbled the half step forward willingly, hands landing against his chest as she tipped her head back to meet his eyes.

“You're insane,” she informed him.

“He was staring at you.”

“So were you.”

“That's different.”

Annabeth's eyebrows climbed. “How?”

Percy glanced down at her, genuinely baffled that she needed him to explain this. “I'm your boyfriend.”

Something in her expression softened, although the teasing remained. “Oh, is that how it works?”

“Yes.”

“So you're allowed to stare at me?”

“Correct.”

“But no one else?”

“Now you're getting it.”

Annabeth laughed again, her palms sliding higher against his chest. “Possessive.”

“Maybe.”

“Percy.”

“What?” He tightened his arms around her hips, careful even now to keep them below the piercing. “I'm not stopping anyone from talking to you.”

“You practically challenged Connor to a duel because he told me I looked good.”

“I did not challenge him to a duel.”

“You kissed me directly in front of him.”

“That's not a duel.”

“It was definitely a statement.”

Percy considered that. “Okay, maybe it was a statement.”

Annabeth shook her head, but Percy could feel her trying not to laugh again.

“You know I'm capable of handling Connor Stoll telling me I look good.”

“I know.”

“And you know random campers looking at a new piercing isn't a threat to our relationship.”

“I know that too.”

He did.

Percy trusted Annabeth more than he trusted anyone in the world. He wasn't worried that Connor Stoll giving her a compliment was somehow going to make her forget years of friendship, two wars, Tartarus, and everything that existed between them. Annabeth didn't need Percy chasing people away from her, and he knew perfectly well that if somebody ever genuinely bothered her, she was more than capable of handling it herself.

That wasn't really what this was about.

It was something far more embarrassingly simple.

Percy had spent years being completely captivated by Annabeth, and now he was being reminded that apparently everyone else had eyes too.

He didn't particularly enjoy that realization.

Annabeth was alluring.

There wasn't another word for it.

The piercing had simply made an already serious situation even worse.

Annabeth studied him for a moment. “What are you thinking about?”

Percy's eyes moved over her face.

The sunlight warmed her brown skin, catching along the edges of her braids. Her amber eyes were bright with amusement, and there was still the slightest curve to her mouth.

He smiled.

“You.”

Annabeth's expression softened.

Then Percy's gaze dropped.

She immediately groaned. “Oh my gods.”

“What?”

“The piercing again?”

“I can't help it!”

“You absolutely can.”

“I really don't think I can.”

Annabeth shook her head, but Percy caught the smile she was trying to hide.

He slipped his hand around her waist as they started walking again. His palm settled naturally against her side, thumb resting just above her shorts and safely away from the healing skin.

For perhaps thirty seconds, Percy behaved himself.

Then his thumb drifted upward.

Annabeth caught his wrist without even looking.

“No.”

“I wasn't doing anything.”

“You know it's still there, right?”

“I'm aware.”

“Then why do you keep looking?”

Percy glanced down again. “Quality control.”

He sighed dramatically.

Annabeth looked up at him. “You have a problem.”

“I know.”

“And it's going to take weeks to completely heal. Maybe months.”

Percy stopped walking.

Annabeth took another step before his hand around hers pulled her gently back.

“Months?”

She looked at him.

Percy's expression had gone genuinely horrified.

Annabeth's smile became wicked.

“Oh,” she said. “Did I forget to mention that?”

“Annabeth.”

She laughed and started walking again. Percy followed, staring at the back of her head in disbelief.

Months.

He was supposed to survive months of this.

Then Annabeth glanced over her shoulder at him, brown eyes sparkling, and gave him that little smile, the one Percy had always been helpless against.

His annoyance disappeared immediately.

Gods, he was pathetic.

“Jackson!”

Percy reluctantly pulled his attention away from Annabeth and glanced toward the arena. One of the campers standing nearby was watching him with an amused expression, arms crossed over his chest.

“You've been staring at your girlfriend for like five minutes.”

Percy frowned, mostly because he hadn't realized anyone was paying attention to him. Then he looked back toward Annabeth.

She'd stopped farther down the path to talk to Piper, one hand moving animatedly as she spoke. The piercing wasn't even what caught his attention this time. Honestly, Percy had almost forgotten about it. He was too busy watching the way Annabeth's entire face changed when Piper said something that made her laugh, her nose scrunching slightly as she tipped her head back. Sunlight caught along the edges of her braids, and Percy found himself smiling without meaning to.

When he finally looked back at the camper, the guy was still staring at him expectantly.

Percy shrugged. “Yeah. Look at her.”

The camper blinked, clearly not expecting that answer, but Percy wasn't sure what else he was supposed to say. As far as he was concerned, the explanation was right there in front of them.

Of course he stared at Annabeth.

He'd been staring at her since he was twelve years old, long before he'd understood why he couldn't seem to stop noticing her. Back then, it had been her warm brown eyes or the way she stuck out her chin when she was determined to prove him wrong. Then they'd gotten older, and Percy had started noticing other things. The curve of her smile when he managed to make her laugh, the way she fit beneath his chin when he hugged her, how her hand felt tucked into his, and how impossibly pretty she looked when she wasn't trying at all.

Now she was his girlfriend, and somehow that hadn't made him any less fascinated by her. If anything, it had made him worse.

Annabeth was his best friend, his favorite person, the girl who had fought beside him through two wars and fallen into Tartarus with him rather than let him go alone. She knew every version of him. The angry ones, the scared ones, the stupid ones, the ones Percy wasn't particularly proud of, and somehow she still chose to reach for his hand every day.

And, okay, yes.

She was also ridiculously hot.

Percy was eighteen, not blind.

The tiny blue piercing sparkling against her stomach certainly wasn't helping his current situation, but that wasn't why he couldn't take his eyes off her. It was just one more thing to notice about a girl he'd spent most of his life noticing.

As if she'd somehow felt his attention from halfway down the path, Annabeth turned her head. Her eyes found his almost immediately, and Percy knew from the slow lift of her eyebrow that she'd caught him staring. Again.

For a second, they simply looked at each other.

Then Annabeth smiled.

Not the smug little grin she'd been giving him all morning whenever she caught him looking at the piercing. This one was softer, almost private, the kind of smile that belonged to him.

Percy felt his own answer before he could stop it.

The camper beside him made a disgusted noise. “Gods, you're obsessed with her.”

Percy barely spared him a glance before looking back at Annabeth.

“Yeah,” he said, smiling. “I know.”

And honestly, he couldn't bring himself to be embarrassed about it.

Percy had discovered that waiting was significantly easier when there wasn't a tiny blue gemstone constantly reminding him of what he wasn't allowed to do.

Unfortunately, Annabeth seemed determined to make sure he was reminded.

It had been a few days since he'd discovered the piercing, and Percy had spent most of that time learning two things. First, Annabeth had apparently developed an unexpected love for cropped shirts. Second, she thought his suffering was hilarious.

Percy maintained that the first thing was directly related to the second.

Annabeth denied it.

Percy knew better.

And today, of all days, she seemed particularly determined to make his life difficult.

It was Percy's birthday, and most of the morning had already been taken over by camp. The pavilion had somehow produced blue pancakes for breakfast, the Hermes cabin had loudly performed the worst version of “Happy Birthday” Percy had ever heard, and Grover had given him a gift wrapped almost entirely in duct tape. Annabeth had kissed him first thing that morning and handed him an actual wrapped present over breakfast, then disappeared sometime after lunch with a suspiciously vague explanation about needing to talk to Will.

Percy hadn't questioned it.

Mostly because he'd been distracted by the cropped tank top she'd worn all morning.

He was stretched out on the sand near the edge of the canoe lake now, one arm tucked behind his head while he watched a group of younger campers nearly overturn a canoe. He'd gone swimming earlier and hadn't bothered putting his shirt back on, leaving it crumpled beside his sneakers farther up the beach. The August sun had dried most of the water from his skin, though his blond curls were still damp enough to fall messily across his forehead.

Annabeth had been gone for almost an hour.

Not that Percy was keeping track.

He was absolutely keeping track.

He heard her before he saw her, the familiar rhythm of her footsteps coming down the wooden stairs toward the sand. Percy tipped his head back, squinting against the sunlight.

There she was.

And there went his attention span.

Annabeth was wearing denim shorts and a purple tank top knotted tightly above her waist. Her braids were pulled back from her face, sunglasses perched on top of her head, and the piercing sparkled openly against her stomach as she descended the last few steps.

Percy had seen it a thousand times by now.

It still worked.

His eyes dropped automatically.

Annabeth caught him before she'd even reached the towel. “Seriously?”

Percy didn't bother pretending. “Hi.”

Annabeth rolled her eyes, but the smile pulling at her mouth betrayed her as she dropped onto the towel beside him. Percy immediately shifted to make room, propping himself onto one elbow.

“You took forever.”

“I was gone for forty-five minutes.”

“Exactly.”

“You survived.”

“Barely.”

Annabeth laughed and leaned down to kiss him. Percy met her halfway, his hand automatically settling against her hip as their lips brushed. It was quick and familiar, but Annabeth smiled against his mouth before she pulled away, and Percy immediately narrowed his eyes.

She was still smiling.

It was that particular Annabeth smile. The one that meant she knew something he didn't.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“You're doing the face.”

“What face?”

“The Wise Girl face.”

Annabeth lifted an eyebrow. “That doesn't mean anything.”

“It absolutely does.”

Percy pushed himself upright beside her, long legs stretching across the towel as he turned toward her. Annabeth's smile only widened.

“What did you do?”

“Why do you assume I did something?”

“Because I know you.”

“That sounds like your problem.”

“Annabeth.”

She laughed softly and tucked one leg beneath herself. “Okay. I have one more birthday present for you.”

Percy blinked. “You already gave me a present.”

“I know.”

“And you told me the piercing was apparently part of my present.”

“Secondary consideration,” she reminded him.

“Right. Very important distinction.”

“It is.”

Percy looked at her suspiciously. “So what's the other present?”

Instead of answering, Annabeth pointed toward her stomach.

Percy easily followed her finger, his heart rate speeding up as she touched the little blue gem at her stomach.

He looked back at her. “What about it?”

Her mouth twitched.

Then his brain began putting things together.

She'd disappeared to see Will. She had another birthday surprise.

She was pointing at the one thing Percy had been complaining about since the initial reveal.

His eyes widened. “No.”

Annabeth's smile broke.

Percy sat up straighter. “No way.”

“I talked to Will-”

“Is it healed?”

“Would you let me finish?”

“Is it?”

“Percy.”

“Annabeth.”

She laughed. “Yes.”

Percy went completely still.

Annabeth was openly laughing at him now. “Will let me use a little nectar on it. He checked it first and said it was already healing perfectly, so he used just enough to finish the process. Apparently demigod medicine has finally been put toward something other than keeping us alive after monster attacks.”

Percy barely heard the second half.

“Healed?”

“Yes.”

“Completely?”

“Yes.”

His eyes dropped toward her stomach.

Annabeth watched him for a second, clearly enjoying herself.

Then she gave him the information he'd been waiting to hear.

“You can touch it now.”

Percy's head snapped up.

“Seriously?”

“Yes.”

“Like, actually?”

Annabeth laughed. “That's generally what you can touch it means.”

Percy stared at her for another second as if there was a reasonable chance she might take it back.

Then he moved.

Annabeth caught his wrist.

His face fell. “What?”

“I just want to establish one rule.”

“You said it was healed!”

“It is.”

“Then why are there still rules?”

“Because you're you.”

Percy frowned. “That's discrimination.”

“Against Seaweed Brains?”

“Exactly.”

Annabeth laughed and released his wrist. “Just don't yank on it.”

His expression went vaguely horrified. “Why would I yank on it?”

“I don't know. I'm covering my bases.”

“I know how jewelry works.”

“You spent all of yesterday asking me if it could fall out.”

“That was different.”

“How?”

Percy decided this conversation was wasting valuable birthday time.

Annabeth watched as he reached for her again, slower this time. His palm settled first against the familiar curve of her waist, warm skin beneath his hand, and for a moment Percy simply let it rest there.

He'd touched Annabeth thousands of times.

He'd held her hand before either of them understood why it made him nervous. He'd hugged her after battles just to reassure himself she was still there. He knew the familiar weight of her tucked against his chest, the curve of her waist beneath his palms, the way she automatically leaned into him whenever his arm slipped around her.

But he'd spent the last few days deliberately avoiding the center of her stomach.

Now his thumb moved inward.

It brushed lightly beside the piercing.

Percy froze.

Annabeth's mouth twitched. “You okay?”

“Shh.”

Her eyebrows shot up. “Did you just shush me again?”

“I'm having a moment.”

“You're touching my belly button, Percy.”

“I waited days for this.”

“Tragic.”

“Thank you for respecting my struggle.”

His thumb moved again, tracing carefully around the little silver piece. The blue stone was smooth beneath the pad of his finger, warmer than he'd expected from the sun.

Percy grinned.

He couldn't help it.

“Oh, that's cool.”

Annabeth laughed. “That's your reaction?”

“What did you want me to say?”

“I don't know. You've been acting like touching it was going to be a religious experience.”

“It kind of is.”

“Percy.”

“What?” He glanced up at her, his grin widening. “It's really hot.”

Annabeth pushed at his shoulder. “You have told me that fifty times.”

“And yet you keep acting surprised.”

“Because you're ridiculous.”

“I'm consistent.”

That was apparently difficult to argue with, because Annabeth only shook her head.

Now that he knew he wasn't going to hurt her, he let his palm settle more fully against her stomach. His fingers spread comfortably over her side while his thumb made another lazy pass over the little blue stone.

He liked it.

Gods, he liked it.

But maybe even more than that, he liked that Annabeth had done this today specifically because she knew how much he'd been enjoying it. She'd gone to Will on his birthday, asked him to heal something that didn't actually need magical healing, and come down here with that secret little smile because she'd known exactly how happy it would make him.

Percy looked up at her, but Annabeth was already watching him.

“Happy?” she asked.

“Extremely.”

“Worth the wait?”

Percy considered it while his thumb brushed over the piercing again. “Ask me again in ten minutes.”

Annabeth laughed and shoved his shoulder. Percy barely moved, catching her hand instead and tugging until she slid closer across the towel.

She settled easily between his bent legs, her back resting against his chest. Percy wrapped both arms around her, his chin fitting comfortably over the top of her head while Annabeth relaxed into him.

Predictably, one hand found her stomach again.

Annabeth looked down.

“You know it's not going anywhere.”

“Just checking.”

“You don't need to check.”

“I disagree.”

“You've touched it twelve times in the last two minutes.”

“Making up for lost time.”

Annabeth laughed, and Percy pressed a kiss against her temple.

For a few minutes, they stayed like that, watching the lake while younger campers shouted at one another from their canoes. Percy's fingers moved lazily against Annabeth's stomach, sometimes tracing the smooth skin beside the piercing, sometimes brushing gently across the little stone simply because he finally could.

Eventually Annabeth twisted enough to look back at him. “Want to swim?”

“Sure.”

She climbed to her feet first, brushing sand from her legs. Percy followed more slowly, stretching to his full height beside her before reaching for the shirt he'd discarded earlier.

Then Annabeth lifted the tank above her head. Underneath, she'd been wearing a blue bikini the entire time.

Percy's eyes traveled slowly over her.

The blue swimsuit. The denim shorts sitting low on her hips. Her smooth bare stomach between them. And right in the center, that tiny silver bar with its blue gemstone catching the afternoon sunlight.

He let out an actual groan.

“Oh, come on.”

Annabeth's mouth twitched. “What?”

“You know what.”

“I'm going swimming.”

“Yeah, apparently you're trying to kill me first.”

Annabeth laughed. “You've seen me in a swimsuit before.”

“Not with that.”

Percy pointed accusingly toward the piercing.

Annabeth looked down at herself and then back at him. “It's a tiny piece of jewelry.”

“It's an evil tiny piece of jewelry.”

“You were just calling it cool.”

“That was before you did all this.”

“All what?”

Percy gestured helplessly at her.

Annabeth looked at him. “You're going to have to be more specific.”

His eyebrows climbed. “You want me to list it?”

She folded her arms. “Go ahead.”

Percy looked at her.

Really looked at her.

The sunlight warmed her brown skin and caught along the little droplets of sweat at her collarbone. Her braids fell over one shoulder, brown eyes bright with challenge because Annabeth Chase had apparently never backed down from one in her entire life.

Percy sighed. “Fine. The swimsuit. The shorts. Your body. The piercing. Your whole-” He waved one hand vaguely in her direction. “Situation.”

“My situation?”

“You know what I mean.”

“I really don't.”

Percy crossed the small distance between them until Annabeth had to tip her chin back to meet his eyes. His hands settled naturally at her waist, thumbs resting against bare skin.

“You're hot, Wise Girl. Admit it.”

He watched as goosebumps rose across her skin.

“There,” Percy said. “Specific enough?”

“Barely.”

“Want more detail?”

She narrowed her eyes.

Percy's grin widened.

Annabeth shoved him toward the water.

Percy caught her wrist before she could escape, and a second later she shrieked as he swept her off her feet.

“Percy!”

He laughed, one arm beneath her knees and the other securely around her back as he carried her toward the lake.

“Put me down!”

“You wanted to swim.”

“I can walk!”

“I know.”

“Seaweed Brain!”

“Wise Girl.”

Annabeth wrapped her arms around his neck as Percy waded deeper, already laughing because she knew exactly what was coming. The water climbed past his knees and then his thighs, cool against sun-warmed skin, but Percy didn't slow. He only adjusted his grip beneath her knees and looked down at her.

Annabeth pointed at him. “Don't.”

Percy's smile lines deepened.

“Percy.”

“What?”

“I know that face.”

“I don't know what you're talking about.”

“Yes, you do.” Her arms tightened around his neck as he took another step into deeper water. “If you dunk me, I swear to the gods-”

Percy kissed her.

The suddenness of it startled a laugh out of her, her warning disappearing against his mouth as he kissed her softly. Annabeth barely had time to relax before she felt his arms tighten.

Her eyes flew open.

Percy was grinning.

“You-”

He dropped them both beneath the water.

The lake swallowed Annabeth's outraged yell. Cool water rushed over them, bubbles streaming toward the surface as Percy caught her securely around the waist before kicking them back up.

They broke through together.

Annabeth came up sputtering and laughing, immediately shoving wet braids away from her face. “I hate you!”

Percy was laughing too hard to look remotely sorry. “You should've seen your face.”

“I told you not to!”

“I know.”

“That generally means don't do it!”

“Yeah, but where's the fun in that?”

Annabeth splashed him directly in the face.

Percy sputtered, laughing as he caught her around the waist before she could swim away. Annabeth's legs wrapped instinctively around his hips as he steadied them in the deeper water, her arms looping loosely around his neck.

And just like that, Percy forgot what they'd been arguing about.

Because Annabeth was right there.

Water beaded across her soft skin and clung to her lashes, her wet braids trailing over her shoulders and down her back. The blue of her bikini stood out brightly against her skin, and whenever the lake shifted around them, the tiny blue stone at her belly button caught the afternoon sunlight.

Percy stared.

He knew he was staring.

At this point, he'd stopped caring.

This was Annabeth.

His Annabeth.

His best friend, his girlfriend, his person. The love of his life. The girl currently wrapped around him in the middle of the lake, trusting him to hold her while she looked at him like he was simultaneously the most irritating and most lovable person she'd ever met.

And somehow, impossibly, she had chosen him too.

“Percy.”

He blinked and dragged his eyes back to her face.

Annabeth's mouth was already curving. “You're doing it again.”

Percy didn't bother pretending not to understand. His gaze dipped once more toward the little blue gemstone before returning to her eyes. “Can you blame me?”

“Yes.”

“I can't.”

“I've noticed.”

He smiled, tightening his arms around her as a small wave pushed against them. Annabeth floated easily with him, her fingers playing absently with the damp blond curls at the nape of his neck.

For once, Percy didn't have some stupid comeback ready.

He just looked at her.

She was perfect.

He'd thought it a million times before, and somehow the realization still managed to hit him with the same force. Maybe it was because Annabeth never seemed to realize what she looked like when she was genuinely happy. Her whole face softened. The careful, calculating part of her quieted, and those big brown eyes became warm and bright as she looked at him.

Then she smiled.

Really smiled.

The one that had been ruining Percy's life since the day he had met her.

His hands settled comfortably against her waist beneath the water as Annabeth leaned closer. Her arms tightened around his neck, bringing their faces together until their noses brushed.

Percy smiled just before she kissed him.

The kiss was soft and unhurried, tasting faintly of lake water and the blue candy she'd stolen from him earlier. Percy tipped his head and kissed her back, holding her securely against him while Annabeth's fingers slipped into the wet curls at the back of his neck. Somewhere in the middle of it, she smiled against his mouth, and Percy felt himself do the same.

When she finally pulled away, she didn't go far. Her forehead rested against his, brown eyes opening slowly to meet his while water dripped from the ends of Percy's hair between them. Annabeth reached up and pushed one away from his eyes.

Then she gave him that impossibly pretty smile again.

“Happy birthday, Seaweed Brain.”

Percy stared at her for a second, his arms still wrapped securely around her while the lake moved gently around them.

He'd gotten presents that morning. Blue pancakes. A terrible birthday song. Whatever nightmare Grover had wrapped in half a roll of duct tape and leaves. Annabeth had already given him an actual gift, one she'd probably spent weeks overthinking because that was what Annabeth did. 

But none of that was what had Percy's chest feeling almost painfully full now.

Annabeth was wrapped around him in the middle of the lake, her arms looped around his neck and that tiny blue stone catching the sunlight between them. She'd chosen it because she liked it, because it made her feel good, but somewhere in that decision she'd thought of him too. She'd imagined his reaction. She'd picked a color that reminded her of him. Then, on his birthday, she'd gone out of her way to find Will just so she could come down here with that secret little smile and tell Percy he was finally allowed to touch her and appreciate his gift.

It was such a small thing, technically. A piece of jewelry. A ridiculous surprise they'd spent days teasing each other over.

But Percy knew Annabeth.

He knew how carefully she thought about the people she loved, how much of herself she tucked into the details no one else would notice. And the realization that she'd carried him with her through every part of this, that she'd seen something she wanted and still somehow found a way to make him part of the joy of it, hit Percy harder than he expected.

He was so in love with her.

He'd already thought he loved her as much as a person possibly could. After everything they'd survived, after years of choosing each other again and again, Percy hadn't known there was any room left for that feeling to grow.

Apparently, he'd been wrong.

Annabeth smiled at him, soft and beautiful and completely unaware that she had somehow managed to make him fall even harder for her on his own birthday.

He tightened his arms around her and pulled her closer, pressing one more kiss to that pretty smile because thank you suddenly felt nowhere near big enough for everything she was to him.

Percy couldn't stop smiling.

Best birthday ever.