Beyond All Expectation (Percabeth)

Chapter 12: Annabeth's First Kiss

Annabeth POV:

As soon as I closed the door behind me I paused. There was a moment where I thought about opening the door and apologizing to Percy, but I had too much pride in me for that. I felt ashamed that for the second time in two weeks I had stormed out of Percy's home - not just because it made me look like a bitch, but mostly because, as much as I hated to admit it, I enjoyed Percy's company and hated making him look upset. There was something about Percy that just... surprised me. He was eager to learn, eager to listen, eager to please in a way that didn't feel needy or clingy. I felt like, in these two hour sessions with him, I was talking to the real him and not the facade he put up when he walked into school. 

But then anger got the better of me and I stormed out of his building. 

After 20 minutes of angry walking, I found myself outside the UPS store on 57th street. I hadn't really been thinking about where I was going, only that I was angry at Luke and needed to see him. 

When I marched into the store, I saw two guys standing behind the counter. One of them was Luke, the other was a scruffy looking man who looked to be in his thirties. He was stuck on his phone, paying no attention to me or the customer that Luke was attending to. 

"When were you going to tell me about Thalia, huh?" I asked loudly, taking Luke by surprise. He tore his gaze away from the customer and stared at me with wide eyes. I spoke with far more confidence than I had ever had in my life, which I would probably regret further down the line. What was I thinking, confronting a guy as popular as Luke? He knew every popular kid in and out of my school. If word got out that know-it-all Annabeth Chase had a go at some guy who barely knew her and was two years her senior... I would be ruined. 

"A-Annabeth?" Luke stuttered. 

"You're dating my best friend and you didn't think to tell me?" I pressed on. "Is this why you never wanted to talk about her in front of me? You were scared you'd slip up? You know what, Luke, I am so disgusted..."

"Wait, wait, wait, you've got this wrong, hold up," I had to admit I was a little proud of myself for making him look so nervous. He always presented himself so calm and so cool, but now that image was gone. He turned to face his coworker. "Dave please help our customer, I'm taking my break now."

And before Dave could even respond Luke had jumped over the counter, grabbed my shoulder and had pulled me out of the shop onto the noisy street. Standing still, I realized how cold it was. I shivered slightly, hoping he wouldn't see it. 

"What's wrong? What have you heard?" He asked, staring down at me. I frowned at his question but tried to compose myself in order to not stutter over my response.

"I just found out that you're dating Thalia-"

"-who told you?" Luke frowned. I frowned back. 

"Never mind who told me, I know they're not lying," I retorted. He shook his head furiously. His pale skin began to go red. "So don't deny it. W-what was your plan? Did you hope to cheat on her with me? Were you hoping I'd never find out? Last week when we got pizza together, did you just want to hook up with me or were you pursuing something more? because I really trusted you Luke and now I'm not sure what to think. I-I was beginning to like you..."

"Annabeth, listen! We were dating, but we broke up just after the party," he said quickly. I took a step back. "Don't look at me like that... I'm not lying. Look, I saw her flirting with a few guys at the party and we got into a massive argument about it and we broke up the day after. I haven't even seen her since. And the reason I don't ever want to talk about her when we're together is because she really hurt my feelings and I'd rather not get upset around you. I just want to forget what she did to me and move on... with a girl I kind of really like."