scales and arpeggios

chapter seven: annabeth

I shut off my alarm on Thursday morning and take a sip of water, trying to calm my pounding headache and cramping stomach. I groan and jump out of bed, shivering from the cold air. I open my blinds and yawn, grabbing clothes from my dresser and stepping into my bathroom. Asking Alexa to play Taylor Swift, I brush through my curls, creating a frizzy mess around my hair, then step into the shower. I sing along to the music quietly as I stand under the warm water, working shampoo into my hair. I space out to the music and finish my shower routine before turning the water off and wrapping a towel around myself. I throw on leggings and a crop top, trying to look a little bit presentable. Glancing at my phone, I notice I got ready pretty quickly and still have 20 minutes before I have to leave. I grab my bag and am about to head downstairs when I hear my phone ding.

"annieeeeeeeee," a text from Piper reads.

"pipesssssssss," I answer, humming "Getaway Car" as I walk down the stairs.

"jason asked me out last night!!" she answers, and I hit the FaceTime button. She instantly picks up.

"Okay, first, as he should. Second, you didn't think to tell me this last night?"

"Well, you were kind of... busy."

"Doing what?"

"You were talking to Percy until we left."

"It wasn't THAT long, and anyway, back to you." I put my phone down on the counter and open the fridge, grabbing my chilled coffee and some creamer.

"Okay so basically, at the diner last night he asked to talk to me, and I said yes because, it's Jason, ya know?"

"No, but go on," I say, grabbing a straw.

"Ugh, okay. And then he got all flustered and super cute and asked me if I wanted to go get ice cream sometime."

"Ice cream? He can do better than that." She rolls her eyes at me. I stick out my tongue and grab a bottle of ibuprofen from the counter, swallowing two tablets with a sip of coffee. Piper had liked Jason for way too long. I mean WAY too long.

"Why don't you go on a date? You're obviously very lonely," Piper asks, completely ignoring my other comment.

I scoff at her, "I am not. And no one is really popping out at me. I don't need a guy to be happy."

"We stan. Anyway, I gotta finish getting ready. I'll see you at school."

"See you at school."

;;;

"Hey, look who it is!" Reyna says as I walk into the band room. I frown at her and set down my stuff, then turn to her.

"I know, I'm just amazing aren't I."

"Geez, Annabeth, don't get cocky," Percy says, running his hand through his hair as he walks up to us.

"I could never be as cocky as you," I say, poking his nose, "So I don't think I really have anything to worry about." I notice his cheeks go pink a little bit. I give him a look of confusion.

"What?" I ask, so only he can hear me. He opens his mouth to say something, but quickly closes it and walks away. I shrug and sit down next to Reyna, who has a smug expression on her face. "You people need help," I mutter, opening my case and starting assembly of my clarinet.

;;;

I walk up to my locker after school to see Leo banging his head against it, completely oblivious to my presence.

"Leo, what are you doing?"

"Oh, wrong locker, sorry." He walks off, and I just let him go. Piper walks up a few minutes after, a smile on her face.

"Are you free tomorrow?" she asks, and I nod.

"Yeah, surprisingly. I was probably just gonna chill at home, but what's up?"

"A few people are coming over to watch some movies, and you are joining us."

"Obviously. What are we watching? And who's coming?"

"We'll decide tomorrow. And not everyone can make it so it's just us, Jason, Percy, Frank and Hazel, Leo, Grover, Reyna, Nico, and Will." She counts on her fingers, making sure she covered everyone.

"Yeah. I'll probably just stay the night tomorrow then if it's okay with you."

She scoffs, "Like you weren't going to already."

"Good point. Now I have to go to club, I'll see you later." I wave at her and walk out to my car, unlocking it and throwing my bags in the back. Before I pull out of my space, I blast Wicked and drive off, already preparing my muscles for the drills and sprints to come.

Three hours later, I'm sitting on my bed after showering off the sweat from volleyball, and I open my planner. I realize I only have a few assignments I need to do, and I knock those out quickly before laying down on my bed. I'm almost asleep when I realize that it's only 7:30, and if I go to sleep now I'll wake up in the middle of the night. I groan and walk downstairs, grabbing some water and sitting down on the couch next to my dad.

"Hey, how was school?"

"Good," I say, yawning.

"Why don't you go to bed? You look exhausted."

"Do I look that bad, Dad?" I question.

"You know what I meant." He stands up and walks to his office. "I have some work to do, but you, missy, go to sleep."

I ignore him and head to the kitchen, grabbing an apple and walking back up to my room. I scroll through TikTok as I finish it, then throw the core away and lay back down. Before I can even think about it, I'm asleep.

;;;

"I think I hate this class more than I hate head colds," Percy says in chemistry the next day.

"Shhhh. I'm trying to learn." I elbow him and turn back to my notes.

"You actually understand this?"

"Yeah."

"Help me. Please. I have no clue what he's even saying."

"Like tutoring? I don't know, I'm really busy."

"Pleeeease??" he says, poking my arm until I look at him.

I sigh, "Fine. I can help with homework if you want."

"Wait, really? I wasn't expecting it to be that easy." I roll my eyes at him and turn back to my notes, scribbling random words and phrases in the margins.

"Annabeth," I hear Percy whisper. "When are you free?"

"I have to check, I'll tell you after class." I glance at the clock and realize that we only have 2 minutes left. That went by fast. Mr. Thorn wraps up his lecture, and I put my notebook in my bag.

"I can tutor you on Monday," I say to Percy as he walks out of the classroom.

"You're a lifesaver. Thanks."

"Sure." I give him a small smile before walking to my next class.

;;;

"What movie should we watch?" Piper asks us. We're all gathered in her living room: Jason, Percy, Reyna, Piper, and I have spots set up on the couch, Leo and Grover at our feet. Frank and Hazel sit in one of the oversized chairs, Nico and Will in the other one.

"Marvel," Jason says.

"You're going to need to be a bit more specific there."

"Oh, I know!" Reyna says, "First Avenger!"

"I'm down," I say.

"Okay, First Avenger it is," Piper says, opening Disney+.

"It's party time," Leo says as the movie starts playing.

I scoff. " Leo, the party hasn't even started yet."