Hey guys, i seriously suck at updating but this is good for me because this is the only page that i'm doing, so i won't need to update! *does happy dance* :)
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Love is a tricky concept for her.
.
Her father tells her he loves her yet he doesn't always seem to enjoy her presence.
Her step-mother says she loves her but Annabeth doesn't take much stock in her step-mother Linda's (she's never liked that name) words.
One day, she asks her father why he loves her. He looks taken aback for a moment but then he answers that he loves her because she's his daughter and she's perfect. She pretends to accept this for an answer but on the inside, she isn't satisfied. It's too simple of answer.
That response made no sense! Surely, there must be reasons or some sort of formula to explain why you love someone. Even at age seven, she knows that everything in life has an explanation and if it can't be explained, then it isn't worth thinking about.
So she decides she'll ask him again and again until she gets a satisfying answer. She wakes up earlier than usual the next morning and sneaks over to where her father's office is. The door is slightly ajar. She can hear her father and step-mother's voices drifting over to her spot a few inches away from the door.
"So there isn't anything you can do about the monsters?" her step-mom (she refuses to think her name) says. She sounds exasperated and irritated. Annabeth feels a sting of annoyance.
"No. All we can do is live with it." her father answers. His tone of voice suggests that he's had this conversation before. Annabeth's irritation increases.
"Surely there must be something we can do, Frederick. Anything!" her step-mom insists. Annabeth doesn't enjoy being talked about like a plague. She pauses to analyze the situation. Obviously, her father must not love her if he allows his 'perfect' daughter to be talked about in such a way. She weighs her options. She could confront him about it but he'd only lie to her again. So she settles on another plan. It's not the best plan and it makes her heart hurt a little (what a silly notion, she thinks) but she executes it anyways the following day.
She runs away- doesn't look back.
(Well, maybe she risks one little glance back.)
.
She doesn't know what to think of the blonde teenage boy who just handed her a dagger of all things or of his stormy-eyed companion who looks like she belongs at a concert for one of those rock bands her father detests.
They take her in. They steal her an outfit from a clothes-line in someone's front yard to replace her tattered and torn clothes. The jeans are a little short on her and she's never cared for the sea-green shade that is her shirt but she appreciates it.
These teenagers that took her in (Thalia Grace and Luke Castellan), they're not exactly law-abiding. They shoplift necessities from convenience stores and they don't even flinch when it comes to beating up a couple of nosy mortal thugs (gang members pale in comparison to the monsters they've seen).
But they care about her. They always make sure she has a blanket and they're constantly asking her if she's hungry. They give her their undivided attention. They never get annoyed when she starts spewing random facts, mainly about architecture. They smile and nod and give her encouraging pats on the back.
She feels better with them than she ever did with her dad and stupid Linda. She feels a pang of guilt at leaving them alone but then she remembers that Linda's pregnant with twins and soon enough, they'll forget about her. But it doesn't bother her. No, not all. Why would it?
