𝑨𝒍𝒍'𝒔 𝑭𝒂𝒊𝒓 𝒊𝒏 𝑳𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑯𝒐𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒚

Beads

Annabeth's p.o.v.

Beep beep beep

I groan and slap the snooze button on my alarm clock, pulling my comforter back over my head. Last night, I got home late from Pipers, and Helen went full on evil stepmother. She had screamed about the time, about how she had company over and I was embarrassing her, and woke up Bobby and Matthew, although, I doubt that they were even sleeping in the first place. I know this makes me sound like a coward, but I really don't want to see her. If I'm lucky, she'll already have left for work.

I roll out of bed and pull on a wrinkled pair of tattered jeans that I grabbed off the floor, and throw on a grey sweater. I walk to the kitchen.

I'm never lucky.

"You look rough," Bobby tells me through a mouthful of toast.

"Agreed," Matthew says. He grabs the bread and throws the whole loaf at me. I catch it at the last second, spin around, pulling two pieces out as I do so, and pop them in the toaster, pushing the lever down.

"If you are finished showing off," Helen says through gritted teeth, setting her newspaper down on the table, "I could go for some coffee, if you would be so kind."

"Of course," I tell her with an obviously fake smile. She glares at me, obviously wanting a reason to tell me off, or scream at me. I make her coffee and set it in front of her with a fake curtsy, and turn towards my toast, smirking, knowing I did exactly what she hated most. I did exactly what she asked. When I do that, it gives her no reason to yell at me, which I think is her favorite hobby.

I  butter my toast and shovel it down my throat, barely stopping to chew. I go to my bathroom at brush my teeth and hair, tying it back in a messy bun, and putting on the bead necklace that my mom left me when she died. The necklace was beautiful, a bead for every summer that she spent at a summer camp. Nine beads. The summer camp was her second home, or so my dad told me when he gave this to me. 

I grab my backpack as I walk out the door, waving at my brothers. I hop in my car, slamming the door, and turn on my angry playlist as loud as the car can play it. I can't believe Helen! When I get to the school, I park my car and walk inside, looking for someone to vent to. I find Piper and Clarisse in an empty classroom.

"Chris and Clarisse, sittin' in a tree," Piper sings.

"K-i-l-l-i-n-g," "G-a-g-g-i-n-g" Clarisse and I both say at the same time.

"Okay then," Piper says, giggling. "Annabeth, you look angry."

I realize I'm scowling and immediately wipe the look off my face, but can't keep the anger from my voice as I say, "can I stay at your place tonight?"

"Oh," Piper says. She knows about the Helen situation, and was always willing to help out. "Of course." 

"Thanks," I say. I send Helen a text.

'Staying at Pipers 2nite'

"I gotta go," I say, putting my phone back in my pocket. "see you later!"

I open the door and walk into the hall, only to run straight into Percy Jackson.

Percy's p.o.v.

"Hey, Chase," I say. Last night, I decided to stop obsessing over her and just try to get to know her. To be her friend. But dang, she's pretty.

"Oh, hi," she says in a flustered tone.

"How are you?"

"I'm fine."

"Are we still gonna go to the ice arena later?" I ask.

"If you're still free," she says.

"Yep," I say. "So, would I know your brothers?"

"I don't know," she says. "Bobby and Matthew chase, fourteen years old, a little on the short side?"

"Nope," I say, popping the 'p'.

I see something, she's wearing a necklace. A necklace that looks almost the same as the one my father left for me when he died. I reach out to touch it, but she flinches away.

"What makes you think you can touch that?" she says, grabbing one of the beads protectively.

I shake my head. "Sorry," I say, "it just looks very similar to mine."

"What?" she says, almost urgently.

I pull the neckline of my blue hoodie farther down, so she can see the string of beads around my neck.

She grabs my arm, pulling me down the hall into the deserted art room and sits down at a table.  I follow suit. Reaching behind her neck, she unties her necklace, and sets it down on the paint covered table. I do the same. Four of her beads are exactly like mine: a trident, a golden sheep, a maze, and the empire state building. She has more than I do though, I see a centaur in a prom dress, (that must have been a weird year) a pine tree, and three others.

"Where did you get that?" she asks, asks wonderingly.

"It was my dad's," I say. I must look sad, because she asks, 

"What happened to him?"

"He died in a fishing accident when I was five."

"Oh," she looks down at the beads. after a long pause she looks up at me and says, "My mom died when I was a baby."

"Oh," I mirror her, not knowing what to say. I know from experience that 'sorry' doesn't cut it.

"Well," she says, her voice riddled with false cheeriness, "this is not what we came to talk about! So, both of our necklaces have the same beads, which means that our parents went to camp the same years, which means that our parents probably knew each other." 

"Weird," I say. 

"I've got to get to class," she says, getting up and walking towards the door. She looks back at me when she reaches the door, smiles and waves. The door closes with a thud, and I begin to think. If our parents knew each other, Annabeth and I could have a connection that runs very deep.

1008 words.

From here on out I'm gonna post either something that irks me, a random fact about myself, or something to make you cry at the end of every chapter. Today's something to make you cry; Thalia is going to see all of her friends grow old and die. Just a friendly reminder.

-Clarisse