Intertwined || Percabeth Hogwarts AU

Chapter 17

Mid-year exams snuck up on them.

Every student occupied some corner of the school, studying, cramming, but most of all stressing. Their professors hadn't gone easy on them with the workload, piling on more and more work despite exam week approaching.

Percy walked into the library looking for a spot to study at and cursed under his breath. Annabeth was sitting at a table, looking up at him from her book. He looked at her for a few seconds, his expression unreadable, before turning around, motioning to walk away when he heard, "Percy!"

He stopped but didn't turn around, remaining silent.

"Percy..." she sounded like she was on the verge of tears. "Please look at me...please..."

He closed his eyes momentarily before sighing and turning around. His eyes found hers and he felt his heart ache. Those beautiful gray eyes were rimmed with red, lined with a fresh batch of tears. The skin around them was rubbed raw and she had dark bags under her eyes.

"You can't ignore me forever, Percy!" She practically screamed at him, her voice cracking.

"I can try," he responded, causing Annabeth to reel.

His tone was dull and held no emotion. It was like a slap in the face for Annabeth. She would've preferred if he screamed or ranted, but this apathy... it hurt so much more.

"Percy, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for what I did. I don't know what else to—"

"Annabeth, all my life I've been ridiculed and made fun of. Finding Hogwarts was literally a fantasy. I was so happy here despite the Purebloods who looked down on me for something out of my control."

Annabeth chewed on her lip nervously, afraid of what he was going to say next.

"But you know what made all of that bearable?" He looked into her eyes and held her gaze for a few moments with an indecipherable expression. "You, Annabeth. Just... talking to you every day made everything else irrelevant. You were my best friend."

"Percy," she began, her voice shaky. Her heart was beating at an alarming rate as she tried to process everything he said. "I'm still your best friend. I don't know what came over me that day. I was so angry at—"

"Don't you see Annabeth?" He asked softly. "That's exactly the problem. If something is bothering you, then we work it out. Those were your words."

She wanted to cry. "Percy..."

He sighed and tiredly rubbed his eyes. "I'm sure you had a valid reason to be angry. But I never thought anything could make you act so... pureblooded. You always talked about how you hated blood status."

Annabeth's lips trembled. She wanted to say something, anything, but no words escaped her mouth. Percy shook his head and turned to walk away before he stopped and faced her again.

A genuine apologetic expression crossed his face. "I'm sorry about the duel. I got carried away and hurt you."

With that, he turned and left.

Her hand shot up to cover her mouth and the tears burst forth, streaming down her face. Her lips trembled and she no longer tried to contain the violent sobs that wracked her body.

She'd never felt so alone.