Losing Games

49.

49.

The News

~*~

Annabeth POV

Cold.

I was so cold. I'd never felt this cold in my life—I'd never felt this numb in my life. I'd had taken a cold shower before, I had sung in the rain at concerts before, I'd even had a bucket of ice cream until my brain froze.

But I'd never felt this cold in my life.

The police officer assured me that everything was going to be okay. But they were police officers, of course they would say that. They let me ride at the back of the car though, wrapped in his hoodie as sounds of the sirens blaring zoomed through the lanes of late night traffic right behind the ambulance that was holding Percy.

My poor Percy.

They wouldn't let me ride with him. Not even after my nasty sobbing and pleading. They allowed me to ride in the back of the police car, so I did. I clung to the hoodie, sobbing for everything that was slowly flashing before my eyes.

Everything was falling apart and it was in just a blink of an eye.

Once we finally got to the hospital, they rushed Percy into the emergency entrance, but the police wouldn't let me go with him.

"You'd only get in the way. I'm sorry," one of them told me. "We'll stay with you and make sure you're not alone."

I didn't answer him. I just followed him and his partner, who was a redheaded woman, into the ER and as the man spoke to the front desk of the waiting room, the woman led me over to the chairs, helping me sit down as she sat beside me. I curled into the chair, savoring the little bit of warmth that it gave me.

"Can you tell me your name?" the woman asked, taking one of my hand in hers as I continued to sob uncontrollably.

"A-Annabeth," I whimpered.

"Annabeth?" she repeated, like she knew who I was. "My name is Sabrina." 

"Y-You have to-to make sure Percy's o-okay!" I cried.

"Percy is alive," she assured me, as I sat there, soaked in rain water, my tears, and Percy's blood.

It was everywhere. Rattled in my hair, smeared on my face, drenching the hoodie and my dress underneath—it was everywhere. How could he be okay if I have all of his blood?!

"He can't leave me," I whispered to myself, feeling the room start to spin.

"Annabeth, you need to stop crying, okay?" Sabrina's hand squeezed mine gently. "You'll be able to see Percy soon, but you're going to get yourself sick."

I nodded, trying to calm down my breathing, but it was hard. It took me ten minutes to finally be able to open my blurry eyes and see clearly the redheaded officer sitting in the chair beside me. My head was pounding, and I was still feeling deathly cold, but my chest wasn't heaving anymore and I was quiet.

"Good." Sabrina gave me an encouraging smile. "Is there anybody you want me to call for you?"

But I didn't answer. I couldn't answer. I didn't want to talk. All I wanted to do was to see Percy—to make sure he was okay.

The police officer handed me a pen, telling me to write down the number and I closed my eyes, shakily remembering the number of Percy's best friend. I hoped she could understand it because it wasn't very legible at all, and she did, giving me a small smile before walking to the reception desk.