The Dance at Camp Half-Blood - A Percabeth Short Story

ANNABETH - Part 1

     

     Annabeth fidgeted with her camp necklace as Piper helped her get ready for the dance. "You're gonna look so pretty." Piper said.
     She was wearing a satin pink dress that hung to the floor, and her brown hair was pulled back and curled elegantly. She looked gorgeous. "I don't know. Isn't the dress a bit much?"
     Piper scoffed. "Absolutely not. It's perfect. It matches your eyes." She held up the dress. It was silver and flowy, the shimmery fabric glinting in the light.
     "The neckline's a little low."
     Piper rolled her eyes. "You're the one who asked me to pick yours. Come on. You'll love it. Try it on."
     Annabeth put the dress on, though she needed some assistance zipping up the back. It fit her perfectly. The gossamer fabric hung from her arms and twirled around her body. Piper squealed. "See, I told you so! You look gorgeous. He'll love it."
     Annabeth narrowed her eyes. "Piper, I don't like him."
     "Uh-huh. Sure. Makeup!"
     Annabeth groaned. Piper had insisted on doing her makeup for tonight. "Do I have to?"
     "Yes. Sit."
     Annabeth sat on the bed, and Piper began applying makeup. It felt weird, like her skin was being tampered with. Not to mention, it took forever.
     It felt like an eternity passed before Piper said "Done." She held up a mirror for Annabeth to see.
     Annabeth's breath caught. "I look...pretty."
     Piper cocked her head. "What else is new?"
     Annabeth rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. "Shut up. You look gorgeous."
     "Thank you, m'lady. So do you. Now, your hair is perfect how it is right now, just take out the ponytail. And the camp necklace."
     Annabeth rolled the beads between her fingers. "Can't I wear it?"
     "You wear it every day, Annabeth. Let's change it up for tonight." She pulled out a silver necklace and diamond earrings. "Try them on."
     Annabeth put on the jewelry, and Piper smiled. "Perfect. Now for shoes..."
     "Hold on. I thought I could just wear my sneakers."
     Piper smirked. "I think not." She held up a pair of silver heels. Did she store all this stuff in her inventory or something?
     "Not heels. No way. I'll break an ankle."
     "Come on. It's not that hard. Just try them."
     Annabeth quicky discovered that it was, in fact, that hard. "If I break any bones, I'm blaming you."
     "You won't, I promise. So, are you ready? We can walk there together."
     "Sure. Are you going with Jason?"
     "Yeah, but he'll just meet us there."
     Annabeth nodded, but she felt a little bit of sadness inside. She wish she had someone to go with. Maybe her and Percy could hang out. Just as friends.
     She looked up. Piper gave her a knowing smirk.
     "What?"
     "You're thinking about him."
     "No, I'm not."
     "Yes, you are. I can tell. Daughter of Aphrodite and all. Anyways, we should get going."
They left the cabin together, heading for the dining pavilion. Piper gasped at the sight of the changes made, but Annabeth was unimpressed. She had overseen most of the set-up, so the surprise factor was gone. Piper headed off to find Jason once Annabeth assured her it was ok.
"I'll be fine. Go have fun. I'll see if I can find..." She trailed off when she saw the look on Piper's face. "Stop that."
     "Ok, I'll find you later. Stay safe, and keep your distance from the Stoll twins. Those earrings are real diamonds. Bye!" And with that, Annabeth was left alone. She walked around, looking for Percy, but he was nowhere to be found. Her feet were killing her. She saw Leo instead.
     "Hey, Leo."
     "Annabeth! Looking good. I like the dress."
     "Thank you. I like the...outfit." She didn't really know what else to call it. He was wearing black dress pants with a white shirt, suspenders, and a tie that had flames on it.
     "Thank you. Hey, do you have any song requests? I know the DJ, so I can get you to the top of the list."
     "No, I'm good. I'm looking for Percy...have you seen him?"
     Leo flashed a grin. "Oh, I see. Don't worry, I can pull some strings with the DJ to make sure..."
     "No! No. Leo, do not do anything." But Leo was already heading off the find the DJ. Great.
     After a few more minutes, Annabeth gave up on her search for Percy. Maybe he hadn't come. She was heading for one of the side tables when she saw him. He was sitting by himself at a table, watching Jason and Piper dance. He was wearing a navy blue suit and a white shirt, and his black hair was as messy as ever. In other words, he looked incredible. Effortlessly casual and handsome.
     Not that Annabeth liked him or anything. She was just admiring how good he looked in a completely friendly and non-romantic way. She took a deep breath and walked towards him, suddenly very self-conscious of how she looked. He was facing away from her, so he didn't see her approaching.
     "Psst! Seaweed Brain!"
     He turned towards her. He looked even better up close. His mouth was slightly open and we was just kind of staring at her, not really doing anything. Finally, he spoke.
     "Hee. Um, hi. I meant hi."
     She tried not to laugh. Why was he being so weird? "Hi. Nice suit." She meant it. It fit him perfectly, but it didn't look like he was trying too hard. Instead, he looked like he'd just put it on and coincidentally looked good, like oh yeah, I just woke up this handsome.
Annabeth saw that Percy was still occasionally glancing at Jason and Piper as they danced. "Do you want to dance?" It took all her courage to ask that one question.
     "Uh, me?"
     Gods, he was dense. Yes, you. Do you see any other ridiculously and effortlessly attractive sons of Poseidon with messy black hair and green eyes around here?
She took his hand and led him to the dance floor. As soon as they stepped foot on the floor, the song immediately changed to a slow and sappy one. Leo. Ugh.
     Percy looked irritated. "Relax," she said. "it's not that difficult." She took his hand and placed it on her waist. Truth be told, she was terrified, but she tried not to show it. As soon as he touched her, her heart started beating faster. She put a hand on his shoulder and grabbed his hand with her other. They started dancing, and he seemed to calm down a little.
     That's when Annabeth made an incredibly stupid decision. She stepped closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder. Why. His hand was still on her waist, but now they were even closer than before, and her heart was pounding harder than ever. She held her breath until the song ended and she could pull him off the dance floor and back to a table. He probably thought she was a freak who hyperventilated every time she came in contact with a boy.
     "Not a bad dancer, Seaweed Brain."
     "Hm? Oh, uh, thanks. Neither are you."
     Percy was acting strange. He never stuttered. He was distracted. He almost seemed nervous. But from what?
     She needed to break the silence. "Truth or dare?"
     He looked at her. "Dare."
     "Go flirt with Clarisse," she said immediately. It was ridiculous, but it got his attention. He quickly changed to truth.
     "Fine. Who's the better fighter, you or me?"
     "I mean, you're a great fighter, but let's be honest..."
     Annabeth scoffed. She no longer saw him as handsome. Well, maybe just a little. Now he was competition.
     "Oh really? Let's go to the arena right now. If you win?"
     He paused for a moment. "You have to go on a date with me."
Annabeth froze for half a second. She had not been expecting that. He wanted to go on a date with her? Now she had reason to lose on purpose. Wait, no. She didn't even like him. He was just a friend. She tried to play it off by shrugging. "Ok."