ᴄᴀᴠᴇ ᴄᴀɴᴇᴍ: ᴘᴀʀᴛ ɪɪ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘᴇʀᴄᴀʙᴇᴛʜ/ꜱᴏʟᴀɴɢᴇʟᴏ ᴘʀᴏᴊᴇᴄᴛ

xᴠɪ | ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴅᴀɪʟʏ ʀᴇᴍɪɴᴅᴇʀ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ ɪꜱ ᴏɴʟʏ ᴏɴᴇ ʙᴇᴅ

CW: Implied sex

Percy can't believe he just went through with getting a tattoo. His arm feels like he got snapped with a rubber band about a million times. It stings. It itches.

Annabeth keeps assuring him that it's supposed to feel like that. The artist she found online in about two minutes did a great job, and Percy sat like a rock, which he now knows is a compliment.

"Stop touching it," Annabeth says.

"It's itchy," he complains again.

Annabeth switches the pastry bag to her other arm. "And it's going to look like shit if you keep touching it. I'll put Aquaphor on it for you when we find the hotel."

"You mean if we find the hotel," he says.

About an hour ago, Nico and Will sent a text to a group chat called QUESTIE BESTIES saying that they found a hotel, but neither had texted since then. Annabeth just found out that Will has her location, but she doesn't have his, so there's no way for them to find the hotel.

"If we don't find the hotel in the next couple of minutes, I am going to push a homeless man off one of those benches there, and I will rub Aquaphor on your arm like a braless love interest in an action movie," Annabeth declares.

"Sure, you will," he quips.

She taps her free fingers against her chin. "Actually, no, I won't. You're right. I'm going to stuff one of these pastries down my throat and then I'm going to push a homeless man."

"Have you texted Will?" Percy asks. "He's got to be worrying about you by now."

Annabeth looks at her phone and frowns. "My texts don't say they're delivering." She shows Percy a string of green text messages that have failed to send.

"Yeah, those aren't going through," he explains. "Is there a chance his phone's dead?"

Annabeth smacks her forehead with her palm. "Ugh. Yes. He never remembers to pack a charger for his computer when we go places, so I always have to bring it with my stuff."

"Oh," says Percy. "Well, I'll try to text Nico so someone knows we're alive." And so Will doesn't kill me, he adds silently.

Hey, we're on our way back. Can you text an address? He sends the text to Nico.

Nico's phone is set to Do Not Disturb. Notify anyway? the messaging app asks.

"Yes, notify anyway!" Percy taps the screen.

"Shit, Will's gonna kill you," Annabeth says.

Percy throws his hands in the air. "Ya think? He's practically been waiting to kill me all day!"

Annabeth scratches her neck. "Yeah..."

"Yeah?"

"Well, I can't exactly disagree," she says. "I'm sorry he's been an asshole; he usually only gets like that when I'm dating someone. He probably just got the wrong idea when Zebediah... you know."

Percy can't say he wouldn't be too embarrassed to admit to a hickey caused by a starfish.

"I'll clear things up when we get back," Annabeth says. "Don't worry about it."

At first, Percy does worry because Will can be scary when he wants to be. He remembers the day Will found out Nico hadn't received a vaccine since 1940. Percy thought it might be helpful if he said he didn't get an annual flu shot. That mistake ruined Labor Day.