Meeting the Heroes Of Olympus

*XXXIV* Joseph Parker

My name is Joseph Parker and I'm a first grade teacher at a Long Island Prep Preschool called Riverton. I know I'm not supposed to have favorites, but I can't help it. There is this cute little girl named Zoë Jackson, and she is a little genius, just like her mother, Annabeth Jackson, CEO of Athenian Architecture. She has a mischievous twin brother, Luke, who is her exact opposite. She has curly black hair and striking grey eyes and he had messy blonde hair and sea-green eyes. She is the smartest and most well-behaved, while her brother pays no attention and still gets good scores. Annabeth and I went to high school together, she transferred to Lincoln High in senior year and we are still good friends. As far as I've heard, she is single and Zoë and Luke's father is MIA. So today, I'm going to ask her out.
***
Suddenly, I was awake. (What is that a reference to. Can you guess?) My vision was blurred, so put on my glasses. I got our of bed and took off my pajamas and ran a shower. After my warm shower, I used the toilet and I dried myself off with a towel.  I ran my fingers through my wet red hair and left the bathroom, quickly planning my outfit for the day. I put on some pants and a blue polo shirt, along with a black blazer. After putting on some socks, I walked into the kitchenette of my small apartment and made some eggs and toast. After I ate my breakfast, I put on my loafers and grabbed my keys. Grabbing my briefcase, I left my apartment and took the stairs down to the first floor. When I got to the ground floor, I nodded at the security guard, left the building, and got into my car.
***
When I got to the school, I put my briefcase on my desk and started grading some papers. After a little while, the bell rang and I looked up from my desk and saw three people, Zoë in her desk, Luke slouching and looking at the door way, and Annabeth standing in the door frame. I smiled at her and waved. "Annabeth." I said. She smiled at me.
"Joseph." She replied. I chuckled and nodded at her as she left. "Bye, Zoë. Bye Luke. Happy Birthday. See you later. Don't be your namesake, Luke. Zoë, do." She blew them a kiss. She says that to them every time she leaves, and she once told me that Luke was her childhood friend that was very mischievous and Zoë was their fathers friend that was smart and well-behaved. Soon, the rest of the class filled in and I started the class.
***
The final bell rang and I silently released a sigh of relief. Just, I looked at the clock, fifteen hours until I have to deal with these troublesome toddlers again. As all the class left, I waited by the door for Annabeth to arrive. I spot her down the hall talking to a man with black hair and green eyes, her grey eyes sparkling with joy. I pretended not to notice and crossed my fingers he was her best friend., nothing more. He stood behind the door as Annabeth came in the classroom and headed straight towards me. I was gonna ask her, but she signed her name in the list twice and went over to Zoë without saying a word to me.
"Hey, Zo. You ready?" She asked her daughter, who glumly nodded and went to the door frame. Luke saw that they were at the door frame, then said goodbye to his friends, one-shoulders his  backpack, and went over there. "Hey, don't look so sad guys. It's your birthday!"
"But dad isn't here to celebrate it." Luke muttered. So the man was probably an ex, the father of the twins.
"Oh, hush. Let's go to Grandma Sally's house and have some blue birthday cake, okay? That always cheers you guys up. We can go swimming, fly with Uncle Jason, play Piper Says, and play Hide and Go Neeks." Annabeth cooed.
"Hide and Go Neeks?" Zoë asked.
"Swimming?" Luke asked.
The man came from the corner, standing behind the twins. He put one hand on each of their shoulders. "Blue cake?" He asked and the twins flinched.
They turned around. "DAD!" They screamed in unison. Zoë buried her head into his shoulder. "I missed you."
The man smiled at Annabeth and she nodded. "Well, I missed you too, Tina, Herms. But you won't be missing me anymore, cause I'm not going back. Happy birthday."
I coughed and silently cursed myself. The entire family turned and looked at me, no stared at me and I felt like I was intruding on a private moment.
"Sorry, I'm Joseph Parker, Zoë and Luke's teacher." I said, embarrassed.
He stood up and extended his hand. I shook it."Percy Jackson. Annabeth's husband, Tina and Herms' father, and I just got an honorary discharge from Iraq." He said.
"Like the Olympic Gold Medalist? I thought you could just afford it here because of Olympus Architecture." I said. Annabeth nodded, proud. I smiled. I wasn't angry or sad. For the first time, I realized that I didn't like Annabeth. It was more admiration. I'm glad that Percy came home on the twins birthday for them, and so that I didn't ask Annabeth out and make a fool of myself. I found myself glad and even happy for Annabeth and Percy. Let them live a long and happy life.