The Untold Story of Annabeth Chase

Chapter 27

The next morning, Grace and Matthew were at the door to see me off, but Bobby refused to come out of his room to say goodbye. When I knelt down and hugged Matthew goodbye, his shoulders began to shake. "Don't cry, Matthew," I said softly, but I was also trying pretty hard to hold it together. Eventually, I forced myself to let go of Matthew and stand up.

I turned to face my stepmother. She stared me right in the eyes for a moment, then did something unexpected. She pulled me in for a hug.

I was so startled it took me a minute to hug back, but I did. Grace smiled, somewhere between happy and sad. "Well, we gave it our best shot, didn't we?"
I nodded. My dad, never one for sentimentality, cleared his throat. "Ready to go, Annabeth?"
I swallowed hard. "Yeah," I said, and he picked up my suitcase and opened the door.

As I turned to leave, someone yelled, "Wait!"

I spun around and saw Bobby racing down the stairs with some sort of LEGO creation in his hand. I grinned as he came to a stop in front of me and held it out proudly. "I made it for you," he said shyly.

I took it out of his hand and studied it. It was a rectangular building, about ten mini blocks high, the red and white bricks arranged in no particular order. It was nothing special, but I began to tear up. "Thanks, Bobby," I choked out, reaching down for a hug.

He jumped into my arms, just like he had when I had first gotten home. I stroked his hair as he buried his face in my shoulder. I waited for him to start crying, but he stayed calm as Grace detached him from me and said gently "Annabeth has to go now."

He nodded, staring at the LEGO building in my hand. Matthew wiped his nose as I shouldered my backpack and walked out the door.

My dad carried my suitcase to the trunk while I got settled in the front seat. When my dad strapped in, he glanced up and chuckled. I looked up too, and saw Grace holding Bobby on the front porch. Matthew stood nearby, him and his brother both waving like crazy. I lifted my hand half-heartedly as the car pulled away, and then even the evil stepmother raised her hand in farewell.

My dad and I didn't talk much during the drive. I sat and stared out the window, trying hard not to second-guess my decision, and he mostly kept his eyes on the road.

When we got to Long Island, I had to give my dad directions. Since he couldn't see the camp, it was a lot of work, but eventually we pulled up at the base of Half-Blood Hill. We got out of the car and when my dad went to get my suitcase from the trunk, I allowed myself to glance up at the hill, preparing myself for the mixed emotions.

Turns out, the emotions were a lot happier than I'd expected when I looked up and saw the entire year-round population of Camp Half-Blood waiting for me at the top of the hill.

I stared at them for a minute, stunned, then my face broke into a huge grin. I waved, and they began yelling my name and cheering.

My dad came up next to me with my suitcase and smiled. "Looks like you've got an entourage."

I turned to him and hugged him. He hugged me back tightly, then pulled away, clearing his throat. "Um, I have something for you."

He reached into the car and pulled out a small cardboard box. I wiggled the lid off the box and pulled out a small black Nokia flip phone.

My father shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged. "I thought maybe you could call me once in awhile. You know, once you get settled in."

I flipped it open and stared at the tiny screen, touched. I knew demigods weren't supposed to use cell phones, but I didn't want to tell him that. Besides, if I only used it inside the camp boundaries, it had to be harmless. "Yeah, sure," I said, swallowing the lump in my throat. "I'll call soon."

"Sounds good." My dad pulled me in for one last hug, wishing me luck, then handed me my suitcase. "Well, you'd better get up there, honey," he said, blinking back tears. "Your friends are waiting."

He got in the car and pulled away, probably trying to leave before he changed his mind. I was grateful, because I was in the exact same boat. But then I turned back to my friends and began to haul my suitcase up the hill, and they raced each other down to greet me. We met halfway, and I was attacked by hugs and 'welcome back's and smiles, smiles everywhere. But there was only one person I really wanted to see.

I scanned the crowd, wondering how it was so easy to lose one face in twenty. But my eyes finally found Luke's, and he broke through the crowd to get to me. I jumped into his arms just like Bobby had jumped into mine, feeling like all was right with the world again. Luke spun me around once and then set me down, grinning from ear to ear. "Welcome home, Cinderelli," he said. Everyone else looked at each other in confusion, but I smiled up at him.

"Good to be back, Jacques," I joked.

Someone tapped me on the shoulder. "Annabeth?"

I turned. "Grover!" I tackled him in a hug. I had Iris-messaged him once, but we hadn't really spoken since August. I wondered how I had managed to forget him so easily.

When we pulled away, Grover clearly didn't know what to say, so he patted me awkwardly on the head and walked away, wiping his eyes.

Patting my hair back into place, I turned around and came face-to-face with Skye. I flew into her arms, and she laughed and bent down to talk to me. "Hey, kiddo," she said, looking me up and down. "It's been tough here without my trusty lieutenant."

Finally, Chiron broke through the throng, wading through the campers scattering to avoid his hooves. "Now, now, children, she's only been gone a few months!' I laughed and he looked down at me, his eyes crinkling with smile lines. "Welcome back, child," he said kindly, patting me on the shoulder.

Just as I was running out of smiles and hugs to feed to my posse, the conch horn sounded. "Is it dinner already?" Chiron said, and everyone started running back up the hill, the prospect of food outweighing me and my huge suitcase that needed carrying. I ran after them, lugging it behind me and grunting the whole way.

"Good to be home," I muttered as I trailed behind my friends. Still, I couldn't help but smile as I trudged up the hill, alone except for the birds, the flowers, and the tall, lonely pine tree I hadn't had time to say hello to.