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Chapter Four

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Percy's POV

"Please don't tell anyone about the panic attack," I said as Annabeth drove us back to camp. She refused to let me drive after the said panic attack, saying I still needed more time to recover from it.

"I won't tell anyone anything that you don't want me to," she promised. Then she glanced at me as she said, "Though you might want to consider at least telling Chiron."

I snorted. "No way. He'd take it straight to the gods."

Annabeth sighed. "Okay, I won't tell Chiron."

"Besides, I don't usually get panic attacks often, or that bad. This time it was also the stress that was building up."

"Are you going to tell anyone you're a girl?"

"Maybe Grover, Thalia, Clarisse, and Nico or something. Maybe I'll track down that sexist kid I illegally sold candy to in sixth grade just to see his reaction when he sees his candy-dealer was a girl the whole time."

"Clarisse?" Annabeth asked. "You two still don't really get along that well."

I kind of half-shrugged. "It's mostly teasing, training, and fighting. I stay away from touchy subjects and she does the same. We listen to each other when we need someone to talk to, and we know each other really well at this point. We never tell each others' secrets. That's why you didn't already know about my panic attacks or nightmares. She keeps the secret. Besides, she values honor and would never go tell people someone's secret. Aside from that, she probably already suspects it, so..."

"Why would she already suspect it?"

I looked away from Annabeth. "We don't tell each others' secrets."

She must've sensed from my tone (or my fatal flaw) that she wasn't going to get more information from me, and so she changed the subject.

"Yoh illegally sold candy in sixth grade?"

"Yup. I'm actually quite the salesperson, and money math is just about the only type of math that I can really do."

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yeah. Gabe gambled and took my money, and I could make a lot of it. We both had a way of sniffing out money. I learned from him... As much as I hate having something in common with him, I kind of had to embrace it considering it's one of the only things I'm good at."

"You're good at lots of things, Percy."

I hummed in half hearted agreement, but other than that I remained silent.

"Really, you are. You're a good fighter, good at talking to people, you're an amazing friend and girlfriend, you're good at helping people, you're good at swimming—"

"Logically, I know that," I interrupted.  "I'm just no good at believing it."

Annabeth looked like she wanted to say something, but didn't know what to say. I put a hand on hers.

"Not everything can be fixed," I said softly. "That goes for people too. Why haven't you just given up on this yet?" I guestured at myself. "I'm a mess. I wouldn't blame you, you know."

"You know I can't just stop trying," she said, and I know she was referring both to love and her fatal flaw. I nodded.

"Logically, I do," I muttered, staring out the window at nothing.