FRIENDZONE |lukabeth au| ✔︎

40.

epilogue | 40

❝I've been hopin' somebody loves you in the ways I couldn't; somebody's taking care of all of the mess I've made.❞

▼▼▼

PERCY'S POV

Now I'm in my room, laying on my bed and thinking about what had just happened.

The pain had faded, replaced with a dull numbness that I couldn't get rid of. Annabeth had said she wasn't in love with me anymore, and that was completely fine. I didn't expect her to be anyways.

But someday, I knew without a doubt, I would look back and miss her with every fiber of my being. We were nothing but friends now, and that made her happy; the least I could do was to be the boy that I had to be, for her sake.

I still love her. I always will. But I'd rather break my heart than break our friendship. I would do everything in my power to make her happy and make sure that she stayed happy.

Because I didn't deserve to be.

It was a pretty sad ending for me, but maybe this was the best I was ever gonna get.

~

seven years later...

ANNABETH'S POV

"Ready?" Luke asked me. He had asked me before we left home, before we got into the car, before we took the GPS-instructed exit, before we entered the parking lot, before we got into the elevator, and I was still nervous. He had grown into a fine man, blond beard and all, but his smirk remained the same as it was nearly a decade ago. His blue eyes shone as he clasped my hand in his.

The tight knot of mixed emotions in my stomach loosened. I flashed him a wavering smile and nodded, returning my gaze to the double doors; there was loud music leaking out into the hallway from under. I took a deep breath and let my fiancé lead me into the room.

The room was buzzing with excited chatter with children scampering between the tables in a good natured game of tag. Speaking of tables, there were dozens; draped in baby blue, silky-looking tablecloths and each surrounded by six or seven chairs that went nicely with the blue themed wedding reception. In the center of each table stood a large bouquet of blue violets – I gave a little gasp and grinned, proud of how much Percy had thought about and put into the decoration – blue violets meant trustworthiness, affection, faith, and of course, love.

A while later, as soon as all the guests were seated, Percy stepped on the platform at the front of the room. I couldn't help but feel like a four year-old again – when I saw him for the first time ever, coming up behind Paul at the front door of his house, next to mine. I'd given him some advice – stick to his original look. He wore a neat, pressed dark suit, but his hair was free of hair spray or gel; instead, it was as messy as could be, with little tufts sticking out here and there at the back and sides. His eyes locked onto mine and for a nanosecond I felt like laughing, laughing and crying at the irony, how years and years ago I had wished that I would be the one joining him on that platform.

The second the bride set foot on the platform, the applause started. Luke's hand squeezed mine beneath the table and I smiled at the care in his eyes, laying my head on his shoulder. We'd been through so much together, and here he still was, making sure I was okay at the wedding of the longest crush I've ever had.

"WHOO!" Leo's voice shouted from three tables away. He punched the air and held up his glass of...Sprite? "TO PERCY–"

I squeezed Luke's hand in return and stood up with my gin martini. "AND ZOE!"

Luke stood up beside me, holding up his own glass. "IF WE MAY, PRIEST."

A roar of approval accompanied with the sound of chairs scraping back took over the wedding hall as nearly a hundred and fifty people stood raised their glasses. Over the crowd I saw Percy looking at me resisting obvious urge to pull me into a hug. I smirked and raised my glass higher, blinking back tears of happiness as the entirety of my childhood and teenage years flashed through my mind.

We'd taken different paths and traveled different roads, but in the end...

I wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

▲▲▲