Going Viral

Chapter 33

January 11th

His collar felt suffocating around his neck and his shoes felt like they were going to end up giving him blisters, but he tried to put the nagging thoughts aside. Tonight wasn't about him after all.

absoluteannabeth FYI im terrified

absoluteannabeth why on earth did i agree to this

Percy rolled her eyes at her nervous texts as he typed out a reply.

percyjackson18 because broadway is your dream and your insanely talented

absoluteannabeth *you're

percyjackson18 shut up and stop whining, chase. you got this

"I know you're in love and all, Kelp Head, but the guy needs an answer." Thalia was looking at him expectantly. Being useless, he just looked between her and the cab driver with his eyebrows drawn together in confusion.

She huffed. "Where are we off to? It's too early to head to the theatre."

A glance at his watch told him it was indeed to early to arrive at the theatre so he shrugged and suggested going to his mom's apartment. Thalia rolled her eyes and said something to the driver before muttering about Percy's incompetence, though truthfully he wasn't really listening. His mind was preoccupied with other things, much more important things such as how wild his year had been.

This time last year, he was drowning himself in music and desperately trying to write a song that would be worthy of their up-and-coming world tour, something that had seemed so daunting to innocent, little, 21 year old Percy. Now, he was at ease with his fame, confident in his songwriting abilities and in his most stable and happiest relationship to date. Of course, he and Annabeth had their ups and downs. She had nearly killed him when he shook his hair after a shower in an attempt at an impression of Luna, the water droplets had made her schedule go all crinkly and her laptop screen needed wiping again thanks to the streaks he'd created. But so far she hadn't threatened to dump him so he was going to take the win.

Percy may be an idiot, but he wasn't stupid. Things wouldn't always be smooth sailing between them, especially not while they navigated being on stage every night and halfway across the world from each other, but he hoped they could pull through it. For tonight, none of that mattered. Tonight was all about Annabeth.

Thalia whispered to herself under her breath as they took the elevator to Sally's apartment, clearly regretting saying yes to Sally's insists that she take Paul's extra ticket for tonight.

"Stop complaining, Grace, or I'll take Stella instead. I'm sure she'd be better behaved anyway."

They had five tickets on the front row of the upper circle thanks to Annabeth's insider knowledge as to which seats were best in the house and her ability to reserve seats for family and friends. She had given two to Piper and Jason, seeing as he was still in the city and currently living in their apartment it was almost cruel to leave him behind, and the others to Percy, Sally and Paul. It was no secret that Percy's little sister was as much of a hyperactive child as he had been and it probably wasn't the most three-year-old friendly show anyway so it had been Sally's decision that Estelle wouldn't come and Paul would stay home with her. Therefore Thalia had been subjected to Sally's pleading eyes and offer of blue cookies for an interval snack at the theatre.

It was all very confusing.

absoluteannabeth please promise me you'll meet Nyssa at the end, im gonna be sobbing, bet

Annabeth must be stressed, she wasn't usually one for being on her phone while working. He went through the plan that she had drilled into his head that morning before he replied.

percyjackson18 of course, dont worry about me. put your phone down, drink some tea and do your funny little rubber chicken warm up :)

His mom's apartment smells of freshly baked cookies when they walk in and Thalia's stomach grumbles audibly. The glare she sends him makes the laugh catch in his throat. Despite it being only early in the evening, Stella is sat on the kitchen counter in her pyjamas, fingers scooping up any of the leftover cookie dough from the bowl. When she spots Percy, he has to hold a hand out to stop her running up to him. As much as he hated wearing it, he didn't want her messy finger prints to ruin his smart shirt.

"Get your hands washed, little star." Percy says, walking over to the sink with her and greeting his mom with a kiss on the cheek.

They eat dinner with Estelle acting as a entertainment, cracking jokes and performing her favorite numbers from Disney movies. As it neared seven, they said their goodbyes to Estelle and Paul and called a cab to the theatre. Once again, Thalia spent the drive rolling her eyes at Percy as he typed out some last minute reassurance to Annabeth as she panicked over her half hour call.

The house is already open when they arrive and they make their way to their seats and to where Piper sits, tapping away on her phone. As he side steps between the seats and the barrier, Piper smiles tightly at him.

"I presume you're getting a similar number of messages as me?" Piper asks, holding up her phone to an open conversation with Annabeth. In response, Percy shows her his recent notifications. Her eyes flick past him to see Sally and Thalia take their seats. "Oh hey, Thalia, nice to see you." She greets, clearly noticing Paul's absence.

Jason calls over from the end of the row and Piper nods, going to help him carry the drinks back to their seats. That's when Percy finds out something's wrong.

Finger poking in his ribs, Thalia leans across Sally to snarl at Percy. "You didn't tell me anyone else was here. You didn't- Is that Jason?" Wide eyed, he looks at Sally who just shrugs. Thalia sags in her seat and runs her hand through her hair.

Totally unsure of what the issue is, Percy is content to leave the situation and chatter to his mom. Sally was smiling widely, telling him just how much she loved the show.

"This show reminded me just how much I fell in love with my baby boy the moment I laid eyes on him. No matter the difficulties." She said, squeezing his cheeks and making him turn pink. He would never be ashamed of his mom. Ever. Even at the ripe old age of twenty-two. But she was still capable of making him embarrassed when there was a theatre full of people capable of overseeing her mollycoddling him.

The lights turned down as Jason and Piper made their way to their seats and handed out the drinks. If Percy had paid attention, he might've noticed the way Jason looked taken aback when he handed Thalia a glass, but he was too busy watching the curtain rise to reveal Annabeth stood in her blue waitress dress in a bright white spotlight.

Even when the lights rose on the rest of the stage, she was the only thing he could see.