Unexpected Roommates- A Percabeth Fanfiction

Chapter One

Percy's POV:

How exactly Annabeth Chase and I became roommates is still a confusing story to me if I'm being honest. Until the day Annabeth showed up on my doorstep, I'd only known three things about her. First, her mom had more money than almost anyone in New York City. Second, she lived in the same apartment complex as me. Third, we ran with the same crowd. And I guess I knew one more thing about her; she was a damn good kisser. 

Now, how I knew about any of those things at the time is beyond me, but I would grow to know more about Annabeth after she knocked on my door, a moment that I can safely say changed the course of both of our lives. 

When I opened the door on a Tuesday afternoon I gave Annabeth my classic mischievous grin; however, my grin quickly disappeared when I noticed Annabeth's appearance. Her normally flowing blonde hair was disheveled and in an incredibly messy ponytail. Her clothes were wrinkled, and her sleeves were pulled over her hands. There was something that bothered me more than classic Annabeth features such as her hair and clothes though; her eyes were bright red and puffy. 

"Annabeth, are you alright?" I asked reproachfully. 

What she did next surprised me more than anything I'd ever seen her do. A tear rolled down her face and she stuck her arms out to me. I instinctively pulled her into me and was rushed with an all too familiar lemon scent, the same smell I'd grown used to whenever Annabeth and I were found at the same party. 

I could feel sobs rack her body, and I knew something terrible must have happened. I didn't know much about Annabeth, but I knew she wasn't normally vulnerable. All I could think was that someone had died, but I still had no idea as to why Annabeth would come to me of all people. We'd barely known each other even though we'd run in the same friend circle for years.

Once Annabeth had gotten herself under control, I continued to rub her back for a moment while she took deep breaths. When I let her go, I brought her into the kitchen to give her a glass of water. I wasn't convinced that the water would help her, but I figured after how much she'd cried she would need some water to rehydrate. 

"Thank you." She said, her voice cracking and failing to hide whatever she must've been feeling. "I'm sorry to be such a bother."

"Hey, you aren't being a bother." I resisted the urge to tuck her hair behind her ear and raise her chin to look up at me. I didn't like seeing Annabeth like this, she looked so broken compared to the confident and somewhat flirty Annabeth I knew. "Do you want to tell me what's going on?"

She took a sip of water before responding. "I messed up a contract at my mom's architecture firm with this big group, and she is having me evicted for it. I've got twenty-four hours to clear out of my apartment. And, on top of it all, I'm out of a job. I mean I have plenty of savings for a while, but I'm not sure what to do." Annabeth's hands and voice shook as she spoke. I worried she'd cry again, and I was notoriously famous for not knowing how to handle crying girls.

"Dear gods, Annabeth. I'm so sorry. That's horrible." Quite the pro at comforting responses I am.

"Yeah," Annabeth spoke softly. "I'm sorry to bother you, but I didn't really know where to go when I got the call."

I scratched the back of my neck awkwardly, unable to stop myself from thinking of all the people she could have gone to first. Based on her relationship with Thalia or Piper it would've made way more sense to go to one of them, but I guess proximity won out. "You still aren't bothering me, Annabeth. I promise you that. This whole situation is totally unfair to you."

She seemed to relax a little, but then she tensed again. It was like her mind was on overdrive. One second she was calming down and the next emotion or anxiety was crystal clear on her face. "I don't know what to do or where to go."

"You could come live with me." The words left my mouth before I could register them in my brain, and I don't think either of us were expecting it nor were we any good at hiding our shock. "I mean, if you want to that is. I have a spare bedroom that I don't really need," I broke in again, awkward as ever.

"Are you serious?" Annabeth asked. She looked at me as if to question my sincerity, and it broke my heart just a little bit.

"Of course," I answered, trying to sound nonchalant. "You can stay here for as long as you want. At least until you figure things out, you can stay here."

Annabeth looked at me apprehensively. "You barely know me. Why are you offering this?"

I tried to break the silence with a joke, which just made me want to kick myself later. "Maybe we should've spent more time talking at the parties we went to then I'd know you better."

Annabeth lightly punched my arm. "Not the time for jokes, Jackson."

I let out a quiet chuckle and smiled in triumph at the small smirk that crossed Annabeth's newly tinted red face. "Anyway, I'm serious, and if you need help, I'll assist in getting all your stuff out of your apartment."

Annabeth nodded her head thoughtfully. "Okay." She paused, taking a deep breath.  "Thank you for being so incredible, Percy. I know I'm putting you out, but I'll make it up to you somehow." I decided it better not to argue with Annabeth again and let her finish off her glass of water.

We went to her apartment to pack her things, and luckily, Annabeth's apartment was fully furnished when she moved in; therefore, we had very little to pack. Most of the things we had to move were clothing, blankets, and books, so many books. I don't know why it surprised me that she was an avid reader, but I'd never heard her talk about what she liked to read or a book she was reading, and it wasn't like I hadn't ever been around Annabeth. I'd spent plenty of time around her, but talking wasn't a regular occurrence when it was just us.

It was almost sad packing up her apartment when it had barely seemed lived in. She had a handful of blankets thrown on random pieces of furniture, but besides that the only sign that someone had even been in the apartment lately was her unkept desk. It was covered in blueprint designs ranging from full buildings to simple rooms. All of her designs had such small details that made them seem incredibly complicated.

"I didn't know that you actually designed buildings," I said. "I was under the impression that you did more of the office side of things."

Annabeth laughed, yet there was not even a hint of humor in it. "I only do contracts and office stuff when I'm at work. My mother never liked any of my designs so at some point I just stopped showing her and did what I was told."

I tried not to pull her into another hug when I saw another tear fall down her face before she wiped it away. She deserved so much better than that. "These look amazing to me. I mean I'm not an architect, but I think you should pursue this yourself without your mother controlling you. Your designs are better than anything I've seen that Athena has done anyway." 

She smiled at me, this time it seemed to be a genuine smile. She gathered the designs together carefully before putting them in a large envelope. "You really are quite the friend. I wish we'd become friends before I showed up at your door crying. It probably would've made it far less awkward."

I laughed while trying to push away the image of Annabeth and I making out in Jason's hallway from the last party we'd gone to only a few weeks ago. That'd been the only way I'd known Annabeth for so long. It'd started so long ago with a dare, and since then whenever Annabeth and I had ended up at the same party we'd ended up kissing somewhere. It was almost a routine at this point.  

"You ready to lug all this stuff down to my place?" I asked, gesturing toward the boxes on the floor. 

Annabeth nodded and picked up one of the boxes of books, impressing me with her strength. "Let's get on with it."