A/N: Hey guys As this is my first fan fic, I am going to try and make it as perfect as I can but I am reeeeaaaalllllyyyy bad at spelling so… please excuse mistakes. Also, no characters or quotes belong to me. Rick Riordan owns them.

Chapter 1

In my world, there is little to no room for sadness. Whenever sadness comes our way, sure, we feel it, but we can never feel it for long. We have to keep moving, keep training, keep living, just to make sure it can never happen again. But it will. And the process will repeat. And when the sadness returns, I am always the one who has to hold everyone up.

I have experienced everything imaginable. Quests, hell, death, abuse and, gods, I have even put up with everyday, common place bullying, and I haven't broken. Not yet at least. I guess that's why they come to me.

But I can feel myself slipping. The nightmares won't stop. I can't sleep anymore without feeling afraid. School's getting harder and the bullying is getting worse. I can't tell anyone, though. Because they need me. And I can't let them down. Not again… Not again…

"Percy?" Her voice startled me out of my thoughts and I looked towards the door. Her arms were crossed tightly against her chest and her head was low. Her grey eyes were settled on me where I lay on the bed. From where I was, I could see her slouched figure and the tear tracks on her face. Another nightmare.

Plastering on the smile that was appropriate for the situation, I opened up my arms.

"Come here Wise Girl."

That was all that was needed for her. She crossed the room in three strides, burying herself in my embrace. I could feel her tears splash on my neck as she cuddled into my side. We lay in silence, both of us knowing that a safe embrace is all that was needed.

Soon enough, she fell asleep. Her blonde curls were stuck to her face, her tears acting as glue. I subconsciously played with her hair as my thoughts went back to their original track.

Annabeth is the one I love the most, sans maybe my Mum, and I can't protect her from the horrors of her mind. But as long as I am around I will be the one holding her, comforting her. And that goes for all my friends. Because that is my job. And to do my job, I am not allowed to break.

PJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJOPJPOJOPJOPJOPJOPJO

A few hours later, she stirred in my arms. Blinking lazily, she stared at my face, a small, content smile gracing her features.

"Hey." She whispered quietly, bringing one arm up to stretch above her head.

"Hey."

We were silent for a while, revelling in the others presence. After a while though, I slowly stretched and sat up. I leaned down and gave her a small peck before getting out of bed and heading to the bathroom.

Once I was out, I headed back into the bunk room to find Annabeth ready, sitting on the edge of the bed. When she heard the door close behind me, she looked up, her head held higher than when she came in last night.

I reached for her hand that was resting on the bed and leant down, leaning my forehead on hers for a moment.

"Thank you." The whisper barely made it to my ears but I heard it none the less.

"Now, now, don't be thanking me. It's my job isn't it?" I teased, kneeling down and resting my head on her knees. Her hand made its way to my hair as another smile lit up her face. After another moment of silence, she spoke up again, continuing to stroke my hair as she did.

"How do you do it?" The question was sudden and I slowly lifted my head from her knees to look her in the eyes.

"Do what?"

"Let go. I mean, after everything you have been through, after everything you have seen, you are still able to live life. Even more than that, you are able to help everyone else go on with life. So how do you do it?" Her grey eyes found mine and I could see a genuine curiosity shining through.

I bit my lip and thought about my answer. The truth was that I haven't let go. Every death, every horror, is replayed in my head over and over again, so much that at times I think I am going insane. But I can't tell her that. Then she would know I am breaking. And I can't break.

"I just accept what happens. I knew my life was going to be difficult ever since I found out about this demigod gig and I accepted it. Sure, everything still hurts now and again, but that is because I am still human." My answer came out better than I thought it would. I'm starting to think I should become a psychologist.

Annabeth stared at me for a few more moments before nodding her head slowly. I let out the metaphorical breath I was holding at her acceptance of my answer. She really does not need to know the truth.

"I'm going home today." I said suddenly, breaking the silence that had formed.

"I know."

"So you will be okay?"

"If I'm not I'll IM you."

"You know I love you right?"

"Yes, Percy. I love you too." She smiled at my concern before sighing. She gave me a quick kiss before standing up from my bed and taking my hands, pulling me from the ground and pulling me towards the door.

The rest of the day passed quickly until it was time to go home. I know it sounds cheesy but the thought of leaving all that comforted me kind of sent me into a hazy state of mind. I knew I would have my mum but she doesn't really get it. She tries and she is amazing, but she just can't comfort me from horrors she can't even dream of.

Getting in the car, I looked back up at Thalia's Pine, where they were standing to see me off. Jason and Piper were sitting at the base of the tree, arms around each other. Leo was tinkering with something off to the side of them, all the while laughing with Jason about something they were saying. Annabeth was standing with one hand on the trunk of the tree, watching me leave with a small smile on her face. They waved as I left. It didn't help the slight panic I felt from being separated from them.

"How are you, sweetheart?" The question was spoken softly. Then I knew that she knew. Then again, I shouldn't have been surprised. She always knows.

In answer, I turned towards the window, away from her, holding back the tears that threatened to leak out my eyes. She got the message.

Reaching over, she grabbed my hand and squeezed it and, almost as if she had squeezed them out, the tears spilled over and ran down my face.