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Puzzle Pieces

Complete Summary:

"Because, baby, we're two adjoined pieces of the same puzzle- whether we like it or not."

Annabeth Chase. In which the anti social blonde haired girl destined to become valedictorian of her class, struggling to keep it together, finds solace in the kind hearted swimmer whom she tutors.

Percy Jackson. In which the broken green eyed boy destined to reach the Olympics, trying his hardest to take care of his sick mother, slowly finds peace in the beautiful savior of his grades.

They say that opposites attract, but some opposites aren't really opposites. Sometimes they're puzzle pieces- two souls destined by Fate to fit together, no matter how different they may seem at first glance.

Song of the Chapter: Here by Alessia Cara (2:00AM Version)

"I ask myself, what am I doing here?"

Chapter I

Annabeth's POV

Annabeth rolls over on her bed and buries her face under the pillow, trying her absolute hardest to shut out the screaming match that's taking place in the room below.

"I'm sick and tired of your shit, Frederick!" Her stepmother cries. Annabeth flinches when the sound of ceramic smashing against tile reverberates through her bedroom floors. "All you do is sit around, get drunk, and go on about your ex-wife!"

Another smash.

"I'm the breadwinner in this house, Helen! Not you, me. I'm the reason why you can go to those moronic socialite meetings with those airheads you call your friends! I'm the reason why you can afford every monthly shopping trip to the city. I'm the reason why Annabeth, Bobby, and Matthew can attend those private schools! I'm the reason for all of it. What I do with my damn free time is none of your business!" Annabeth's father screams right back.

The sickening sound of hand slapping face fills the house as Helen retaliates, and Annabeth once again wishes she had taken Malcolm's offer when she had the chance.

But no, being the good daughter and older sister that she is, Annabeth had declined her older brother's offer to move in with him and instead willingly decided to put up with waking up to borderline abusive arguments every morning.

Why did she do that? She has yet to figure it out.

Annabeth pokes her head from under her pillow, realizing that the house is now silent. That means one of them has left- storming out of the house in a fit of anger.

That's how it usually ends anyways.

She cautiously steps out of bed, treading lightly for fear that the argument isn't really over and the screaming will start all over again. Her stomach rumbles anxiously at the thought.

After a few minutes of waiting, and after no such thing happens, Annabeth leaves her loft bedroom to go brush her teeth. She also quickly decides not to take a glimpse in the mirror, realizing that her morning is in ruins enough. There is literally no reason as to why she needs to make it worse by seeing her reflection.

She closes her bedroom door and hurries off in the direction of the bathroom. From the floor below, she hears the liquor cabinet opening as Helen prepares for her early morning drink. Annabeth is so caught up in silently judging her stepmother that she accidentally bumps into one of the twins.

"Ow," he complains, rubbing his nose with a frown on his face. He glares up at Annabeth, but she notices his eyes are slightly bloodshot and wet.

That raises an eyebrow. "Matthew? Are you okay?" She asks concernedly, attempting to give him a kind smile. He's obviously been crying.

The ten-year-old scowls instead, his slightly slanted dark eyes narrowing as he shakes his wavy blond hair out of his eyes. He needs a haircut, she notes. "What's it to you, anyway? Leave me alone." He mumbles.

Said boy pushes past her with a sniff, leaving Annabeth, slightly hurt, to stand in the hallway alone. The blonde girl shakes it off as best as she can and enters the bathroom, purposefully diverting her gaze from the mirror.

After brushing her teeth, she goes back to her bedroom to begrudgingly pull on her school uniform.

It seemed (to Annabeth, at least) that St. Goodeworth's Private Charter Academy (or preferably referred to as Goode or Goode's Charter by the students) purposefully made it so that their uniforms would be not only uncomfortable but hideous as well.

Annabeth shudders as she pulls on the black and purple plaid skirt and buttons up the white long-sleeved blouse that comes with it. After tucking it in (as is insisted upon by the faculty), she quickly ties the black necktie and shrugs on her black sleeveless woolen vest. The blonde pulls her waist-length curls into a ponytail and slips into her worn down flats.

Just a few more months, Annabeth. She whispers words of encouragement to herself as she gathers her school things. Just a few more months, and then you can leave- just like you've always wanted.

Her phone vibrates from its position on her bedside table. Annabeth quickly lays her books on her bed and grabs at her phone, smiling when she reads the name. She immediately picks up.

"You're up really early today. Even for you," She jokes, glancing at her alarm clock. The sun is just barely peeking over the tree line outside, washing the sky a dozen shades ranging from blood red to baby pink.

Malcolm yawns from the other end of the line. "I know." He lets out a groan. "But you know I like to check up on my little sister every now and again. I miss you."

Annabeth rolls her eyes and sits down on the edge of her unmade bed. "I miss you too, but I hope you realize that guilt-tripping me won't work."

Her older brother huffs. "Well, I certainly can try." The line is silent for a few seconds before he continues on, quieter. "I don't like the thought of you living in that house."

Annabeth sucks in a sharp breath as she stands. She'll be late if she doesn't get moving. "I already told you, Malcolm. I'm fine." She half-lies, the sound of her parents' screams scrambling across her thoughts.

It's just that Dad isn't.

"Don't lie to me, Annabeth." Is his curt reply.

The seventeen-year-old rolls her eyes again, and before she can take it back, she retorts. "It's funny you would say that." There is a lot more venom than she ever would have anticipated dripping from her words.

Malcolm remains silent.

Annabeth's stomach begins to churn at the hush that has fallen over the line. She begins to mumble out a quick apology, her tongue tripping over her words, but Malcolm is already speaking.

He changes the subject, and if he is affected at all by Annabeth's statement- he doesn't let on. "Anyways, the real reason why I'm calling is because I'm coming over for dinner tonight."

The blonde nearly drops her phone in surprise. Any regret that was readily brewing in her stomach is flushed away as excitement quickly takes its place. She presses the phone against her ear and flops backwards on her bed. "Wait, are you serious?"

"Don't know a reason as to why I'd lie about that." Malcolm chuckles.

Annabeth rolls over on her stomach, a grin pulling at her lips. "Does my dad know? Did you tell him?" She drills him with questions.

Malcolm laughs again at his younger sister's enthusiasm. "Yes, he knows. He's the one who invited me, actually."

The younger blonde raises an eyebrow at that, instantly sitting up. Her joviality quiets down as dread fills her stomach. "My dad... invited you?"

"Yeah, I was pretty surprised too. I'm 87% sure that the man despises me."

"He does." Annabeth deadpans. "I wonder why he would invite you..."

"I honestly don't know." Malcolm agrees. He pauses briefly before continuing. "Listen, Annabeth, I gotta go. I'll call you later, okay?"

She nods, disappointed that she has to say goodbye so soon. "Okay. Bye, Malcolm. Love you."

"I love you, Buttercup." He responds.

The line goes dead.

Annabeth stands up and gathers her school things again. Her eyes flash to the clock. She's borderline late, she realizes with a groan. The high school student rushes out of her bedroom. She then continues down the hall and races down the stairs.

"Your father left the car keys on the counter. You're taking the boys to school today." Helen speaks to her stepdaughter as soon as Annabeth enters the kitchen. She pours herself another glass of wine.

Annabeth takes a glance at the clock, her eyes widening. "But then I'll be late and I-" Annabeth's voice falters at the sight of her stepmother's withering glare. She shrinks back instantly and nods, clamping her mouth shut.

Matthew snickers under his breath before slipping in another spoon of cereal.

Annabeth swallows and grabs a cereal bar from the pantry. Turning towards her brothers, she speaks up. "We have to leave in 5 minutes at the latest. I really can't be late today."

Bobby nods and finishes his toast before disappearing upstairs to grab his backpack. "Okey dokey, Beth." He's the nicer one.

Matthew, on the other hand, scowls again, his dark eyes tightening. "So what if you're a little late? If we leave now then Bobby and I'll be half an hour early for school."

Annabeth manages a weak smile as she twists a curl of hair between her thumb and forefinger. Her stomach rumbles. "Sorry," is all she can say.

Matthew rolls his eyes and finishes his cereal. "Whatever." Then, after placing his bowl in the sink, he turns again to Annabeth. "You ruin everything."

"Matthew," Helen halfheartedly warns before taking another sip of liquor. Her eyes are glossed over as she swirls her glass, her mind clearly in another place.

The ten-year-old in question stares at his mother for a few moments before he shakes his head and leaves. He stomps up the staircase.

Annabeth lets loose another breath, already praying for the day to be over. She watches her stepmother gulp down yet another glass of alcohol and somewhere in the back of her mind, Annabeth again curses herself for declining Malcolm's offer.

The air between them is silent and still for the few minutes before the twins reappear in the doorway. Bobby is carrying a large volcano model (that Annabeth helped him build the week before) and Matthew grips the two paged report in his hands.

The twins wave at their mother halfheartedly, who simply grunts in response, then go on into the garage where the Range Rover is waiting.

Annabeth slips the keys between her fingers. She murmurs a quick goodbye to her stepmother. "I'll see you after school, Helen."

"Bye, Annabeth." Is the half-drunk woman's response.

Annabeth spins on her heel and descends into the garage. The twins are waiting impatiently by the car doors.

"Can you honestly hurry up?" Matthew whines, rolling his eyes again.

Bobby shoots him a look, a frown pulling at his lips. "Chill out, Matt. What's wrong with you?"

His twin grumbles something incoherently under his breath but doesn't respond. Annabeth unlocks the doors and presses the button that raises the garage gate. "Everybody buckled in?" She calls from the front seat.

A chorus of acknowledgment crows from behind her and Annabeth slowly backs out of the driveway, her fingers tapping against the steering wheel furiously.

Just a few more months. Just a few more months.

.*.*.*.

Before school.

"Bob leaves for a trip at 3pm (time t=0) and drives with velocity v(t) = 60 - 1/2(t) miles per hour, where t is measured in hours. Find- now what the fuck is that?"

Annabeth forces herself not to laugh as she fixates her elbows on the tabletop.

The student seated across from her looks up from the calculus book, fury dancing in her multicolored eyes as she gazes at Annabeth in disbelief. She leans back in her seat and folds her arms over her chest, her lips dropping into a pout. "I can't believe you're laughing at me."

Annabeth bites down another chuckle and sobers her expression immediately. "Nobody's laughing at you, Piper, I promise."

Said girl rolls her eyes and reproachfully glares at the textbook in front of her. "None of this makes any sense. This should be illegal, honestly."

Now it's Annabeth's turn to roll her eyes. She quickly shakes her head and rotates the book so that they both can look at it with ease. "You're making it harder than it has to be, McLean-"

"-Says the one with an IQ of 153," the Native girl grumbles under her breath.

Annabeth flicks her in the arm. "Listen to me," she urges, a faint laugh dancing over her words.

Piper lets loose another exaggerated eye roll, but she raises her eyebrows as well- a gesture that Annabeth has learned through their time together that means she's listening.

Annabeth takes the pencil and gestures to the symbol on the page. "It's just an integral. It can't hurt you. Look," Annabeth begins to solve the problem. Every so often, she glances at the girl beside her to make sure she's following along. "The problem wants you to find the integral and then explain what it represents in the language of the problem."

Piper presses her forehead into the desk, letting out a low groan. "I hate this so much."

Annabeth rolls her eyes and pokes the girl with the eraser. "Don't be such a baby. You can do it," she smiles. "Really."

Piper lifts her head, giving the blonde a hateful glare, before grabbing the pencil and turning towards the book. Her eyebrows knit together. "Okay, so if I'm supposed to find the integral... that means I... find the... value first, right?" She chews on her lip and turns to her tutor.

Annabeth nods, a smile pulling at the corner of her lips. "See? You got it already. What's next?"

Piper stares at the page in front of her, a frown pulling on her lips for the next few minutes before her eyes light up and she smacks her forehead. "Eureka!" She shrieks, eliciting a shh! from the librarian.

"Did you figure it out?" Annabeth asks, already knowing the response.

"I'm an idiot," Piper breathes, scribbling down the answer.

Annabeth shakes her head. "No, you're brilliant. You barely even needed my help with this one."

Piper hums in acknowledgment as she finishes up the problem.

The curly-haired blonde doesn't even look down at the answer. A grin is tugging at her lips. "Can you explain this one back to me?"

Piper nods, her chocolate brown choppy hair swishing around her shoulders. "So to explain what the integral represents in the language of the problem, I needed to know the units for t and the units for the integral itself."

"And those are...?"

"T is measured in hours and v(t) is measured in miles per hour. So, the only reasonable solution is that the integral is measured in miles."

"Good job, you got the problem right." Annabeth grins, pride swelling in her chest.

Piper raises an eyebrow. "But I didn't even finish explaining it to you, though."

Annabeth shakes her head, her eyelashes brushing against the top of her cheeks for a few moments. "You don't need to. I already know you got it right." Then, for good measure, Annabeth quickly scans the student's work. After a few seconds, she hands the paper back. "See? It's all right."

Piper grins, her blinding white teeth coming through. "Finally!"

Annabeth begins to congratulate her, but the morning bell begins to ring and she knows that they both need to go to homeroom. She settles for a smile and a nod instead. "Same time next week?"

Piper nods in response, already gathering her things. She grabs her phone and smiles at Annabeth. "Of course! You sitting with us at lunch today?"

The blonde-haired girl feels a rumble in her stomach as she smiles weakly. She shakes her head, already declining before she can open her mouth. "You already know I'm more comfortable eating in here, Piper."

Said girl nods. "It was worth a shot. I'll see you around, Annabeth." Piper then turns around and leaves the library, most likely off in search of her boyfriend.

Annabeth takes a deep breath as she collects her books.

After every tutoring session, like clockwork, Piper invites the blonde to sit with her and her friends at lunch.

And every time, Annabeth politely declines.

I don't understand how you can complain about having almost no friends, and yet you still refuse to sit with Piper at lunch. Annabeth scolds herself as she waves to the librarian and steps into the hallway.

Because the cafeteria makes you nervous. She reminds herself.

Annabeth almost laughs out loud in bitterness. Of course, a four-walled room filled with tables and chairs makes her nervous.

Seemingly everything does, nowadays.

Except for Piper. She reminds herself as she arrives at her locker. Annabeth unlocks it and deposits her calculus book inside. She won't be needing it until sixth period.

One of these days," she whispers to herself as she reties her ponytail. "I'm going to wow myself and eat with Piper at lunch."

She closes her locker and heads off to homeroom, successfully blending into the background and dodging anyone loud.

"And possibly throw myself into cardiac arrest while doing it." She adds as an afterthought with a laugh.

4th period. Right before lunch.

"Annabeth! Hey!" A familiar joyous voice calls from behind her.

Annabeth whips around, clutching her gym shirt in her hands as she attempts to cover herself. Suddenly she is face to face with a gorgeous blue-eyed girl, her long black hair is curled to perfection and her white smile is dazzling.

Silena Beauregard.

Sometime in the past three months (which coincidentally coincides with the fact that Annabeth transferred into the 4th period PE class because she needed the credit), Silena has made it her mission to become Annabeth's friend.

And it seems that today is the day she succeeds.

The blonde smiles weakly and offers a small wave, hoping to convey a message of discomfort to the head cheerleader. "Hey, Silena."

If Silena understands the message, she doesn't let on. She places her manicured hands on her hips and cocks her head to the side. "You didn't come to my party last Saturday. Everybody missed you." Her lips drop into a pout that resembles Piper's and Drew's so well, it nearly gives Annabeth vertigo. She often forgets the trio are all half-sisters.

Annabeth hurriedly sleeves on her shirt and ties her long curls up into a bun. "Are you sure?"

"She's lying to you, Bethy. Literally nobody noticed." Drew Tanaka snarls from her position a few lockers away. She's surrounded by Nancy Bobofit and Lacy Phrodite and a few others, who all force chuckles.

Silena grimaces in her sister's direction. "Just because you look like the Grinch, doesn't necessarily mean you have to act like him, Drew. Piss off, will you?"

The East Asian girl rolls her eyes in response and leaves the locker room, her "friends" straggling in tow.

Silena turns back to Annabeth, who is in the process of planning her escape. "Don't listen to Drew. She's just bitter because Mom used up the last of her favorite brow filler for a date last night." The girl then proceeds to link her arm in Annabeth's. "Are you sitting with us at lunch today?"

Annabeth's stomach grumbles at both the mention of food and the thought of sitting with Piper, Silena, Drew, and the others. She shakes her head, a few strands coming loose from her bun as the pair leave the locker room. "Sorry," she offers a weak apology.

"Don't be." Silena smiles warmly as she leads Annabeth towards the bleachers, where her group of friends sit talking amongst each other before class starts. The blue-eyed girl then takes a gaze at Annabeth's hair and her grin widens. "You know," she begins, a tone of thoughtfulness entering her voice. "You should really let your hair down more often. It's so beautiful. Is that its natural shade?"

Annabeth barely hears her. Her focus is on the group of athletes lounging on the bleachers.

"Annabeth?"

"Hmm?" The girl whips her head to the side. They've stopped. Annabeth blushes. "Sorry, what was that?"

Silena's expression softens. "Your hair?"

"What about it?" Annabeth is instantly self-conscious. Her stomach rumbles as anxiety fills her chest.

Silena rolls her eyes playfully. "Don't worry, there's nothing wrong with it." She smiles. "In fact, I was just saying that you should let it down more."

Heat spreads in Annabeth's cheeks as the pair arrive at the foot of the bleachers. "It needs a haircut." She protests.

"Don't be silly. Anyways," Silena turns away from the blonde and gestures to the group sitting a few rows up. "Guys, I made a new friend!" She cries out enthusiastically.

"Damn, Silena, you make it sound like she's an injured bird you found in your backyard."

That's basically what happened. Annabeth thinks to herself.

Silena rolls her eyes at the comment, slightly less playfully that time. "Shut the hell up, Travis. You sound like an injured bird." Silena's halfhearted glare is directed towards a curly brown-haired boy with green eyes.

Travis sticks out his tongue before turning his attention towards Annabeth. She suddenly feels the urge to shrink back and hide behind Silena. He grins. "Travis Stoll, at your service."

Annabeth nods, pressing her lips together, and waggles her fingers a bit. A deeper blush spreads further on her cheeks.

Silena pulls Annabeth up the bleachers and sits her down beside her. Almost immediately, she launches into introductions.

"Everyone, this is Annabeth. She's like, ridiculously smart and tutors Piper every Wednesday. Annabeth, this is Frank Zhang," Silena gestures to a well built East Asian boy with a crew cut. He sort of reminds her of an old teddy bear that she used to have. A gift from her mother when she was a child- Mr. Olympus. He smiles warmly at her before turning back to his conversation.

"Rachel Dare," A girl with red hair almost as curly as Annabeth's grins wildly at her, her jade green eyes sparkling. Her PE uniform is splattered with paint.

"You already know Travis Stoll the bathtub scum. Well, that's his brother Connor, slightly younger bathtub scum." Silena points out a boy whose facial features mirrors Travis' down to the tee, except his eyes are blue.

Silena carries on with introductions, and although Annabeth hasn't said a word, she's is drained. She vaguely remembers a Grover Underwood, a Juniper, and a Charles Beckendorf.

Annabeth's head is swimming with names and faces and she's mentally praying for the period to end soon. Although she understands that Silena is only trying to be nice, what she really, really, wants is to be alone.

Preferably sooner than later.

Two pairs of hands appear from behind her and begin twirling her loose strands of hair around their fingers. Annabeth nearly jumps a mile and falls off the bleachers, her heart slamming into her ribs.

"Is that your natural hair color?" The caramel haired girl- Calypso- asks eagerly.

Why is everyone asking that?

Annabeth's stomach grumbles as she nods again. "Yes," she murmurs weakly.

"You lucky ass bitch." Rachel laughs. "What I would give to have blonde hair. But no- my grandmother cursed me with this menstruation colored mess." She grumbles, picking up a piece of frizzy ginger hair before allowing it to fall back to her shoulders.

Calypso punches her arm and frowns in distaste. "You're repulsive, Rachel."

"So I've been told." Is her cheeky response.

Annabeth fakes a smile again and closes her eyes, wanting to be anywhere but there.

"Jesus, lay off her will you? You're freaking her out, you losers." An unfamiliar voice jokes, causing Annabeth to turn, opening her eyes on the way.

He's tall, with golden blonde hair and a pale scar on his face. His shoulders are broad and his icy blue eyes are as kind as his smile.

Annabeth could recognize him anywhere, what with Piper always going on about him after their sessions. She's seen enough pictures to last her a lifetime, she realizes.

"My man, Jason G!" Travis hollers. "Since when are you in this class?" Travis squints, his eyes narrowing as he gazes at his friend. "And since when do you wear glasses?"

Annabeth takes this as an opportunity to shrink back.

"Are those framed in gold? What the fuck, Jason. Honestly. We know your dad is rich and all- but is that even necessary?" Connor cuts in, disbelief and incredulity oozing into his words.

Jason rolls his eyes, the scar on his lip curling into a crescent as he smiles. "Are you two bitter? You both sound bitter." His grin widens.

The two boys merely flip him off and turn back to their conversation with Frank and Grover about the pros and cons of vegan deodorant.

Jason pushes his glasses farther up his nose before shoving his hands into his dark chinos, slightly rocking on the balls of his feet. "Anyways," he begins. "I'm looking for Coach Hedge. Has anyone seen him? It's really important."

The boy that Annabeth recognizes as Charles Beckendorf (or Beck- as she realizes that's what everyone is referring to him as), jerks his head in the direction of the gym office. "Coach's still in his office. Wondering what's taking him so long, class was supposed to start 10 minutes ago."

Connor twitches in his seat, excitement sparking in his electric eyes. "Which means in five minutes we're legally allowed to ditch class." He grins mischievously.

Annabeth shrinks further back in her seat beside Silena.

Jason rolls his eyes but doesn't respond to Connor's comment. He nods at Beckendorf with a small smile. "Thanks, Beck." The blond-haired boy then shoves his hands further into the pockets of his chinos and lopes off in the direction of the gym offices.

"Anytime, Grace." Beckendorf calls after him, his heavily muscled arm drapes over Silena's slender shoulders.

"Should I set a five-minute timer?" Connor wonders aloud. Frank shakes his head and murmurs something that Annabeth can't catch.

"So... what's your deal?" A voice startles Annabeth from her observations.

She jerks her head towards the direction from which it came, more strands of hair coming loose from her bun as her eyes widen. Her stomach rumbles. "What?"

Beckendorf grins, and Annabeth notices that he has dimples. "Your deal. Like..." he waves his hands around a bit- as if struggling to find the right word. Annabeth also notices that he's picked up the gesture from Silena. Interesting. "What do you do? I don't think I've seen you around before. Are you new?"

Annabeth blushes as Silena smacks her boyfriend across the chest. "Charlie!" Her voice is a tad shrill as she exclaims. "Don't be a jackass."

He shrugs with a flair of nonchalance, but his dark eyes are glittering. "It was just an honest question," He begins, his gaze never leaving Annabeth. "Nobody's being a jackass."

Silena merely huffs in response before turning back to the blonde. "Charlie's a bit filter-less. It's not his fault though. He's slowly losing his brain-to-mouth filter after all the time he spends with the Stolls now that basketball season's started." She rolls her eyes again, but a smile is pulling at the corner of her lips.

She smiles a lot. Annabeth thinks to herself.

The blonde nods again and swallows, trying her hardest to dispel the butterflies that have seemingly made nests in the pits of her stomach.

Beckendorf continues. "Anyways, what classes are you in?"

Annabeth settles for a shrug, unable to offer up even the tiniest of smiles. "Mostly DE's. I only have four other classes to take this year." She twists a runaway curl of hair between her thumb and forefinger.

Beckendorf whistles, clearly impressed. "That's what's up," he nods. "You're a serious whiz kid, aren't you?"

Annabeth shrugs again, diverting her eyes. Her cheeks redden even more.

Silena pokes her boyfriend in the cheek. "Didn't I tell you? Didn't Piper tell you?" She grins at Annabeth. "She's literally GPA Jesus."

Annabeth chuckles a little under her breath before realizing it. Silena perks up immediately, pride expanding in her eyes. Annabeth once again diverts her gaze.

She closes her eyes, tuning out everything around her and leans over to lay her head on her lap- an upside to being one of the tiniest girls at Goode's Charter.

Annabeth does not know how long she is curled up (practically into a ball). But before long, she hears the sound of rubber-soled tennis shoes squeaking against freshly waxed gym floors as someone approaches the bleachers.

She curls farther into her "practical ball," her stomach rumbling at the thought of more people.

Because honestly- how many friends did Silena have in this gym class? She can't be friends with the entire roster, can she?

Is she?

An odd scent of saltwater and cinnamon brown sugar wafts into her nostrils, and if it isn't for the constant chitter-chatter of Silena's friends, Annabeth can imagine she's standing on the shore of the North Long Island Sound.

Yet another unfamiliar voice speaks, but something about it intrigues Annabeth. Not enough for her to come out of hiding, but enough for her to listen.

It's deep and rich and it ripples through the room. She can almost hear the vibrations that resonate from the owner's chest as he speaks. The voice is kind and warm and reminds Annabeth of velvet.

"Has anyone seen Leo?" The voice is saying, coming from somewhere by the foot of the bleachers.

A chorus of "Who?" comes from the group that Annabeth sits beside. The voice groans.

"The sophomore? He kind of looks like a Latino elf? Stupid amazing at woodshop?" A pause. "Really guys? He only sat with us for a month last year when Calypso tried to-"

The group murmurs in unison, seemingly recalling the boy that the voice is describing. Calypso interrupts him mid-sentence. "We promised not to bring that up again." She whines. "Not to bring him up again."

Rachel snorts. "So you got your heart broken by a freshman last year- big whoop. It's total karma for what went down that one year at Halloween when you-"

Rachel's voice is suddenly cut off as Calypso attacks her with a weapon unknown. The voice from the foot of the bleachers groans again.

"I love you guys, but you're all useless, to be honest. I'll see you at lunch- if I find Leo." Once again the sound of footsteps walking away fills Annabeth's ears.

Just a few more months, Annabeth. Just a few more months.

A/N: And so our story begins! Thanks for reading!

~ everyshadedsilver