Inspired by the movie "The Prince & Me" Thank you for reading :)

Chapter 1

I chewed my hotdog slowly as Thalia spoke to me. I wasn't listening; I was building buildings in my mind. You see, when Thalia starts talking about her favorite band or something, I start zoning out because I don't exactly enjoy the hard metal she listens to.

The warm breeze pushed my blonde hair into my face. I scrunched up my nose and brushed it away, settling down in the sand. My thoughts flew from architecture and jumped to my surroundings. The salty water rushed back and forth in the sand, the tide was high. It was getting late.

"Are you listening to me, Annabeth?" Thalia angrily looked at me, crossing her arms over her purple two-piece bathing suit.

I jumped in alarm, smiling slightly, "Yes, of course!" Before she asked me to repeat what she said, I stood, "It's getting late, we should go."

She rolled her eyes, shaking sand out of her black, short hair. "Whatever."

I smiled and gave her a tight hug, "I'm sorry, Thalia. But, by now, I'm pretty sure you realized I don't care about metal or rock or other forms of minerals."

She laughed, "Yeah, yeah, but one thing, do not turn my music into science. Minerals, what the hell is that? Nerd."

I pushed her playfully, rolling my eyes. I slipped a large white shirt over my yellow bathing suit and grabbed my towel. I stuffed it into my blue bag and swung the bag around my shoulders. Thalia put on a dark blue sundress and threw her towel over her shoulders.

The sun was setting, setting a nice glow over California's beach. A few other people were leaving, too. Probably to the carnival about a mile away, that's where everyone was going. Thalia and I were headed there, too.

Thalia put a pale arm over my tanned shoulders and joked around as we walked. I was completely happy. We had just finished our fourth year college, in different states, so we hadn't really seen each other. We bought a couple of drinks at a bar on the way. I just turned 21; it was nice to drink legally. I thought that with a bitter smile.

"Did you hear?" Thalia suddenly said, turned towards me as we reached the carnival.

Loud pop music blared from unseen speakers. I leaned closer to her, "Hear what?"

She grinned, "The prince is in town!"

I rolled my eyes, "Oh, please. That's just another rumor." I said, waving her off.

I took a sip of my pina colada and bought cotton candy. She shook her head, her blue eyes excited. "No, no. He said it himself, he's coming for vacation," She said.

I raised an eyebrow, "Who is this prince, exactly?" I asked.

"Prince Percy Jackson. He's prince of Alans." Thalia smirked, leaning on a railing.

I stood next to her. My eyes widened, "Prince Percy? The cocky one? The oh-so-great one that every girl in the world wants to marry?" I said, faking shock.

She glared at me, "Someone's bitter."

I laughed, "Oh, it's just that I think he should be a little more serious. He is going to be king one day, he should act the part." I shrugged.

"Yeah, I guess," Thalia sighed, and then her eyes lit up. "Come on; let's go on one of the rollercoasters."

I frowned as Thalia dragged me to the biggest, sickest coaster. It was like a death trap; tons of twist and turns. Once we got on, I could not stop screaming. I was absolutely terrified! I think my stomach knotted itself. It also thing a part of my brain fell out my ear.

Once off the coaster, I through the large crowds of people and to the nearest bathroom. I vomited, of course. I felt dizzy as I washed my mouth and leaned against the wall.

I shut my eyes, trying to calm my stomach; when I heard two guys enter the bathroom. I opened my eyes. It was two boys. One had black tousled hair, fair skin, and dark green eyes. He wore a plain green shirt and white shirts. He was grinning and laughing with the other boy. The other boy was a bit taller than him. His hair was black and shaggy, his skin pale, and his eyes dark. His skin was olive, and he wore a dark red shirt and black pants.

They noticed I was there and stopped.

"Do not drink any form of alcohol before hopping on a rollercoaster." I said weakly, giving them a sheepish smile.

They looked at each other and laughed. "Are you alright?" The one in red asked.

He stepped a little closer and my guard suddenly went up. He had a drink in his hand, he was a stranger, and he had a friend. This could be harmless, or completely dangerous. I mentally smacked myself, I was thinking too hard again.

"You're scaring her, Nico." The one in green chuckled.

I noticed their accents sounded a little funny. Not really an accent, just... proper, somehow? "What are you doing in the girls' bathroom?" I suddenly said.

They looked at each other and laughed. "This is the men's restroom!" The one in red exclaimed.

I groaned, my cheeks getting warm. "This is so embarrassing!"

Then, Thalia came rushing through the doors and past the two boys. "Annabeth! What the fuck are you doing in the boys' bathroom?" She said, laughing. "I thought I lost you!"

"It was the nearest bathroom! This is your fault; you dragged me onto the roller coaster!" I sighed, rubbing my head.

She laughed harder, "Wrong bathroom!"

She laughed until I started laughing, and soon we were both nearly on the floor. "Are you girls... sane?" One of the boys asked.

I nodded, smiling controllably and trying to hold in my laughter. "Peachy!" Thalia chuckled, holding her stomach.

"If you girls are feeling peachy enough, would you like to join us for a drink?" The one in green asked, the one in red shot him a sharp look.

"Sure!" Thalia exclaimed, I frowned, unsure.

A few minutes later the moon was up and we were sitting at a table in a restaurant. Thalia had a beer, I had a Margarita, the one in red had a Bloody Mary, and the one in green had a beer. I suddenly realized I didn't know their names.

Mid conversation, I interrupted, "What's your name?" I asked the one in green.

He suddenly looked nervous. He glanced at his friend. "You two do look awfully familiar." Thalia said, leaning forward.

"I'm, um, Peter? Yes! Peter! This is my cousin, Rico!" The one in green said. I narrowed my eyes, I faintly remembered Peter calling 'Rico' Nico in the bathroom. The thought escaped my mind.

The one in red, Rico, glared at him, and then turned back to us. "Annabeth and Thalia, am I correct?"

Thalia raised an eyebrow, I giggled. "Yeah." I responded. "Where you guys from?"

They looked at each other again, nervously. I glanced at Thalia; she looked as confused as me. "Europe." They simply responded.

I rolled my eyes, "Uh-huh." I smirked, "How do you like California so far?"

Peter leaned forward, a smirk on his face. "I am enjoying it very much. Especially the woman. There's one specifically." He winked at me.

I laughed, he looked a little shocked. "I've definitely heard that line before. Come on, are you guys being serious?" I rolled my eyes.

Thalia sighed and stood, "Time for us to go."

I stood with her, and then yelped as someone ran into the window next to our table. It was a man with a camera. A few seconds later, more cameramen appeared, and then several went through the front door.

The two guys jumped up, looking panicked. They looked at us, "Do you know anywhere we can hide?" Rico asked.

Thalia looked at me; I can already tell what she was thinking. "Thalia-" I started.

"Annabeth and I just bought an apartment a few blocks from here. You can stay there for a little while."

"Thank you so much." Peter breathed.

Thalia gestured them to follow her as she went out the back entrance. I followed them silently, fuming. Once we were outside, people caught notice of us and chased after us. We ran down the street, trying to run from the flashing cameras.

I was insanely confused. Why exactly are we running? Thalia took the long way, a bunch of twist and turns, until we finally got rid of them. We tiredly entered out building. The doorman nodded at the four of us as we took the elevator to the top floor.

Really, the apartment was Thalia's. Her father owns it; he's some big, powerful man. I pay half the rent, just because I'd feel rude if I didn't. It was a nice apartment, with two bedrooms and a guestroom. There was a large living room and kitchen, two full bathrooms, and lots of closet space. Everything was mostly a white and peach color, except for Thalia's room; it was purple and contained lots of weird posters.

We stepped into the apartment and crashed onto the couch, tired from all the running. Peter and Rico stood by the door, looking around, barely panting.

Thalia looked at me, asking a question with her eyes. I nodded and she cleared her throat. She leaned forward, facing the guys, "Who are you, really?" She asked.

Peter smiled, "I am Peter." He replied.

Rico crossed his arms. "Rico."

I sighed and stood, walking over to them. "Tell us who you really are before I call the paparazzi and let them know you're here."

Peter frowned, glancing at Rico, who just shrugged and took a seat. I crossed my arms, looking up at Peter accusingly. I noticed how tall he was. And good looking.

"We haven't been completely honest," Peter started. His breathe smelled like peppermint. "We aren't who we say we are."

"I am Nico diAngelo." Rico – Nico, I guess – said, standing up. He went over to Peter's side, "And this is Prince Percy Jackson of Alans. I am Prince Percy's cousin." He said, with a slap on Peter's – Percy's – shoulder.

My eyes widened and my jaw dropped. Behind me, Thalia laughed. "I knew you two looked familiar!" She exclaimed.