A/N: HIHIHIHIHIHIIHIHIHIHIHIHI! HOPE YOU GUYS LIKE THE STORY

Disclaimer: Rick Riordan owns PJO. :(

Chapter Five

Annabeth's POV

After getting out of Percy's car, all Annabeth could do was run and run. Run away from her problems, away from the confusion, away from Percy. Run away from the kiss.

Annabeth stopped after a couple of minutes. She was tired and panting, her face covered in a thin layer of sweat. Running was always a passion of Annabeth's. She could just burn off all her worries. Run. Run. Run.

But it was not working today.

Percy and the kiss stayed on Annabeth's mind. So she continued running. Her feet pounded on the ground in a rhythmic beat and her bag hit her hip with every step she took. It was a very soothing and relaxing beat. Annabeth still worried.

Time was nonexistent to Annabeth. It had been dark for a while now, but that did not scare her. All she wanted to do was run. The world past by in a blur. Nothing could stop her from getting away. But then Annabeth's shoe caught on the sidewalk and she tumbled to the ground.

"Ahhh!" with a shriek Annabeth came to the ground. Though it was only a small tumble, it felt much greater to her. It felt like all her problems were dragging her down. Percy. Rachel. Work. The tears could not be stopped, Annabeth sat on the sidewalk sobbing.

What did it all mean? Percy was married and very happy, as far as Annabeth could tell. But there had been those times when the dark haired man rolled his eyes or frowned when Rachel had her back to him. And he could be oddly flirtatious. Annabeth thought it was just him being friendly. Yet he had kissed her.

Shaking her head, Annabeth got up and started heading back. Where else was she supposed to go? Percy and Rachel's house was where she currently lived. Limping slightly, Annabeth realised that there was a person she could always call for help.

Annabeth pulled her phone out of her pocket. She stared at the screen. Her eyes were blurry from tears. Quickly dialing the number from memory, Annabeth sighed when her friend picked up.

"Thals, can you pick me up?"

Annabeth sat on a couch in the living room of Thalia's apartment. Knees clutched to her chest, she recited the day's events in a shaky voice.

"He kissed you?" Thalia shrieked with glee. Annabeth didn't understand why her best friend was grinning. She was usually sensible, those others might not agree if they were biased by their opinion of her appearance. Short black hair with ice blue streaks that complemented her eyes. Pale skin with an accumulation of nearly invisible freckles across her nose and cheekbones. Black clothes; today's outfit a Fall Out Boy tee-shirt paired with black ripped leggings and black combat boots. Thalia looked tough, but Annabeth knew the twenty four year old could be as sweet as sugar.

"He's married, Thals." Annabeth sternly answered using a nickname.

Thalia slyly smirked, "And describe Percy to me. His personality, actions, how he looks like, everything and make it detailed."

"Are you my English teacher now?" the blonde rolled her eyes.

"Pretend it's one of those character things Mrs. Martin used to give us."

"Well lets see.. He has short, but not too short, jet black hair. It's always messy. Wait no, his hair is kind of long. Let's call it medium length. He often runs his hands through it when he is stressed or frustrated. It falls across his forehead and frames his eyes-"

"Describe his eyes," the dark haired girl dicated.

Annabeth bounced in place with a large exhale. She was getting into the description. "His eyes are a sharp sea green color. Blue and green streaks intertwined together. Just like the sea. Golden speckles. His eyes," she paused. "They're gorgeous."

"Enough! I've heard enough," Thalia sighed. "You may not admit it outright, but… well your description of Percy makes you sound like a love sick puppy."

Annabeth giggled. Thalia always had a way of making her talk, even though the blonde is quiet around most people. Her best friend always said that Annabeth was not shy, only calculating. Right now, that did not describe her. Annabeth was intoxicated with both joy from the moment and one too many glasses of wine.

Though neither of the girls drank much, Thalia has considered the evening an exception. When Annabeth arrived at her house a sobbing wreck, she has pulled out a cheap bottle of seven dollar Trader Joe's wine, kept just for an occasion like this.

Now, the alchohol sat on the coffee table with two tall glasses: an almost empty one with nude lipstick stains on the rim belonging to Annabeth and a half full one. Thalia had restrained herself to drinking only half of the glass. Annabeth just wanted to get Percy Jackson off her mind.

"Do I really?" Annabeth's mood was suddenly dark. She grabbed the glass off the bleached wood table and swirled its contents around.

"No, no, no," Thalia grabbed the wine glass and placed it back on the table. Annabeth's glass had already gone through three refills. That was enough alcohol. Thalia got up and put it away.

"But Thalssssss… why?" the blonde slurred.

"No, no, no.

Suddenly. Annabeth started crying. All this behavior was very unlike her.

"Thalia? What if I do like him?" during her drunken haze Annabeth's realization came like a lightening strike. Percy sweet, adorable and perfect. It seemed like such a childish thing to say, but Annabeth had a crush on him. "What if he doesn't feel the same way?"

Hearing this outburst from her small kitchen, Thalia rushed back with a large glass of water. "Oh Annie!" she softened up. "Calm down, drink this and try to straighten up."

Annabeth glanced back at her friend with a confused gaze. She brushed down her hair and wiped away a few tears. "Thalia what are you doing?"

"Calling this 'bastard', who is messing with my best friends feelings."

A/N: This chapter took me forever to write, partially because of my extreme procrastination and partially because I did not know how to have this moment happen. I wanted to show Thalia and Annabeth's great friendship and how Annabeth is coping after 'the kiss'. I must have rewritten it about six times, butttttttt I finally settles on this. Thanks to IAin'tNoOrdinaryGirl for being an awesome beta and my Thalia in real life :)