Hi guys! This story has been so much fun to write, and every single review is appreciated, whether just comments, telling me you like it, constructive criticism, ideas, or even saying you don't like a certain aspect of the story. I know I probably shouldn't have skipped over so much of their friendship (maybe I will add separate chapters later on more fluffy Percabeth moments) but for now this will be the last chapter (I think, though maybe an epilogue eventually might happen), so again, please read, review, etc., because it makes me so happy and encouraged when people leave feedback.

This first part of the chapter is just mostly history explaining the background of Annabeth's feelings. If you don't like that stuff, just skip to the middle/end. If you do, read it, because personally I feel it ties up some loose ends pretty nicely. Tell me what you thought of the story, and if you want an epilogue or you like it how it is! :) Thanks so much!

Annabeth sighed and set her final draft on her desk. May had come. The last few weeks of school were here, and she had done it. She had applied to NYU for an architectural scholarship and had received the fatal envelope only that morning. Her grades, all in the upper 90%, had been more than enough to get her to qualify.

Her dream was coming true.

Her thoughts were flying everywhere as she chewed on the end of her pencil and gazed out her window at the skyscrapers lining her view, but mainly they were focused on two things: college, and Percy.

Percy. Over the school year she had grown closer and closer to the young man she had met on that fall day at Central Park, hanging out, working on homework together and just talking. They had met each other's friends, she had gone to his swim meets, they had been to each other's apartments – she had practically lived in Percy's room during mid-terms – in short, done everything friends normally did. Heck, they had even gone on dates, if that was what one would call them.

But now – it was complicated. Annabeth's heart had been ice since her last relationship with a guy named Luke. She had known him since she was little, been good friends growing up, and when she was a sophomore he asked her out on their first date. Somehow they had seemed to fit perfectly together – people had thought they were the cutest couple, and Luke had been kind and thoughtful, even when his parents were going through a painful divorce.

So what went wrong? Annabeth asked herself, almost desperately.

Luke had changed, she knew. After the divorce he was never the same, moody and angry and bitter. His father rarely, if ever, contacted him in any way, and his mom was an alcoholic. Luke hadn't cared about her like he had, and Annabeth could tell.

And then one day Luke said the fateful line – "We need some time apart."

She had been in a daze, almost. She had known it was going to happen, known it for months, but it hit her so hard.

Luke was breaking up with her. Luke, her almost-older brother as a toddler, her best friend as a child, her first love as a teenager.

Now her ex.

But Luke hadn't stopped there. He had torn her heart in two, brought her trust through the dirt and left it there. The day after their breakup strange rumors, spilling secrets that only Luke had known, had started circling the school about Annabeth, and Luke was seen making out with the cheer captain behind the gym.

Annabeth had cried for days, and after that she had sworn to not let anyone get close. If Luke had just simply been a boyfriend, maybe it wouldn't have been so hard. But this was Luke, someone she had known pretty much since she was born. She had trusted him, leaned on him, believed he would always be there for her.

And then he wasn't.

And then, the beginning of her senior year, she had met Percy. Percy, with his sea-green eyes and soft, shaggy black hair and amazing smile, the guy Annabeth had trouble even saying his name without feeling butterflies. Love at first sight? Impossible. Crush at first sight? Definitely.

She hadn't wanted anyone to get close. She had only focused on school. Scholarships. She had a goal, and she wasn't about to let anyone get near it (or her heart).

But now… now even her relationship with Percy was strange. Over the year they had become friends, even best friends. But hanging out had become strange and Percy's moods even stranger. Sometimes they were best friends; other times, like when he pressed a kiss to her forehead, or hugged her tightly as goodbye, or waved and watched her as she walked to her car… she would see or feel glints of something else. Something more.

But now Annabeth had to decide. If, and only if, that was what Percy truly wanted, would she be ok with it? Would she let another person get close to her, close enough to hurt her terribly if he chose?

She heard her bedroom door open and turned around. Well, Annabeth, you're going to have to decide quickly. "Hey, Perc," she greeted him, reaching for him, pulling him into a hug, but letting go quicker than normal.

"Hi," he murmured, dropping a quick kiss on the top of her blond head and then gestured to his backpack dumped unceremoniously on the floor. "Your dad let me in. What are we working on tonight?"

"Hmm, you choose," Annabeth hummed, sitting back down at her desk add feeling the customary blush adorn her cheeks. Seriously Annabeth, get that flush into control, she commanded.

"Erm… how about AP American History? That's the easiest, I think."

"Spoken like a true procrastinator," she teased.

Instead of smiling at her gentle rubbing, he slumped onto her bed and put his head in his hands, something he only did when he was really upset about something. She knew then that it was more than school getting to him. "Percy, is anything wrong?"

"Had an argument with Jason today," he muttered, black head in his hands.

Jason. One of the best guy friends Percy had. "What was it about?" she asked quietly, knowing either he would spill it all now or not divulge anything until he was ready to talk more.

"You."

The answer was not exactly what she had expected. "M-me?" The butterflies turned to lions, roaring in worry. "Percy, what about me?"

"Annabeth…" he paused. "I've been needing to ask you because, well, you're pretty much the best friend I have and you're amazing but there always seems to be something eating at you when you're around me, and I'm… well, I don't know. I just want to know if there's anything you could tell me."

Annabeth brow contorted. How had he noticed? She had been a master at hiding her feelings. For years she had fooled her dad, her teachers, the few friends she had, into thinking that everything was fine. Nothing could ever hurt Annabeth. On the outside she was tough as nails.

But on the inside… well, Percy seemed to have sensed what was on the inside, and it scared her.

"Hey, you're my best friend too," she answered, flopping onto the bed nonchalantly. Get a grip, Annabeth. Don't let him see. Don't let him know what you really feel like. "And of course I'm always worrying about school and stuff."

"Besides that," Percy pleaded. "I know it's something else. Basically, Annabeth… well, I don't know how to ask you."

"Just ask me," Annabeth answered, trying to hide her shaking hands. Why did Percy affect her like this? Why did the slightest smile make her heart jump, the smallest frown make her insides shatter?

He took a deep breath. "Annabeth, have you ever been in a relationship before?"

Oh. That was it. A relationship. As in a boyfriend and girlfriend. People who loved each other. Wait, what? Annabeth completely and utterly panicked. She didn't tell her feelings to anyone. Not relatives, not friends, not anyone.

But - well, this was Percy. If she couldn't trust him, she couldn't trust anyone.

"Yeah. Yeah, I have." She turned away, but he gently pulled her around again to face him.

"And… and I'm guessing it didn't end well?" he prodded.

And that was how Annabeth Chase, the girl who never cried, never felt, never trusted, told Percy Jackson the whole painful story. Again she found herself rambling, and again, it wasn't anything she could stop.

When she had finished, Percy let all the air out of his body in one deep sigh. "So that's it," he said. "That's why every time I make a joke, you laugh, then stop as though reminding yourself something. Why every time I scoot closer to you, you move farther down. Why when I hug you, you pull away."

She nodded, letting a tear fall, then brushing it away, frustrated. But she also felt an odd moment of relief. So this was how it felt to pass on a load to someone else, to let someone help carry her burden. It felt… exhilarating.

"But what if I told you I'm not Luke?" he asked, very softly now. "What if I told you all guys are not the same?"

Annabeth felt her heart stop and her lungs constrict, and she was seeing a million different colors at once. "I think… I think I would believe you," she whispered.

He got to his feet and helped her stand. "Annabeth Chase, I love you."

And then her vision exploded, and she was seeing way more than a million colors as she breathed, "I love you too."

And then Percy was taking a step forward, and his gaze was on her mouth and he cupped her cheek and she tangled her fingers in his hair, and then –

"Darn it!" he yelled as he went sprawling, having tripped on his backpack on the floor.

She covered her mouth, exploding with helpless, breathless laughs as she picked him up. "Honestly Percy – that was smooth - seriously, you are such a nut – here, you big dork, take my hand."

He was blushing brilliantly as he stood again. "Um, thanks." Percy nervously twisted the hem of his shirt, glancing at her with hope in his eyes. "Uh, aside from my random gravity check, I – well, I did mean what I said."

She could feel her cheeks hurting from smiling. "Yeah, I did too."

He took another step closer, and this time took a subtle glance at the ground to make sure he wouldn't trip. "Would you be my girlfriend?"

She giggled teasingly and put a finger on his nose. "Only if you're my boyfriend."

And then he really did kiss her, and Annabeth felt her heart break free, completely free, of the hard, crusty shell she had carried for so long. She let go of Luke and ice and mistrust, because Percy was right. Not all guys were the same. Not everyone would break her trust.

And no, not everyone would start a first date by spilling hot coffee all over her. Not everyone would trip over his own schoolbooks on their first kiss.

But then again, not everyone was Percy.

And honestly, Annabeth wouldn't have it any other way.

Awww. *Much fangirling ensues because Percabeth is my OTP and it's so freaking fun to write AUs* Ahem. Anyway, thanks so much for reading this story! Also, I should probably mention that I have a really cool idea for a multi-chapter Harry Potter/Percy Jackson crossover which eventually I will sit down and write, so check my profile page pretty regularly for when I start that. However with school and all it might be a few weeks. Again, thanks and have a fantabulous day! :)