Chapter 2: A History Lesson

Grover noticed the bounce in Percy's step as he made his way into the apartment. He had been waiting the entire evening, protesting the forced participation in what he deemed an irresponsible waste of time and resources.

"Looks like someone had a nice evening," he commented drily.

Percy quirked an eyebrow at his friend's tone. "Was it you, Grover? That would be strange, since all of our friends were at the event, but it looks like you had a wild night." Percy gestured jokingly to the immaculately clean apartment. His mood wouldn't be diminished by a surly roommate, that was certain.

"Okay, aqua man, what the hell is up with you? You look like the Stoll brothers twenty minutes after they share a joint."

"I met someone tonight."

"Well that explains it. A girl, I'm guessing? Weren't you supposed to be going with Rachel?"

"No. I was going for her. And anyway, Rachel is the one who introduced us."

Percy had his friend's attention now. Grover turned to face him fully, surprise evident on his face.

"Why?"

"I don't really know. Guess she's really moved on... and thought I should too."

Percy was filled with the same bittersweet memories that had struck the girl in question earlier. He missed the days with Rachel, and the one summer they shared as a couple. They were always going to share something special, but some part of Percy was proud of her for choosing to move forward. She deserved it. And now, he realized that he did too. Percy hadn't dated since the breakup, convincing himself he was perfectly happy on his own. He truly had been for a while, but now, after tonight, he was beginning to realize he could do better.

Grover grunted an acknowledgement. "Well good for you then. You could do better than that devil-spawn."

"She's not her father!" Percy jumped to Rachel's defense, for the hundredth time at least.

"Whatever. She hasn't done anything he wouldn't do, besides date an ecologist, I guess."

"What do you have against her? Why the hell can't you let her be her own person?"

"You're only defending her because you fucked her, so you can - "

"Shut up." Percy growled, his eyes narrowing. "Shut up right the fuck now."

Grover hesitated, thinking perhaps he had gone too far this time. Percy's tone had his alarm bells ringing loudly. He raised his hands in surrender and waited.

Percy's gaze never softened. "I'm getting out of here. I was having a good night before you decided to be an asshole."

"I... well... sorry, man."

Percy shook his head in frustration, sighing quietly. "I'm not the one you need to apologize to." With that, he turned and walked out the door, leaving Grover alone with his thoughts in the dark apartment.

On the other side of campus, another pair of friends made their way up a flight of stairs to a large private suite.

"Wow, Rachel, this place is amazing. Thanks for the invite."

"Any time, Annie. I'm glad you decided to take the night off for once."

"I'm not sure I could focus on work right now, honestly. You did a brilliant job tonight. I think most people were pleasantly surprised."

"I just thought we could all use a night to feel good about ourselves, you know? A glimpse into a brighter future."

Annabeth nodded. "Hey, Rachel?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I ask you a question? It's about your friend Percy."

Rachel smiled nervously, wondering if she had already been found out for her scheming. "Of course," she murmured.

"Is there something going on with you two?"

Instead of answering immediately, Rachel looked at the clock on her microwave. It was quarter past eleven, much too late for a full explanation, so she went with the Spark Notes version. She led Annabeth to the stools at the kitchen counter.

"Sit, and I'll explain." She gathered her thoughts as her friend followed her instruction.

"Percy and I became friends the summer before high school. It's a very long story, but let's just say he got into some trouble and I helped him out. After that, he and I were inseparable, though one of his friends, Grover, made a big fuss when he found out about my dad. Grover is an environmentalist, like Percy, but he takes it way too far sometimes." She scowled at some of the more recent memories. "Anyway, after high school, I took a chance to see if Percy and I could be more than friends. We lasted all of three months before it fell apart, even though we both loved each other, and were pretty open about our feelings. What we have now is sort of complicated, but we're just friends, really. We work better that way. I know we'll always be close, and some people think that's bad, but he's important to me, so they can fuck off."

Annabeth could tell the redhead had more to say, so she let Rachel finish, despite getting her answer already.

"It's been years now, and I think we're ready to move on, so I'm giving both of us a chance. He has so much to offer, and I want him to be happy, ya know? Even if it won't be with me." She finished with a weak smile before the floodgates opened and she began to sob loudly into the shoulder of a somewhat startled Annabeth.

"Whoa, Rach, it's okay."

"I'm s-sorry. It just... it hurts a little, knowing what could have been."

Annabeth felt guilty for causing this reaction from her friend, even if it was only an accident. "Why haven't you tried again? If there's still something there, it could be worth it."

"There's not enough." Rachel took a deep breath to steady herself and wiped her eyes, erasing her moment of vulnerability. "Trust me, I used to think the same thing, and he knows that. We talked it through like adults and decided to just be friends. Tonight just sort of sealed the deal."

"What do you mean?"

"I saw the way he looked at you, Annie. It's the same look he used to give me whenever I dressed up for events or took him to the beach. He gets this expression like he just got handed blue cookies. Surprised, and then happy as hell. I haven't seen him look like that at anyone else till tonight."

Annabeth didn't meet her friends gaze. "I'm not going to steal your boyfriend, Rachel."

Rachel rolled her eyes at her friend's obliviousness and poorly disguised disappointment.

"For someone so smart, you're being super dumb about this, Annie. I want you to steal him. In fact, I'm giving you permission to go for it. I think he can make you happy, and you can make him happy too. And seeing my friends happy is all I'm hoping for here."

Percy's comment from earlier was starting to seem like an actual possibility, albeit slightly skewed. "Umm... Rachel? You didn't, by any chance, set this event up just to introduce us, did you?"

Rachel blushed slightly, giving Annabeth all the answer she needed.

"Oh my gods! Seriously, Rachel?" she shouted. "I thought Percy was joking about that. What if we had hated each other?" Her eyes widened in confusion. "You've been planning this thing since September! You didn't really even know me then. How could you possibly think that I would be a good match for your ex-boyfriend, as ridiculous as that whole idea is anyway?"

Rachel huffed defensively. "I know Percy better than he knows himself sometimes. I knew he would like you about a week after I met you. The first time we really got to know each other. Do you remember that day, Annie? You were so eager to make a new friend that you were making me nervous just watching you. And then you talked about how you were already in love with the program here, and how you really thought you could make something of yourself. It was sweet, really, how you forgot we were still practically strangers when you got into it." Rachel smiled fondly at her best friend. "I met Percy for dinner that same day. Wanna know what he said? He said he was already in love with his new classes and he really felt like he was finally going to learn the things he wanted to, and be able to make something of himself. You both had such passion about your future that I knew right then that you two had to meet. And I knew that without me, you probably never would. What were the odds you would even notice each other with so many people around? Clearly, it worked out in the end. Don't think I didn't notice the look on your face when you saw him tonight. That was adorable, by the way," she finished with a sly grin.

"Adorable or not, why would you go through all that for him?"

"Not just him, little Annie. I did it for you too. I know it's weird, with my history with him and everything, but you have to follow your heart on this one, and forget about that. I want this to work out for you guys. I really, really do. Please, just give it a - "

A sound of a sonar cut her off. There was only one person with that ringtone. Percy was calling.

Rachel answered somewhat nervously.

"Are you free, Red?" His gruff tone told her immediately that something was wrong.

"Sort of... whats the matter Percy?"

"Nothing. I just can't be at the apartment right now with that idiot."

"Grover? What did he do now?"

There was a pause, which of course meant he was deciding what to tell her.

"It doesn't really matter. Just something about... us."

"Oh." She looked over at Annabeth, who had sensed something was up and covered her ears, pointedly looking anywhere but at Rachel.

"Yeah. So can I come over? Just so I can cool off a bit? I don't want to ruin your night, so if you want I can hang at the library instead."

"It's no problem. Sorry about Grover. I didn't mean to set him off."

"Oh I know. There's just something about you," came the reply. She could almost see his crooked grin. "I'll be there in five. The buses are still running."

"Okay. See you soon."

She hung up and banged her head on her counter.

"He's coming?" Annabeth asked nervously.

She nodded.

"Should I..."

"No. Stay. It's no big deal. His roommate is just being an ass again."

Annabeth nodded, fitfully running her hands through her hair, noting anxiously how tangled her curls had gotten, before her attention shifted to her wrinkled blouse. Her breathing sped up as she mentally catalogued her appearance. She was far less confident now that she had a chance to worry about seeing Percy again.

Rachel looked over to see her friend on the verge of a panic attack. While it spoke volumes about her talent for matchmaking, Annabeth passing out would be really inconvenient at the moment.

"The bathroom is just down the hall if you need a minute, Annie."

The blonde made her escape like a frightened animal, barely pausing to fetch a comb and toothbrush from her duffel bag. Rachel chuckled quietly. Now to wait for Percy's reaction to her gorgeous guest. She sat at the counter and counted down the minutes.

For reasons best kept secret, Rachel had given Percy a key to her apartment. Thus, the two young women inside were given no warning before he entered.

"Hey, Red! Where are you?"

Rachel called back from the kitchen. "In here!"

Percy made his way toward her, not noticing the floral-patterned bag in the living room, or the small squeak of surprise as he passed the bathroom in the hallway.

"Hey. Sorry to barge in on you like this. I just couldn't handle Grover's shit after tonight. You did awesome with that by the way. I heard more compliments than criticisms, so you either did something right or spiked all the punch bowls. Apparently you managed to please everyone but my roommate with this little stunt of yours."

"Speaking of which. What's the furball's problem this time? I wasn't even there to piss him off properly."

"I think he was just annoyed that I took your side and went tonight. He got pretty nasty again when I got home. I was having a nice night before that, so I peaced out before he could get going."

"I'm surprised you enjoyed such a formal event. It's not usually your style. Was there any particular reason you enjoyed your evening? A new friend, maybe?"

Percy rolled his eyes. "You know you're really terrible at being subtle, right? I would almost feel bad for you, but... thanks, Red. Are we still cool?"

"Yeah." She grinned as Annabeth came in just behind Percy, too quietly for him to notice. She caught her friend's eye and conveyed the need for silence. "Only if you spill the deets on what I missed between you and Annie. What are your intentions toward my friend, mister?"

Percy ran his hands through his hair, unknowingly mirroring Annabeth's own nervous tic. "I don't know. She's brilliant, obviously. I'm not sure I could keep up with her there. And she's... well, breathtaking is the only word for it really." He leaned back and his voice dropped to a whisper so low that only Annabeth could hear him. "I just don't want to screw that up a second time."

"Well if she's brilliant and breathtaking, why don't you ask her out?"

Percy laughed. "Just like that?"

"You wont know till you try." Her gaze passed over something behind Percy and he tensed.

"She's right behind me isn't she?

Rachel cackled madly and nodded.

"And she heard all of that?"

A voice like music answered softly.

"Yeah, I did."

The redhead smirked "How's that for subtle, Percy?"

A/N: And here we are with chapter two. Who knows how many we have left? Not me, that's for sure. Enjoy, review, fav, or follow. I beseech the opinions and affections of my audience.

Cheers,

DamWaters