Chapter Eight

                                    

                                          
Age 18

                          
 "You're sure you can't come a month early?" Percy asked, pouting slightly.
                          
 "Positive, Seaweed Brain. First of all, it's a little late to schedule a new flight. And in case you forgot, I live here. I have to pack everything. Plus, Stanford is on the complete opposite side of the country from Columbia University. We wouldn't be on the same flight anyway," Annabeth reasoned.
                          
 "Wow guys, we seriously had to pick colleges as far away from each other as possible, huh?" Grover said. He was going to Duke University in North Carolina to study environmental engineering. 
                          
 "Yeah, who am I supposed to hang out with?" Thalia whined. 
                          
 "Hey, staying on the island is your choice, Thals," Percy said.
                          
 "Whatever. I'm driving you all to the airport, though."
                          
 "Yeah, no shit, you're literally our chauffeur," Annabeth laughed. 
                          
 "Welp, I have one day left with you guys, so let's not waste it!" Percy said.
                          
 They continued walking down the road to no destination in particular, as often was the case. Grover was still finishing his ice cream, but the rest of them had finished long ago.
                          
 "Hey, Percyyy," an annoyingly familiar voice cooed. 
                          
 "The fuck do you want, Calypso?" Annabeth asked, before even looking to see who it was. She was right, of course.
                          
 "I just wanted to talk to my boyfriend. Or is that... not allowed?" she gave a fake pout and slipped her hand through Percy's. Percy stood there awkwardly as if he didn't know what to do. Given his past dating experience (aka no dating experience), he probably didn't know what to do.
                          
 "Boyfriend? Sorry, you mean the guy you stood up last summer?" Thalia asked defensively.
                          
 "Ohhh, that's right they don't know. I thought you were going to tell them, babe?" Calypso gave one of her sickly sweet smiles.
                          
 "Hold up, tell us what?" Grover asked, apparently oblivious to the ice cream on his chin.
                          
 As usual, Annabeth caught on first. And it hit her like a train going 100 kilometers per hour.
                          
 "You're telling me you two are..." she pointed back and forth between them, not wanting to actually say the word.
                          
 "Together? Boyfriend and girlfriend? Whichever you prefer," Calypso scrunched her nose at Annabeth in a way most guys found 'cute'. God, why did she have so many annoying habits?
                          
 "And how long...?" Annabeth asked. Her breath was getting short, although she didn't really know why.
                          
 "Oh, for about a year, right Perce?"
                          
 "What the fuck, Percy?" Annabeth glared at him.
                          
 "Look, I wanted to tell you guys, really, I just--"
                          
 "Forgot?" Annabeth asked, laughing bitterly. "Yeah, sure, Percy, you forgot for a year. So what, you were just going to go off to college with your little girlfriend and never tell us you were together in the first place? We're your closest friends, why would you keep this from us?"
                          
 "Because I knew you would get like this!" Percy retorted.
                          
 "Like what, exactly?" Annabeth took a step towards him.
                          
 "Jealous! Because for whatever goddamn reason, you despise Callie, and you never wanted me to be with her, even if that's what made me happy!" he stepped towards her as well, dropping Calypso's hand.