Into the Clouds | Percabeth| Mortal AU

Chapter Nine

"Absolutely not." 

"You want to be friends with him, just admit it!" Leo argued. 

Annabeth was sitting on her desk, crisis cross, glaring at Leo as hard as she could. "No. He's just my partner for a school project. Once it's over with, I will go back to calling him an annoying prick, which is what he is."

Mr Rad (pronounced "rod") walked in. "Class, I have an announcement." His Iranian accent was hard to understand, but once you had him for a while, you caught on pretty quick. 

Annabeth slid into her chair and faced forward. She slipped her notebook out to take notes. Mr Rad was not a teacher you wanted on your bad side. 

"There is a trig competition. We need two students to represent our school. I have a pop quiz; whoever gets the most questions right, represents our school."

Annabeth raised her hand. "Who will the second person be?"

Mr Rad smiled. "Ah, that will be determined by the person who gets the most questions right."

They took their quiz. Rad glanced over them. "I will have the results tomorrow. Everyone is dismissed."

;;;

On the way out of the classroom, Leo and Annabeth ran into Piper, who popped her pink bubblegum in Annabeth's face. 

"Can I help you... Piper?" Annabeth asked. She did not like her. Piper was the most gossipy person in the entire school. 

"I heard a rumour," she sneered. 

Annabeth snorted. "I think you mean you started a rumour."

Piper rolled her eyes. "Are you and Jason, like, a thing?"

Annabeth burst out laughing. "Are you kidding me? Jason is like my older brother." Annabeth sighed. "Maybe you better do you research next time before you start a bullshit story."

Annabeth brushed past her with Leo following. Annabeth used to be friends with Piper in elementary school but when they started high school Piper became obsessed with being the most popular.

"I was a better friend than her!" Piper called after her. "At least I never tried to kill you!"

Annabeth walked into the cafeteria and sat next to Thalia. "Piper is telling people that Jason and I have a thing going on, and then said she was a better friend than you because she didn't try to kill me."

Thalia choked on her drink and laugh-coughed. "In my defense," she said through her laughs, "I didn't know it would kill you."

"You gave me bleach instead of water!" Annabeth laughed. "What did you think was going to happen?"

"I don't know," Thalia popped a fry into her mouth and shrugged. "I was like six and when I asked my mom what would happen if someone drank bleach she told me it would make them go away."

"The only place it made me go was the hospital."

;;;

"I want a cloud machiatto without the cloud," Percy ordered.

"What the hell does that even mean?" Annabeth asked. "And when will you give this whole thing up?"

Percy's answer was simple: When she agreed to go out with him.

"Never gonna happen. Can't you take a hint? Or is there too much seaweed where your brain should be?" Annabeth replied.

"I'm not giving up. I know you love me."

Annabeth leaned in close to his face. "Then you must be on crack," she said. "Your cloud machiatto without the cloud will be ready over there."

After Percy left, Pidge hopped up on the counter. "I cannot believe practically the hottest person in the school wants to date you, and you keep saying no."

Annabeth started making his drink. "Out of everyone in the school, he chooses me? No, there had to be a catch." Annabeth looked at him chatting away with Connor. "A guy like him doesn't chase after a girl like me," she said sadly. "That's one trick I'm not falling for."