percabeth oneshots

car ride nostalgia

Percy glanced at his phone, google maps showing the route to their airbnb. They were still thirty minutes away.

He turned to look at Annabeth, who was still fast asleep, and had been for an hour. It was winter break, and they were driving up to a cabin in the Catskills, an airbnb Paul had found. His mother, step-father, and sister were meeting them up there on Monday, so they had two days to themselves.

He felt so peaceful in this moment. The road ahead of him was dark, and the street lights left an ethereal haze around his car and the trees.

The lights moved over Annabeths face, yellows and reds, and her face lit up every few seconds as they passed the lights. Her hair was resting on her face, and Percy wanted to reach over to push it back, when he realized that it had been too long he had kept his eyes from the road. He looked forward again, the trees all mlooked the same, as if they weren't really moving at all.

He looked at his radio, it was nearly 2AM, but he wasn't tired at all.

There was soft music playing in the background, something Annabeth had put on, a pre-made spotify playlist.

He's been waiting for this trip for so long, school was suffocating. He was trying so hard, really trying. All he had to do was graduate. How hard could that possibly be? Then he and Annabeth could go to New Rome, together. As much as he loved the city, he was excited to get out, experience something new.

He smiled to himself, a few years ago, even thinking a year into the future was terrifying, but here he was, excited, just waiting to graduate, truly excited for the future. Something he wasn't used to.

Songs played, blending together, acoustic, soft, quiet, normally not music he listened to, but Annabeth insisted, saying it fit the vibe of the night. She was right, as usual, the music added to the feeling that the streetlights, the endless road, and dark trees brought on.

The song ended, and the next one began playing, a slow song. Bittersweet. Any song like this made him think back to that day on Olympus, when he and Annabeth danced together. He wished he could pull over, wake her up, and just dance with her on the road. He usually hated driving alone, made sure Annabeth wouldn't fall asleep, worried he might get distracted and crash. But that never happened, and the fear became smaller. Now, he loved driving in the quiet, he felt so peaceful. His nerves were settled, he was focused on the road, on his hands on the wheel, and Annabeth's breath beside him.

He took a breath, looking around, trying to takein everything in this moment, this feeling of peace, of serenity.

Just a minute later, it began to rain. The water splashed gently on his dashboard. He turned on his windhseild wipers and rolled the back widows up all the way. The sound of the rain fit in perfectly with the music, he was worried he might fall asleep, if just for the white noise from the rain.

Beside him, google maps called out a direction. He turned down the next road, and they were only 10 minutes away now.

The second they got to the house, he was going to pass out. He felt exastion in his bones, even if his mind wasn't sleepy.

He let the rain and the music wash over him, as it began to pour in earnest. He was this close to pulling over to run through the rain, to let the water get him wet, to soak his clothes and his hair. Hhe rolled down his window, sticking his arm out, he willed the water to wash over his arm, the hair on his arm and neck standing up.

He turned down another road, taking a left, 3 more minutes and they would be there. He was inclined to keep going straight, take the long way, but Annabeth would be more comfortable in a real bed, and if he drove for too much longer, he might actually fall asleep.