lxiii. Love Is The Way
Percy could remember the feeling of her soft cherry-red lips brushing against his cold, pale cheeks that instantly reddened from the lipstick stain and the soft touch. Not to mention the low whisper of her words that made him shivered and the click of her tongue that Percy could still hear.
It wasn't till Elle had left that Percy snapped out of the love spell that she put on him, and he was dumbfounded by everything. Her velvety voice and her smooth features made her look like a goddess in the light. It was like Apollo blessed her with the way that sun shone against her porcelain skin.
Percy's mind was blurred from everything that he had to take a minute to recollected himself—to know that Elle hadn't stolen his soul with those eyes. It sparkled mischievously yet so beautifully in the light.
Percy sat next to the small white teddy bear and the Valentine card that Elle had gotten him. He buried his head into his hands and thought that this was all so weird. He felt drunk.
I have to pick up Annabeth for our date. He reminded himself, which slowly cleared his mind. You have a girlfriend that you love very much. The shimmer in Elle's eyes seemed to fade away. The only thing that seemed to linger was her touch.
Elle's plum lips brushed against his cheek—the faintest of their skin touching was like a red stain on a white shirt that he couldn't get rid of. It was like a bad memory, and bad memories were usually the ones that haunted you in the middle of the night.
You thought about marrying her—Annabeth Chase. His mind reminded him, causing Percy's sea-green eyes to look up. He blinked and gazed around the living room. Estelle's sunflowers slightly swayed in its pot.
He did. Percy had dreamt of marrying Annabeth and starting a family with her in the middle of the night once. He was just thinking about his future, and his mind wandered to...Annabeth.
Percy didn't know if he would even be with Annabeth in the next couple of months—nevertheless in the future—given the circumstances that the Goddess of Love had set in their path. But maybe, just maybe...in the end, it would be the two of them.
"I'm done, Percy," Exclaimed Estelle, then she asked, "Are you alright, Percy?"
His sea-green eyes snapped to her little sister's voice, and a soft smile formed on his face, seeing her. Estelle wore a light blue dress with white stockings. Her salt and pepper hair was in pigtails, and Estelle had a frown on her face.
"Oh, yes, I'm alright, let's...go," Nodded Percy, then his sea-green eyes glanced at Elle's Valentine gift. "Actually, I just need to put something away first, okay?"
"Okay," Nodded Estelle and tilted her head toward the white teddy bear. "Percy, where did the white teddy come from? Are you going to give that to Annabeth?"
His eyes widened, and he quickly shook his head. Percy couldn't imagine giving his girlfriend a gift that another gift gave him for Valentine's Day—nor he didn't want to see the look on Annabeth's face when she sees the lipstick stain on his cheek.
"I'll be back," Said Percy, getting up and grabbing Elle's Valentine's gifts. "Don't go everywhere, maybe you could water your sunflower?"
"Oh, good idea!" Exclaimed Estelle, walking to the kitchen and said, "Percy, be quick! We wouldn't want Anniebeth to think something has happened to us."
Percy chuckled and nodded. His footsteps were light as he walked to his bedroom door and cracked his door opened. Percy stepped into his bright room and placed Elle's stuff on his desk, next to her yellow hair-tie.
Then, Percy quickly went into his bathroom and wet his towel to wipe off the lipstick stain. In the reflection of the mirror, Percy could see her cherry-red lipstick marked on his left cheek. How wrong it looked and—felt. It wasn't right.
The cold water touched his burning cheeks, and with one swipe, the lipstick was gone like it was never there in the first place. Because it never was. Percy ran a hand through his black hair, messing with it.
If there was one thing that Percy didn't expect on his Valentine's Day list was a kiss from Elle. Yet, it seemed so expected from the number of times Elle's gaze lingered on his lips...He didn't know that she'll strike today.
Like it was the first time that Percy arrived at her condo, he felt nervous. It was like something was going to go wrong. Maybe, it already did go wrong, and Percy didn't even notice it.
Estelle squealed as they waited for the door to open, "I wondered what Annabeth is going to wear! I know that she's going to look so beautiful!"
"She always is," Smiled Percy.
The front door then opened; Percy's eyes widened in amazement at Annabeth and he grinned while Estelle squealed, seeing Mrs. O'Leary.
"Percy! Estelle!" exclaimed Annabeth, "I'm so glad that you have arrived! Ah! You guys look so adorable."
Annabeth wore a high-rise pink plaid skirt and white turtleneck with stockings. She wore a barrette that clipped her curls hair to the side and a golden necklace. Annabeth Chase looked like a Goddess.
"Oh my god, you look so pretty!" gushed Estelle at Annabeth before nudging Percy. "Right, Percy?!"
Percy blushed,"Yes, Estelle's right—you look gorgeous, Wise Girl."
That made Annabeth blushed, and she softly smiled, then her grey eyes glanced between the pink tulips that Percy was holding and the treats in Estelle's hand. A curious smile formed on her face as Annabeth looked at them.
"Is those for me?" Laughed Annabeth, looking at the blue cookies and the box of chocolate. "You guys shouldn't have."
Estelle chuckled and said, "Happy Valentine's Day, Anniebeth!"
"Happy Valentine's Day, Estelle!" Said Annabeth, quickly stepping into her house to put away her gifts before coming back outside. "Would you guys like to come in? Estelle, you can play with Mrs. O'Leary!"
"Yes, yes, please!" Exclaimed Estelle as Annabeth opened the door, and she walked inside.
Percy couldn't help but laughed, watching his little sister hugged Mrs. O'Leary and kissed her on the head. His sea-green eyes tore off his little sister and looked at Annabeth, who stood outside next to him.
"And these are for you," Whispered Percy, bowing down and holding the flowers out. "My Wise Girl."
"Oh, Seaweed Brain," Smiled Annabeth softly, grasping the flowers. "You shouldn't have—these are lovely."
"Thanks," Said Percy, then sheepishly said, "Miss. Hestia suggested those to me when I bumped into her in the Demeter's Flower Shop."
"Oh, really?" Laughed Annabeth, smelling the fresh pink tulips. "Well, she has certainly good taste in flowers."
He opened his mouth to respond, but Annabeth had tiptoed forward and kissed him, causing his mind to short-circuited.
The kiss was soft and warm in the cool afternoon air, and Percy cupped Annabeth's face and wrapped his other arm around his waist while she ran her hand through his jet black hair, lost in the moment.
Her grey eyes shimmered when she pulled away and cupped his face with both of her hands. He could taste her strawberry lipstick and smirked at Annabeth, sea-green eyes mischievously glimmered at her.
Percy sat down by the window in Diana's Moonstruck, causing him to bathe in the bright afternoon light. He had to pull a few strings to get a reservation at the cafe for Valentine's Day, but it was definitely worth it, seeing Estelle and Annabeth looking over at the menu with a smile on their face.
They had been seated at the corner of the cafe, and Percy frowned, seeing Annabeth's grey eyes flickered at the booth like she had sat here before.
"Oh! I like you guys will like the strawberry-kiwi cake," Exclaimed Estelle, then explained, "Irene shared some with me last week and I fell in love."
Annabeth and Percy froze on the mention of Irene and strawberry-kiwis. Not that Percy had anything against the little girl—but it was the fact that her old sister was Elle, who loved strawberry and kiwis...
Elle's red lips flickered in his mind—the feeling is going to forever haunt him. Percy shook his head, resting his gaze on Annabeth's pink lips.
"Oh, um, I tried the strawberry kiwi cake before and it was, uh, good," Commented Annabeth, then added, "But I don't really have any appetite for kiwis or strawberry anymore but the cake is good!"
"What happened and you went here before?" Asked Estelle, looking at Annabeth. "When?"
"Oh, um, a couple of weeks ago," Said Annabeth carefully, then explained, "I think you were at Elle's—Irene's when I came here—I was in the city at that time."
Annabeth shifted uncomfortably in her seat, and Percy can see her breath hitched and clasped her hands together. Estelle bit her lips and hugged Annabeth.
"I'm sorry," Said Estelle softly, looking up at Annabeth. "I would have definitely chosen to hang you with if I knew you were free."
"It's fine," Nodded Annabeth softly. "It's okay."
Estelle smiled, then flipped through the menu and exclaimed, "Ooh! We can have some blueberry cake instead! Or we can order a slice of mango cake!"
Percy laughed and said, "Whatever you want, Estelle, I'll get it for you."
Her eyes lit up like stars, and Estelle hugged Mrs. O'Leary, who sat next to her in the booth. They had brought Mrs. O'Leary with them, and luckily, Diana's Moonstruck allowed pets.
Estelle exclaimed, "We have to order some doggy treats for Mrs. O'Leary, and oh my god, I want to try the watermelon smoothie that Irene told me to try if I ever came here!"
A smile formed on his face as Percy watched as Annabeth pulled Estelle into a tight hug, laughing. His little sister giggled. Percy chuckled, and Annabeth shot him a soft smile. Everything was perfect.
The trees were still bare, and the ground was covered with a layer of snow that crunched underneath their feet—despite it all, Central Park was packed with people. All around them were couples holding hands, laughing and stupidly grinning at their partners.
They strolled down the path with their hands intertwined while keeping an eye on Estelle and Mrs. O'Leary, who were ahead of them. Their hair flew in the wind, and Percy gazed at the overview of Sheep Meadow.
Annabeth had stopped walking, causing him to stop. Percy frowned and raised an eyebrow, noticing how she was just staring at him with a smile. He pulled Annabeth closer to him and tucked a piece of fluttering strands behind her ear.
"Wise Girl...?" Asked Percy, softly smiling. "Is—"
"I love you, Seaweed Brain," Said Annabeth. "I-I know that we got to the point of just casually throwing the word around but I hope that you know how I truly love you."
"I know," Nodded Percy, cupping Annabeth's face. "I love you too—you know how much I do."
"I do," Chuckled Annabeth, blushing. "I'm sorry if I'm becoming too sappy but it's Valentine's Day, and you know..."
"I know," Grinned Percy. "I don't care how sappy you are. It just tells me how happy you are, Wise Girl. Are you happy?"
"I am happy," Smiled Annabeth, then said, "Percy, you make me happy along with Sally and Estelle. Every time I'm with you, I feel like I'm loved and at home then I have to leave..."
Percy clutched her hands tightly and looked into her grey eyes. Their cheeks were slightly reddened, and their hair swayed in the wind. Percy could hear Estelle playing in the background with Mrs. O'Leary.
"Maybe..." Said Percy sheepishly, running a hand through his black hair. "Maybe, you can stay?"
Annabeth's cheeks were a shade of light pink, and her eyes widened. She sheepishly chuckled, "Are you proposing to me, Percy?!"
His sea-green eyes widened, and Percy could feel his face heating up at the mention of him proposing to Annabeth. He was dumbfounded by the question. Though he knew that Annabeth was joking—his breath hitched, just thinking about it.
"Well, I didn't bring a ring with me..." Said Percy awkwardly, then looked at Annabeth's bracelet. "Hey, take off your bracelet and give it to me."
"Okay..." Nodded Annabeth, taking off the sea-green bracket. She raised an eyebrow at Percy and said, "What are you doing, Percy?!"
Percy had got down on one knee as Annabeth gasped and giggled. He held up the sea-green bracelet that shimmered in the afternoon light.
Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see Estelle squealed with Mrs. O'Leary, who excitedly barked next to her.
"Percy—" Blushed Annabeth, looking down at him.
"Annabeth Diane Chase," Said Percy, unable to stop himself grinning like an idiot. "Can you do me the honor of—"
"Of course, yes," Laughed Annabeth as Percy smiled and put the sea-green bracelet on Annabeth's wrist. "Oh, I love you, Seaweed Brain."
Percy didn't notice it then, but his sea-green bracelet fitted Annabeth perfectly on her wrist—while her gold bracelet, loosely dangling next to it.
He looked back at Annabeth and smiled.
"I love you too," Whispered Percy, his eyes shimmered at her. "Wise Girl."
"Yay!!" Exclaimed Estelle, coming up beside them and hugged Annabeth. "Anniebeth, you're officially joining the family!"
"Um, Estelle—" Blushed Annabeth, then sheepishly smiled, "I guess I am...?"
"Yes, you are," he sheepishly blushed.
Annabeth looked like Aphrodite in the glow of the sunset with her hair and outfit fluttered in the wind, and her grey eyes shimmered with love. He could have lost himself in Annabeth's eyes, and everything would have been fine.
"I hope you have a good Valentine's Day," Said Percy sheepishly, looking away. "I really hope that today was something that you dreamt of—"
"Percy," Said Annabeth softly, causing him to look at her. She whispered, "You're everything that I dreamt of."
She tiptoed forward in her white Mary-Jane pumps and kissed Percy on his left cheek. The kiss was soft and light—spreading warmth throughout his body. His sea-green eyes widened, realizing that Annabeth had kissed him exactly where Elle did.
When Annabeth pulled away, a slight smirk formed on her face as she brushed her fingers against the lipstick stain. Then, Annabeth softly smiled, and her eyes glittered at him in the afterglow.
Annabeth whispered, "Happy Valentine's Day, Seaweed Brain."
author's note! Here's the Percabeth fluff that everybody was been waiting for the past couple of chapters though it's really going to be one chapter as I have something else planned for tomorrow's chapter! It's a been while since I wrote fluff as I have been breaking up with Percabeth for the past couple of chapters so this was definitely nice! Haha ;) There might be a chapter up tomorrow, depending on how tomorrow goes! If not, I'll definitely post on Monday! Anyways, I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter!! Thank you for reading and have a good day/night! Much Love, Lucinda! 💙