Annabeth's POV
None of us uttered a word. For around ten minutes, we sat on the cold floor, starving, for some of us didn't have lunch, and used to have dinner soon. And Callie, on the other hand, looked excited.
'What's exciting you?' I ask
Callie looks at me.
'Oh,' she grins with a gleam in her eye. 'You'll see,'
'Come on, tell it!' Percy urges her on.
Callie shook her head (probably at how idiotic we seemed) but fished out the keys from her bag.
Percy's POV
'How?' I ask.
'I got it from him.'
'How?!' All of us say in unison.
'From his hand,'
'Can't be possible,' Leo said pessimistically. 'We all – We all saw Kronos take the keys.'
Callie smiled wider. 'It's a fake key, I always have one for emergencies,' she exhaled sharply. 'I took the other key and replaced it with the fake one without him knowing.'
We all stared at her.
'Callie,' Piper was awestruck 'You are brilliant,'
we praised Callie for a long time and our moods suddenly brightened up.
'But guys, we have to wait, at least till midnight.'
'Makes sense,' Annabeth said. 'After we escape, what should we do?'
'Tell the police this location? I guess?'
'Makes sense,'
--
'Midnight, Midnight,' Nico looked around. 'Come quick.'
This was the most Nico had ever shown his anticipation. I sat next to him as Annabeth fell asleep.
'You're scared?' I ask him
'Of course I'm scared,' Nico says. 'Who wouldn't be?'
'Whoa, you okay?' I ask.
'What do you mean?' Nico says.
'You never admit when you're scared.'
'Well, I mean, this is reasonable enough?' Nico says. 'And I'm not that scared. Just- just a little bit.'
I smile as he looks outside, Will is sleeping with his head on Nico's shoulder.
Annabeth wakes up.
'Is it midnight yet?' she asks.
'No,' I say, checking my watch. 'It's eight pm,'
She groans and checks through the crack in the door.
'And they're still awake,' she says.
'Sad life,' I say and crumple.
'God.' Annabeth lays down
Annabeth's POV
I wait for midnight like my entire life depended on it. Probably because it did. I was starving.
'We sure there's nothing to eat?' I ask.
'Yes we are!' the others grumble.
'Patience, Annabeth,' Will says. 'Patience, midnight is nearing.'
Patience was a word I always had trouble with. But I watched as cars passed by. It was cold Percy sat next to me.
'Remember when our school got flooded?' I ask softly.
He chuckles. 'It was so unrealistic,'
'Yeah,' I laugh. 'And the school overreacted so much,'
'I know! We had to spend the night at school because they thought the flood was so huge that we couldn't go home,'
I laughed.
Percy grinned, 'But I mean, it was fun when I carried you while you panicked,'
Typical him.
'Oh shut up!' I roll my eyes with a smile.
We both sighed and looked at each other, laying our heads on the window. I then think about Oxford. He obviously wants me to go there, but I can't imagine having to make new friends, away from mine over here. Oxford was where my knowledge and creativity belonged, but I belonged over here, with my Father, Percy, the others, Mack, Estelle.
Estelle and I had grown ridiculously close, we texted almost everyday, and she used to always come to me for advice, sometimes I'd go to her for advice, when it came to books, we could bond over that. We could bond over animals and music as well.
My Father was improving a lot. He calls to check on me when I'm with my friends, he talks with me.
Percy – well – Percy was Percy.
Piper, the elder sister who I never had, Hazel, the little sister I never had.
Callie, the girl who would ship me and Percy with everyone, without fail. And Leo, the clown. Nico, the little brother I never had.
I couldn't leave all of that for a scholarship, could I?
My thoughts were interrupted by a beeping noise.
'What was that?' I ask, half expecting some kind of bomb.
'My alarm, it's midnight,' Will says.
That patience paid off.
'Come on,' I say.
'Hold up,' Juniper says while peeking through the crack in the door. 'Coast is clear, we go straight home and contact the police there? Or do we contact them here?'
'Here seems better, I guess,'
Friday night, cars were still out, some were going to parties, and some were coming back from parties.
We woke the others up. And Callie took the key.
'Just pray – pray that nothing happens.' Callie whispers
'If God exists,' I say.
'Point – but still pray,' she says.
She sticks the key in the hole, and turns it, nothing happens. We turn the doorknob, and the door opens.
Kronos and Luke are fast asleep snoring, like the idiots they are.
'Move it,' Nico says.
We tiptoe downstairs. We somehow remember the way down, between all the confusing stairs. We see the door. Leo tries opening it.
'Oh shit,' I say. 'The door, we locked ourselves in,'
'Nothing I can't fix, just gimme a minute,'
There's silence, for some reason, all of us stop, like we heard something. But none of us are quiet sure what we heard.
'Guys?' Hazel says. 'Why did the snoring stop?'
Percy's POV
'Leo, quick, do what you have to.' I say as I hear Kronos and Luke opening the door and groaning as they realize we escape.
Leo takes a screwdriver and starts doing a few things, we don't even know what he's doing. I see Kronos and Luke above, running downstairs. Kronos looks drunk, but I think he always does; Luke on the other hand, looks scared. He probably knows we're going to expose them.
'Leo quick!' Nico says.
'Calm down.' Leo says as the door swings open.
'Who's driving?' I ask.
'I'll drive, I've slept,' Frank calmly said. 'You haven't.'
'Point,'
Frank takes the wheel and in the other car Piper takes the car. Annabeth goes in the other car, and I go in the other. Both of us don't even realize until the cars start. We don't pay any heed to it and continue to look at the other side of the road and wait for the police station to appear.
'Guys – they're behind us,' Frank says.
Annabeth's POV
'Shit, they're following us,' Piper speeds up.
'Hold up, don't speed up,' Hazel says.
I get her gist.
'Yeah, go at an average pace, so that they don't catch us, but just so that they don't lose us either,' I urge.
Piper curses.
'What the eff is wrong with you guys?' she says.
'Look, we'll just lead them to the police station,'
In pursuit to make it easier to catch the criminals, my mind formed a better plan. I remembered something. When we were driving in the morning, there was an alley a little behind the police station.
'Tell me when we're within five kilometers distance from the police station.'
I explain the plan to them. It was very simple. It's more like a plan that could come from the plot of fanfiction, but why not.
Hazel calls the others in the other car and tells them the plan.
'We're almost there,' Piper says. 'And now we're within six kilometers distance,'
I dial the police.
'Hello?' a voice says. 'nine-one-one, what's your emergency?'
'Hello,' I say. 'We've got two criminals for you, following us,'
'Who are they?'
'Luke Castellan, Kronos Titan,'
'Wait, what?'
'We'll be passing the police station in around three minutes, I- um... have a plan.'
I already heard the woman on the phone telling her team to come.
'What's your plan?' the woman says.
I explain.
'Alright, seems like a good one.'
The woman was on the call. In a while, I could see the station in sight. And I could see the police cars, all with their lights on. Kronos was still behind us.
'We're passing... now,' I say.
In a few seconds, police cars are behind them. Kronos and Luke barely notice. They're focused on us.
'Piper turn into that alley!' Hazel yells.
Piper swerves; Kronos probably thought we were simply turning to another road, since he followed us into the long alley.
And then he knew he messed up.
Police cars blocked their way out. They were stuck. We'd captured them
Percy's POV
Our job was done. I watched Luke and Kronos get handcuffed.
'Thank you so much,' Annabeth was thanking the chief officer.
She ran up to me and I immediately hugged her, she sobbed into my chest. She was obviously stressed and scared, holding it in for a long time. I stroked her hair and finally she stopped crying. The others came next to us. It was one am. We all watched the street and how silent it was.
'So, we go home now, right?' Frank says.
'And get grounded by our parents, yeah,' I say.
I truly looked forward to staying at home for a week. My phone pinged. It was Estelle.
Her text: Are you dead?
--
'Oh my god,' Annabeth said. 'We did it,'
We were nearing home now. Only twenty minutes left. Frank looked like a sleepy bear.
'You want me to take the wheel?' I say.
'Lol, Percy,' Frank says. 'You were practically asleep in the car,'
'Well, I'm wide awake now,' I say.
'Alright,' Frank says.
Annabeth sits next to Piper and lays her head on Piper's shoulder, she's tired.
Minutes passed by quickly, I dropped everyone at home.
'Hey, can I stay over at your house?' Annabeth says.
'What about your dad?'
'I told him I was at your place, before we left for...'
'I'll sleep on the sofa,' I say.
Annabeth laughed. 'The guest room exists, Percy,'
'Oh, yeah,' I chuckled nervously.
Estelle's POV
I was looking out the window, it was five am, the sky was starting to get lighter.
I look out from the window, they were here. I run to the door and open it, crying.
'I was so worried!' I said.
'Yes, I saw your text,' Percy said. 'But we're fine, everything's fine,'
I wipe my tears.
'I really thought he'd killed you or something,' I sobbed. 'I didn't wanna lose you – and Annabeth.' I added.
'Oh, Estelle,' Annabeth knelt down.
There were books all around the place, I really got bored as well while they were gone. Percy couldn't seem to believe I waited for them for more than twelve hours. They started at ten am in the morning and it was already five am.
'Did you eat?' Annabeth asks.
I nodded. 'But haven't had dinner,'
I rub my eyes, I was sleepy but didn't want to admit it. I barely knew anything. James kept texting me, he texted me a few minutes before Percy and Annabeth showed up. He was really good at calming me down.
'We're here now, Estelle,' Annabeth says. 'Go to sleep.'
I go upstairs to my room, gratefully.
Percy's POV
Estelle really seemed like the 7th grader now. She always acted savage, and mature, and like she was okay. But I think I knew then, that Estelle was also human, all the time she spent in the bathroom she could be crying about Tyson, about Mom's depression.
'I feel bad for her,' Annabeth says.
'I wonder if Mom even knew what was going on,' I say.
'Probably not. I doubt she came out of her room,' Annabeth says. 'Have you thought about helping her?'
'I don't know where to get help,'
'My aunt's a therapist, she could do it for free.'
'We don't need it,' I say, I couldn't think about a free therapist, after all, Annabeth had done a lot for me already.
'Percy,' Annabeth says. 'It'll help her,'
'I'll think about it.'
--
I sit in the guest room with Annabeth.
'Consider taking Oxford will you?' I ask.
'Percy, I thought about it,' she said. 'I about Oxford. And my conclusion: you obviously want me to go there, but I can't imagine having to make new friends, away from mine over here. Oxford may be where my knowledge and creativity belongs, but I belong over here, with my Father, you Mack, Estelle. She and I have grown closer than I could ever think,'
I think about her words.
'But it's an opportunity, Annabeth.'
'It's my choice, and I'll be happier here than there,' she says.
'Well,' I smile and lean in.
We kiss, not long, not short, a few seconds, perhaps. It felt amazing, it gave me a feeling that Annabeth was meant for me. I could imagine the years with her.
'Now,' she says. 'Can we like, eat something?'
I laugh, and just then I knew that we were forever.