[ 4 months after chapter 50 ]
"How bad do you think this is going to be?" Leo said to Annabeth, both of them huddled in the backseat.
"On a scale of 1 to 10?" Annabeth asked. "15." She buried her face in her hands. "I feel like we're children in a divorce. And I actually am a child of divorce!"
Percy found this conversation extremely amusing, but he had to admit even he was dreading the upcoming hours. For New Years' Eve, Percy and Jason had decided to throw a party. They were staying together in a rented apartment in Manhattan for the holidays anyway, so it made sense.
"I'm sure they'll keep in civil, right?" Leo hinted.
Percy and Annabeth simultaneously pulled a face.
"You weren't there for the break-up," Annabeth warned. "It was..." She frowned. "It was bad."
All of them had only been in college for about four months at this point. In had only taken two weeks for Piper and Jason to get into their first fight. Annabeth and Percy had front row seats to the entire fiasco.
Annabeth was called by both Piper and Jason nearly everyday, and she was so bewildered and torn that she couldn't do more than nod. Percy and Jason were both in Manhattan, and frequently saw each other.
Two months of constant arguing passed before Piper got on a train and came down to New York. Percy was relieved, thinking that they were going to kiss and make up. One of those things happened.
Piper left New York without a boyfriend, and that was that. Percy had visited Jason in his dorm for three days in a row after the break-up, trying to make sure he ate actual meals and didn't drown himself in Cheetos.
"It's only been a month," Annabeth groaned. "They have two options when they see each other; fight or pretend they don't exist. Neither are appealing at the moment."
Percy didn't want to make the situation worse by bringing up how difficult it had been to convince Jason to invite Piper. Frank and Hazel were too far away to return just for a week, but Annabeth and Leo were returning to visit their families. Percy thought it'd be a good idea to at least have the five of them back together again. He was starting to rethink things.
Leo slumped in his seat. "Can't believe we really thought everything would stay the same."
"It was too difficult for them to be apart for so long," Annabeth told him. "Don't you remember the early days when they started dating? They were glued at the hip."
Leo wrinkled his nose distastefully. "Good point. But then why haven't you two broken up?"
Annabeth met Percy's gaze in the driver's mirror. "Well," Percy stopped.
He didn't know quite what to say. Living in two different states definitely wasn't easy. The first few weeks before school began had been the absolute worst. There were...fights. Probably more fights within a week than they'd ever had before.
But there was something essential to remember; he and Annabeth were polar opposites other than the fact that they were both the most stubborn people on the planet.
They had made a promise to stay together (unless it got to the point where they were both absolutely miserable). And they were so determined to fulfil that they pulled through the fights.
At one point, Percy had gotten in his car and driven up to Yale, shocking Annabeth still when she opened her door to see him. But that was all it took. Being together, even just for a couple of hours, reminded them just what they were fighting for.
"We're lucky, I guess," Percy finished after a long pause.
"Lots of close calls though," Annabeth crossed her arms and gave him a pointed look. "Like when Percy went on a date with another woman."
"Come on," he complained, flushing darkly at Leo's astonished look. "It was one time! She said she wanted help with writing a paper!"
"How stupid can someone be?" Annabeth muttered, but Percy knew she found it funny too. She'd laughed for about two minutes before she even reached the capacity to be angry at him.
"Pulling up now," Percy said, glad to change the subject as he reversed into the parking lot below their apartment.
Annabeth and Leo were crashing with them for the few days they were here, so their luggage was in the trunk. Piper had, understandably, chosen to stay at home with her dad. She was only here for one night.
They lugged their suitcases upstairs, and when Percy in locked the door, the party was already in full swing. He recognised most of the people; his university friends and Jason's college roommate and their friends.
Percy glanced back to see Annabeth staring at the room with slightly widened eyes. Leo traipsed off to mingle and find Jason, taking his and Annabeth's suitcases, leaving them alone.
"That's a lot of people," Annabeth whispered.
Percy gave her a concerned look. "You okay?"
"Yeah," she said sincerely. "Just...I forgot that we've got different friends now. It's...weird."
"They're great," he promised. "Come on, I'll introduce you."
There was Tyson, a hulking guy at NYU on a football scholarship. He was Percy's roommate, and despite his stature, had the mental age of a five-year old. The donuts he constantly ate was testament to that.
Annabeth already knew Nico di Angelo and Grover Underwood. Grover was going to college at Parson's, a fact Percy only realised when he was hanging out with Jason and spotted him. Grover had been Percy's best friend growing up - pre-Gabe - and reconnecting with him had been pretty fun. Nico didn't have anything else to do, with Hazel gone, so Percy had invited him too.
Jason appeared fifteen minutes after they arrived, smiling madly as he gave Annabeth a hug. Percy had grown closer to Jason since college began, and he knew just how much the two of them had missed each other.
Then, two hours into the party, fashionably and purposefully late, came Piper.
Luck was not on their side today because Jason answered the door, and when he opened it, he went white as a sheet. Piper had a similar reaction, looking like she'd seen a ghost.
Percy and Leo exchanged wary glances.
"Hi," Jason stammered. Piper managed a stiff nod, unable to meet his eyes.
Leo winced beside Percy. "I'm experiencing second-hand awkwardness," Leo muttered into his cup.
The rest of their guests were looking at them inquisitively. Most of them had heard about Jason's infamous girlfriend. Dakota, Jason's roommate, had repeatedly told him how stupid it was to go to college with a girlfriend, a prime time to explore the "sea of girls". Percy found this ironic because Dakota had been rejected more times than he could count.
Percy half-expected Piper to just turn on her heel and leave. He couldn't blame her. But before she could, Percy surged forward with a bright "Piper!"
Her shoulders visibly sagged as she hastily side-stepped around Jason and took the hug Percy offered.
"Thanks," she whispered, almost imperceptibly quiet. When he stepped back, Percy did a double take. Piper had changed...a lot in the last three months.
Her hair wasn't up in her usual braids, but hung around her face in short waves, just reaching her shoulders. A small streak of pink ran through her hair.
"Piper!" Leo appeared at Percy's side, and Piper was grinning now, happy to see him. The two of them waddled around, locked in an embrace as they exchanged rapid-fire sentences.
Percy turned to Jason cautiously. "You okay?"
Jason pursed his lips. "No. But it's okay. It's just one night." The tension had dissipated slightly, but it was still thick enough to slice with a knife.
The rest of the night was better, but not by much. Piper and Jason kept a safe distance of ten feet between them at all times, which sounded impossible in their tiny apartment, but somehow they managed it.
Annabeth and Piper disappeared for a little bit towards midnight, but Percy saw them standing on the small balcony outside, huddled together and talking. Annabeth had confessed to him months ago that she was worried for her friendship with Piper. She'd started out as Jason's best friend first, but Piper had become one of her closest confidantes. Percy was glad to see that she'd decided to just talk to her about it.
As the last minute to midnight began, Percy found himself on the couch, huddled between Annabeth and Jason. Leo walked up, Piper in tow, and forced her to sit down with him.
Piper and Jason shared exactly half a second of eye contact before they looked away.
"Can I just say," Percy cut in, unable to take it any longer. "That I know tonight wasn't...easy for all of us. But thank you for coming anyway. It was really good to see you guys."
Once the elephant in the room was addressed, Annabeth looked like she was about to burst into hysteria.
But Piper sighed, breaking the silence. "Same here. I didn't know if I wanted to come tonight, but it was nice to see everyone." She offered them a smile. "And," she trailed off, warily looking up at Jason. "I know that things aren't exactly peachy with us. But we aren't going to break up the group or anything. There isn't any need to take sides..."
"It was mutual," Jason said, nodding, staring at his lap.
Percy released a slow breath. Things weren't much better, but it was good to clear the air.
The countdown on the TV began. "10, 9, 8," he could hear the presenter start to chant, and the people in his apartment caught on, shouting as they counted down the seconds to the new year.
"Okay, we're not going to be sad anymore," Leo declared, pulling Jason to his feet. The others reluctantly followed suit. "It's the new year. Come on!"
Percy tried for a grin to break the tension as he turned to Annabeth. "Love you," he murmured.
Annabeth smiled. "To another year with you," she whispered.
"2!"
"1!"
Percy leaned down and kissed her.