Chapter Text
the air smelled like roasted sugar and pine needles. someone had smuggled a bag of marshmallows out from the camp store, and now the counselors were sprawled around the amphitheater steps with sticks and soda cans, swapping stories, roasting snacks, letting the night stretch long and lazy. cicadas hummed out in the trees, and the fire in the center cracked high and gold.
annabeth sat a little off to the side with silena, knees hugged to her chest, watching connor stoll lose a battle with his marshmallow as it slid off his stick and into the flames. the group erupted in laughter.
“that’s three for you tonight,” katie jeered. “you’re hopeless.”
“don’t worry, babe, i’ll share mine,” travis crooned, slinging an arm over his brother. the two immediately shoved each other into a half-wrestle, nearly toppling over the bench.
“idiots,” annabeth muttered, but she was smiling.
“adorable idiots,” silena corrected, leaning back on her elbows, posture as perfectly relaxed as if she were on a chaise instead of a wooden step. her nails caught the firelight as she flicked a strand of hair over her shoulder. “don’t act like you’re immune.”
annabeth rolled her eyes. “to what, stupidity?”
silena laughed, soft and knowing. “to noticing people.”
annabeth was about to argue when she heard it: the unmistakable sound of sneakers slapping stone, a voice calling out from the path.
percy.
he came jogging up into the circle of light, hair damp and curling, his camp shirt clinging slightly from a quick rinse at the lake. his grin was immediate, casual, as he dropped onto the steps with an ease that made space bend toward him. he shook his curls out like a dog, sending a spray of water in connor’s direction, and the whole group groaned at once.
“seriously, jackson?” clarisse barked.
“hey, i’m clean, you should be thanking me,” he said, voice low and teasing. he twisted the cap off a soda, leaned back like he owned the night.
and just like that, annabeth’s stomach flipped.
he looked different. not completely new—he was still the boy she’d been stuck with through gods knew how many near-death situations—but sharper somehow. taller. more solid. his laugh sounded deeper, his smile landed heavier, like it pulled at something inside her she wasn’t ready to name.
her first thought was horrifyingly clear: when did you get hot?
she blinked hard at the flames, pulse kicking. she’d thought he was cute before, sure, but this… this was something else.
beside her, silena made a faint hum.
annabeth tensed. “what.”
silena’s lips curved. she didn’t look at annabeth, didn’t need to. “nothing.”
“you’re doing a thing,” annabeth accused.
“am i?” silena’s tone was sugar-sweet. “i just think it’s interesting, the way you perked up the second he walked in.”
“i did not—”
“mmhmm.” silena reached for a marshmallow with the elegance of someone plucking pearls from a box. “don’t worry, i’m not judging. i’d be more concerned if you hadn’t noticed. half the girls at camp are about two steps away from writing songs about him.”
annabeth choked. “songs?”
“you know,” silena grinned, finally glancing at her. “tragic ballads, unrequited love poems, the whole shebang. comes with the territory when you’re tall, blonde, and walk around like you don’t know you’re handsome.”
“he’s not—” annabeth began, then caught herself. clamped her mouth shut.
silena’s grin widened. “mm. right. not.”
annabeth buried her face in her knees for a second, trying to will the heat in her cheeks away. this was ridiculous. she was annabeth chase. she was rational. logical. she did not sit around with her heart stuttering because her best friend had decided to grow a jawline.
and yet—her eyes betrayed her, flicking back across the fire.
percy was mid-story now, reenacting something ridiculous from capture the flag, hands moving as he gestured, curls falling into his eyes. he grinned, dimples flashing, and the sound of his laugh cut through everything else.
she swallowed hard.
“you’re staring again,” silena whispered, voice threaded with amusement.
“i’m not,” annabeth hissed.
“uh-huh.” silena popped her marshmallow off the stick, blowing on it delicately. “sweetheart, i’m your friend. i’m rooting for you. but if you think you’re fooling me…” she trailed off, eyes glittering with mischief. “you might want to rethink your strategy.”
annabeth glared at her. “silena.”
“what?” she said innocently, biting into her marshmallow. “i’m just saying. sometimes people change on you, and you notice all at once. nothing wrong with that.”
annabeth crossed her arms tight over her knees, scowling at the fire. but her chest wouldn’t settle.
and across the circle, percy looked over, just briefly, his eyes catching hers. his grin softened, like it always did when it was just for her, and annabeth’s stomach swooped so violently she almost cursed aloud.
silena’s quiet laugh beside her told her she’d noticed that too.
—
someone had decided the night needed games, so now half the group was huddled around in a rough circle, balancing soda cans on their knees while connor tried to explain the rules of something that sounded suspiciously made up.
“you spill it, you’re out,” he said, face solemn, eyes glittering. “last one holding wins.”
“this is just an excuse to get sticky,” clarisse grumbled, but she joined in anyway, planting her can on her leg with an expression like she was preparing for war.
percy slipped in beside annabeth, close enough that she caught a faint whiff of lake water and soap, and oh gods, her stomach chose that moment to flip again. she sat rigid, staring at her own soda like it might explode.
“you playing?” he asked, nudging her knee lightly with his. casual. easy. like he wasn’t singlehandedly ruining her ability to form coherent thought.
“obviously,” she said, trying to sound bored.
he grinned. “good! more people for me to beat.”
“you’re gonna lose,” she shot back automatically, grateful for the familiar rhythm. banter she could handle. banter was safe.
“you think?” he tilted his head, curls falling into his eyes. “prepare to be disappointed, wise girl.”
her chest clenched. don’t do that, she begged silently. don’t call me that right now.
silena, sitting on her other side, made a tiny, maddening sound — a hum laced with amusement. annabeth didn’t dare look at her.
the game began. soda sloshed, knees shook, everyone was laughing too loudly. connor lasted all of thirty seconds before his can toppled with a hiss, and travis shoved him gleefully while the rest roared.
percy, of course, was irritatingly good. he balanced his can with casual ease, throwing in little jokes, nudging annabeth like he was trying to make hers fall.
“stop it,” she hissed when his elbow brushed her.
“what? i’m not doing anything.” he grinned, the absolute menace.
her concentration cracked, her can wobbled, and sure enough — it spilled.
“out!” the stolls chorused.
annabeth groaned, setting her empty can aside.
percy leaned over, mock-solemn. “tragic. truly. you put up a brave fight.”
she shoved his shoulder, but her pulse was racing way too fast for such a dumb game.
silena’s voice slid into her ear like silk. “you two are ridiculous.”
annabeth whipped her head toward her. “what does that mean?”
silena just smiled, eyes glinting in the firelight. “nothing.”
“stop saying nothing when it obviously means something,” annabeth muttered.
“oh, it means something,” silena said sweetly, picking invisible lint off her jeans. “just not what you want me to say out loud.”
before annabeth could respond, clarisse shouted for a rematch, and the group tumbled into new chaos.
this time, they upped the stakes with dares for whoever dropped their can first. by the time michael yew was forced to sing a very off-key rendition of a campfire song, everyone was crying with laughter.
then it happened. percy’s can wobbled.
“drop it, drop it, drop it—” the stolls chanted.
annabeth leaned forward before she could stop herself. “come on, seaweed brain, focus.”
he caught her eye, grin flashing — and his can immediately tipped, fizzing over his knee.
the group howled. “DARE!”
percy groaned. “you guys are evil.”
“rules are rules,” connor crowed. “okay, okay. i dare you to… serenade someone.”
the group whistled, groaned, shouted suggestions.
percy groaned louder. “no way.”
“yep!” travis said. “serenade. those are the rules. pick your victim.”
annabeth tried to sink into the ground. surely he wouldn’t.
he cleared his throat, glanced around the circle, then his eyes landed on her.
her stomach dropped.
“you’ve got to be kidding me,” she muttered.
his grin was sheepish, boyish. “sorry, wise girl. guess you’re stuck with me.”
and then, gods help her, he started singing.
terribly.
half the group was doubled over laughing, half were shouting encouragement. percy leaned into the joke, crooning some nonsense about “building a cabin in my heart,” his voice cracking spectacularly off-key.
annabeth wanted the earth to swallow her whole. she was laughing so hard her cheeks hurt, but her chest was a mess — too warm, too tight, too much.
silena’s hand squeezed her knee lightly, conspiratorial.
when the song finally ended in a dramatic bow, the group applauded wildly. percy shot her a grin, breathless and unbothered.
and annabeth? she couldn’t breathe at all.
—
later, when the games had dissolved into smaller clusters, annabeth sat off to the side again, trying to cool her face in the night air. silena drifted over, graceful as ever, a sly smile tugging at her mouth.
“you’re doomed,” she said lightly, plopping down beside her.
“i’m not—”
“annabeth.” silena’s tone softened, though her eyes still sparkled. “i’m older, not blind. he’s practically glowing every time he looks at you, and you…” she gestured vaguely, elegant fingers waving. “you’re sitting here acting like you don’t have sparks shooting out of your ears.”
annabeth buried her face in her hands. “please stop.”
silena laughed, warm and uncruel. “okay, okay. i’ll stop.” a beat. “but seriously. it’s not a bad thing, you know. noticing him. it just means you’re human.”
annabeth groaned into her palms. “i hate you.”
“no, you don’t.” silena leaned back, satisfied. “but you’re welcome.”