13: The Aftermath

Percy POV

I felt like I was floating on a cloud. It was an amazing feeling to finally get together with Annabeth. No words could describe the love and warmth.

I watched as Annabeth fixed herself in front of the dresser mirror.

"Gods, Wise Girl, you're so stunning," I whispered.

Clearly, she heard me considering that she started to smile. Her hands worked to readjust her dress that hugged her body in all of the right ways. Then, she grabbed her heels.

I got up and wrapped my arms around her waist, which interrupted her actions.

My almost naked body pressed into her backside as I kissed her neck. Annabeth relaxed as her head rested against my shoulder. I watched her through the mirror before pressing my lips against her left cheek. I was so happy right now; I couldn't even function.

Annabeth pulled away first and wore her shoes.

Then, she turned around and passionately kissed me. I melted into the kiss. My brain managed to escape from my head.

Wise Girl smirked as she ordered me to get dressed.

"Wait, Annabeth," I interrupted. She paused at the door. Her hand was on the doorknob as she turned to face me.

"I want to make this work. It's gonna be complicated, but I don't care. I love you," I expressed genuinely.

Annabeth's smile was incredible as she nodded. I would never forget the happiness that was on her face just then. She left the room first, probably to go and find Thalia.

I started humming a happy tune as I got dressed.

I left the room and decided to find Jason. He was my best friend, and I needed to tell someone the amazing news that Annabeth and I got together. Besides, Jason knew about my feelings for Annabeth in the past and present. In fact, he always urged me to make a move, but I hesitated. Until today that is.

Technically, Annabeth made the first move, which made me admire her more. She was intelligent and fierce, and I loved those qualities about her.

I fixed my blazer and pants once again as I walked downstairs. I didn't need random people getting suspicious about me and my relationship.

Jason was in the kitchen, grabbing a drink. The music that was playing from the speakers was moderately loud.

"Bro," I exclaimed happily. He turned around in surprise. "Woah, you seem way too happy," he chuckled.

"That's because I am," I cheered.

I took the drink from him since I was really thirsty. The fruit punch was definitely spiked with some vodka, but I didn't mind or care. I've had alcohol before because it was legal in other countries for eighteen-year-olds to drink. Besides, no bartender restricted a pop star that they fancied.

"Bro, you left with Annabeth. Wait, what happened with you two?" Jason asked. A sly smile was already creeping onto his face, but he was waiting for me to confirm.

"I love her, man. It was incredible. I don't care that we're friends and worlds apart, she gets me in a way that no one else does. I just wanna be with her," I expressed.

Jason's face brightened into a smile.

However, another gruff voice spoke up before Jason could. "Percy, I need to speak with you now."

My smile faded slightly as I turned around. Zeus, Artemis, Ares, and Chiron were all waiting for me to follow them. However, I was still too happy to be discouraged by their presence.

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you guys as well," I said firmly.

"NOW," Zeus ordered.

He stormed away, and the others started following. I noticed Chiron's face constrict with worry and sadness as he gently patted my shoulder.

"Come on, Percy," he said quietly.

"Chiron, what's going on? Why do you look like that?" I asked.

My smile was officially gone. Chiron didn't say anything as we walked up to the third floor. His face was grim, though. Even though it was prohibited, we all traveled upstairs and to the office room anyway.

"What's she doing here?" I asked immediately.

Rachel Elizabeth Dare was smiling all too innocently while sitting on the leather chair around the board table. "Hello, Percy," she whispered seductively. I rolled my eyes as I looked around the office room. There were a lot of windows that acted as weak mirrors.

"Take a seat, Percy. I am furious right now," Zeus ordered gruffly.

Artemis sat down quickly. Her eyes held such sympathy as she gazed at me. Ares on the other hand was smirking. Atlas was also in the room, sitting next to Rachel.

"What is going on?" I asked hesitantly.

I was still standing close to the door: not in front of it, but near it. No one was directly in front of the door. No one bothered to close the door since the entire floor was empty.

"I'm gonna be your new girlfriend," Rachel said firmly.

"Excuse me? Are you freaking crazy? The only person that I want to be in a relationship with is literally downstairs," I said boldly.

"Perseus," Zeus's voice boomed. His fists slammed the table as he stood up. All eyes turned towards the angry director.

"You, an Olympus Records celebrity, will not date a nobody girl, who had nothing. The label will not have that."

"She's not a nobody," I shouted back.

"Enough," Ares exclaimed. "Zeus is the director of Olympus Records, and we control your entire career. Don't throw it away."

His voice was scary, but I didn't understand where this was coming from.

"You don't have the power to control my relationships. That is personal. How do you even know about Annabeth and me?" I asked seriously. I had no clue what was going on. However, I wasn't simply gonna listen to them and abandon Wise Girl.

Chiron's hand gently gripped my arm. He was warning me to not push right now. However, this was too big of a deal to simply succumb to their demands.

Zeus breathed out before looking up again. Rachel smirked as she crossed her legs in confidence. Even Atlas was smiling slyly as he handed his phone to Zeus.

"You will do as I say unless you want these photos to leak out," Zeus said sternly. He slid the phone towards Chiron, who showed me the pictures.

My eyes widened. They were pictures of me and Annabeth kissing. We were outside of the bedroom that we entered about an hour ago. One picture clearly caught our faces as we lovingly looked into each other's eyes. We looked fabulous and in love, considering our classy outfits and heated gaze. Another picture was with my lips pressed on hers. A third picture showed me hoisted Annabeth up against the door.

"What the hell?!" I exclaimed.

Atlas stood up and narrowed his gaze towards me. "This Annabeth Chase has dreams of attending Julliard and performing in broadway. Getting caught up in a scandal will not be good," he warned.

I stared at him helplessly. The pieces were falling into place.

This was blackmail.

The label didn't want their hot commodity to be with (under their standards) a normal girl. They didn't care about my feelings and my love. Atlas was in cahoots with Rachel, who wanted to get with me. Even the label supported me being with a socialite heiress like Rachel.

"It's not a scandal," I said sadly. "I love her. She's incredible and talented, and we want to be together in a committed relationship."

"Do you want to ruin her dreams?" Atlas asked sternly.

Annabeth was one of the most talented people that I knew. She had a hard personal life, but music and acting kept her going. She was pursuing her dreams, and she was very close to accomplishing them.

I shook my head as hot, angry tears burned my eyes. This could not be happening. They couldn't just control who I loved and who I could be with.

"I, no, Annabeth and I belong together. You can't just blackmail me to not be with her and get with Rachel instead," I said firmly. Artemis nodded, but Chiron's hand tightened on my arm.

Rachel giggled as she took the phone with the pictures. She swiftly handed it to Atlas. Zeus also had his phone out with identical pictures on it.

Zeus's cold glare fell upon my helpless self.

"It will take two seconds for these pictures to go to the paparazzi. They will have this girl as frontline news by tomorrow morning," Zeus warned dangerously.

My hands turned into fists. Chiron's hand moved to cover my cleansed first. He was trying very hard to control himself and me. Artemis seemed like she was close to crying since she was on my side.

Then, my gaze turned to Atlas and Rachel.

"And, considering that I run one of the biggest celebrity channels in the world, I can spin whatever story I want," Atlas paused as he took Rachel's hand gently.

"I will transform sweet, little Annabeth Chase into a terrible scandal (a golddigger, an opportunist, and worse) unless you leave her and join Rachel."

Gods, I hated them. They were taking my love and destroying it.

A few minutes passed by in silence. I sucked in deep breaths as I controlled the storms in my eyes. I wasn't going to cry, at least not in front of them.

I had gotten together with Annabeth, and I was losing her already.

The first time that I pulled away from her was awful, but I survived because I thought that it was for the best. I was wrong. Our friendship was destined to become something more.

I realized my mistake, and I confessed my love for her today. I promised her that I would make this work, but I couldn't. I was letting her down again.

She didn't deserve this, and I didn't deserve her.

"Percy, this is a big deal, and it will greatly influence your life. Please, think about yourself and think about her," Chiron's voice resonated. His fatherly tone was full of concern.

My hands shook, and my body trembled. I couldn't speak up because I knew that my voice would betray me. I took another deep breath.

"What choice do I have, Chiron?" I said slowly.

Then, my gaze shifted towards the window. A reflection of Annabeth showed in the mirror. She had come upstairs and was waiting outside of the office room. Clearly, Annabeth had just arrived since she was curiously waiting for my answer.

I was glad that she didn't hear everything that happened beforehand.

"So, what are you going to do, Percy?" Zeus asked gruffly.

The silence that followed was deafening.

Rachel smirked as she watched Annabeth's reflection on the window mirror. Gods, I couldn't believe that I was giving up someone as wonderful as Wise Girl for Rachel.

She shifted closer towards me as she whispered, "well, well, it looks like you have a decision to make."

Chiron's arm went around my shoulder as I sighed. They had too much leverage on my relationship. I knew what I was gonna do, but that didn't make it any easier.

"It, it was a mistake. Annabeth and I would never work. Besides, tonight, it- it wasn't even that good anyway," I expressed sadly.

Lies, all lies.

Tonight meant everything to me before it came crashing down. I knew that those words would hurt her, but they were breaking me as well.

From outside of the room, I heard Annabeth's footsteps recede away from me. It was evident that she wasn't alone.

Zeus smiled in satisfaction. Atlas and Rachel both nodded at each other. Rachel licked her lips as her gaze intensified me, but I ignored her.

A tear escaped my eye and streamed down my left cheek. I wiped it away quickly as I waited for nothing but pain and hopelessness to take over.

I'm sorry, Wise Girl, my mind repeated over and over.