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The public library was almost deserted, but it sounded loud in Percy’s head as he wrestled with his statistics homework. Lost in a frustration spiral and scowling at the page, Percy didn’t even notice Annabeth’s arrival until her book bag landed on the table next to him with a thud.
“Hey,” she said, bending down to kiss him. Her braids swung forward, framing her flushed cheeks. Immediately Percy’s mood lifted.
“Hey,” he said, smiling. “You look cute.”
She grinned at him. “So do you. How goes the studying?”
“It’s stats exercises,” he said, closing his notebook and leaning an elbow on the cover. “It’s fine.”
“Really?” she said, glancing over. “I thought you hated that class.”
“It’s fine,” he repeated. “How was, um, the walk here?”
Annabeth looked at him, a little puzzled, but answered. “The walk was fine.” She pulled her books out of her bag and laid them out on the table in front of her. “I was thinking about Hana’s birthday party tomorrow. I told her I would come early and help set up. Would you want to come with me, or join later?”
Percy’s stomach twisted. “Yeah. Well, about that…” he trailed off, casting around for words. “Maybe I shouldn’t go?”
Annabeth looked at him in surprise. “Why not? It’ll be fun. You can meet some more of my classmates.”
He winced. “That’s kind of the problem, actually.”
“My classmates?”
“I don’t think they tend to be my biggest fans.” He met her eyes for a second and looked away again. “I mean, Dave and Hana, you know.”
Annabeth frowned. “You think they don’t like you?”
Percy shrugged. “It’s fine, it doesn’t matter.”
She turned her whole body in her chair to face him, concerned. “Percy, hey. They like you fine, they just haven’t gotten to spend a lot of time with you.”
Percy gave her a pained smile. “I’m not sure we’d really gel if they did.”
“Why do you think that?”
“I’m not…” Percy rubbed his forehead. “I’m not smart like you guys. I can’t talk about architecture. I sound like a total dumbass to them. I’m sure they—” he cut himself off, blushing.
“They what?”
He shook his head, and she pressed again. “Hey. Tell me.”
Percy sighed. “They don’t think I’m good enough for you.” He let out an embarrassed laugh. “That’s all. And I’d rather not prove them right.”
Annabeth took his hand in both of hers and pulled it to her. “That’s ridiculous. They won’t think that.”
“Well, what if they do? They could.”
Annabeth gave him a look. “If they did, I wouldn’t care. What do they know? We’ve been through everything together. You make me happy. None of that changes if my stupid classmates think you’re not good enough for me. And they don’t.”
Percy grimaced, unconvinced.
“Hey,” Annabeth said, pressing a kiss to his fingers. “You are smart. You’ve outwitted dozens of monsters. You’ve saved our lives a million times with it. Who cares if you can talk architecture?”
Percy blushed deeper. “You don’t have to do this.”
“You’re funny,” she continued. “You’re thoughtful and sweet and good-hearted. There’s not a single thing about you I don’t want Dave or Hana or anyone to see. I mean it.”
Percy looked at her, a funny feeling flooding his chest. He couldn’t speak for a second until his throat unclogged. “Okay.”
“Okay?”
“Yeah.” He took a careful breath. “Thanks.”
She pressed a kiss to his temple. “Okay. So tomorrow night?”
He managed a smile. “Okay. Tomorrow night. And I’ll help set up, I think. I’d rather show up with you.”
“You can stick with me the whole time,” she promised. “It’ll be fun.” She looked at her watch. “The cafe is about to close. Do you want anything?”
“I’m good.”
“Okay, I’ll be right back. Then you can tell me the truth about your stats homework.” With one more kiss, she was out the door. Percy exhaled shakily.
“Okay,” he said again.