If there was ever a time where Percy would almost consider possibly drinking, it's now. But he doesn't order a drink, even when Nico offers to buy. Percy Jackson doesn't drink. Despite having about fifteen years to get over it, he's still pretty affected by his mom's ex-husband, the man he used to call Smelly Gabe.

Percy didn't think it would be so hard being in New Rome with all his old friends. Sure, he has his traveling buddy Nico. Whenever Sally insists he invites a friend over for dinner, it's always Nico. He's grateful for their friendship, although they aren't as close as his mother thinks they are. Nico's a full-time counselor at Camp Half-Blood and Percy's a marine biology teacher. There isn't much time for getting together anymore. And besides, things have always been a little awkward between the two of them. Nico accepted who he is and paired off with Will Solace. They didn't go their separate ways entirely; they kept in touch, but after Annabeth broke up with Percy, they came across a rough patch in their friendship. Percy had long since apologized; it was all his fault. He was frustrated and jealous that Nico spent so much time with Annabeth after she dumped him.

He just can't get over Annabeth. Call him stupid, but he was expecting the girl he left at Camp Half-Blood to come through that revolving door, crutches and all, just how he left her.

But she wears a leather jacket now! And she has those crazy piercings! She's cool.

Percy watches as Nico finishes off his first beer. The hotel bar is a strange place to meet up, but Frank texted them both and told them that's where they'd go over the itinerary.

She probably drinks now. Gods, Percy's worst nightmare is probably true; there's no way she hasn't dated other guys. The idea of Annabeth kissing someone else, having what they had with some other guy...

"Could I have another Coke please?" Percy asks the bartender. Sure, Percy's a sentimental guy, but he'd always thought he'd be able to move on. He always reassured himself that someday, when he was ready, he'd find another girl that could make him happy.

But now he's almost thirty years old, and he's still not ready. Everything he and Annabeth did together just isn't the same with someone else. Other girls don't laugh while he cheats at skipping rocks. They don't call him 'Seaweed Brain' or build the most elaborate sandcastles.

And they definitely didn't fall into Tartarus with him. It's weird, going from literal hell and back to reality, and then the person you went through it all with saying 'Hey, it's not working out, sorry.'

He tried taking another girl for a walk on the beach once. She just didn't get it the same way he did. She nodded when he told her about the different kinds of animals that used to live in the shells they found, but she wasn't paying attention. He could tell. She kept gazing at his abs and asking if they were going back to her place soon. He couldn't leave his mother home alone overnight. Besides, what's the point in having sex with someone you barely even know?

Percy gave in to one of those girls once. When Paul came home from the boarding school one week for Thanksgiving break, he tried it out. He met with a woman he found online for dinner, both of them knowing how the night would end. That sure made things awkward. She didn't even look like her pictures; brown roots were overtaking her bleach blonde hair, and her eyes were brown, not blue. He went through with it anyway, but it wasn't right. It wasn't Annabeth.

He tells himself it isn't weird or creepy, but deep down he knows how weird and potentially creepy it is whenever he thinks about that night in the stables on the Argo II, when he and Annabeth had been away from each other for so long, and all they wanted was to be close. It didn't matter that they were only teenagers; they'd been through so much together, and they were so confident that they were meant to be.

They were also fairly confident they were going to die in the near future, but that's aside from the point.

Annabeth was his first, and he was hers. That has to mean something to her, right?

Maybe this is how she felt when he almost dated Rachel.

"Hey, guys!"

Percy almost spills his Coke when Frank's voice pulls him from his reminiscing. Wow, he was just pining over his ex-girlfriend at a bar. What has his life come to?

"What's up, man?" Percy says, going in for a hug.

"Oh, not much, just gettin' married in a few days, how about you?" Classic Frank. "Hey, Damien! Can we get these guys some more drinks, please? And I'll have a beer too, please," Frank says. Even as a giddy groom, Frank has the best manners.

"Listen, I know I talked to Nico about this a little bit but I just wanted to make sure everyone knows that Annabeth and Will are definitely going to be here," Frank says a little too late.

"Oh, we've seen 'em," Nico says.

"Oh," says Frank. "So you know about Will's boyfriend?"

Nico almost falls out of his seat, and he isn't even drunk.

"No, he didn't mention a boyfriend. We didn't talk to them for very long," Percy says. It was such an awkward encounter, he wonders if Annabeth actually had a Minotaur horn in the car or if that was just an excuse to leave. Knowing his Wise Girl, probably both.

He needs to stop thinking like that. She's not his Wise Girl anymore.

"Oh." Frank grabs his drink and sticks his other hand in his sweatshirt pocket. "Well, he told me he's dating this guy that he works at the hospital with; I think his name's Bill? He didn't say much more; just that they're always working the same shift since they don't get much time to hang out outside of work."

Nico looks a little pale.

Percy's surprised too. He assumed Will turned out to be a hot mess based on the scarf-in-the-revolving door incident. Now he works at a hospital? Percy's happy for him. Helping people has always been Will's passion.

"Anyway, how does Annabeth seem? I haven't seen her yet. Shoot, I shouldn't have asked that," Frank turns red.

"Nah, it's okay." Percy knew he was going to get a lot of Annabeth-related attention when he got off the plane; he's not surprised by the question. "She's uh, different."

"If by 'different' you mean completely punk. She looks like she kills Minotaurs every other day!" Nico exclaims.

"What?" Frank asks.

"It's for real," Nico continues. "She's got a leather jacket and piercings and I couldn't see anything, but I wouldn't be surprised if she has tattoos and stuff."

"You're joking." Frank waves Nico off.

"The piercings! They're on her face! Her face, I tell you!" Maybe Nico is a little bit buzzed.

"Okay, now I know for sure. You're just trying to get me all nervous before my wedding. Pool anyone?" Frank asks. He's going to be very surprised when he finally does see Annabeth.

Percy grabs a cue stick while Frank carefully arranges the balls on the table.

"So the satyr at the desk said we're supposed to ask you about an itinerary," Percy says to Frank.

"Oh yeah." Frank debates between two cues. "Today everyone in the wedding party is getting here and settled, so nothing to commit to, but we're also not providing dinner. Do you want to break?"

Everyone in the wedding party? Is Annabeth a bridesmaid then?

"You go ahead and break. It's your special week, after all," Percy says.

Frank opts for the shorter stick and carefully places the little white cue ball on the green felt table. He sticks his tongue out in concentration, ready to fire.

"Today's kind of a day for us to explore the New Rome resort. It's newly built since most of you have been here last," Frank explains.

That makes sense. Percy doesn't recall there being a resort when he stayed at New Rome last.

Colorful balls scatter all over the table. The solid blue number two ball falls into a corner pocket.

"I think Piper planned Hazel's bachelorette party for this evening though. Nothing we have to go to, so I'm not really in the know on that." Frank aims the cue ball at the orange five.

Nico scoffs from his barstool. "Hazel? Bachelorette party? In the same sentence?"

Frank shrugs before taking his shot. It's close, but the orange five bounces off the fuzzy wall.

"I guess I'm playing stripes then," says Percy. Where to aim? The lighting in the hotel bar is pretty bad, and he hasn't played pool in forever.

"Oh!" says Frank, distracting Percy from his shot. "We do have a commitment tomorrow morning; there's a brunch that everyone needs to be present for. We're unveiling a memorial for Jason."

Percy remembers. Instead of putting gifts on a registry, Hazel and Frank asked for donations on a GoFundMe to build a garden dedicated to Jason Grace. Their friend had died in battle alongside the god- at that point human, then god again- Apollo about ten years ago.

Percy aims at an orange-striped ball and takes aim. The ball knocks into one of Frank's, moving off-course. Shoot.

"The bachelor party starts in the afternoon. Percy, are you still good to police everyone's alcohol?" Frank circles the table like a shark looking for his next target.

"That's a weird time for Leo to get drunk, but fine by me. I don't drink," Percy says. He's always been transparent about his temperance.

Frank shoots a green ball into a side pocket and then continues. "We're decorating the venue before we actually start partying, so no pregaming. Please."

"Tell that to Leo," Nico says.

Frank laughs as he sinks another ball.

"Where are we going for the bachelor party?" Nico asks.

"The resort has a glow-in-the-dark mini-golf course. I thought it would be fun and tame enough," Frank says. He sinks two more balls in one shot. He's kicking Percy's butt.

"And then the next evening is the rehearsal dinner," Frank says. He sinks another ball. And another.

"Let me have a turn, will ya?" Percy jokes.

Frank misses the next shot and passes the game off to Percy. "The wedding's the next morning. But I think everyone knows that."

Percy aims for the same orange-striped ball. It's in an even better spot now.

He loses control of the cue stick, sending the black eight ball into the far pocket.

Nico laughs. It's unsettling, hearing the otherwise quiet son of Hades busting a gut.

"Good game," says Frank.

Percy knows though, that it was not, in fact, a good game.