"Dangit," Percy says again. He's in a tough spot. He can dry his shirt with his powers, and let a stain set in, or he can try to get the spot out of his shirt using the hand soap. It's a true loss either way. At least it's not the shirt he's wearing for the wedding tomorrow.

Oh well. There are always plenty of people wandering around the resort in ridiculous attire. Leo wore a green fedora with matching suspenders to the rehearsal dinner, so it's incredibly doubtful that any heads will turn if Percy walks back to the hotel in just his pit-stained undershirt.

And he's right. Nobody even bats an eye. It's a relatively quiet trip. The bars are open, but happy hour doesn't start for another couple of minutes, so they're mostly empty. Besides, there's an open bar at the rehearsal dinner. Percy may not be well-versed in alcohol, but he knows his friends. They won't pay for beer if they don't have to.

It comes as a surprise when he makes it through the revolving doors without having some encounter with someone he knows. It's not good for Percy, being left to analyze his feelings. That's what his therapist Cletus is for.

Percy supposes that if he's going to be left to his thoughts, he better commit to it. Instead of going up the elevator, he follows the signs in the hotel until he reaches the indoor pool. He was never allowed to play in these when he was a little kid. His mom always said it was because they're gross and full of pee. Now that he's older, he wonders if there was more reasoning to that.

This is going to look weird on the security cameras, some guy about to sit in the bottom of the pool fully clothed for a concerningly long amount of time.

And then he wonders what Annabeth's doing here, sitting on the ledge at the shallow end of the pool, legs dangling in the water. She looks pretty much the same as she did at dinner, except now her hair's pulled back into its usual bun, complete with chopsticks. He can't say he misses the weird lip piercings.

"Funny seeing you on my turf," Percy jokes.

She doesn't answer. She's probably mad.

Instead of pressing her, Percy removes his undershirt and Rachel's bandana and hops into the pool, not bothering to keep from splashing Annabeth.

The water is unnaturally warm; he can't decide if he would prefer it cold or not. It's nice to be in the pool though, even if there aren't any fish to talk to.

He sits at the bottom with his legs crossed and says a little prayer to Poseidon.

Percy prays for his mom to get better soon. She remembered his name when he checked in on her this morning, but last night was pretty scary. He thanks his dad for friends like Nico and Frank and Leo, who've promised to be there for his mom when he can't.

He also prays for some way to patch up his relationship with Annabeth. At this point, he doesn't even care if they get back together or not; all Percy wants is a chance to talk it out, maybe to get some closure. If only there was some sort of sign, some outlet where they can open up to each other.

Percy takes a deep breath and opens his eyes. Praying to his dad isn't exactly the most fruitful thing to do. Gods aren't typically responsive, especially when their kids are grown-up adults, but he does feel better.

He notices Annabeth's feet stirring the water ever so slightly. He remembers a time when he might have grabbed her ankles and pulled her underwater with him for a sweet kiss.

Oh, wait, this might be that sign he asked for. Thanks, Dad.

He tickles the bottom of her foot, trying to be friendly, but she kicks him in the face. He's going to pretend that's just a reflex.

"Ow!" Percy shouts when he comes up out of the water.

Annabeth's slightly taller than him since she's got the high ground. In a Star Wars movie, she might have the advantage, but the water- even gross communal pool water- always sides with Percy.

She scowls at him.

"I'm just having a little fun." Percy creates a little whirlpool in front of him.

"Yeah, well, maybe don't," she says.

"Hey, c'mon..."

"No, you come on," Annabeth says. "I can't take this anymore, okay? I should've never let Will drag me here!" Her voice echoes off the wall. "I mean, I knew this was gonna suck ass with you being here, but now there's monsters and I think Will wants to get back together with Nico, and Reyna's probably told everyone about me by now!"

"Uh..." Percy's not sure how to comprehend this.

Annabeth smacks her palm against her forehead. "Oh, fuck, I can't believe I'm just dumping this on my ex like some sort of sap! You were right; I really am washed-up. I'm a loser!"

"You're not a loser!" says Percy. "You've figured out most of this monster thing with Pothos! I wouldn't have known that those were lyrics in the prophecy without you!"

"I don't mean just this! My whole life is a wreck!" She's crying now.

Percy can relate. His life is a wreck too. "Hey we've all made decisions we regret; I'm sure whatever it is, I've done worse-"

"Percy, I'm... I'm a Hooters girl," Annabeth says under her breath.

Oh.

Oh.

Wow, okay.

That's not what he was expecting.

So she's not an architect between projects.

"Go ahead and laugh," she says.

Percy's not sure what to say, but he's definitely not about to laugh. "Hey, it's okay. I'm not doing so hot either, to be completely honest." He's not a Hooters girl, but he's got problems. "I've never told anybody this before, well, besides my therapist, Cletus, but, I got this really awesome job down at a marine center in Florida, but I turned it down because I can't leave my mom. I'm teaching a course online. I'm supposed to be grading papers and I'm dyslexic."

"What's wrong with your mom?" Annabeth's voice is croaky.

Percy swallows. Don't cry, don't cry. "She's sick. Like, she can't remember stuff and she can't get around very well."

"Holy shit, why didn't you tell anyone?" Annabeth puts her hand on Percy's shoulder.

Percy stacks his hand over hers. "Nico knows. I don't like the way he acts when he's around her. It's like he knows something bad is about to happen."

"I hate when he gets like that."

"Yeah," says Percy. It's nice talking about this with Annabeth. It's almost like the way they used to be.

It's almost like the way they used to be.

Then, Percy has an idea. "Get in the pool."

"What?"

"Get in the pool with me. Please."

Annabeth looks down at her thigh. "I'm not supposed to submerge the tattoo."

"I'm the guy with the water powers, remember? C'mon." Percy wraps his hands around Annabeth's waist, and she latches onto his shoulders. Her touch is light but unwavering.

Percy forms an air bubble around her thigh so her tattoo doesn't get wet. "There. That's not so bad," he says.

"It's weirdly warm in here." Annabeth tightens her grip, but not enough to leave a mark.

Percy hugs her closer. He can feel tears falling from her face and streaming down his chest. They stay there like that for a while.

He finally breaks the silence with a joke. "You know, for a minute there, I thought you were going to like, come out to me or something. Well, I guess you came out as a waitress."

Annabeth pulls back and wipes a tear from her cheek. "I'm actually a bartender."

"That's cool."

"And I am bisexual."

"Oh."

Percy feels like he should say something more. "Thanks for telling me."

"I... I should've told you a long time ago. That's on me," says Annabeth.

"No," says Percy. "I'm sorry you weren't able to trust me with that. I had no idea that was something you were dealing with. Gods, I should've been a better boyfriend."

"No, you were great," says Annabeth. "I just didn't want to break your heart like that."

"You still did though."

"I'm sorry. You were the best boyfriend ever. You deserved better than that."

So it wasn't something Percy did to make Annabeth break up with him. She'd been dealing with these other feelings and needed to branch out, but didn't want to hurt him.

What would things have been like if she'd come out to him earlier? Would they be together now?

Percy decides not to dwell on it. That's in the past; it doesn't matter anymore. He's happy to be here now with Annabeth, even if she's a little different now.

"I am sorry I said all that stuff to you earlier, and for making fun of you in front of everyone. And I'm really sorry for calling you... that..." Percy says. He regretted calling her a bitch as soon as he said it. What was even worse was that she'd expected something worse. His mind has been racing for the past few hours, imagining all the horrible things people have called her that would make her like this.

"Percy?" Annabeth asks. "Can I just..." She presses her face back against his chest. "I'm just gonna cry here for a little while if that's okay."

"That's okay," Percy says. "I might cry too if it isn't weird."

"It's not much weirder than whatever just happened."

That's a valid point.

Annabeth Chase sure is smart.