Hold Me Close

Prologue

I AM NOT ANNABETH CHASE OR RICK RIORDAN, THEREFORE I DO NOT OWN PERCY JACKSON 😊

Leo

It had been mere weeks since I saw my mother last. Her eyes sparkling in the light of the machine shop, her laugh echoing through the building. That didn't mean that I was over it. By far. I was more alone than ever, running the streets by myself.

I was hungry, garbage diving for some yummy treats, when I heard the crash. Some kids that were leaning against the wall turned around, a blond boy and a dark haired girl, both looking dirty and broken, and I hide under a trash can lid.

Sadly, that spot was taken. An angry kid shoved me to the ground, eyes sparkling. She was about my age, maybe older, clearly annoyed that I'd sat my dirty behind on her flannel pajamas. Her hair was a curly blonde rat's nest, with streaks of dirt down her cheeks.

"Who're you?" She whispered angrily, glaring at me. I stumbled backwards, my clunky shoes causing me to fall straight on my back, a discarded can o' beans slamming onto my back.. That's gonna hurt in the morning. I groaned, looking back up at the kid. To be honest, she was quite scary.

"Leo." I said, trying to stand up. The girl went stiff, her eyes becoming unfocused slightly. Just as I opened my mouth to tell her she was a nutjob, her hand flew over my mouth and she dragged me to sit beside her. The silver garbage can lid slid over us and we were in darkness.

"Wh-" I moved her hand away, about to continue speaking, but I saw the terrified look in her eyes. I decided it might be best to keep my trap shut.

Footsteps echoed through the alley and the blonde went stiff as a board. Voices echoed through the alley.

"It's probably a cat." A girl said, clearly annoyed. The second person paused.

"I swear I heard voices, Thals." It was a dude. There was an audible sigh.

"It's a big city, Luke. Probably just a homeless guy murdering a little kid!" There was silence, "Hey, you know I'm just kidding, right?"

"Right." Luke replied, "C'mon, Thalia." The footsteps receded, echoing down the alley again. The girl exhaled, slowly moving the trash can lid from off of us. A week ago, I might've been scared for my life, but even a short time on the streets alone changes you.

"You okay?" The girl asked, holding out her hand to help me up. I accepted her offer, still trying to slow my breathing from being so scared. The girl, however, looked like she dealt with this stuff every day. After I escaped my foster home, I'd lived on my own on the streets. I moved around a lot, but since my foster home was in West Virginia and not Texas, I knew nothing about the area.

"Yeah." I said awkwardly, unsure what to say to the person who just saved my behind from going back to the foster home, "What's your name, anyway?" I asked to fill the silence.

"Annabeth. Annabeth Chase" She replied, holding out her hand. It seemed like a thing only adults did, but I shook her hand anyway.

"Why are you in an alley?" I asked, looking around at the reeking street. The sky above was a greyish blue, about to turn dark.

"I ran away." She said simply, "Which I assume is what you did too?" She asked. I nodded slowly.

"What happened to your parents?" I asked. I didn't mean to hurt her feelings, she seemed nice enough, but she winced and looked down.

"None of your business." She replied shortly. I went quiet.

"Sorry." I muttered, thinking of how I'd feel if someone asked me where my mom was.

"It's getting dark," She noted, "And I'm hungry. You can either come with me, or get caught by the police." I looked up, watching as she tried to hide a smile, "And that wouldn't be good."

I didn't know what made me do it, maybe the prospect of having a friend again, but I nodded. Seconds later, Annabeth led me from the alley, and we started the greatest adventure ever.