Going Viral

Chapter 5

May 30th

"He's meeting the girl from twitter." Thalia scowled as Silena twisted her hair into an intricate crown round her head.

When Silena smirked, Percy felt a blush climb up his cheeks. Annabeth was more than 'the girl from twitter' but they didn't need to know that.

"Are you gonna tell her that you wrote a song about her?"

Several of the hair and makeup crew responded to Nico with various comments of "You did what?" and "Oh that's so cute", but Percy just shrugged.

"I can't tell her, I already look like a stalker."

Drew brushed his eyebrows with some toothbrush-looking thing and rolled her eyes.

Percy didn't like that everyone seemed so interested in Annabeth all of a sudden. One of the younger crew members, Lacy, squealed when she found out they were meeting. He had made her promise not to tell anyone. The last thing he needed was extra pressure from Annabeth's subscribers.

(If someone tweets 'get married already #percabeth' one more time, he might actually get down on one knee, and clearly it's too soon for that.)

Honestly, Percy wanted to find something 'wrong' with Annabeth. Something - anything - that might prevent him from melting the minute she flashes a smile at him. He's the lead guitarist in a world famous band, pretty girls on the internet weren't supposed to make him feel like this. Maybe he could find out that she didn't brush her teeth and then he would stop thinking about kissing her, or that she had an army of pet snakes - that would certainly keep Percy at a distance. But alas, he doubted anything like that would arise, or that they would actually stop him from thinking about her every second of this blasted shoot.

"Percy? I don't know where your head's at but you need to focus." Aphrodite's words stole his attention away from where his phone screen had lit up.

A camera flashed in his eyes and he blinked to get his vision back. Somehow he knows that Aphrodite is glaring at him from behind her sunglasses and thanks to fear alone, Percy manages to pull himself through the rest of the photoshoot. The photographer, a woman with fiery red hair and paint covered overalls, seemed to be in several places at one, snapping photos furiously. Chiron phoned her halfway through to make sure they had plenty of photos in different outfits so they can be used to accompany different interviews later in the year and so Percy finds himself in new clothes once again.

This time, he's wearing tight fitting white jeans, a blue and green button-down with a black leather jacket. Someone shakes their hand through his hair to 'rough him up' and then there's a camera in his face again. He feels a bit uncomfortable when someone decides to add some glitter and sequins too his cheekbones but he thinks that he got a better deal than Thalia who is currently wearing denim shorts, fishnets and heeled boots. The look fits her whole 'badass, scary lady' persona but her glare indicates her discomfort.

After three more outfits, someone calls the photoshoot to an end and they're allowed to get changed into their 'normal' clothes.

He and Annabeth had agreed to dress casually. The cafe they're meeting at isn't usually busy but neither of them want to be spotted by the press, so Percy opts to wear sunglasses with a crisp blue shirt and tan trousers. The clothes aren't his usual style but he wants to make a good impression and his mom picked it out for him.

"Have fun on your date, kelp head." Thalia winks at him as he makes his way to the door. The reminder of his childhood nickname makes him roll his eyes but he suppresses a retort, merely nodding at her in thanks.

It's only a short walk to the cafe but he travels quickly, not waiting to see if the nosy passersby are going to recognise him. When he gets there, the woman behind the counter smiles at him.

Demeter is a gentle woman. She has smile lines and a kind twinkle in her warm, brown eyes. Numerous times, she'd taken Percy into the back room to avoid an ambush of fans when he wanted a quiet moment. Percy is convinced she's never heard his music and probably hasn't a clue why teenage girls always beg for photos with him but he's not offended. It's quite refreshing to know that she's not going to tweet about his late night ventures to get a caffeine boost and a donut.

There's an empty table that he takes a seat at. It's far enough away that he isn't visible to anyone outside the window, but close enough that Annabeth will see him when she walks in.

Demeter delivers another customers order and stops by Percy's table. Carefully, she lifts off a leftover sequin from his face before patting his cheek. "Handsome boy. Who are you waiting for?"

"Her name is Annabeth." He answers, wiping his cheeks to be rid of any trace of glitter.

"Pretty name." She comments. "Pretty girl?"

"Yeah, she's..." Before Percy can finish the sentence, the bell on the door chimes and Annabeth walks in. He knows its her despite her disguise and he takes in her appearance before she can spot him staring.

She's wearing a pair of nude pink ankle boots, ripped, blue jeans and a loose fitted, white shirt. Her cardigan matches her shoes and falls to her knees. Percy meets her eyes through her shades and realises he's been spotted.

A small wave encourages her to walk over.

Annabeth puts her sunglasses in her bag as she walks and Percy notices she has a small amount of makeup. It isn't much, eyeshadow, mascara and eyeliner that Thalia would be proud of. Her freckles are faint as if she'd covered them up a little, but even so, Percy nods when Demeter mutters "Beautiful girl," and heads back to the till.

"Um, hey." He almost offers her his hand to shake but he stops himself.

"Hi." Annabeth holds his gaze. It feels confrontational but he blames that on the steely grey of her eyes and the way she bites her lip.

He gestures for her to take a seat opposite him and she does. They sit in silence. After a moment, Annabeth shakes her head.

"This is weird, right? Why are we being weird?"

"Uhh... I don't..." He stands. "I'll order. What do you want?"

Perhaps that wasn't his best ice-breaker but she answers all the same and he goes to the counter. Demeter chuckles while she makes their drinks.

"Oh, sweetheart," She hands him their order and winks while she advises him. "Relax."

Percy heads back to the table and places Annabeth's order in front of her. The smile he offers her is tentative but she scrunches her nose up and sticks her tongue out.

"Chill, Percy, I don't bite."

He forces his shoulders down and raises an eyebrow at her. "Could've fooled me."

Suddenly the tension has gone and they're laughing together like old friends. She comments about the sheer amount of E-numbers in his shake being able rot his teeth in about five minutes flat and he questions how on earth she drinks her coffee so bitter.

He wants to remember this. He's not entirely sure why, there's a weight in his mind that this is going to be important, he wants to remember this very moment. The awkwardness is still laced in the air but she's hiding behind her coffee cup and blinking up at him and she's definitely the most beautiful woman he's ever see. If he could take a mental photo, he would.

His phone is in his hand and he lifts it questioningly.

"Just don't post anything, please." Annabeth responds quietly and he nods, snapping a photo. When he shows it to her for her approval, she pulls out her own phone and Percy pulls a face that makes her grin. He feels lighter when she's smiling, weightless.