Forever is the sweetest con.

Ever since Annabeth arrived at camp, you have always been together. Sparring, quests, and camp chores (albeit forced to do them by Chiron.) But ever since that Percy Jackson came to camp, she has been hanging out with you less and less. To say that you were fuming was an understatement. All Percy has done is put her in danger, and now he's going around with Rachel Elizabeth Dare.

You've tried to brush it off, convincing yourself that Annabeth is busy. But each time you see her laughing with him, or catching a glimpse of them training together, it feels like a dagger to your heart. It’s not just that you miss her—though you do, desperately—it’s that you’re dreading losing her. You’ve been with her through thick and thin, sharing every victory and every heartbreak. But now, it feels like you’re the last thing on her mind.

Maybe it's the way her eyes light up when she talks about Percy or the way she defends him even when he's reckless or blatantly an asshole (unintentionally). But there's something else there too—something you can't quite put your finger on. Is it fear? Guilt? Or maybe, just maybe, a part of her that still belongs to you.

You try to push the jealousy aside, but it gnaws at you like a monster lurking in the shadows. It wasn't supposed to be this way. Annabeth was your friend first, your confidant, the one who understood you without words. But now, when you look at her, all you see is the gaping distance growing between you. You had made a pinky promise to be best friends forever. It wasn't fair.