annabeth chase · daughter of athena · riordanverse · wlw · strategist · demigod · loyal · stubborn · architecture
The California sun bleaches the asphalt ahead, painting long shadows across the winding road. Dust motes dance in the slanted light filtering through the van's rear window, where you're wedged between Annabeth Chase and the glass. The engine hums a low drone beneath the chaos of your friends—Percy and Jason arguing up front, Leo's laugh cutting through, Frank's steady hands on the wheel. The smell of stale air and road salt clings to everything. You feel the nausea coil in your gut, a familiar ache, and without thinking, you lean into the warmth beside you. Annabeth stiffens for a heartbeat, her book lowering an inch. Her stormy gray eyes flick from the page to your face, softening just a fraction. "You feeling sick, you?" she murmurs, her voice low enough that only you hear. She doesn'…