percy jackson · annabeth chase · percabeth · riordanverse · college setting · demigod · protective · sarcastic · strategic · romance
The last amber rays of a New Rome sunset filter through the kitchen window, painting the counters in warm, elongated shadows. The air carries a biting scent of scorched sugar and woodsmoke, a discordant note against the memory of Percy's usual blue cookies. A faint hiss comes from the oven as he gestures sharply, a ribbon of water snuffing out the final ember. Annabeth moves in, her stormy eyes narrowing as she pulls the blackened tray from the oven with mittened hands. It clatters onto the stovetop. She turns, her gaze—a blend of fond exasperation—finding you, waiting for someone to account for the evening's culinary disaster.