Preface
Annabeth Jackson, 33 years old, was standing at the sink, staring at a little pregnancy test, tears in her eyes. Percy, her husband of 5 years, was on his way home from work because she had called him, distressed. After convincing the taxi driver to break multiple traffic laws in order to get home faster, he ran up the stairs and nearly broke down the front door.
“Annabeth?” he called. He walked into the bedroom and saw her standing against the counter in the adjoining bathroom. “What’s wrong?”
“Percy.” She looked up, smiling. Tears were still falling from her eyes. “I’m pregnant.”
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“You want what?”
“Chocolate. Lots of it. And, um, cheese crackers. And those weird popsicles we hate so much?”
“The banana ones?”
“Yeah—I want those.”
Percy sighed, nodding. He kissed his wife’s forehead and headed for the door.
“Wait! And spinach. And ravioli, with the lobster in the middle?”
“Do you wanna just make me a list?”
“No, it’s really not that much! Just that and then a bottle of red wine—ya know the doctor said I could have half a glass a night, still?”
“Yeah, yeah.”
“And ice cream!”
“We have ice cream.”
“I know—I want the rocky road ice cream. With the marshmallows.”
“Annabeth, just make a list.”
“No! Trust me, it’s easy to remember.”
Ten more items later, Percy was clumsily writing down things on his hand.
“I love you,” she told him as he walked towards the door.
“Yeah, I know.”
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The doctor had just finished rubbing what looked like whale snot on Annabeth’s expanding tummy when she asked how the couple was handling the pregnancy. They exchanged a glance.
“Pretty good.”
“You ready to know the sex?”
Annabeth squeezed Percy’s hand. “I am if you are.”
Percy took a deep breath and nodded.
The doctor moved the wand over to the left side of Annabeth’s belly and smiled. “It’s a girl. Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Jackson. You have a baby girl.”
Annabeth beamed and Percy looked ecstatic.
“Have you guys talked about names, yet?”
“Um, no, not yet.”
“Well, no rush, but now that you know, it might be a good idea.”
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Annabeth sighed, looking over her list. “Sara, Rebecca, Shannon, Abby—”
“None of them fit.”
She nodded. “I know. We just haven’t found the right name, yet. Don’t worry; we will.”
“Annabeth, you’re due in two weeks!”
“So? Relax, we’ll find the name.”
The discussed, argued, checked websites and books for hours. Finally, Annabeth sighed and stood from the couch.
“I’m going to bed.”
“That reminds me—you’re not gonna keep your knife in the side table drawer anymore, are you?”
“Of course!”
Percy sighed. “Annabeth…”
“Oh, relax. Like she’s gonna get a hold on my knife. Besides, it’s celestial bronze, so…” She paused and Percy stood, walking into the bedroom. “It’s celestial,” she muttered again. “Celeste.”
“What?”
“Celeste. It’s the name.”
Percy arched an eyebrow. “Celeste?” He smiled. “Celeste. Celeste!” He hugged Annabeth as best he could with her big belly, kissing her. “It’s the name.”
Annabeth grinned. “Celeste Anne Jackson.”
“It’s the name,” he repeated, kissing her once more. “It’s our daughter, Annabeth. It’s our daughter.”
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“I. HATE. YOU.”
“I’m sure you do, dear, just keep pushing.”
She screamed, squeezing his hand tighter. Percy was sure that if he hadn’t been invulnerable, he would have been in a lot of pain, possibly cutting off circulation, but even so, he still wouldn’t have let go. Annabeth looked sweaty and in pain, legs propped up, hair falling out of her ponytail, sticking to her cheeks. She squeezed his hand tighter still as another contraction hit.
“Keep pushing,” one of the doctors instructed.
She screamed, doing as she was told.
“You’re doing great, sweetheart.”
“Shut. Up.”
“I love you, too.”
“One more big push!”
The loudest scream of them all and Annabeth was relaxing back against the pillows, eyes closed. Percy kissed her forehead. The room was silent for a second and then the piercing cry of a child hit the air.
Percy grinned, looking at his wife. “She’s here, Annabeth.”
“Is she beautiful?”
“Gorgeous, just like her mother.”
She smiled. “I didn’t mean what I said, Percy. I love you.”
“I know.”
“I need a nap.”
He chuckled. “I know. The doctors are going to get you cleaned up, okay? And then you can hold her.”
As he stood, a nurse smiled at him, holding a little pink bundle. “Mr. Jackson, here’s your daughter.”
The nurse showed him how to hold her, and Percy felt tears flowing down his cheeks as he held his daughter. She was beautiful. She had little blonde hairs sticking out from the top of her head in a puff. Her eyes were a beautiful sea green and she was staring up at him with them wide open, her perfect pink lips pursed. Her gaze made it seem like she knew who he was.
“Hello, beautiful,” he said, laughing away his tears. “Welcome to the world.”
Annabeth glanced over at him. “Are you crying?”
“Yeah, yeah, just don’t tell Nico.”
“What color are her eyes?”
Percy smiled. “Green.” He glanced at her and noticed she was crying, too. “She’s beautiful. Your hair, my eyes. She’s perfect.”
“Celeste Anne Jackson,” Annabeth muttered. “Our daughter.”