Chapter Text
This chapter was written by DaedalusDaVinci (friend on deviantART)
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Leo slammed the door to the bathroom and ducked into one of the stalls, locking the door before slumping against the wall and panting heavily.
The image of Nico and Percy entangled together in the classroom was seared into his mind like a brand. Leo couldn't ever remember feeling so much pain all at once. Not when his dog, Festus, had died, not when Calypso had left him for that Jake kid, not even when his mom had died. Leo couldn't deny it any longer. He was hopelessly in love with Nico Di Angelo.
It had hurt so bad when Leo had seen them. Thankfully, nobody had seemed to notice him. Percy and Nico were too busy eating each other's faces to notice anything, Leo thought bitterly. Jason, Leo's best friend, had been standing right there, smiling at the two like they were a mission he had finally completed. That just made it worse.
Percy had always been a cool guy, and Leo honestly liked him. But right now, Leo felt like punching him right where it hurts, then smashing his face in with a hammer for good measure. Where did he get off snogging Nico?
Leo's stomach twisted. That should be him right now, holding Nico close and tangling his long fingers in Nico's inky black hair, his warm body pressed against Nico's cold one as they kissed. There was a raging ball of jealousy inside of him, and the Latino didn't know how he was going to manage to contain it.
Sudden realization broke over Leo like a wave, water rolling down his cheeks like he'd just been splashed. He covered his face with his hands, hoping it would muffle the sound of his crying, though he knew it wasn't doing him much good. He mourned his unrequited love, his heart aching for Nico.
Nico loved Percy. Leo would never be with him.
***
Back to the Present:
"Annabeth, please," Nico begged, tugging on her arm. "You don't have to do this."
"Stop complaining," she told him. "You're a smart kid, Nico. I think you can handle it."
"Maybe I don't want to go to high school," Nico said stubbornly, crossing his arms over his chest. "Maybe I want to stay at my middle school."
"Just yesterday you were complaining about how much you hated middle school, and now you want to stay there?" Percy asked, raising his eyebrows.
Nico shot him a look. He was not helping.
"Come on, man, it'll be fun!" Grover told him from where he was sitting at the kitchen table, happily snacking on the plate of cookies Percy's mom had made up for them.
"Nico, I really think this is a good idea," Annabeth told him. "You're a really smart kid, and I think you can handle high school level work. I've talked to your dad, and he agrees. I'll be speaking on your behalf today to see if I can get you into our high school."
Nico made a choking sound. "My dad agreed?" Great. He thought for sure Hades would be against it.
Annabeth nodded. "He knows you can do it, and so do I. Just give it a chance, Nico."
"You'll be going to the same school as us!" Percy said, grinning. "How cool is that?"
"I don't want to go to high school, though," Nico protested. "I'd rather stay in middle school with Hazel than go to some place where I won't know anybody and I'll have even more homework."
"You'll know us," Annabeth pointed out, "and more homework is kind of the point. Middle school is holding you back, Nico. You could do so much better. And don't worry about Hazel. She's a tough girl; she'll be fine."
Nico sighed. "You're going to make me do this whether I agree or not, aren't you?"
"Yep," she stated, popping the 'p'.
"Fine," Nico agreed reluctantly. "If I'm going to do this, I might as well agree to it. You'll never get me in, though."
"We'll see about that," Annabeth said, smirking.
***
"I got in?!" Nico yelped, rereading the papers to see if he'd gotten it wrong the first three times.
Annabeth beamed. "Yep. They said that judging by your scores, you're ready to handle high school. You'll be a freshman at our school! Isn't that great?"
"I think I'm going to be sick," Nico moaned, slumping into a chair.
"Don't be so dramatic," Annabeth scolded him.
"Come on, Neeks. It'll be fun. You'll love high school," Percy said, plopping down next to him and putting an arm around Nico's shoulders. Percy paused for a moment. "On second thought, I can't believe I just said that. High school sucks, man. But the people... The people are totally awesome. You'll love it."
"I highly doubt that," Nico muttered. "I can't believe you're making me do this."
"Nico, you're one of the smartest kids I've ever met. I can't believe more people don't realize it. You belong in high school, where more people actually match your level of brilliance," Annabeth told him.
Nico groaned and covered his face with his hands. "Don't you get it? No one ever notices I'm smart because I don't make a big deal out of it, or care, for that matter. I keep my head down and I finish the tests in silence. I don't announce my scores loudly, or compare notes. I keep to myself, and no one bothers me. That's the way I like it. I don't want to go to some new school just for being smart and having all the other kids know me as that kid who skipped a grade because he's so brilliant."
"But you are brilliant. And people will barely even notice you. They're all too wrapped up in their own issues to notice anything else," Annabeth said, smirking.
"I hate you all," Nico grumbled.
"We love you too, Nico," Grover said, flipping the page of his National Geographic magazine.