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Cecil didn’t have a whole lot of pleasant experiences with the Aphrodite Cabin, when he really thought about it. Honestly, it was his own fault (not that he would EVER admit that out loud). They were easy targets, and he was sure that even if he was in their good favors, it wasn’t like he’d be doing great in the love department. He’d gotten nail polish bottles thrown at him, permanent makeup smeared on him, and a suspicious amount of his clothing had gone missing over the years. He and the Aphrodite kids just didn’t mix. They were like oil and water, or Percy Jackson and food that wasn’t blue, or Percy Jackson and rules, or… well you got the idea.
So, it was pretty shocking one day when Valentina and Mitchell came up to him while he sat near the volleyball court, fiddling with a machine that he, Lou Ellen, and Nyssa had been working on together that was supposed to turn invisible, move on its own, and shoot fire. They were still working out the kinks, but progress had been steady and he was pleased with it thus far. He couldn’t wait to set it loose in camp.
“Hi Cecil,” Mitchell started off saying, giving Cecil a little wave when the duo had come close. Cecil looked up a little and gave a half wave in response, before going back to the machine. When he noticed out of his periphery that neither Mitchell nor Valentina made any attempts to move away, Cecil sighed and looked up.
“Hello Aphrodite campers. What can I do for you?” Cecil asked, only slightly concerned about where this conversation was going to go.
Valentina crossed her arms. “Why do you immediately assume we want something from you?”
“Because I don’t think we have ever just had a civil conversation before,” Cecil replied with a shrug. “Last time I saw you guys, I had to duck because someone chucked a hair dryer at me. Ouch, by the way. It had only grazed me, but still left a sizable bruise.”
Mitchell paused for a second, eyes narrowed like he wanted to argue, before nodding reluctantly. “Point taken. But also, you swapped the labels on all our shampoo bottles. Can you imagine that catastrophe if Lacey hadn’t realized?” Mitchell asked with a shudder. “Hair care is important.” Cecil shrugged, not really agreeing with that point, but knowing better than to argue with these guys about that.
“Let’s just cut to the chase, Markowitz,” Valentina cut in, clearly bored of the social pleasantries. “We do want you for something, you’re right. Have you noticed that your two buddies have gotten incredibly close in these past few weeks?”
Cecil bit his lip, knowing exactly what, or rather whom, she was referring to. “I have eyes. You don’t need to be a child of the goddess of love to know that Nico and Will dating is just a car crash waiting to happen.” Cecil paused. “Okay, but car crashes are instantaneous. These two are so slow moving it’s more like… two snails slowly crawling towards each other in the most boring but dramatic sequence to grace the presence of this earth.” Cecil paused, hoping to get some laughter at that, but wasn’t upset when it didn’t land. He agreed it wasn’t his best work, but he tried. Not every joke could be a winner.
“It’s so slow it’s been agony for us, so it must be killing you since you hang out with them pretty often,” Mitchell said finally. “We don’t want to push them because we all know how Nico di Angelo is prone to running away whenever things are uncomfortable for him.”
Cecil nodded, thinking of how Nico was, even still, nervous about saying he was gay, let alone proclaiming his clear and obvious crush on Will. Cecil got it, it was hard. It wasn’t his business to divulge that though so he just said, “Yeah, Nico is a runner. But, he hasn’t looked like he was about to bolt even once in the last week, so progress.” Cecil observed Micthell and Valentina, unable to see where this conversation was going. “So, uh, where do I come in with this one?”
“Right. So, since we don’t want to push them, we aren’t meddling. But, it’s tortuous for us and we really need some kind of entertainment to tide us over. So, we came to a conclusion. We should all start placing bets on when they are going to start dating,” Valentina explained. Cecil perked up a little at this, his interest piqued.
“We just don’t know how to go about this, so we figured that you would be one of the best people to talk to about this,” Mitchell added. “It seemed mischievous, and you know them. Also, you just know a lot of the people at Camp. We could make this a big thing.”
“I am very intrigued,” Cecil said with a grin, putting aside the machine. He made a show of looking like he was pondering whether he was going to say even though the answer was incredibly clear to him. “Oh, what the Hades. I’m in. We also gotta get Lou Ellen in on this as well. Also, maybe Malcolm Pace? He’s brainy and probably has a better grasp on statistics than most of us. We could use him for like spreadsheets and gambling stats and whatever.”
*
Like most things at Camp, word spread pretty quickly about the bet. Gossip was spread like Greek fire amongst the demigod teens, and by the end of the week, most everyone had placed a bet, cornering Cecil between meals and activities, shoving drachma after drachma into his and Lou Ellen’s hands.
“You know, I’m not exactly sure this is ethical,” Austin said when he and Kayla finally came to find Cecil, Lou, and Valentina after dinner one night. They had wondered when Will’s siblings would make an appearance, curious to hear their thoughts on the situation.
“You don’t have to bet on it!” Lou Ellen said brightly while she counted up the tallies she had written in a notebook. She was the official banker, and once she had collected everyone’s payment, she was to give the information to Malcolm, who had created a fancy spreadsheet and equation to help with the pool. Cecil didn’t understand it, but it wasn’t his job to get it.
Cecil nodded, agreeing with Lou Ellen. He got that it was probably weird for Austin and Kayla to bet on a situation that included their brother. He didn’t blame them if they didn’t want in, but they would honestly have a good chance of winning, particularly since they spent a large portion of the day with Nico and Will. He hoped that they would at least consider it.
“Oh, I never said I didn’t want to bet. I just felt compelled to ponder the ethics of it for a second before betting. It seemed fair to Will. Five drachma says Nico asks Will out first, and that Will cries when he does it,” Austin replied, a big smile on his face. Cecil smiled. Will wasn’t a crier, but Cecil was sure the boy was just about losing his mind, waiting for Nico to ask him out. He wondered which would come first- Nico growing a pair or Will snapping.
“You have too much faith in Nico. I’m betting six on Will, and then a separate bet that it happens before Halloween,” Kayla added on, riffling through her pockets.
“In less than a month?” Lou asked, raising an eyebrow. “Short time frame. Yesterday, Will told Nico that he had a nice smile and Nico choked on his water so hard that Will nearly started CPR on him.”
“Was he actually going to do CPR or did he just want an excuse to kiss Nico?” Valentina asked, looking up from where she was painting her nails next to Lou. “That’s like the oldest trick in the book.”
“No, Will was pretty serious about it,” Cecil confirmed. “He gets this serious look in his eyes when he goes into healer mode. It’s intense and unsettling.”
“It’s like a less cool, less dramatic Wonder Woman spin transformation,” Lou added on. “He takes his job seriously. But, clearly Nico was fine. He’s just a dumbass. It was pretty embarrassing to watch honestly. Mainly because Will freaked out so hard and Nico couldn’t stop coughing. He was swatting Will away while Will fawned over him like he was on the verge of death.”
“Okay, okay. I am adding to my original bet with this information in mind. I’m betting ten more drachma. I think that they start dating when Nico is found in a damsel in distress situation that Will has to save him from. Like Nico drowns or gets hurt or something,” Valentina said. “Super romantic and I am manifesting that they have a romantic get together.”
“Oh, let’s be honest. Will’s I have to help people complex would love that,” Kayla said and the group laughed. “He gets to help a person and get the guy? Dream scenario. He’ll be laying on his stomach, kicking his legs and giggling for weeks after it. Living with the guy is going to be a nightmare.”
*
The only bad part about the betting pool, in Cecil’s eyes, was the way that it would be embarrassing and potentially painful if Nico and Will found out about the pool before they began dating.
Cecil could imagine it now, Nico glaring at everyone, sending skeleton armies after them before fleeing Camp for good. And Will, a stern look on his face, oldest sibling mode activated, ready to give a lecture about how ridiculous and annoying and embarrassing they were. Cecil wasn’t sure what was scarier- an army of the dead or a disappointed Will.
“He’s totally a I’m not mad, I’m disappointed, type of guy,” Cecil said to Mitchell one morning during a volleyball match between Hermes and Aphrodite. The teams were having a short water break, which Cecil was fully taking advantage of to talk to Mitchell and Valentina at length about their betting pool. He was going to stall as much as possible so he didn’t have to get back in the game. He hated volleyball. “Which is such bullshit, because he bends the rules more than any of the rest of us. He just likes to play up the oldest sibling thing. He’s so fascinating. I want to know what’s going on in that blonde head of his.”
“Maybe it would be for their own good if they found out about this,” Valentina said, retying her hair into a tight and pristine ponytail. “Maybe they need a push in the right direction.”
“No, this has to be organic,” Mitchell retorted. “They feel like they’re meant to be, ya know. This can’t be because we played around with their feelings. The gods do that enough. I want to see them do it on their own terms.”
“It’s maddening to wait around though Mitch,” Valentina said with a pout. “I mean, look at them!” Valentina pointed across camp to where Nico and Will were with the rest of the Apollo campers. Will, the tall bastard, was leaning on top of Nico's head, using him as an armrest, a smirk on his face while he chatted to Austin and Kayla. Nico was trying (and failing) to look angry, but was clearly thrilled with the attention from Will. “They are so cute and it’s so obvious that they are totally enamored with each other. They just need to see it and stop torturing us all.”
“Appreciate the love story as it unfolds Valentina,” Cecil said. “They’ll get their shit together. They’re both just two oblivious assholes who think that they don’t deserve each other when in fact they totally deserve each other because they are cut from the same cloth, too stupid to realize they are meant to be. Also they’re good people and deserve happiness and love or whatever.”
“Aw Cecil. That was almost nice,” Valentina said sarcastically. “But if they aren’t dating by the end of the month I don’t know how much longer I can keep this a secret.”
“Have the duct tape at the ready, Mitchell. Valentina, I hope you know that if we need to, we will find a way to keep your mouth quiet on this,” Cecil jokingly threatened, which led to him getting a hairbrush chucked at him in lieu of a response. He was used to it, and was good enough friends with Valentina at that point that he didn’t really care.
*
Cecil woke up annoyed one Friday morning, pondering whether he should just say fuck it and go back to bed. He didn’t really sleep well. A good night’s sleep was often hard to come by in Cabin 11, mainly because of how crowded it was. But, the previous night made it especially challenging. Hermes Cabin got a new unclaimed kid the prior night, which meant everyone was talking and chatty, not going to sleep but rather asking a million questions of the newest addition to their motley crew of campers. Which, in turn, meant Cecil couldn’t sleep, which meant he felt ready to kill the first person who looked at him the wrong way. He hoped that the gods would have some mercy on him and decide to not test his patience for once.
However, when he walked to the dining pavilion, the first thing Cecil saw was Nico and Will sitting at Cabin 7’s table, and his entire outlook on the day changed. He laid eyes on his friends and was about to wave, when he noticed how they were sitting closer than usual, bright smiles lighting up their faces. Even though in the past few weeks he had been looking happier and happier, Nico looked uncharacteristically happy and awake for the morning. The change would be rather unsettling, had Cecil not felt happy at the thought of his friend enjoying himself.
Then, Cecil noticed Will reach out and put a hand on Nico’s shoulder, a seemingly innocent gesture that would have been barely noticeable, had Cecil not known them, as well as noticed the way Kayla and Austin were not so surreptitiously looking his way. Cecil smiled in response and nodded towards the two Apollo kids, knowing that his free time after breakfast would be dedicated to going through Malcolm’s spreadsheets and determining the winnings. He was sure they would all get the scoop from Kayla and Austin, and if they didn’t have all the details he would get them from Will.
Cecil sat down, ready for some pancakes and orange juice. He felt happy for his friends, and also excited to figure out who won. But mostly happy for his friends and their new relationship. He just hoped that being around them wouldn’t become unbearable, because Cecil could deal with a lot, but the two of them engaging in sloppy make out sessions in front of Cecil would be crossing the line.