Archive of Our Own

Will was ready to throttle his sister. 

Now, some naïve souls would think Will was a pacifist by nature—he was studying medicine, after all. But those who knew him well knew that Will had minimal patience, and when it was used up, let's just say he became rather…irritable.

His half-sister had just moved from Canada to Long Island after her father became the coach for the Olympic archery team. While he travelled, he'd left Kayla in the custody of her and Will's shared father. She wasn't pleased with the situation despite Lester claiming he had changed—that was hard to believe when a new half-sibling popped up or a newly pregnant mother rang up looking for child support money each year. 

The last time the latter happened, Lester pretended to drive through a tunnel and blocked the number. So yeah, the siblings weren't exactly hopeful of seeing any change in their dad's behaviour. 

Will would take Kayla's guardianship in a heartbeat if he had the means to support her, but at twenty-one years old, struggling to pay his own bills and swimming in college debt, he knew his chances of winning that kind of case were less than one per cent. Not to mention, med school was commitment enough.

Lester at least had the funds to pay for Kayla's schooling, figure skating kit, and tutelage. But he was very rarely around between the long hours at the hospital or travelling for the medical panels, so Will had agreed to drive Kayla to and from the rink three days a week, knowing how much skating meant to her. 

"Do you think the rink will be any good?" Kayla asked, fidgeting nervously in the passenger seat. 

"It's the best in the city, Kayla; you read the reviews the same as me. And they've got competitions here and skaters that have been scouted for the Olympic team." Will said tiredly. 

"What if I'm not good enough? What if they put me in like Silver Singles." 

"Kayla, you passed your silver testing. You'll be in pre-gold just like you tested as." They'd had this conversation daily leading up to Kayla's first classes.

"You'll be fine, Kayla." Will said, "This is what you want to do, so you'll make it work." 

With that, he opened the car door and stepped out into the onslaught of winter winds. 

She scurried after him in an exasperated huff, "You stress over med school all the time; I'm allowed to stress about this."

"And yet you never catch me talking your ear off about it for forty minutes." He said back, dumping her skate kit on the ground as he reached to grab his own. 

Kayla snatched her bag up quickly, throwing him a death glare as she reached inside to check her skates weren't damaged. Compared to her skates, which cost hundreds, Will's scuffed pair looked particularly miserable. He'd bought them second-hand when he'd had the foolish idea that skating with Kayla would be a nice bonding experience. 

Spoiler alert: it wasn't . 

It had consisted of Kayla skating flawlessly around him and laughing herself hoarse at Will falling on his arse repetitively. Thankfully, he'd improved since a few years ago, but he hadn't developed her particular passion for the sport. 

Neon lights greeted them when they entered the rink, sourced from the various LED signs hung about and reflecting off the ice. It had been outfitted like a retro dinner with linoleum chequered floors and padded booths lining the outer walls. Jukeboxes and old arcade consoles were scattered about, often crowded by groups of kids pushing and shoving to get their turn. Kayla was taking it all in with wide eyes, excitement practically leaking from her every pore as she spun herself in a circle, looking around. 

"It's so new ." She said with awe in her tone. Kayla's old rink hadn't been much to look at from what Will could remember from the few times she'd taken him when he visited, a simple, poorly maintained ice rink with a few picnic tables for spectators and lockers for the regular skaters. An old disco ball had hung from a questionable thread of rope, spinning idly in the air. 

Frankly, Kayla's old one was a dump compared to the stage lights dancing across the ice at this new rink. 

"Quit drooling, and let's find a seat, yeah?" Will elbowed her, leading them further into the skate centre, passing by the stumbling forms of new skaters, skirting around them carefully lest he gets a skate blade to the foot. 

After waving their skate passes to the ticketing desk, they found a bench by the locker bay, pressed against a bright mural wall. Kayla was quick to swap into her skates, their clean white in stark contrast to the black of her outfit, and her skate guards matched the lime green of the tips of her hair. 

She rocked on her edges as she waited for Will to slip off his flip-flops and lace himself into his skates, her bluebell eyes flitting about the ice as other skaters made their way onto the rink. Kayla started her figure skating classes there in two days but had convinced Will to scout out her new facility beforehand for a general skate session. 

Kayla swept onto the ice with much more grace than Will, who took a few minutes to adjust to the slippery surface beneath him. His momentary wobbling drew giggles from Kayla, but he soon regained enough confidence to look away from his feet and pick up speed. 

Uninspired by the physical act of skating—it was just skating around in a circle for hours at a time—Will found himself people-watching. First, his sister, who had quickly departed from his side in favour of skating closer to the centre of the rink, lost herself in her own movements on the ice. 

Then, a young couple holding hands as they manoeuvred on the ice. The girl, a black-haired beauty with blue eyes, lit with mirth as her boyfriend's stumbling nearly toppled the pair. Will's eyes lingered on the two for longer than a casual glance, a familiar longing crawling into his gut. He forced himself to look away, to ignore all the romantic scenes that his mind conjured in his loneliness - he'd have to cut down on the romance books, Will decided at that moment that they were clearly messing with his head. 

And that's when Will saw him.  

Ebony hair and porcelain skin with high cheekbones and a lean frame. He was gorgeous . 

His near-black eyes framed by long lashes met Will's across the distance between them, and the boy - about the same age as Will himself - promptly tripped over his skates. 

Will didn't really think about it, instantly on the move, sliding up beside the boy who had recovered before he fell to the ground. 

"Are you okay there?" Will asked, even though the boy had caught his balance rather impressively to keep from falling. He was more interested in the opportunity to talk to the pretty boy. 

At a closer distance, the constellation of freckles that painted his cheeks was visible against a rising pink blush. Cute.

His black hoodie swallowed his form, at least two sizes too big, reading in block white lettering, " WAKE ME UP LATER". 

The boy hadn't seen Will coming over, and at the sound and sight of Will beside him, he jumped, slipping on the ice again. Will hastily grabbed the boy's arm, halting his fall prematurely.

"I'm fine, thank you." The boy's voice was soft, almost a whisper against the vibrant music. 

"You should bend your knees more; it'll lower your centre of gravity and, you know, make it easier to balance," Will advised, wondering if and when exactly he'd become good enough at skating to warrant giving advice. 

Will kept his hand on the boy's arm as the two began to skate forward again, telling himself it was to help the boy balance and not because the proximity sent sparks up Will's arm. 

"I'm Will, by the way." He said. 

The boy momentarily stared at Will's hand on his arm before looking up to say, "Nico." 

Nico made no moves to pull away from Will, instead turning his attention back to the ice. 

"I haven't seen you around here before…" Nico said after a moment. 

"My sister's going to start training here, so we thought we'd check it out before her first class," Will explained with a smile. 

"Hockey player or figure skater?" He questioned. 

"Figure skating, Singles specifically." Will tried to find Kayla in the crowd to point her out but found it hard to keep his gaze from Nico for longer than a few seconds. "So, do you come here often then? You knew I wasn't a regular." 

Nico shrugged, "My friends play hockey here." 

"And you?" 

"I skate on occasion." There's something in his tone that Will can't quite identify. "What about you? Are you just here for your sister, or do you enjoy skating too?" 

"Can't say I'm too fond of skating in circles for hours in the cold," Will said, watching the way Nico's hair bounced slightly as they skated side by side. And indulging in the way his hand could fully encircle Nico's wrist. "But I think I might learn to like it." 

A flash of red and green caught Will's eye, and he was quick to point out, "That's my sister, Kayla." 

Nico's dark eyes snapped to his sister's figure as she weaved through the crowd of people skating about. He straightened to watch her, and Will quickly reminded him, "No, no, none of that. Bend your knees, I don't need you falling over now." 

Will didn't know why he said it, especially as the logical part of his brain realised Nico had been easily keeping pace with him. He hadn't stumbled since Will had first frightened him. But Will wasn't feeling particularly logical, and he had no desire to let go of Nico's arm. 

Nico huffed a disbelieving laugh but complied, his pale cheeks stained red.

"Neeks!" A voice shrieked from behind them. 

Again, had Will been thinking logically and not thinking about how cute Nico's scowl was, he might have considered just how smoothly Nico turned on the ice to respond. "Jackson, I thought you had a swim meet tonight." 

The other boy, 'Jackson' , wore an orange hoodie with a colourful beaded necklace that swung slightly as he skated along. The guy shrugged, "Finished up early, thankfully; Coach Hedge wouldn't be happy if I was late to hockey practice again. I think he'd try to drown me in the pool."  

Sea-green eyes turned to Will, "Who's the new guy?" 

Will beat Nico to a response, offering a small wave with his free hand as he said, "I'm Will." 

"His sister is starting figure skating classes here." Nico tacked on before he introduced the other skater as 'Percy Jackson', one of his hockey friends. Will chose not to dwell on the relief that flooded him at the word 'friends' .

'He's probably straight anyway.' Will scolded himself. 

"What about you, Will? Are you a hockey or figure skater?" Percy asked.

"Neither, just supporting Kayla, really." 

Will noted that Percy's gaze had stuck on the hand Will had around Nico's wrist, and he tried to explain, "Oh, umm, I was just helping Nico out. He's pretty good for a newbie." 

Percy might have gotten whiplash with how fast he turned to Nico, who ducked his head - likely embarrassed by the praise. 

"... right ," Percy said, eyeing Nico before shaking his head with a cheeky grin. " Well, I'm glad. I keep telling him he needs to spend more time on the ice."

"Shut it, Jackson." Nico glared, dark eyes flicking to Will's face for just a moment. 

"Well, I'll leave you to it then. Maybe he'll teach you something, Neeks." Percy laughed as he pushed off into the crowd of skaters once more. 

"He seemed nice," Will said after a long moment. 

Nico nodded, giving Will a small smile. "If not skating, then what do you do with your time?" 

And that's how they spent the remainder of the general skate session. Will learnt Nico wasn't in college - not yet sure what he wanted to study- and he worked as some kind of tutor. He spent most of his free time at the rink since all his friends practically lived there, and he thought Will was insane for wearing cargo shorts to an ice rink. 

He was not impressed to hear Will had also been wearing flip-flops upon entering. 

Fortunately, he wasn't disgusted enough by Will's wardrobe decisions to pull away at any point, and when Will awkwardly asked if he could have the boy's number, he gave it with little hesitation. 

"So, you seemed to have fun," Kayla said as soon as the two of them were safely inside his car. Will stared down at his phone and the new number that had been added under the name ' Nico:) ,' not quite certain it was real.

Will shoved Kayla, blushing heavily as he said, "Yeah, something like that." 

"Heya, newbie ." Percy plopped himself down on the bench next to Nico. 

If looks could kill, Percy would have been dead ten times over as Nico responded, "I'm not talking about it." 

"Dude, you have to tell me what happened! You spent the whole night skating around with a cute guy who thought you couldn't skate. How did that even come about?" 

"I tripped," Nico mumbled. 

Percy stared at him before he burst out laughing, "I'm sorry, you, the figure skating prodigy, tripped ?" 

Nico flushed, elbowing Percy in the gut, which failed to stop his amusement. "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. I was breaking in my new skates, so I was already off-balance…and then he was really cute, and I maybe got a little distracted, and my skate got caught on the ice, and I may have…stumbled...twice." 

"Oh my Gods, this is amazing. I'm telling Jason." Percy pulled out his phone and hastily typed away. 

Nico snatched it away quickly, "Do that, and I'll dye Annabeth's skates blue and blame it on you." 

Percy gasped, reaching frantically for the phone Nico now held out of range.  "You wouldn't!" 

Nico raised a brow sceptically. Honestly, it would be all too easy. Annabeth was, after all, his skate partner, and he had easy and frequent access to her precious ice skates.

"Okay, fine, yes, you would." Percy sighed. 

"I could tell her you're crushing on her instead?" Nico said, mock-serious. 

"Argh, fine. I won't tell Jason, are you happy now?" 

"I'll be happy when you pull your head out of your arse and ask her out." 

The two had been dancing around each other for years now, which initially made Nico jealous as he hid his own feelings for Percy. But eventually, soul-crushing, unrequited love turned into a dull ache in the back of his mind. And now all he really wanted was for the two to stop ogling each other when the other wasn't looking. 

"I'm not going to ask her out, Nico. She hates me." 

And, of course, Percy was oblivious and thought Annabeth hated him. They really had the whole hockey player and figure skater rivalry romance happening.

"Sure she does, Jackson", Nico said dryly. 

Percy frowned, "Now, back to Will. Why didn't you tell him?" 

"Tell him what?" Nico played dumb. 

"That you skate, like, competitively. " 

Nico was sure he was beet red now, as he said at an almost whisper. " I liked him holding my arm. "  

That sent Percy into another fit of laughter, "Oh my Gods, you actually have a crush!" 

"I don't have a crush."

"You so do." Percy laughed, "If literally anyone else even insinuated you were a beginner skater, there would be a true crime episode released about their murder."

Nico huffed, "Fine, I think he's hot. Happy now?" 

"Immensely." 

"You learnt that word for Annabeth, didn't you?" 

Percy groaned, "She calls me ' seaweed brain ' . I just want to prove I'm not like completely stupid." 

"She calls you that fondly." 

"Whatever. I'm going to be the best wingman ever! Step one: get you Will's number-" Percy began. 

"-I got his number." Nico cut in, rolling his eyes at his friend's antics. "Unlike you, I'm perfectly capable of making a move on someone I like. "

Percy gaped at him for a moment before it morphed into a smirk. "He asked you for your number, didn't he?" 

"...yeah." Nico conceded.

"And you have no idea if he's into you or just wants to be friends…"

"...yep."

"Neeks, he spent two hours holding your hand." 

"It was my arm." Nico countered.

"Close enough," Percy said. 

"He could have just been being nice. He thought I'd fall over." 

"Wow, he really thought you were that bad on skates?" 

Nico sighed, getting to his feet now that the rink was free of skaters. "Apparently. He told me to 'slow down' , 'bend your knees' , and 'be careful ' repeatedly." Nico attempted to mimic Will's southern accent with little success.

"You're going to go prove to yourself you can skate now, right?" Percy inclined his head toward the rink. 

"Yep." Nico was already off, practically throwing himself out onto the rink and losing himself to the sound of metal on ice and the feeling of flying. 

"Nico, you're here again?" Will was surprised to see the boy again, sitting in one of the booths with headphones around his neck. He was typing away on his phone and had yet to notice Will had walked in. 

"I did tell you I practically live here," Nico said dryly. As he raised his eyes to Will's, Will was once again struck by his beauty. 

"I didn't really expect it to be true. Do you know where Kayla should meet for her class?" Will gestured to his sister, who looked like she would be sick. 

"What level is she?" 

"Pre-gold Singles."

Nico let out a laugh, and Will wasn't sure exactly what was humorous, but he wasn't complaining - Nico's laugh was a song to which spring would return. 

"I can walk her over. I'll introduce her to my sister. They'll be in the same class." 

"I didn't know you had a sister." Will pouted, wondering how exactly that hadn't come up the other night. 

"There's a lot you don't know about me, Will." 

"You could just tell me…" 

"Nah, where's the fun in that?" Nico smirked, moving out of the booth. He was again dressed in all black, in what looked to be a band tour hoodie featuring a skeleton playing an electric guitar and plain black pants. "Send your sister over, or she'll be late, and her coach can be strict when he wants to be." 

Will winced at that. Kayla was nervous enough; she didn't need to worry about a strict coach, either. He strode back to where Kayla looked a moment away from tearing her hair out at the roots. 

"Hey, Nico's offered to walk you over and introduce you to his sister - she'll be in your class." 

Kayla brightened a little at that, giving a swift nod and walking toward Nico, who'd slung a sizeable black bag across his chest. 

"Nico, is it?" She asked, fidgeting nervously. 

"Yeah, it's nice to meet you, Kayla," Nico said a little awkwardly. "How are you feeling? Nervous?" 

"Yeah, it's weird to start again somewhere new. I don't know anyone, and I hope the coach is nice." 

"He'll go easy on you while you settle in here."  Nico waved her toward the rink, looking back to say to Will, "I guess I'll see you around?" 

Will gave him a nod, and the two departed, leaving Will to watch Nico walk away. He stayed there until the boy was completely out of sight before turning away. He'd be spending the next two hours in his car outside studying the endocrine system. It was not the most 'typical' study environment, but he'd take what he could get. 

Maybe he'd see Nico again at the end of Kayla's lesson. He hoped he would.

Nico had introduced Kayla to Hazel nearly instantly. The girl had been sitting on one of the benches beside the ice, pulling on thick purple socks with little bows at the top. Her hair was pulled into a simple ponytail, chestnut curls untamed. 

Hazel was shy but not unfriendly, pointing out and naming the various other people in their class. 

"And what about the coach? Is he well…nice?" Kayla asked quietly, hoping to ease her nerves a little. 

Hazel turned to her, golden eyes bright with surprise, "Nico didn't tell you?" 

Kayla shook her head, confused. 

"Nico is our coach," Hazel said, pointing out her brother, who was lacing up a pair of black skates. 

Kayla frowned, "Will - my brother - said he can't skate." 

"Oh my Gods, that was your brother?" Hazel giggled, "We've been teasing Nico about that for days." 

"So, like he can actually skate?" 

"I can, yes," Nico said as he passed the two of them, pulling open an unmarked locker and putting away his kit. He'd removed his hoodie to reveal a tight long sleeve with the rink's emblem on its crest and 'STAFF' written on the side of his upper arm.

Hazel stage-whispered to Kayla, "He won Nationals for the Adult Male Singles category at the start of this year. He's going to the World Championships in four months. Not to mention, he and Annabeth are like the best competitive duo on the East Coast." 

Kayla gaped at the golden-eyed girl before dramatically throwing her head into her hands. "My stupid fucking brother!"

Her companion giggled, patting Kayla on the back reassuringly before ducking to pull off her skate guards and tucking them inside her bag. 

"No, you don't understand," Kayla groaned, "My brother is enamoured like he wants to give your brother private skate lessons. He'd probably have him cling to his hand and the barrier wall the whole time, lest Nico' hurt himself'"

Hazel laughed again, "I don't think Nico would mind if it meant he could hold Will's hand."

Nico apparently overheard his sister and was quick to say loudly to the scattered class, "Everyone say thank you to Hazel for volunteering to go first to show us her solo Paso Doble routine."

There was a vengeful gleam in the coach's eye, and Hazel muttered resentfully. "That little schist, he knows I can't do the two chassé sequences yet."

Will saw a lot of Nico in the weeks that followed. Every time Will dropped Kayla off for her lessons, Nico sat in that booth by the entrance, offering Will a smile as he entered. Will might have thought Nico was just coming to the rink to talk to him, except he never stuck around to talk to Will and instead always excused himself when Kayla went to her lessons.

Unfortunately, that meant Will only got to talk to him for ten or so minutes before the boy made a vague excuse and an abrupt exit. If it wasn't for their near-constant text exchanges, Will might have begun to worry that Nico didn't like Will as a friend or …otherwise . 

Frankly, Will had been trying to stifle the spark of hope that ignited every time Nico messaged him, or Will thought he caught him staring. Will always fell for people too swiftly. A trait he got from his father - to fall into an intense kind of obsession, a love that was so rarely returned. 

Will tried to ignore it. The Gods knew that fueling such feelings, such hope, would only end with him getting hurt. But Nico was cute, sweet, and funny - in a dry humour kind of way. And Will couldn't help but think about him, twenty-four-seven. 

It didn't help that Will had spotted the pride flag keyring hanging off Nico's car keys when he had walked him to his car after the boy had left his phone on the centre console. Now, his brain and heart were filled with 'what if' scenarios and nausea-inducing butterflies.

The little hope had driven him to ask Nico to join him for an evening general skate session, just like the night they first met. He didn't say it was a date . If he did, he would have chickened out, too fearful of rejection to take that leap of faith. It had happened before. Again and again and again. And Will had grown used to the loneliness. 

So, no, Will didn't say it was a date . But he didn't say it wasn't either. He'd let Nico think what he wanted. 

"Do you need a hand getting up?" Will offered Nico a hand. The latter didn't hesitate to latch on and pull himself up. They'd chosen a Sunday night for their maybe-a-date, and Will shouldn't have doubted Nico, but he had expected it to be busier. Instead, the ice lay almost bare with only thirty or so other skaters scattered about. Nico claimed the crowd came in on Friday nights since it had food specials and games were played on the ice. 

Will didn't drop Nico's hand once he had stood; he only held it tighter. Maybe Nico would think Will was just overly concerned for his safety - and he was. He definitely didn't need his maybe-a-date to break his arm tripping on the ice—or maybe Nico would like holding his hand, too. 

So they stayed like that hand and hand as they made their way round and round the rink. Will eventually let Nico move away from the barrier wall, reasonably confident that he wouldn't fall immediately on his face (and Kayla had advised Will not to be too overprotective lest he ' scare the poor boy away '). 

And with Nico, it was just easy - easy to talk to, easy to listen to, and easy to fall little by little in love with this boy. Because he listened when Will laid out all the reasons he just needed to watch the 'Original Trilogy' - because how had he gone that long in life and not watched the cinematic masterpiece. He listened, and his eyes glittered with amusement. When Will was done, he just said, "We'll have to watch it together," and Will thought he might have stopped breathing at that moment. 

Nico made Will feel that way a lot. For example, when he spoke about his sister, Hazel, his whole face lit up, and his hand gestures were more exaggerated. Will still didn't let his hand go, and Nico didn't care. He simply pulled Will's hand along for the ride as his own flitted about in the air. 

Their hands only detangled when an overly enthusiastic skater knocked into Will's back, sending him flying forward. Will quickly let go of Nico before he dragged him down with him. Will fell to his knees after a few clumsy steps, and his cargo shorts did nothing to protect against the bite of the ice on his skin. But the feeling was quickly forgotten when Nico was back in his sights, asking if he was alright. Will didn't allow Nico to help him up, fearful of over-balancing the boy, and it took him a few tries to stand up on his own. A few of his curls had fallen into his face, and Will almost fell over again when Nico reached up to brush them aside and tuck them back behind his ear. 

Will likened what happened next to a circuit failure as though the cold of Nico's fingers on his skin had short-circuited his inhibitions. Will found himself pressing forward, his lips finding Nico's in the blink of an eye. 

It was short-lived. Just the brief taste of pomegranate lips and the rush of desire to keep kissing Nico . Then Nico tripped backwards, which was understandable when Will moved forward so quickly, and the ice was slippery. Will's hand darted to the boy's thin waist, holding him upright and pressing against his chest - both boys breathing heavily. 

"I- uh, sorry-" Will stumbled, setting Nico back on his feet and leaving a generous distance between them. What were only two or so feet felt like a mile...

Nico blinked away his dazed expression, closing the distance with a light push across the ice. "It's okay. I- I liked it." 

And Gods, if Will hadn't imagined Nico saying those words a thousand times as he attempted to sleep, he just hadn't expected to hear them. 

"Why don't we get something to eat together?" Nico asked, a shy smile gracing his lips. Will found himself nodding. Really, he'd agree to anything Nico asked, and well, this was too good to be true . Because Nico's hand was back in his, their fingers laced together, and Will could still taste his lips. 

Nico guided them off the ice and to one of the booths by the eatery, having Will sit while he shuffled away to order them a selection of hot food. 

Will watched him go, a finger pressed to his lips, and he knew…Gods, he knew he looked like a lovesick fool but couldn't stop. He couldn't pull his eyes away; Nico was the sun, and Will would orbit him for as long as he was allowed. 

"How do you know Nico?" 

Will was not proud of the loud squeak he produced, hot blushing rising up his neck. His eyes jumped from Nico, who stood behind a group of younger kids in the queue, to the girl who had followed his gaze. She was pretty, blonde curls pulled back into a blue elastic, grey eyes drifting between Nico and Will. A pair of skates, tied together by their laces, were hung over one shoulder, gathering the fabric of her sweater awkwardly on that side. 

"Oh, um, we're friends? I guess?" A lot less lengthy than 'I've only known him for a few weeks, but it feels like my whole life, and every day, I wake up thinking about when I will see him next. We're friends who text constantly, which is a shame because I'd rather see his face, see his freckles and his rare smile and the way he crinkles his nose when he thinks I'm being stupid. We're friends, but we just kissed, and I don't know what that makes us. I know what I want, though; I want him. I don't want to be friends anymore; I want to be more.'

The girl smiles, "I'm glad, Nico needs more friends in his life. He spends far too much time here."

And that's sweet, Will thought. That she was happy for Nico to have people in his life who cared. It was easy to warm up to her sudden presence when she seemed fond of Nico. 

"I'm Annabeth," she said with a start, seemingly realising that Will had no clue who she was. 

"Will." 

"I haven't seen you around here before." It was phrased as a statement, but the curious gleam in her eyes said it was a question. 

"My sister started lessons here about a month ago. She's in the pre-Gold Singles class with Nico's-"

"-sister, Hazel." Annabeth finished for Will with a smile. "That's good, Hazel's lovely. I hope she likes it here."

Will nodded. Somewhat off-balance at her interruption and that she seemed to know Nico and his sister well. "Yeah, Kayla loves it, actually. I've yet to watch her class, but she says she's improving."

"Well, she has a great coach." Annabeth smiled, looking over her shoulder at Nico, who had moved up in the line and was chatting to the brunette woman working the counter. 

"So she says." Will agreed, despite knowing very little about Kayla's instructor. He cleared his throat, hoping his awkwardness wasn't too apparent as he changed the subject, "So, how do you know Nico?"

Annabeth smiled warmly again, fiddling with her skates. "He's my partner."

'He's my partner.'

The phrase stuck in his head, caught in a web of confusion and haze of heartbreak. Girlfriend, Nico had a girlfriend. 

Will had kissed Nico, held his hand, and, well, was a little flirty when he could work up the nerve. 

Nico had said he liked the kiss. He held his hand back and touched his face, and his dark eyes frequently lingered on Will. 

Partner. 

"I—umm, I'm sorry, I have to go." Will slipped from the booth without a glance backward. 

If talking to Nico was easy, walking away from him would be moving against a current. It was spearing his heart with a dagger and watching as his blood spilled out over his shaky hands. It was tearing himself out of the sun's orbit and plummeting into the endless dark. 

In his haste to leave, to escape, to not be sick in the middle of the rink lobby, Will had trudged into the parking lot still in his skates. Likely dulling the blades beyond use against the rough asphalt and potholes. It wouldn't matter; Will had no desire to use them again. He'd sell them, probably. Or perhaps give them away. 

He wouldn't look at them again.

The same went for Nico's number. Will barely spared a glance at the message that came through as he walked to his car. The 'hey, where'd u go?' went ignored as Will pressed 'block number' with a resolute sigh. 

He'd been played again. He should start expecting it with the rate of shitty relationships he managed to find himself in. But Nico had seemed different. Not the type to lead him on, not the kind to cheat - especially in a place his partner could find them. But Will had proven time and time again that he wasn't the best judge of character. 

Will removed the skates from his feet, not bothering to slide them into his shoes. He let the cool metal of the pedals ground him as he pulled out of the parking lot, tears already falling. 

Kayla was ready to drop dead. Two hours of practice, usually the highlight of Kayla's otherwise uninspiring day, had turned gruelling from when Coach di Angelo walked in. To put it lightly, the guy was brutal. Kayla's knees were weak from the effort of having to hold her arabesque for such a prolonged period, and her palms stung from falling out of her layback with every attempt. 

And she was not the only one who collapsed upon the wooden slates of the bench at the lesson's conclusion. Even Nico seemed to muster all his energy to just throw himself down atop a nearby picnic table, letting his feet swing. 

"He's been like this all week." Hazel groaned, massaging her shoulder, which had taken a good hit when her stationary leg swept out from under her during a camel spin. 

"Why?" 

Hazel worried her lip between her teeth and appraised her momentarily before sighing, "You really don't know? I'd hoped you'd at least be able to give us some insight into what's going through your brother's head." 

"My brother?" Kayla's brow furrowed; what had Will done?

"Mm-hmm", Hazel hummed, glancing to where her brother was still sprawled, unmoving. 

"I mean, Will has been irritable the past few days? And he usually comes into the rink to see Nico, but he's stayed in the car the past few sessions." Kayla said, "But he won't tell me what's happening." 

"Oh, he's been irritable? He kissed Nico and then ditched. Now he won't even text him back!" Hazel scowled, though her frustration wasn't directed at Kayla, just her idiot brother. 

"I don't- why would he do that? He's like head over heels crushing over Nico!" Kayla cried, throwing her hands up exasperatedly. 

Hazel shrugged, "Nico said that Will kissed him, and then they decided to get food. He left Will in a booth while he ordered, and when he came back, he was gone. And Will hasn't responded to his messages since." 

"So something happened while he was waiting for Nico," Kayla concluded. 

"Or your brother's just a dick." 

Kayla frowned but didn't rise to Will's defence. She loved her brother, but it certainly didn't look good to him. She looked to her coach, who had yet to move from the tabletop, arm thrown over his face to cover the dark circles that had only deepened in the week past. Even his clothes were more dishevelled than usual, as though he'd picked up his black long-sleeve directly off his floor - not bothering to iron out the myriad of creases that marred its fabric. His skin was more pallid, and Kayla could only guess it was because he spent more time at the rink, pushing himself to the limit in his training and coaching to avoid thinking.

Yeah, it certainly wasn't looking good. 

"They've got to fix this." Kayla decided, shifting to face her friend fully. 

"You mean Will has to fix this." Hazel corrected. "Because I don't know how long I can deal with my brother moping around the house and kicking our arses in training." 

Kayla nodded, stretching out her own sore muscles. They definitely needed to fix whatever had happened between the two boys, or Kayla's poor joints would never recover from Nico's remorseless training regime.

After a few minutes of thinking, Kayla finally grinned and said, "I've got a plan."

Will didn't know why Kayla's coach needed to talk to him, but that wasn't for lack of explanation, just his inability to pay attention to anything aside from the constant dull roar of ' Nico Nico Nico Nico... ' that rang incessantly in his head. So, he had just nodded without complaint, praying to any God listening that he wouldn't run into said boy on his way to or from the meeting. 

He'd taken the long route, skirting away from the seated booths that Nico could often be found in and clinging to the wall, past the skate hire until he reached the locker bay. 

It was a well-thought-out plan, a quick in and out, with no risk of feeling his heartbreak again just by looking at Nico's face. 

Or, it would have been a well-thought-out plan, except Will had failed to account for one small detail… his meddling sister. 

Because there was Nico di Angelo, slamming closed a locker door looking fucking perfect as ever even as he glared daggers at Will. 

"I'm not interested in anything you have to say," Nico said, his voice colder than Will had ever heard it. 

"Good, I'm not here for you." 

Nico blinked, his scowl twisting his lips. "Good." 

He turned away, and Will noticed his feet were laden with skates, their blades gleaming underfoot. Nico had taken one step out on the ice when Will spoke again: "Kayla said I needed to talk to her coach. Do you know where he'd be?" 

"Don't bother. He won't want to talk to you." Nico crossed his arms, standing perfectly still on the slippery surface. 

Frustration bloomed in Will's chest, "Why are you even upset anyway?" 

Nico scoffed, pushing off on his skates but still hugging close to the barrier as he said bitterly over his shoulder, "Oh, I don't know, maybe because you kissed me, then disappeared into thin fucking air and then you pretended like I don't exist!" 

"You're the one who has a girlfriend! You don't have any right to be upset over any of this!" Will cried, then decided that whatever Kayla's coach wanted to tell him could wait because Will couldn't stay there, in the same building as Nico di Angelo, a moment longer. 

"Girlfriend?" Nico shook his head. "Will, I'm gay, for starters. And I like you! I thought that was pretty clear when I said I liked it when you kissed me!" 

"I met Annabeth. She introduced herself as your partner!" Will retorted, turning away. "I've got to go." 

"Annabeth is my skating partner, Will." Nico laughed - actually laughed at him - and Will spun back to face him. 

"Are you serious right now? Are you seriously still lying to me? You can't fucking skate, Nico! " Will shouted. 

Nico raised his brow. "What am I doing right now, Solace?" 

Will stopped and blinked as he processed the sight in front of him properly for the first time. Nico was skating leisurely on the ice, hands burrowed in the pockets of his black vest that read "STAFF" on the back in white letters, two snowflakes bordering the text on either side. The brown-eyed boy sighed at Will's confused expression, pulling his hands out of his pockets and skating away from Will toward the rink's centre. 

Will watched, blue eyes wide as he flipped around easily to skate backwards, his back foot crossing behind and pulling, propelling him across the ice with one hand extended. Then, as quickly as before, he turned forward facing as he kicked through with his back leg and launched into the air. His black hair rippled with the momentum of his spin, and when he landed backwards with one foot outstretched, it was windswept across his forehead. 

Nico skated back to him with a shy smile. "Annabeth's just my skating partner. We've skated together for years. We're—I'm a competitive figure skater and Kayla's coach, actually…" 

"Oh." Will just stared because, holy schist, how did this boy just get hotter?  

"I like you, Will." Nico continued as he got closer. 

Will moved unthinkingly as he stepped out onto the ice in his flip-flops, skidding helplessly in his effort to find himself in Nico's arms. It was effective, though, he thought, as Nico's warmth wrapped around him, holding him upright. 

"I really like you too." Will breathed into Nico's shoulder, clinging on as he regained his balance. 

Nico initiated their second kiss, tilting up Will's chin and pressing their lips together with addictive tenderness. Will's lips parted, and his hands found their way to his waist, drawing a quiet noise from the back of Nico's throat. It was passionate, too passionate for the slippery surface of the ice, and Will was slipping again, forcing his lips from Nico's, and they tingled at the loss. 

Nico caught him by the waist again, chuckling, "I have to admit, it's kind of nice being the one doing the catching and not the falling."

Will's cheeks heated in embarrassment, "I can't believe you let me think you couldn't skate! Why would you let me make such a fool of myself?"

"I umm," It was Nico's turn to blush, "I didn't want you to stop holding my hand…"

Will's face lit up as he pulled Nico's hand into his, lacing their fingers together and marvelling at how they fit perfectly. "You really did look like a newbie that first day."

Nico tugged his arm in playful admonishment. "I was breaking in my new skates, and I may have been distracted by a certain attractive guy across the ice," he admitted. 

"So I guess you could say you fell for me." Will grinned. 

In response, he received a huff and a playful shove, which caused him to tetter on the ice, held upright only by their connected hands. 

"Shut up, Solace." Nico scowled, though this time, the expression held no heat. 

"Oh, come on, don't freeze me out!" Will's smile only widened. 

"Oh my Gods," Nico muttered.

"Dude, chill out!" 

Nico glared at him. 

"What? Am I thawing your frozen heart?"

"Are you always this annoying?" 

"If that's how you want to spin it… I'm just trying to break the ice."

"I hate you." There was a pause, and then, "If you keep this up, I might just give you the cold shoulder."

Will cackled in surprise, grinning at Nico, who had amusement gleaming in his dark eyes. Will gripped his hand tighter, squeezing it tight against the cold.

He was never letting Nico go. 

~ 3 months later ~

Will tugged Nico closer by their linked hands, using his free one to brush a stray ebony strand behind his boyfriend's ear. He smiled at Nico, "Did it hurt when you fell from heaven because you look like a snow angel ."

"Shut it, Solace, you're on thin fucking ice." 

End.