Chapter Text
First Kiss - Nico’s Perspective
I have had a crush on William Andrew Solace for 4 months now. Gods, of course I know his middle name. It started when I was getting patched up again for a shallow cut across my forearm, and just the look in his eyes, the concern, the feel of his gentle hands on me… I was doomed. And of course, of course, I had to fall for a straight guy. At times, there are moments when he might… when I feel he likes me back. But why would he like me? Even if he wasn’t straight, I am probably the most unlikeable person in CHB.
Anyway, I’m sitting on one of the logs around the campfire, sandwiched between Jason and Leo, when he joins the circle, sitting directly opposite me next to Piper. She gives him a cheery hello, then continues whatever ‘girl talk’ she’s having with Annabeth.
My eyes instinctively flick up to look at him - Will - with his tanned skin and muscled chest, adorable blonde hair and incredibly blue eyes. Suddenly, his head shoots up, as if he’d just heard my thoughts. Our eyes meet for a second… and suddenly all thoughts empty from my head. All I can think of is him, and I find myself flushing as I look away.
Jason nudges me with his elbow,”Dude, we need your opinion,”he gestures between him and Leo, the latter seeming extremely determined about something, which means this’ll be good,”Who d’you think would win in a fight? Superman or Ironman?”. They look at me expectantly, but before I could answer with my personal selection of sarcastic comment, Percy calls over all of us,”Hey guys! What about a game?”
Annabeth and Piper look up, gigging,”Oooh I know,”says Piper,”what about Never Have I Ever?”
Collectively, everyone agrees, but I groan inwardly, because this means a game with questions probably related to making out. I have only ever made out with one person, a music nerd in my senior year - and in my defence, we were drunk, and he was very attractive without a shirt.
The game begins with Leo for some reason, and he starts with something stupid about making out upside down. Obviously, I don’t lose any fingers to that, because I’m not a psycho, but Percy and Annabeth both do. Of course they have.
Suddenly, It’s my turn, and I say, in the driest tone possible,”Never Have I Ever worn the same shirt since I was 6, then when I grew out of it spent 5 hours in a department store looking for another one in my size.” I look directly at Jason. everyone starts laughing, Jason flipping me off before losing a finger. I glance over to Will, and see him quietly chuckling to himself. Gods… he’s so… his smile is so beautiful.
The game continues, until it’s Annabeth’s turn, and she says, staring intently at Piper,”Never have I ever drunky made out with a guy that I didn’t know”.
She blushes and loses a finger, earning a few laughs and ooo’s from the circle. I can feel my face has gone beetroot red as I pop down a finger. And of course, Percy notices. “NICO?! NO WAY. SPILL.” He screeches, Hazel grinning up at me.
“Absolutely not. Nope. Not happening.” I say. But suddenly, a quiet voice pops up from opposite me. “Come on, Nico. Tell us about yours and I’ll tell about mine.”
My head shoots up, and Will is smiling crookedly at me, and it’s only then I realise he’d lost a finger. Everyone has become silent.”I… Wha…? It was at a party, senior year, band guy… you’re gay?” I’m in a state of shocked happiness right now. Will Solace, athlete, known for somehow managing to get all the new girls swooning for him in the first five minutes, is gay. No, it… or maybe… maybe I wasn’t imagining all of the moments between us the past few months.
That crooked smile again,”I’m bi, actually.”
Silence. Then I find my face breaking into a smile, hope blooming in my stomach. But before I can say anything, Piper’s already there,”Oh my Gods!!” She squeals excitedly,”We found another one!”
People laugh at this, and I take the distraction to quietly get up. I feel elated. But I can’t make it so obvious. There’s still no way he’d be into me.
I’m halfway to my cabin, when a hand on my wrist pulls me to a stop. “Nico…” It’s Will,”are you alright? I come out and then one of my openly gay friends walks off…”
He trails off and stares at me, looking confused and maybe a little hurt. Immediately, I start to babble, anything to make him feel better and wipe the hurt expression from his face,”Oh! No, no, Will, I’m just tired and I… well actually I was just really happy when you came out and happy for you because I like-“
I stop, eyes going wide as I realise what I just half said. I look up at him, and that crooked smile… my heart flips inside my chest.”You like me?”
He can probably hear my heart going a million miles an hour, and honesty, he should really be aware of the effect he has on people, because I find myself, again, blurting out the truth.”I- yes.”
He closes his eyes for a moment, a physical shudder of… is that relief? Visible on his face. I can’t tell what he’s thinking, and it scares me for a moment because I can’t be sure - does he really-
Suddenly, his hands are on my shoulders, and he pulls me in so we’re flush. A shiver of electricity runs through me, I feel heat in my cheeks because Gods I’ve been waiting for this and it feels so fucking right. And now his hands are on my face and mine are on his hips and we’re kissing finally kissing, and his hands are in my hair and our tongues slide together, I bite his bottom lip and he moves impossibly closer.
When the rush ends, I breathe out a sigh of relief. “Gods… Nico. I’ve have liked you for months - I can’t believe that just happened,”he huffs a laugh, pressing his forehead against mine. I feel a mix of disbelief, that this boy, this perfect, beautiful boy, would ever take an interest in me, of all people.
“Will… d’you wanna, maybe-“
“Are you seriously tryna ask me out right now? Because I thought we had that established?” Will lifts his head to meet my gaze, his eyes - Gods, his eyes - I just smile, pulling him in for a soft kiss.
After a second, I lean back, him making a small wanton noise,”So… boyfriends?” I say, a hint of uncertainty in my voice. I still can’t believe this is happening.
“Definitely.” He agrees, hugging me tightly.
It’s only then that I realise we’re not very far away from the fire, and anyone could have walked by and seen us. He seems to think the same thing, and we quickly turn to look……
To find everyone staring at us from behind, either ginning or open mouthed in shock.
As I’m about to say something snarky and sarcastic, when they converge on us, hugging us, cheering, as whoops fill the air, somebody yelling something about canon.
And then we’re thrown into the lake. As is camp tradition. It’s only then that I realised we’d been clinging to each other the entire time, as his arms wrapped around me tighter when we both hit the water, an air bubble forming around us.
We don’t resurface for a while.
Capture The Flag - Will’s Perspective
Wild woops and shouts echo through the woods - probably started by Percy’s team. Honestly. Blue team? Bunch of lunatics. Obviously, I’m on the blue team, but I like to call myself neutral, as I have to patch up every idiot anyway - no matter which team they’re on.
“NICO WHAT THE FUCK” Someone screams through the trees. Instantly, a sense of dread goes through me. What could Ghost Boy possibly have done this time?
I look up from where I’m kneeled in the grass, having finished patching up a girl from red. She gave me a quick nod, then ran off to where a couple of other campers from the red team were sprinting past.
Except they weren’t sprinting to our flag. They were sprinting away from it. Slowly, I turned. And came face to face with an army of skeletons. And they were unnervingly fast. See what I mean about lunatics? “Nico” I whispered, shaking my head and knocking an arrow into my bow. I aimed at the first oncoming skeleton, and fired.
It flew true, as I knew it would, but as the skeleton shattered into pile of bones and hit the ground in a heap of rotting brown and bone white, the bones started to twitch. And with visible horror on my face, I watched it reform, and keep sprinting towards me, bones clacking horribly.
I knocked another arrow, waiting for the onslaught, feet set in a grounded stance…
For the army to run straight past me, diverting around me like I was a rock in a fast slowing river.
“Honestly, Will, babe. You should know better then to try to shoot them with arrows by now.” Nico sauntered behind them, the last skeleton clacking past. He looked completely relaxed, hand resting on the handle of his sword, wearing the usual leather armour for camp games, blue paint smeared across is chest plate, the same as mine, and helmet under his right arm.
I huffed a laugh as he stopped in front of me, dipping my head as his hands found my waist. I looked down at him, his eyes the colour of rich molten chocolate, his hair smelling like it. I pressed a kiss to his mouth, my hand caressing his cheek, then pulled away to look into his eyes.
He stared back at me, a small smile on his lips. “Annabeth is going to kill you, you know.”
He grinned, “I know -“
He was cut off by Percy laughing and wooping loudly,running through the woods, waving the red flag, and followed by a grinning Jason and a very pissed off Annabeth.
Despite Jason’s red paint, he clapped Nico on the back, chuckling,”Only you, Nico. Only you can pull that shit.” He ran back to Percy, still laughing.
I looked to Annabeth and winced - her face was about as thunderous as one of Jason’s storms. “Annabeth, are you -“
“NICO IS BANNED FROM CAPTURE THE FLAG!!!”
Campfire Songs - Nico’s Perpective
Everyone’s talking around the campfire. I sit on a log next to Will, his arm on mine so warm. I savour it. I’m always so cold. I hold by stick out to the campfire, embers crackling and popping as me and Will roast our marshmallows over the flames.
“Neeks! Your Marshmallow’s on fire.” He nudges my knee with his to get my attention. I’d zoned out again - thinking about him, even though he’s right next to me. I’m still thinking about him as I blow out my now blackened marshmallow. Gods, I just… Will Solace. My boyfriend. It’s been so long and my brain is still pathetically obsessed with that fact. Him with his golden curls, watercolour blue eyes, and disarming smile. I love him so much. I didn’t think I’d ever say that again.
“Hey Will! How about a song?” Piper calls from across the campfire. Will smiles and picks up his guitar from behind him. I shuffle over to make room for him. He gives me a knowing smile, showing how much he knows I want to stay near him, and I feel my cheeks heat a bit.
He starts playing, strong hands strumming an upbeat tune. I watch the tan skin on his forearms flex and shift over his muscles as he changes chord. Fuck. He’s hot.
And then he starts singing. His voice is soft and sweet, and with a hint of a southern accent, it’s honestly the most beautiful sound in the world.
Everyone starts singing with him, voices filling the night.
I don’t join them. I haven’t sung in front of anyone in… well, a long time. I love music though. Back home, mamma was always singing. I miss it.
The song shifts, Will bringing it to a flawless transition. I love this one. Will nudges me subtly with his knee, a silent invitation to join. And because I’m in a good mood, because this song is a favourite of mine, and because it’s him who’s asking… I do. I start singing.
And it makes me feel alive. I hadn’t realised how much I’d missed this. The song ends with a final strum of Will’s guitar, and as I look up, I realise everyone is staring at me, stunned. It’s then I also realise that I was only one singing.
Heat floods my face, and I start to shadow travel away. At the last second, Will grabs my wrist, so he goes with me.
Now in my cabin, Will sets down his guitar, cupping both of my cheeks in his hands. “How did I not know you could sing like that? Nico… that was beautiful.”
I mutter something incoherent about never doing it again, but am rudely interrupted my Will’s lips against mine. I smile, dragging my hands through his hair, and he walks us toward my bedroom, shutting the door with his foot behind us.
*Meanwhile, back at the campfire*
“SINCE WHEN COULD NICO SING?!” Said a very exasperated Percy.
“No I LOOVVEE his Italian accent when he sings” whispered a just a shocked Annabeth.
Everyone else just looked either shocked, or, like Jason, incredibly proud, much like an older sibling.
Coming Back From A Mission - Will’s Perspective
It’s been a week and 4 days already. I’ve had no word, no notice to say they’re alright. To say that Nico’s alright.
I tried to insist on coming, but the infirmary was full and three of my siblings are off elsewhere, so we needed all hands on deck. I just… I worry about him. Cause I know that he’ll give and give and give until there’s nothing left of himself. I squeeze my eyes shut, running a hand through my hair.
I’m sitting on the steps to my cabin, sorting through some medical records - mindless work, to take my mind off worrying. It clearly isn’t working. I’d just got to the end of a section when I see him stumbling past.
“Nico!” I yell.
I sprint to him, and as soon as he sees me, he lets out a choked sob, and falls unconscious.
It’s not the bags under his eyes, the gauntness of his face, or even the fact that I can feel his ribcage again, which means he hasn’t been eating properly, that makes me hold him close to my chest and run to the infirmary. It’s the blood that soaks through his t-shirt, coating my fingers.
When I get to the infirmary, it’s a flurry of activity. All of them that went on the mission are in there, going through the compulsory medical checks, some wounds being patched up. Some are worse than others. But Nico…
I set him down on a bed, and take off his shirt. What I see makes my blood run cold.
Nico has a huge, deep claw mark down his left side, blood already soaking the bed. My hands start to glow as I summon my power, and, holding my hands over him, light flows onto Nico’s wounds. Slowly, it knits together bone, tissue, tendons and ligaments… and finally skin.
When I’m done, I almost pass out from repairing a wound this large, but I take a deep breath and wash the wound, change the blood soaked sheets, and apply bandages to the raw skin, and his other smaller cuts. Those will heal fast enough normally - I don’t have to use my power on those.
Thankfully, the wound was recent, and as I got to him quickly, Nico didn’t need a blood transfusion. It was close though. A couple of minutes - maybe even seconds more, and he would have.
*A couple of hours later, Will asleep in the chair next to Nico’s bed*
I wake up with a start, having nearly fallen off the chair, and immediately, my eyes go to Nico. He’s still out. I run a hand over my face, and go to the tap in the corner of the room, easing my aching muscles. I splash a little water in my face, looking at myself in the mirror. Dark circles ring my eyes, and I look… hagard. I’ve had awful nightmares all week, about Nico coming back hurt. Or not coming back at all.
I sit back in my chair, and as I watch him, tears start sliding down my face. And almost as if he sensed it, Nico opened his eyes.
“Will? …Will… ti amo. Mi sei mancato così tanto.”
And as his eyes fluttered closed again, I smiled through my tears, kissing his forehead.
Nightmare - Nico’s Perpective
I’m there again. The crimson sky, the blood curdling roars from beasts prowling the dark land. It’s all the same. I’m chained to the dusty ground, the only thing my wet breathing as I try to fight against the restraints on my power.
A spine-locking scream cuts through the endless night. My head snaps up, my eyes widening at what I see before me.
Will, chained to a towering stone pillar. And she is standing over him, dagger in hand. There she is, splitting open Will’s bare chest as he screamed. She did it slowly, so slowly, as if savouring his shouts of pain and terror.
And suddenly, the screaming stops, Will’s head rolling to the side. I scream his name, yanking at the chains, gritting my teeth against the tears rolling down my cheeks.
“NICO. NICO!!”
Like a voice from underwater, Will’s voice fills my head. I must be dead, him calling me from somewhere in the underworld.
I open my eyes, and I’m shaking, my cheeks are wet, my voice feels raw - probably from screaming, as I say,”Will?… Will! Are you okay? Are you -“
“Nico. You’re okay. I’m okay. This isn’t Tartarus. You’re safe.”
Dream. It was a dream. He’s okay. He’s…
And I break down. Right there, in Will’s arms. I cry and cry until there’s nothing left of me, Will holding me, whispering comforts and stroking my hair the whole time.
And when it finally stops, and the shaking subsides, I nuzzle into Will. He holds me tight, and a breathe in his magical smell.
As I start to drift off again, I just catch Will saying softly,”I love you, Nico”.
And in that moment, I love him more than anything in the entire world. I make a promise to tell him when I wake up.
Free Periods #1 - Will’s Perpective
Finally, I get a break from the infirmary. Today is the only day in my weekly time table that I don’t have to work.
It’s one in the afternoon, and having finished lunch an hour ago and checking up on people in the training rings, I head toward cabin 13.
I climb the two steps up to the door, and knock. The door is flung open, a slightly disgruntled Nico frowning up at me. Immediately, all I can think of to say is “I love you’ and ‘you are beautiful’. Because I do, and he is. Gods… it cannot be healthy to be this happy to see someone or miss them this much, even when I saw him at the campfire yesterday. I probably have some medical records on the physical side effects of being in love.
“Ugh. I was just in the middle of a race, Solace.” He peers up at me, squinting slightly in the sun. I just stare at him, wanting to memorise every detail of his face. Gods, I’m pathetic. He seems to find something in my face that makes him thaw a little, and holds open the door to let me inside.
As I pass him, I kiss the top of his head, and as I flop down onto the sofa I turn to see him blushing profusely. I grin at that. I love it when Nico blushes.
Wordlessly, he plops down next to me, crosses his legs and hands me a controller.
Starting a new race, Nico is already ahead of me.”Honestly, Neeks. How are you so good at MarioKart? I swear this is all you do in your spare time.”
“Excuse me, Solace. You know I do many things in my spare time.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“List them.”
“Well, you-“
“NICO!” I say, my face heating. He snorts, and I shove him with my arm, making him lose his controller.”Will! You!-“
And before he can say anything else, I lunge for him, grabbing a pillow on my way, and embark on an incredibly frivolous pillow fight.
Somehow, Nico manages to flip us, him laying on top of me, elbows braced either side of my head. He gives me a small, satisfied smile.”I think I win.” He whispers. And then his lips are on mine.
Suddenly, we’re in his bedroom, Nico having shadow travelled us there. A step towards him had my hands finding his waist, his lips finding mine as I walked him towards the bed.
Our make out starts to turn into something more, when the door (which I saw Nico lock) burst open, revealing the Stoll brothers bent double with hysterical laughter.
They were dressed in a mockery of Ninja costumes, and clearly Nico does not find it as amusing as they do, as he yells,“GET. OUT.”. Their cackling laughter fades, and I dip my head into the crook of Nico’s neck, smiling softly.
Free Periods #2- Nico’s Perspective
It’s Will’s free period today, and he hasn’t come to see me yet. I’m actually quite pissed at this, but I’d feel bad for using up his spare time with my shit. I even had lunch as well. But because I’m not a selfish prick, I stay in my cabin and play MarioKart, because I the fuck am I going outside when the Stoll brothers are at it again.
I’m just in the middle of a very important race, having just overtaken Bowser, when there comes a soft knock on the door. I groan, pausing the game, and set my controller of the coffee table.
This fucking better be Will. If it isn’t I’m going to go outside and look for him. And even the new campers know it’s serious when I leave the comforts of my Cabin.
I fling open the door, and the sun assaults my eyes. Literally. Because there stands Will, son of Apollo, my boyfriend, smiling down at me. “Ugh. I was in the middle of a race, Solace.” I say.
Gods, he’s suck a dork. He’s wearing his signature flip-flops, shorts and t-shirt combo, and he’s watching my like… like he wants to stay in this moment forever, memorising my face. It still feels wired to be able to do that and not sound like a creep, which is why I have a framed picture of us on my bedside table. I love him so much.
I realise that I’m still frowning up at him, and his smile turns soft. He’s so… Gods, he’s hot. And with those beautiful eyes watching me, all I can do is let him in.
As he passes me, he plants a kiss atop my hair, which makes my face heat an embarrassing amount. I turn to see him already sprawled on my sofa, grinning at my stupid blushing face. I scowl half-heartedly at him, plop down, and pass him a spare controller, starting a new game.
Will is Gods awful at MarioKart. I’m ahead of him immediately, already in first place.
“Honestly, Neeks. How are you so good at MarioKart? I swear this is all you do in your spare time.” He says.
I find this highly offensive,”Excuse me, Solace, you know I do many things in my spare time.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“List them.”
And because one of my favourite pass times is to attempt to rile him up, which never works, as he has annoyingly good self-control, I say,”Well, you-“
“NICO!” He laughs. His face turns crimson, and I snort. Will is too cute when he’s flustered. He shoves me with his arm, and my controller clatters to the floor.
“Will! You-“
But before I can say anything else, Will lunges for me, grabbing a pillow on his way. At the last second, I grab one of my own, and we embark on a very risky pillow fight, considering the position we’re in.
I manage to hit him round the head with a soft thwack, him instinctively leaning back, and I seize the moment, pinning him down on the cushions.
And with our faces inches from each other, and no space between our bodies… all I can think is that I haven’t kissed him yet today.
So I lean down and whisper in his ear,”I think I win”, him eliciting a soft hum as our mouths meet. The kiss is open and hot, and he’s kissing me back, one hand finding my waist, the other tangling in my hair. He tastes sweet and bright, like apples on a summer day.
I shadow travel us into my bedroom, and locking the door, I turn back to him, he steps towards me, hands finding my waist again, my lips finding his.
And just as our make out session turns into something a little less innocent, the door bangs open.
I look over Will’s shoulder, and see the Stoll brothers, laughing hysterically. I am NOT happy about this, so I yell,”GET. OUT.”
They shut the door behind them, muttering mocking apologies, and Will ducks his head into the crook of my neck, laughing quietly.
Solangelo - Percy’s Perspective
If I could give proof that soulmates existed, I’d just give the researchers Will and Nico. They could spend weeks together, and still manage to live with each other by the end of it. Of course, me and Annabeth are pretty strong evidence of this too, but Will and Nico are polar opposites, which somehow makes it more amazing.
And it’s because of this that Jason and I find it hilarious to cock block them as much as possible.
Take last month, for example. I was talking to Nico at the lunch table, and as he leaned over, I saw a HICKY on his neck. I asked him about it, and he said it was a mosquito bite. But he could not fool me, and obviously I told Jason about it. Long story short, Will ended up with the nickname mosquito for a week until Nico threatened to send us to the underworld for it.
Or even yesterday, we found them making out in a tree. A TREE. So naturally, me, Jason, Leo and Piper decided to dance around said tree singing the WILL AND NICO SITTING IN A TREE, K-I-S-S-I-N-G song. We got pummelled with acorns.
We all attempt to photo-bomb every selfie they take, and April Fools day… you can imagine.
But despite all this, we love them, always will. They both deserve happiness as much as anybody does here, have both lost so much, and most of all, they deserve each other. Even if we do introduce them to the new campers as the dysfunctional gays.
First I love You’s- Will’s Perspective
I’ve just finished tuning my guitar when Nico storms into my cabin, face like death itself, shadows roiling off his shoulders, the odd zombie lurking behind him.
Instantly, I know something is wrong, and I go to where he’s stood in the middle of the living space, a concerned frown creasing my face as I look down at him. He glares back at me, jaw set, eyes dark, hands clenched at his side, one at the hilt of his sword.
He’s angry. Really angry.
“Nico… what’s wrong?”
“Tired looking, am I? A cause for concern, am I?” He cuts across me, words growled out through clenched teeth.
“Neeks what are you-“
“Did you really think I wouldn’t find out? That you’d been talking about me behind my back to Percy, of all people?!” His voice was slightly louder now, almost shouting, and by this point, all of my siblings had cleared out,”Did you really think that talking about my problems I told you in confidence to someone else wouldn’t get back to me?! You’re such a dick.”
I take a stop towards him, my hand reaching to touch his elbow, but he steps back, snarling slightly.
“Nico, I am so sorry. I-I just thought that maybe if another one of your good friends knew, you might be able to get some extra support from others that understand.” I spoke gently, so as not to raise his anger further, but it didn’t seem to work, because the dying light of the sunset within the cabin darkened.
“I don’t need the extra help, William. And I definitely don’t need somebody meddling in my problems. I don’t care if you were ‘only trying to help’, so please, just stay out of my way.” His tone was low and dangerous. I knew he could throw me into the underworld without half a thought if he wanted to, yet I still bristle at the threat.
“Well I’m so fucking sorry that I was trying to help my literal boyfriend. I’m sorry that you seem to THINK THAT NOBODY CARES. I’M FUCKING SORRY THAT I TRIED TO MAKE WHATEVER THE FUCK YOU’RE GOING THROUGH A LITTLE BIT EASIER, EVEN THOUGH WE ARE ALL GOING THROUGH OUR OWN SHIT HERE!” I take a steadying breath to reorder myself. I can literally see Nico’s shock - I don’t blow up very often. “Look, Nico. I’m sorry for caring. If thats not what you want, then I don’t know what to tell you, cause caring is literally in my genes. If you don’t want this, go fucking find someone else.”
At this, Nico’s anger flares again,”GO FIND SOMEONE ELSE?! WHAT IS THAT SUPPOSED TO FUCKING MEAN?! No. Don’t worry, I get it. You’re just so tired of me you’re giving up. That’s fucking fine, Will. I’m completely fucking used to it. I don’t even know why you care so much anyway.” And with that, he turns and walks out of the door. Just. Straight out. He doesn’t even look back to see if I follow, which I do, and take hold of his wrist. He tries to twist out of my hold, but I pull him to me, forcing him to look up.
“What I meant was,” I breathe, anger and adrenaline and an overwhelming sense of heartbreak coursing through me,”That I can’t do this if you don’t feel the same way I do. I will not stop caring about you, even on the day I die, I will still care about you, no matter what happens, no matter how many times you try to walk away, I will try to protect you, in this life and beyond, even if it destroys me to do it.”
His breathing hitches at this, and it feels like an enormous weight has lifted off my shoulders. Nico looks down at his shoes; I can tell he’s trying to hold back tears, so I pull him back towards my cabin. He comes willingly.
As soon as I close my bedroom door, he looks at me, his eyes a little shiny. I move towards him, as it takes a lot to make Nico cry, and seeing him break down… it breaks my heart to see him like that. He lets me envelop him in my arms, his arms winding around my waist, and he buries his head into my chest as he heaves a sob. I cradle him, soothing him and stroking his hair as his body shakes under the weight of his tears. As he calms, he pulls away slightly, moving to sit on my bed. I follow him. “Will… I’m s-sorry, I-I know you were just trying to help. But I just get s-so anxious that people might…”.
He trails off, leaving me with an overwhelming sense of heartbreak making its way into my chest, settling like a painful weight. “I know, Nico. I know. And I’m sorry, too. For talking about you without telling you about it, and for yelling. I just… It kills me when you think you’re not worthy of being cared about. Because you are. And you know I’d go to Tartarus and back for you.”
“Don’t say things you don’t mean, Will.”
“I’m not Neeks.” I say softly. He lifts his head to look me directly in the eye,”Then why? Why do you care so much?”.
I furrow my brow, debating the words aching to be said, that I’d been feeling and doing for months, but had never been able to say out loud. I look to Nico, and it’s his face, and the vulnerable expression upon it, that makes me think… fuck it. And I let all of my barriers to come down, as I speak the words I have wanted to say for a lifetime. “Because I love you, Nico. Always have.”
I hear his breathing hitch again, and before I can say anything else, I feel his lips crash against mine, his fingers tangling in my hair. I wrap my arms around his waist, and he pulls away, though only far enough that our foreheads remain pressed together. “Thank fuck for that,” Nico breathes. I heave a breathy chuckle, and he opens his eyes at the same time I do, his beautiful chocolate ones staring into the blue of mine,”I love you too, Will. I have from the moment we met, but I didn’t know it then. Gods, I never thought I’d say that again.”
I feel my eyes well up, so I bury my face in his shoulder, lying down with him as a wave of tiredness crashes over both of us.
As we both fall asleep clinging to each other, I hear Will whisper into my ear, almost quiet enough that I don’t hear,”Ti amo, teroso. To Tartarus and back.”
I fall asleep feeling lighter than I have in a very long time.
Birthdays - Nico’s Perspective
I wake up with my head in Will’s lap, him quietly reading and the smell of fresh, warm coffee wrapping its delicious sent around us. Gods, I really love my boyfriend.
Will must have felt me stir, as immediately a hand comes to stroke my hair. I feel myself instinctively melting into his touch, until he softly murmurs,”Happy Birthday, Darlin’.”
I sit up bolt upright, and he laughs as I groan,”Oh for Hades’ sake, you remembered.” I hate birthdays.
I hate them because Bianca always used to make an extra special effort, always making sure I had everything I wanted, and that I was happy the whole day. On Bianca’s birthdays, I’d do the same, but she’d always get me a little something anyway. So all in all, I hate birthdays because they remind me of her. And because they’re basically just a normal day except with a cake and an annoying song.
He doesn’t know this, of course - well, he knows I used to spend my birthdays with Bianca, but he doesn’t quite know what it meant to us, I don’t think.
Wordlessly, he passes me my coffee, milky and sweet, the way I like it. I take a sip, watching him warily, not quite sure what he has in store.
He just sits there, cross legged on our bed, wearing only his boxers. He’s neck and chest is covered in hickies. Whoops.
Abruptly, he glances up at me, putting his book down on the bedside counter,”So, sunshine. I have plans for you,”of course he does,”but first we need to get you dressed.”
I look down at myself, dressed in boxers and a faded MCR tee. I finish my coffee, and start to dress slowly, picking out practical but stylish black clothes. I honestly can’t be sure what we’re going to do, so I have to be prepared for everything.
I turn, and see him also dressed, just finishing pulling a green flannel over a light grey tee and cargo shorts. “Right. Come on. Car.”
He takes me to a quaint cafe on the peer, where we have a light breakfast, then he leads me hand-in-hand across the winter beach, the sun still low and painting streaked of pink and purple across the sky.
When it reaches half 12, he looks at his watch, swears, and hurries off, towing me behind him. We end up running down the length of the beach, laughing and trying to avoid the waves, pushing each other into them.
We reach his car, and again he lets me choose the music, us both singing along to our favourites. The heater warms our pink noses, both of us missing it as we climb out of the car and into the winter sun, the chill of the wind cooling us even through our coats.
Quickly, Will leads me into an old looking warehouse, only a few cars in the run down car park. “Okay,”he says, taking off and folding his coat onto a bench with some others, me following suit,”just wait here for two seconds, and I’ll be with you in 5.” He gives me a quick kiss on the forehead, then leaves through two foggy glass double doors. I catch a glimpse of a white walled corridor, and I find myself wondering who else is here.
Before my brain can go into a dangerous spiral of anxious anticipation, Will pokes his head through the door. He gestures to me to follow him.
I do, allowing him to lead me through the white-walled corridor, an old, dark wood door to the right. We continue past it, stopping at the end, where another door awaited.
The faint smell of oil, hot metal and charred wood hung in the air, and it reminded me jarringly of Leo. Gods, I haven’t seen that lot in months.
After we had all turned eighteen, we’d had the choice to leave our respective camps, a lot of us getting our own places, our moving in together as Will and I had, in our little apartment near our uni campus.
“Ready?” Will said softly, kissing me briefly.
“Yeah.”I say, readying myself. Probably unnecessarily.
Will pushed open the door, and several things registered at once:
First was the room itself, a huge, open space with massive skylights, wooden floors, and tables with a few chairs scattered around laden with food. It had the air of one of those old community halls that you’d have a birthday party in when you were a kid. It was also chaotically but artfully decorated with black, silver, gold, purple and green streamers and banners, a large one at the back of the room saying a cheerful ‘Happy 19th Birthday!’
Second was the people. As soon as we’d walked through the door, multiple party poppers had gone off and I was converged on by lots of people. I spotted the seven, along with Reyna, Thalia, Grover, and the Stoll brothers, and some others like Chiron that I wasn’t expecting to ever see again.
After an hour of chatting, some very forced dancing, laughing and occasionally singing along to awful chareoke, everybody got hungry so Will put on a ‘birthday mix’ and we all moved to start on the buffet. As I got closer, I realised all the food was classic Italian snacks, and some small versions of classic dishes. I look up at Will, my heart melting as I realise all of the effort people had put into making an effort. It was nice to be reminded that people still cared. Will seemed to get the message, and put his arm around me, squeezing lightly.
After we had all eaten, Reyna insisted on giving me her present, and so everyone followed suit. She had got me a sqishmallow in the form of a black cat. I laughed at this, and thanked her. I knew it would probably stay in my room forever now. I loved it. From Percy, a few new guitar picks. Annabeth got me a book on necromancy, Jason, a mortifying pair of boxers, and from Hazel, a new ring embedded with obsidian crystals that I’ve forgotten the name of.
I looked too Will, who blushed and quietly said,”later.”
Of course he’d got me something special. It’s Will. That’s one of the things I love about him - he puts thought into gift giving.
Everyone else gives me their gifts and cards, until I have a bag full of confectionary, small trinkets, including a skull bobble head from Piper, and a CHB fridge magnet from Chiron so I ‘didn’t forget my roots’.
Later, after many more hours of celebrating and party games, I found out this is Leo’s new place. It’s a converted warehouse, the bottom floor being this old community hall that he hadn’t thought of a use for yet, and his main workshop, then the top floor being his living spaces and ‘spare’ workshop. Of course.
Another hour, and it was time to go. All the food was eaten, and people were leaving. It was 2am when we left, after thanking and saying goodbye to everyone, some stopping to wish me one last happy birthday.
When we reached the car purely by Will’s phone torch, as it was pitch black, he turned to me, grinning,”So? How did you like it?”
I sat back in the seat for a moment. Honestly, it had been the best birthday since Bianca had gone. I don’t think I’d ever felt I meant so much to so many people. It was nice - to feel wanted. To be something people make the effort to show up for.
I told him as much, and his eyes welled up, his lower lip trembling slightly. He quickly blinked them away, Ashe couldn’t cry while driving.
When we parked in the apartment car park, he turned to me again, enveloping me in a tight hug.
“I love you, Will. Today was… it was perfect.”
“I love you too, Nico. Why d’you think I did all this?”he said teasingly,”Come on, I have something to give you.”
His tone softened at this, and I felt a little tingly with anticipation.
he led me into the bedroom, flicking in the bedside lamp, and perching in the end of our double bed. Slowly, he pulled a tiny, brown envelope out of his back pocket.
Wordlessly, he passed it to me, and I slit it open with shaking hands.
Inside was a singular Mythomagic card. I look up at Will in confusion. He knows I’ve already collected them all - I had an obsession when I was 15, and now just like them for nostalgia reasons.
“Turn it over.”He says softly, smiling his devastating smile.
I do, and let out a strangled gasp, for on the front of the card, is Bianca. There’s a list of strengths and weaknesses, with a short character description.
‘Bianca Di Angelo, first child of Hades, is a strong, independent woman. She cares deeply for those she loves, like her younger brother, Nico Di Angelo, who she is an amazing older sister to.’
Tears of my own start to well up in my eyes, and I duck my head as a sob heaves from my chest. Immediately, Will is there, cradling me in his arms.
He starts to apologise, but I cut him off straight away,”W-Will no… I love it. I-it’s so beautiful. I love you so much. This is so perfect.”
He smiles into my hair, stroking soothing circles into my back. We fall asleep in each others arms.