Sacrifices

You Were There

Glimmering stars twinkled down on the couple, that lay on top of an old worn out blue blanket meant for their regular picnics. Today was one of the special days where they were able to get away with staying out as late as they wanted without anyone noticing.

    Nico’s stepmother, Persephone, had one of her best friend’s birthdays to attend to, and wouldn’t be back until early in the morning. His father was away, as usual, working long hours. He hardly noticed if Nico was gone anyways, so him being gone didn’t matter much.

    Percy on the other hand, had a lot to be cautious about. His abusive stepfather, Gabe, was usually at the house giving him and his mother drunken orders as he either played poker with his friends or crashed on the couch. His mother didn’t matter much if he left the house, as long as she knew it would be safe. She was so caring like that.

    It was often that Percy would worry about leaving his mom to do all the chores Gabe would make them do, but Sally, his mom, would always tell him that she always found spare time on her own hands, so he should not worry.

    Nico knew of this. After all, he had been friends with the raven haired teen for many years, and had been dating him for the past two of them. He made it his goal to try and take Percy’s mind off worrying about his mother, and would sometimes offer him small encouragement that she was doing fine.

    He wouldn’t dare tell Percy he wasn’t sure that he was telling the truth whenever he said it, but he assumed that Percy could already tell. That didn’t stop him from doing it, however. He would do anything to see the other smile, and if that meant convincing him of things he wasn’t sure of himself, then he would put as much effort into that as needed.

    There have been a few times where Nico has offered the idea of running away from home. Unfortunately, Percy quickly shot those ideas down, claiming that it would only make matters worse, and Gabe would for sure put bounties on their heads. There was also the fact that Persephone wouldn’t be onboard with that plan, so Nico hadn’t dared to mention that ever again.

    As Nico shifted his position from where his head had been laying on top of Percy’s stomach to beside the older teen, Percy used one of his arms to bring Nico in closer to him, giving the younger one some extra warmth.

    Nico shut his eyes, content on staying like that for the rest of the night. These times were his favorite, after all. Where the two could just cuddle up in the darkness as the twinkling lights in the night sky gave them a faint glowing light. It was usually an agreement that they don’t talk during these times. It usually breaks a peace that they don’t have often when with each other, and Nico loves silence. It makes him comfortable, and Percy knows that.

    Soon midnight turned into one in the morning, and Percy could hear as Nico’s breathing slowed as he drifted off to sleep. A smile spread its way across his chapped lips as he looked down at the other’s form. 

    His black skull t-shirt was covered by a bomber jacket that he often wore, and he matched it with a pair of black skinny jeans. Nico and Percy had taken off their shoes after arriving at the grassy hilltop, so his small feet were covered in black socks. His left hand lay on Percy’s stomach, and he could see the silver skull ring had gotten from his sister a long time ago. 

    Percy’s heart clenched as he thought about the tragic backstory of Bianca di Angelo. It didn’t seem right. Why do the best people suffer the most? I wasn’t fair. Even though he’s been reminded his entire life that life itself isn’t fair, it still hurts to know that terrible things happen to the best of people.

    It wasn’t long after that moment did he decide to go back home. It was nearing the 2 am time, and he couldn’t risk worrying his mom all night, or Persephone. Even if both were laid back, they still worried. Percy liked Persephone a lot. He was glad Nico had someone to look out for him, now that both his older sister and mom are gone, and his dad is basically an absentee parent. She could be rather cruel at times, but those days were very few.