Solangelo Oneshots

Love You

Nico trudged through the infirmary, past the blood and suffering, all the way up to Will. Eyes wild and hair like a crow's nest with their cane being used to bat people out of the way, Nico looked like they were in their natural element and they were going to make Will help them figure out how to work a TV whether Will liked it or not.

Will was treating Harper, who had jammed a sword through her foot on a dare because apparently campers couldn't be content with just other things injuring them. They had to give it a shot themselves.

"Alright, looking steady on those crutches," Will praised. "You're good to go. Love you."

Nico froze. Harper hobbled off, looking like a giraffe using stilts for the first time. Nico was pretty sure they heard a crash from behind them. That was unimportant.

"Oh, hey, Nico!" Will grinned. "You good?"

Nico blinked. "Uh... yeah."

"You sure?" Will cocked his head to the side. Gods, he was adorable when he did that.

"Yeah," Nico said with a little more conviction. "Sorry, I just didn't realise you were dating Harper."

Will started packing up his stuff.

"Oh, I'm not," he said casually.

"But... you told them you love them."

Will waved a hand. "Oh, that! I tell everyone that."

Okay, this was a lot to process.

"Um, why?"

Will glanced at Nico with a knowing expression. "Because I do love them and they deserve to hear it from someone. I don't need to hear it back or anything. They should just know that they are loved."

Nico's brain was short circuiting. Will watched them expectantly.

"If you're feeling left out," he said, "I love you."

Well that escalated quickly. Nico took a moment to regroup their remaining brain cells.

"Are you really okay with people not saying it back?" they asked. Will shrugged.

"Yeah," he said. "All that matters is they hear it."

"But..." Nico hesitated. "Don't you deserve to hear it?"

Will brow furrowed in confusion.

"Well," Nico stumbled awkwardly, "for what it's worth, I, um, love you too."

They winced, blood rushing to their face. Will looked taken aback, eyes glistening.

"Oh, thank you," he said. His voice quivered slightly and he cleared his throat. "That's worth a lot."

Nico nodded and briskly turned around, walking quickly out and forgetting all about their TV. They didn't stop walking until they were inside the cabin with the door shut and locked firmly behind them.

They set their cane aside and flopped onto the bed, hands covering their face. That was possibly the most embarrassing thing they'd ever done. But it had made an injustice very clear and they were already formulating a plan to fix it.

-

They waited until Will was out of camp visiting his mother. The campfire was bustling with people all laughing and singing. Nico fiddled with their cane, waiting for the right moment. They had to do this for Will.

"And now if anyone has anything they would like to say," Chiron said.

Nico stood quickly, not leaving time for Chiron to finish his sentence.

"I do!" they said. Chiron took a second to get past his initial surprise before he smiled warmly.

The campfire fell quiet.

Nico stood up.

"So, you all know Will Solace," they began. Gods, what were they doing? "And he knows all of you. He takes care of all of you. He loves all of you. And I think it's pretty shitty that you won't say it back."

They ignored the shocked faces, gaining traction now.

"So starting from now," they continued, "you're all going to say it back. Because he thinks you deserve to know you're loved and he definitely deserves to know it too. And if you don't say it back then I'll send you to the underworld and you can say it via ouija board."

There was dead silence. Nico shuffled uncomfortably.

"That's all," they said, sitting back down again.

"Okay," Chiron said slowly. "Thank you, Nico. What an... inspiring message of love."

Nico nodded jerkily and kept their gaze down. It was uncomfortable but, in their mind, necessary. Now all they had to do was wait.

-

"You're good to go. Love you," Will said absentmindedly to a patient. Nico caught the patient's eye and they gulped.

"Love you too," they mumbled before leaving hastily. Will paused, his expression almost amusedly disbelieving. He turned to Nico.

"People have been telling me that all day," he said.

"Is that surprising?" Nico asked, rocking back and forth on their heels. "You're very loveable."

Will let out a laugh. "I suppose I must be."

"I have to go," Nico said. "Bye. I love you!"

Before they stepped out the door, they turned to watch Will shake his head with a baffled smile. Nico grinned to themself. Mission accomplished.