Ex-Nemesis

CHAPTER 21: HIS NAME IS WHEEL SHOELACE

A/N: Hello by beloved readers!

I know I know, I'm a horrible author for leaving you guys hanging without an actual update, I apologize for it, but you see, so busy these days!

Anyway, here it is! I hope yall enjoy!

Nico's thoughts were so loud that he was worried his mother could hear them across the breakfast table.

"Nico?"

Oh shit. Can she hear his thoughts?

He hopes not. That would be VERY troublesome to deal with.

"Is something wrong?" Maria's kind brown eyes bore into Nico, searching. Her gaze didn't try to rip him apart to figure out what he was hiding, rather, it gently prodded at his heart, coaxing him to open up.

Oh how he wished he could just spill everything and weep into his mother's shoulder. But unfortunately for him, he couldn't afford to do that.

What can he say?

Hey, mom, I'm the notorious Ghost king everyone is talking about and I found Hazel and she thinks that Hecate is her mom and wants me dead.

Oh and what's more? She thinks I killed myself.

Yeah... no.

Nico chewed on a piece of heavenly goodness- aka, chocolate chip pancakes- and shook his head. He swallowed the mouthful before talking, "what makes you think that?"

Maria frowned ever so slightly, her graceful eyebrows lowering, but her eyes never hardened, "you haven't taken a single sip of your coffee."

Coffee?

Oh right!

True to her word, Nico had indeed forgotten the existence of his steaming mug of coffee. On a normal day, he would already be on his second cupful, completely disregarding his mother's scolding about his daily caffeine intake (A/N: The author is projecting herself into the character right here.).

But today, his mug sat next to his hand, clean of his fingerprints and still full to the brim with the dark liquid (A/N: BLOODDDDDDD- *gets hit on the head by a reader*), completely untouched.

Nico hastily made a grab for it, and downed half the mug, all under the watchful gaze of Maria Di Angelo, supreme Mama Bear.

"So?" she prompted.

Nico stiffened, "I'm fine."

(A/N: Okay this is completely random, but I just smacked a mosquito and it died and now I'm feeling bad about it.)

His mother didn't look convinced in the slightest. And that was when Nico knew that he couldn't escape her. She knew something was bothering him, and she intended to seek it out.

And when his mother set her mind to something-

Not even the darkest forces could stop her.

But Nico couldn't tell her the truth! Not that he didn't trust her, but he didn't want her to worry. She would forbid him to continue being Ghost king, because it is dangerous. Would she even believe him if he said that Hazel was alive? She has long accepted her death and Nico knew, firsthand, it was hard to change your mind about things you've already accepted, and learned to live with.

Oh and god, what if she believes his to be the criminal most people made him out to be?

That would be a disaster. He didn't want to lose her over something like think. Heck what is she disowns him?

And what if his exposure somehow leads to Will? And his secret of being Sunshot?

No no no! Nico couldn't let anything happen to him- He couldn't- Will meant-

Will meant-

Nico paused his train of spiraling thoughts.

What did Will mean to him? What was Will to him? Who was Will to him?

Suddenly, Maria smirked, "you met someone."

It wasn't even a question. It was a statement.

Nico felt himself going rigid, "I-I don't know what you-"

Maria chuckled, "you can't hide stuff from me Nico. You had the same glint in your eye when you talked about that boy back in-"

"LET'S NOT TALK ABOUT THAT! I WAS TEN!"

Maria just twinkled at him, highly amused but sincere and caring, "but this time, the glint looks more... toned down? I can tell it isn't just blind admiration that's driving you this time..."

Great! So he apparently got a 'glint' in his eye when he thought about Solace! Why was fate so cruel to him (A/N: Imagine the three old grannies of fate weaving a huge rainbow sock while wearing custom made Solangelo t-shirts?)?

"So...?" Maria looked like she was having a little too much fun with this, "who is this lucky guy?"

"N-no one."

Smooth. Very smooth.

"Oh it definitely IS someone if you stuttering, tesoro."

"No, seriously, it's no one!"

His mother raised her eyebrows, "c'mon Nico, you were definitely thinking about someone."

Nico sighed, perhaps if he admitted defeat, the it would throw his mother off the tracks of his true worries.

"Fine," he breathes, pouting and crossing his arms like an obstinate child, "there's this guy at school."

"I KNEW IT-"

"BUT he's just a friend! Nothing more!"

Maria looked at him knowingly, while Nico purposefully avoided her eyes. His mother sometimes had a little too much fun teasing him. It made him wonder who was truly older, his mother, or himself.

"So what's this 'friend' of yours called?" Maria questioned, voice dripping with tease and affection, "surely he has a name?"

Nico shoved a forkful of pancakes into his mouth, chewed then thoroughly, swallowed them slowly and took a long, gradual sip of his coffee, downing the rest of it. He stalled for as long as he could, hoping his mother would lose interest and go back to her breakfast.

But no! She insisted on staring at him through his course of actions, a grin a little too wide and amused stretched across her perfect lips, the dimples more prominent that ever.

Why did he even think he'd get away with this?

Maria Di Angelo was kind and warm-hearted, supportive and loving, but she was also where Nico got his trait of rock-hard stubbornness.

Nico sighed, accepting defeat.

"He's called Will Solace."

A/N: Little Nico has a crushhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Maria will be the ultimate solangelo shipper!!!

So, what do you think? The sotry? The writing? Any criticism?

Leave a comment!

Bye!!

Also, R.I.P. mosquito. I did not mean to kill you, was an action of reflex.