Will challenged Nico. He wasn't afraid to say anything to him or call his bluff. Maybe that's why Nico loved him. He wasn't scared of him or of what he could do. He accepted him as he was.
Yet they were complete opposites. A week ago, if someone had told Nico that a son of Apollo would fall for him, he might have risked stares from his friends and laughed. What would the sun god's kid want with a boy who spent most of his time in the shadows and in the Underworld? N
Walking on the beach with Jason, Piper, and Will, Nico started to understand why people got in relationships. He wasn't bitter about Percy and Annabeth anymore. Maybe it was just Piper's Aphrodite vibe, but the feeling of love was overwhelming.
Usually, that made Nico extremely uncomfortable. The only love he felt was for Bianca. When she died, he turned cold and harsh. He didn't feel like he could ever belong anywhere. He knew that it was partially his fault. He never tried to make friends at either camps and he would rather talk to ghosts than to mortals or demigods.
Then the feelings came. Whenever he ran into Percy, he felt a pang of a need of belonging. The feeling when he saw Percy alarmed him at first. He shouldn't feel this way. It had to be a different feeling that he was simply interpreting wrong.
But no, even Hades sensed something was different about Nico's feelings towards Percy. He went out of his way to protect Percy at all costs. He could've let him die many times, but he just couldn't. When Percy first took him to camp, Nico treated him as his personal hero. After Percy returned to camp without Bianca, Nico truly hated him. But he couldn't destroy him. He was still completely entranced by him. That day Nico made the earth open for the first time, he just couldn't see it through to kill Percy. He couldn't even hurt him.
He didn't trust himself to accept who he was. Cupid was the worst god Nico had met, but looking at Will under the moonlight, Nico suddenly realized just how important it was that his secret came out at that moment. If the encounter hadn't happened, Nico would still be stuck between two worlds.
Instead, he was walking hand in hand with a blonde beauty who truly cared about him.
Jason and Piper walked just ahead of them, swinging their hands as they laughed about something. They looked so comfortable together. Nico still blushed every time he and Will touched.
Nico sighed despite himself. He shouldn't be so wistful.
"Hey, you alright?"
Will was peering down at him, his forehead creased with worry. That was cute.
"Sorry, nothing. Just thinking, I guess."
"About what?" Will playfully nudged Nico's shoulder.
Nico hesitated. He knew he could trust Will, but he wasn't comfortable voicing his thoughts. He thought back to what Will told him when they were facing Octavian. "Nobody at Camp Half-Blood ever pushed you away. You have friends- or at least, people who would like to be your friend. You pushed yourself away."
Maybe he was right. Maybe if he opened up more...
"You," Nico grumbled finally. He stared straight ahead to avoid the look on Will's face. Finally the urge to look at Will took over and he glanced at his face. The stupid boy was grinning from ear to ear and even though it was dark out, he was glowing. Must be an Apollo thing.
"Will you stop that?" Nico growled. "You're making my insides feel weird."
"It's called love, Ghost Boy," Will said with a laugh. Without warning, Will spun Nico around like a ballet dancer.
"Gah! What the Had-"
He smashed into Will's chest and felt strong arms encircle him.
"Let go," Nico said, even though he knew it was worthless.
"Nope."
"Fine."
Will nuzzled his head into Nico's shoulder and hugged him tighter. "You're pretty adorable, you know that?"
"I am not! Stop calling me that!"
"Cutie."
"I'm not cute! I've travelled through Tartarus! I've seen the depths of the Underworld! I've-"
Will placed a finger over Nico's mouth. Nico stared at it before glaring at Will and pulling away.
"You're ruining my reputation, Solace."
Will rolled his eyes. "Whatever. You can summon an army of skeletons once you're better and prove to everyone that dating a son of Apollo doesn't mean you've lost your edge or whatever."
"Is that permission to summon an angry mob of skeletons?"
"No! It's permission to summon a nice gathering of skeletons. Preferably some who can bake cake and plant flowers."
Nico stared at Will in disbelief. "You're weird."
"Thank you, I try."
They walked together in silence, taking in the cool summer night. Nico watched as Jason pulled a reluctant Piper over to a huge rock by the shore. She laughed and flipped her braid over her shoulder as she climbed up the rock, reaching for Jason's hand to pull her up. Jason took her into his arms and brushed a stray strand of hair out of her face. Even in the dark, Nico could see her blush as she caressed his face. Nico turned away before their faces met for a kiss.
Will squeezed Nico's hand. "Want to find our own rock? Or do you want to head back to the cabins now?"
Nico eyed Will suspiciously. "I can't tell if you're joking or not."
"I never joke about going back to the cabins to sleep."
"Oh my gods."
Will laughed and kicked a leg up, splashing the both of them with ocean spray. "What's the matter, di Angelo? Can't handle a tall, ruggedly handsome, totally awesome, hilariously funny-"
"Okay, okay, shut up!" Nico grumbled. Gods, around Will, blushing seemed to be a constant thing. Nico could feel his blush creeping to his ears.
Will grinned and ruffled Nico's hair. "Come on, let's get you back to the infirmary. I think you have a couple cuts I need to look at and bandage."
Nico looked annoyed as he fixed his hair. "What? I don't have any cuts." He glanced at the gashes on his arm. "Well, not fresh ones, anyway..."
Will gave him a knowing look that sent the butterflies practically exploding out of Nico's chest. "Yes you do."
Nico gulped. "Ah, well... Maybe I do..."
Wrapping an arm around Nico's shoulders, Will gently led him back towards the cabins. "Let's go. I'm looking forward to this infirmary trip."
"Again, you're weird."
"Love you too!"
