Nico sat next to Will on the Hades Cabin's rooftop, his hand on top of Will's. The stars twinkled in the vast purple sky overhead, looking like diamonds.
Nico looked at his sleeve, making sure his scars didn't show. Will wouldn't understand, if he saw them, he'd scold, probably.
"I never realized how beautiful the sky is," Will observed. Nico wondered why he seemed so fucking poetic. "Dark, full of thousands of secrets." Suddenly, he said, "Like you. What is it that you're hiding?"
Nico was taken aback. "What--what? What are you talking about?" What if Will knew? Oh gods...
"Don't play dumb, Nico. I can tell. There's something you want to tell me, but you can't bring yourself to do it. Tell me." Nico wondered how Will could guess that so easily. A little part of him wanted to tell, but he held his tongue. Keep it together, Nico, he told himself. Don't lose your cool. Act dumb.
"I dunno what you're saying. I have nothing to hide." Absentmindedly, Nico pulled his sleeves down lower.
Will saw him doing it. He grabbed his wrists and gently rolled his sleeves up. Nico winced and turned away, his face bright red. Will's eyes widened as he saw the scars, but he didn't saw anything. Letting Nico's hands drop, Will looked him in the eye and said, surprisingly calm, "Did you do this to yourself, Nico?"
Nico grudgingly nodded, caught. It would be stupid to lie now.
"Why?" Will's voice was full of concern.
"I-- I," Nico's voice cracked. Without warning, his eyes welled with tears as horrible memories flooded back to him: his mother's death, Bianca's death, being trapped in that bronze jar, coming out to Jason. It was unbearable. "I deserve it," he said finally, blinking away his tears.
Will took his face in his hands said firmly, "No. You don't. Nobody deserves scars from themselves." He tried to take Nico's hand, but Nico scooted away, hugging himself.
"I do, Will. I hate everything. Every-- fucking-- thing--on-- this--mother fucking--planet!"
"Nico, don't--"
"I don't need your comfort. Nothing you say can make me stop. No one cares, and i'm fine with that."
"I care, Nico."
Despite everything, Nico's cheeks burned and turned beet red.
"Promise you won't cut yourself again, Nico."
"You can't make me--"
"Other wise I will."
That snapped Nico out of it. "No! You can't-- I won't..." he sighed. "I'll stop. Eventually," he added under his breath. To his surprise, Will grabbed him and held him in a tight hug.
"You better. I fucking care about you, Nico. Knowing that you hurt yourself hurts me."
"I know. I'm sorry." And Nico really was.
"It's okay. I love you," he kissed Nico's nose.
Nico's eyes widened, then he kissed Will back. "I love you, too. I really am sorry. I will stop. I'll try, at least. Really, I will."
"You better. Or I swear to all the Gods I'm gonna throw your ass out the window."
Surprisingly, Nico laughed. Leave it to his boyfriend to take a depressing moment and turn it into a conversation as stupid as fuck.
