Battle Scars

Nightmares

Okay, so, I have had nothing but time on my hands for days so, I have just been writing for like, forever. My hands hurt, my eyes are bloodshot, I have a terrible headache, and I couldn't be happier. Enjoy.

Leo's POV
After showing Nico around, I got Blond Superman (Jason) and Merman (Percy) to move a bed up from storage to my room for Nico. I can tell he's uncomfortable with the situation but it's the best we can do.
I go back to work on the engine in the boiler room. After what felt like an hour fighting with the engine I hear a knock on the door. Looking up I see Nico standing in the doorway.
"Oh, hey Nico. What's up?" I say casually.
"I just came to tell you that you missed dinner and your lookout shift starts at 3." He says, looking down at his shoes.
Man, that is so cute.
Leo! Stop it!
I look down at my watch and see that it's already 8:30. "Damn it!" I yell. "I've been down here all day! I didn't get to reboot the control system on deck. It got totally messed up the other day during a monster attack." I explain.
He just looks at me.
"Well, I'm going to bed so... are you coming?" He asks.
"I don't know, are you offering?" I wiggle my eyebrows at him, jokingly.
His face turns bright red.
"I-uh-I meant that I-I sleep in the dark and I d-don't want you to turn on the lights and wake me up." He says nervously.
I laugh. "I know, I just wanted to see you all flustered. It's cute."
I widen my eyes in horror.
Did I really just say that?! Oh Hades, kill me now! Please!
"Umm... okay well, I'm going to go." He said quickly, avoiding my gaze, and he practically runs in the direction of the cabins.
Great! You scared him away! What the hell is wrong with you?!
I wipe my hands on my jeans and turn off the light. I stop at the bathroom brush my teeth and stuff then slowly make my way to my room. I stop at the door and hesitate.
"Okay. You can do this. This isn't awkward at all. You just called him cute then he ran for the hills! Just walk in there and-"
"Leo?"
"Ahhhh!" I scream like a little girl and nearly wet my robot pajama pants. While giving myself a pep talk I didn't notice Percy walking up to me, sporting hilarious Finding Nemo pajamas.
"Geez! Percy you scared the hell out of me!" I bend over and try to breath normally.
"Sorry man, you were talking to yourself and stuff. Just making sure you're okay." He leans against the wall, holding a glass of water.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just preparing myself for an enormous amount of awkwardness coming my way." I say smiling nervously.
"Oh, yeah, well, Nico's cool. He had a crush on Annabeth for a while so, it was kind of awkward at first, but it's all good now." He says taking a sip of water.
"Oh. Okay, well, goodnight. Wake me up for my shift, okay?" I go to open my door when I hear terrified screams coming from inside. I look up at Percy and see that he is just as scared as I am. I try to turn the doorknob but it's locked in place.
"Move out of the way." Percy squared his shoulders and charges at the door. He slams his shoulder into the door and falls to the floor. Standing up, he backs up again, then rams into the door again, trying to break it down.
"Percy, stop! Your going to dislocate your shoulder!" I yell. I take a step back and kick the doorknob with all my strength. The doorknob breaks off, the door swinging open wide. Percy looks at me, his eyes wide with surprise.
I run into the room and see Nico thrashing on the spare bed, clutching the sheets and screaming.
"Bianca!" He screams. "Bianca come back to me! Promise me!"
I try to shake his shoulders to wake him up but his eyes stay tightly shut.
"Nico! Wake up!" I yell. Seeing this quiet, scary, strong boy reduced to this brings tears to my eyes.
He shouldn't have to go through this.
"Nico!" I grab him and hold him in my arms, hugging him tightly. "Nico, it's okay. It's just a nightmare." I say calmly, surprising myself.
Nico calms down and stops thrashing in my arms. He starts crying into my chest and I slowly brush the hair out of his face. His eyes flutter open.
"Leo?" He sits up slowly. "What happened?"
I look into his deep brown eyes and hold him tightly. "It's okay." I say softly. "It's over now."
He holds me tighter and sobs into my shoulder. Looking up, I see Percy standing in the doorway, staring at us in disbelief.
Nico pulls away. "Oh shit. I'm sorry Leo. I'll just go sleep it the sick bay or something." He starts to stand up, but I pull him back down.
"You are not sleeping in the sick bay." I say.
Out of the corner of my eye I see Percy still standing there awkwardly.
"Um... I'm going to go. It's seems like you have this under control." He steps back and turns on his heel. Laughing, I walk to the door and pick up the broken door handle.
"I'll fix that tomorrow."