The Perks of Us

Chapter 18

Nico woke up feeling oddly warm.  He glanced up, noticed the blonde strands of hair falling into his face, and, even through nobody was watching, a hot red blush creeped up his cheeks.  He nudged Will to try and wake him up. 
"Will," his voice was hoarse, probably from last night. He coughed and tried again. "Will," it was a bit louder. Will rolled over and blinked his eyes open, squinting. Then he looked at Nico and stifled a laugh.
"Morning, Death boy."
"Shut up, Sunshine." Will rolled out of bed and tugged on Nico's arm to follow. When he didn't, just groaning and flopping back into the pillow, Will kneeled down and whispered into his ear.
"Get up, we have a plane to catch." His hot breath hit Nico, making him blush harder. He pulled the cover over his head, and when he had cooled down enough, he jumped out of bed and stalked towards his bathroom.
"Fine. But just because we're going to be late."
Will smirked.
"Whatever works for you, Death boy." Nico slammed the bathroom door behind him.

Will shrugged and walked across the hall to his own room, humming a tune.
"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, hmm hmm hmm hmm hmmm.." he sang quietly as he reached for his toothbrush, squeezing a blob of toothpaste on it and scrubbing his already pearly white teeth. He bobbed on the balls of his feet as he made his way around the bathroom to turn on the shower, excited.  The hot water ran down his freckled skin, leaving him feeling refreshed.  In half an hour, he was dressed and waiting outside Nico's door. 
"Neeks?? Come on, we're going to be late!"
"Coming, Sunshine!" Nico swung the door open to reveal something completely new. His face displayed a bright smile, the sort of which Will had never seen on him. He wore a pale blue shirt and the same black jeans, but he shone with a gleeful aura.
"What? You're staring." Nico playfully pushed Wills shoulder.
"Ah, shut up, Sunshine. I was just thinking that you look nice today." Nico smirked and pulled his suitcase out.
"Well what are we waiting for? Let's get our butts out of college and into Florida."

Will grasped Nico's hand as they ran towards the gate, laughing. They slowed down and Nico's heels screeched on the tile floor of the airport.
"Thank you," Will panted as he took his ticket back from the lady at the booth.
"Of course, enjoy your flight, boys." She smiled and they entered the ramp going onto the plane. Nico shivered.
"Something wrong, Angel?" Will had adopted the nickname from earlier in the day when Nico saved him from being hit by an airport transporter and Will had joked that he was his guardian angel. Nico shook his head, then took a breath as he stepped onto the plane. The found their seats and Nico found himself clutching Wills hand even though they hadn't taken off yet.
"Now I know something's wrong."
"I'm- it's fine- I'm just scared of planes." Will could tell it wasn't fine, Nico's eyes were wide in terror as the engine started and the plane started rolling.
"It's ok, shh, just look at me. Keep your eyes on me. Hey, hey, it's alright," he soothed. Nico's breaths were shaky and he held Wills hand with both of his. He blinked slowly, his long, thick eyelashes tangling in the process. Will took it in. "That's it. Just look at me.. woah."
"Woah, what?" Nico's eyes twinkled. He had pools of chocolate eyes that Will could melt in easily.
"Woah." He repeated.
"Woah, what?" Nico laughed shakily. The plane was gliding smoothly through the air, and he was breathing kind of easier now.
"Your eyes are gorgeous." Will almost whispered it. Nico blinked.

What? Nico's heart stopped for a second. His eyes? He almost laughed.
"Are you blind?" He asked, incredulous.
"Not in the slightest. I mean it, they're beautiful."
"No. No, no no." He corrected. "Your eyes. You're eyes are the ones that shine in every shade of blue and sparkle like jewels when you laugh. And your dimple, and how you tap your fingers when you concentrate, and bite your lip when you're trying not to laugh. And how when you get tired or worried you have a southern accent-" Wills crystal eyes widened. Then he said softly,
"Your blushing."
"I am doing that entirely too much around you." Nico huffed, still feeling hot. Will just smiled and leaned over the arm of the seat, and Nico leaned towards him, too. His breath hit Nico's lips- thud! The plane shuddered. Nico closed his eyes and started breathing heavily. Will recognized it as an anxiety attack and put his hands on his shoulders.
"It's okay, we'll be fine." Nico opened his eyes in panic.
"There's no room! It's so cramped!" He looked around frantically.
"Nico, look at me. We're going to be okay." Even Wills words were filled with fear as the plane continued to bump around. It jerked, and the pilot spoke over the loudspeaker.
"Hello everyone, this is your pilot speaking. Everything should be fine in a few minutes, were just going through some-" sNaP! Something cracked, and the plane started tilting. Nico breathed heavily through his mouth, his eyes squeezing out tears.
"Will," he grasped his other hand. The plane shot towards the water below them. Both of them were pressed to the back of their seats, screaming. The other passengers were screaming and crying, too. Will felt his heart travel up his throat, and he forced it back down. His head pounded and his eyes shed tears by the barrel. He could barely imagine how Nico was feeling as they plummeted down.
"Will!" Nico screamed. "I-" the side of the plane peeled off next to him, exposing the passengers to the cold air. He gasped for breath. Will struggled to unbuckle his seatbelt, and then Nico's. The air bags had popped down, but neither of them used them.
"Fire!" Someone in the back screamed. Will looked back frantically. Nico's eyes were shut, he was muttering to himself. His hair flew back and whipped his face. Will glanced past the dark haired boy and out the plane to the earth rapidly approaching and yelled,
"Nico, jump!"
"What?!" His voice was barely audible, though he was screaming at the top of his lungs. "Are you crAZY?"
"Maybe! But you have to trust me, jump!"
"When?!" Will snatched Nico's hand and stood as well as he could.
"Now!" The two of them, holding each other tightly, plummeted down and were hit with the shock of icy cold water. Will shielded Nico from the impact. The plane hit a moment later, no doubt killing everyone in there instantly. Nico sputtered and tried to keep his head above the water.
"Will! W- Will!" He flailed his arms and kicked his legs, sure that they were slowly icing over. He dove down and searched for his savior before coming back up for breath.
"Will!" He dove under again. This time, he saw a mess of blonde hair sinking lower and lower. He ignored the tight pop of his ears as he wrapped an arm around Wills waist and dragged him up to the surface, sputtering and coughing as he pulled Will towards the shore. He dragged him up and lay on the strip of sand, breathing heavily and closing his eyes in terror. Will lay unconscious next to him. He rolled over and looked Will up and down, shaking his shoulder.
"Wake up. Please." He coughed. "Will! Wake up!" He pumped his hands over Wills chest. Then he took a deep breath and placed his lips over Wills, breathing hard into him. Water poured out of his mouth as Will coughed and sat up. "Will!" Nico breathed in relief, sprawling over Will in a tight hug. He lay his head on his chest. Will looked down at the boy who had saved his life.
"Thank you." He murmured. Nico shot up in anger.
"You idiot!! You scared me to death! What were you thinking, shielding me like that! You ever think that maybe I care for you too much for you to put yourself in danger?! Does it even occur to you that maybe I love you too much for that?! And then you go and throw yourself out of a plane and almost drown! Did you even think?" Nico huffed in exasperation, not even caring about what he just said. Will was silent before answering in a very quiet whisper.
"I love you too."