Piper had a weird feeling in her stomach. It was telling her something was up. If there was anything she could rely on no matter what, it was her stomach. It was always right. So when she walked up to Nico and got a weird feeling, she knew everything was wrong. So she studied and observed. Nico wasn't always like this, was he? Fixing his hair, smoothing his clothes, and organizing everything. Was it just her or was he acting much more feminine than usual.
She knew if there was anyone she could ask, it would be Hazel. She had been living with him for a while now, but not her entire life. This was good. She would be the best judge of character.
"Hey, Haze. Whatcha doing?" Piper feigned innocence flawlessly. Hazel gave her a small smile. She was reading a book for class during lunch. Piper usually sat with Jason, Reyna and Leo on the other side of the table, but she was up for a change. Frank was moved to the other side of the table, next to Leo. He wouldn't mind.
"Nothing. What's up?" Hazel had learned to fit in perfectly. She was a really sweet girl. A bit shy at first, but when she opened up you could tell she was strong willed. Piper liked that about her.
"Have you noticed anything about Nico recently?" Piper sat down next to her, placing her trey down with a small thud. Hazel pondered this for a moment, then shook her head. Crap. Was Piper imagining things?
"You don't think he's been acting more... feminine?" Piper cautiously asked. She didn't want to sound mean or anything. Hazel bit her lip.
"He's always been kind of girly, in his own way. He cares about how he looks and what people think of him. But I don't know him that well, so I'm not the best judge of character." But she was wrong. How could she not have noticed! It all made sense.
"Hazel, I think Nico is gay," Piper said slowly. You could see Hazel's brain working in her eyes. She opened her mouth slowly, then closed it. Her eyes widened. She nodded furiously.
"Oh my gods! He is-" Piper clapped her hand over the dark skinned girls mouth. Hazel realized her mistake and gave a small smile. Piper removed her hand.
"How did you know?" Hazel whispered. She shrugged.
"I don't know, I just noticed him acting more feminine than usual."
Piper sounded bored.
Piper knew she was right, she always had a sixth sense for people like that, an she just knew.
