Heroes of Olympus One Shots and Imagines.

The 30s

Disclaimer: I do not own the Heroes of Olympus series.
Pairing: Nico X Reader (X Leo?)

She reminded him of his past. Those blissful, ignorant days. When he had his mother and his sister still with him. The days when he was back in Italy. She reminded him of the 1930s.
    Maybe it was the way her lips were always a shade of pink or red and never dry. Or her refined way of speaking, never swearing or using profanity. Nico especially loved her outfits.
    Y/n always managed to tie the 30s into every outfit of hers. Always conservative and innocent. And, gods, her hair. Nico could go on hours and hours about her hair.
    Sometimes her hair curled naturally due to the humidity in the summer. Whatever hairstyle, whether it was in a ponytail or pinned back or worn loose (Nico especially liked it free), it was always soft and shiny, always neat and never messy.
    Y/n also maintained something rare. Something more beautiful than his father's rarest gems. Her face possessed natural beauty. She never used any make up. She also retained the image of classic beauty. Something that could fit into every decade.
    She was better than just the thirties, though. She was a free spirit, though her lovely face could deceive you into thinking she was just a pretty thing. A common misjudgment to which Y/n responded with a lethally sweet smile and a cleverly masked retort dripping with sugar.
    She was smart. Oh so very smart. It was rare to see Y/n without a book, pen, or paper.
    'A well read woman is a dangerous creature,' Y/n would frequently quote Lisa Kleypas with innocent eyes and a sly grin.
    Nico admired her drive and ambition, always helping her pursue her far fetched dreams and desires.
    She was perfect.
    And she belonged to Leo Valdez.

    Nico knew he shouldn't feel happy that Leo Valdez had died defeating the Earth Mother.
    "Y/n?" Nico knocked on her cabin door. The sounds of condolences and quiet sobs seeped through.
    One of Y/n's siblings opened the door and, within a minute, the cabin was empty except for Y/n and Nico.
    "Hi," Nico offered her a smile. He seemed to always be smiling around her.
    She looked up at him beneath her wet eyelashes and Nico's breath caught in his throat.
    Even though she was crying, Y/n was stunning as always. Her wet eyes glistened when the sunlight hit it, her slight curls cascading down her back in a slightly tangled yet shiny waterfall.
    "Whatever happened to Chiron's rule of no boys and girls not being alone in a cabin together, Nico?" Y/n asked playfully, masking her grief in humor, like her boyfriend would have done.
    "I think this would be an exception," Nico replied without missing a beat. He settled on her bunk, next to her. Without hesitation, Y/n rested her head on his shoulder, her arms circling around his waist and his arms embracing her shoulders.
    He took in her scent, a sweet mixture of Italian gelato and flowers.
    "You know," Y/n tilted her head up at him, her curls tickling his chin, "I missed you so much."
    "I missed you too," Nico's fingers gently running thorough her hair as if it were the most natural thing in the world. 
    "I've never told you how much I appreciate you, though," Y/n burrowed into his chest. "How devastated I would be if you had died. It's a horrible thing to say, but, if you had died instead of Leo... I truly would have gone mad, I believe..."
    "Oh, mio angelo," Nico murmured into her hair. "Y/n, I think...no I believe...I l~"
    "Y/N!" Y/n's sister burst into the cabin. "Leo's alive!"