How to Seduce Will Solace: Step by Step with Nico Di Angelo

Step Six: Tell him your life story

I want to publish all these chapters n o w but what's the fun in that?

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They ate their ice cream in silence for a while, Nico watching the people around them.

"So, how was your day?" Will asked when the silence got to be to much, and Nico gave him a look. Will chuckled nervously, "besides the whole thing with Percy."

Nico pursed his lips.

"Okay, I guess," he mumbled. Will raised an unbelieving brow, making Nico uncomfortably shift in his seat.

"You can talk to me, you know," Will stated, and Nico huffed.

"I don't know you," Will shrugged.

"I'm Will Solace. We moved to New York because my dad got a better job offer here. Um, we have a cat named Toad and a dog named Lollipop. I'm seventeen and I have two brothers and three sisters-"

"That's not- I mean that could be general knowledge," Nico says, watching as a kid cries over sprinkles, "like, to me, everything with Percy is kind of personal, you know?" Will purses his lips, hums.

"Okay," he says, sitting up, "so, when I was, like, seven, there was this girl I liked, and I had this entire speech planned out that I was going to tell her at recess and everything, and I was so nervous that I threw up all over her top. She claimed it got in her mouth, but I've been ignoring that," Nico smiles, and Will smiles over at him, even if his cheeks are red.

"When I was thirteen," Will starts again, then laughs, "I had my bi revelation. There was this guy, and we were really close friends, but I also really liked him," Will's cheeks flushed as he remembers, and he's surprised he's actually telling this to Nico, "And for his birthday, he wanted some of his friends to stay the night-"

"Oh no," Nico groans, making Will laugh.

"Let's just say, when we were play wrestling, because guys like doing that for some reason, I got a little overly excited when he pinned me down."

"Oh no, Will," Nico whines, putting his face in his hands, "I feel embarrassed."

"I have a lot of mortifying stories. I was not a quiet kid," Will says, and Nico laughs.

"Like my first kiss," Will says, swirling his spoon in his melted ice cream, "I had braces at the time, and they literally got stuck in my girlfriend's bottom lip," he says, and Nico laughs again, "I had to text my mom, because it hurt her when I tried to talk. She came up to my room, and she started laughing. Which drew in the attention of my five other siblings and my dad. Needless to say she broke up with me after that."

Nico laughs, and Will groans, but he's smiling.

"That was so embarrassing, all those stories were embarrassing," he says, shaking his head. He takes some ice cream into his mouth, looking at Nico, "do you know me enough to tell me the juicy details with you and Percy now?" Nico's smile slipped, and he looked off to the side again.

"Come on, I just told you the top three humiliating moments that's ever happened to me."

"Well, that was your choice. I didn't make you," He shrugged. Will hummed, his smile gone, and Nico feels like he's done something wrong, "is that the only reason you offered me a ride? Why you took me here? To listen to me gossip about myself?"

"What?" Will asked, his head shooting up, his eyes wide, "No, of course not. I just- I do want to get to know you."

"Well why are you so intent on me telling you about Percy? I do other stuff you know. My life is more than Percy," he says, his voice raised, and he isn't sure why he feels so defensive about this.

"I- I know. I'm really sorry, okay?" Will says, putting his hands up. Nico leans back in the chair, curling his hands into his jeans. It's quiet for a while, neither sure what to say, and then, Nico sighs.

"Percy was the only boyfriend I've ever had, and we've been dating since eighth grade," he mumbles, and he refuses to look at Will, so instead he picks at a loose thread on his jeans, "after a while, he started treating me differently. Like, he didn't ever want to be around me unless he had to and he was always so mean to me, but nice to everyone else. I think he just started dating me because before we started dating, I was always by myself and never talked to anyone, he probably just felt bad for me," Nico sighs, chances a glance at Will, and sees him frowning. He quickly looks away again, brings his knees up to his chest.

"It was actually you that kind of got to me and made me break up with him, when you said you hadn't pinned Percy as a bad boyfriend," he doesn't look at Will, only furrows his brows, "I-I don't know if I did the right thing though. I didn't have to break up with him, I could have just talked to him or something. He was crying when I broke up with him."

"I don't think you did anything wrong," Will says seriously, and Nico looks up at him, "I mean, of course he's going to be crying, you two were dating for a long time. But if he wasn't treating you right, what makes you think he will when you two are older?" Nico frowns.

"Well if I had just talked to him-"

"Do you really think that would work, though?" Nico pursed his lips, looking away. Will was right, that wouldn't work. If Percy would even let him talk, he would brush it off. He wouldn't care, "You breaking up with someone that makes you feel less than you are doesn't make you a bad person, Nico."

Nico purses his lips together.

"I wouldn't-" he pauses, then, "I've known- Percy has been there for me since we were younger, when we were five, at least. He was there for me when no one else was, when everything just went to hell. He was my first to- to everything He-" Nico blinked, his eyes tearing up, "He used to actually care about me. I- I really thought I loved him. But- but then he started acting differently and he started- he stopped caring about me. That's what it felt like at least. I wouldn't say he made me something less than I am, he just stopped c-caring," Nico put his face in his hands, feeling tears drip.

"Nico-"

"Can we leave?" Nico asked, "Please, I really just want to go home, please," Nico cried. Will frowned but nodded, standing. Nico followed suit, wipping his eyes and biting his lip to keep from crying.

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9/26/18