Sunshine

Vaccinations

*Will*

I can't stop thinking about Nico, my stomach fluttering whenever I go to check on him (which seems to be every few minutes) and I think he's starting to catch on that I like him. He looks up when I walk back into his room, his expression neutral as I greet him.

"What do you need this time Solace?"

His voice lacks its usual venom, tone closer to when he was teasing me back in the Hades cabin.

"I was talking to Kayla, and she noticed that you're not up to date on your vaccinations."

"So?"

I can sense a fight coming up soon, clearly anything medically helpful is a no go with Di Angelo.

"So, it's my job to make sure you get them. And Gods forbid you get something preventable on my watch. Sit up, we're starting them now."

He rolls his eyes at me, crossing his arms over his chest and refusing to sit up.

"We can do this the hard way or we can do it easily, and trust me it'll hurt a lot more if I have to force you to take these."

His eyes glaze over when I start talking, a small smirk on his face as his cheeks turn red. I pause for a moment, watching him go back to his usual scowl.

"Were you even listening to me?"

He nods, blush creeping up his neck again at the sound of my voice.

"Sit up."

I smirk as his body automatically jolts up, though he settles back down quickly after.

"Nico..."

"Solace..."

He mocks my tone, smirking when it makes me blush. I catch myself staring at him for a few seconds too long, clearing my throat and looking away in an attempt to focus on getting him his vaccinations.

"Don't make me do this the hard way Nico."

"And if I do?"

I bite my lip to avoid saying something I'll regret, finding it harder to focus when I can feel Nico's eyes on me.

"You're cute when you're flustered."

"What?"

Nico blushes harder, apologising profusely as he refuses to repeat himself.

"You just-"

"Shut up."

"You just called me cute, didn't you?"

He sits up, pulling his knees to his chest and resting his head on his knees. I don't say anything else to him, afraid that I ruined the best shot I had at getting Nico to open up and actually talk to me.

"I...I'm sorry."

His voice is so soft I'm afraid I was imagining it, but the way he avoids my gaze tells me otherwise.

"We need to get your vaccinations done today."

He nods, wiping away the tears that pool in his eyes. I, against what my mind is screaming at me not to do, reach out and cup Nico's chin in my hand, wiping away the tears that spill down his cheeks.

"What's wrong?"

"I fucked up."

I wince at the sharpness of his tone, letting my hands move to caress his cheek.

"You didn't. In fact, I shouldn't have waited this long to do this..."

His eyes widen in surprise as I lean in, gently kissing him. I pull back after a few moments, apologising for not asking first. Nico remains silent, shaking slightly as he starts crying again.