Hearts Need Love

Chapter 14

Nico found Will at the kitchen table, the blond digging through the bag he had brought that morning. He still smelled like peppers and onions, and his arms were damp from recently washing his hands.

"What are you looking for?" Nico asked, sitting in one of the chairs.

"Something I brought for Bianca." Will looked up from his search to smile at Nico. "I got a present for you, too. Don't worry."

"You brought...presents? On Thanksgiving?"

Will nodded. "What? Are you complaining?"

Nico shook his head. "If I knew, I would have gotten one for you. I'm sure Bianca would have loved to pick something out to give her other dad."

Persephone dropped a pan, making Hazel shriek in shock when it came too close to her feet. Nico's ears had turned red, embarrassment of the blunt statement, and Will had dropped his own hands to his sides in shock.

"What did you say?" Will asked, his eyes wide and on Nico only as Jason and Frank ran in to see the cause of Hazel's scream. "What did you say, Nico?"

"Um...that I would have gotten you a present?"

"You know what I mean. Bianca. You...you called me...you said I was...why?" Will spluttered. "Why did you call me that? W...What?"

Nico grabbed Will's hand. "Calm down. It's nothing bad...right?"

Will shook his head. "No, not bad."

"Good," Nico smiled. "Bianca. She called you her 'other dad'. And she said it so well, Will."

"She called me that?" Will asked.

Nico nodded. "She did."

"What did you say?" Will asked. "Did you correct her or say I was or just nothing? I...I just..."

Nico frowned. "I just congratulated her on talking... Why? Should I have corrected her? Do you not like it? Because...you did freak out, when you found out I had her. You did." He put his head in his hands. "Damn it. I should have thought this through. I'm sorry, I'll talk to her. I'll correct her and everything will be okay, just please don't freak out."

"No!" Will quickly grabbed Nico. "Don't correct her!" He frowned. "I...I mean...please don't. I...I like it, being called her other dad. I like it if you like it. I'm just...shocked I mean so much to her. But I like it."

Nico's dark eyes seemed to sparkle. "Really?"

"Really."

Nico gave him a quick kiss before pulling away. "Responsibility comes with that, you know."

"I'm well aware." Will grinned as he leaned in for another kiss. Their lips met, soft, puzzle pieces, cures for disease. That Thanksgiving was the first that Will ever felt he truly belonged somewhere. And that somewhere just happened to be in Nico's kitchen, their lips together, their hearts tangling into one.

When Nico finally pulled away, his cheeks were pinking to match his already red ears. "You...you said you got presents?"

Will wiped his damp mouth and chuckled. "Yeah, I do."

"You should get them out," Nico insisted. "I want a present."

"That kiss wasn't enough?"

"Nah, too quick." Nico smirked. "But others would be appreciated."

Hazel looked over. "Save it for the bedroom."

Nico rolled his eyes as Will began to look through the bag again. "Like we would do that in front of you and Persephone. We haven't even at all yet."

"We don't need to know that!" Hazel blushed.

"Yeah, they really don't need to know that," Will said.

Nico sighed. "I have a daughter. They know I have a sex life."

"Years ago," Hazel said. "Not present day."

"Maybe it will be present day." Nico crossed his arms. "Why not? I'm going to be graduating, I have a daughter, I'm mature enough to raise her. Why can't I have a sex life?"

"Nico, can we not-" Will tried.

"Because we don't want to go to bed every night thinking it's possible to wake up to hearing that," Hazel explained. "That's weird. And Bianca's in the house."

"Hazel, we wouldn't-"

"We wouldn't here," Nico cut Will off. "Do you think I'm that idiotic? Of course I wouldn't with Bianca's room right next door."

"Nico, this isn't a Thanksgiving topic-"

"Will's right, it's Thanksgiving." Hazel rolled her sleeves up. "I should be cooking, not talking about your sex life."

"Oh, you've been cooking for hours." Nico propped his feet up on the table. "But fine, I'll stop talking. Will's embarrassed."

"He's not the only one," Hazel turned back to the stove. "I didn't need to know any of that. My life would have been fine without hearing that."

Before Nico could talk again, Will shoved the wrapped box in his face. "Your present. Open it and be quiet. No more talking about that...please."

Nico blinked before taking the box. "It's...an actual present."

Will sighed. "What did you expect?"

Nico shrugged as he began to unwrap it. "I can get used to Thanksgiving presents, though, that's for sure."

He soon pulled out the black, fuzzy blanket Will had bought along with a wax melter. "What's all this for?"

Will sat in the other chair. "You...you have trouble sleeping, some times. So the blanket's really comfortable, and the wax melter...it makes your room smell good, you can use a calming scent. And unlike a candle, you can leave it on all night without worrying."

Nico smiled at him, all dirty talk a minute before now forgotten. "Will...thank you."

"Do you like it?" he asked.

"Of course." Nico pulled Will into a hug before getting up. "I'm going to go put it in my room. Are you coming?"

Will nodded as he stood. "I can show you how to set up the wax thing."

Nobody, not even them, realized that when they went upstairs, it would lead to the last time Will was a virgin.