Out of that Brooding Cloud

It's odd, how different the world feels lately. The coming summer feels like a huge cloud of endless days pressing in on him from all sides, trapping him under their weight.

Nico sits on the dock, his feet dangling, nearly touching the surface, and stares out across Canoe Lake to where the Apollo archers are practicing. His eyes fix on one in particular, the only one who is laughing and not giving a damn about improving his marks. Will Solace, his blond hair kissed by the sun. It's brighter now than it had been the last time he'd seen him. Talking to him again, it's going to be painful; Nico's not sure he can bear it.

As he watches, Will sets down his bow and quiver and pulls his camp T-shirt off, then mops his face with it. Nico looks away, focusing instead at the water. It's so stupid, this crush. He told himself he was finished with the whole idea of crushes, of relationships when he'd settled his score with Percy. That was two years ago now. For the most part, it hasn't been difficult, but the summer months are a challenge, especially when Will – really his closest friend still at the camp – insists on looking like sex on legs and smiling all the time.

He scowls and stands up, then dusts off his pants, he wouldn't want to have dirt smudged on the ass of his jeans when he sees Will at dinner. He breathes out sharply through his nose at the thought. It's a stupid crush. It shouldn't matter to me what Will thinks of my dirty jeans. Hell, he'd never look anyway. Why do I always do this?

He turns and stalks back to Hades cabin without glancing back across the lake. He hates himself for how much he'd looked forward to Will coming back, and now that he's here, he hates himself for not being able to look at him without feeling overwhelmed by emotions he'd sworn he'd never let happen again.

"Ow, damn!" He trips on his shoelace climbing the obsidian steps to his cabin. Styx, his shin hurts when it strikes the stone.

"Nico!"

Great. Just what I need. Now Will's going to go all doctor on me again.

He grits his teeth and turns, shaking his hair so his bangs cover his eyes, and prays to Hades that the flush spreading over his cheeks will be mistaken for a response to pain.

Will frowns. "Are you alright?" Without waiting for a response, he takes Nico's elbow, slides his arm around his back and guides him into his cabin. "Better let me take a look at that. If it just happened, I can probably make it so it won't even bruise if we're quick."

Nico goes with it, not saying a word. Will has his bare chest pressed up against him, and has no idea what that's doing to Nico's body, to his brain. If he opened his mouth, he'd probably moan and it wouldn't be moan of pain.

He allows himself to be led to his bunk and slumps onto it, lips tightly sealed. Will releases him and drops to his knees beside Nico's feet. He takes off Nico's shoes, then looks up at him. The light in the cabin is low, but there is enough for them to see each other. Will's eyebrows are drawn in the middle. He looks almost sad.

"I'll need you to take off your jeans. The pant leg is too fitted for me to pull it up."

Nico closes his eyes. He's had two summers of getting to know Will. When it comes to healing, the guy takes his job seriously. It's not worth it to fuss. He stands, unzips his fly and shucks his pants, then sits back down. The hair on his legs stands on end.

Will puts his palm over the pulsing pain in his shin and begins to chant a hymn to Apollo in Greek. Warmth rushes up through Nico's legs all the way to the top of his head and then seems to sink back down until it's pooling in his gut.

Will looks back up and releases his leg. Nico slips back into his pants, facing away from Will, his heart thudding hard against his ribs. Then he realizes that Will might think it's rude of him to not say anything. He turns back around. Will's still watching him as if he's searching his face for some sort of sign. "Thanks," Nico murmurs, his bangs falling into his eyes again.