He Loves Me?

3

Nico woke with a start, heart thumping. It was still dark. Will was slumped in a plastic chair, asleep. Nico blinked. His nightmares hadn't been as vivid, more blurry and slow. Maybe he was healed. He shuffled around to get a look at the marks, causing Will to stir.  Nico froze. But Will apparently settled back into sleep. Breathing out, Nico eased out of the bed and sat up.

"And what do you think you're doing?" Without waiting for an answer, Will carried on. "You were sneaking out, weren't you?"

Nico hadn't noticed Will's eyes open. How could he not have? They were practically gleaming as he moved to block Nico's escape.

"Three days, you promised me. 'On the Styx and all that,' you said."

How did Will even remember that? His words were never memorable.

"I was getting something to eat." Nico rolled his eyes. "The food here is terrible."

"What? The four bites of ambrosia were terrible, were they?" Now it was Will's turn to roll his eyes. "It's two in the morning, Nico."

Nico scowled. He knew he wasn't going to win this argument, so he lay back on the covers and stared up at the ceiling, trying not to let sleeps desperate clutches pull him down and drown him.

"May your dreams come true, except for those of escaping." Will grinned, and curled up like a cat in his chair, falling back to sleep almost instantly.

Nico shook his head at Will's cheesiness. Will shifted, and a stand of hair fell over his face. Nico thought it seemed unnecessarily bright in contrast to the dark room. But Will had forgotten one tiny thing.

That nightmares too, were also dreams.

~~~

Will woke up at the crack of dawn, startled as to why he was sleeping in a plastic chair.  Thoughts scrambled around his brain. Oh. To keep Nico from walking out. He yawned and crept out and into the Apollo cabin, to change.  Arriving back at the infirmary fifteen minutes later, he proceeded to check on all of the patients, occasionally cracking a joke or making a pact to bring down some food from breakfast. His smile was infectious, and all the patients were soon smiling with the promise of quick healing. All that is, except Nico. He hadn't smiled once, the closest he'd come was a slight smirk. Will strolled over.

"Rise and shine, sunshine." A smile split his face. "Hey, that rhymed. That rhymed as well!"

Nico was already sitting up. Will handed him a t-shirt, some shorts, and a few other necessities.

"Obviously you inherited Apollo's talent for poetry." Muttered Nico.

There were still dark circles under his eyes and he seemed sluggish. Will glanced at him suspiciously.

"Did you sleep after you tried to sneak out?" He asked.

"I wasn't trying to sneak out." Insisted Nico.

Will resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

"After I caught you not trying to sneak out, did you sleep?"

Nico nodded, but Will knew he was lying.

"Complete rest today. Nothing remotely stressful. Doctors orders." He said. Before Nico could try and fail to protest Will continued. "Do you want anything for breakfast? The other campers have already placed their orders." This time Will had to roll his eyes.

Nico shook his head.

"I'll pass. You don't need anymore food to carry than you already have."

"Don't be ridiculous." Will chided. "I'm using the nymphs to help."

"In that case... I think... I'll pass."

Will almost clapped when Nico actually performed a full, genuine smirk, instead he groaned.

"I'm bringing you a piece of toast." The way he said it was final, and Nico was left thinking what he'd done wrong, why was he getting a piece of toast? He wasn't hungry. Even as he thought that, his stomach rumbled and Nico wondered if he'd just grown accustomed to being half-starved with no one seeming to notice, including himself. Then he thought of Will Solace, going to get him a piece of toast like he actually cared, and the muscles of Nico's mouth hurt slightly as they stretched in to a tiny smile.