Chapter 80 - Etched on Skin (AU) (Bonus)
published: Tuesday, 27 July 2021
[ requested ]
"You don't think I could stand to see a friendly face?"
"What...my face?"
The words simply didn't make sense together. Friendly face. Nico di Angelo.
"You're so dense," Will noted.
That was how it started.
—*—
Nico trudged through the strawberry fields of camp, awkwardly waving at each person he saw. A few days had passed since the final battle against Gaia. Since Octavian's fiery death. Since Leo's disappearance.
He had to admit; campers were nothing if not resilient.
"Nico!" came a breathless voice. It was Percy Jackson, wobbling as he made his way through the fields, trying his best not to trample the fruit.
Nico waited patiently for the butterflies to go crazy in his stomach upon seeing the green-eyed son of Poseidon.
Nothing.
The memory of confessing what had once been his deepest secret to Percy himself flashed through his brain. Right.
Nico felt his cheeks flush slightly. He hadn't spoken to Percy since. Gods, what if it was awkward? What if Percy never wanted to speak to him again?
"I need to talk to you," Percy panted. He finally arrived beside him, shaking his hair out before snapping his head up to look at Nico.
Nico's heart began to hammer more violently against his ribcage. Shit. This was it.
"Will said you need to be in the infirmary," Percy told him.
The blood rushing through his ears meant that Nico barely even heard what he said. "What?"
Percy waved a hand dismissively. "Something about owing him three days of rest." He shrugged. "I got Annabeth into the infirmary. I'll force you there too."
When Nico didn't react, Percy tagged on, "Will Solace? Blonde, son of Apollo—"
"I know who he is," Nico interrupted. There were the butterflies in his stomach.
"Okay, cool," Percy said, smiling. It was the signature Percy Jackson grin. Lopsided, friendly, a hint of "you have no idea what I'm about to do". Nico felt a spurt of embarrassment for his younger self; that particular move had floored him many times.
Nico hesitated. "Is that it?" This was slowly turning into one of the longest conversations he'd held with anyone in the last three years, excluding Reyna.
"Um." Percy ran a hand through his hair, a sheepish look on his face. "I mean, that is what I supposed to tell you, but..." He trailed off. "About what you said — after the battle — the other day."
Nico closed his eyes. Oh gods.
"I probably didn't react that well," Percy winced. "I was just kind of shocked. I really thought you'd hated me."
"I did," Nico said cautiously, studying Percy's expression. "A little bit. At one point. Because of Bianca. I don't anymore."
"Right, right," Percy paused. "And the...the crush. That's—"
"Over now," Nico reassured.
"I know, I just mean," the other boy stammered. "When did you..."
Okay, so they were doing this right now.
Nico knew his cheeks were hot. Miraculously Percy wasn't blushing. The boy who used to go red at every mention of his now-girlfriend. Right.
"Probably from when we first met," Nico said tentatively.
Percy's eyebrows shot up. "Wow, okay." He scratched at his head awkwardly. "And — you don't have to answer this if you don't want to, by the way — liking guys, that's—"
"Percy," Nico broke off. He swallowed. "I-I'm gay."
The words hung between them for a few seconds.
"Okay," Percy said simply.
The one word made Nico stare blankly at him. "That-that's it."
"After you said you, y'know, liked me, I suspected," Percy said embarrassedly. "I just didn't want to assume."
Nico couldn't stop staring at him. He had never said those words out loud to anyone. Ever.
And here he was, uttering it to the boy he used to have a crush on.
"It's not the end of the world, just so you know," Percy said slowly. "You're still you. I-I don't judge you for it. I mean, if that's what you're worrying about."
Nico couldn't help the doubt that slipped past, "Really?"
Percy's expression grew serious. "Of course not." This was one of the few times when there wasn't even a trace of humour in the demigod's face.
Nico cleared his throat nervously. "But you don't feel awkward? I didn't make you feel weird or anything?"
"No?" Percy cast him a look of disbelief.
Nico ran a hand over his face, feeling pale and clammy. "Sorry, I just..." I spent so long thinking this would be the end of it for me, he said silently. Never thought it could feel so freeing.
As Percy scrutinised his reaction, Nico felt a tinge of guilt. Percy didn't get enough credit for the kind of person he was. He was a good person. One of the best, in fact.
And he wasn't just an ex-crush. Nico had always assumed he didn't have any friends. Campers thought he was weird. People called him 'freak' in their heads. But since Will had brought up the contrary, Nico was starting to wonder what else he'd been blind to.
Bianca had been his confidante for so long, Percy might just be his oldest surviving friend — or at least one of the closest things to a 'friend'.
"Thanks," Nico managed, hating the wobble in his voice.
Percy placed a hand on his shoulder — something he could do because of how much taller than Nico he was, which he hated, but not so much this time — and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "It's okay. I just didn't want you to leave camp because of me. Would be nice to see you around a bit more."
Nico cracked a smile. Gods, his face hurt from the rare movement.
Percy seemed to take it as a win, because his face lit up immediately. He wore his heart on his sleeve, and Nico respected it. It took courage to do so.
"I won't force you to hug me or anything," Percy promised, his hand dropping back down to his side. "And I won't tell anyone or anything. I mean, I don't know if it's public knowledge—"
"It's not," Nico confirmed.
Percy shrugged. "That's fine. I won't mention it to anyone then."
"Thanks," Nico repeated. A small part of him was still incredulous that this was an actual exchange he was having with Percy.
"See you around," Percy called over his shoulder as he retreated back through the fields, a little less clumsily than before.
Nico watched Percy's retreating back. Since finding out that he was a demigod, Nico figured that nothing else could ever faze him.
Apparently there were still a few surprises left in this world, Percy Jackson included.
<<< >>>
Nico's rare good mood lasted a day. To be fair, most of it was spent in holed up in the infirmary...with a certain son of Apollo.
Maybe the infirmary wasn't that bad.
Problem was that it was an echo chamber. A safe house away from the rest of the world that allowed Nico to ignore other parts of reality that maybe weren't as appealing.
He and Will parted ways when they entered the pavilion for dinner, Nico heading over to sit at the Hades table. Since no one else was in his cabin, Nico usually sat by himself (at least the very few times he'd been here in the last year). He kind of enjoyed the solitude.
Except today he enjoyed the whispers less.
Nico didn't know if it was his own paranoia, but he could've sworn his name had come up in neighbouring conversations. Sneaking a glance to his left, Nico saw the kids at the Aphrodite table whisper something to each other before multiple pairs of eyes flicked over to him.
He stared back down at his plate. Okay. So maybe people were confused as to why he was staying at camp.
He glanced up, seeing the Ares table from where he was sitting. Some of Clarisse's siblings were leaning over in not-so-subtle discussion.
"...heard that...crush...likes boys..."
Nico's heart sank as he caught whiffs of the conversation. Adrenaline made him feverish, his vision blurring with dark spots for a moment as a feeling of terror struck him, hard.
His hands trembled as he continued to saw at his steak. Shit. Fuck. Nico bit down on the food, feeling the sudden urge to hurl.
Across the pavilion, Nico felt Clarisse's gaze burning into him.
"Shut up, asshole," he heard her mutter to her siblings, who paid her no heed.
Nico desperately wanted to get the hell out of here. Unfortunately he couldn't exactly leave without making a scene.
Once dinner was over, he would shadowtravel while everyone else was at the bonfire. No one would even miss him. Nico felt a pang of regret; Will would understand. Besides, they'd only really been friends — if that — for a few days. He probably wouldn't even notice.
Yes, Nico would leave. He could explore the world again. Maybe do a trip around South America this time. He hadn't been properly travelling since the time he accidentally shadowtravelled to China a couple times—
"Hi," a voice abruptly broke into his thoughts.
Nico looked up, nearly choking on his food as he saw Jason slide into the seat across from him. He blinked. "What are you doing here?"
"We're sick of eating alone," Percy declared, taking the spot beside Jason.
Grover shuffled in beside Nico, giving him a nervous smile. Nico knew the satyr was a little afraid of him ever since he crack he'd put in the marble way back when.
Nico stared at them. "What?"
"Come on, the rules mean that we have to sit alone," Jason pointed out. "It's not very fair is it."
Percy just made a grunt of agreement through a mouthful of pasta. He was tucking into his food like he hadn't eaten for weeks. To Nico's side, Grover munched on a pile of empty Coke cans.
"Right." Nico couldn't remember the last time he'd actually had a meal with someone. Crappy infirmary food with Will didn't count. It had probably been with Minos — and a Happy Meal.
Jason and Percy's heads blocked the Ares table from view, and Nico frowned, not knowing what they were saying about him now.
"You guys don't have to do this, you know," Nico muttered. "Seriously. I'm fine. So everyone's talking about it. I don't care."
That was partly true. He didn't even know how everyone found out. Nico didn't think Jason, Percy or Annabeth would tell anyone. And if Will suspected...no, he wouldn't do that either. Someone might've overheard his conversation with Percy this morning. Or from after the battle. Hell, it didn't matter. What mattered was that everyone knew.
A shudder ran down his spine. Gods, everyone knew.
"It's not very nice of them," Grover said, to Nico's surprise. The satyr didn't look any less terrified of Nico, and he was hesitant to say anything, but Nico appreciated the effort. "I mean, I get the campers like gossip. But it was horrible when everyone called me a fraud in my search for Pan." The satyr shook his head, horns swinging from side to side. "And it's not like that was even comparable to this, but..."
Nico stared at his food.
"It's kind of crappy of them," Grover finished.
"Thanks," Nico said bleakly. It wasn't like that magically made everything better. In fact, Nico still felt like shit. He swallowed. "Is it true that satyrs can sense people's emotions?"
Grover looked slightly taken aback, apparently not expecting Nico to really acknowledge him. "Um, yeah."
"So you knew then." Nico decided he was just gonna go with it. Everyone already knew. Talking about it behind his back was worse than to his face. There wasn't any use in treating it like a dirty secret.
"I," Grover released a nervous bleat. "I wasn't sure."
Nico supposed he should be glad Grover hadn't mentioned anything to Percy before. He was, a little. But right now all he could feel were people's stares on him, and while Jason, Percy and Grover alleviated the anxiety, Nico still felt the brunt of it weighing on his shoulders.
"Will you come to the bonfire with us?" Jason tried. Nico appreciated it, he really did. The son of Zeus had been the first person to find out, and while Nico expected judgement and disgust, he had been met only with understanding and sympathy.
Nico's heart sank; he hated to let Jason down.
"I...I think I'm gonna leave tonight," he said quietly.
It hurt to see their faces fall, but Nico forced himself to focus on his steak. It would be better after this. He could be alone — as he always was. It would be easier.
None of them tried to convince him otherwise. Nico was glad for that. He really didn't have the energy to argue right now.
Behind Percy's head, Nico saw Piper stand up, hissing something he couldn't make out to her half-siblings, who were stunned into silence. When she was done, she sat back down with a permanent scowl, the rest of her table eating wordlessly.
Nico risked a glance to his left. Annabeth sat at the Athena table, food untouched as she eyed the rest of the pavilion with a glare that would scare a god. Her arms were crossed and her face made it clear that she wasn't above using violence.
After dinner, as everyone filed off to the bonfire, Nico headed back to his cabin, hands stuffed in his pockets and head hung. He refused the company of his friends, just wanting to be alone with his thoughts for a bit.
Only when Nico had shut the door behind him did he relax. He sunk into his bed, head in his hands. Curses were muttered under his breath.
This was a disaster.
It was the fruition of his worst nightmare. Everyone knowing he had a crush on Percy. Everyone knowing he was—he was gay.
Not only was the creepy son of Hades. He was also now the weird gay kid. Perfect.
There were a few raps on the door.
"Can I come in?" the voice was hesitant and muffled, but Nico recognised it immediately.
"Preferably not," Nico said sourly. He stood up, grabbing his duffel bag and stuffing his scattered clothes in.
"I'll shout at you through the door."
Nico glared at the door. He knew she couldn't see him but it felt good. "Fine," he grumbled. "Come in."
The hinges creaked as Annabeth stepped inside, a wary look on her face. "Gods, it's dark in here," she muttered. The blinds were closed and with the door shut, the only source of light was the dim bulb in the centre of the room.
Nico had a weird relationship with Annabeth. At least, weird on his side. For everything he had felt when he was around Percy, Nico had spent sleepless nights trying to convince himself that it was because he had a crush on Annabeth. Surely that feeling was jealousy, right?
Clearly it wasn't. It was even worse that he actually got along decently with Annabeth, which was rare for him. She didn't call him weird, didn't look at him like she was afraid he would attack her, didn't treat him like an outsider. Annabeth reminded him of Bianca a little, weirdly enough, probably because she was a couple years older than him.
And it was so painful watching her and Percy together. They fit together like perfect puzzle pieces and it killed Nico, knowing that. Seeing Percy survive the Styx, coughing out water on the bank of the river, eyes frantic and glassy. Knowing that people who dipped in the Styx saw their lifeline, and knowing that he had probably seen Annabeth.
Nico felt so guilty that he was practically lusting after Annabeth's soulmate — because that's what they were, right? How could he have ever competed with that?
Especially when Annabeth constantly defended him and treated him like a younger brother.
So now as Annabeth stood in his cabin, Nico didn't want to meet her eye. The last time they spoke she had offered him a friendly high-five. But unlike Percy, Annabeth was hard to read. She masked her emotions like her life depended on it, never letting her guard. She was almost as good at it as Nico was.
Nico swallowed. Was Annabeth here to berate him? Chase him out of camp herself? It couldn't be nice hearing everyone talk about someone who had a crush on her boyfriend.
Before he could panic any further, Annabeth cleared her throat, interrupting his thoughts. "So Percy said you were planning on leaving. I'm not here to convince you to stay."
"Really?"
"I know that you don't change your mind when it's made up." Annabeth threw her hands in the air. "You're as stubborn as Percy."
Nico almost smiled.
"But I just wanted you to know, that whatever your reason for leaving camp, I really hope it isn't me," Annabeth said steadily. "I mean it. I know you don't exactly talk about your feelings much — especially not to me. But if you think that I'm holding a grudge against you for any reason, I just need you to know that I don't. At all."
Nico frowned. "I had a crush on your boyfriend."
"So?" Annabeth snorted. "About fifty other people here have. Join the club."
"It's different," he insisted, angrily shoving one of his hoodies into the bag.
"How so?"
"It's—" Nico cut himself off. "It just is."
Annabeth folded her arms across her chest. "Because you're a boy?"
Nico's heart thudded. Yes, he almost spat. Because I'm a boy. That's the point of all this.
"That shouldn't make this any different." Her voice was almost pleading. "Percy doesn't resent you for it. I don't resent you for it. I know you were born in 1932, and I know that you might've internalised the horrible close-minded things people have said to you, but you have to know that they aren't true."
Nico closed his eyes. "You don't get it."
"I know I don't," Annabeth admitted. "I know I'll never understand what it's like." Nico knew she knew. Annabeth had all the privilege that came with being a pretty blonde girl dating a boy.
"I've spent four years being the freak here," Nico's voie cracked. "I don't...I'm tired. I don't want to spend the rest of my life hearing what everyone else has to say about me."
"I'm sorry," Annabeth said softly. "I'm really sorry. That you have to deal with this. If I could everyone's butts—"
Nico shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "I just don't think it's something that can help in this situation."
He knew Annabeth hated being helpless. But she knew he was right.
"Then I'm in no place to tell you to suffer through it if you don't want to," Annabeth concurred. She sighed, brushing her ponytail over her shoulder, pursing her lips. "Can I hug you?"
Nico stared at her for a few seconds.
"Sure," he said finally.
As she wrapped her arms around him, Nico felt tears prick at his eyes. Fuck, he finally, finally had people he could actually call his friends. They were few and he could probably count them all on one hand, but Nico hated that he had to abandon them.
Stay, his brain screamed.
Nico shut his eyes and the faces of campers judging him and whispering about him filled his head.
No. He wasn't going to stay.
"I'm gonna miss you," Annabeth said, voice tight. "You can come visit me and Percy anytime in Manhattan, okay?" She drew away. "I mean it. It'll just be us, so you're welcome anytime."
"I'll take you up on that," Nico said.
To his surprise, he meant it.
There were a few raps on the door.
Both their heads swivelled to it confusedly. Nico's heart skipped beat. There was no way—could it be—
The door pushed open and in stepped none other than Piper Mclean.
Nico blinked, thinking he might be imagining things. But she was still there, zip hoodie pulled over her t-shirt and shorts, standing uncomfortably in the doorway, looking like she'd rather be anywhere else but here.
"Hey," Piper said awkwardly. "Can I talk to Nico for a second?"
He glanced at Annabeth, who looked as perplexed at he felt.
She slid him a curious look. "Sure." Annabeth gave him one last smile — the one she reserved for her friends — before she headed for the door. "I'll be down at the bonfire."
The daughter of Athena waved as she left, figure disappearing into the distance as she walked away. Leaving Nico alone with Piper.
"So," she said.
"So."
Nico had probably spoken to Piper less than ten times in his entire life. On the Argo II, Nico had spent most of his time talking to Hazel, and a little to Annabeth, Percy and Frank. Even Jason, after the House of Hades. But Piper Mclean was quite possibly the last person he would ever have guessed would show up at his door.
It was the equivalent of Clarisse showing up to pay him a compliment or something.
"I guess you've heard?" Nico said.
Piper sent him an apologetic look. "Yeah, um, Lacy overheard something and told the others, and that kind of started everything. I'm really sorry. I tried to stop them but it had already gotten out and—"
"It's fine," Nico shrugged. "What's done is done." He raised an eyebrow. "Is that what you wanted to talk about?"
"Kind of," Piper said hesitantly. Apprehension was written all over her face. "I, um. I think I'm bisexual."
It took all of Nico's willpower to keep his mouth shut so he didn't gape.
What?
"No," Piper shook her head. "I don't think I'm bi — I know I am. I, just, haven't said it out loud to anyone. Ever."
"And you're telling me?" Nico said slowly.
"I just figured if anyone would understand..." she trailed off. "What I mean is, I know how you feel. At least somewhat. I don't think any of the others get it. Not really. It's like — I know Jason's not going to hate-crime me or anything, but I'm afraid that he would treat me differently. That everyone would."
"What you did, telling Percy," Piper said in disbelief. "Was so brave. I don't know if I could ever do something like that. Especially not as a 15-year-old. Just thought you should know that, even if people are saying bad things, there are people saying good things too — like me."
"Telling Jason made me feel like, like I was going to throw up," Nico admitted. "It made me sick to my stomach. I'd spent almost a century keeping this a secret, and it was practically forced out of me. But it also felt like a weight was lifted off my shoulders."
The words were charged with a sincerity that sounded foreign to Nico's own ears. He had never said any of this to anyone. Never spoke of everything he was thinking, except to Reyna a few times.
"I know it's hypocritical," Nico said quickly. "I'm saying this as I'm running away, but..."
"It's different."
Piper understood. Piper understood him. She got what he was thinking without him even saying it, not because they were best friends but because she was going through the exact same thing.
Nico wanted to curl up into a ball and cry. No one ever understood him. Not like this.
Piper offered him a sympathetic look as he blinked unexpected tears away.
"I know," she almost-whispered. "No one's ever understood. I'm glad you do. All the best, Nico."
They weren't automatically the best of friends. Nico didn't even know if they were 'friends' at this point. But Piper did leave his cabin with a certain sense of camaraderie between them, and with Nico feeling a lot lighter than he did before.
He continued to pack — throwing in belongings like a watch, jackets, wallet — maybe more sluggishly than before.
Can't stay, he told himself. Can't face everyone.
As much as Nico was tempted to consider it, he wouldn't allow himself to. He would construct some imaginary future for himself and only be more crushed when he came to the same final decision.
Leaving meant a new start. It wasn't like he would never see them again. He'd visit.
The door burst open with a deafening bang, scaring Nico with a jolt.
"Gods!" Nico gasped. "What the hell?"
"Yeah." Will Solace stood in the doorway with a fixated grim expression. "What the hell?"
Nico winced. Oh, Styx.
"Will, I'm leaving," Nico said tiredly, zipping up his duffel bag.
"No, no, I've heard that from about five people today," Will said furiously, stalking towards him. His long legs crossed the room in three strides. "Five people who weren't you."
"I didn't tell you because I knew you'd react badly," Nico muttered sullenly. "Exactly as you are now."
"Yeah, I'm angry," Will gritted his teeth. "I thought we were friends, Nico. You said you'd stay. We spent the entire day together. Friends don't just pack up snd leave."
"'Friends'?" Nico echoed. "All my other friends didn't even try to get me to stay. They're respecting my decisions. Asking me to stay for you is—"
"I'm not asking you to stay for me!" Will exploded. The usually calm demigod was caught in a rare fit of frustrated. "I'm asking you to stay for you!"
Nico gave him an incredulous look. "What?"
"What do you think the rest of your life's gonna look like if you keep running away from things when they get scary?" Will demanded. "You'll never stop running, Nico. You'll never find somewhere to call home."
"That's the whole point, Will," Nico snapped. "I'm a son of Hades. He's not welcome on Olympus — I'm not meant to find a home. Moving around? That's my entire destiny!"
"Destiny is not predetermined," Will insisted. "You make your own choices. Your own decisions. This is a time when you need to choose right!"
"And choose to stay?" Nico said helplessly, pressing his hands to either side of his head. "Choose to endure whispers about me every single day?"
"Choose to stay where all your friends are?" Will shot back. "Choose to stay where—" he stopped. "—where you could build a relationship? Where you could actually have a life that isn't just about being alone?"
"There is no promise of that," Nico growled. "But there is a promise of everyone treating me like I have the plague."
"I know that," Will said harshly. "Believe me, I know that the worst case scenario is all you can think of right now, but Nico, there are so many better—"
"You don't know that—"
"Yes, I do!" Will cried. "Are you blind? Nico, I'm gay!" He began to pace, chest heaving from the nature of their conversation. "I know you think you have it especially hard because you're gay and a son of Hades, but trust me when I say it wasn't easy for me either."
"Yes, there have been assholes and jerks and bigots," Will gestured wildly. "But I've also made the most incredible friends. My family is here now. Camp is my home. And I hate that you can't see how much you could have if you just took a chance—"
Nico surged forward, hands gripping Will's shoulders as he kissed the other boy. In an instant, Will went rigid against him, and panic tore through Nico.
Was this a mistake?
But Will was kissing him back, pulling them closer until Nico loosened his grip.
Nico had only ever kissed two people before. The first had been a girl in the Lotus Casino when he was...probably 12. Her name was Margaret and it happened beside a Ms Pac-man machine, and the kiss was wet and kind of gross.
His second kiss was with a boy. Nico had been stranded in China, forced to take refuge with the first English speaker he met. The woman was kind and had a son — Zhangwei — whom Nico spent the better part of three days with. The hour before he left, Zhangwei kissed him. "A goodbye," he said. To the boy he would never see again. Neither of them were interested in seeing whatever they had past that timeframe, but both of them knew they were stuck in situations where they might never get to kiss someone they wanted to ever again.
Nico's third kiss was with Will Solace. This was, by far, his favourite.
They broke apart, Nico gasping for breath even as he didn't let go, foreheads still touching. Will's back was arched to make up for their height difference, sky blue eyes peering down.
"You're only the third person I've kissed," Nico panted. "First one was a girl. Second one was a boy in China."
Confusion washed over the other boy. "Why were you in China?"
"I accidentally shadowtravelled there two years ago," Nico said impatiently. "Doesn't matter."
Apparently it did to Will, because he looked like the floor had just fallen out from under his feet. Rosy cheeks were turning into a deathly pallor — and that was 'deathly' coming from Nico.
"Wh-what," Will stammered. "What is—"
"This is me taking a chance," Nico said, breathless.
Will swallowed down what seemed like a thousand words. "Was it worth it?" he managed.
Nico bit his lip so hard he could taste the blood drawn.
Was it worth it? The ultimate question. To stay or to go; it didn't matter what choice he made, both would have their ups and downs.
Staying meant enduring a life time's worth of gossip and judgement and days that would make him feel like nothing was worth it anymore.
Except that now, staying also meant seeing his friends. The closest thing he had to family. And Will, maybe.
"It is," Nico said truthfully.
And he meant it.
<<< >>>
At the end of summer, Nico was lying on the sand, feeling rays of sunlight beat down on him.
"I'm going to burn and it's all going to be your fault," he complained.
Will lay beside him, hands palm-down on his stomach. He made an exasperated noise, turning his head so that he was looking at Nico through sunglasses. "It's your fault for living like a vampire for the last century. You probably have a vitamin D deficiency—"
"You are not allowed to run any medical tests on me," Nico said immediately. The best threats were preemptive.
Disappointment emanated from his boyfriend.
Nico's mouth quirked into a small smile. Boyfriend. The word sounded foreign.
"Why are you smiling?"
"No reason," was Nico's vague answer.
Sand shifted as Will turned over properly, pulling off his shades and setting them down. Nico dropped his head down to his right, looking expectantly at him. "What?"
"I have to tell you something."
A million different things hurtled through Nico's brain. That was the worst way to start a conversation — all it did was elicit panic.
"I don't want you to panic," Will warned.
"Too late."
Will took a deep breath. "Do you know the story of how Percy and Annabeth got together?"
Nico blinked. "That is not what I thought you were going to say."
"Humour me."
"Um, okay." Nico wracked his brain. "No, I don't. I just figured they pulled their heads out of their asses at some point and realised they'd basically been married for years."
"Close enough," Will shrugged. "This was a couple years ago. Week after the Battle of the Labyrinth. I think you'd just left camp, took off to — China, apparently."
Nico frowned. "That wasn't intentional."
"There was this monster skirmish," Will continued. "Just inside the camp borders. We had to fight them off, but they weren't the usual monsters — they were these creatures Hecate created. Made of dark magic and dark magic only. In the middle of the fight, one of them exploded."
"Exploded?"
Will nodded. "Like fireworks. It was in the sky and it sent dark magic through the entirety of camp. The borders kept it in so the rest of Long Island wasn't affected."
"How have I never heard about this?" Nico asked in disbelief.
"People don't like to talk about it," Will informed him. "Too many 'what ifs'. Anyway, the magic gave everyone these tattoos. And they were the thoughts of each person's soulmate."
Nico coughed. "Excuse me? 'Soulmate'?" He snorted. "That's the most ridiculous thing I've heard since—"
"Humour me," Will repeated with an eye-roll.
Nico shut his mouth and forced his various opinions back.
"It was crazy. Silena and Beckendorf — you didn't really know them — had each other's thoughts. So did Katie and Travis. Annabeth thought it was some kind of coincidence. She was one of the few campers who didn't believe in the whole 'soulmates' spiel."
"That's because she's smart," Nico pointed out. He sighed. "Right, sorry. Continue."
"Anyway," Will said with a glare. "The soulmarks — we called them 'soulmarks' — were the first part of the spell. Then, as other parts of it came to light, we found out, when one person suffers a physical injury — like a cut — their soulmate gets the same one. No one knew if it was Luke's intentional doing to make us more vulnerable, but it put everyone on edge. That's how Percy and Annabeth found out they were soulmates."
Nico's eyebrows shot skyward. "Percy and Annabeth are soulmates?"
"Thought you didn't believe in them."
"Well, this all sounds like too much just to be a coincidence." Nico paused. "What, so Percy got a papercut and Annabeth bled?"
"Bit more than that," Will sighed. "They almost died, Nico."
"What?"
Will nodded gravely. "Yeah. They were sent on this mission and disappeared for three days. We all thought they were dead. Kronos told us they were. And then out of the blue, they return, sporting matching bloodstains on their t-shirts."
"They didn't tell any of us at the time, but Percy explained it to me last summer. On the mission, they got ambushed and he got impaled."
"Holy shit. But that means Annabeth—"
"Exactly," Will confirmed. "He said they both passed out in each other's arms, having only realised what it meant when Annabeth's abdomen opened up into a miraculous stab wound. They woke up two days later, completely healed."
"So soulmates can heal each other?"
Will nodded. "Apparently so."
When he didn't continue, Nico prompted, "And what happened?"
Will blinked. "Oh. The soulmarks disappeared within three weeks. Percy and Annabeth kept their relationship a secret for months and only told us they were dating when they kissed at the bonfire and royally screwed up our betting pool."
Nico frowned. "I mean, it's a great story and all. But I don't see your point."
"The point of the story was to prove to you that soulmates exist," Will told him. "I knew you wouldn't believe me if you just told you about the tattoos."
"I still don't see your point."
Will stared imploringly at him. "Nico, I had a tattoo."
Nico felt his heart drop into his stomach. Oh gods, he wasn't Will's soulmate. "Do you—do you know who he is?" he tried to stop his voice from trembling, but it wasn't much to mask the evident fear.
"I didn't," Will admitted. "It was a bunch of jumbled thoughts that didn't make any sense to me. All I remember was something along the lines of "I can't believe I'm in China again" and "if I have to see this country one more time I'm gonna run into a brick wall", with more swear words..." He trailed off, an unreadable look in his eyes.
The words registered. Nico stared at Will, speechless.
"At the time," Will said, starting to ramble nervously. "I figured; 'great, soulmate's a racist'—"
"The first time we kissed," Nico interrupted, realisation dawning on him. He sat up suddenly, prompting Will to scramble into a sitting position. "I said something about China—" He spun around. "You've known this whole time?"
"I-I suspected," Will mumbled.
"You've known for two months," Nico repeated. "That I was your soulmate."
"I didn't want to guilt you into staying," Will said tentatively. "Besides, I thought you didn't believe in soulmates."
"I do now."
Will studied him carefully. "So telling you the story was a good idea then."
Nico snorted. "The story wasn't what made me believe in soulmates. I mean, yeah, it makes sense from a magical and logical standpoint, but..." He averted his gaze to his shoes, choosing to pick at the laces rather than meet Will's eyes.
"It's you," Nico tried. No, his explanation wasn't making sense. He frowned. "You understand. In a way that no one else does. I don't click with people. I don't even like people most of the time. But you, Will—" Nico glanced at him. "I could believe that you were my soulmate."
Will leaned forward, closing the distance between them as he pressed his mouth against Nico's. Kissing on a beach hadn't previously been on Nico's bucket list; but he was starting to regret that.
"I love you," Will said quietly when they came up for air.
Nico's stomach erupted into butterflies. But not the anxious kind — the good kind.
"I love you too," Nico murmured.
For someone so closed off, Nico thought it would take longer to get this attached to someone. The familiar fear of abandonment wasn't anywhere to be felt — Will was here to stay.
It was worth it, he thought.
It seemed that when it mattered, he made the right choice.