TWELVE
Nico woke up with a stiff neck, aching back, and fifty-six text messages from Will, two hundred from Hazel, and a million missed calls. Nico didn't feel like dealing with Will yet, so he opened the ones from Hazel. They all said the same thing, just in different methods, threatening his death if he didn't respond right away. As soon as he did, she phoned.
"Nico di Angelo where in hell have you been? I have been worried sick, thinking you dead or abducted. What were you thinking? Have you no disregard for how-" Hazel said all this in a single breath, and wasn't planning on finishing her rant in the foreseeable future if it hadn't been for Nico interrupting.
"I'm fine. I stayed at a motel last night."
"Why on Earth did you run off and stay at a motel? You were meant to stay at Will's." Hazel no longer sounded angry, now that she knew her brother was safe, and was now relieved but confused.
"It doesn't matter. I'll probably catch a bus back today, would you pick me up from the station?"
"It does matter, but I will drop it until I can talk to you in person. If I were you, I would let Will know that your body hasn't been left in a ditch in the middle of no where." Hazel hung up after that, leaving Nico in the quiet of the room. His fingers were itching to draw, but he had a hard enough time with his essay last night, let alone with holding a pencil. It only served to make him feel more trapped.
He knew he should let Will know he was alive, so he sent him a text, but when Will called, he hesitated before answering. After a quick mental debate, he figured it was better to answer and get it over with.
"Hello?" Nico said quietly.
"Do you have any idea how worried I was when I woke up and you had disappeared? What happened?" Will wasn't mad, or upset. His voice was shaky, but quiet.
"I'm sorry, rough night. I just needed to get out of the house. I can drive you to the hospital if you need, I can be there in thirty."
"Don't be ridiculous. You take the time you need; I am perfectly capable of driving myself. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, I'll walk over and meet you at the hospital. I can't stay for long, though. Hazel needs me back." Nico lied. While he was talking to Will, he had packed up his textbooks and put on some clean clothes.
"I'll pick you up, where are you staying?" Will asked and Nico gave him the name of the motel. After a promise to be there shortly, they hung up and Nico took his stuff to the lobby to return the key.
Nico was leaning against the building, bag on the ground when Will's truck pulled up, cutting the engine. Nico got in, putting his bag in the back. Will didn't start the truck though, and reached in the console to pull out his first aid kit. "Give me your hands."
"Will, it's fi-" Nico protested, but Will cut him off.
"Nico. Give me your hands." Nico held them out hesitantly and Will grabbed the pair of tweezers, picking out the rocks that Nico had been unable to pull out. He cleaned it and wrapped it. "What happened?"
"I fell, it's not a big deal." Nico pulled his hands away and looked out the front window. "Come on, we should get going." Thankfully Will complied and they drove to the hospital in silence. Nico was hoping Victor would either stay in the room or be at work. He didn't doubt that his threat was serious, but Will was his friend and Nico was here to support him. Will had enough on his plate right now, he wouldn't add to it.
"Are you coming in?" Will asked as they made it to the waiting room.
"Nah, I'll just wait out here again, but you know where to find me if you need me." Nico nodded his head towards Aurora's door. "Go." He added softly at Will's hesitation.
His phone was almost dead thanks to Will and Hazel, so he just sat there. He should have brought in a textbook, or anything to keep his mind occupied. Instead he had to settle for a cheesy celebrity magazine on the table in front of him.
Nico saw Victor leave the room so he held the magazine up higher as he walked past blending in with the other families waiting, narrowly dodging a bullet. It wasn't long before he went back to the room, holding drinks. Forty-five minutes past according to the clock on the wall, and Will came out.
"How is she?" Nico stood and walked over to Will.
"At this point, it's just a waiting game. Would it be all right if we headed back in the morning? Mom and Victor have things under control, and I really shouldn't be missing much more school." Nico nodded. Looked like he was spending another night at the motel after all. He made a mental note to text Hazel.
"Yeah, of course." Will walked out of the hospital and Nico followed, getting into the passenger side of the truck. They pulled up in front of Will's house and Nico figured that as long as Victor was at the hospital, it would be okay. He plugged his phone in while Will turned on the telly, wanting to do something other than think.
The movie finished, but they continued to sit there in silence. It was Will who spoke first. "So why did you really leave last night?"
Nico really didn't want to tell Will the truth. He needed to only be concerned for Aurora, and Nico didn't want to add himself on top of that. He also didn't want to strain Will and Victor's relationship even more, because Will was stuck with Victor for the foreseeable future and who knows how long he and Will would live together. They hadn't even talked about next year.
"I told you, I just needed to get out of the house last night. I ended up going for a walk and it was late so I ended up just staying at the motel for the night." Nico felt terrible about lying to Will, but there wasn't much else he could do.
Will didn't buy it. As much as Nico tried to deny it, Will knew him better than anyone, except maybe Hazel. "You just decided to go for a walk with all your things?" His eyebrow was raised.
"Yes." No. "Just drop it, alright?" Nico said perhaps a little too loudly, but he effectively stopped the conversation.
"Okay. There isn't much to do in this town, but Victor is staying overnight so Mom can come home and get some rest. I don't think she'll feel like cooking, so we should go pick something up." Will stood.
"No it's okay. I can just make something. I'm sure she'd rather home cooked after all this hospital food anyways." Nico offered. Will nodded and they headed into the kitchen. Will went straight to the cookie jar, grabbing several and tossing one to Nico who barely caught it.
Opening the fridge, he found what he needed and got started on the meal, boiling the water for farfalle and making the cheese sauce. While that cooked, he got Will to stir the items, hoping that that wasn't beyond his cooking capabilities, and finished making a salad just as Naomi came through the door.
"Something smells delicious. What'd you order Will?" She called out.
"Nothing, I made it." Will said. Naomi came into the kitchen. "Well, I helped, anyways." He said when he saw that his mom clearly didn't believe him.
"It looks great, Nico. Thank you hun. I'll be ready in twenty, if that's alright?" Nico nodded and Naomi disappeared upstairs. Naomi looked like she hadn't slept in weeks, and while she had sounded happy enough, her eyes said otherwise.
"Are you sure you're good to leave in the morning?" Nico turned to Will, setting the salad in the fridge and taking over the stirring.
"Like I said, there isn't really much I can do right now. I'd rather wait for news in our flat and stay caught up rather than fall behind and sit at home all day waiting."
"Fair enough." Nico took the pots off the stove and Will got dishes out, setting the table. Naomi came down shortly after, looking much more put together. A shower and clean clothes couldn't clean away the weariness on her face, however.
The meal was silent, and Naomi constantly checked her phone, even when she hadn't received a notification. Waiting was always hard. She went straight to bed, after thanking Nico for the food, and Will and him cleaned up together. Will and Nico were heading upstairs too, when Will stopped abruptly, making Nico crash into his back. "Promise me you won't disappear again?" He turned and looked Nico in the eyes.
"I promise." Nico said, and meant it. Will stuck out his pinkie finger, but Nico rolled his eyes. "What are you, six?" But at Will's insistence, Nico sighed loudly and connected their pinkie fingers the seal the promise.
Will shut his door and Nico walked to the end of the hall, entering the spare room. He sent a text to Hazel, letting her know he didn't take a bus and he would be home around noon with Will. The last thing he felt like doing at the moment was study, so he set Netflix up on his laptop and started a show. He pulled the blanket tighter around him, cold. Episodes blurred together, and soon Will was knocking on his door and he hadn't slept a wink.
"Come in." Nico called out from his position on the bed, too tired to just get up and open it.
"Mom went in already, Victor is downstairs making breakfast." Will said, then took in Nico's state.
"Did you even sleep last night? You look like death."
"I always look like death. I'm not hungry. Just pop by when you're ready to leave, I got to work on an assignment." Nico lied, hoping his stomach wouldn't betray him. He had closed Netflix and opened up a random document to pretend to be working on.
"Alright, Death boy, I'll just grab something and pack. It shouldn't take longer than twenty." Will left, and Nico hoped to whoever was listening that Will wouldn't mention anything about his being here. When he didn't hear any shouts of rage after a few minutes, he figured he was safe. He got dressed and started packing. He was sitting on his bed playing on his phone when Will knocked, entering.
"Alright, I'm ready to head out when you are."
"Where's Victor?" Nico tried to act nonchalant.
"In the shower, I already let him know I was heading out. You ready?" Will asked, leaning his body against the doorframe. Nico nodded, grabbing his bag and following Will down the stairs. He made it out the door without a problem.
Nico made Will drive, seeing how he felt like he would fall asleep standing up. He used to be able to do all-nighters easy, but when he was used to four hours of sleep, it was brutal. Four hours wasn't much, but it let him get through the day.
"Why didn't you sleep last night?" Will asked, concerned once they had left the city.
"I accidentally started a new show and before I knew it you were knocking on my door." Nico yawned, and his stomach growled.
Will pulled off into a drive through to order a coffee and a bagel, despite Nico's hesitation. "So you have insomnia?"
"I guess. I just don't sleep much, I do fine with just a few hours." Nico shrugged, and thanked Will as he handed him the food and drink.
"Why didn't you eat at home? Do you really dislike Victor so much?" They pulled back onto the highway.
"It's not that I dislike Victor, I just dislike his views and how he treats you. I just wasn't hungry then." Nico quickly finished his breakfast and leaned his head against the window, quickly falling into a deep sleep.
There was a hard poke on his cheek, and he woke up to Will's face right in front of his singing 'rise and shine.' He saw Reyna's car, remembering that she was over. With difficulty, he managed to drag his ass upstairs and unlocked the door. "Reyna! We're back!" he called out before going straight to his room, flopping on his bed.
As soon as he closed his eyes though, he saw her face and he knew he wasn't going to get anymore sleep anytime soon. Guess he would just survive on caffeine. He could see Reyna crashed on the couch, arm hanging over the side, and heard light snores. She must be done competing for the day.
"Wake up sleepy head." Nico tossed a pillow onto her face, and she groaned as she sat up, rubbing her arm.
"Dude. Hello to you too." Reyna said, glaring at Nico before smiling and pulling him into a bear hug.
"Gross! You smell! Nico tried to pull away from her sweaty body, but she just held him tighter, probably trying to kill her. When she finally released him, he pointed to the bathroom. "Go shower before I kick you out."
"For your information, that is the smell of victory." She called, closing the door behind her. Will came out of his room with a raised eyebrow.
"How exactly do you know this girl?"
"Umm." Nico had to think about this. "She and I did judo together when we were twelve. I was going through a phase, and she actually did something with it. She stays here when she has a competition in town."
"So note to self, don't get on her bad side." Will smiled.
"I can agree from experience. She's cool though. Maybe she can drag you to the party instead of me this time." Nico suggested. Reyna came out of the bathroom in shorts and a hoodie stolen from Nico. He frowned seeing this but she ignored him.
"So what's this I hear about a party?"
"I was just saying you can drag Will along instead of me." Nico flopped onto the couch, stretching his body out along it's length.
"No way, this just means I get to drag both of you. Tomorrow night, it's going to be killer." She tried to nudge Nico's legs off the couch, but he was stubborn so she just sat on his stomach instead, turning on the telly.
"How'd you do in your matches?" Nico asked.
"Lost the first one, but I totally should have had it, and won the others." She shrugged, downplaying her victories, but her smile told Nico she was happy with the results. She was just never one to brag.
Will watched Nico and Reyna bicker like children but then the commercials ended and he shushed them. This was how they spent their afternoon, until Hazel and Frank stopped by, letting themselves in. "Reyna!" Hazel called out when they entered.
The couple stepped into the living room. Frank was a larger, well built man with obvious Chinese roots. His height contradicted Hazel's, but Will thought they looked cute together. "Oh!" Hazel spoke. "I didn't realize you two were back yet." Nico nodded and Hazel turned to Will, eyes soft. "How's your sister doing?"
"Right now all we can do is wait for a donor, but she seemed stable enough for the moment, thanks for asking." Will loved Hazel and how she was always looking out for everyone. She treated him like he was also her younger sibling, she just had that way about her and would make a great social worker in Will's opinion.
"I think ordering pizza tonight wouldn't be a bad idea." Reyna suggested, and Nico nudged Will softly. He took out his phone and dialed, leaving the room for a moment to go where it was quiet. While he was ordering, Nico and Hazel passed by him and went into Nico's room, shutting the door behind them. After hanging up, he headed back to get to know Frank and Reyna.
"Nico, what happened this weekend?" Hazel asked in a voice that clearly meant that she wouldn't accept anything but the truth.
"Promise me you won't talk to Will about it?"
"You know I don't do promises, but as long as you or anyone else's lives aren't at risk, my lips are shut." Hazel had always had that rule.
"I didn't just run off, Victor-Will's stepdad-kicked me out because he found out I'm gay. I don't want Will to have to deal with that on top of everything with Aurora, and his and Victor's relationship is already strained so I don't want to make things worse if I don't have to." Nico couldn't handle looking at Hazel's eyes, so he just looked at the wall beside her head instead. "Look. I know it was stupid to not let Will know I had left, and I know it was stupid of me to cause you this much stress, but I just needed to be alone."
"Look, I'm not happy about it, but I understand why you want to keep this from Will. If this ever happens again and you don't text me and let me know you're safe, I swear on the river Styx that you will regret it. Are we clear on this?" Hazel asked him sternly, and Nico nodded. "Good. Now, if you want me to go give the Victor a lesson, I would be more than willing, and anyone in this house would be too."
"Gods, Hazel. I can take care of my own problems. You don't always have to jump to my defense, I am perfectly capable." Nico hated feeling weak, and he hated the thought of Hazel fighting his battles. No way in hell was that going to happen.
"Really? Do I need to remind you of the last time you tried to deal with things on your own? Or the time before that?" Their voices were getting considerably louder.
"Oh, are you really going to hold those against me for the rest of my life? I'm not that bad anymore, and you know it. You just hate the thought of me being fine on my own!" Nico was done arguing. "Get out of my room." He said quietly. When Hazel stayed put he added "Or get out of my house. Your choice." She left his room. Nico heard her walk to the living room, but he stayed put.
He tried drawing, but the pencil rubbed his injury so he threw his book in frustration before kicking the corner of his desk. Cazzo. There was a soft knock at his door, and Will spoke calmly. "Pizza is here, you should eat something." Nico remained where he was, not replying. "Can I come in?" When Nico didn't answer, Will took that as a 'yes'.
He picked the sketchbook up and placed it on the nightstand before going over and straightening the desk Nico was stood beside. Will placed his hand on Nico's back and led him to the bed and he sat, trying to calm his rage. He got his anger from his dad, but he wasn't proud of it.
"Look, whatever is going on between you two is none of my concern, but you need to eat and get some rest Sunshine. I'll bring you some pizza if you want, but you will eat and that is nonnegotiable." At Nico's nod, Will left for a minute and returned with two slices. Nico grabbed them and mumbled thanks and Will left.
Once the door was shut, Nico leaned and put the pizza on the desk, not remotely hungry. He was drained from his argument though, so when he laid his head on his pillow, he slept.
For once Nico woke up feeling well rested. Looking over at his clock, he saw it was noon. Reyna was in the kitchen making her and Will food when Nico came out. "Do you work today?" Will asked Nico.
"What day is it?" Nico mumbled, still waking up. He went and poured himself some coffee, offering some to Reyna.
"Saturday."
"No, like the number."
"It's the" Will checked his phone "fourteenth."
Nico dropped his mug and mumbled quite the variety of curse words in both English and Italian, rushing to his room to get dressed. "Cazzo!" He couldn't find his car keys or his shoes.
Will tossed him the keys to his truck and pointed to the shoes laying in the living room. When Nico had left, Will turned to Reyna who was laughing loudly. "What's cazzo?" He was confused.
"The Italian equivalent of-" The smoke alarm started blaring, cutting her off.
"And this is why Nico does the cooking." Will laughed before going to turn it off, Reyna paying attention to the food on the stove once more.
(A/N This chapter ended up being a little repetitve, but oh well because I need all the words I can get. There's only ten days left in November...Yikes. Anyways, hope you enjoyed the update)