The girls were busy with a last-minute dress fitting. Naomi thought this was an invoice, seeing as the dress should have been 100% done by now. The banquet was three days away.
Most the guest had arrived already and would be staying in their rooms and out of everyone's way. Sadly, that meant that Aries wasn't letting Frank out to play Mythomagic with him. That means that Nico was left with only Will hand out, though that wasn't a bad thing. It was quite the opposite. It was wonderful.
But there was a catch, unfortunately.
Since all the girls were busy and none of the guests were coming out of their rooms, that meant had to help Will with last minute preparations and touch-ups.
The first stop was the kitchens. Apparently, they needed to check again (this was the 5th time according to Will) to make sure everything was on course. It was, just as it had been all the previous times.
Up next was the ballroom. All the tables had to be ready for the food to be set out, flowers from the florist, and for the guest to sit, of course.
Most the tasks were like that. Will had little to fix but by the time they had finished, it had been three and a half hours. The boys decided to rest their feet a little before heading to the dining room for dinner.
Dinner was quiet. Everyone sat around, slumped in their chairs. Even the queen herself looked sluggish, much to everyone's surprise. Will hadn't seen his mother like this often, but when he did, he was concerned.
Apollo joined them halfway through the meal. He too looked exhausted. Not nearly as much as his wife, but just about.
"Let's call it an early night," Apollo said, making sure everyone was on board. Everyone nodded. Then Hazel fell off her chair with a snore.
"Oh, no," Naomi mumbled, rushing to pick her up. Luckily, it wasn't anything too bad or else she would have woken up already.
"I'll take her up to her room, dear," Apollo offered. "You eat with the kids."
The king took the small girl into his arms, pecking his wife on the forehead before heading up to Hazel's room. Naomi turned back to the others. Despite her energy level, she still had a list of things for herself and the others. They all listened to what their tasks were, none really stood out till last one.
"Will and Bianca, you two need to work on your dancing."
Bianca went wide-eyed and started to make up some excuse, Rachel jumping in to save her friend. Will and Nico remained out of it. Naomi rolled her eyes, raising a hand to stop the two from arguing further. They stopped, thankfully.
"I don't know what happened to you two back in the Sky Kingdom, but whatever it was, you two need to make up. Seeing as though I've seen no progress between you two, I'm making more couple therapy."
"But-," B and Will started. They got the hand again.
"Then start speaking to each other more!" she snapped, then realized her actions. "I'm sorry. It's been a long and stressful day," she paused to sigh. "Just... please. I know it's hard, trust me. I understand but for a relationship to work, both of you need to be open to talking about things with one another.
"So, if you could, please makeup by the time the banquet starts? That's all I'm asking. You don't have to kiss if you aren't comfortable with it. We shouldn't have even asked in the first place. It-"
"Mom," Will gently cut her off, "we understand. We'll do our best. As for now, I think you need to relax and get some sleep."
She nodded in agreement, deciding it was best to just head up to bed now. Bianca waited exactly one minute before bolting out of the room and to her room. Will sighed, earning a pitying look from the other two.
"Have you tried to bring the subject up?" Rachel asked, picking at her food.
"She hasn't stuck around long for me to even open my mouth."
"Sorry to hear that," Nico said. "I'm willing to help you out with your dancing situation though. In the morning. Not now cause I feel like I'm about to do what Hazel did a few minutes ago."
Will nodded, not really thinking about the offer. Not at the time anyway.
The next morning is when it really sank in.
☀️❤️💀
The next day around noon, the boys met in the ballroom. They were both fully energized and realizing what they had agreed to. And they both wanted to back out, fearing that something would happen.
Neither did though.
Nico had set his phone up to a small bluetooth speaker and started playing some playlist he had made the night before. All slow songs, might he add. To Will, this was everything he had dreamed but with a lot more awkwardness.
At first, they were both too flustered to meet each other's eyes. They kept their gazes glued to the floor, watching their feet. Then, slowly, their uneasiness melted away and turned into something more natural. They were able to step into a waltz without any problem, looking at the others face.
Nico took a moment to look at Will's eyes. Up close, he could see little specks of lighter blues dotted about. Nico wanted to see that more often.
Waking from his daze, Nico glanced down at their feet.
"You're not as bad as you were last time I saw you dance," he stated.
"I've practiced since," Will grinned.
"Really? Nico snorted. "With who?"
"Hazel's quite the dancer," the blonde joked. Nico laughed.
"But really. Who?"
"No one. The last time you saw me, I was very distracted."
"May I ask why?"
Will chewed his bottom lip, thinking of how to approach the situation. There were many ways, but which way was the best?
"You remember when we went drinking a few weeks ago?"
Nico rolled his eyes. "Not really and if I did something embarrassing, I'm not sure if I want to know."
Will shot him a nervous smile. "It wasn't you. It was more me..."
"Okay... you don't have to share if you don't want to."
Part of him was tempted to take up that offer. To stay silent. But he knew if he did that, nothing would happen so he just blurted out.
"I came out to you and you said that I only did it 'cause I was drunk."
Nico stopped their dancing. The music was still playing but sounded far away now, and all he could do was stare at the blonde in front of him.
"I feel like there's more," Nico mumbled, starting to take if hands off Will. His suspicions were confirmed when he saw Will gulp.
"You asked how I came to that conclusion..."
"And?"
"And I said it was because of you."
"Will..."
"I know it's stupid," Will said, averting his eyes from Nico. He couldn't stand the shock on his face. "But I do like you. A lot, actually."
"You do realize that we can't be together."
"Why not?" Will pleaded, meeting his eyes again. A pang of worry hit him when he saw Nico was on the brink of tears.
"You're engaged to my sister," the black haired boy reminded him.
"And almost everyone knows that we don't like each other like that."
"We're both part of royal families. It would ruin our reputation."
"Who cares about that?"
"Our parents wouldn't approve."
"Your dad wouldn't approve," Will countered. "I know Persephone supports you 100% and I know my mom and dad would accept us no matter what."
Nico looked conflicted with himself. He kept his distance, making sure he was out of reach from Will, fearing that if he gave into his feelings, there was no going back. The other misinterpreted those actions and step forward to comfort the smaller boy, only to have him lash out.
"Don't come near me," Nico ordered. "Just... stay away from me."
He fled the room with Will calling out after him. No much of Nico's relief, he didn't follow, though part of that made him feel worse.
Nico wandered the halls, staying clear of everyone. He had started crying and didn't need any rumors spreading. Normally, he'd just go to his room, but Will's room was right across the hall. He didn't want to take the risk of running into him.
To his knowledge, the girls were still busy with their dresses. And he forgot his phone back in the ballroom so he had no way to texting either one of them. There was also no point in waiting in their room for them because chances of them going back to their own rooms were slim. They always hung out in one room.
So he went to the Rachel's shed. She usually goes there if she has five or so minutes to herself and isn't being dragged by Bianca. And chances were of Bianca dragging Rachel off today were small. Normally after dress fittings, she went to her room and lounged around the rest of the day.
He quickly arrived at the shed, shutting the door behind him to ensure no one came in unless they were Rachel. The shed, like always, was hot inside, though Nico didn't care today. He sat on the three-legged stool and gazed out the dusty window, bored out of his mind. He thought about doodling on a piece of paper but didn't know if he was allowed to touch anything Rachel had in the room.
His eyes turned to look at the desk. There were a jar of paint brushes, another one with fresh water beside it, and another one full of pencils, and another... How many jars were in here?
He shifted his hand and knocked something onto the ground. Out of panic, Nico grabbed it and hoped it wasn't broke. Only, one he picked it up, it was his phone...
Nico looked at the desk again and found a note he somehow missed.
Figured you come here after you ran off.
- Will
Nico crumpled up the paper and threw it into the wastebasket. He hated how nice Will could be sometimes.
Suddenly, the door swung opened and Nico jumped. He jumped again when he heard the person at the door scream.
"You scared me," Rachel gasped.
"Sorry," Nico mumbled.
Rachel noticed a slight crack in his voice. She rushed over, sliding her bag to the ground and moving his head into the light. Then she saw the tears. Without hesitation, the redhead wrapped him up in her arms.
"What's wrong?"
Nico let it all out with Rachel listening without interruption.
🌧️❤️☠️
After Will left the phone in Rachel's shed, he went to his room. He knew Nico wouldn't go to his own room till later in the day. That was if he decided he even wanted to be within fifty feet of Will.
Will let out a long sigh as he opened the door. He made sure to lock it once he was inside, then flopped onto his bed, burying himself in the fluffy blanket and pillows. Sadly, they did nothing to comfort his mood and made him feel worse.
He needed a distraction. A nice and pleasant one, preferably.
He quickly got out of his bed, picking up one of his warm sweatshirts and left the room. Heading down the halls, he ran into no one, which didn't come as a surprise. His little sanctuary was in the part of the castle no one really went to anymore.
Will reached the room and let out a breath of relief. Since he'd been so busy lately, he hadn't had time to come here and play piano or guitar or any other instrument for that matter. Seeing for the first time in a few days was enough to lift his mood just a little.
The piano had been left untouched and without any dust on it. That usually meant that someone came in a dusted and swept the room, which was fine by him. As long as his precious instruments were in good condition everything was good.
He slid onto the piano bench and skimmed the keys with his fingertips before pressing down on a few. Soon, he was using both hands and playing a tune without even knowing he was doing so.
The tune changed, then it changed again, and again. Will abruptly stopped when he realized how sad it sounded.
The urge to hit something came to him but he refrained from it.
He sat in silence, clutching onto the bench until his anger passed. He did nothing afterward until a knock brought him back to reality. Will looked up to see Bianca.
"Hey," she greeted quietly.
"Hey," Will replied, gloomy.
"I heard what happened," she said, silently approaching him. "Mind telling me the whole story."
"What's there to tell? I told Nico how I felt and he ran off."
Her hand was now on his shoulder, rubbing it back and forth.
"Will, I know Nico doesn't talk about certain things with you. Has he told you about any insecurities?"
"Not really..." the blonde mumbled. "I know he's still not completely comfortable with his sexuality because of your dad."
"And?"
Will shrugged. "That's the only one I know of."
Bianca sighed, slumping her shoulders. She should have figured as much. After a moment of thinking, she stood back up, pulling Will along with her.
"Come on. We're doing something."
"What?" he asked as he was dragged out the door.
"Something. Anything."
Will didn't see this as a good thing.