BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.
Ah, yes. Another excruciating day at school. Don't get him wrong, Nico loved his job as an art teacher at his local high school. What's better than doing something you have a passion for and getting paid for it at the same time? But one thing that always got on Nico's nerves were those kids. You know, the ones who sit in the back and do nothing except make inappropriate jokes. Nico has scolded them repeatedly but they would just brush it off and continue to do whatever they were doing in the first place. Oh well, guess they're going to receive bad grades for his class.
Nico groaned as he turned over and shut up his alarm clock. He pulled his blanket back over his head to protect himself from the sun outside. Just five more minutes.
-----
Will pulled up to the high school parking lot, drumming his finger on the steering wheel. It was his first day of school as an anatomy teacher and he was definitely nervous. What if he messes up his introduction? What if he does something embarrassing? What if the students don't like him? What if the other teachers don't like him? Oh, gods.
Will shook these thoughts out of his head as he stepped out of his car and walked through the doors of Olympus High School. There were a few students milling about, all glancing at Will curiously. Will flashed them a smile before heading to the main office. He received his instructions and schedule and such and headed up to the fourth floor, which was where his classroom was.
Once he got there he surveyed his surroundings. It was a typical classroom with beat up tables attached to equally beat up chairs. There was a giant whiteboard along one side of the wall and his desk sat in the far corner in front of the board. Windows lined the back wall, letting the sunlight stream in.
Will hummed in approval. He set his bag onto the teacher's desk and set up his textbook and lesson plans, while also adding personal touches like a photo of his mom and a bobblehead of a skeleton. Then he went around and hung up posters of the human skeleton and different muscles and veins. After he was finished, he stepped back and gave his classroom a once-over before deciding it was acceptable.
He glanced up at the clock saw that there was fifteen minutes until his first class. Already, a few students had walked in and Will made an effort to introduce himself. After the first bell rang and a few stragglers hurried in, Will introduced himself formally, writing "Mr. Solace" on the board and telling his class a few things about himself. Most of the students seemed to like him enough, which gave Will a boost of confidence. He started his lesson and breezed through it, writing notes on the board for students to copy and taking any questions that the kids had for him.
Ten minutes in, however, someone barged into his classroom and shouted, "Sorry I'm late!" Said person had black hair that covered most of his face, several piercings in his ear and deep, brown eyes that slowly widened as he looked around the room. Will would've thought that the other man was a student but he was wearing a dress shirt that was messily tucked into a pair of really tight skinny jeans and a leather jacket covering his top half. There was a jet black bag that was slung over his body and Will could see the tips of some brushes peeking through. Will looked at the person with his eyebrows raised, his hand hovering over the board where he was previously writing.
Actually, it seemed like Will was the only one who was surprised. The rest of the class just looked at the man knowingly and one kid even shouted out, "Hey, Mr. di Angelo! You late again?" Will looked back at the man who was now scowling, his face becoming progressively redder. The man turned back to Will and quickly mumbled an apology before rushing out of the room and out into the hallway.
Will stood there in a confused daze. He snapped out of it and resumed his lesson, but not before making a mental note to himself to find out more about that man. Mr. di Angelo.
-----
Nico grumbled as he walked sluggishly into the teacher's lounge. He had woken up late this morning and he accidentally barged into another class. Again. He mentally groaned just thinking about it. He had made a fool of himself, and in front of the new teacher too. Even though he had ran out of his classroom, he managed to get a good look at the new teacher, his golden hair and his striking blue eyes and the way his plaid shirt stretched across his broad chest still ingrained in his memory. He also managed to catch his name that was written on the board. Mr. Solace.
Nico sat down at one of the few tables and pulled out an apple and a book. He was just getting into the story when he felt someone sit across from him across the table. He looked up to see none other than Mr. Solace himself, grinning brightly at him. "Hey, I'm Will Solace, the new anatomy teacher here. You're the one that barreled into my classroom this morning right?"
Nico blushed and looked down. "Yeah, sorry about that. I woke up late this morning and I was rushing and I thought that your classroom was mine. And you may already know this, but I'm known to do that from time to time."
Will chuckled. "Well you certainly made my first day interesting Mr. di Angelo."
Nico looked back up at him just in time to see him laugh. His smile stretched across his whole face and it seemed to bring some more light, more energy into the otherwise drab room. Nico felt a tingle in his heart and he couldn't help but give him a small smile too. "My first name's Nico," he informed Will.
Will nodded and said, "So, Nico, are you an art teacher here?"
That seemed to spark a fire in Nico because before he knew it, he was launching into a rant on how art was amazing and how he loved the way his brush glided over a canvas and how a simple sketch could turn into a masterpiece. Will listened with his undivided attention, making comments every once in while.
Then Nico asked Will about his job and it was Will's turn to rattle off a list of interesting facts about bones that could last Nico a lifetime. Nico actually found it really interesting and he even asked a few questions. In between, Will would make a stupid joke about bones and Nico found himself laughing a little and telling Will how dumb they were.
Their lunch period was over way too fast and Nico felt some disappointment as Will stood up and stretched. "See you around, Nico." Will gave him another smile and was about to walk out of the lounge. That is, until Nico suddenly grabbed his wrist which prompted him to turn around again, a little surprised. Nico felt his cheeks burn but managed to say, "Can I, um, have your number?" Will broke out into a wide smile and eagerly gave Nico his phone number on a slip of paper. Nico stuffed the paper into his pocket with a smile and watched as Will walked down the hallway and turned a corner.
Nico wasn't even aware that he was still smiling until Jason Grace, Nico's friend and a history teacher, walked up to Nico and said, "So, what's got you smiling like that? Or should I say who's got you smiling like that?"
Nico quickly wiped the smile off his face and glared at Jason. "Were you watching me?"
"Maybe, maybe not. But I think someone has a crush," Jason sang with a smug grin.
Nico only muttered an insult before fleeing the area and back into the safety of his art room. There, the smell of paint washed over him and he waited until everyone was in the class before he began his lesson. All throughout the class, Will occupied Nico's thoughts but for some reason, Nico didn't seem to mind.
-----
That night, Will recieved a text from an unknown number.
Unknown: Hey Will. It's Nico.
Will's heart fluttered and then he took a second to realize that he was maybe starting to harbor a crush for the smaller man.
You: oh hey! What's up?
Unknown was changed to Nico
Nico: Nothing much. I'm feeding my cat right now.
You: OMG U HAVE A CAT??
Nico: Yep... wanna see a picture?
You: YES PLEASE
(image received)
You: OMG UR CAT IS ADORABLE
Nico: Thanks. His name is Midnight :)
Will smiled. The cat resembled Nico, with the black fur and the brown eyes and the same grumpy expression.
They spent the rest of the night texting each other about Midnight and their hobbies and random things in between.
-----
Over the next few weeks, Will would sit at Nico's table during lunch hour and get to know him better. He learned that Nico was quiet, but snarky and always quick with a comeback. He loved painting (obviously), he thought that skittles were nasty, and that he liked summer the best. Will found himself falling more and more for Nico everyday.
Every once in a while, he would also sit with the other teachers too, but they were always seated at Nico's table. Will noticed that Jason Grace, a history teacher, would always wiggle his eyebrows at him whenever he talked to Nico. Meanwhile, Annabeth Chase, a calculus teacher, would give Will knowing looks, as if she was saying "I know you like Nico so just go ask him out already."
Nico also started to come to Will's classroom everyday before his first class began. Usually they would banter back and forth or have an argument on which songs were better or something juvenile like that. Will looked forward to Nico's daily visits and would often get lost in his animated chocolate eyes whenever he was talking about something he found exciting.
It was nearing Christmas break and Will wanted to desperately ask Nico out. But every time, he got the nerve to do it, they were always suddenly interrupted, whether it was a student asking one of them for help or another colleague asking about their day. Will had just returned to his desk from another failed mission. This time he had gone over to Nico's art room and was about to ask him out when Nico had received a call from his sister. Nico had given Will an apologetic smile and Will returned it with a small grin to mask his disappointment.
Will handed out some worksheets for his students to work on as he sat his desk, trying not to let himself be discouraged. He was interrupted from his thoughts, however, when one of his students cleared her throat. Will looked up and the moment he did, she said, "Just ask him out now!" The other students nodded in agreement and some echoed "Yeah, you should." The girl continued. "It's obvious you like Mr. di Angelo, so why wait for the perfect moment?"
Will stared at her dumbfounded. Had he really been that transparent? But he took her advice anyways. Why should he wait? If he liked Nico, he should just tell him and ask him to go on a date with him, no waiting around anymore. Filled with a newfound sense of confidence, he gave his students a determined smile and a brisk nod before getting up from his chair and walking towards the door. The students responded by cheering and giving him words of encouragement. "You go, Mr. Solace!" A kid yelled.
Now it was Will's turn to barge into Nico's class. Nico swivelled his head to the doorway, a look of surprise on his face. It seemed like he was in the middle of a lecture based on his leaning onto his desk and his hands that were hovering in midair. All eyes were turned on Will and Nico seemed to ask him what it was that he wanted through his eyes.
"Nico, I like you. I like you so, so much and I want to go on a date with you." Everyone in the room seemed to hold their breath, the anticipation almost tangible. Nico's cheeks were tinted pink and his mouth formed a perfect circle. Then he broke out into a small, but pleasant smile.
"I would love to."
Will beamed. He was filled with hope and excitement and longing. His heart flew into his throat and he could only manage to sputter out a few incoherent noises before saying, "I'll text you the details later, okay?"
Nico nodded once, his smile never leaving his face. "Okay," He agreed.
Will turned around and headed back to his classroom but not without doing a happy dance out in the hallway. He couldn't wait for his date with Nico.
-----
Nico grinned stupidly at the door where Will had just left. The whole thing was a blur but he managed to process one thing.
He was going to go on a date with Will.
Just thinking about sent about a million butterflies storming around in his stomach. Then he was greeted with several loud cheers and wolf whistles. Nico turned back to his students and attempted to glare at them menacingly but he couldn't fight the smile on his face.
"Alright, alright. Settle down kids. Now where was I?" Nico went back to his previous lecture about how to use the right brush, though his brain was thinking about his upcoming date. Nico felt giddy and happy and it was all because of Will.
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A/n: sorry for not updating in a couple of days. I had a crappy day and I didn't feel like writing. Then I had two tests to study for so I didn't really have time to write something well-thought out. (Rip me, I still have two more tests next week.)
So here's an extra long one to make it up!
-Victoria :)
P.S. helppp my titles suuuck