Chapter 42 - Don't Call Me Angel
published: Monday, 23 September 2019
[ requested ]
Time Frame: Post-Blood of Olympus, preceding #7 - Let's Go Camping (Part I)
Synopsis: A handsome Hephaestus camper takes special interest in Nico, which slowly develops into something Nico is too blind to see.
Warning(s): emotional blackmail, toxic relationship, physical abuse
Theme: "Don't Call Me Angel" by Ariana Grande, Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Ray
—*—
"Hey, Nico!"
Nico paused from reading the papers in his arms and looked up to see Will Solace jogging over to him. His blonde hair glinted in the sun and his blue eyes twinkled in a friendly manner that made Nico's insides twist painfully.
Considering he was the son of Apollo, it probably wasn't out of the ordinary for Will to be so good-looking that Nico felt his heart leap every time he caught a glimpse of him.
Will halted in front of the son of Hades, grinning as he panted. "Do you want to play basketball with us?" he asked breathlessly.
Nico gave him a derisive look. "Me," he repeated with a snort of incredulity. "Basketball?"
Will rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on. It's just a friendly game."
Nico wrinkled his nose. "I don't know." He gestured lamely to the papers. "I'm doing cabin assessments. Maybe I'll join you later?"
Will's eyes filled with a hopeful glint. "Okay," he said, seemingly satisfied with Nico's answer. "Don't be a stranger," Will said lightly as he retreated backwards, flashing a last grin at Nico before he disappeared behind the Big House.
A small smile spread across Nico's face.
"Could you two be any more obvious?"
Nico tilted his head to see Calypso rolling her eyes as she dug into the patch of strawberries.
"What?" Nico stammered, flushing embarrassedly.
Calypso tossed her garden shovel to the ground and wiped the sweat of her brow before she placed her arms on her hips with a pointed look. "You and Will. It's like being around Zoë and Hercules all over again. Albeit, he was a jerk, but her pining after him isn't very different from this."
Nico frowned. "What?" he repeated.
"I thought you spoke English," Calypso told him sarcastically.
Nico glared at her. "What are you talking about?" he amended.
Calypso waded out of the flower beds and hopped over to his side. "The boy has a crush on you. Clearly."
Nico felt his eyes widen. "I-what?"
"Okay, I'm starting to think that's the only word you know."
His voice came out quite a few notes higher than usual. "I'm not—" Nico cleared his throat and blushed furiously. "How'd you know that I'm gay?" He scowled. "Did Percy tell you?"
Calypso shrugged. "He didn't have to. I have a sixth sense for stuff like this."
Nico stared at her, significantly more afraid of her now. To both their surprise, ever since the Seven had left to follow mortal paths in Manhattan, Calypso and Nico had grown to become unlikely friends over the weeks. In fact, it'd started with bonding over how funny it was that they'd both liked a certain Percy Jackson.
But he hadn't really told her that he liked guys yet; it was more of a thing he revealed after a few weeks. If it was this obvious and the entire camp knew...
"Relax, I'm just good at reading people," Calypso assured him. "It's what happens wen you're stuck on an island with a load of free time." She flung her braid over her shoulder. "But back to the subject; what's the deal with you and Will?"
"There's no deal," Nico emphasised slowly. "We're just friends."
"Please, I've heard that before," Calypso muttered under her breath as she turned back and picked up the shovel again.
Nico followed her, arms spread in protest. "We really are!" They really were. Ever since Will had extended the offer of friendship after Gaia's demise, he'd become one of Nico's closest friends. Considering that he wasn't he friendliest person, this was quite a feat.
"Go away," Calypso complained. "Your denial is killing my plants."
Nico looked down and realised he'd accidentally trampled over some of the new sprouts. He blushed apologetically, stepping off of the soil. "Fine," Nico drew out the word. "But there's no deal!" he shouted as he hurried out of earshot.
Looking down at his papers, Nico proceeded towards the Hephaestus cabin warily. They were known for unknowingly leaving potentially dangerous contraptions around.
Nico rapped his knuckles on the door. "Anyone in?"
There was the sound of things falling on the ground and footsteps as someone quickly appeared at the door.
"Oh, hey, sorry," the boy said sheepishly.
Nico swallowed hard. Okay, so someone had sent a Greek god down to torment him.
"You're here for cabin checks?" the boy asked curiously.
Nico blinked himself out of his reverie and found that he'd been nodding for a good few seconds. "Right, yeah."
"I don't think I've seen you around before?" the camper tried. "I'm Aiden," he introduced, reaching out a hand. Aiden eyed him.
Nico blushed as he promptly shook it. "Nico. Di Angelo," he added as an afterthought. "We've met," he said. "During battle, so it doesn't really count."
Aiden chuckled. "Maybe. I don't know. I think I'd remember you." The undertone of intrigue made puzzlement run through Nico's mind.
Nico stepped inside the cabin awkwardly. He scanned the surroundings; it was fairly neat. Worthy of a 7 out of 10. Significantly better than the Hephaestus cabin usually did. Sliding a sidelong glance at Aiden, Nico absently wondered how the same genetics could've churned out Leo and Aiden.
His sweeping gaze stopped as it landed on a flip phone taken apart and lying on a table.
"Something we've been working on," Aiden explained when he noticed Nico's interest. "Monster-proof phones, I guess."
Nico's eyebrows shot up. "Woah."
Aiden merely shrugged. "Yeah, theoretically, it'd be pretty cool, but I can't figure out what the problem is. I doubt we'll be successful."
"You're a genius," Nico blurted out before he could stop himself. Horrified at his outburst, Nico flushed a dark red. "I mean, you're-you're smart, so you'll p-probably figure it out."
Aiden grinned. "Thanks," he said with a wink.
Nico stood rooted to the spot. He wasn't the most experienced, but this seemed a lot like flirting to him.
"I-I should go," Nico tried not to squeak. He wanted to stab himself with his sword and send his spirit to the Underworld where he could jump into the River Styx and dissolve in acid. Since when did he get flustered?
Aiden showed him to the door, his hand briefly brushing across Nico's shoulder before it landed on the doorknob. "See you around, Angel."
Nico froze, spinning to face him.
"Like 'di Angelo'," Aiden corrected, scratching the back of his neck. "Sounded creepy, sorry."
Nico couldn't feel his face. "I-it's fine." He forced himself to continue walking until he was far enough away that Aiden couldn't see him anymore.
Nico's legs were like rubber and he felt like collapsing. What was going on? Was this some new disease he'd never heard of?
"You came!" Will's voice pulled Nico out of his muddled thoughts. Nico suddenly realised that he'd blindly walked into the basketball court.
A couple of burly Ares campers gave Will demanding looks like 'Why did you invite the scrawny loser?' Nico felt a warm feeling spread as Will ignored them and ran over to him.
"Wanna play?" Will asked hopefully.
Nico couldn't bear to diminish the light in his eyes so he reluctantly set down the papers and held out his hands. Will lobbed the ball over to him, and Nico tried his best to remember how he'd passed P.E. back in middle school.
^^^^^
The next morning, Nico had just finished IM-ing with Reyna at Camp Jupiter about rebuilding the camps when Aiden came by his table.
It was the most inconspicuous movement, but Nico caught a glimpse of Aiden dropping a small note on the table before he walked off without a second glance.
"Holy Hades," Calypso hissed. "Is that-"
Nico flushed a dark red as he snatched up the note. There was a small drawing of an angel on the front. As he hurriedly unfolded the note, Nico scanned the words with his heart in his throat.
thanks for your vote of confidence yesterday. i'm working on something else today if u want to join me? i'll be at the forges.
~ Aiden ;)
Calypso, who had leaned over the table to read, gasped as she slumped back into her seat. "Hades' underpants!"
"I'm eating," Nico tried, pointing at his food as he pocketed the note.
"A winky face," Calypso said in a sing-song voice. "Someone's got a cru-ush."
Nico glared at her. "Y'know, I can hardly remember a time when you weren't around."
Calypso winked at him. "I'm just that great."
"You know that I can banish you from my table, right?"
She snorted. "Please, would you?"
Nico rolled his eyes and turned back to his food. They both knew very well he wouldn't do that.
"Are you gonna go?" she asked, the voice of intrigue.
Nico shrugged. "Probably, yeah." He blushed again when Calypso gave him a suggestive eyebrow wiggle. "I'm interested in his work," Nico protested.
"More like interested in his abs, but okay," Calypso muttered under her breath.
Nico gave her a swift kick under the table as Will slid into the bench beside her.
"You guys okay?" Will asked, giving them strange looks.
Nico gave Calypso a silencing stare, which she promptly ignored.
"What's up?" Calypso said cheerily.
Will leaned in, throwing a furtive glance over his shoulder. Since the war, Chiron had become more relaxed about campers eating at other tables, which meant Will was looking out for someone else.
"Apparently, Apollo cabin's leading the red team for Capture the Flag this Friday," Will said in a conspiratorial tone. "You two ready to be on our winning team?"
A loud clearing of a throat caught their attention. Chiron was calling for silence in the pavilion. Will shot Nico a pointed look as he hurried back to his cabin's table.
"In spirit of announcing the teams for Capture the Flag," Chiron declared. "We'd like to remind everyone that it's just a game and not to get too violent." He eyed the campers warily.
Nico heard Calypso snicker. She'd trapped one of the Ares campers in a strawberry bush for three hours last Friday.
"Leading the red team is..." Chiron paused. "The Apollo cabin!"
Deafening cheers and whoops erupted from their table as the campers pounded their table in crazed excitement.
Chiron shushed the pavilion. "And the blue team will he led by the Hephaestus cabin!"
Even louder joyful cries came from the Hephaestus table.
Nico glanced over his shoulder as saw Aiden looking at him. The other boy grinned when their gazed met and did a small hand gesture as if beckoning Nico over.
When Chiron had finished with the rest of his announcements — rules of Capture the Flag for the benefit of new campers — Aiden jogged over to Nico's table. He slid onto the bench and turned to Nico.
"How would you feel about being on the blue team?" Aiden suggested excitedly.
Nico couldn't help the dreamy smile that came on his face. "Yeah, yeah, sure."
There was a scraping of a bench as Will retook his seat next to Calypso, shooting Aiden a suspicious look.
"Wait, since when were you two friends?" Will demanded.
Nico felt his eyebrows shot skyward. Will was the nicest person he knew. What was with the tension and frowning?
"I'm just asking Nico to be on my team for Capture the Flag," Aiden said, the undertone in his voice sending a shiver down Nico's spine.
The son of Hades looked between his two friends with confusion, then at Calypso, who was frozen in her place, not sure what to say.
"Well, I asked him first," Will cut in spitefully.
Aiden turned back to Nico with an expectant look. "It's your choice," he said decidedly.
Nico was lost for words. Aiden's brown eyes bore into him with a certain hope that made his protests shrivel up and die.
Nico sighed. "I mean, I'm always on Will's team. Maybe we can switch it up this week?" He winced as Will's face fell.
The son of Apollo got up abruptly, fiddling with the hem of his shirt. "Yeah, it's fine," he said shortly. "Why not change it up?"
"Will, wait—" Nico protested as his friend returned to his siblings. He bit his lip uncertainly. Maybe he'd made the wrong choice. But he always spent time with Will, maybe he should try branching out with others.
"It's a shame," Aiden voiced airily. Something about the way he said it made Nico uncomfortable. "Sorry I made you choose."
"I-it's fine," Nico said, still unconvinced.
Calypso shrugged as she picked up her empty plate and stood up. "Whatever. I'll see you on the field I guess. I'll be on Apollo's team. I'm always on Will's side." Nico sensed a double meaning in her words, but he was too tired of complicated ambiguity to bother deciphering it.
He waved goodbye to her as she walked away to add to the pile of dirty dishes.
"How about I show you those designs I was talking about?" Aiden asked once she had left.
Nico opened his mouth to reply. He hesitated as he threw a glance to look back at the Apollo table. The moment he looked back, Will averted his gaze and stubbornly refused to return it.
Nico sighed inwardly and nodded. "Yeah, sure."
His heart felt like it weighed a ton.
<<< >>>
When Friday finally came, Nico was ready for everything to go back to normal. Will wasn't talking to him, and neither was Calypso.
He hated to admit it, but it was difficult to go back to being alone after knowing what it was like to have friends. Because of his newly opened free time, Nico spent most of his days with Aiden.
They went over battle strategies with their other allies and designs of new contraptions the Hephaestus cabin was making. It had started off relatively sweet and everything they did made Nico smile.
But Aiden had slowly become more possessive as the week went on. Nico didn't like when he called him "Angel", especially in front of other people, because it probed the question if they were dating.
Hanging out with him wasn't as comfortable and easy as it was with Will or Calypso. Nico didn't understand why, but he slowly began to dread time spent with Aiden.
Capture the Flag was the perfect event to break all this tension. Nico promised himself that after this was over, he would apologise to Will, distance himself from Aiden, and spend more time with Calypso. In all honesty, he kind of missed the days when he didn't have friends or a social life to care about.
Another thing that turned everything upside down again was the arrival of Annabeth on Friday morning. Word travelled round camp quickly enough that fifteen minutes after she got there, Nico went to visit her in her cabin.
"Hey, Neeks," Annabeth said with a laugh as she gave him a small hug. Nico had always liked Annabeth. She was feisty and understood when he needed space or wanted to be alone. They could sit in silence for hours and still have fun.
"Annie," Nico returned, earning an eye-roll.
Annabeth crossed her arms. "Okay, now what's this nonsense I've heard about you and Will not talking?"
Nico flushed a dark red. Yep, word travelled fast. "Who told you that?"
Annabeth raised an eyebrow. "Calypso, duh."
"What are you even doing here?" Nico avoided. "Don't you have school?"
"Took a week off. Some family stuff with my cousins," she explained dismissively. "Don't try to change the subject," she said accusatorially.
Nico groaned. "It's complicated," he said lamely.
She gave him a prompting whirl of her hands.
"There's this guy," Nico said, already blushing uncontrollably. "A Hephaestus camper."
"Which one?" Annabeth asked curiously.
"Aiden."
She nodded. "Oh yeah, he's kinda cute. But I thought you were into Will?"
"What?" Nico demanded. "Okay, firstly, why does everyone think that? Secondly, since when do you and I talk about feelings? You were my only friend who didn't bother me about that nonsense."
"I'm checking up on you," Annabeth protested. "And making sure you aren't gonna get distracted and cost us the game tonight."
He elbowed her in the side when she laughed. "You've only been here half an hour and you've already taken over."
The addition of Annabeth to the blue team was especially useful. It took a while for Nico to articulate his words enough to explain his situation to her. But once she got it, she took her job as a buffer between him and Aiden very well.
"Okay, so everyone know their positions?" Nyssa yelled.
The entire blue team cheered. The atmosphere was charged with energy and excitement. Even Nico couldn't resist thrusting his sword into the air.
"Let's go, Blues!" Annabeth shouted, charging forward and leading the attack. Nico followed close behind her.
Aiden jogged up at his side, adjusting his shield. "You ready?" he asked breathlessly.
"I guess."
"I was thinking, after the game, we could have dinner by the beach?" Aiden offered.
Nico frowned. "I was actually gonna eat with Calypso and Annabeth in the pavilion."
Aiden frowned. "I've cleared time for you the whole week to show you my designs. And now that you have to do the same, you suddenly can't make time?"
Nico sighed. Guilt inevitably built up inside him. "Sorry, yes, dinner on the beach sounds good."
Aiden's features rearranged into a smile. "Thanks. I know we've only known each other for a week, but spending time with you is really fun." He winked. "Angel."
Nico closed his eyes and counted to three as Aiden ran off with his siblings. Annabeth came up beside him and glared in Aiden's direction. "What did he want?"
Nico sighed. "Dinner alone."
She furrowed her eyebrows. "What did you say?"
"I agreed," Nico muttered. "I just feel so bad when I have to say 'no'. He really is very nice."
Annabeth glared. "You know he's emotionally manipulating you, right?"
Nico snorted. "That's ridiculous."
Annabeth gave him a look. "Is it? He's torn you away from your friends and you barely spend time with them anymore. Sounds toxic to me."
"It's my choice too," Nico defended. "I like spending time with him."
Annabeth sighed. "Okay, okay. Just be careful."
The conversation ended as Nico grabbed her by the hand and they shadow-travelled to the other side of the boundary line.
When the familiar feeling passed and they reappeared by Zeus' fist, Annabeth pulled on her cap and disappeared. Nico drew his sword and hurried after her footprints.
"Found it," her voice came as they spotted he flag jammed between two boulders. Nico turned her back to her and scanned the forest for signs of the red team's defence. She cuddled with the flag as he waited.
A crunch of a branch alerted Nico to someone else's presence. Too late, five Apollo campers appeared from behind the trees; Will included.
"She's got the flag!" one of Will's sisters yelled.
Nico sounds around in time to see the flag disappear. Annabeth had it. He let out a shout and walls of obsidian rock shot out of the ground to block the red teammates.
"Run, Annabeth!" he yelled, and there was a rush of air beside him as she took off towards the river. Nico sprinted after her, wanting to see the winning moment, Will on his heels, shouting orders to his teammates.
The river neared until Annabeth leaped across and the red team erupted into cheers and triumphant shouts.
Nico was yanked into various jugs and high-fives that made him a little more anxious than he should've been, but the spirit of the winning team made him smile.
"You did amazing!" Aiden crowed, hugging him. Nico laughed as they staggered from the force of the affectionate hug. "Angel," he whispered in his ear.
"Congratulations." Nico turned to see Will offering a begrudging smile. It was an olive branch.
Nico smiled. "Thanks. You guys did a pretty good job," he said shyly.
Will smiled and opened his mouth to say something else.
"Nico, there's some people we've still got to see," Aiden interrupted, grabbing Nico's hand and pulling him away.
Nico gave Will an apologetic look. His friend had a stony expression.
"See you at dinner, I guess," Will said stoically.
"Actually, we've got a date on the beach," Aiden answered before Nico could. "See you another time, I guess," he mimicked Will's words.
Nico swallowed back his nerves as he looked between his two friends awkwardly.
"Shall we?" Aiden asked, gesturing to their other teammates. Nico nodded as he followed Aiden into the crowd, leaving Will behind.
That night, Nico watched the sunset by Aiden's side. Their cover story was that he'd caught a stomach bug and Aiden was making sure he was okay.
It was a date. Nico hadn't been sure, but he wasn't about to protest. They made friendly conversation through the evening and munched on a spread of food.
"Hope this was nice for you," Aiden said towards the end of the night.
Nico grinned. "It was. Really." He'd never been on a date before, and he wasn't sure if anything else would best this.
"I know I never technically asked you to be my boyfriend," Aiden said apologetically.
"I'd like that," Nico admitted.
Aidan smiled. "Good." He leaned over a pecked Nico on the cheek, making him blush furiously.
The next morning, Nico exited his cabin and the first person he saw was Connor Stoll from Hermes.
"Heard about you and Aiden," Connor said with a suggestive wink. "Good for you, Nico."
Nico watched him walk away with a horrible feeling in his gut. His head felt dizzy with confusion and fervently praying that what he'd just heard wasn't true.
Unfortunately, he had no such luck. It seemed that everyone knew that he and Aiden were dating. Everyone knew he was gay. It made Nico's stomach churn and all the looks he got made him want to dig a hole and just drown everything out.
He ate breakfast alone and in silence until Aiden took a seat at his table.
"Did you tell everyone about last night?" Nico asked with a sickening feeling.
Aiden frowned. "Did you not want me to?"
Nico ran a hand through his hair. "I haven't really told anyone that I'm..." He hesitated. "Into guys. I-I was planning on doing it on my own time."
Aiden gave him a disappointed look. "No, no, I get it. You're embarrassed of what we have. I get it."
"No," Nico protested frustratedly. "I didn't—" Nico sighed. "It's okay that everyone knows," he amended, even though it was a straight lie. If it made Aiden happy, he supposed it was the right thing to do.
It was worth it because Aiden gave him that same dazzling smile that made everything right again. He returned to his table, leaving Nico in a state of confusion and mixed feelings.
Calypso tried to talk to him in the afternoon, but Aiden whisked him away before he could even reply her. He was almost finished with the new monster traps, and Nico was helping him find areas for improvement. Nico didn't get a chance to see her again.
He got congratulatory words from everyone, even Annabeth, although he sensed she wasn't very supportive of their relationship. But Nico was too busy helping Aiden with sword-fighting to have a proper conversation with her.
The weekend and the following days passed like a blur to Nico. Aiden became a permanent fixture in his day, and they spent so much time together that Nico could hardly remember a time when they weren't dating.
On Wednesday of the next week, Annabeth knocked on his cabin door.
"I'm leaving," she said shortly. "Back to school for me."
Nico blinked. He hadn't even realised she was going home today. "Oh."
"I feel like I hardly got to see you at all," she confessed.
Nico winced. "Yeah. I wish I wasn't so busy."
"With Aiden?" she asked curtly.
He blushed. "It's not his fault."
Annabeth sighed. "Sure. Look, Percy asked if you wanted to come back to New York with me. Spend some time with us?"
Nico considered the notion. It was an appealing idea. He hadn't seen Hazel, Jason or the others in a long time.
"Sounds like a good idea," he replied.
Annabeth's face brightened and she instantly clasped her hands together. "It'll be fun," she promised. "I hope you like pot noodles for dinner."
Nico chuckled as she ducked out of his cabin. He spent the next hour packing a bag for the week, and when he was finished, he headed to the Hephaestus cabin to inform Aiden.
Aiden was in the forges, so, not wanting to bother him, Nico left a note on his desk and headed to Half-Blood Hill to meet Annabeth.
Will and Calypso were on the hill with Annabeth when he arrived. They exchanged pleasantries and caught up on the last few days apart.
"We'll miss you," Will assured him. "Don't be a stranger when you get back."
"Nico!" someone called.
Nico turned around from Argus' car to see Aiden trekking up the hill. He ignored the disgusted look that Will and Annabeth exchanged.
"Where are you going?" Aiden demanded.
"Manhattan," Nico repeated. "Didn't you read my note?"
"I did," Aiden said with a frown. "You're going to stay with a guy you used to like?"
"Percy's with Annabeth," Nico protested. "It's not like anything's going to happen." His excitement was starting to fade.
"I don't feel comfortable that you're going to be staying with him," Aiden insisted. "And we just started dating, isn't it bad if you leave me right away?"
"It isn't your decision," Will argued, stepping forward.
"Stay out of this, Solace," Aiden said angrily. "Nico's my boyfriend."
"You don't own him," Calypso added, siding with Will and folding her arms obstinately.
Aiden stared at Nico. He felt like a horrible boyfriend for leaving him so soon.
"It's up to you, Nico?" Annabeth said desperately. "You were so excited to come stay with us."
Nico looked down at his feet. "Maybe another time," he said quietly.
There was a silence that fell over the five demigods. Will's mouth fell open as a smug look washed over Aiden's face.
"Let's go," Aiden told him.
"Sorry for the trouble, Annabeth," Nico apologised. He grabbed his duffel bag and traipsed down the hill after Aiden, avoiding looking at his friends.
<<< >>>
Nico spent the next few days being miserable. He couldn't do anything by himself without Aiden popping up and pulling him away elsewhere. Every time he gained the courage to tell Aiden about it, guilt would kill the words before they could leave his mouth.
September ended and October came around. Nico missed Calypso and Will. He missed having time to himself or doing things he used to like. But he reminded himself that his boyfriend had to come first. Aiden had told him that multiple times.
In the second week of October, Percy and Annabeth returned to camp. Nico heard about it before he saw them. Aiden informed him of it before explaining that he'd feel more comfortable if he had zero contact with Percy.
Nico supposed it made sense. He had liked Percy in the past, and it probably made Aiden feel weird to see them together. So he kept his distance. He pretended he wasn't in his cabin every time Annabeth or Percy came knocking.
The roof of the Hades cabin at midnight became Nico's hideout. No one could disturb him and he could think in peace. At least, he thought so. One night, the ladder creaked as someone climbed up.
Alarm bells went off in Nico's head as he immediately expected Aiden to appear. Instead, a familiar head of brown hair and green eyes glinted in the moonlight.
"Percy," Nico said in surprise. His heart lifted with happiness for a split second. He hadn't seen his friend in ages. It vanished when he realised that he was going against Aiden's one request. "What are you doing here?"
"I haven't seen you," Percy protested as he sidled in next to Nico. "I've been here four days and I haven't seen you at all. I wanted to make sure you were okay."
Nico shrugged in response. "You have to go," he said hesitantly.
"Do you want me to go or are you only saying that because of your new boyfriend?" Percy pointed out.
Nico averted his gaze.
"He's controlling you," Percy told him. "Will, Calypso and Annabeth said they haven't seen you in weeks. Hazel, Frank, Leo, Piper and Jason haven't heard from you in a month." He paused. "We're all worried."
"You don't have to be," Nico reassured him. "I'm just spending time with Aiden."
"That doesn't mean you can't spend time with the rest of us."
"It's how a relationship works," Nico interrupted. "Can you go?" he said abruptly.
There was a silence.
"Not a good relationship," Percy told him. There was a creaking as he shimmied down the ladder and left the cabin.
Nico leaned back against the roof and closed his eyes. He didn't know how to tell his friends. If he broke up with Aiden, he'd be alone again. It wasn't like people were lining up to be with him.
<<< >>>
"Were you on the roof with Percy yesterday?"
Nico nearly jumped out of his skin when Aiden burst into his cabin and slammed the door behind him.
He set down his book. "What?"
"Everyone's talking about it," Aiden said furiously. "How could you do this to me?" he shouted.
Nico could feel his heart hammering wildly. "I—"
"Sorry isn't enough," Aiden said menacingly.
His hand flew into the air and Nico instinctively flinched and drew up his hands in defence.
There was a heart-stopping pause before Aiden choked out an apology. "I'm not going to hit you," he sighed. "I love you, Nico. I just don't want you running off with someone else."
Nico let his hands fall away, even though the tremble in his body didn't falter.
Aidan stared at him. "Do you love me?"
His heart clenched painfully. There wasn't anything else he could do. Nico feared Aiden's hand would come up again, and this time it would come down on him.
"Yes," he nearly whispered. His stomach churned and he wanted to collapse on his bed.
Aiden closed his eyes and nodded. "Good, okay. See you tomorrow." When he slinked our the door, Nico sat down hard on his bed.
His heart wouldn't stop beating rapidly. Aiden had almost hit him. Would he have really? Or was it just a loss of control in the moment?
Nico reminded himself that Aiden loved him. He wouldn't do that to him. Never.
Despite the fact that he kept telling himself that, Nico never stopped tensing up when he was around. Even when Aiden's hand innocently brushed his one, Nico had to make a conscious effort not to wince.
Aiden would never hurt him. Nico was just being stupid.
The night after was their one month anniversary. Aiden had arranged for dinner on the beach, like their first date, and Nico was a little nervous. Things had been tense between them since the incident, but he forced himself to get up and go for the date anyway.
When he was on his way to the beach, Nico bumped into Will — literally.
"Sorry," he stammered as he regained his balance.
Will shrugged. "It's fine."
They looked at each other awkwardly.
Nico reluctantly averted his gaze. If Aiden heard about this, he'd get angry again. "I should go."
"Date night?" Will guessed, taking in Nico's one nice shirt.
Nico plastered a smile across his face. "Yeah."
"You're way too good for him," Will told him.
Nico swallowed. "No, he's too good to even be seen with me. But he loves me, and I've got to give something back in return for that."
"No, you don't," Will said promptly.
Another pause.
"I have to go," Nico said suddenly. "If Aiden knows I talked to you..."
"What?" Will demanded.
An image of Aiden's fist connecting with his jaw made Nico shiver. "Nothing."
"What will he do?" Will repeated. "Nico, if he's hurting you—"
"He's not!" Nico said defensively. "Even if he does, it's my own fault for not making him my priority."
"Nico—"
Nico backed away from Will and ran towards the beach, ignoring his words.
Aiden was sitting on a blanket, waiting for him. "You're late," he remarked when he saw Nico hurry up.
Nico relaxed his shoulders. "Sorry. Got caught up."
"With?"
"Nothing."
Aiden exhaled sharply. "You were talking to Percy again, weren't you?"
"You just can't keep away from him, can you?" Aiden accused, struggling to his feet.
"No!" Nico promised frantically. "It wasn't Percy! I was talking to Will!"
The hit took him by surprise.
The loud crack was deafening to Nico's ears and left him stunned speechless. Aiden's hand connected with his right cheek, leaving his skin stinging and pangs shooting through his face.
Nico gasped as his hand came up to clutch the red mark.
"I told you to stay away from him." Aiden glowered, his hand raising again.
Nico flinched again, taking an involuntary step back.
"I can't do this anymore if you keep talking to other guys behind my back," Aiden said in a chillingly quiet voice.
"I'm sorry," Nico whispered. "I won't do it again. Just don't leave."
Aiden didn't leave.
Nico spent the next day cooped up in his cabin. The red hand print on his cheek was fading too slowly, so he kept out of everyone's sight.
Aiden slipped a note under his door.
see you tonight, Angel. i'll sneak into your cabin after everyone's asleep, and we'll have some fun.
Nico curled into a fœtal position. He didn't know what to do. The slap had been a jolt back to reality for him. Aiden had hurt him. He wanted to end it with him, but Nico didn't want to get hit again. And maybe it had been his fault for ignoring Aiden's requests to stay away from Will and Percy.
He definitely didn't want to "have some fun" with Aiden tonight. He wasn't anywhere near ready for that and he really, really didn't want to do it.
When the moon came up, Nico was wracked with indecision and fear.
"Hey, Angel." Aiden slipped into his cabin.
Nico trembled nervously. "Aiden, I-I don't want to do this."
"Relax," Aiden said soothingly, running a hand down Nico's arm. "You'll like it."
"I want to break up," Nico blurted out.
Aiden's hand stopped short, and a cold expression came over him. "What did you say?"
Nico swallowed, cautiously stepping away. "I'm sorry, I just-I don't want to be with you anymore."
This time, Nico saw it coming. Aiden's fist connected with his jaw and he heard an audible crack as the strength pummelled him backwards. Nico stumbled back and his knees buckled, sending him sprawling to the ground.
He struggled to get up, shaking uncontrollably.
"That's not your choice anymore," Aiden said shortly.
A massive bang! sounded as the door of his cabin slammed open.
"Step the hell away from him," Annabeth growled. She was standing in the doorway, Percy, Calypso and Will behind her, all their faces set with determination.
"What did you say to them?" Aiden demanded, making Nico scramble to his feet, holding his jaw in a haze of agony. "What did you tell them?" he shouted.
"Touch him and believe me, you won't live to see tomorrow," Calypso hissed.
Aiden glared at them. "Nico, Angel," he said, the undercurrent of anger in his voice. "Tell them you want me to stay."
There was a deafening pause where Aiden stared him down.
"Don't call me that," Nico murmured.
"What?" Aiden snarled.
"'Angel'," Nico said loudly. "Don't call me that."
Aiden's eyes widened.
"I want you to go," Nico said quietly. His jaw aches every time he moved his mouth, and tears were welling up in his eyes. Fear streaked through his mind and the blood rushed in his ears, but Nico did his best to ignore all that.
His friends' presences helped.
Aidan stormed out of the cabin, muttering curses and threats under his breath.
When he was gone, Nico finally leaned against the foot of his bed and the tears rolled down his cheeks.
"I'm going to kill him," he heard Percy mutter as the door closed and his friends entered the cabin.
Arms wrapped around him, and Nico quickly realised that it was Annabeth who was hugging him. He buried his head in her shoulder and sniffled, furiously wiping at his tears.
"This is stupid," he murmured.
"No," she managed. "He's stupid. What a dick."
Nico drew away and opened his eyes. "What if he comes back?" he asked shakily. He hated how weak he sounded and felt. Aiden had done that. Made him helpless.
"You're coming back to Manhattan with us," Percy offered. "At least for a week. We don't want him anywhere near you."
Annabeth shuffled away and Will knelt down in front of Nico.
"Can I...?" Will trailed off, silently asking for permission.
Nico nodded and the healer examined the bruise on his jaw.
"It's pretty bad," Will said softly. "It'll probably last for a little while."
Nico stared at him. "How did you know to come here?"
"What you said to me last night," Will said. "It didn't seem right."
Thankfully, they didn't ask too many questions, but Nico didn't feel like sleeping, so they accompanied him in playing a few board games or just sitting in silence.
For the first time in over a month, Nico felt free. He was done with Aiden. He'd never have to see him ever again or be afraid of him.
Calypso and Percy walked him up to Half-Blood Hill with his suitcase the next morning. Nico was glad for the company. He felt safer that way.
"I'm sorry we didn't realise earlier," Calypso confessed. She was coming along with them too. "I'm a terrible friend."
"You got me out of it," Nico told her. "That itself was all I needed."
When they got to the car, Nico's heart leaped when he saw Will. It was nice to have his friends once more, and he didn't want to leave Will again when he'd just got him back.
His spirits lifted when he spotted Will's duffel bag in the boot.
"You think I'd leave you alone again?" Will asked with a small grin. Nico returned the smile, loading his belongings into the boot.
"Nico!"
He froze up when a familiar voice called out to him again. It was Aiden.
Almost instantly, Will and Calypso were at his side.
"Aiden," Nico said coolly, hiding the hammering in his chest.
"Where are you going?" Aiden asked.
Nico stared at him. "We're done," he cut to the chase.
Aiden seemed in disbelief as Nico climbed into the car with his friends.
"You're just leaving?" he demanded.
Nico pokes his head out of the car. He didn't have anything to be afraid of anymore. He was out of that relationship. It was over.
"Yes," Nico told him. "I'm leaving."
He shifted back into his seat as Percy hit the gas on his mum's car and they shot off down the road.
"That was really brave."
Nico glanced up at Will. The other boy's blue eyes were kind.
"Doing that," Will explained. "Getting out of an abusive relationship."
Nico let out a shuddering breath. "Thanks."
"Not many people could've done that," Will admitted. "I'm glad you did."
Nico managed a smile. "Me too."