Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the plot
Percy was trailing soft kisses down his neck, stopping ever so often to bite and nip at the pale exposed skin. Nico couldn't help the moan that left his lips, and right now he didn't care. They were both shirtless, on a bed inside cabin 13, tangled together among the dark sheets.
"Percy" he said, breathless, asking for something he couldn't quite articulate. Percy did not answer, did not stop. While his mouth explored his throat, his hands were trailing lower, lower, until they reached the hem of the black skinny jeans worn by the son of Hades. The hands hesitated, as if silently asking permission and Nico bucked his hips, signaling for the son of Poseidon to get on with it. Said demigod undid his zipper, and then reached in…
"Nico? Nico, wake up!" a voice startled him awake.
Damn it, another dream. Nico groaned, burying his face on his pillows, mumbling something about "five more minutes". Then he seemed to register that the voice that woke him up was remarkably like the voice that had been moaning right along with him in his dream. He abruptly sat up, and looked around.
Percy, Jason and Leo stood in his room. Nico made sure his thick comforter was hiding the… problem brought by his very vivid dream from the view of the intruding demigods and then glared at the one closest to his bed, which just happened to be the boy that had just been the star of his fantasy.
"What are you doing here? Why'd you wake me up?"
"Well," started Percy "we were going to wake you up to get you to come to little get together we're having at my cabin. And we woke you up a bit less delicately because you were kind of saying my name and making other weird noises in your sleep, so I figured you were having a nightmare or something. Were you?"
The son of Hades blushed furiously. He was glad his cabin was dark enough for it not to be so noticeable. Now that Percy mentioned it, he saw Jason wearing a knowing smile, that told Nico the son of Jupiter knew exactly what kind of "nightmares" the Ghost King was having.
"Were you?" Percy's voice brought him back to the situation at hand: his former crush had caught him moaning out his name in his sleep because of a less than decent dream. Fantastic. Well, it could be worse, Nico told himself: they stopped him before he could finish.
"Um… I-I don't really remember. It probably was a nightmare, though" he stuttered.
"But you are kind of sweating too. Are you sure you don't remember? Are you ok?" Percy moved closer, which really didn't help the problem he was hiding underneath his covers.
"Relax, Percy, he was probably just having a wet dream about you, we've all been there!" Leo said, chuckling at his own joke.
Nico paled, and Jason's knowing smirk slipped off his face. Percy smiled a bit at the joke, but still looked concerned.
"Yeah, I'm just fine! It was just a dream, it's never going to happen" Nico said, sounding panicked, saddened and then resigned, all in the course of one sentence. Jason felt sorry for the Ghost King, and thought he'd desperately needed a hug. But since suddenly hugging the boy on the bed would most likely result in an injury, he stayed put.
"I suppose that's a good attitude to have towards a nightmare. If you want to talk about it, I'm here" the oblivious green-eyed demigod continued.
"Yeah, sure thing, Percy. Thanks"
"Anytime. Now are you coming to our little party or not? It's just going to be the Seven plus you, Reyna, Calypso and Rachel!"
"Why are we having a party in the middle of the morning?"
"Nico, it's four in the afternoon." Percy deadpanned.
"The party is at five!" Leo interjected.
"Oh. No thanks" he rolled over in his bed, facing away from the people in his room.
"Oh, come on! You have to come!" Percy pleaded
"And do what? Sit with Rachel and Reyna while you guys suck face with your girlfriends? Again, no thanks."
"Hey dude, maybe if you're lucky you could score a threesome!" Leo said, wiggling his eyebrows in a suggestive manner.
"Are you out of your mind? First of all, Rachel is the virgin Oracle of Delphi. Second of all I'm…" Nico caught himself. Wow, this being sleepy thing really loosened his tongue. Note to self: never talk to anyone before being fully awake.
"You're what?" asked Percy, confused.
Nico panicked. An ongoing mantra of "Shit, Shit, Shit!" was going on in his head. What was he supposed to say? How could he possibly finish that sentence without revealing his secret?
Luckily for him, his blond Superman came in to save the day:
"He's pretty sure Reyna would kick his ass all the way back to Greece if he tried anything. Right, Nico?"
"Yes!" Nico grabbed onto this excuse like a lifeline and smiled gratefully at the son of Jupiter.
"Wow, you have a nice smile. You should do it more often" the son of Poseidon stated, matter-of-factly.
Nico blushed so hard that even in his dark cabin it could be seen. And it did not go unnoticed:
"Wow, you do a nice tomato impersonation. Don't do it too often, though, the Demeter cabin would be jealous because not even their tomatoes are that red" Leo snickered. Nico glared at the tinkerer and made the shadows on his cabin a bit darker.
"Um, guys? Is it just me or is everything getting darker?"
The Ghost King smiled slowly, looking creepier by the second. He made the temperature drop a few degrees too, for good measure. Leo started shivering.
"So I'm gonna go. Yeah. I have to get the….drinks! Yes, I have to leave right now to get the drinks. See you later!" And with that the son of Hephaestus left the Hades cabin.
Nico laughed, and the other two demigods that remained in his room joined in.
"Gods, that was hilarious!" said Percy, wiping a few tears away "Remind me to never get on your bad side, ok? Now, about the party…"
"Percy, I already said I don't want to go. Could you just drop it?"
"Sure, but I was just going to say that not everybody will be sucking faces in that party. You really do spend too much time away from camp! Piper and Jason broke up months ago!"
"Oh. Ok, then. I'll go."
"Yes!" the older demigods cheered.
"But" Nico began "if you abandon me, Grace… let's just say you don't want to know what'll happen"
Jason visibly shuddered, and the son of Hades grinned, obviously pleased with himself.
"Oh, man, I'm so glad I'm not you right now!" Percy laughed.
"Shut up!"
"Make me, son of Jupiter"
"I'll…"
"Be quiet, both of you!" Nico interrupted, before the idiots destroyed his cabin. "And get the hell out of here, so I can shower and get changed for this stupid party."
They turned and began to leave. But just before going out, Jason stopped, hesitated for a moment, and said:
"Just... be careful around Piper. There'll be alcohol in the party, she's a lightweight and she's a really mean drunk. Like, charmspeaking-you-into-doing-embarrassing-things mean. Ok?"
"Sure, thanks for the warning I guess. Now get out."
A devious grin appeared on the son of Jupiter's face, and he asked:
"Why? Certain problems you have to deal with by yourself, Nico?"
Nico's face turned crimson and Jason had the audacity to laugh.
"Just... Shut up, Grace!"
The older demigod left the cabin, still laughing.
Jason walked to his cabin as he had to get ready for the party too. He tried to not feel jealous, but it was hard. He wanted Nico to dream about him, not the son of Poseidon.
Ever since Croatia, he'd gotten very close to the son of Hades. He became very protective if the younger demigod, and somewhere along the way protectiveness turned into something more. He didn't have the guts to admit it to Nico, but Piper had figured it out seven months ago, hence the breakup. They were in good terms, partly because of Piper's parentage ( daughters of Love hardly ever went against it) and partly because Piper was an overall awesome person ( daughters of Love could be very bitchy too. *cough* Drew*cough*). When sober, at least.
He smiled thinking about all the hilarious things she'd made other people do, but dreaded the day she'd make him do something embarrassing. She was usually pretty harmless, but every now and then she got really drunk and overstepped her boundaries.
He reached Cabin 1 and went inside.
Nico knocked on Cabin 3's door to announce his arrival and went in without waiting for someone to open the door for him. After all, he was already forty minutes late, so there was no chance of him walking in on anyone doing embarrassing things. Everyone else was already there, sitting on the bunkbeds in groups of two or three, sipping on whatever was being served in those plastic cups.
Jason got up to greet him with a hug, and he whispered teasingly in his ear:
"Why are you late, Nico? Took too long in the shower?"
Nico tried to control his reddening cheeks, with minimal success. The son of Jupiter let out a hearty laugh. It was just too easy to tease the younger demigod.
The blonde handed him a plastic cup filled with a foul smelling beverage, and he scrunched up his nose in distaste.
"Isn't there something you can give me that doesn't smell like paint thinner?"
"Sure, there is some soda we are using to mix drinks. I'm sure we can spare some for the not-yet-legal son of Hades..."
"Shut up, Grace, you just turned twenty one, so don't act all high and mighty. Also I'm technically old enough to be your grandfather, so show some respect for your elders and bring me some Coke!"
Nico turned and went to his sister, who was sitting with the rest of the girls of the prophecy. Annabeth looked flushed, the mostly drained cup on her hand being at fault, while Piper was already giggling for no apparent reason. Hazel looked normal, but he eyed the cup on her hand suspiciously.
"Relax, Nico, I'm drinking Coke."
She got up and hugged the don of Hades, who smiled into her cinnamon curls.
"Good to know, I wouldn't want to have to hold your hair up while you puke. Although that'd be Frank's job..."
She giggled and jokingly smacked his arm.
"So how are you doing?" he asked
"Well, the shop is doing great, as usual, the customers can't believe how fast I can deliver such rare gems!" she smiled " and Frank is one of the most sought after veterinarians in the state, despite not having graduated yet. People say he has a way with animals..." she laughed.
Nico smiled. His sister had opened a jewelry shop that had been a huge success a year after the war, making enough money to put her and Frank through college. She was majoring in Business with a minor in Geology while Frank was studying to become a vet. It was hilarious because when he had an exam coming up he would often turn into the animal he was reading about.
"And how are you?"
"Well, I got through my first year in one piece, same as you. And I'm still working at that bookstore I told you about"
Nico was majoring in History. He was doing quite well, since he could actually summon souls from each time period to ask questions. As for the bookstore, he worked part-time there since the beginning of his freshman year. The place was charming, his salary was great (though his father paid for his tuition) and very few people came in to bother him.
Right then Jason returned with his soda.
"Thanks, but what took you so long? I mean, this cabin is not that big" he took a sip.
"Yeah, but since everybody wanted some rum and Coke, we were fresh out. Also Leo wasted a couple of bottles doing the 'Coke and Mentos' thing, apparently he didnt know it had to be diet Coke for it to work... anyway, I went over to the kitchen and convinced the nymphs to give me a gallon of it and here I am"
"Wow. You really didn't have to go through all this trouble, I could've settled for something else. But thanks!" Nico gave him a smile, and the son of Jupiter blushed. Hazel noticed, and smiled to herself.
"Nico! You made it!" Percy greeted him happily.
"Hmm...yes, you invited me an hour or so ago and I live a few feet away from here? Why are you surprised?"
But before he could answer, Piper slurred from her seat nearby, voice laced with charmspeak:
"Percy! Get me a refill, NOW!"
"Well, " Nico thought, " I guess it began".
A couple of hours later and Piper was even more inebriated, and had already forced Leo to breakdance, Calypso to mimic a chicken, Annabeth to say "I'm stupid" in front of a camera (for future blackmail) and forced Reyna and Rachel to dance the Tango together. Not to mention she persuaded Jason to tie a blanket around his neck and fly around camp in circles screaming "Superman to the rescue!", made Frank turn into several different animals and convinced Hazel to tell everyone an embarrassing secret (she watches Gossip Girl). The only one left for her to antagonize was Nico. And even while drunk she seemed to be keeping score of who was left. So when she trained her slightly unfocused kaleidoscope eyes on the son of Hades, he gulped and tried to walk away.
Tried being the crucial word, because the Ghost King couldn't really outrun a sound. Piper said, sweetly:
"Nico..." she giggled " I want you to kiss the hottest person here...on the lips!"
The son of Hades froze, trying with all his might to resist the command. But he couldn't win: charmspeak worked best when the command was something desirable to the victim. And that was one desirable command if there ever was one.
From across the room, Jason watched speechless. He wasn't sure he wanted to stay and watch Nico kiss Percy. He turned to leave, but someone stopped him: the Ghost King himself. His face was the color of freshly picked cherries, and he was still struggling to resist the charmspeak. He looked absolutely adorable. The blonde didn't understand. Nico should be going after the son of Poseidon, not him. He got over his shock when Nico kissed him sofly, gently. He reacted on instinct, wrapping his arms around the smaller demigod's waist and pulling him closer. When they broke the kiss, they wore similar expressions of mixed happiness and confusion.
"But I thought.." Jason started
"Not here." Nico interrupted. He shadow traveled them both out of there.
Jason recognized the Hades cabin. They were still entwined, and he tried to disentangle their limbs (not for his sake, he was incredibly comfortable just the way they were) but Nico wouldn't let him.
"Sooo... what was this all about? I thought you liked Percy. I mean, when we came in here today..."
"No need to mention that!" the younger hastily interrupted, his face flushing a bit "And I already told you, I'm over him! But I don't exactly control my dreams, Jason, just how I don't control my feelings."
"But you sounded so sad when you said it was only a dream, and it would never happen!"
"I was thinking about you." He shrugged, then his cheeks colored as he said "And for the record, you're usually the one in my dreams, perverted or not".
"Oh." Jason didn't dare believe it, yet his heart was already overflowing with happiness "So, do you like me or you just think I was 'the hottest' at that party?" he said teasing him once more.
As expected, the boy in his arms blushed brightly. He chuckled, amused. It really was easy to tease his little Ghost King. His.
"Yes, I like you, Airhead. And since you kissed me back and you're smiling like an idiot, I take it you like me back" Nico said, trying to sound snarky. Which would've been quite a feat, given his cheeks were pink and he was trying to hide his own idiotic grin.
Jason simply leaned in and kissed him again, effectively ending their conversation. His last bit of coherent thought was that he would have to thank Piper later.
[A/N] Hello!
Thank you for reading! Feedback is very much welcome, but if you are going to criticize my work please be polite.
Also, English is not my native language, so if you spot any mistakes let me know!
