Alcohol burned in a welcoming way, his head tilled back as he quickly downed the shot. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips as the he felt the pain in his throat; the smile turned into a frown as he no longer felt the pain, it was already a shame that the liquid no longer numbed him. That was what he was striving for, he didn't need to feel the high that came with being intoxicated; didn't want to feel anything. Though as he downed another shot, the pain in his soul still choked him; making the task of breathing more tiresome then fighting off a pissed off manticore. He let out a loud growl in frustration, the shot glass shattered under the pressure in his hand. The twenty-six year old just stared at his hand, blood painted his ivory skin crimson. Glass burrowed into the flesh of his palm, the cut wasn't deep by any means, and this flesh wound was a breeze of fresh air compared to the battle wounds he had experienced in the past; he had spent time in Tartarus, damnit! Alas, the pain in his chest was far worse than any obstacle he had faced in that hell hole.
An irritated voice pulled him out of his mussing, he looked away from his hand to see an annoyed bartender. The human scolded him and tried to convince him to get the open wound cleaned. He glared at the bartender, the human cowered under his harsh gaze and made the right decision to walk away and leave him alone. There was one shot left; using his good hand to pick up the glass, he tried to drink away his sorrows. Sadly, while the alcohol was in his system and he while he was going to have one pain-in-the-ass hangover in the morning, he was mentally somber. It was his own personal hell, he couldn't escape the pain and no amount of ambrosia could heal his wounds. Releasing his grip on the shot glass, he lent against the bar and ran his good hand threw his long, tangled, black hair. No escape; he shuttered as the wound in his chest ripped open, agony consumed his body. He hated expressing any type of raw emotion, and his eyebrows knitted in concentration as he fought to control his emotions. A long moment had passed and he still didn't have a grasp on reality, a hand on his shoulder made him jump. Turning around, he glared at the intruder, his brown eyes danced with furry and looked wild in the dim light of the bar. When he saw who it was, the wound in his heart tore into the seams of his soul.
Her hazel eyes were emotionless, staring into his without flinching; dirty blond hair lay across her shoulder. She was wearing a pair of worn blue jeans, her favorite pair, and a blouse of the same crimson shade as the blood on his right hand. His jaw clenched, she only wore a dress shirt for work or…she's on a date. He snorted and moved to turn away from her when she gripped the wrist of his injured hand. She held his wrist tightly, as he pulled his arm back she held on; she wasn't weak, she was a demigod after all. With a huff he submitted, how could she be dating this soon after…? He mentally shook his head. She pulled him to his feet and led him to the bathrooms; it wasn't an easy task as he kept stumbling over his own feet. After he argued about how he would rather spend a month with his step-mother than to go into the girl's bathroom, she led him into the boy's bathroom and had him sit beside the sink. He grumbled obscenity's as the girl inspected his hand, wincing as she picked a piece of glass out of the wound; he didn't wince in pain, but because that her gentile touch had brought back so many memories that were now tainted. She told him to stay put as she went to retrieve a first aid kit. Her voice was the same, dripped like honey and was warm like a summer's morning. It was a fact, he wasn't writing poetry when he had free time.
The bathroom wasn't sanitary, two bathroom stalls with words carved into the cheap walls that gave people little privacy. The stench on the other hand, wasn't something he wanted to think too deeply on. It wasn't long until the girl came back with a first aid kit in hand, she opened the small box and went back to work on cleaning his hand. Her skin was tan, was then when they both went to camp every summer, was now because she hated being in an enclosed space for a length of time; she was a free spirit. He couldn't help but to let gaze wonder, she wasn't small by any means, she had curves in all the right places and he knew that she had muscle as well. If he were to stand beside her, her head would have just reached his chin. He remembered that not so long ago that he was free to be able to brush his fingers across the length of her slim neck, across her heart shaped face, and then her soft pink lips…
'' Why are you helping me?" his voice gruff, slurring his words the slightest. She paused for a moment before continuing to bandage his hand.
''I had to do something.'' She whispered. He wanted her to leave, why put him through this torcher? What did he do to deserve this?
''I don't know why, I don't want to keep you from your date.'' His tone was dark and full of emotion. She flinched; he almost felt sorry for being so cruel, almost. She finished bandaging his hand, but kept her hands on his wrist, she effused to look at him.
''Nico…" She pleaded; he almost broke right then and there. Her voice cracked under pressure. He shook his head violently; he's been here before, but he wasn't expecting to be in this situation with her.
''Don't,'' he demanded. No way in hell was he going to listen to what she had to say. He thought she was different, but no, she was just like her. He jumped off the counter and onto his feet, moving towards the door.
''You're not even going to let me explain myself?'' She asked in the same demanding tone. He paused, the way she worded it puzzled him. She begged him to understand, to forgive him, while the girl behind him managed to surprise him… again. His curiosity got the better of him, he did want to know; what did he do wrong? Without warning, he spun around to face her. She seemed unfazed as he got into her face.
''Tell me," he growled out, his words slurred together. He needed to know, what did I do to push you away? The girl looked up at him, her jaw was locked stubbornly; he almost smiled. Almost. They were so close; he could smell her intoxicating lavender sent that was mixed with something that was simply her. Her breath fanned across his face, as his did hers.
''My mother is Achelois, the minor moon goddess. You know as well as I do that she helps cure the sick.'' She started; she was brazen enough to mock him. ''That man was twenty-five yes, he was in my office yes. The man was dying of cancer, so I helped him. A week later he shows up saying that the cancer was gone and that he wanted to thank me. When people are dying they tend to do whatever it takes to stop from dying, yes?'' His eyes narrowed and she took that as a yes.
''I didn't know that he was a player, I don't see peoples souls like you can. He came on to me, saying that he wanted to make it up to me. He started to grope me and I tried to push him off, that was when you walked in. The hell if I know what was going on through his head when he said what he did, all I could see was you shadow traveling your way out of there, I knew that I wouldn't be able to find you. So I filed a sexual harassment suit against the guy, the court date is next week. I hated not being able to fix anything between us… but at least I knew I could do something against that bastered.'' She cursed. Nico just stared at her, his mind was reeling. He couldn't decide if he should believe her or not, oh how he wanted to, but there had to be a catch somewhere… right? The past three months had been as painful as was his time in Tartarus, and then there was her; well, he could away check to see if she really does have a court date.
''Nico, I'm not Thalia.'' She whispered. His body stiffened at the sound of her name coming from her lips. He watched her with wide eyes as she lifted her hand to cradle the side of his face. Her hand was cold, but he didn't care, her callused fingers gently caressed his cheek. Her eyes begged for him to believe her, and the sad thing was, he knew she wasn't lying. He was the reason why he was in pain, he was the reason why she was pain; he could see it deep within her eyes and in the bags beneath her eyes. What had he done?
He began to tremble. Without a word, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his neck. Wrapping his arms around her, he nuzzled her neck with his nose. When she started to pull away from him, he gripped her tighter for a moment before reluctantly letting go. Refusing to look up at her, in shame that he had taken one small misunderstanding and pushed her away from him, when they only had five months left… He shoved his hands into the pockets of his worn black jeans, afraid that he would cross some unspoken line and touch the girl without her consent.
''I'm guessing everyone had lost their shit when they found out.'' He murmured, breaking the tension that had started to settle between the two of them; he hated it. Things have never been awkward between the two of them and the only tension they had ever had to deal with was, to be blunt, sexual tension. He had messed up big time.
''Jason did say that he was going to kick your ass once you reappeared.'' She chuckled at the memory, but it was a sad laugh. ''Hazel threw a fit, and Annabeth said she was going to skewer your… well that's just say it was graphic; even made Percy cringe.'' she mussed. The son of hades flinched, he didn't want to know; he had an idea as to what she probably said and he did not want to face her anytime soon.
''I'm sorry, Naomi.'' He whispered, his voice was genuine and full of regret. If only he had given her a chance to explain, but his pride - or what was left of it - stopped him. The dirty blonde shook her head and smiled softly; she stepped forward and wasn't fazed when the dark eyed boy took a step back. He watched her as she placed her hands on either side of his face, forcing him to look into her eyes. She lend into him, capturing his lips with her own.
Slowly he melted into the familiarity of her touch, his tongue traced her bottom lip and she granted him entrance to her mouth. They fought for the right to taste the other, it had been too long and they were desperate to get at least a small taste. The dark demigod wrapped his arms around the girl's waist, walking the two of them to the wall of the small bathroom. When her back came in contact with the wall, she jumped –using his shoulders for leverage – and wrapped her legs around his slim waist. A groan escaped his lips when she tugged on his long hair; he pressed his body along the length of hers. She moaned, gripping him closer to her; afraid that if she let go, he would disappear and it would have all be a dream. They pulled apart, gasping for air. As she took a moment to catch her breath, the son of hades attacked her neck; kissing, licking, and nipping at the sensitive flesh.
''How did you find me?'' He asked, his voice was horse and no longer slurred. Eyes closed in pleasure; she cleared her throat and took another deep breath.
''Tonight is a full moon; Mother found me and told me that you were here, that you wouldn't be leaving anytime soon. So I ran.'' She bit her lip to keep from moaning as he continued worshiping the skin of her neck. He hummed; she could feel the vibration throughout her entire being.
''Remind me to think her, she is of course the only goddess that likes me.'' He mussed, moving the fabric of her blouse to the side to give her shoulder some needed attention. It was true; the goddess sees all that happens beneath the light of the moon. Although she was very protective towards her only daughter, she had observed the son of hades and had accepted their feelings for each other; the son of Shadow's and the daughter of the Night. So said girl shivered as cold hands slid under her shirt, he caressed the skin of her stomach with his callused fingers. He removed his lips from her shoulder, pulling her into a passionate kiss; showing her how much he truly loved her and how much he missed her. She wanted to protest when he broke the kiss and pulled his hand out from under her shirt. Opening her eyes, she was greeted with two dark orbs.
''Will you be my fiancé again?'' he asked, his voice was deep with desire but Naomi could hear the seriousness in his tone. Smiling she removed her left arm from behind his neck and showed him the ring that sat contently on her ring finger. The son of Hades didn't give her a chance to speak; he moaned and captured her lips once more. It wasn't until the bartender walked in, that the couple separated. After paying what he owed, he grabbed his fiancés arm, promising her that they would finish what they had started. That was, once he rented a hotel room for the two of them, shit.