Nico was simultaneously having the best and worst few days of his life. From the outside, worst may seem like a bit of an exaggeration after his last few weeks. However, Nico was having trouble compartmentalizing, so his situation was still feeling pretty bad.

He was two thirds of his way through his involuntary stay at the Infirmary, as ordered by a certain irritating blond boy. Nico knew he needed medical attention after everything his body had been put through in the last few weeks, but he didn't understand why that meant that he needed to stay in a bed in the infirmary for three days. The beds are uncomfortable, the feel of death is unbearable, and the food is abysmal. That last bit is Solace's fault.

Since finding out the way that Nico had been treating his body, Will had become a little too attentive, only providing him with extremely healthy options for food. He hadn't had a burger in almost a month and his fruit intake had increase by around a thousand percent.

To make matters worse, Nico was finding it harder and harder to maintain his brooding face and emo disposition whenever Will came in to check on him. It was like the boy spread sunshine wherever he went. Truly infuriating. To make it easier, Nico had taken to communicating only in grunts and noises, so he wouldn't give himself away. This was proving difficult to maintain as Will's smile faded every time Nico refused to talk, causing something with the weight of a brick to hit Nico in the chest. He didn't want to make Will upset, but all he knew was self-preservation.

Nico still wasn't done mending his heart after Percy. He had always known that it would never work out well, but that didn't make it hurt any less. Of course, his head was over it, logically it made no sense to dwell. But his heart did not take orders from his head.

Exhibit B: Nico had told himself over and over that falling for another boy who would inevitably like him back was idiotic. He should just keep himself closed off forever. But his heart had payed attention to that rule for approximately two seconds before running away to chase after Mr Will Solace. Wonderful.

So now Nico was stuck in the infirmary trying his damn best to hide a crush that he knew would only end in him getting hurt.

He sat up, getting more and more bored of staring at the ceiling. He had been asked if he wanted any form of entertainment, but, due to his rule about not talking, he was unable to express his desire for a book or literally anything that would make his stay more bearable.

The room was exceptionally plain. Clinical regulations required everything to be sanitized, so everything in the room could either be thrown away of wiped clean. Due to Nico's 'deathy' aura, he had been given his own room so that he wouldn't distress the other patients in the infirmary.

A sharp pain appeared in his chest and abdomen as he tried to sit up. He cried out, trying his best to muffle it with a pillow, but only causing himself more pain. Seemingly instantly, Will burst through the door.

"What? What's wrong?" He asked urgently.

Nico was had trouble finding a way to answer that using grunts so he just said "Chest".

That seemed to be enough for Will, who quickly walked over to him. Remembering Nico's issues with any physical contact, Will made sure to tell him exactly what he was going to do before he did it.

"Nico," He started softly "I need to put my hand on your back to help stabilize you. Is that okay?"

Nico didn't want to say yes, but he didn't really see any other option. He wouldn't last long without passing out in this much pain. He said a quick yes and braced himself for the jolt of electricity that came down his spine whenever the young doctor touched him.

Will slowly eased his hand onto Nico's lower back.

"Oh my gods, Nico! How are you so cold?"

"Umm" was the best reply Nico could come up with. He tried his best to relax, presuming that it was probably the best way for him to heal quickly. He lowered himself back down with the aid of Will's hand and resumed his place staring at the ceiling. Will's hand was still on his back. He looked over at him, causing the blond to quickly remove his hand and look away, blushing.

"Ssorry" Will mumbled, backing away from the bed. Nico became less and less tense the further Will got from his bed, but the part in his heart that wouldn't follow the rules ached as the distance increased.

"You need to get some sleep, Nico, your body isn't just going to heal instantly. Please?"

But Nico was already nearly half asleep, mostly from the pain and in his uninhibited state he said "Are you begging, Solace? That's kinda a turn on." and giggled stupidly to himself, an action he would come to regret heavily later. He then fell quickly asleep with a stupid grin on his face.

Will just blushed profusely and smiled back at Nico, laughing quietly to himself.

"Good to know" he said quietly to an already asleep Nico before leaving the room, still smiling to himself.

Ahhhh. So, I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. Obviously they do talk to each other in this chapter but in the next one they're going to have an actual conversation.

Comments and criticisms are welcome, so long as they're constructive or gay. Those are my only requirements. Thanks for reading!