Yo!
Okay, this is a one-shot about Nico. It was supposed to be a songfic, but those aren't alwoad. So yeah. This story is inspired by Foster the People's song Pumped Up Kicks.
And my good friend Ren is sitting here telling me to give her some credit. Yes, she did help some.
One other thing, this is AU, it's in the real world. So no demi-god powers of awesomeness.
DISCLAIMER: Ace: Ren, if you don't mind.
Ren: What?
Ace: Disclaimer.
Ren: What?
Ace: Right, you don't know... I do not own Percy Jackson or Pumped Up Kicks. No, I didn't put the lyrics in the story.
It was a normal Thursday morning. Kids were getting on the bus, going to school. There was nothing different. Everything was the same. The same gossip, rumors, who liked who, who was breaking up, who was going steady. The bus got to school at the same time it always does.
Nico was a good kid. He just came from a rough home, school didn't help. Nothing did.
~Paul Blofis, English Teacher
The halls were crowded as always. Kids talked to friends, got into their groups. There was one boy though who was alone. He didn't have many friends, no one was nice to him. They didn't ignore him either. He was the one who got to really feel how horrible the human race is.
Nico was great, he was like a little brother to me. I had no idea he would—Yeah, I knew he had a hard life, but I also knew he had dreams.
~Percy Jackson, Friend, Cousin
The boy, Nico, came from a poor family. A broken family. Practically no family. A drunk mom and a run away sister. She joined a gang I think. No one really cared. In the back of his mind he knew that, but he didn't want to believe it. He wanted to believe that he still had close family who cared for him. Not just his distant cousins.
He didn't have a strong male role model in his life. His father left when he was young, his mom, well that's another story. All I can say is that we had no idea. We thought his sister was looking out for him. Damn were we wrong.
~Marcus Smith, Social Worker
Lunch started off as usual. Cliques sat together. People gossiped. Nico sat alone. Hoping he wouldn't be seen. That was his hope. To go a whole day without being seen. It didn't happen. Luke, Drew, and others came and laughed at him. At his poor clothes. At his home lunch that was poorly made. They called him names. They made his life hell.
Sure I new di Angelo. Everyone did. He was the poor kid. He was the one who couldn't afford stuff. He was the one who we abused all the time. We took our pain out on him. We made him snap. We brought this on ourselves. I mean, look at me now, I'll never be the same again.
~Luke Castellan, Peer
The next day was the same. The buses came the same. School started the same. Gossip was the same. Classes went on. People pointed and laughed as Nico passed by. In his mind he new it would all end soon.
I know what he did. I don't care. I never wanted a son. Nico's the reason he left. Nico's the reason she left. Nico is the reason for all of this. My pain. My suffering. All I wanted was a nice long life with him and my drinks.
~Maria di Angelo, Mother
Lunch started the same. People ate, talked, but they didn't ignore him. He didn't have any peace. He didn't say anything. He just reached slowly for his bag.
I knew there was something wrong with that kid. Percy wouldn't hear it though. He wanted to believe that Nico was stable, even if he was miserable. I should have done something. I should have made him stay, or at least take the kid with him.
~Poseidon, Uncle, Percy's Father
He pulled it out of his bag. And he shot. He didn't think. He shot.
Go to hell. I hate you. Go to hell. Those were his last words. Before he did it. He shouted them the whole time. It wasn't right. He had a future. He lost it all. I know he didn't blame himself. He blamed us. All of us. It was horrible. But it made me change. I know that I will never forget it. I will never forget him. No one will.
Drew Tanaka, Peer
Some say he was mentally unstable. Some say he was just crazy. Others think it was his fault. Some say it was theirs. He went on a rampage. He killed at least three. Injured more then five.
He didn't do it. I don't want to believe he did. But it happened. He's gone. It's all my fault. I left him to fend for himself against her. Our drunk mother. I shouldn't have left. I did. It wasn't worth it.
~Bianca di Angelo, Sister
Shoot. Reload. Shot. Reload. He didn't stop till the police came. Even after everyone had left the cafeteria he kept shooting. Then there were sirens. He raised it to his head.
I still can't believe what he did. I still can't belive that he's gone. He was such a nice boy. Percy really tried hard to make his life better.
Sally Jackson, Aunt
He shot himself in the head. And his last words, that no one hears, were, "Finally, peace." He pulled the trigger. He got himself. Straight. In. The. Head.
Hey, I didn't know that kid was gonna go ballistic. He came in wantin' a gun, he had money. It's called business. No, I don't go around givin' fifteen year-olds guns, he had a note that looked legit, sayin' that he was gonna go shooting with his pops. How was I supposed to know he would do that?
~ Darin La Rue, Gun Store Owner
There were few who cared. His uncle, his cousin, and his sister were the only ones. His mother, well, she couldn't care less. After all, she never thought of having Nico in the first place. He thought nothing could be worse then what it already was. He thought he could escape his torture. I hope he did.
Poor Nico. I didn't know him well. He was Percy's friend, cousin. I assumed he was okay, but after what happened... Poor Nico. I heard about his family, I really felt for him. It's horrible.
~Annabeth Chase, Percy's Girlfriend
Nico wasn't hated. Nico wasn't loved. He didn't have a real family. Everyone has their own thoughts on his killings and death. I believe that it wasn't his fault. That it was his fault. That he is happy now. That he isn't happy now. I am unentitled to say what I think. I am just a messenger. Overlooked and forgotten. And this that you have just read, is what he sent me to tell you. To tell you why. You have always asked, and here it is.
One last thing, if you didn't catch it, the italics are told by different people after it happened. And the narrator is what she says she is. A messenger.
So, this was basically a story about how far some kids will go if they are bullied. It's really sad. No one wants to be hated or forgotten. But there's some attention that people don't want.