It had just been one of those nights. Terrible nightmares disturbed his sleep. Nico dreamt of Tartarus and Rome, of losing those he cared about. Although this was common, he was never able to quite get used to it. These were the nights when he thought he could no longer take it. When he felt like all of the emotions bottled up inside of him, the rage and grief and sorrow, would make him explode.

As the first rays of the sun began to seep into the cabin, Nico reached under his bed and pulled out a small box. He opened it and stared at the blade inside. Nico had never cut himself before, but he'd thought about it many times. Slowly, he took the blade out and stared at it.

'I just need to feel something… else. Just for a moment,' he thought as he placed the metal against his wrist.

Nico slid the blade slowly across his wrist, feeling this sting as it sliced his skin. Suddenly, the cabin door was slammed open.

"Hey Nico, I was wondering if-" Will and Nico stared at each other, both too startled to do anything else.

Will's smile faltered at the sight in front of him. "N-Nico?" he whispered as tears formed in his eyes, threatening to spill over. Will was angry, angry at himself for letting this happen, and so, so sad.

Snapping out of his trance, he reached Nico within a couple of strides, grabbed the blade, and flung it across the room. Will crouched down to the same height as Nico, who was still sitting on the edge of his bed, shocked expression still visible.

Ever so gently, Will took Nico's injured wrist into his hands. He grabbed an antibacterial wipe and a bandage from his pocket and gently cleaned and wrapped the cut. Once he had finished, Will leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss on Nico's bandaged cut. He looked up at Nico's face. Although he tried to cover it with emotionlessness, Will could see the shame and embarrassment on Nico's countenance.

Will firmly grasped Nico's face in his hands, forcing Nico to look straight into Will's stare.

"I know you've been through so much more than I can possibly hope to understand, and I know you must be hurting so, so much, but I know you. You are strong. And when you feel like you can't be strong, and you just want to give up, I'll be here for you. When you can't take it anymore, will you come to me? Please? No matter what time it is, or where I am, you can always come to me. I'll always be here for you, Nico di Angelo," Will said, placing his forehead against Nico's. Smiling his bright, sunshine-y smile at Nico, he said, "After all, what are boyfriends for?"

Nico quickly wiped the tears that had somehow made their way to his cheeks. "I promise," he whispered, barely audible. "I'll come find you."

"I love you, Nico di Angelo." Will whispered to the other boy as he kissed him softly on the lips.

As they broke apart, Will pulled Nico into a warm hug, and for once, Nico didn't resist.