Love.

How could anyone in their right mind want anything like that?

That's what I was thinking anyways, it was just a major pain in the rump. Stupid Eros... Aphrodite may be the Goddess of love but Eros was the one I was angry at, i find because we are both male he has targeted me.

I was sitting alone like always at the Hades table of the Mess Hall glaring at her from across the room. She was sitting and smiling along with her brothers and sisters of Hermes Cabin and maybe along with the undecided also. Her hair was bright red, it was slightly unnatural but I didn't care, her eyes the most lightest brown. She looked at me all of a sudden like she felt I was watching her and her beautiful smile dropped. I glared harder and her eyes hardened in hate, excusing herself from her family she got up and left. I sighed, I was getting nowhere with her.

That night I snuck out of my cabin and went for a walk. I liked the night, the silence... it was calming and then I heard something along the beach and walked towards the sound. I peeped around the tree to see her skidding rocks across the waters surface with practiced ease. I felt like a stalker watching her body move as she threw another rock so I walked up to her as quietly as possible.

"What are you doing out this late?" I asked she turned around quickly with a dagger in her hand until she saw me she stopped but didn't put away the weapon.

"What in Hades do you think you're doing, Nico!?" She screamed in whisper, her eyes were panicked and her breathing was slightly laboured from fright.

"I'm sorry." Was all I could say before turning around putting my black hoodie over my head and walking up back to my cabin.

"Is that all you have to say to me? 'I'm sorry'?" She asked me pained. I stopped frozen in my tracks, I didn't want to hurt her.

"What else do you want me to say, Lee?" I asked turning towards her again only to find her closer to me than I thought.

"When we were on the River Styx..." She began her lower lip quivering slowly she bit it

"I thought we were going to die," I tried to reason

"So none of what you said... meant anything?" She looked up at me, piercing me with her watery eyes. I wished to touch her face and kiss her sweetly, tell her this was all a misunderstanding, I wanted badly to tell her I loved her. But guys like me don't ever get that, we drift away from everything and anything. We don't walk with people, we walk alone because we don't want to drag them down with us.

Now my eyes started to water and I sniffed away whatever that was making its way down my nose and shrugged lightly. I tried desperately to not look in her eyes but it was proving to be incredibly difficult. I looked into her eyes and wished instantly that I didn't, my resolve almost broke completely.

"I-I-" I began to stutter and I looked away again gaining myself once more. "I'm... sorry..." was all I could say before turning away and forcing my legs to continue as I heard her quiet sobs. As soon as I was out of sight I ran as fast as I could towards my empty cabin and started packing all my things for another trip.

I left my cabin with all my things and quickly went to the shore of the beach praying Lee wasn't in sight, and my hopes were reality. I dashed silently across the sand and started pushing one of the left over boats on the bank. The boat was completely in on the waters surface now and I hopped in grabbing an oar. I heard fast foot steps behind me and I turned around watching and hearing Percy from Poseidon's cabin call after me. I ignored him and kept on moving forward. I half expected him to drift the boat back to shore but in the end he let me go, let me drift off to the Underworld where my father would let me stay for awhile.

After a couple of days of sailing around and walking for miles I was just entering the Underworld when someone had stopped me on the shoulder. i turned around suddenly in fright, pulled out my Stygian iron blade only to find a beautiful fully grown man, with shoulder length blonde hair and bright eyes, with him he had bow and arrows and what looked like to be small wings upon his back. I sheathed my dagger at the sight of him knowing who it was. I glared at him deadly, and all he did was smile at me... almost mockingly.

"What in the Gods name do you want?" I hissed and he raised a brow

"Well, I wanted to see you of course," He answered in melodic voice. Great, I thought, even his voice is screaming Mc Dreamy to all women.

"What for?" I snapped turning to leave through the entrance "I have no business with you," his hand now wrapped around my wrist pulling me away from the entrance and it closed up, I glared up at him more.

"Now, don't go thinking you're all that because you're the son of Big Three. I came to discuss business with you... with or without permission or schedule. Alright kid?" I knew it was a rhetorical question but I still felt the need to make a smart comment just to piss him off a little. I know he's been making my life hell.

When I made no move to say different he sighed and continued,

"Thank you. Now.... why are you running? Running away from Lee Sherwood,"

"I'm not running. Just keeping away," I snapped pulling my arm from his grip. He clucked his tongue in disappointment and it angered me further.

"Nico, dear boy-"

"I'm not a boy, I'm soon to be 16," I reasoned and he waved it off as no concern

"Did you know that you have made Lee depressed?"

"Lee?" I asked now distraught with the news then I understood his game I then became even more angry "Just leave me alone!" I started walking away, maybe I could make it to the other entrance while losing him on the way.

"But you do care for her," The annoying prick stated

"Mm." Was my short reply as walked on, I don't think he could keep pace so he began to fly above me and around me... and just every where!

"Then why don't you go back to her?"

"It's not that easy! Just leave me be!" I screamed getting frustrated walking another direction

"She loves you, you know," The devil grinned, well metaphorically... I am the Devil's son but who cares... right?

"What?"

"She. Meaning Lee Sherwood... loves, truly, madly, deeply in love, with you, Nico di Angelo," I turned to him, I was beyond pissed. I have never sworn in my life and I never even thought to before now.

"Fuck. You." I hissed, my voice dripped venomously with every ounce of hate I could muster. And the God of Love began to get really mad.

"How dare you swear to me!? A God!" He began to preach but I couldn't care for him. I opened a mouth in the ground that I knew that would lead me safely to the Underworld and escaped the Gods wrath.

I shadow traveled towards my Father's Palace and opened the double doors without knocking. I was immediately confronted by hell hounds and they calmed at the sight of me, sometimes I loved being the son of Hades.

"What are you doing here, my son?" The God of the Underworld asked me, my father

"Was just visiting for awhile... I hope you don't mind, I won't be a nuisance, and I'll be gone before Winter," I promised hoping he'd agree. He eventually grunted in response walking me towards the sitting room where he spent most of his days.

"Why is my damned brother hassling me all of a sudden about you angering the God of Love?" Hades asked absently pouring himself another drink

"Sorry, it seems he has hit me with his arrows recently, I came here and he had come to intervene me coming here,"

"Is this about the girl you came here on a quest with about a month ago?"

"How did you know?"

"I know everything that happens in my world, you little insignificant toad!" I lowered my head in shame

"I'm so-" I began to say but he cut me off

"Sorry? You're sorry!? The Gods, Nico! Do you not have any guts!?" I looked up at him in surprise "Yes you! You cowardice imbecile!" I winced at his insults and sat there his insults continued and grew more aggressive. Until I thought, I don't have to sit through this!

"Fuck this, I'm leaving," I said before grabbing my bag and leaving, Hades didn't move, I think he was either shocked or ... happy? I saw him grinning but didn't look back to confirm it before he came back to his senses and whooped my sorry arse. He is, after all, the Lord of the Underworld.

I felt so good after dealing with Hades, like a heavy weight had been lifted off my chest. Then I had a revelation, if I didn't have to put up with my father's shit then I have the power to change what ever I want. What ever the outcome... it was all up to me. Like... Lee, I didn't have to leave her stranded because I thought I had to... only because I felt it was my duty to I did. I didn't want her to find out how depressed I am, how I truly was when really she made a feel like a better person the whole quest.

I had to leave! I had to go back! To beg her that I did make a mistake and it was a misunderstanding! It was me that misunderstood everything! I called on my favourite hell hound to me and he leaped towards me happily from the shadows of the night.

"Hey boy, I need you to take me to Camp Half-Blood... as fast as you can!" I whispered lightly to him and I jumped up quickly and we shadow traveled and we were there before dawn. I promised Tem the hell hound that I'd bring him a juicy snack and ran down the gigantic hill.

I never knew how tiring it was to go down this hill, so unfit! I'm so unfit... I'll work on it later. Some how I knew she wasn't in her cabin and so I ran to the next place I thought she might be... the beach. And there she was... in all her glory. She wasn't throwing rocks like the last time I saw her here, she was just sitting on the sandy beach... watching the sunrise. I watched appreciatively from afar, I didn't feel so awkward this time, I don't know why.

I walked towards her but kept a safe distance between us.

I knew she knew I was there, it was kind of awkward, but not as before.

"Why are you here?" She asked me in whisper, she didn't look to me just stared towards the horizon where the two colours were beginning to mesh together.

"For you," I replied without any doubt, Lee then looked up to me in anger

"What?" I walked closer and sighed, I knelt before her.

"I'm here for you," she seemed to seethe on the spot before she got up abruptly and started to stalk back to the camp "W-wait! Lee! Wait!" I ran after her after she had gotten a fair distance between us.

"Leave me alone, Nico..." Lee warned but I didn't listen

"Lee, please listen to me... what I said-"

"Stop bloody confusing me! First you- you kiss me, on the quest to the Underworld and- and then you- you say that you're sorry for ever meaning it!" Lee screamed at me, she was starting to cry and I was starting to panic. I didn't think it would go this bad. I kissed her quickly but surely on the lips, it felt just like in the Underworld, except warmer. I released her and licked my lips, tasted just like before... chocolate and raspberries.

"I-I... this is hard for me to say, Lee... I love... I love... you. I... love you," I finally told her and she stood there stunned, I got worried for a long time wondering whether or not she might hit me. Lee then focused her eyes on me and in the what I could see in the dim dawn light, her pupils started to dilate.

"Umm.. Lee?" I asked but before I could say anything more she had kissed me too. I refocused on her and kissed her back with as much passion and love that I could ever muster. After awhile I was starting to lose my breath so we separated.

"I... I love you too, Nico," Lee smiled, her pink lips curving up with joy. I was too happy to say anything so I kissed her again.