Warning: House of Hades' spoilers.
My first PJO fic O.o
It happens right after the war against Gaea.
I tried to keep them in character, but let me know if they are out of character.
Please, send me reviews. Constructive criticism is always welcome ;) and sorry for any grammar mistakes (let me know about them as well).
Enjoy!
Sleep wasn't his friend. Ever since Nico could remember, sleeping had being something he didn't really appreciate, for it never came to him immediately. At first, when he heard people say "it's easy like sleeping" he couldn't really understand what they meant, and he would just assume that said thing was actually difficult. After some time though, he noticed that he was the one who had problems sleeping, and that not everyone found it frustrating to stare at the celling waiting for his brain to decide it was time to rest. That night wasn't any different.
The son of Hades was lying in bed, gazing at the ceiling. Not only because sleep hadn't come yet, but also because if he closed his eyes, memories of the war with Gaea would flood him like an angry wave trying to carry you to the open sea. All those dead demigods and people he'd actually known kept coming to his brain, haunting him. It wasn't his fault they were dead, but he knew surely that most of those deaths could have been prevented. He had his bit of fault after all. If only he'd tried harder, maybe some of them could still be alive. But they were all in the Underworld, wandering through the Fields of Asphodel, Elysium, or maybe even in the Fields of Punishment.
Now more than ever, Nico felt like he belonged nowhere. Even going back to his father's palace worried him, 'cause he might happen to bump into a dead acquaintance.
The dark-haired boy decided to go for a stroll. No, it was not allowed. But who cared? He was a son of Hades after all. Hiding in the shadows was his specialty, and if anything went wrong, he could rapidly shadow-travel somewhere else. Keeping these thoughts in mind, Nico left Cabin 13 to explore a dark Camp Half-Blood.
To his surprise, he was not the only one outside after midnight.
After a few minutes of walking around trying not to think too much, Nico saw Jason Grace sitting under a tree, star-gazing.
Jason was, and probably would be, the only person to have all of Nico's trust, though di Angelo wouldn't admit it, not even to himself. After the Cupid incident in Croatia, the blonde had been constantly trying to show the son of Hades he was his friend. He kept secret about Nico's …situation, and even offered support. Though their last conversation about trust didn't end up so well (Nico accidentally opened the ground of the Argo II), he did actually believe Jason was his friend. But there was something about the son of Jupiter that made Nico feel quite uneasy. He didn't know if it was the way Jason was protecting him, how Jason always wanted to conciliate everybody's opinions, how he seemed to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders (figuratively speaking), or even how the son of Jupiter always tried to please everyone. And maybe, just maybe, Nico was getting used to the idea of "friend" once more. Of course, not what everyone else thought friendship was. Nico's idea of friends meant that he had this one person he could talk to if needed, though he would only talk to this friend in a matter of life and death, which Nico wasn't currently facing. Besides, he didn't want anyone feeling troubled because of him.
With this good reason to leave in his mind, Nico turned slowly around; taking advantage of the fact that Jason hadn't seen him yet, and started to head back to his cabin. But his clumsy side (which was always absent and decided to come to live in the worst moments) made him stumble and step on a twig, that crackled. It wouldn't have been a loud sound, if it happened during the day when the camp is active and people's voices are louder than any sound as insignificant as the breaking of a twig. But it was not daytime, and the camp was as deserted as a post-apocalyptic horror movie, with only him and Jason to witness the sound of the breaking of that twig. Needless to say that the son of Jupiter heard it.
Jason turned his head to face Nico, making his blonde hair look like a type of halo under the moonlight. Di Angelo brushed that thought away.
"Hey, Nico." he said, smiling sadly.
The son of Hades might not be an expert with feelings and social interaction, but he could tell something was wrong with Jason.
"Are you okay, Grace?" Nico asked, reluctantly. He avoided engaging in conversations.
"Yeah." Jason answered, though Nico noticed he was clearly lying.
The dark-haired boy knew he should just sit beside Jason, and ask him what was going on. He knew that as a friend, he should stay and comfort the son of Jupiter. A normal person would've done that. But he wasn't normal. He was Nico di Angelo. He was supposed to be independent, to seem untrustworthy and unreliable. He was the son of the god of death after all. Besides, Jason still made Nico feel uneasy. If he just pretended he didn't notice that Jason wasn't okay, maybe Jason himself wouldn't be disappointed by Nico's lack of sensibility. However, Nico felt the need to at least try, even if it was indirectly.
"Okay then." Nico shrugged. "I'm going back to my cabin, but if you need anything…" he hesitated. He was no good at this friendship thing.
After he left Camp Half-Blood to free himself from what he felt for Percy, Nico hadn't had any other friends. Expect for Hazel, which was something different. It came naturally, because she understood him. Anyway, Nico never got to finish his sentence.
"Does it still hurt?" Jason asked, staring at the horizon.
Okay, now Nico was confused.
"What?" the son of Hades questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"Does it hurt, you know, to see Percy with Annabeth?" Jason explained, still not looking at Nico.
And there it was, that matter. The only thing ever to make Nico uncomfortable and self-conscious and the only thing Jason seemed to bring up when they ended up alone.
Nico swallowed, placing his hands on his pockets. He really wasn't sure what to answer. He could, of course, answer rudely, making Jason back off, but that didn't seem fair. As much as Nico was a jerk sometimes, he knew Jason had done a lot for him without asking anything in return, and that he owed Jason some favors.
"Yes and no." Nico answered honestly, shifting his weight to his left leg. "I mean, sometimes. But usually, no it doesn't. "
Nico really hoped that would be enough of an answer for the son of Jupiter. He wasn't prepared to go around explaining that maybe he wasn't over his crush on Percy, although he was. It did hurt sometimes, especially when Annabeth and Percy kissed or walked around holding hands, but at the same time, Nico didn't care. After all, he cared about Percy's happiness, even if it wasn't the way he had pictured it. And maybe Nico had just grown oblivious to all that love-doves stuff, as an instinct.
"I just wanted to know that because you didn't seem really comfortable near them today at the campfire sing-along tonight." Jason sighed, finally looking at Nico. His blue eyes were a little ghoulish under the dim light.
That had been a slightly complicated event. Nico ended up sitting right in front of the couple that decided to be especially cheesy that night. Of course the son of Hades wouldn't be comfortable. No one really would.
"Well, I'm not the one who looks depressed right now." Nico said, walking near where Jason was sitting. It wasn't by free will. He walked over there because his legs seemed to have created a life of their own, and wanted to approach the son of Jupiter by all means.
Jason shrugged, looking away.
Nico could sense that whatever was bothering Jason was something serious. Jason wasn't the type of person who'd worry over something ephemeral. Maybe he tried to get back together with Piper? They'd broken up few weeks before, and Nico had been to one to listen to Jason's complaints. He hadn't wanted to listen, but he was unlucky enough to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Thinking about that made the son of Hades feel even more uneasy near Jason (as if he wasn't already uneasy enough) but he brushed that thought away. The ex-girlfriend subject wasn't bad enough for Jason to over think it, was it?
"What's bothering you, Grace? Is it Piper?" Nico finally asked, folding his arms. After he'd said it, Nico knew he shouldn't have pronounced a single word. He didn't know anything about relationships at all. The dark-haired boy was so close to Jason now that the son of Jupiter had to look up so he could see Nico.
The son of Hades didn't know what was happening to him. First, his legs created free will, and then his mouth said things he wasn't supposed to say. He shouldn't let this friendship (if it was what was happening between them) get deeper. He'd had a friend before, and Nico ended up falling for him.
Warning! Not good for your mental health, Nico's brain kept saying. But the son of Hades had stayed so much time away from people, that this feeling he got when he was with Jason was a little overwhelming. The uneasiness and strangeness, but at the same time the normality it bought Nico were soothing and a little addicting.
"It's actually the opposite." Jason hesitated, looking up at Nico. "I'm surprised by the time it took me to get over her. Which was…" he stopped once more to count on his fingers. "More or less one month."
Nico couldn't see where that was leading. There was nothing wrong with being over a girlfriend, right? He wasn't sure what he was supposed to say as well. Should he tell Jason he was wrong to get over her so soon? No, it's not like you simply decide you're going to be over you ex. Should he tell Jason it was okay?
But apparently, the son of Jupiter needn't any answer, because he kept going.
"Was I supposed to be mourning the end of our relationship? Or missing her? Well, I do miss her, but not as a girlfriend. I miss her talking to me." Jason said, indicating a spot beside him on the grass for Nico to sit.
As the son of Hades sat down beside his…friend, Nico couldn't help but think that this was all wrong. This whole situation wasn't supposed to be happening. If he'd just stayed in bed, he wouldn't be there. Don't get him wrong, he liked talking to Jason. He just wasn't comfortable with this middle-of-the-night conversation.
"The worst of all…" Jason kept going as if he stopped he wouldn't be able to finish, which was probably true. "Is that I think I'm into someone else."
Nico definitely didn't see that one coming. His shoulders tensed, as if he wanted to protect himself from whatever Jason was going to say next. Again, he felt his body wasn't answering his brain anymore. That wasn't the typed of reaction he should have had to what Jason just said.
"Someone different." The son of Jupiter added, going back to staring at the horizon.
The dark-haired boy didn't know what to say. He was left completely speechless. His lack of social abilities made him completely useless at those situations where he was expected to say something clever enough to solve the other person's problems. Not that Jason really had a problem to be solved, but Nico wanted to say something helpful enough to cheer him up. Seeing the god of lightning's son upset was confusing Nico, like Jason had lost his spark. Finally, the son of Hades decided to say something neutral.
"I don't see anything wrong with what you just told me."
Jason forced a happy smile to his lips. "That's why I like you, Nico. You never do what you're expected to."
Nico nodded as an answer, while Jason stood up, extending his hand to help the dark-haired boy up.
Hades' son accepted the hand, even though he hated physical contact, and before he could let go off Jason's hand, the blonde boy pulled Nico into a hug, that made him tense his shoulders once more.
"Thanks man." Grace said, breaking the hug and smiling happily. He wasn't forcing it this time.
Nico nodded again, hoping that Jason could see through all his nods, knowing that this one meant "I'm here any time you need."
Jason walked back to his cabin without saying anything else, but Nico was sure something was still wrong. His…friend (Nico always hesitated when thinking about Jason that way) was hiding something. What Nico didn't know was that this something Jason was hiding would be as terrifying to him as dead acquaintances from the Underworld.