Disclaimer: I don't own the Percy Jackson series.


Nico slumped over in his seat. He hated this place. This place represented a lot of the falsities he hated in the world. All of the students at Olympus High were extremely competitive. He knew they would stab everyone else if it meant getting ahead. Olympus was a private school, advertising an average GPA of 4.3. It was home to snobs and rich kids alike. Nico was here because of his father. His father was essentially set for life. But truthfully, he'd rather be in a public school. Most of the kids who attended Olympus were under severe pressure from their parents. At any time, Olympus reserved the right to throw out any problem children. Their definition ranged anywhere from drugs to a not up to par GPA. Students were expected to receive at least a 3.5 or above if they wanted to remain at the prestigious school. They were also expected to take some of the most advanced classes available, like Latin. Who the fuck really takes Latin though. But what this created was certainly not beneficial. All the friendships here were false. No one here gave a damn about anyone else. And at least half of the kids here were on some sort of drugs. The teachers and headmaster knew of course, but the drugs produced results. The students performed above the average. It sucked but Nico had no choice. He could always let his GPA fall, but this close to graduation, it wasn't even worth it. Besides, even though the policy was to kick out students who were lacking, it was well known among the students that a 'donation' from mommy and daddy would be enough to keep them in school and boost their GPA. Nico knew his father had no qualms of stooping to such a level. He groaned as the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. He reluctantly stood from the table and snatched his backpack up, slinging it on to his back as he headed off to physics. God he hated this place.

Nico sat in his default seat in the back. A lot of the students in this class hated him. He excelled easily in physics. It threw off the curve severely. He shrugged it off. It wasn't his fault if they weren't smart enough to study hard for it. It wasn't his fault he was good at it. Imagine his surprise when a new guy walked in. The tall, dark-haired boy looked nervous. Nico rolled his eyes. He looked hot. He would definitely fit in with the other assholes in the place. Even though everyone there was wary of each other, the cliques definitely existed. Nico seemed to have all the luck, playing the part of the stereotypical Outcast. The teacher, Mrs. Lowell, introduced him.

"Where should I sit?" Gods that boy was stupid, that was the last question he should have asked. Especially in this class.

"Sit next to the girl you think is the cutest. Or boy, if you swing that way." Clearly she loved to torture new kids. Percy, as he was introduced, scanned the room. At least he understood that seating was important. If he was really smart he'd sit with Annabeth. Woo for the popular girl. To his surprise he heard Mrs. Lowell say, "Get up Tyson." Tyson was the only one who sat in the back with him. He thought he was cute? Nico dismissed the thought. Percy sat down in the seat next to him. Nico cast him a sidelong glance, before focusing on the lesson written on the board. He did however notice Percy staring at him the entire time though.

Nico rolled his eyes as Percy followed him out of the classroom. He wondered if the guy was trying to talk to him, all the new kids tried. Idiots. He turned around and sure enough the boy was babbling along. He held up a hand signaling him to shut his mouth. Nico sighed as he pulled out his phone, quickly tapping out a message as Percy stared in confusion. I don't feel like talking to you. Idiot.

Percy gave him a wide-eyed look and Nico couldn't help but think that those green eyes were beautiful. Percy pulled the phone out of Nico's hands and typed out his own message. I'm sorry. But you're so much fun to tease.

Nico arched a brow in response. No significant comment.

Percy smacked his face, he couldn't believe that he had told the boy that he was fun to tease. Nico let out a small laugh at his expression. "You're not so bad." he said quietly. Percy nodded. "This doesn't mean we're friends you know. This place is cut-throat and I really want to avoid all this petty shit."

"Okay? But what if I want to avoid it too?" Percy responded. Nico stared at him for a second. Percy didn't seem like the other students at Olympus so far, but to him that meant very little. If one of the popular kids ever sunk their talons into Percy, he would end up the same. Popular and heartless. He toyed with the idea of befriending him to save him from all that. Then again no one had helped him, so why should he give a fuck about this guy? Nico quickly dismissed that thought, that would make him just as heartless as the rest of them.

He shrugged, "Do what you want Percy." He headed towards his next class. Hooray for Latin. He noticed Percy following behind him.

"What I want is to be friends with you." Nico shivered slightly as Percy whispered into his ear.

"Give me your schedule." the shorter teen demanded. Percy beamed at him, happily handing over his class schedule. Nico groaned as he looked at it. All of their classes were exactly the same except second period. Nico had Studio Art while Percy had Calculus BC.

"So Latin?" Percy asked, curious as to why high school students here were required to take it.

"The school pushes the most rigorous curriculum. Ooh big word, two points." Percy cast him a side-long look, the teenager seemed to thrive off of sarcasm.

"What's your name anyway? You know mine, I think it's only fair if I get to know yours."

"Nico. Come on, the great wonder that is Latin class." Nico pushed open the door and took his usual seat in the back, not caring if Percy was following behind or not. He had been, until a blonde girl had blocked his way, "Hi there you're Percy right? I'm Annabeth. You should sit with me." she bubbled happily at Percy.

Mr. Norse looked up and saw Percy. "Ms. Chase please sit and stop harassing the newest addition. Now Mr. Jackson, please take an available seat."

Percy darted to the back of the classroom, eager to rejoin Nico and avoid Annabeth. "You left me back there." he muttered, glaring at Nico.

He shrugged, "I didn't leave you. You didn't follow fast enough. Besides, Mr. Norse is cool, I knew he'd interfere if you had issues." Even though the teacher was amazing as a person, the class was dry as hell and Nico was bored. He had often told this to Mr. Norse who tried not to be highly offended. He started writing his own thing. Percy took notice, "Shouldn't you be paying attention?"

"I already know Latin. This shit is boring."

"If you already know it, why are you taking it again?"

"So I can have one less class to worry about." It was simple. Nico had been given a choice between Greek and Latin. He fortunately spoke both fluently. He simply chose Latin because he knew Mr. Norse wouldn't care if he ignored lecture in favor of doing his own thing as long as he produced results. "You should pay attention though, this is probably oh so important."

"Why are you so sarcastic?" Percy asked him, genuinely wondering what was up with his new found friend.

"Because dear Percy, that is just how I make it through all the fucked up shit in the world." Nico tossed him a forced smile before turning back to his writing. Percy, had a hard time concentrating after that. he halfheartedly listen to Mr. Norse drone on, but mostly, he watched Nico out of the corner of his eye. There was just something about the foul-mouthed, sarcastic boy that he liked. He looked at Nico's jacket and plucked his phone from the pocket. He smiled at his luck when he saw there was no password needed to access the content. He opened a blank message and sent himself a text. He poked Nico's shoulder and handed him the phone. Nico gave him an outraged look. "How the fuck did you do that?"

Percy smiled, "I have kleptomaniac tendencies."

Nico growled lowly at him and let his head drop onto his desk. This guy was beginning to be a pain in the ass. But Nico had already decided that Percy was different somehow from all the other students. He wasn't a complete pompous ass and for some reason, Nico didn't mind him around. When the bell finally rang, Nico couldn't be any happier. The sooner he got out of this place, the better. He rose from his seat and pulled Percy with him into the parking lot. He walked over to his car, trusting Percy would be trailing after him. He finally got to his car, and unlocked the doors eager to go. Percy stood awkwardly in front of the car, unsure if he was supposed to get in. "Do you have a car?"

Percy shook his head, "My mom's supposed to pick me up."

"Call her and tell her I'm taking you home." Nico commanded as he started the car, waiting for Percy to follow his instructions.

Percy pulled out his phone and told his mom about the change of plans before getting into the passenger seat. Nico smirked as he tore out of the parking lot, eager to leave. "So where exactly do you live?"

"Um...I live over on Pine Avenue." Nico nodded, Percy lived only about two blocks from him. He turned on to Pine a few minutes later. "It's the blue one over there." Percy gestured over to a small house at the end of the street. Nico pulled up to the curb, "I thought you were pretty damn annoying when you sat next to me in Physics. Tyson is the closest thing to a friend that I have."

"I thought we were friends." Percy pouted.

"Nope sorry. I don't see you in a friendship sort of way. So you thought I was cute?" Nico asked as he looked away from Percy. Percy looked over at him and noticed the faint blush dusting Nico's cheeks. He nodded.

"Does it matter? That I'm um you know?" Percy felt the heat rush to his own cheeks.

"Nope. Why would I dislike you for being something that I am too?" Percy's eyes widened. He turned to look at Nico. Nico turned to Percy. They stared at each other momentarily before Nico pressed his lips to Percy's capturing them in a sweet kiss. Quickly Nico pulled back from the kiss, "I hope that was okay." Percy smiled and leaned in to kiss Nico. When the kiss ended, "I've been wanting to do that since I saw you in physics."