Hello lovely readers! I've made a goal to write as much as possible per week! Three updates a week? Hmm, I don't know, but what I do know is that I kinda teared up while writing this. Anyways, I hope you enjoy and don't mind my awkward dialogue and obsession with holding hands. Also excuse typos! I did my best to fix them, but nobody's perfect. Enjoy and possibly review? Okay~
Nico woke up with his head resting on Percy's shoulders and said boy's arms around him lightly squeezing him. The boy was still fast asleep and Nico wasn't sure whether or not he should move from the position he was in or just sit in the arms of the love of his life. He looked up at Percy and wondered how even someone merely sleeping could be so breathtakingly beautiful. He decided that he should slip out of the sleeping boy's arms. He didn't leave from the clearing, though. He just moved aside and braced himself for the upcoming wrath of his best friend when he finally awoke.
Percy started to stir after another few minutes or so of peaceful dreaming. He seemed to be seeking the loss of the warmth that was sitting next to him earlier in his dreams. He opened one eye the color of the ocean and Nico drew in a deep breath. The other eye soon opened afterwards and Percy wiped the sleep from his face smiling as he did so.
"Nico," Percy started. Nico looked down not able to meet Percy's wonderful eyes. "Please look at me. Come over here." Percy motioned with small hand gestures for Nico to sit next to him. As Nico sat next to the object of his affection his heart was beating so fast he thought he was going to have a heart attack right then and there. Percy smiled amused at the younger boy. The smile calmed Nico, but then again only made the situation worse as Percy's smile was one of the things that cause irrational thoughts to appear in Nico's head. Nico nodded, not fully trusting his voice, knowing that Percy understand that he wanted him to go on speaking.
"Well, what was wrong with you yesterday, man? Did I do something wrong?" Percy questioned not being able to hide the hurt in his voice. Nico shook his head not understanding why Percy was being so worried. Yes, they were best friends but nothing else. Percy looked at the son of Hades with a confused and impatient look. "Well what is it, Nico! You had me thinking that you didn't want to be my friend anymore and…and I couldn't bear the thought of you not wanting to be around me." Nico heard this and thought that maybe he had underestimated their friendship, maybe Percy was a better best friend than he thought.
"Why?" Nico muttered to the boy next him. Percy opened his mouth and closed it again, then shook his head. "What is it, Percy?" Nico asked. Now it was his turn to be impatient.
"What is it? Nico, I should be asking you what the problem is! As a matter fact I already asked you!" Percy said suddenly getting irritated. What Nico didn't know was that Percy's sudden change in tone was due to the fact that Percy no longer wanted to beat around the bush. He wanted to know what was wrong with his friend, his crush, his Nico and why he was acting so strange towards him. Percy loved Nico and this sudden cold shoulder was too much to bear without an explanation. Nico saw Percy's eyes change from anger to something different. The eyes Nico loved so much became a dam threatening to overflow. Nico suddenly got very worried and touched Percy's arm and asked him what was wrong. Usually Nico was the emotional one, not Percy. Percy was his rock, his anchor.
"Nico, I just want an answer." Percy stated with as much strength as possible for someone whose voice was threatening to crack. Nico looked at the boy that put the sun to shame next to him, nodded, and took another deep breath and uttered the words he never thought he would out loud to the boy next to him with the dark hair, ocean eyes, and blinding smile.
"Percy, I love you," Nico glanced at said boy to see his reaction and continued, "I mean I'm in love with you and yesterday something happened that I was sure that you heard about or would hear about, so when you found me here yesterday and acted awkward…well I figured you'd heard and didn't like what they said." Nico looked down and with a swift move Percy grasped hold of one of Nico's hands.
"I didn't hear anything, Nico. As soon as I heard people whispering around camp I asked Annabeth what was up with everyone and she told me to look for you here, so I did." Percy replied calmly with a sudden change in mood. Nico looked at Percy with wide eyes. Percy laughed and continued, "Nico, I love you too and I have for quite a while." He scooted closer to Nico and put his free hand on the side of Nico's face and once again smiled. Percy leaned in and connected his lips to Nico's in their very first kiss. Nico was shocked at first and didn't respond to the kiss, although as soon as the shock wore off Nico deepened the kiss and that's how they stayed until they had to come up for air. Nico smiled one of his rare true smiles and leaned in again for another kiss from Percy just to make sure he wasn't dreaming.
Percy pulled back and laughed. "If that was what I was missing for the past months then I regret my life," the boy said. Nico chuckled and retorted with a sarcastic tone, "Months? Percy, you could have had this years ago." Percy's face grew serious. "Years?" Percy asked in disbelief. Nico nodded, once again. Nico had loved Percy for years now. Since he had helped Percy escape from the Underworld. Percy leaned in for another kiss and said chuckling, "Well if I'm ever that oblivious again make sure you tell me." He stood up and stretched out his arm for Nico to take. Once they were both up Percy took Nico's hand and they began their walk back to camp.
Nico stopped right before they were going to exit the forest and enter the camp grounds. He was so very nervous. What if everyone gave Percy and him horrid stares? Yes, Nico was used to it as no one in camp really thought much of him and seemed to always be afraid of him, but Percy was the big hero. Surely everyone would think that Nico corrupted Percy to this, because there was no way that their beloved hero would be gay. Percy being able to read the anxiety on Nico's face with his furrowed eyebrows and such squeezed said boy's hand. Nico snapped out of his worrying and voiced his thoughts. "Percy, what if they don't like you anymore? What if they say that this, you being gay, is all my fault?" Nico said with no intention of hiding his worry and insecurities.
"Well, if they don't like me anymore because of you, us, then they don't really matter." Percy replied without even a second of hesitation. Percy didn't like to think that anyone would treat them differently because of their newfound relationship, so right now the benefit of the doubt was on them. Percy kissed Nico and pulled him out of the forest and to the dining pavilion since it was lunch and Percy, being the teenage boy he was, was starved.
He made Nico get in line with him to receive their lunch after a small cry of protest from Nico saying that he just wanted to go to his cabin and sleep. Percy didn't see why all of a sudden Nico was getting all sorts of fidgety and didn't meet eye contact with anyone. Percy had let go of Nico's hand once they got into camp, in order to greet people properly, but now he wish he hadn't. He didn't know how to initiate the holding of hands with Nico in public. Would Nico even like public displays of affection? He never seemed to be the type of guy that people could just hug, much less hold hands.
Nico felt kind of hurt that Percy had dropped his hand as soon as they stepped out of the forest. Yes, Nico knew that Percy was ever the social butterfly and craved interaction from his peers, but he'd rather hoped that they could walk as a couple to eat lunch, just to get everything out in the clear and to know that Percy just wasn't messing around with his mind about this couple thing. Nico wanted to know that this was a real confession of love from Percy and not some twisted joke. Nico knew people were afraid of him and distanced themselves, but that didn't mean that his few friends couldn't hug him and Percy kept staring at him as if Nico was this ridiculously hard puzzle and couldn't figure out what his next move was.
Just hold my hand, seaweed brain. Yes, in Nico's mind he used Annabeth's insult/pet name for Percy. He'd honestly felt rather creepy about it until today, but now that they were in the camp again Nico felt the name feel foreign and unbelonging, as if he was an intruder on an event that someone cherished very much and didn't want contaminated with anything other with what they themselves had or would put there.