Hey guys!
January was always the coldest month of the year. And Nico was no stranger to the cold.
Still, though, as he and Will left New York City and drove home in the Camp Half-Blood pickup truck, he shivered. "It's especially cold today," he ground out through chattering teeth. "Should've worn an overcoat like yours."
Will looked over at him. His left hand was on the steering wheel, his right casually draped around Nico's shoulders. "Really? I don't feel it," he remarked. "Do you need some extra warmth?"
Nico shook his head. "I think I'm fine."
"Pity," Will said as they turned the corner in the road. "Because I can think of all sorts of ways to keep warm, if you know what I mean." He wiggled his eyebrows at Nico, then laughed as Nico swatted his shoulder.
"Pervert."
Will's laughter died down and they lapsed into comfortable silence.
They sped on, the sky darkening as it turned to night. Soon, the sun had set and Will switched on the headlights. Will's mother had persuaded them to stay for lunch, and so they'd ended up leaving a few hours later than planned. And Camp Half-Blood was on the other side of Long Island from Manhattan. But a long drive at night didn't really matter to Nico. It just meant more alone time with Will.
They were on a two-lane road, and there weren't any other cars about. On both sides of the road was the forest. In the darkness, Nico could only see the black silhouettes of the bare branches of trees against the sky, like spindly, ghostly fingers reaching desperately for light. It might seem spooky to ordinary people, but Nico was a son of Hades.
"Is driving scary?" he asked.
Will frowned. "Not really. I'm not of age yet, but I've done a lot of things that are a hell of a lot scarier than driving."
"Must seem remarkably ordinary."
Will chuckled. "Nico, nothing in our lives is ordinary – "
He was cut off suddenly as the truck skidded. The arm around Nico's shoulders was suddenly gone, and Will had both hands on the steering wheel. Nico clung on to the seat as Will spun the wheel desperately.
"What's going on?" he gasped.
"Black ice!" Will's eyes were wide with panic as he desperately sought to keep the car on the road. "There wasn't supposed to be any!"
"What do we do?" Nico's heart began to pound.
"Hold on!" Will slammed on the brakes, but the truck continued sliding forward. The entire vehicle began to spin in circles, and Nico was conscious only of the seat, the ceiling, the suddenly suffocating air. He hit his head on the window and then the ceiling and was flung back down onto the seat.
"The wheels!" It was clear that the wheels were scrabbling to find purchase on the icy road.
"We're going in!" Will shouted, and in the dim light provided by the winking headlights Nico saw what he meant. There was a ditch at the side of the road, and they were headed right for it.
The truck crashed into the ditch.
Nico's head swam with dizzying jolts of pain all over his body as he picked himself up from the front of the truck. He put a hand to his forehead, and felt a bump swelling up there.
"Will?" he got out.
Will was picking himself up too. "Are you okay?" he asked in a gravelly voice.
"I'm fine."
Of course, the engine chose that moment to die. Will swore, and thumped the wheel.
"I have to get out."
Nico watched numbly at first as Will got out and slammed the door, then scrambled to join him as he opened the front of the car to stare at disbelief at the engine.
"It's frozen. Of course it's frozen." Will thumped the engine, too, and leaned against the lid of the front. "Gods, what do we do now?"
Nico looked up and down – there were no coming cars. And they were in the middle of nowhere. "How far are we from Camp Half-Blood?"
"Still an hour by car." Will shook his head. "Quick, we have to get back in."
"Why?"
"Because we're going to freeze if we don't."
They climbed back into the truck. Already, the cold was seeping in. Nico shivered and clutched his jacket closer to him. His teeth began to chatter as the temperature began to drop inside the truck.
"Hey, come here." Will put his arms around Nico, and Nico turned his face into the warmth of Will's chest.
"Stop shivering," Will whispered. "Don't be cold. Be warm against me."
"We should c-c-call s-someone," Nico chattered. With numb, fumbling fingers, he pulled out Will's cell phone from the other boy's back pocket.
"It's not a good idea for demigods to use cell phones," Will said warily, "and we're in a vulnerable position…"
"This is an emergency." With difficulty, Nico managed to dial the number that had been drilled into the head of every camper at Camp Half-Blood. "C-C-Chiron? It's m-me, Nico d-di Angelo. Will and I are st-stuck on the road-d, and it's very c-cold..."
He handed the phone to Will, who explained to Chiron where they were and then hung up. "He's on his way," he assured Nico, slipping his phone back into his back pocket, before wrapping himself around Nico again.
"Will – I'm so cold." It was true, which startled Nico. He'd thought he was used to being cold, having lived among the ghosts of the Underworld. But he couldn't remember the last time he'd been cold like this, like every vein, artery, organ in his body was turning numb, turning to ice. It was a strangely – human – feeling.
"Nico, your lips are turning blue." There was a note of alarm in Will's voice now.
"A-are they? N-not surprising. I feel awful." Nico tried for a laugh, but it came out as just another shiver.
"No." Will's voice was suddenly firm. "No, you're not going to catch hypothermia or whatever it is you're about to catch. You're going to stay with me, and you're going to be warm, Nico, don't worry."
He pulled away from Nico for a moment, and Nico whimpered momentarily. Will shrugged off the large overcoat he was wearing, and with a swift motion yanked off his T-shirt underneath as well.
"What are you d-doing?" With alarm, Nico reached for Will, but he just shook his head and shrugged his coat back on over a bare chest, before coming to embrace Nico again.
"Body warmth. Less layers between us – believe me, it works." Will gently coaxed Nico as they slid sideways. Nico was soon lying on his back, Will hovering over him. The sides of the overcoat hung down on either side of Nico so that he was enveloped as if in a cocoon.
Nico felt Will's bare skin against him, and wondered at how he was a veritable furnace, exuding heat. His hands traced the contours of Will's chest, feeling his biceps and how they differed from the flat, hard muscles of his stomach. Will let him explore, his eyes filled with a tenderness that made Nico's heart pound.
"How are you so w-warm? It's f-freezing in here…"
Will chuckled softly. "I'm the son of the sun god," he reminded Nico. "I'm naturally hot."
Even through his cold stupor, Nico managed to laugh. Then, with effort, he spoke again: "K-k-kiss me."
Will arched an elegant eyebrow, then leaned down. His warm lips met Nico's cold ones, and they kissed.
Will broke it off, panting slightly. "Gods, Nico," he whispered. He began touching feather-light kisses to Nico's forehead, cheeks, hair. He stopped at Nico's neck and began to nibble it. Nico felt his hot breath against his neck and gasped.
"Nico…" Will's voice caressed the name, and Nico shivered, but not from the cold.
Nico didn't know how long they stayed like that, but gradually he became dimly aware of approaching headlights. The truck door was yanked open, and Will was pried from him. He reached feebly for Will.
"Severe hypothermia…"
"Got to get him back to camp…"
"Nico!" That was Will's voice. "No, get away from him, dammit, I'll carry him!"
Arms went around him, and Nico was lifted from the truck and into the open air. He would've gasped at the cold if he could, but the reality was that he couldn't.
He was suddenly aware of being laid down in a much warmer place. Voices were all around him, warm hands, and heat. Nico felt himself begin to slip away into unconsciousness.
"Nico…"
Will's voice was the last thing he heard before he slid into the darkness.
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