He had gone to bed early that day, as he was so tired.

It was hard for him to wake the next morning, but he did. He lazily stumbled into the bathroom to wash his face and get changed. He was planning on joining the sword fighting class, so he got into a pair of yoga pants and a t-shirt. When he was about to grab his Stygian iron sword and head out, he noticed a piece of paper lying in the doorway.

He leaned down to grab it and then throw it away, but stopped when he saw there was something written on it.

Meet me in the canoe lake today at 6:00 p.m.?

- Will

He had to read it four times to understand the meaning of the letter. Will was asking if he would like to hang out. A smile formed on his lips, and his cheeks turned slightly pink. Will wanted to hang out with him. Will wanted to hang out! Did that mean they were going to have a... date?

Don't do this to yourself, Nico. He scowled at himself immediately, pushing that thought away. You're just a pair of friends with feelings for each other, who are going to hand out and have fun. Nothing more. No need to panic.

"Alright..." He breathed, trying to get his composure back, and headed out to the arena.

After lunch, time seemed to pass painfully slow. He joined the camp activities to keep his mind busy, but he still found himself daydreaming about his meeting with Will later that evening.

But finally, at 5:50 p.m., Nico decided it was already time to go to the canoe lake. He sat on the shore, staring at the water as he waited for Will to come.

It felt like ages until the blonde finally showed up, wearing a yellow flannel over his orange camp shirt and a pair of jeans. Nico wondered at the last moment if he should've changed into some other clothes than his workout ones. He stood, and walked over to him.

"Sorry I took so long," Will apologized as he put his hands inside his trouser's pockets. "My siblings... wouldn't let me meet you without checking my outfit a thousand times." His tone turned barely audible at the last couple of words, and Nico saw his cheeks had turned slightly redder than usual. "But– anyway..." He cleared his throat and managed a smile. "I'm here now."

"Yeah, don't– don't worry about it..." Nico chuckled slightly, glancing around. "So... what are we going to do?"

"I don't know..." Will looked around as well. "We could walk, or we could stay here and chat."

"Um... let's stay here?" Nico suggested, shrugging with one shoulder. Will nodded his head and sat down.

When Nico sat next to him, the blond reached over to grab his hand. Nico had to bite his lip and look away to prevent himself from blushing.

"Oh– sorry." Will released his hand as he saw his reaction.

"No, don't– apologize." Nico turned to look at him, though he still felt a little flustered. He held his hand again and gave it a small pat with his free hand. "It's just... I'm still not used to this."

Will dedicated him a sideways smile and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "Don't worry. I'll go at your pace. Just– tell me when I'm going too fast so I know, alright?" He brushed his shoulder against Nico's in a playful manner. "The last thing I want is to make you uncomfortable."

Nico felt relief wash over him as Will told him this. He had thought a lot about what Jason had told him, about not having to know what he wanted just yet, and about Will moving on to someone else if he didn't decide fast. Maybe telling Will would help him. Maybe...

"Penny for your thoughts." Will tilted his head at him. Nico looked down at his hands, smiling a little.

"Uh– nothing. I just... I'm a little nervous about this."

"About... hanging out with me? Or... like... me in general?"

"Um... well, both, actually," he chuckled nervously.

"Why?" Will's voice was soothing and reassuring.

"Well... I've been thinking a lot about this." He spoke slowly. Will nodded with his head. "I–I don't know for sure if I'm ready to have a romantic partner."

"That's fine." Will smiled as Nico looked at him for an answer.

"Really?"

"Yeah. I mean... I–I do want to date you but..." He shrugged. "If you don't want to I don't, either." Nico looked at him, slightly confused. "I'm willing to wait." He squeezed his hand gently.

Nico tried to process that. Then he could be with Will without feeling the pressure of having to call him his boyfriend just yet. The thought made him smile.

"Wow... uhm... it's–it's good to know." That was the only thing he managed to say.

Will smiled a little, looking at their laced hands. He ran his thumb over the back of Nico's hand, stroking it slightly. The other turned to look at him and smiled as well.

"You're really good-looking, have I told you that?" Will mused as he tucked a strand of Nico's ebony hair behind his ear.

"Uhm–" Nico let out a nervous laugh. "I think... you have."

"Well, I'm telling you again." Will chuckled as well. Nico pushed him gently with his shoulder.

"Can I... ask you something?" Will managed after a small silence ran between them. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to, though."

"Mhm." Nico nodded. "What?"

"What was... Bianca like?" Nico was surprised to hear that particular question. What was his sister like? Oh, well... Bianca had been a lot of things.

"She was... the most caring and kind and loving person you could ever meet." He said honestly. "She took care of me, even when she herself was a kid, after our mom passed away. We fought sometimes, of course. But she loved me so much... And I did, too. I just– didn't always... show it." There was an edge of regret in his voice as he spoke the last sentence.

Will pursed his lips slightly as he noticed this, and gave Nico's hand a small squeeze. "She seemed like a wonderful person."

"She was." The son of Hades sighed. Then added, "I wish she was still here with me."

Will put a careful arm over his shoulder and pulled him close. "I'm sorry." He whispered as he patted his arm reassuringly. Nico smiled at the gesture and dared to lay his head in Will's chest.

"Thanks." He sighed contently against the child of Apollo's chest, and hugged him close.