A/N: Had to write a Solangelo fic after all the PJO news coming out lol. Enjoy XD Also if you've read any of my old PJO fics, no I'm not bringing them back. They're bad. Sorry lol. Also sorry if the boys are a bit OOC it's been a hot minute since I reread PJO lmao.

"I'm going away for a little while."

Nico stared at his boyfriend, the glowing, nerdy sunshine mess he was. They were at camp, standing beside the Apollo Cabin.

Will was leaning against the cabin wall. From a distance he was casual, but bags were under his eyes.

"Where are you going?" Nico asked.

"I'm going to visit my mom," Will told him. "I haven't seen her for a while."

Nico narrowed his eyes. "You know it's-"

"Dangerous out there," Will replied. "I know! But I haven't seen my mom for so long. Especially since we're going on this quest…"

He was making an adorable face. Nico glowered at him.

"How long are you going for?" he asked, cautiously.

"No longer than two weeks," Will told him. "I mean - you can come if you want! Or it might be better to stay here. Up to you."

Nico grimaced. Well, he wasn't on bad terms with absolutely everyone at camp, at least. But he still felt a bit uneasy without Will there.

"I'll come," he told Will.

"Oh, great!" Will grinned. "My mom's been wanting to meet you."

"How much have you told her about me?" Nico asked.

Will tilted his head. "Only the basics. Don't worry, I haven't told her your whole life story or anything."

Nico looked away.

"Don't worry," Will assured him. "My mom's nice. She'll like you."

"Not many people do," Nico muttered.

Will sighed. "Come on, Debbie Downer, I told you to stop being so negative."

"Welcome to my life," Nico grumbled. "When are you going?"

"In a few days," Will replied. "I usually go by plane, but… I'm assuming that won't be an option for you."

"Well, there's my driver, but that'd take a while," Nico told him.

He gazed at the Gatorade strapped with his belt. Will caught his eye.

"No way, it's too far for shadow-traveling," he scolded his boyfriend.

"I've got plenty more," Nico held up the gatorade, making his boyfriend groan.

Will furrowed his brow. Well, it was for his mother's sake…

"Alright, fine, but we're resting when we get there," Will told Nico. "At least 24 hours!"

"We have an agreement, Sunshine," Nico said.

They held hands, sealing the deal.

There it was. Austin, Texas. Will Solace's hometown.

Nico stood in front of the decently-sized brick house, a half-baked garden out the front. The large windows were covered by curtains; lawn chairs sat right outside.

Will held his boyfriend's hand.

Nico had never been so nervous to meet a mortal before. Will had assured him plenty of times that his mother was easy-going, but that didn't completely soothe Nico's nerves. Even the nicest people could be wary around him.

He groaned. His head was killing him. He was starting to wonder if he should've just taken his driver after all. Welp, at least he had promised Will lots of rest. He sipped some Gatorade.

"Ready?" Will asked.

Nico mumbled something, incoherent.

"Don't worry," Will assured him. "You only look half-dead!"

"My self esteem is going through the roof right now, Dr Sunshine," Nico grumbled.

"You'll get plenty of rest," Will assured him. "I told Mom you'd be tired, so don't worry too much about trying to give a good impression or anything."

(Nico wondered how he'd even do that anyway…)

Will stepped forward, knocking on the front door.

"Mom!" he called. "We're here!"

A woman opened the door, brow raised. She had tanned skin, alongside long auburn hair tied into a low ponytail. Her eyes were a dark brown, and she was wearing overalls over plaid. She wore a gentle smile, just like her son's.

"Will!" she gasped, her Texan accent strong. "You're home!"

She raced forward, hugging her son. She eyed Nico, who stood there, awkwardly.

"Oh, this your boyfriend, Will?" she asked.

"Sure is," Will replied, gesturing at Nico.

"Hey there," Will's mom held out a hand. "Name's Naomi. Naomi Solace."

"Nice to meet you, Miss Solace." Nico shook her hand.

"Just call me Naomi," Naomi chuckled. She gestured inside the house. "Come on inside, boys!"

The house was fairly spacious, with a shiny wooden floor, and long hallways. Some old photos were on the wall, as well as posters for all kinds of bands. Various guitars were on display.

"The kitchen's just up here," Naomi walked ahead. "Help yourselves to whatever y'all want!"

"Thanks, Mom," Will grinned at his mother. "You should have something, Death Boy."

"Do I have to?" Nico questioned.

"Yes," Will beamed. "I don't know if you've noticed, but you're still alive. You need to eat."

"Oh, do I?" Nico deadpanned. "That's news to me."

Will rolled his eyes. He opened up the fridge, peering inside. He pulled out some chicken soup, offering some to Nico.

Naomi turned on an old radio, playing some country tunes.

"Seriously, Mom?" Will asked. "Taylor Swift?"

"Her music's a classic," Naomi laughed. "Well, it was."

"Not this again," Will groaned.

Nico felt a bit awkward, admittedly. Will and his mother had a bond Nico did not know much about.

"Ah, don't mind us, Nico," Naomi shook her head. "You listen to much country?"

Nico looked away. "Not really."

"I've been trying to get him to," Will admitted.

Nico sighed, cautiously eating his admittedly-mediocre soup. He wondered if disliking country music would be considered blasphemy inside the Solace household.

"Well, while we're here, I'll give you a house tour!" Will told Nico.

Nico followed his boyfriend down the hall, gazing at some old photos on the wall. Photos of Will when was young, photos of his mother playing her guitar onstage, photos of people Nico didn't know…

"The bathroom is that way," Will told him, "there's a shower in there, and the laundry…"

He stopped, reaching a screen door.

"And here's the backyard," he peaked the door open.

The backyard was fairly spacious, with a small garden, a clean lawn, and some tables and chairs.

"Used to spend a lot of time out here with my childhood dog," Will sighed, leaning against the door. "Friends would come over sometimes. Then we'd all play tag and run around… good times."

"Of course you had friends," Nico grumbled.

"They were more like family friends," Will admitted. "Mom knows a lot of people, so there was always someone over."

There was an edge of sadness in his voice.

"I haven't seen all those guys for so long," he continued.

"You miss them?" Nico asked.

"Of course," Will sighed. "But… it's hard keeping up with mortals."

He took Nico back inside. They walked through another hallway, with a few more doors.

"That's my mom's room there," Will pointed at some doors, "and that's the guest room. You can stay there, if you want."

Nico looked away.

"Unless you'd rather be with me," Will winked.

Nico crossed his arms, flushed. "Just finish the tour already."

"Okay, okay, Mr Dark Lord," Will teased; he opened up a door at the end of the hall. "Here's my room!"

It was a small room, with a yellow bed tucked into a corner. An old guitar was sitting by the window, a white curtain blowing in the gentle breeze. There was a wooden desk on the other side, some dusty music sheets on top of it. A Star Wars poster was on the wall. Nico spotted a few letters related to med school.

"It's a bit dusty," Will admitted, going over to the desk. "I haven't been here since… 3 years? I think?"

He wiped the dust off his desk. He grimaced at all the letters.

"Med school?" Nico asked.

"Yep," Will put the letters away. "These are a bit outdated, though. I keep the important ones back at camp."

He gazed over the old guitar.

"My first guitar!" he gasped.

"I thought you didn't do a lot of music," Nico raised his brow.

"I do!" Will replied. "It's just, more my brother's thing. I still like music, though."

He strummed his guitar, which sounded like it'd had better days.

"I'll have to tune this later," Will sighed, putting it down. He turned back to Nico. "So… you like this room?"

"... too bright," Nico told him.

Will rolled his eyes. "I thought you'd say that." He stood up. "It's a bit cheesy… but I wouldn't change it. It's nostalgic."

Nico shrugged. "Well, this is your childhood place."

"It's bittersweet," Will admitted.

His tone was strained. He wiped himself off.

"C'mon, let's go back to the kitchen," he said.

The two returned to the kitchen, where Naomi was helping herself to some juice. Some music sheets were around her, stacked in piles.

"Heya, boys," she greeted. "How was your tour, Nico?"

"… fine," Nico answered.

"He liked it," Will grinned.

"Glad to hear it," Naomi chuckled. "Oh, Will, could ya go to the spare room and get some boxes for me? I'll need 'em for later."

"Sure thing!" Will replied. "Be right back!"

That left Nico alone with Naomi. He sat there in awkward silence.

"My son's real fond of ya," Naomi sighed. "He says you've had a rough life."

"You could say that," Nico muttered.

"Well, I'm glad you make each other so happy," Naomi told him. "That's the most important part, eh?"

Nico nodded. "Yeah."

"Ya get my full approval," Naomi told him.

Nico released the breath of relief he didn't know he was holding.

"But, well…" Naomi stepped towards him. "I know you're a powerful demigod and all… but…"

She slammed a fork into her sandwich, making Nico tense up.

"If you hurt my son…" she uttered. "I don't care who you are. You'll regret it."

Nico just stared at her. For a mortal, she was fairly intimidating. Or perhaps that was because she was his boyfriend's mother.

At least she can't turn me into a plant, Nico thought.

Naomi was in the living room, putting some stuff into her carrier bags. She grinned at her son and his boyfriend, who had gotten up from their rest.

"I gotta go out and help with some concerts later on," she informed them. "Y'all can entertain yourselves, can't ya?"

Will nodded. "Sure can, Mom!"

"Take care of yourselves," Naomi waved, leaving the two alone.

Will smiled, but he was shivering.

Nico gazed over at him. He stepped a bit closer to Will.

"I'm fine," Will broke the silence. "I haven't been here for a while, that's all."

Nico had a feeling it went a little deeper than that. He definitely wouldn't call Will a liar, but there were times where he neglected to tell the whole truth.

"Nostalgia?" Nico asked him.

"Yeah," Will looked down.

Nico had to wonder how often Will missed being at home. A part of Nico wished he had a stable home away from the demigod life, but there was no such fate for him.

"I might never see her again," Will admitted.

Nico wanted to reach out, hold him, do something, but physical contact was confusing. What was the right move?

"You will," he told him. "Even if you're not alive. She'll be waiting in Elysium."

Will sighed. "Nico…"

He turned away, sitting down. He faced the TV; a boxy screen, sitting on a wooden desk.

"I used to watch movies here," he told Nico.

He turned on the TV, which was displaying an advertisement.

"Some things never change," Will rolled his eyes.

He switched it off. He stood up, taking Nico to the door.

"Come on," he said. "I gotta show you something cool."

The two walked through the streets of Austin. Will took the lead, his boyfriend trailing behind. Will, of course, was giving another tour.

"They have the best pancakes over here," Will told him, "and up there is my fave music store!" He grimaced. "Oh, it's closed…"

A pained look crossed his face, if only for a brief moment.

"What cool thing did you want to show me?" Nico asked.

"Nearly there," Will assured him.

They stopped at the end of the street, where there was a small play park. Will sat by one of the park benches, eyeing the sky.

"A park?" Nico asked. "That's not super exciting."

"Just sit down, Debbie Downer," Will teased.

He sat down, inviting Nico to sit opposite. The sun was setting, basking the whole area in an orange glow.

"Mom always used to say this was Dad saying goodnight to me," Will told Nico.

He was looking away, almost like he was dreaming.

"Mom didn't know I was a demigod, but she wasn't surprised when she found out," Will told Nico. "She always said there was something different about my dad."

He leaned over, the two staring at each other. They held hands.

"I suppose this is a good view," Nico admitted.

"Thanks, Dad," Will waved at the sunset.

He turned back to Nico.

"I wouldn't be anywhere else, honestly," he admitted.

"Not even Paris?" Nico asked.

Will just laughed at that. Nico felt his cheeks burning red. He looked away, still holding his boyfriend's hands. They shared a quick kiss, finally enjoying a moment of solace.

A/N: Thanks for reading!