It was oddly fascinating having Jason Grace, Champion of Juno, here in Cabin 3, on his bed, and fiddling with a little, golden drachma. Words came out of his mouth, but Percy wasn't listening. Not really. The coin spinning through the air occupied all his attention. Sea-green eyes followed each flip. Once. Twice. Thrice. And then the former Praetor of Rome missed. Just like that, it slipped right through his fingers.

The rustling of baby-blue comforters drowned the remains of Jason's mumbling as he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. His strong, battle-hardened hands went over the edge and onto the floor in search of the lost trinket. Percy's lips twitched. This time it'd rolled all the way to the cabinet and under. Only the gods knew what else was hidden there. By now the son of Jupiter was on his knees, left arm no longer visible and fingers covered in dust and filth. His mouth was still moving, Percy noticed amazed.

Once again the mattress arched under Jason's weight and the hero of the Olymp managed to keep himself still for a whooping 12 seconds. Before, oh wonder, rinse and repeat.

It was priceless! Mr. Level-headed, no-nonsense Super Soldier - a role model for Greeks and Romans alike, you know the literal synonym for 'honor and duty', had been reduced to a complete and utter mess. At least by his standards. The glee that came with Jason's ever-present facade crumbling was unexpected but welcome. And sure Percy had seen glimpses of this awkward version of him but never quite like this. There was only one explanation.

"Wanna tell me her name?"

Jason's cheeks turned slightly pink. "Uh, not a girl…"

The silence between them hit like a ton of bricks, and then the drachma dropped again. This time for Percy. His mouth did a little 'o' shape as he remembered the conversation with Annabeth right before another quest had called him to the depths of the ocean to aid his father.

"It's Nico! It's really Nico, isn't it!?"

Gambling wasn't his strong point but this was a sure bet. Instantly the color on Jason's face morphed into an impressive shade of red. He began twirling his fingers and his shoes became 10 times more interesting than a minute ago. His whole demeanor couldn't get more obvious if he'd wanted to.

"Oh my gods, it is!" Percy's hands flew over his mouth to cover his excitement before his brain caught up. "Oh no. Fuck Jason. You are totally doomed."

"I… he," Jason stuttered and his blush kept wandering upwards. "I… I like him, very very much." It had finally reached the tip of his ears.

"That I can see," Percy replied. "But Bro, there is no way in hell you and Nico - Hey, hey, wait!"

"Let go of me Jackson," The son of Jupiter yanked his arm free. "I don't even know why I came here."

"Relax Grace," Percy rolled his eyes but held his hands up in a universal gesture of peace. "I didn't mean it like that. You two would be super cute together. It's just," Percy struggled. "Nico is… "

"He is what?" Jason growled defensively.

"Nico is the ultimate girl next door."

"What?"

"Or boy next door?" Percy wondered out loud.

"Jackson I swear if-"

"No, no, no. Let me finish," the son of Poseidon hurried before his friend could walk right out of his cabin. "He is perfect boyfriend material."

Well, yes, Jason agreed inwardly. What else was new?

"Nico is like all domestic fluff wrapped around a prickly, deadly, and super terrifying inner center. If you get what I mean," Percy continued.

"I really don't."

"Basically, an equivalent of an angry kitten. Adorable but still with the right amount of sass to back it up."

Oh. "Are you saying?"

"Yes Jason," he put his hand on his friend's shoulder, eyes staring deep into his soul. "Nico di Angelo is a cinnamon roll." He waggled his brows. "A spicy one."

"Dude!"

"You have to admit he's kinda hot, from a purely objective standpoint speaking."

Jason groaned.

"Face it Grace, the only reason the boy is still single is because of his absurd traveling schedule. Between the underworld, Camp Jupiter, and Camp Half-Blood he barely has time to breathe. Tho if he stays longer than a week in one place it'd be game over."

"He's been here for almost two."

"Exactly! And I know at least a dozen guys including you that want a piece of him."

"Excuse me?" Jason didn't like where this was going.

"You have to be blind not to notice the Stoll's circling him like vultures. Or yesterday at campfire when Clovis made those mooneyes."

Of course, the son of Jupiter noticed. It was obvious. But he never pictured Percy to pay attention, let alone pick up on it. Which begged the question -

"Malcolm as well."

"Wait, the guy from the Athena cabin?" This was new. "Who else?"

Now it was Percy's turn to feel slightly uncomfortable. Yay. Exploring the complex realm of Nico's interpersonal relationships with his best bro - a dream-come-true. "Uh. Mitchell, Butch, Austin,-"

"Who are all those people?" Jason interrupted bewildered when Percy didn't show any sights of slowing down. How could he have missed this? His head was spinning. Sure Nico had a handful of silent admirers - after all, he was stunning, but come on! And what if there were more? Back in Camp Jupiter Michal of the First Cohort ogled the young Ambassador always a little longer than strictly necessary. First, Jason had assumed due to suspicion rather affection but he was still doing it. And then the image of Octavian pushed itself to the fore, how he had looked at Nico. A chill went down his spine. Not to think what could have happened if -

"Also Leo."

"Leo? You're insane!" Jackson officially lost it. Ever since Leo freed Calypso from her eternal prison those two were joined by the hip. "He and Calypso are," They are meant for each other, Jason tried to say but then again he thought the same about himself and Piper.

Percy shrugged. "These are only the demigods. You should have heard Bob talking about him. He was all over our little prince of darkness."

"You mean the Titan?"

"And I swear if it weren't for Ella Tyson would've done more than just lay his eye on him."

"They barely exchanged any words," Jason whined.

"Right? It's crazy how popular he is! Even the gods are smitten."

Jason's mind flew to Zephyr's longing gaze and Cupid. Was there something more to their words?

"Apollo for starters or Miss Misery. Believe me, they had actual hearts in their eyes."

Jason's shoulders sunk. "How am I supposed to compete with literal gods?"

"Aw man, don't look like that. At least you have an advantage over half of them."

At the promise of hope Jason's puzzled eyes lit up.

"You're blond."

Instantly his expression grew grim. A flash of shaggy golden hair, blue eyes, sun-kissed skin, and green scrubs drilled itself into Jason's heart. Will Solace was a box of Pandora on his own and he was not too keen on opening it yet. Was there really a chance for him and Nico or was it all in his head?

"Sky's above Bro," Percy smiled sadly. "It's not impossible," he encouraged. "But Jason are you sure? It will be real hard. Especially for you."

Jason took a deep breath and raised his chin. He could do it. Nico was worth a try.

"What do you mean by especially for me?" He asked deviant.

"First and foremost: Cause of your dads. Zeus well you know… And Hades hates you."

Jason winced. True.

"Second: Did you ever woo someone?"

"Uh, not really." He wished Percy wouldn't call it that.

"Thought so. You got the looks, even the brains, which means you most likely never had to put any effort into the whole dating gig."

Jason was about to protest but Percy kept going.

"Third, Nico has the self-esteem of a wallflower combined with the preservation skills of a lemming."

"You know Disney made the rodent-stuff up."

"Not the point. The point is you need to be direct or else he won't get it. No pussyfooting around. A maybe will not do Grace. A maybe is not good enough!"

A wind that blows aimlessly is of no use to anyone. It felt like a lifetime since the words of wisdom had washed over him. Wait. Percy Jackson and words of wisdom? Something smelled fishy. It didn't make sense. When did -

"You had this discussion before," it dawned on him.

Percy had the decency to blush.

"Is that how you and Annabeth spent your Friday nights?" The son of Jupiter accused. "Trash-TV and gossip?"

"Eh. Maybe?"

"I can't believe it! I barely recognize you. Who are you and what have you done to the real Percy?"

"Do you want my help or not?"

Jason contemplated how desperate he was. "Urgh. Fine, go on."

The other boy grinned. "Listen, Jason, you're working within a limited window. We have to act while it's still open. A guy like Nico won't stay single for long."

"Would you quit quoting 'How I met your mother'!"

"Not a chance," Percy laughed. "Don't worry, homies help homies. Always. You came to the right place."

"I am starting to doubt that." Jason bit the inside of his cheeks to hide the smile that was tugging at his lips.

"Hey now, I am basically an expert in relationships."

A pointy elbow pocked between his ribs.

"Stop bragging."

"I never brag!"

"You once called your face proof of the gods' existence."

"Shh, not so loud or you make the other campers sad," Percy smirked. "Well, am I the one currently with a girlfriend or not?"

Jason did something complicated with his face. "So what's the plan?"