AN: I made an Instagram account where I'll be posting pictures related to my works. Account is pey.119

Red streaks of something romantic colored the sky when they finally pulled themselves from the lake. Meeting up with the others had been given up long before, Nico said don't worry about it, Nico said a lot of things and Will always followed right along.

They laid there on what you could call a beach, feet in the shallow water and backs against the trees, Will in only his boxers again and Nico smoking a cigarette. The heat took the remaining water right off their skin, they felt it evaporating into nothing. The heat of the sun and the heat of the passion.

"What was that?" Will finally asked.

Nico looked over, his hair wet and clumped, his hairpin back in and a braid having fallen out. His hair curled more once wet. "Do I have to explain it to you?"

Will blushed. "I mean… Are we…?"

Nico looked down at his lap. "Not openly. I...I'm not ready for that."

"Oh…" Will reached for his book bag and grabbed a water bottle out of it. "Why? Like, it's okay, I'm just wondering why."

Nico put his cigarette out against his arm before crumbling it. "I'm not you, William. I can't just tell myself I'm gay and prance around with the idea. My family...my friends...it's not just no big deal. It would change everything."

"Don't you want your life to change?"

"Not like that."

"Your friends seemed pretty comfortable about it when I came out," Will offered. "Or, when Percy outed me."

Nico's anger was flickering to life. "My friends aren't what I'm worried about, William. Not entirely. There's other things more drastic. So just... please...I can't do it. I can't tell them."

Will watched him pull out his who knows what number cigarette and light it. "Smoking can kill you."

"I won't last long enough for that."

Something stabbed at Will's gut. Why did most of Nico's words hurt him so much?

"You're going to grow old with me and all the others, and you're going to see your sister grow up," Will wished. "Now tell me about her. I...if we're together, even secretly, I want to know about you."

The veil in his eyes was covering most of his emotions. It was red with his anger still.

Nico sat up, his shirt sticking to his sweat, his boxers sticking to his thighs. He turned around and laid back in the water, his feet on Will's lap, his arms keeping his head above the shallow water.

"Hazel's five, a little rascal," Nico started. "I spent a week learning from YouTube how to braid hair so I could teach her. She wanted to do it to her friends or something and didn't have a mother to teach her. But now all she does is braid my hair."

Will smiled to himself. "You're a good brother. I don't have any siblings."

"You don't?"

Will shook his head. "No, but my family was always…"

He thought back to the days in Texas. The sun was the same sun and the sky was the same sky, but everything had been colder. The constant fighting coming from the master bedroom. The hole in the wall in the shape of a fist.

"I've never had those warm fuzzy feelings when it comes to family," Will continued. "Family isn't something that I've thanked God for. It's just my past."

Nico snorted. "You believe in God?"

Will frowned. "A little. Sometimes. When I see the sunrise or sunset, or my favorite song comes on the radio just when I need it, or when all my fear vanishes the moment I start talking to Him. You don't?"

"No. All of that is shit. Coincidence. The fucking universe."

Will shrugged. "Maybe it is. Who knows for sure."

A piece of some dead plant floated beside Nico's head. "Family isn't fuzzy for me unless you count Hazel. Or...or the dead. So I understand what you mean."

"What's it like having a little sister?" Will asked. "Good?"

"Honestly? No."

Will blinked. "What?"

Nico frowned. "It's not good. It's stress. It's always worrying about someone else. It's raising someone you never agreed to. It's loving someone, having them rip out your heart because you know they're never going to have a good life. They don't have parents to love them and they don't have a whole world in front of them, only Frostford, and you feel guilt for that even when it isn't in any way your fault. But you love them and can't imagine a world without them, even with everything they burden you with."

"You really care about her," Will whispered.

Nico nodded. "I'd do anything for her. But I can't bring her mother back from the dead. I can't make our father turn around. I can't get her out of Frostford."

"You love her," Will said. "You're doing your best. But as you said, she's not yours. You have no more responsibility than loving her."

"But she deserves better."

"I know."

"Maybe it's best I don't have a sibling," Will admitted. "Who knows what my dad would have done to them when I came out. Who knows what that'd make them feel, abandoned or what. But I still would have done it anyways. Just because I love someone and they exist doesn't mean I should live my life unable to breathe."

"I can't breathe," Nico whispered. His eyes were towards the sky, his hair floating in the water, pain evidence on his face. But Will saw something else. Some kind of hope.

He didn't say anything because there was nothing he could do. Not when Nico finally had some hope in those eyes. He couldn't risk him losing it.

.

.

.

.

Nico drove him home after the sun was dead and gone. Will leaned closer to him on the motorcycle this time, his chest pressed against his back, his arms tight around his waist. They were still wet from the lake but the warm night was drying them off. Nico's hair smelled like the water they made love in.

It was the first time he didn't like seeing Percy's house, or his own home, or whatever he chose to call it. Not when it meant peeling himself away from Nico.

"I'll see you tomorrow?" Will asked once he was off the bike, his wet feet uncomfortable in his shoes. He was bound to have blisters by morning.

Nico nodded. "I'll see you at school."

"Will you get some sleep for me tonight?" Will asked. "Staying up this long isn't good for you."

Nico rolled his eyes. "What are you, my doctor?"

Will smirked. "I can be."

Nico groaned and kicked his leg. "Get in the house before I run you over, Solace."

"Okay, okay," Will smiled. "Um... goodnight."

Nico nodded. "Night."

And then he was driving away, leaving Will alone on the street, watching after him. Only when he was out of sight and the motorcycle couldn't be heard any longer did Will leave the street and enter the house.

Dinner was cold but there for him. The bathroom light was still on to light his path. Dry clothes were waiting for him.

Once he ate and changed into his pajamas, Will got ready to do his homework but stopped when he heard faint crying. It was late, maybe midnight or later, and all the bedroom doors but his own were closed. But he could track it to Percy's easily enough.

What could he possibly be crying about? Nothing made sense to Will, but everyone had secrets they didn't tell. Everyone was going through something.

With the bathroom light to guide him, he went to Percy's door and knocked before opening it.

"Percy?" he whispered. "Are you okay?"

Percy quickly wiped his face and pulled a blanket over himself, sitting up to greet him. "Will! What are you doing in here?"

The room was just how Will expected it to be. Blue walls and blankets, the window open and a breeze coming through, a seashell on the desk and a dreamcatcher hanging on the wall.

Will closed the door behind him and crept into the room. Percy's eyes were red and a few more tears escaped them. Before he had covered with that blanket, Will had caught sight of the scar on his chest.

"I heard you crying," Will whispered. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

Percy looked away. "It was a dream. It was nothing. You can go back to bed."

Will sat on the foot of the bed. "Nightmare? About what? You...you can tell me, Percy. I want to help."

Percy lowered the blanket and revealed the scar again. That big, red, ugly thing. "The day I got this."

Will gulped. "How'd it happen?"

"You really want to know?" Percy asked. "It's...it's my troubles, my past. Nothing you need to worry about."

"Talking about it helps," Will said. "Talking helps. Get it out, let it go."

"Remember when I said my mom had married before dad?" Percy asked. "Her ex husband, his name was Gabe. He wasn't...he wasn't a good person."

"Oh…"

Percy scratched the scar. "It doesn't hurt anymore. I just dream about it sometimes."

"How...how exactly was it made?" Will asked. "It looks like it was pretty gruesome."

"Fish hook," Percy mumbled. "That's... that's all I want to say, Will. I don't want to relive it."

"You...you said he was a bad guy. Is he dead?"

Percy nodded. "Got killed. They never found out who did it." He smiled. "I think sometimes they just don't want to. I was still in the hospital when he died. They saw what he had done to me." He paused. "Everyone saw."

"But nobody talks about it," Will guessed.

Percy nodded. "We don't talk about it, about him."

Will hesitated before hugging his cousin. "Thanks for telling me."

Percy laughed but hugged him back. "You're really...odd, Will. Sensitive or something."

"Because I care. I just want those I care about to stay alive and happy. That's all I want."

Percy yawned. Something in him switched and Will knew he was done with the heart-to-heart. Everyone in town had complex defense mechanisms and none of them seemed to even realize it. "What time is it?"

"One" Will checked. "You should get back to sleep. I have to go do all my work."

Percy stretched before laying back. "Just skip it all."

"Yeah, no can do." Will got up and glanced down at him again. "Remember you can always talk to me. Goodnight."

Percy waved and yawned again. "Night, Solace."

.

.

.

.

The morning was the same as the one before, and Will realized that no one actually talked. Not about anything important. Especially Percy Jackson.

Percy didn't question him about anything, not about where he and Nico had went or what had kept him out so late or why he looked so happy and tired at the same time. He just ate his breakfast and talked about a new TV show. Nothing about the night before.

Will wanted to tell him about his new relationship, he wanted to tell everyone, but he kept it inside because Nico would never forgive him.

But damn was it hard. They pulled up to the building in the same truck, in the same parking space, Nico's motorcycle in the same space beside them. Leo was on it like usual, Nico was smoking a cigarette, they had McDonald's. Everything was the same.

But everything was different.

Will smiled at Nico as he got off the truck, tried to think of something to say but not wanting to give anything away. Finally he decided on a good morning.

Nico nodded at him, his dark eyes looking tired, his pale hands stained with nicotine. "Morning, Solace."

Annabeth and Leo stared at each other but no one else seemed to notice anything. But Will didn't care what anyone thought. Only Nico. Everything was about Nico.

Will felt his face turn as red as the motorcycle as he thought about the night before. The lake. The setting sun and how beautiful it looked in its suicide, how beautiful Nico looked in its dying light. How he had felt. How he saw God in that moment.

.

.

.

.

Nico was late to math again. He took a seat by Will and propped his feet up on the desk, his dark eyes staring at Percy before moving to Will. "Lake again today?"

"Ooh, definitely," Percy cut in. "Heat's supposed to be even worse than yesterday. Did you know-"

Nico gave Will a look when Percy started sprouting random pieces of information. Will couldn't help but smile back.

"I'm going to take Will again," Nico said. "Leo can ride with you guys. If Jason lets you use the truck again."

"We'll hope," Percy said. "He's always had a stick up his ass. Him and Reyna."

Nico's eyes were on Percy and full of pain. Why did those two occurrences always correspond? "They're best friends for a reason, Jackson."

"You and Leo are nothing alike."

"Leo's an insufferable shithead that knows too much about me," Nico explained. "We're not friends because we're alike like they are. We're friends because he basically forced it."

"I tried to force it-"

"You'll never be my friend, Jackson."

Percy huffed and looked to Will. "Nico's testy, you'll get used to it. He has been since we were little."

"Since I was ten," Nico corrected.

"Since he was ten," Percy repeated.

Will wondered if he had imagined his talk with Percy the night before. Nothing about him showed that it had happened, not even a small hint, not even a scratch at his chest. Nothing. Even his actions hid it as his words did.

Nico brushed his fingers against Will's before pulling away again. "You look tired, Percy."

"I'm always tired."

Nico huffed. "Touché."

"Did you get any sleep last night, Nico?" Will asked. "Or are you running on coffee and burgers?"

"Coffee and burgers." Nico gave him a rare smile and bumped their shoulders together before grabbing his bag. He stood up and stretched, Mrs. Dodds still ignorant to it as she scribbled some equation on the board.

The artificial lights melted his dark eyes into pools of chocolate. He was everything Will wanted.

"I'm leaving, this is boring as hell," Nico said. "Will, do you want to come?"

Will stared into those eyes. "Skip school?"

Nico nodded. "I can show you some things around town."

"He wants to go to college, remember?" Percy asked. He got up and punched Nico's shoulder. "I'll go with you."

Will wasn't sure what made Nico blush. And he sure as hell didn't understand how Percy didn't notice it.

"Jackson-"

"I don't have swimming today so I have nothing to stay for," Percy continued. "We can go get burgers and you can help me come up with a gift for Annabeth's birthday."

Nico's eyes flickered with anger and the blush disappeared. "Will, I'm picking you up as soon as that last bell rings. Be ready."

He touched him again, their hands brushing together for a few seconds before Nico's retreated. Nico's fingertips were stained with blood. His nails were cut too short.

Nico hesitated before leading Percy out. Mrs. Dodds still wrote on the board. Will finally started to take notes.

.

.

.

.

Will wasn't as excited to get to lunch knowing that Nico wouldn't be there. But he sat beside those he wanted to call friends, those he had known for twenty-four hours but still felt comfortable around. Still cared about. Still wanted to save.

Jason was to his right and Leo was to his left. Sally had packed another fresh lunch. Another red apple to match the table.

"Did Nico ever show up to your math class?" Jason asked. His blue eyes mirrored his own. Full of worry, that feeling of wanting to save everyone. But he had come to the conclusion long ago that he couldn't.

Will nodded. "He asked me to leave with him but I...I froze. I still care about work. Percy swooped in and went with him."

Jason pinched the bridge of his nose. "Stupid, stupid."

Will frowned. "Who's stupid?"

"Percy." Jason lowered his voice. "Look, Nico has his things to tell. But Percy won't ever stop trying to be his friend. And Nico doesn't want it."

"Can...can I talk to you somewhere privately?" Will asked. "I have a lot to ask and this is too public."

Jason grabbed his bag and stood up. He kissed Piper on the cheek before heading out, gesturing for Will to follow.

Nobody questioned it. Nobody questioned anything.

Jason led him to the bathroom. Two boys were sitting on the sinks, smoking up something. The air was foggy with it.

"Hey, get out," Jason ordered. "One word about it and the fact you have those drugs is going to become a lot more public."

The boys hurried out and Will had a feeling the threat was only half the reason. Jason was built and pretty intimidating, not to mention he seemed pretty high up in the high school hierarchy. Football, judging by his jacket, student council.

Once they were alone Jason stood against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. The dog tags he wore made him look even more like a soldier. His short hair didn't help.

"Nobody likes to talk about what's wrong with them," Will began. "Nobody. I come here and feel like I have to fix everyone. Why is everybody so...messed up?"

"It's only the group you associated yourself with, not everyone," Jason corrected. "They're messed up and they think ignoring it will help."

"But it won't."

"It won't."

Will touched his hand where Nico's fingers had been not long before. "What's going on between Nico and Percy?"

Jason paused. "What do you mean?"

"Don't give me that, please. I may have only...holy shit, I've only known Nico for a day."

"What does that have to do with-... Oh…" Jason blinked. "You mean... Nico actually... you're together?"

Will put a finger to his lips. "He doesn't want anyone to know. I...I can't believe I even told you. He's freaked the fuck out that people will find out he's gay."

"Yeah, I know. He's been that way since he was ten." Jason shook his head in disbelief. "I just can't believe he actually made a move and didn't just ignore the feelings between you two."

Will blushed at the memory. "I may have been...very forward with it."

"You have to be when it comes to Nico," Jason agreed. "He's… he's Nico. But if you hurt him, I swear to God they won't find your body."

Will held his hands up. "I won't, I promise."

"Good." Jason smiled. "Because I won't give you that warning again. Nobody hurts my friends."

"But they've been hurt before," Will said. "Percy, his scar… Nico's still hurting over something to do with Percy but I can't figure it out yet. Leo's got some kind of self confidence issue. He was so fucking proud but suspicious that I actually thought his inventions were cool."

Jason nodded. "You're observant."

"Observant? Everyone else is just oblivious."

Jason shrugged. "I guess. Did...did Percy tell you about the scar?"

"Yeah, told me his old evil step dad did it," Will said. "Then he ended up dead or something. But you can tell it still bothers him. He was crying from a nightmare."

"Gabe was a shithead," Jason declared. "What he did to Sally and Percy… He deserved everything he got."

Will didn't know if anyone really deserved death. Sure, Gabe was what Jason had said: a shithead. An abusive motherfucker. But he was still human.

Maybe that was the healing side of Will kicking in. Those instincts he had since childhood. What made him different and opposite from Jason but ever bit as protective and caring.

His teachers used to say he was born to help others. His father used to say he shouldn't have been born at all.

"How'd he die?" Will asked. "Percy's my cousin and I never knew this happened. I...I feel guilt. I should have known. I should have helped. We talked on the phone, his mom was always talking with mine. I should have caught it."

"Nobody caught it," Jason bit out. "We all should have. Nobody did. Percy ended up in the hospital and Gabe got a bullet through the skull. It shouldn't have ended like that but it did."

"If someone had caught it, it could have ended more peacefully."

"Yeah. Not so much blood."

Will shook his head. "What about Nico?"

"That's not for me to say."

"Please?" Will pleaded. "I just want to help."

"You can't," Jason declined. "Trust me, if you could then I'd tell you. But you can't."

Before Will could bother Jason any longer about it the bell rang for lunch to be over. It shook them both out of what could be called a stare-down, the air having grown tense as they talked. Jason was protective over his friends as well as their pain. Will was just protective over them.

"Nico will tell you when he's ready, not a moment before," Jason warned. "Force it out of him and I'll kill you."

Will didn't doubt it for a second. But something told him that Nico's secret was more life-or-death than he originally thought.