Will got a text halfway through first period from Leo's phone. He pulled it up beneath his desk and took a quick look, his eyes still fuzzy from the night but his heart full. All he wanted to do was go sleep with Nico by his side, deep in the Burrow.

It's Nico. I'm heading to your place now. See you when you get out

Will smiled down at it before putting his phone away and looking back to his notes. Knowing Nico was safe and comfortable made his day all the more better, even if he didn't have Nico at his side.

"I was playing the new Call of Duty game all last night," Percy chatted away. "Mom finally made me go to bed around three, four."

Will ignored him like usual and took notes. His black pen ran out and he had to replace it with red ink.

.

.

.

.

When Will sat down for lunch, the friend group seemed more normal than ever. Percy wasn't talking about nonsense, Leo wasn't building anything. Jason and Reyna were both sitting with them.

"Will, thank god you're here," Jason greeted. "You have to be part of the planning."

"The planning of…?"

"Nico's surprise party," Reyna answered. "You two are close. He would want you there."

Leo leaned forward. "We'll have it at the bunker. I've been working on installing air conditioning. It should be done by Saturday. That way we can have all the drinks we want."

Piper high-fived him.

Will picked at his lunch as he listened to them debate, but also listened to how much they really cared about Nico. They wanted to make him happy. Jason was worried that he wouldn't be comfortable. Leo was worried Will would have too much work to make it.

(All of them seemed to now think of Will and Nico as the same person, or Will as Nico's source of happiness, or maybe even that they actually were together. It wasn't spoken but the reality of how close they were was known)

"Where is he now?" Reyna asked, looking over her shoulder to see if he was anywhere near.

"Skipped," Leo supplied.

Percy put a hand to his chest. "And he didn't ask me to come with him?"

"You're not friends," Leo and Annabeth said at once.

Will looked to his cousin and frowned at the hurt in his eyes. "Why is that? Aren't you all friends?"

The table went silent at the question. Leo's face was disturbingly red.

"I'd like to know that, too." Percy said, his voice deadly serious.

Annabeth put a hand on her boyfriend's shoulder. "It's not personal."

"It feels pretty damn personal to me." Percy shrugged her hand off. "I thought maybe it was just me, maybe I was just missing something. But Will's just as lost as I am."

Leo let out an awkward chuckle. "I don't know anything."

"Bullshit. You and Nico are close as fuck."

"It's Nico's secret to tell," Annabeth whispered. "Telling you would be betraying his trust."

"What did I do wrong?" Percy asked. "I thought we were close. I thought...after Bianca...I thought he forgave me. Was it Bianca? Does he still hate me for that?"

"Bianca?" Will questioned, looking to Jason for answers. But the blond football star was too busy looking at Percy with a face full of pain.

(Percy didn't show emotions often. He didn't show himself at all. Will wondered what had caused this break in him. And why his friends hadn't seen it coming)

"Percy, he forgives you for Bianca-"

"How do you know? He could...he could...it's my fault she's dead-"

"Percy," Will cut in. "Come with me. Let's take a walk."

He kept his voice low, quiet, comforting, kept a hand on Percy's arm a little more strong but every bit as warm. Kept Percy close as he coaxed him out of his seat without another word.

(He wanted to be a good cousin. He wanted to save- Percy, Leo, Nico. Will knew he could if he tried hard enough)

Will kept close to Percy as he led him out of the cafeteria and into the furthest bathroom. No kids were in there thanks to the location, and an old lock still remained on the main door to keep any of them from coming in.

As soon as Will let him go so he could lock the door Percy strode over to the sinks and turned one on, bending down and letting his head lay under in. His dark locks clumped together and fell before him, water running through them and drip drip dripping into the sink.

Will stood and stared before deciding on any words.

"Are you okay?"

Percy's tight grip on the stained sink began to loosen. "I don't know. I just...thank you for getting me out of there."

Will made sure it was dry before sitting on the sink beside Percy. The faucet carved into his back.

He noticed the water drenching Percy's head was cold.

"Okay, enough of that." Will turned the water off and helped Percy stand up. "You're going to give yourself hypothermia."

Percy still leaned on the sink but didn't fight his directions. His wet hair stuck to his forehead and cheeks.

"I like water," Percy whispered. "It makes me feel better. Makes me feel real."

"Cold water specifically?"

Percy nodded.

Will sighed and leaned back against the mirror despite his back screaming at him, the faucet digging in, the pain starting to spread over his back.

"For what it's worth," Will started, "I don't know Nico's secret. I'm just as lost as you. But I don't think he hates you."

"You've known him for less than a week."

(Less than a week. He had known Nico for less than a week and felt as if they spent lifetimes together. Were soulmates real? He had seen posts about it online, the scientific theories behind them. The Big Bang. They were all stardust and atoms. Their essences could have been together back then)

"Tell me what you're thinking. Explain. I...I need to know everything to be able to help." Will paused. "Who's Bianca?"

Percy tensed again. But he looked more human like this than ever before.

"She was Nico's older sister," Percy whispered. "She died."

Will felt sick.

"I was with her when she..." Percy gazed up at the mirror and stared at his reflection in the artificial light. Droplets of water hung out on his eyelashes. "I was friends with her and her girlfriend, Zoe. But the fact that they were together...she didn't even tell Nico. Nico still doesn't know. I only knew because I accidentally walked in on them. She didn't want to tell him, I still don't know why. But I kept my promise to her that I wouldn't ever tell him the truth."

Will gulped at the sound of the bell but didn't move. For the first time in his life, he said fuck class and fuck school because this was more important. Percy was more important. His cousin held more in his heart than any class of his did. And he knew if Nico needed him, really needed him like Percy did now, he wouldn't hesitate to skip for him, either.

(Were soulmates real? Even at a time like this he couldn't stop thinking about what he'd do for Nico)

"So you were with Bianca and Zoe," Will accepted.

Percy nodded. "They wanted to go on a date but didn't want anyone to get suspicious. So I tagged along so no one would get any ideas. People actually thought Bianca liked me. And we accepted that because it kept them from knowing the truth."

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, opened them before continuing.

"We went to the old church, the abandoned one. Bi thought it was creepy and cool, she always had a thing for old abandoned places. Zoe liked it because Bianca did. But I...I never had a good feeling about the place. Ever. But I never really trusted my instincts back then. Gabe...Gabe was still around.

"Bianca and Zoe went exploring up ahead. Bianca wanted to find the staircase going up. I kept telling her there wasn't a second floor but she wouldn't listen. She was just...so interested. So curious. It was just who she was. So her and Zoe went ahead and I stayed by the alter. I heard they used to be saint's bones in there and I was curious if there were any still in there."

Will raised an eyebrow. "I think they take them when they deem a church is closing its doors."

"Yeah, well, this is Frostford," Percy defended. "I was twelve and this is Frostford. I doubt the ones in charge care what happens here."

Will shrugged but didn't feel too nonchalant about the whole thing. The story was really giving him the chills.

"Well, there's a reason the church is abandoned now," Percy whispered. "The whole thing was falling apart. They fell through the top of the bell tower."

Will tried to picture how they must have landed to have died from not too high of a drop. Broken necks and bloody skin would take over his dreams that night.

"Did you tell Nico the truth besides their relationship?" Will asked. "How they really died, that Bianca was the one that wanted to explore?"

Percy nodded.

"Then he doesn't hate you."

Percy frowned. "You don't know that-"

"I know Nico," Will swore. "I haven't known him for long but I know him. Who he is. He cares so fucking deeply it destroys him. He doesn't hate you. Maybe if you had been the one to push her, maybe, just maybe he'd hate you. But if he knows you didn't do it, there's no way he blames you."

(Were soulmates real?)

"He doesn't look at you like he hates you, either. He doesn't look at you with any anger in his eyes. Just pain. But you can see he cares about you, too. More than he cares about any of his other damn friends. You might remind him of her but he sure as hell doesn't hate you."

(Were soulmates real?)

"I see him see you. I see it. It almost makes me jealous sometimes, the way he looks at you. He cares about you. So please, please don't think he hates you. I don't think he could ever hate you. He-"

(Were soulmates real?)

"He...oh..."

He always questioned if Percy would be there. He always watched him.

That blush.

That pain.

His fear of outing himself.

He was afraid of what Percy would think, no one else.

Their relationship having to stay secret.

His pain.

(Were soulmates real? Maybe Nico was Will's if he could see him for who he really was. But was he Nico's?)

"He doesn't hate you," Will confirmed. "I can promise you that. But I'm going to go talk to him anyways."

Percy frowned. "Will, you have class-"

"My cousin is more important than class."

Percy smiled, a smile that actually reached those sea green eyes. His dimples showed.

Will hopped off the sink and felt the relief of the faucet not digging into his back, felt his feet hit the wooden floor and tried not to think of what would happen if he went through it, like Bianca and Zoe had fallen through wood years before. How it was probably still stained red with their blood.