Time is precious

As is breath

Why do you waste it?

Nico sighed as he told Will the fateful new that Apollo himself delivered. Will knew, he knew that when Nico had sighed, Nico would be parting with one of his maddeningly few breaths, one of his last anchors to life. Will wished that he could put it back into Nico's dying body. Wish that he could breathe more life into him. But he was a doctor, and his stupid medic's brain told him it was not possible.

Will tried to make the most of their quickly departing time together. He took him to the lake, he even snuck him out of camp for a few hours to visit his sister at Camp Jupiter. But it wasn't enough. It never was.

In every step, there is a loss.

The beauty of living,

The venom of the past,

Are insignificant to the now.

Will felt a part of him die inside when he left Nico, even if only for a fraction of a moment. The 2 months they had together were leaving them far too quickly. Quicker than normal, quicker than before.

Nico had never admired the way the raindrops glistened on the grass, the beautifully crude red paint on the Ares cabin. But most importantly, the exact shade of cobalt that made Will Solace so perfect. He had never noticed, never reveled in how good it felt to feel his own chest rising and falling. Soon he would feel nothing. But he was ready to feel nothing.

Will hated the past. He hated the fact that Nico's heart had aged 70 years, even though it didn't seem it. He hated the Lotus Casino, he hated Hades for putting him there, he hated the earth for spinning and circling the sun. But he knew he couldn't change anything. His Nico, his beautiful Nico, was dying. And nobody could do anything about it. The one patient Will Solace couldn't save.

One day

It'll all be gone.

Eyes closed,

Hearts at rest.

All is well then.

Nico knew that his hourglass was quickly running out. But he felt thankful. Realistically, he should've already died. Should've died years ago. But he knew that when his string was cut by the fates, it would be ok. Demigods would be born, Percy would love Annabeth, dryads would grow. And he liked that. But he worried about Will. Nico trusted him enough to know that he would keep living for him, live for both of them. But how long would it take for him to do so?

Nico felt he would, for once in his life, be at peace with the world. Finally, sleep without nightmares. But that didn't mean he wouldn't make the most of every moment with Will. He wouldn't take for granted their few moments together, not anymore.

Love is worth the suffer,

Even if it's not forever.

But the memories are.

Will cried silently as they made love for the last time. Nico whispered to him. Insignificant little things like how good Will looked above him, like how he would remember him forever. But that only made Will cry more. Well had contemplated taking his own life. But how could Will be so selfish? One of Nico's last wishes was to take care of Hazel, take care of their cat Salem, take care of all who needed him. And Will would not let him down. He would not.

But he had never known how something so beautiful as love could hurt so much. Now, he paid for his ignorance. He would've given his life to Thanatos, without a doubt, if he could have just a little more time with Nico, the precious, di Angelo. He knew that Nico's father would keep him safe, and if not, Will himself would march down to the underworld and make it happen. Even if he didn't know how. As he sat beside Nico's special medical bed that Will couldn't for the life of him bring himself to care to remember what its name was, he saw their entire life together replay. He almost let out an audible sob when he saw Nico at his most recent birthday when he turned 19. They had shared Nico's birthday cake under Thalia's tree. He remembered laughing as a pine needle hit Nico in the face and went up his nose. He had laughed, and Nico grumbled. It had been so perfect, even if Nico annoyed him to death. Will regretted every time he had laughed at Nico or shouted at him, even if it was only a silly banter. A few days after his birthday, Will's father had come down from Olympus to tell his love was going to die. Die. What an awful word. How could something so natural, so human, so normal, bring so much pain and sadness?

Nico took one final look at Will before he joined his mother. He looked into his tear-stained cobalt eyes, his honey locks, his perfect complexion, and smiled for the last time in his bitterly short life. And then he fell asleep forever.

It was all worth it.

Will whispered this to himself. He kissed Nico's now cold and stiff forehead analyzed his perfect body with his eyes for the last time before his siblings covered him with a sheet.

He regretted never telling Nico exactly how much he loved him, how much would miss him, how much his presence would be craved by him. But he was also grateful, grateful for every last moment they had together. He treasured Nico's love more than he treasured his own life. And then he smiled so much he matched his love's smile. Will smiled because Nico smiled. That was enough for anyone to smile. And if Nico couldn't show his happiness to the world, Will would. For both of them.

A/N: Oh, the feels. This might not be that good, I'm sleep deprived and I've got cabin fever to the max. Thank you to HereForThemFanfics for beta-ing this story, check out her profile, and really, you bring thi story to the next level.

And that's it, have a great day, stay safe!

-Flavorfangirl

Please review!