Riiiiiiiiing. Riiiiiiiiing.
The alarm clock was ringing like there was no tomorrow. Nico rubbed his eyes grumpily, then he shut off the alarm. He blinked. He was in his room again and in his own body. He quickly stood up, changed into his clothes and ran as fast as he could to the Apollo cabin. After a few seconds he arrived there. He opened the door hoping to see Will, but he was disappointed. The Apollo cabin was full, every Apollo kid was in there, just not Will. He felt a pang in his chest as he saw the empty bed of Will. He has already left. Paralyzed Nico was standing in front of the bed not noticing all the stares that the other Apollo kids were giving him or the whispering in the background. Nico has fallen into his own thought. He didn't felt like he wanted to cry, no, he knew that Will was coming back, but somehow he felt numb, like a part of himself has left the camp leaving the rest of him here. He felt empty.
Suddenly he felt a hand laying on his shoulder. He turned around to see Kayla giving him a sympathetic look. Nico didn't look at her. He didn't wanted people to pity him. But he didn't tried to shook her hand off. Somewhere in his heart he wanted now someone to comfort him. Somewhere in his heart he felt now like a small helpless child.
They remained in their position for a while, neither of them saying a word, then Kayla broke the silence.
"He…he wanted me to give you this." She said with wet eyes as she handed Nico an envelope. Nico surveyed the envelope.
"What's that?" he asked Kayla.
Kayla shook her head. "I don't know. All I know was that he wanted you to read this." she said quietly.
Nico stared at this envelope. What was it? Was it some sort of farewell letter or something else? He checked it for some note. Nothing. He sighed. He was unsure whether he shall open the envelope or not. He decided that he first needed some fresh air.
"Thanks, Kayla." he said to her, then he passed her by.
"Nico, wait!"
Nico turned around, he was surprised by this outburst from Will's half-sister. She gave him a soft look.
"You know, Nico, he really likes you. I hope you both find your path together."
Nico smiled at her. Her words meant much to him, because that meant that Will's closest sibling approved, if they ever got together. "I know…and don't worry, we will find it. I'm sure of it." And with that he left the cabin.
Days have past by without Will. During these days Nico tried to avoid people as much as he could. He knew that Will wouldn't want him to do this, but he really needed to cope with Will's departure alone. Over the past few days, Nico reminded himself of his old self again, shadow-travelling through the whole camp while staying in the shadows avoiding every contact. And he still hadn't opened Will's letter. He was afraid, afraid of what he would write him.
Currently he was sitting in his cabin alone, looking through his Mythomagic card collection. Suddenly someone knocked at his door. He didn't move. For now Nico really wanted to be alone, without any interruptions. He hoped that the people behind the door would give up and leave, but he was wrong. The door opened and Jason and Piper burst in giving Nico worried glances.
"Nico, you're here, good, we searched for you the whole day now." Jason said.
Nico glared at him. "What do you want?" he spoke. Jason and Piper were taken back by his reaction.
"Nico…we were worried of you. We haven't seen you for days now. We thought something happened to you." Piper explained with a sisterly voice. For Piper Nico became sort of a little brother to her.
Nico sighed. He really didn't wanted this discussion now. "Okay, you found me. Happy? I'm not injured. You can go now." he said gloomily.
Jason and Piper stared at Nico in shock. They never expected that Nico would act so hostile towards them.
"Damn it, what is wrong with you?!" Jason shouted angrily. "For several days you have been acting weird and now you act like w are you enemies?! Nico, we are your friends! Tell us what is wrong!"
Nico didn't reply. He stared at his shoes.
"It's Will, isn't it?" Piper asked carefully. "Ever since his departure you've been acting like this."
Nico still didn't reply. He felt like he had a lump in his throat and he felt bad for treating his friends like crap, but he really didn't wanted to talk about this subject. It was too touchy for him.
Jason and Piper shared a knowing look. They both now knew what to do.
Jason laid a hand on Nico's shoulder, Nico didn't move. "Hey, I know you are upset, that he is gone, but you don't have to act like this. Will wouldn't want you to be this."
When Nico didn't answer, Piper continued. "Nico, we know that you have feelings for Will and you feel conflicted, but don't let one thing destroy what you already have."
That finally got Nico's attention. He looked up to Piper and looked at her curiously like she was a new TV show.
"Look at your environment. You think you are alone, but you are not. You have so many friends to help you. Me, Jason, Percy, Annabeth, Leo, Calypso and so many more. Don't go back to your old self, alright?"
Nico still didn't answer. He just looked at Piper, not knowing what to say. Jason continued for her.
"Piper's right. You're not alone. We will always there to help you. Especially with your small problem with a certain son of Apollo." Jason said smirking. Nico blushed a little bit at that. He was still confused with his feelings for Will. He cleared his throat. Then he smiled at both of them.
"Thanks, guys. I really appreciate what you are doing for me, but for now I need some time for me alone, alright?"
Jason and Piper looked at each other, then they nodded. They both gave Nico a light hug and ruffled his hair.
"Please tell me, you won't close yourself off the whole world again." Piper whispered in his ear. Nico smiled at her.
"I won't." he said sincerely. Piper smiled at that. Then she broke up from their hug. Jason boxed Nico playfully on the shoulder.
"Sparring match, tomorrow, just me and you." he challenged.
Nico smirked. "You're going down, Grace."
Jason grinned at him. Then he ruffled his hair and walked out the cabin with Piper. Nico smiled after them as they walked out. They were right it was time to open himself up again.
"Leo Valdez, you stay away from me!"
"But Sunshine, all I want is a hug from you!"
Nico laughed as Leo, who was drained in oil, because he repaired Festus, chased after Calypso who was screaming both in disgust and delight. He was hanging out with the both of them today. He followed Jason's and Piper's advice and now spent a lot of time with his friends. He still missed Will, but the pain was now more bearable then before.
"Neeks, please hug me!" Nico's thoughts were interrupted by a fast-approaching son of Hephaestus. Nico's eyes widened in horror. Before he could react he was engulfed in a bear hug. Nico groaned in disgust. That meant another shower.
"You're so fluffy, Neeks!" Leo vried.
"Get off, Valdez!" Nico broke out of the hug and gave Leo a death glare. Then he summoned an army of skeletons. Leo gulped.
"Skeletons, attack!" Nico cried while pointing at Leo like a general. The skeletons followed Nico's order and chased after a screaming Leo. Nico smirked smugly at the scene in front of him.
"Ha, that serves him right!" Nico turned around to see an in oil drained Calypso grinning at him. He grinned back while giving her a high-five.
"I'm glad you're finally opening up again." Calypso said while giving Nico a light hug.
Nico rubbed his neck. "Yeah…it took a while…but with some little help I realized that I still have my friends."
Calypso smiled even wider at him. Nico remembered the times they spent on the beach of Ogygia, where they talked about anything. He remembered when he confessed to her that he was gay and she just accepted him like he was. It was the first time since Bianca's death that he felt close to someone.
"That's great, I really need some company. Dealing with fire boy, there is sometimes really exhausting." Calypso said.
"Oh come on, you know you love me Callie! Ah, not my awesome hair! Ahhh not my tool belt. Nooooooo!"
Nico and Calypso turned to see a screaming Leo who was trying to scare off the skeletons with fire. Without success.
Calypso rolled her eyes. "So Nico, you said you wanted to speak to me?"
Nico bit his lips. He had asked Calypso a few minutes ago for advice, but Leo has interrupted them by chasing after Calypso.
He rubbed his neck. "Yeah…I…you know how I have some feelings for Will, right?"
Calypso rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I don't think someone can overlook this."
Nico ignored her. "Yeah, so…my feelings became stronger after had left and I'm unsure what to do now. I mean…I really want to be with him, but…what if it doesn't work, what if someone gets hurt in this relationship. I…I don't wanna lose Will, because of a break up or something else." Nico confessed while breathing heavily. He was glad that he finally let out his feelings. He knew he could trust Calypso and he was glad he could talk to someone.
Calypso looked sympathetically at him. "Nico…I know it's hard to let yourself in for a relationship. I know how you feel."
Nico nodded at her. After being trapped thousands of years on that island and so many heartbreaks, Calypso still found the joy in the life. And Nico admired her for that. Her heart was broken so many times, but she still wanted to be with Leo.
"I…I was unsure myself whether I should be in a relationship with Leo, I mean, he could have left me like every other hero, I've loved. But I've risked it and look at us now. We are both so happy and I've finally found someone with Leo. I know there are some risks, but you'll never know what could happen, if you never try."
When Calypso finished, Nico hugged her tightly. "Thanks." he whispered into her right ear.
Calypso hugged him back. "No problem, I'm always here for you, you know."
"Heeelp, a hot boy is threatened by a bunch of zombie skeletons! Jason?! Piper?! Anyone?! Heeelp!"
Calypso and Nico stared at Leo trying to desperately get off the skeletons, then they both broke out in laughter.
"You should probably free him from his torture." Calypso giggled.
Nico winked off. "Nah, let him run for a while. Let's just see it as an exercise for him." Nico said smirking.
Calypso's advice has helped him a lot, but he still wanted some other advice. He was still new in this "being in love" thing. And he already knew who he was going ask next.
"You need to show him, who is the boss!"
"Now, Reyna, let's calm down it bit, alright."
Nico was sitting with Reyna and Rachel in Rachel's cave. He came there for just searching for their advice, but somehow it wasn't really what he searched for.
"What? I'm only trying to help him."
"I think you are scaring him, Reyna."
"I'm not scaring you, am I, Nico?"
"Yes, you are, stop frightening the poor boy."
Nico had enough of their quarrel. "GUYS!" he cried. Immediately both of them stopped talking and turned around to him.
"Rachel, Reyna, I appreciate your advice, but I don't think this is going to work." Nico said sighing.
Reyna huffed at him crossing her arms. "You asked for the advice."
Nico rolled his eyes at her. "Yeah, but you are terrible at giving love advices."
Rachel laughed at that. "That is so true." Reyna glared at her, then she turned back to Nico.
"Look, Nico, I am trying to help you…" Nico cut her off.
"I know and I'm glad for that and you can give really great advices, but not in the topic love." Nico told her. Reyna blushed a little bit at that.
"You know, Nico, just tell him what you feel. I did that and it turned out great." Rachel suggested him.
Nico raised an eyebrow. "You are the oracle. You can't date."
Rachel grinned at him. "Ah, no worries, I asked Apollo and he had nothing against it." she said while giving Reyna a knowing look.
Nico looked at both of them, then suddenly he saw it. "Oh!" he said, shocked by the revelation.
"So…you two are together?" Nico asked pointing at both of them. They nodded. Nico grinned wildly at that, then he hugged both of them.
"That's great, I'm so glad for you both. You deserve to be happy."
They hugged him back and ruffled his hair. "You do too, Nico." Reyna said.
Nico broke up from the hug. "I just never knew, you were into girls." Nico said while smirking at his surrogate sister. She blushed. "Well…you know…it…it just happened."
"Yeah, RaRa and me just clicked. It was love on first sight."
Nico chuckled. "RaRa?"
Reyna glared at Rachel. "Now look what you have done! Now he is going to tease me endless for my nickname."
Rachel rolled her eyes at her. "As if you wouldn't done the same thing."
Nico watched as they both continued to bicker. Seeing his friend and surrogate sister so happy made him glad. Life was good he thought as he continued to observe the couple quarrel.
Nico was in the underworld listening to punk music. He went to visit his father for a day. In his hand was the envelope of Will. He was still didn't wanted to open it. Something was stopping him from it. Was it his attitude, his insecureness, his thoughts? Nico really didn't know it. His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on his door.
"Come in." he said.
The door opened and to his surprise his step-mother Persephone came in. He wondered what she wanted from him. She never searched for him, unless he had done something to her precious garden.
"What do you want?" Nico asked, his voice icy while he glared at her.
Persephone rubbed her neck nervously, which surprised Nico. She had seen her being angry, annoyed and grumpy, but she had never seen her nervous.
"I wanted to talk to you. Can I sit next to you, please?" she asked him. Nico looked at her surprised, then he nodded. Persephone took a seat beside him.
Nico looked at her expectantly. "Now, what do you want?"
Persephone cleared her throat. "Nico…I know you and I never got along really well…" she started saying.
"Understatement of the year." Nico murmured. Persephone ignored her.
"And I know I was really a bitch to you, the last few years." Nico looked at her in shock. The fact she had called herself a bitch was a wonder.
"But hear me out. I was devastated when I found out that your father has cheated on me. He told me that I would be always his queen, but he lied to me. You can't imagine how much it hurt when I learned that he had two demigod children with the same woman." As she told him this Nico actually felt sympathetic towards her. He realized that he would probably be hurt too if Will cheated on him. But then he remembered the way she treated him in the past and his sympathy for her got diminished.
"I never really hated you, Nico." That statement shocked him. Here his step-mother was saying she didn't hated him. The same step-mother who had turned him into a dandelion. The same step-mother who had always given him icy stares while he was visiting the underworld.
"I…I just hated that you were never my child. Despite being a goddess I'm still a person with feelings." she confessed. Nico looked at her in a new light. He never really thought of Persephone as a person with feelings. He always thought she was a cold-hearted bitch who enjoyed to torture him. For a while he just stared at her flabbergasted, then he gained control of his body again.
"Then what have changed? Why are you so friendly towards me now?" he asked her.
Persephone avoided his look. The situation was clearly uncomfortable for her. "You've changed Nico." she whispered quietly. As she saw the confused look on Nico's eyes she explained further.
"Ever since you became friends with the Apollo boy, you became more open to the world. You laugh, you smile, you actually enjoy yourself. It made me kinda happy to see you so outgoing and without worries." she told him.
Nico didn't said anything. He was still processing the stuff that his step-mother has told him. Suddenly he felt a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Nico…I know we had a difficult past. But I'm willing to look past it. I really would like to start over again and maybe we could even have a mother-son relationship. What do you think?"
Nico just stared at her. He was so shocked by Persephone's revelation. Never in thousands of years he would have thought, that his step-mother would apologized to him, but her she was. As Nico looked at her, he didn't saw a lying snake, but she saw a sincere woman who just want to have a son.
Nico took a deep breath, then he nodded. Persephone squealed at this and engulfed him into a hug. Nico shifted uncomfortably in her embrace, but then hugged her back.
"Oh, this is great. Finally I have someone, who I can talk to about my garden. I will teach you tonight the secrets of it." she said excited.
Nico laughed at her enthusiasm. For the first time he actually saw the flower goddess laughing. Funny how things change.
Persephone continued to hug her step-son for a while, then she spotted the envelope in Nico's hand.
"Nico, what's that?" she asked as she broke off the hug.
Nico blushed and hid the envelope behind his back. "Nothing." he said quickly.
His step-mother raised an eyebrow at him. He sighed, then he showed her the envelope. "It's a letter from Will, alright?"
Persephone looked at him confused. "Then why don't you open it?"
Nico looked down. He didn't wanted to tell Persephone about his worries, but he did know that he couldn't hide himself forever behind his wall of fears.
"I…I'm afraid of the context of the letter." he admitted.
Persephone gave him a sympathetic look. "Nico." she whispered quietly. "Honey, it's okay. Everyone has these feelings someday. But you'll never know what he wrote to you, if you didn't open it."
Nico laughed nervously. "Funny thing. My friend Calypso told me the same thing."
"She seems to be a smart girl. Nico, just open the letter, alright? It will only get worse if you don't."
Nico sighed. "I know, but what if it's something bad, what if he says that he won't come back again or that he actually hate me?"
"Then, you at least know it. It is always better to know something then to stay in the unknown." Persephone spoke. "I will leave you alone now. Choose wisely, Nico." With that she stood up, gave Nico a light hug and disappeared out of his room.
Nico stared the envelope in his hands. It suddenly felt so heavy in his hand as if it was filled with stones. Nico's hands were trembling as he held the letter, then he finally ripped up the enveloped and opened the letter. On the letter there was a message to him written in a so messy handwriting as only a doctor could write. Nico had huge problems to decipher the message, but after a while he got used to his handwriting. He read it expectantly.
Dear Nico,
when you read this letter, I'm already gone from the camp. As I've already told you, I have too take care of my mom as she got a very bad illness. I'm writing this letter, because I know that this will be the last message to you for a long time. I will miss you Nico, I will miss you so much. You don't know how much fun I had in the past few months. Before I met you it was always me and Lou Ellen. It was great to have her as a friend, but something was missing, something that I couldn't explain. When I met you, I immediately knew that you were different from the others. I challenged myself for solving the mystery Nico di Angelo. You were always special, Death Boy, you just couldn't see it. You hid yourself for so long, avoiding everybody as much as you could, not seeing the truth in front of your eyes. You didn't see that you had so many great friends that would do anything for you. You wouldn't accept anybodies friendship and didn't liked to be touched, but you've changed. After the war you've changed greatly, finally loosening yourself more and making friends. You've changed and you've become that person that I love. Yes, there you have it. I love you. Will Solace is in love with Nico di Angelo. I know it may seem to be a huge step, but you have made me so much greater during these past few months. I've never felt so attracted to someone before as to you. And it is not just a silly crush, no, this is more. I've had many patients before, but you were the biggest case. You were someone who always challenged me, bringing out the best out of me. We are like light and darkness, ying and yang. We are both total opposites, but we still became each others best friend. Funny how the universe works, right? We danced around each other for far to long and even after we confessed our feelings for each other neither of us made the first move. We are such idiots, aren't w? I'm not good with words, no I'm really crappy with it. So I'm going to end this letter now. I'm going to miss you Death Boy. Every single minute without you is going to be torture. Okay, I'm exaggerating, but you know what I mean. Take care of yourself.
I love you (there I said it again).
Love, your Sunshine Will.
Nico's hands trembled as he read Will's letter. A small teardrop fell onto the letter. Nico wiped his tear. Will loved him. Will Solace love him. He never felt so happy in his life before. After all these months of heart torture, he now finally had a certitude. Slowly he closed the letter again as he wiped a few tears away. Nico smiled. He now knew what to do and nothing is going to stop him this time.
Bamm, yes finally chapter 11 finished. My longest chapter by far. I really hope you enjoyed it. And in the next chapter it's finally going to happen what you have waited for so long. Thank you so much for all the reviews. I really couldn't have written this story without your help. And yes. Rachel/Reyna confirmed. It was said, that no demigod shall heal Reyna' heart, so I gave her Rachel. She is awesome and is mortal and both of them would make such a cute pair. I'm going to post the next chapter as fast as I can. Maybe I will continue this story after these two idiots got together. Well, we shall see. I wish you all a great day.
Your DWGolondor.