Hello!

I am very happy with all the follows and review! This is my first story on , and so far I am highly pleased. This is a shorter chapter; I didn't have a lot of time to work on it this week, due to homework and family things. But, I think we are starting to see a plot line! I plan on posting every weekend, so keep those reviews coming; they fuel me into the writing spirit. Thank you so much!

Percico all the way!


Nico was just about ready to feed his clock to the hellhounds.

There happened to be an iHome on his bedside table, for listening to all of his music when he had nothing better to do. It was black and grey and it looked really nice. All except for the time it read. It was just past six in the morning, and someone who obviously didn't know that sleeping was of value, was banging on the front door. Nico growled in frustration. He could not take this any longer.

Nico stepped out of bed and made his way to Percy's room. He found him sprawled across the bed, covers dangling over the edge and drool seeping from his mouth. One of his arms was hanging over the side of the bed, and at the opposite end, his leg.

'How can he sleep through this,' Nico wondered. He could still very distinctly hear the rapping on the front door. Deciding that Percy wasn't going to be of any help, Nico marched out of the room, down the hallway, and just stood in front of the door. He could see the shadows of two feet from under the door. He wasn't going to open this door. He probably didn't know the person. So he inched forward and stared out of the peephole.

A gasp escaped his dry lips. Nico quickly unlocked the door and the deadbolt. He grasped the cold handle and whipped open the door. Then he just stared.

"Nico, what are you doing here?"

He didn't think. He slammed the door in her face and ran into Percy's bedroom, throat tightening. Nico nearly tripped over Percy's bed, instead tackling the sleeping boy. Percy groaned, shoving Nico off the bed and burying himself in his pillow. Nico just got up, clutching his head, and ripped the pillow away from Percy.

Percy propped himself up on his elbows and just stared at Nico in frustration. "What in Hades is wrong with you?"

"She's here, on your doorstep!" Nico practically screamed. A knocking came from the front door again, and Percy seemed to realize the problem. His eyes grew huge and he jumped out of bed, pulling a shirt off a hanger and putting it on himself. As he zoomed out of the room, Nico noticed that one side of the shirt was sticking up, revealing his hip. Before Percy opened the door, Nico tugged it down for him.

"Thanks," Percy said before slowly opening the door. Nico watched over his shoulder as Annabeth came into view for the second time.

She hadn't changed mush since Nico last saw her. She still had her long blond hair tied back into a ponytail and the beaded necklace had some beads he didn't recognize. Silver owls dangled from her earlobes and she was a lot tanner. She wore a sad smile and Nico could tell that she felt very uncomfortable. Nico laughed inwardly at the sight.

"Hey Percy," she said with a small wave.

"Hello." Percy had a small scowl on his face.

"Could we, um, talk alone for a moment?" She gestured outside by throwing her thumb over her shoulder. Percy looked at Nico, and he just gave him an apologetic smile. Nico backed away and slumped into the couch.

He could hear the door shut behind him. Nico twiddled his fingers and didn't know what to think. As soon as things started going his way, Annabeth had to waltz into his life and mess everything up. What if she was here to take Percy back to camp? Or maybe she wanted another chance with him. Nico wanted to cry at the thought, but held back. Percy wouldn't do that. Not to Nico.

After his failed attempt at eavesdropping, Nico grabbed the remote and started flipping through the channels on the television. He got immersed into a Disney show called Gravity Falls. All supernatural things were Nico's soft spot. It was definitely one of the oddest shows he had ever seen, and before he knew it, the door opened, and an angry Percy sat down roughly on the couch besides him.

Nico knew enough to tell that he shouldn't talk to Percy unless instructed to do so. He just let the program run until Percy was just watching it, a little confused. The waves of anger weren't radiating off of his body anymore, so Nico entwined their fingers together. Percy just squeezed them.

"What did Annabeth want?" Nico asked softly, genuinely curious.

Percy scoffed and looked Nico in the eye. "She wanted to get back together. Of course I told her that it was out of the question. I told her that I didn't want to deal with her anymore, which was the reason why we broke up in the first place. She said that since the war with Gaea was over, we should all have new beginnings. Yah right! Plus, I'm in love with someone else." Percy smiled and kissed Nico's nose. "She couldn't argue with that."

"Wait, you told her?!" Nico backed out of Percy's reach. "She's going to kill me!" Nico began to hyperventilate.

"No she won't. She knows that she'd have to go through me to get to you." Percy rubbed Nico's lower back and he soon began to breathe normally again. That's right. Nico had protection, just like at camp. Nico slowly leaned back into Percy, knowing that he was safe. He just hoped that Annabeth wasn't one of those crazy ex girlfriends.

"Hey, it's okay. How about I made us some breakfast?" Percy wiggled Nico's shoulder, trying to bribe him into feeling better. And it worked.

"Okay," Nico replied with a smile. They both got up and Nico sat on a stool at the island while Percy prepared what looked to be French toast. He plucked a spice out of the cabinet, and Nico tried to see what it was.

"No peeking!" Percy laughed when he saw Nico craning his neck. "This is my secret recipe." He dipped the bread slices into the egg mixture and set them onto a flat area in the middle of the stove, where they started to cook.

Percy, after cleaning his hands of any egg mixture, wrapped his arms around Nico's stomach and placed his lips on Nico's neck. He whispered things that Nico couldn't make out, but it felt amazing, his lips tenderly brushing Nico's pale flesh. He moaned and closed his eyes, leaning his head against Percy's. But then Percy just planted a kiss on the top of Nico's head and began flipping the toast.

"I make the best French toast," Percy boasted. "Once you taste it, you would kill for my secret recipe. Maybe we could exchange?" He turned around, sticking out his lower lip, and made a praying gesture with his hands. His eyes were huge and sparkling.

As hard as it was, Nico said, "Never." He traveled over to the fridge and poured himself and Percy a cup of orange juice. He took a sip and the moisture returned to his tongue and lips. It was a good thing that Percy didn't like orange juice with pulp in it. That stuff is just gross.

Nico walked over to the window in the living room and leaned against the windowsill. It was a beautiful day, with birds chirping and the sun shining through the trees. Blackjack was grazing in the front lawn and he flapped his wings majestically. And there wasn't a single monster in sight.

A warm plate was placed in his free hand, the other one occupied with his drink. It held two steaming slices of French toast that were smothered in maple syrup. Percy kissed Nico's cheek.

"Only the best for you," Percy said into Nico's neck. It tickled, and Nico cringed while giggling uncontrollably. He set his cup down so he could take the fork that was in Percy's hands. He followed Percy into the kitchen and sat back at the island while Percy prepared his own meal.

The French toast on his plate looked delicious, Nico had to give that the Percy. But did it taste good? Nico slid the fork straight through the bread, not needing to use a knife at all. The maple syrup, which looked to be made right here in town judging by the bottle, made the toast soggy and it slipped off his fork multiple times. Once he had stabbed the life out if it, Nico quickly shoved it in his mouth before it could escape him again.

Nico thought he had died and been reborn again. The French toast was delicious! It had the most amusing texture on his tongue and it sent his taste buds on a round trip to flavor town. He scooped up another bite and a familiar taste caught on. It almost tasted like…eggnog. Of course!

"Nutmeg," Nico murmured, more to himself than Percy, but he heard nonetheless.

"What was that?" he asked, not sure he heard right.

"You used Nutmeg, didn't you?" The shock on Percy's face answered for him. "This tastes amazing! I didn't expect this much out of you."

"How did you know? I hid it, put it away. You never even saw the bottle!" Percy was starting to whine. "It's not fair!"

"I know my spices. My taste buds are pros."

Percy just scowled and started shoveling food into his mouth. Nico laughed, and the frown upon Percy's face disappeared and was replaced by a grin. They finished their French toast in silence, and placed their dishes in the sink. Nico sat back down and realized just how full he was.

"Alright," Percy droned, drunk on the amount of food, "you are going to get changed and come with me." Percy grabbed Nico's now clean clothing and placed them on the granite counter tops. Nico sighed with relief and snatched them up, hugging them close to his chest. Both boy's ran to their room and changed in a matter of minutes.

Nico stepped out of his room and relaxed. The skinny jeans fit to his form and his black T-shirt hung loosely from his thin frame. His old chain belt hung at his side and his jacket was wide open, revealing a grinning skull. The fur on his bomber jacket brushed his neck, and he felt right at home. But when he looked at Percy, we wondered if it was worth wearing it all.

Percy was only wearing jeans, a towel draped around his neck. The socks he wore were mitch-matched, one green and one blue, which was kind of funny. He smirked at Nico while he looked him up and down.

"You might not want to wear all of that. You don't want to get too hot," was all Percy said before he put on his shoes and walked out the door.

Nico stared after him in confusion. As much as he loved the comfort of his jacket, he slowly slid it off his shoulders, making him feel too open and bare. He hurriedly laced up his combat boots and flung himself out the door to find Percy waiting for him, Riptide drawn.

Nico thought that maybe their luck had ended and a monster had finally found them. He whipped out his Stygian Iron sword; its darkness absorbed the light around it. The sword radiated a dark power, but he was used to the feeling. He jogged over to Percy's side, ready to attack whatever was out there.

"What is it? Is a monster nearby?" Nico demanded.

"What?" Percy looked confused. "We're going to practice sword fighting. Just because we left Camp Half-Blood doesn't mean we are allowed to get rusty on our skills."

Well, that explained everything.

Two agonizing hours later, both teens were panting, shirtless, and fighting it out. Neither was able to defeat the other. Percy, who was bigger and stronger, had strength on his side, whereas Nico was small and quick. He could avoid heavy blows by simply moving out of the way. When their weapons made contact, power against power, the air would grow dangerously intense. Sparks would fly and a great clash would sound, resonating throughout the forest.

Finally, both Nico and Percy were too tired to continue. Their muscles screamed in pain and Percy was beginning to limp on his newly healed foot. Nico felt as thought his arms would fall off because of how much force Percy had put on them. Even though they were close, neither of them went easy on each other. They were just glad it was over.

Nico opened the door for Percy, and they both walked inside. Nico instantly went for the fridge, grabbing two water bottles. He tossed one to Percy, which fell short due to the non-feeling in his arms. They both unscrewed the bottles and drained them of any moisture in no time. Nico gasped as he came up for air, and for the fact that Percy was dragging him by his pants towards the couch.

Percy fell back on the couch and Nico fell on top of him. He readjusted himself to that he was curled in Percy's lap and his fingers were curled against his chest. It was heaving and moist with sweat. Nico rested his head in the crook of Percy's neck as Percy stroked his hair. Nico stared at Percy's bare neck before kissing it lightly. The other teen groaned.

In that moment, Nico realized just how lucky he was. He had never thought that a demigod like Percy could love someone like himself. It seemed so wrong. Just the fact that he had dated Annabeth made it unreal. But then, when he had kissed Percy for the first time, he cried tears of joy when he kissed back. Jason even doubted that Percy would fall for him, the one person who knew about the crush. But look at where he was now.

Nico pulled back and stared into the endless sea that were Percy's eyes. They were beautiful, and Nico would have gladly drowned in them. They shimmered brightly and Nico loved the way they seemed to shift like a raging ocean. Percy scooped Nico up, but he never looked away, mesmerized. He was soon lying on Percy's bed, Percy leaning over him.

"Percy, do you really love me?" Nico asked, though not sure why.

Percy looked up from the boy's stomach. "Of course I do," Percy soothed, his voice as smooth as the early morning lake. He soon looked back at Nico's stomach, and very slowly, caressed it with his lips. Nico's shoulders sagged in a release of breath as Percy gently gripped his waist while kissing his entire stomach and chest. Once he reached Nico's neck, the boy pulled Percy from his reach and stared into his eyes once more before bringing their lips together.

The first kiss they shared had been tender, nothing too harsh, but this time was different. When their lips touched, Percy pressed down hard. Nico gasped in surprise giving Percy the chance to slip his tongue into the boy's mouth. Their saliva flowed into each other. Nico savored how Percy tasted, and Percy the same. Percy held a fistful of Nico's hair. Nico whimpered, but not out of fright or pain. It was more of a wanting.

Percy pulled away, and Nico was left unsatisfied; he pouted like a child and Percy just rocked on his knees above Nico's body, grinning.

"Do you want me to stop?" Nico knew that Percy already knew the answer.

"Never stop," Nico gasped as Percy kissed him, gently this time, while slowly undoing the chain belt and then the button on Nico's skinny jeans. Nico sat up, watching after Percy broke away to watch what he was doing, and finally realized what was going on. Surely, he wouldn't allow himself to do such a thing at his age. But as soon as Percy started tugging at the jeans, he knew that that's exactly what he intended to do. It was what he desired. So, he never stopped Percy as he worked his lips lower and lower.


The fountain up the road from Percy's house was the perfect place.

Annabeth threw a golden drachma into its mist, muttering a prayer to Iris. Soon she was greeted by the sight of a teenager with blond hair and a scar above his lip. Annabeth's heart fluttered when he regarded her.

"Jason, I need you here, quickly," Annabeth demanded.

"What's wrong? Do you want me to bring the others for help?"

"No!" That would surely result in disaster. "Just yourself. I need some help; I have a plan."

"What are you talking about?" Jason eyed her warily. "You're not going to kidnap Percy are you?"

Annabeth shuffled uneasily. He was pretty darn close with his accusation. But he wasn't right. Not at all.

"No, not Percy. Just please hurry here! I can't wait much longer."

"Alright, stay where you are." Jason cut the message short and Annabeth couldn't help hiding an evil grin. She was going to get Percy back, and under no circumstances was someone like Nico di Angelo going to stand in her way.