It was the evening of Prom, and Nico was terrified.

This was the night that he would be publically outing himself to not one, but both camps. And for a boy who had spent the majority of his life going to incredible lengths to hide his feelings, the prospect was nausea-inducing. In contrast, Will had not seemed bothered by the prospect at all, treating it with as much anxiety as one might have popping out to the shops to get milk. Will just laughed whenever Nico mentioned how scared he was, telling him, 'Don't sweat di Angelo, we'll have an awesome night!'

And after a week of build-up, it was finally the night. Nico and his friends were all gathered in Poseidon cabin, putting the finishing touches to their outfits, and waiting for Will to arrive.

'I'm crapping myself,' said Nico, shaking his head as Hazel adjusted his tie.

Nico had defied Will's request for colour, and was instead wearing a 1930's-inspired all-black suit, with a grey waist-coat, white shirt and a black and white polka-dot tie.

'It'll go just fine,' said Hazel. 'The good thing about the camps is that they're full of people who have spent their whole lives feeling like outcasts. If you're going to be accepted anywhere, it's here.'

Whoosh.

Leo's bow-tie exploded again. 'God-dammit,' he cursed, batting out the flames.

Calypso sighed, and removed the singed piece of cloth from around Leo's neck, handing him another. 'You're down to your last spare. Is this party-trick really worth all this?'

'Of course,' said Leo. 'This flaming bow-tie will look totally awesome, as soon as I make a few adjustments of course.' Removing his tool-belt, he started tinkering with the bow-tie, which was not a surreal sight at all.

The door knocked, and Will walked in. He was wearing a light grey suit with a blue silk shirt that brought out the colour of his eyes perfectly, Nico noted.

'Hey guys,' he said beaming. 'We almost ready?'

'Almost,' said Annabeth. 'As soon as Leo stops being a fire hazard.'

Will walked over to Nico, and gave him a peck on the cheek. Nico felt those skeletal butterflies swarm in his stomach, and hoped he wasn't turning red. Will looked him up and down. 'Very handsome. So handsome, in fact, that I don't think I'm even annoyed about the lack of colour-'

'Leave it,' warned Nico. He swallowed. 'And, erm, you look very handsome too by the way.'

Will flicked his hair. 'What's new though?'

Nico rolled his eyes.

'And how are you feeling? Nervous?' asked Will, examining Nico closely.

'So nervous,' said Nico, exhaling.

'Me too, but more excited. I'm ready,' said Will, and started performing kung-fu moves that could have rivalled Coach Hedge. 'I'm ready to power my way out of that closet. Bam. We'll blast our way out. You ready Nico?'

Everyone was laughing at Will's antics, whilst Nico held his head in despair. 'You're not going to be this embarrassing all evening are you?'

'I don't know,' said Will. 'And I also must warn you that once I get my groove on, I'm hard to stop.' He then started shuffling around in a bizarre, 1970s-style dance.

Nico watched him with mild horror, before turning to the others.

'Anyone want to swap?'

xxxxxxxxxx

As they approached the site of the Prom, they could see the fires twinkling in the night, and the sound of chatter and soft music in the warm summer air. In the centre, a space had been cleared for the dance-floor and the tables were place in a ring around the outside, all of them groaning with food.

Will held out his hand for Nico to take. Nico felt a wave of fear crash through him, and he hesitated.

'Come on, Nico,' said Will softly. 'All the couples here will be holding hands, or linking arms. If we're not going to do this properly, we might as well not do it at all.'

Nico gulped, and took Will's hand. He leaned over and whispered in Nico's ear. 'No shame.'

As they approached the Prom site, Nico kept his head slightly bent, but remembering what Will said about no shame, he rose it a little. The smooth jazz that played in the background as people mingled and chatted reminded Nico of the dance halls back in the 1930s. He and Bianca would occasionally go along and watch their mother dancing, always talking about how beautiful Maria di Angelo looked. The atmosphere relaxed Nico, but only slightly.

Without warning, Nico and Will were in amongst everyone else. Nico had to force himself not to scan people's faces, seeing if they had noticed. He could have sworn he heard a few people mutter his name, but he carried on being guided by Will who was making a beeline for the drinks table.

'Will,' called a voice, and a boy from Apollo cabin walked over, Austin, along with his date.

'Hey guys,' Will said cheerily.

'Hi Will. Hi Nico,' said Austin. His eyes glanced down to Will and Nico's joined hands, but soon flickered back up to their faces. They chatted for a while, and Nico even found himself joining in, the sense of vulnerability declining second by second.

After Austin wandered away, Will dragged Nico over to the drinks table where Frank and Hazel were standing and they poured themselves some juice. As they chatted, Nico couldn't help but look around at the other demigods. With a jolt, he could see many of them with their eyes towards him and Will, whispering.

'What are you thinking?' asked Will, giving him an amused sidelong glance. 'What do you think they're all saying?'

'Erm… well, I don't know,' mumbled Nico, thrown off guard by this question.

'Exactly,' said Will, smiling. 'You don't know what they're saying, and you don't know what they're thinking. It could be negative, it could be positive. They could be thinking how cute we look together. They could be saying how much they hate your tie. You don't know, so there's no point in worrying about it, hey?'

These words filled Nico with a sense of awe. Will's natural confidence and positivity washed over Nico like a wave. Will was right. He didn't know what they were thinking, or saying. Come to think of it; did he really care?

Surprisingly, Nico found that he didn't. A weight lifted off Nico's shoulders, and he leaned himself closer to Will.

The rest of the evening passed in complete elation. Nico didn't even notice stares anymore. Maybe they had stopped? Maybe people had been surprised for a moment, and then carried on with their evening? There were plenty of other distractions. Leo's flaming bow-tie for one, which managed to stay alight for a full five seconds before Calypso chucked a jug of water on him. Coach Hedge's breakdancing skills also turned a few heads (and almost knocked off a few heads). Nico and Will spent the evening as a couple, dancing together, having their photo taken, and eating side by side.

The highlight of the night was when a girl from Aphrodite cabin came over and congratulated Nico and Will for being so brave, and told Will that he was breaking lots of girls' hearts, but that he would be forgiven because Nico was so cute. Nico was certain he had blushed bright red at this point.

Nico would never forget Prom. Never had Nico felt so confident, so happy. He'd long forgotten what it felt like to smile so much that your face hurt, to laugh so hard that your stomach ached. It was well past midnight when the party started to wind down, and people drifted back to their cabins. Nico was thinking about going to crash out at Hades cabin, when Will pulled him to one side.

'Want to have a walk around the canoe lake?' asked Will.

Nico forgot his tiredness, and nodded, taking Will's hand.

They walked in silence for a while, before Will said, 'So… that wasn't as catastrophic as you imagined it would be.'

Nico had to agree. 'No it wasn't. These are… very different times.'

'Better times?' asked Will.

Nico twisted his mouth in thought. 'Yes, when it comes to this issue. No, when it comes to other things… like food. I tried a burger from that Mac place, or whatever you call it. I mean, what on earth is going on there?'

Will laughed. 'Yeah, I'd imagine there are pros and cons of every era.'

Nico glanced at Will as they walked. He looked so happy, so content, so comfortable with this lazy walk with Nico.

'So,' asked Nico, clearing his throat. 'How long have you known you like boys?'

Will frowned. 'Erm, not sure really. Never really thought about it a great deal. I liked spending time with girls and could tell when a girl was pretty but never really had a desire to date one. Just sort of assumed that I hadn't met one that I liked enough yet. The idea that I might be gay had crossed my mind, but as I say, I never really thought about it loads. But then when I met you at the battle against Gaia, I got butterflies that everyone talked about when they saw someone they fancied. I'd never felt them before, but I knew what they were. What's the matter?'

Nico was looked at Will, wide-eyed. 'So… you've only just worked out you're gay… a few weeks ago? Hate to sound cliché, but are you sure you're not just confused?'

Will shook his head. 'Nah, man. I would say that I've spent my life being confused, and that now I finally have clarity.'

Nico smiled at this.

Will looked at Nico curiously. 'So, how long have you known then?'

'I've known for…well, a long time,' said Nico, shaking his head.

'How long?' pressed Will.

Nico shifted. 'You know when you are about 8 years old, some kids start these 'playground romances', as they're called. Not proper relationships. You sort of hold hands, go round to each other's house, maybe the occasional peck on the cheek. Well a couple of my friends at school had got girlfriends, and I felt so jealous of them. So I decided to get a girlfriend too. Her name was Joan.'

Will chuckled. 'Wow, that's my grandma's name.'

'It was 1940!' protested Nico. 'Anyway, Joan had the most gorgeous red hair I've ever seen. She used to wear her hair in plaits, but when she came over to my house I would beg her, 'Untie your hair Joan, untie it please!' She would let it hang down her back, and I would comb my fingers through. Neither of us got bored of that. 8 year old Nico di Angelo knew how to impress the ladies back then.'

Will laughed. 'Sounds like it.'

'I really cared for Joan, but I still felt jealous when I saw my friends with their girlfriends,' continued Nico. 'And one day, quite suddenly, I realised that I wasn't jealous of the boys, but the girls… and then I realised it was actually a boyfriend I wanted. But it actually didn't worry me too much at that age. I was a pretty… erm… eccentric kid, so I just thought it was one of my many unusual, random thoughts that would just go eventually. But it never did.'

Will nodded thoughtfully. 'I think it's rare to know that young. But cool though. What happened to Joan?'

Nico shrugged. 'I don't know. Not long after that and my mother died, and then my memory was wiped, and then I was transported into the modern day. All this kind of distracted me from dating.'

Will stopped suddenly, and rounded on Nico. 'So… I suppose you've never been kissed by a boy then?'

Nico daren't speak. He just shook his head, staring into Will's kind, blue eyes.

'Me neither,' whispered Will.

The moment hung there for a second, before Will leaned in. Nico closed his eyes, and felt Will's lips press against his. The butterflies in his stomach fluttered madly. But the best thing about it, the greatest thing, was that Nico knew that Will was feeling exactly the same.

Will wrapped his arms around Nico's and pulled him in closer, and Nico snaked his arms around Will's shoulders. They stared like that for a while. Finally Will drew away, but kept his arms around Nico.

Will cleared his throat. 'You wouldn't want to…maybe consider being my boyfriend?'

Nico didn't even need to think about the answer. 'I would love that.'

'Awesome,' said Will. They joined hands and carried on their walk.

'So, now we're a couple, we need couple nicknames for each other,' said Will, looking deep in thought, before smiling. 'You'll be my angel.'

Will looked so pleased with this that Nico wanted to keep that smile in place. 'Uh, and you'll be…my sunshine,' said Nico, and then felt quite sick.

Will noticed Nico trying not to heave. 'You're not a very natural romantic are you?'

'Get used to it, Solace. Get used to it.'