A/N: I'm so sorry this took so long. And it's kinda short. I also forgot to put the disclaimer and warning in the last chapter, so I apologize for that too. I was asked how often I updated, and the answer is that I try to update as soon as I can. Sometimes I'll update within a couple days, and sometimes it will take longer. I try to update every week, so feel free to yell at me if I take longer than that. Thank you for all the reviews; they make my day. :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson or its characters; all rights go to Rick Riordan. I own only the plot (and a couple of original characters).

Warning: Again, very mild language.

Nico took a deep breath. He was going to do it. After years of no contact, he was going to call his sister, Hazel Levesque.

He stared at her name on his phone screen. What if Hazel didn't answer? What if she hated him now? He dismissed the thought quickly. She could never hate anybody. Before he could change his mind, Nico pressed the call button.

He waited with baited breath, but he needn't have worried. Hazel picked up on the second ring.

"Nico?"

"H-hi, Hazel,"

"Oh my gosh! Nico, I can't believe it! You haven't called me in years!" Her voice cracked, and Nico could hear her crying. "Nico, what did I do wrong?"

He was quick to reassure her. "You didn't do anything wrong, Hazel. I promise. I just...I needed space."

It was quiet for a moment, and then Hazel said, "Jason says that you isolated yourself. That the four of you decided to hide your relationship with each other. Why?"

Nico stared into space sadly. "That day, I was upset. More than upset. I hated myself that day. Father had told me- he told me that it should have been me who died. He said I was a burden, difficult, a mistake. I know that Bianca was always his favorite out of the two of us, but that hurt so much, Hazel. Then Percy called me difficult, and it triggered something. I...I used their insecurities against them. We all argued, and we decided to cut ties. We've all been doing our own thing. Then, long story short, stuff happened and we're on speaking terms? Kind of."

"...The sad part is I can see this happening. Why call me out of the blue, though? Don't get me wrong, I love hearing from you again, but this seems sudden, especially for you."

"Oh. Um." Nico felt his face heating up, and silently cursed himself. "Uh, I met this guy named Will Solace. He's my...friend. You would like him. He's been helping me out with some stuff, and when I said I wanted to turn my life back around, he suggested I start by calling you."

"You're right. I like him already. Anyone who tells you to call me is a friend of mine. What was he helping you with?"

"My arrhythmia,"

"Your what?!"

Nico jumped at her shout. He had forgotten Hazel didn't know about his heart. "Damn, I forgot to tell you. Uh, my heart beats irregularly sometimes. I may have passed out in the cafeteria."

"Nico! I'm your sister, you have to tell me things like this!"

"I know, I'm sorry,"

"Why was Will helping you?"

"He wants to be a doctor. And he's just a generally nice person. Again, you would like him."

"I'm going to New York. To visit."

Nico's eyes widened. "You are? When?" he demanded.

He heard Hazel's soft laughter. "Really soon. A couple of weeks." Hazel laughed again. "You can introduce me to Will. Oh, and I'm bringing Frank and Reyna. You remember Reyna?"

"How could I forget?" Reyna Avila Ramirez-Arellano was an intimidating girl from San Juan. Dark hair, dark eyes, and stern features. Nico really liked Reyna. She never took any crap from anybody, and she was a natural leader. It was a well-known fact that anyone who ended up on her bad side was very...unlucky.

"Good. When I get there, you're telling me all about your heart condition, understood?" Hazel's voice had taken on a stern tone.

Nico laughed quietly. "Whatever you say, Hazel."

"I have to go, but I'll text you later, okay?" She didn't give him a chance to respond before she said, "I love you, Nico."

Nico smiled, even though she couldn't see it. "I- I love you, too, Hazel."

Later that night, Nico got a text from Jason. For the first time in years.

From: Jason

I must admit, Nico, I'm hurt. You didn't tell me you liked Will. Or guys in general.

Nico couldn't tear his eyes away from the screen. His heart rate sped up. He could hear his blood rushing, his heart pounding. All he could think was How? Nico hadn't told anyone that he liked Will. No- that he was remotely attracted to Will. How did Jason know?

Nico snapped out of his daze and called his cousin. When Jason picked up, he said in a low voice. "What are you talking about, Grace?"

He heard Jason sigh. "C'mon, dude, it's pretty obvious."

"No, it's really not."

"Alright, so maybe it's not obvious to everyone, but I saw you that day in the cafe. He was falling apart, and you looked panicked. Which- even you have to admit- is a very odd occurrence for you. Actually, you showing any emotion is honestly a little strange, but you being panicked? Dude, you like him."

Nico denied it. "I don't like him. I don't like guys. I'm dating Drew,"

"Nico. Do you honestly expect me to believe that you actually like Drew? You have a 'no-touching' rule. One that she breaks every day. You look so tense around her." Nico heard Jason sigh. "As your cousin and, more importantly, friend, I have to ask why you're dating Drew to begin with. Why put yourself through something that you hate? Why would you cause yourself suffering when it can easily be avoided?"

"I'm not-"

"Nico! Stop denying it! Dude, I get it. You don't ever do anything that could cause yourself even the smallest amount of happiness. I don't know why, but you never allow yourself to."

"Jason, I-"

"Nico, are you happy?"

The question took Nico by surprise. "W-what?"

"Right now. Are you happy?"

Nico knew the answer immediately, but it took him a while to admit it. "No," he whispered.

Jason was quiet, and Nico wished that he could see his face. "I think that this could be good for you, Nico. Will-"

"Jason, I'm not telling anyone I'm- I'm-"

"What, that you're gay?" Jason sounded exasperated.

Nico was silent.

Jason's voice came again, quieter, softer. "Being gay is not a bad thing, Nico. No one is going to-"

Nico exploded. "Don't say that! Don't you dare tell me that no one is going to care, that no one is going to judge me, that no one's going to hate me, to be disgusted by me, to try and fix me. I can name people off the top of my head who will! I can't-" Nico's voice broke, and he was furious with himself. "I can't handle that. I'm messed up already, Jason. I can't have people trying to tell me that how I feel is wrong, to try and fix how I love. I can't go through that."

The line was quiet for a long time. Nico waited for Jason to hang up on him. But he didn't. Instead, Jason said, "Nico, I'm coming over, okay? I'll be there in a few minutes." Then Jason hung up.

True to his word, Jason was knocking on Nico's door just ten minutes later. Persephone must have let him in, because Nico hadn't moved from where he was sitting on the bed.

Jason wasted no time. He sat down next to Nico. "Look at me, Nico." Nico kept staring at the floor. He heard his cousin sigh. "You're not broken. You don't have a disease, you don't need to be 'cured,' or whatever." Nico flinched at the word disease. "You're human." Jason continued. "You've had it rough, and you've made mistakes, but you don't need to date Drew to cover up your sexuality."

Nico blinked. So Jason thought that he was dating Drew to cover up his sexuality. "That's not why I'm dating her," He murmured before he could stop himself.

"Then why?"

Nico took a deep breath. He was too tired to keep up so many walls. "It started off as a way to keep my arrhythmia a secret. It's a weakness, and I can't afford to have weaknesses." He could tell Jason was about to interrupt, so he quickly continued. "It's also in part why I closed myself off from everyone. Caring is a weakness, and people use your weaknesses against you. But that's off topic; I- I've been spending time with Will lately, and he's helped me. He-" Nico felt a tear run down his cheek, and he wiped it away angrily. "He has changed my perspective on a lot of things. I've already told him about Drew, and- and he-" Nico's voice broke, and his eyes filled and spilled over. "Earlier I told Drew that I didn't think people knowing about my heart was worth dating her for, and she threatened to tell people about Percy's crush on Annabeth and your crush on Piper- oh, and Piper told me to give you this." Nico dug into his pocket and fished out the slip of paper Piper had given him. Jason accepted it, but, even though he must have been dying to see what was written on it, he hardly glanced at it, looking at Nico instead and encouraging him to continue. So he did. "And, admittedly, I told her that you guys could survive that, but then she threatened to tell everyone about Will. She- she knew about Octavian and his father. I couldn't let her."

Jason inhaled deeply beside him. "That was the day you acted all mushy toward her, wasn't it?"

"Yeah," Nico whispered.

"So- so does Will know?"

"Yes. He knew I was talking about him when I told him, even though I was being vague. He told me to break it off with her. Said it was bound to happen sometime, anyway. I'm going to do it tomorrow."

Jason put a hand on his shoulder, and Nico finally looked at him. "I know this is hard for you," Jason muttered. "But it's the right thing to do. Will is a good guy. He doesn't want you in this situation, and he told you to end it with Drew, so you don't need to feel like you're hurting or betraying Will, okay?"

"I wish it wasn't him," Nico was crying harder now.

"You wish it wasn't him that Drew had dirt on, or you wish it wasn't Will you have a crush on?"

"I don't know," Nico whispered. "I wish that I didn't have to hand him over to Drew, but I think that's due partly to- I admit it- my feelings for him. I don't want to be the reason he got hurt. Jason, he's so bright. He's such a good person. He didn't push me; he got to know me slowly, and he let me try to trust him first. No one's ever tried so hard to get to help me. He's easily my best friend. I don't want to mess this up. I know he's gay, but Drew said he had a crush. I don't want to be the person to mess up his happiness. Will's just a great person, you know? He's been through so much, but he's still so optimistic and kind and-" Nico stopped himself. "And now I'm rambling."

Jason smiled softly at his cousin. "Yeah, you've got it bad, Nico. But did you ever stop to think that maybe there's a chance Will likes you, too?"

"I don't think so," Nico said miserably.

"But you don't know for sure! There's always a chance, and since you know he's gay, that chance is even bigger."

"I guess," Nico changed the subject. "What did Piper give you, Jason? Go on, look at it."

Jason stared at the slip of paper in his hand for a long time. Then he said, "It's her phone number." He looked at Nico. "It's her phone number. Oh my gods. Nico, I have Piper McLean's phone number!" Jason lept up from the bed and started pacing around the room, pausing every once in awhile and bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Nico, what do I do?"

"Uh, text her?" Nico wasn't an expert in the dating department, but he was pretty sure that when a girl gave a guy her number, she wanted him to text her.

"Well, yeah, but about what? How long do I have to wait? Wait, you're sure she wanted you to give this to me, right?"

"I don't know, I don't really think you should have to wait, and of course I'm sure." Did Jason seriously ask how long to wait before texting someone? Did that actually matter?

"What am I supposed to text her?!"

"Um… 'this is Jason?'"

"Are you sure that's not too formal?"

Nico rolled his eyes. "Jason! Just say something. If you keep over thinking it, it'll never happen."

"...What if-"

Nico groaned and flopped backwards on his bed.

Nico climbed off his motorcycle the next day. He was nervous. He didn't know what the right time to 'break up' with Drew would be. Nico was still terrified of what would happen to Will, but he knew that this had to be done. Not only for himself, but also for Will. Will would be able to stop hiding and- if he was lucky- Octavian might stop bullying him if it became common knowledge what he did. And if not, then Will could at least get help.

He spent the whole day trying to decide the best way to tell Drew. He didn't want to come off as arrogant, because that might fuel her anger even more. But he also didn't want to come off as so calm that he seemed uncertain. She would think he was easily swayed and try to win over his mind again. In the end, he decided that being blunt and straightforward (and in front of a crowd) was the best way to go.

Lunch finally came. Nico found Drew with ease, and walked over to her. When he reached her, he tapped her on the shoulder. "Drew," he said, loud enough so the whole table could hear him, "I need to talk to you." Out of the corner of his eye he saw Will, who smiled at him reassuringly, and Jason, who gave him a thumbs up.

She stood up from her seat at the table. "Yes, Neeks?" she purred.

Nico continued, making sure the other occupants of the table could still hear what he had to say. "I think we should-"

He didn't get to finish, because Drew threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and slamming her lips against his. Nico stumbled backward and almost fell. He could hear catcalls in the cafeteria, but he was too surprised to move.

Drew licked his bottom lip and took advantage of his shock to slip her tongue into his mouth. Nico finally unfroze. He shoved Drew away as forcefully as he could. She tumbled backward. Nico was so mad he slipped into Italian.

"Che diavolo!" What the hell! "Sei disgustoso! Mantenere le tue labbra sporche a te stesso!" You're disgusting! Keep your filthy lips to yourself! Nico quickly got his rage under control just enough to switch back to English. "Tanaka, I don't care what you do, I will not be your boyfriend. Kiss someone who can actually tolerate you." Not caring about the repercussions, Nico stalked over to where his cousins were sitting. Percy and Thalia were cheering. Jason high fived him. Will came over and threw an arm around his shoulder.

"Go, di Angelo!" he yelled. The rest of the cafeteria was a bit chaotic. Some people were clapping and cheering, while others were yelling at him, outraged. Drew herself looked like she was going to maul Nico to death with her talon-like nails.

Leo Valdez was howling the loudest. "Feel that burn, Tanaka? That's called rejection!"

Nico saw Piper McLean and Annabeth Chase. Piper was smirking at Drew, while Annabeth tried to hide her laughter behind her hand. She wasn't succeeding.

Nico felt free. Finally, no one was holding anything over his head. He felt more alive than he had in years. Sure, that wasn't saying much, but it was an improvement.

The smallest of smiles crossed his face. That smile grew just a fraction when he remembered Hazel's promised visit.

A/N: There it is! Again, feel free to ask me any questions you may have. I'm glad to answer them. Thank you for reading!