Drowning In You
Chapter 17: Burning Low

Author's Note:

Hello everyone! I know it's been like forever since I updated and I am so, so, so sorry about that! I know it's been like almost a month, but since school started back my entire life has been a mess. You all know how the beginning of the year is and my has gone pretty bad. Plus the weather is really bad were I live and for the passed two days the electricity has been out. Anyways, so sorry that I haven't updated. I just want to thank you all more reading and please leave a comment of favorite my story. I always appreciate that. I'll see you all soon and I hope you have a beautiful, awesome, amazing, glorious day, my friends! :3

Nico climbed out of the water moments later, about fifteen minutes after the encounter with Percy, and changed into a dry pair of shorts and a t-shirt before crawling under Annabeth's towel, shaking off the sand and wrapping it around himself. Moments later, after picking up his own backpack and curling up on the ground, Nico took a book out of his bag. The Great Gatsby has that typical stigma that it's one of the most boring books in the world primarily because almost every high school student is forced to read it at some point, however, Nico found the book to be one of his favorites. It was a classic that had somehow managed to crawl its way into his heart. If he had to estimate how many times he had read it the numbers would have roamed somewhere into the fifties.

As he began to reread the book for the however many time, Nico kept getting distracted by the thought of the time he had tried to force Percy to read it. The other boy got about half way through the book before giving up. He claimed it was too much of a romantic, girly, mushy book full of love, hearts, and, most of all, tragedy. Of course, Nico disagreed one multiple levels Percy refused to give it another try.

Sighing lightly, eyes flickering across the beach, Nico couldn't help but wonder where the other boy had gone. Apparently, the moment Nico decided to come ashore Percy decided to abandon ship. Another sigh. He always seemed to have muddled ideas, no matter how serious the matter was.

"Nico." The voice called upon arriving beside him.

Nico whirled around to face Percy, book clutched between his fingers gently, the pages bending under strained a tense hand. "Hey." The reply came simply as the smaller boy nodded up to him.

Percy flopped down beside Nico with a light grin on his face, the corners of his mouth etching up as though someone was pulling them with strings, "So, what are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Nico sneered as he pulled the book closer to himself. It was his safety shield at that moment, "I'm reading."

"Oh, yeah….. I can see that." Percy acknowledged as he cringed inwards. His own stupidity was going to drown this conversation. Despite his already registered embarrassment, Percy managed to salvage something to prove that he actual had brain, "Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had.

Although hesitant at first, Percy began to beam with pride, but there was that lingering feeling of doubt. He might of said the words wrong, but it was close enough. Or he hoped it was close enough anyways. Looking over at Nico he pried for a response, waiting to spark something in him. Rather than praising him on his achievement, Nico grimaced slightly, shaking his head.

"That's the quote from the beginning of the book," His face lightened as Nico allowed his lips to flicker upwards, "How did you remember that?"

"I remembered it because…," Percy murmured uncertainly, not sure if he should disclose his true reasoning so quickly. With a sigh of resignation, Percy gave in, "I remember it because it's one of your favorite quotes from the book. When you forced me to read it I was constantly looking for that one quote. It kind of stuck with me because I knew how much you liked it. I've keep those words in my mind ever since. I've just been waiting to use them. I wanted to say it to you at some point, but I just didn't know when. I guess now is as good as ever."

Nico smiled sheepishly, holding his hands stiffly in his lap. He finally looked at Percy's with a blank, unreadable expression. His eyes locked on the other boy, scoping out his voice for sincerity, "That's….nice I guess."

"I'm just glad I said it right. I wanted to…," Percy trailed as he leaned down before the small Italian, "…..I just wanted to impress you."

"Why though?" Nico inquired, voice changing drastically as he stared back at Percy wickedly. There was something burning in his eyes. Something seething in those dark, black orbs of oblivion, "Why the fuck do you want to impress me?"

"Because I still love you."

There wasn't an ounce of hesitation as Percy spoke out, hands roaming downwards and grasping Nico's own. For a moment both of them were still. Neither moved a muscle. It was like something had frozen, time stuck within this second. Percy didn't seem to mind this, however. He liked the closeness, no matter the vicious look he was getting from the other. It didn't seem to break through his hazy sense of emotion. The only thing Percy wanted was to keep Nico close to him. To feel the other's warmth and to know he was there.

Within a second, no warning coming before hand, Nico was on his feet, struggling to stand shakily. It was like something had shattered within him. His face was bleak and pale, dark, wide eyes unfocused and glazed over like broken glass. It hurt. Somewhere deep inside of him everything hurt. Percy Jackson was pulling him apart, piece by piece, inch by inch, and minute by minute. He felt himself losing everything inside of him. It was like a knife through his chest.

Without think, without looking back, he ran. Ran down the beach, ran away from the boy on the sand, and ran back towards the water. The sting of salt water caused a roar of brief pleasure within him, stirring away the stress and tension with its sudden chill. No matter how gentle the water was, no matter how much it got rid of the ach, the feeling of utter and undeniable pain coursed him once again. He was just glad that the salty, bitter ocean washed away his tears before anyone else noticed. Because he was crying. Long, bitter, and hateful cries that left his body in sudden shutters as he felt like drowning himself.

By the time they got home from the beach, now residing in Luke's backyard, the sun had set beyond the horizon. It was odd really, having everyone being in the same place at the same time: Nico, Luke, Annabeth, Percy, Grover, Thalia, Jason, Leo. The gathering was an arrangement of bitter enemies, hurt feelings, and strange acquaintances. However, to everyone's surprise, the small party was comforting.

"Why not beer?" Thalia asked, raising a single eyebrow up in a joking manner. Luke flickered the girl a gaze from the hot tub, laughing lightly as his body scooted closer to Nico. Nico sighed, the ach still welling up in his chest, as depression began to set in and all his humor left him. Glancing back at the girl he gave another sigh. Thalia, sitting calmly beside Grover on the grass, tipped back her can of Coke with a sigh of acceptance. It was a hushed noise, one that ran between her lips with ease.

Shaking Grover's hand from her own, shooting him a warm smile before standing up, she began moving towards the hot tub. Nico looked her up and down with a sense of admiration. Thalia was pretty. Very pretty, to be more exact. She was definitely catching attention in her thin, black Batman swimming suit. Nico didn't know where she bought it or why (having expressed her dismissal for super heroes in the past and how geeky she thought it was), but if he had to take a guess he would have said she liked it due to the fact that it was skimpy. String ties with the simple, flimsy covers in the front and a low riding bottom with the Batman logo running across the boobs and backside. She was proud of her purchase, you could assume that much.

"Move over!" Thalia jarred as she shoved Nico to the side, pressing against him as she lowered herself into the steaming water. Laying her hand on his knee, leaning over him as though he was a simple armrest, Thalia looked at Nico was a mask of relieved cheerfulness, "Well, this is….nice."

"Awkward." Luke corrected with a wave of his hand, "I think that's the word you're looking for. Awkward."

"Probably." Thalia inquired before smirking with her own hint of devious nature.

"Hey, Luke!" Annabeth's voice broke through the hazy conversation with jagged clarity, "You realize it's supposed to rain tonight, right? It's also getting cold."

"How do you know?" The blonde leaned over the hot tub edge with a look of irritation. Nico caught a glimpse of Luke's face in the dim porch light, hard and stern yet with a sense of comfort and slyness that couldn't be denied. Lips parted as the boy waited for an answer.

"Just checked the weather on my phone," Annabeth offered as she came bounding up towards the hot tub and through the back porch gate, nearly sliding down on the hard wood flooring. Still clad in her bathing suit, the orange one piece with a single ruffle on the front, Annabeth gave a slight shiver, taking in the chill of the late evening air. Nico would have offered her a place in the hot tub, however, they had already run out of room and he didn't plan on moving. If they tried to cram another body in the hot tub then the water would have definitely over flowed.

"Says the rain is going to roll in at about nine. About an hour from now. You can already feel the air cooling down. Sucks don't it?"

"Yeah," Luke said in a monotone voice, looking distracted and bewildered. For a moment, none of them spoke.

"Didn't you say you wanted to build a bonfire? I know you said something about it earlier." Luke admitted, resting his chin tiredly against the rim of the hot tub. Immediately, Annabeth's demeanor changed and her eyes sparked like lit coals.

"Yes! I love bonfires! They always make you feel like you're on a camping trip. All cozy and warm. I'll go get started." The words barely flew from the girl's lips as she turned and ran away, heading back over to the spot were Jason and Leo sat on the ground. Chattering a mile a minute to the two she quickly recruited them both as log collectors. Grover clambered to his feet as well, not having to be asked.

"Hey, Annabeth, I'll help too." Grover offered as he trudged towards the others. Glancing back over his shoulder he called to Thalia, "Come with us?" It was more of statement rather than a question. Thalia nodded abruptly before climbing up from the hot tub, nudging Nico's casted arm harshly with her leg as she tried to move out of the water. The smaller boy choked back a cry as Thalia didn't notice the harm. He didn't mind, however.

Watching the other's roam through the wood, looking for logs and sticks and broken branches, Nico now acknowledged the fact that he and Luke were alone, sitting side by side with their shoulders and legs pressed together. In a moment of nervousness Nico took a quick flicker behind him, catching sight of Percy through the back window. The boy was sitting stone still at Luke's kitchen table, cell phone held out in front of him as he typed relentlessly. His face was crestfallen, looking like a soda that had gone flat. In a way it made Nico's chest ach, but all that was forgotten as he felt a soft hand rest on his shoulder. Whirling around Nico met Luke's gaze.

"What?" He murmured softly.

"You know what, Nico?" Luke asked with a sad sort of smile. It was full of bitterness, hurt, and something else, something almost envious, "You can tell that you still love Percy."

"I don't." Nico insisted automatically. The dim light bulb overhead flickered for a moment, capturing Nico and Luke's attention, before coming back on just as light as ever.

"You don't have to lie. I mean, yeah, I like you, but I don't want to do anything to get between you and him if you two do get back togeth-"

"We're not!"

"But if you do," Luke forced the words out between dry, cracked lips, "I won't do anything to get in the way of that. You two are actually a cute couple."

Now Nico could sense the resentment in his voice although he tried to mask it. Before he could even think about it, Nico was on top of Luke, his one arm wrapped tightly around the boy's throat as his legs straddled the bigger teen's waist. It wasn't that Nico wanted to do anything with him, but he did embrace the boy, holding too tightly to let go anytime soon. Feeling the warms skin taint his own, bare chests pressing together, Nico seemed to curl into the boy's body warmth, slender fingers etching into the back of his neck as Nico just held on tightly.

"Nico…" Luke could feel his heart beating through his ribs. It was fast, erratic, and over all too soon as the smaller crawled away from him, linger back to the other side of the hot tub. Nico sat there motionlessly for a moment, looking out over the yard at the large pile of brush and stick that had already been collected by their friends before responding.

"I just wanted to thank you. You mean a lot to me Luke. I just want you to know that." Nico murmured lightly under his breath, the words coming out in a jumble of random volumes and pitches as his voice broken. He blushed profoundly before adding, "Ti voglio bene, amico mio."

"What does that mean?" Luke questioned, his voice husky as he leaned forward.

"I love you, my friend." Nico mustered up the words, "And all of that is true."

Luke's pale lips opened easily, eyes settling on Nico as those pale blue orbs went wide. Words welled in his throat as he tried to speak. Before a single syllable could run through his mouth the sound of Annabeth's enthusiastic cry came forth. Nico and Luke both turned towards the yard, watching as a thick pile of leaves and bark went up in flames within a circle of dirt, the fire pit being lined with stones. By the looks of it this hadn't been the first time that Luke and Annabeth had a bonfire together. Grover and Thalia sat at a picnic table not too far away, flickering through the IPod in Grover's hand before plugging it into one of those portable speakers. Nico had seen that Thalia was using it on the beach to blast Avenge Sevenfold earlier, but it was obvious that it was Grover's IPod when it began to blare country music. Grover had a thing for the song "She's All Country" by Jason Aldean. With a huff of distaste, Thalia stood up from the table, taking Grover's hand and instantly pulling him into a dance.

"So Nico…. I know it's kind of strange, but do you….." Luke choked as Leo strolled up, arms tucked behind him as he grinned shyly. Playing with the strings of his blue shorts, hiking up his Urban Outfitter's T-shirt by a few inches to show off his tan stomach, Leo spoke up weakly.

"You wanna dance with me? I….. I mean if you don't than that's alright, but I thought it would be fun."

"Oh….," Nico paused before glancing at Luke uncertainly. He knew that Luke was about to ask him the same question, but now Leo had made it awkward by wanting to dance as well. Even though Nico expected to be getting a death glare from Luke he was surprised to see the nod of approval from the blonde, "I guess."

Allowing Leo to take his hand across the side of the hot tub Nico came stumbling over the edge, the other boy jerking on him harshly, and bounding with him across the yard. Luke stood up leisurely before following suit, only moving a lot slower than Leo and Nico's pace.

"Leo!" Nico mustered up as he felt the boy in front of him tickle his sides. Warm fingers coasted upwards and down his sides, etching shivers up the other's spine.

"You alright?" Leo questioned, his voice half humored and half concerned, "Your face is so red! Your laugh is crazy!"

Nico smiled at that thought, knowing that Leo was commenting on the way he seemed to hiccup in between each gasping laugh. Him and Leo had been dancing for the last fifteen minutes, holding onto each other even after the music had died and no one bothered to turn on a new song. No one else noticed the way they were acting. Grover and Thalia were too busy sneaking kisses between each other on the porch. Jason and Luke were chattering away at the picnic table. Annabeth was crouched on the ground, picking out the branches around the bonfire's edge that had smoldered to a crisp after the flames died. Percy still remained inside, only coming out once to see Nico and Leo dance before retreating back into the kitchen with a look of pain.

Leaning back, looking down at the ground, Nico felt a warm hand coast up his cheek, feeling the blush that spread from his nose to his ears. Leo seemed to be taking everything slow, not daring to touch Nico to much or say anything that could be taken as flirting.

"This is great." Nico whispered out as he placed his head in the crook of Leo's shoulder. Nico took in the deep scent. He knew that smell well- not only from Leo, but himself as well. It was Superman cologne, a fragrance that he had bought previously and not been to turned on to, but when Leo wore it, it smelled delicious.

"You sure you're alright?" Leo repeated the question with hesitation sensing a shutter of tension through the other's body.

Nico thought his answer over for a moment, wondering if he should come clean and admit what was wrong with him. Leo had always been a great listener, but the small Italian was not too sure that Leo wanted to hear about Percy Jackson right now.

"Well…"

"Valdez! Come watch this!" Jason called from the picnic table as him and Luke bent over a cell phone, laughing lightly under their breath. Leo's face deflated for a moment, going flat as his arms released Nico's waist. He gave a gracious smile before giving a quick "I'll be back" and running towards the phone, hoping to check out the video as quickly as possible.

Nico grinned lightly at the three boy's, Luke and Leo both hovering over Jason's shoulder as the other began to rise, readying to show the video to Grover. It was cute in a way. Two of the most important people in his life (although Jason was becoming his friend steadily) were all enjoying each other's company rather than someone arguing. He sighed deeply before stepping back to watch the scene fully.

"Ow!" Nico cried as he staggered forward, a hand grappling downwards in a flash of vicious terror. The bottom of his foot ached in a blinding, searing pain each time he pressed it to the ground. Thousands of tiny needles pierced the bottom of his foot, burning the soles and breaking through the thick shield that he kept up. Tears pricked the corners of his eyes, forcing there ways down his cheeks in a soft manner although the pain was erratic. Before he knew what was happening, Luke and Leo each grabbed him around the waist, taking him over and lowering him to the picnic table. In a moment of worry and hazy first aid, Leo literally dumped out a cup of soda, allowing the pop to drain from his fingers as he collected the ice, and wrapped a wandering paper towel around it as he forced it to the bottom of Nico's foot.

"Fuck! That hurts like hell! Just stop!" Nico normally wouldn't have been so harsh in the face of help; however, this was something different. His pain was the thing that kept him from staying calm.

"Sorry! Sorry!" Leo apologized as he took a step back. By that time the rest of the crowd had migrated over, looking down at the smaller boy as tears began to flow freely. With a straggled sniffle, Nico wiped the water from his face with a thick sense of embarrassment.

"What happened?" Percy strolled out onto the back porch with a flat tone in his voice. Nico glanced over at him before feeling the thick bag of ice press into his hand. Leo looked down at his best friend with apologetic eyes before letting go of the towel, knowing that Nico would be better at first aid than himself.

"Nico stepped on some of the smoldering fire wood. Burned the bottom of his foot." Jason clarified with sympathy, looking at Jackson as though they were in mourning. At that moment Percy's eyes widened and breath hitched, fear clotting his chest. Pushing passed Jason and literally shoving Grover out of the way, Percy approached Nico with a choking, gagging fear welling in his throat.

"Are you alright?!"

"I'm fine, Percy!" Nico's aggravation was evident as he placed the ice once again on his foot, wincing as the pain returned and became even more intense than before.

"Dammit, Nico! That's not going to help you know! Ice will just make it worse!" Percy spat as he grasped the towel in Nico's hand and flung it backwards, ice hitting the ground with faint thuds. Leo gave a sheepish noise of embarrassment as he realized he was hurting the boy rather than helping.

" Percy…" Luke sighed out with a sense of hatred. Luke had never liked Percy Jackson, however, he did like Nico which meant no fighting with the other,"Take him inside and bandage up his foot or get cold water or something. There is a first aid kit in the cabinet above the kitchen sink. Just make sure you put everything back. We'll clean up out here."

"Okay." Percy replied hastily as he grappled for Nico's good arm, dragging the smaller boy to his feet and pulling him towards the house. Nico resisted at first, feeling awkward and uneasy about Percy being so close, but after a moment he melt into the touch. He melted into the other's embrace.

"Dammit… Dammit!" Nico hissed out as he clutched onto Percy's arm. Percy had never seen Nico look so strained, so pained with the burning that etched through his skin. The boy's face was casted downwards in distress and Percy wanted nothing more to make the other feel alright, however, he wasn't sure if any of his attempts were helping.

Nico was seated on the banister for the bathroom sink, feet stuck in the cool water as Percy ran a tender hand over his shoulder. Brushing his hair back, eyes focused on the other's face, Percy wasn't really tending to the burns as best as he could have. Nerveless, he had gotten the first aid kit from the kitchen and taken Nico into the bathroom, knowing that he need to get cold water on the burns first. To be honest they didn't look to bad, but the skin was raw and red, looking more irritated than anything.

"I'm guessing it hurts." Percy acknowledged, glancing from his feet to the cast on his arm. Of all the shit luck.

"What do you think?!" Nico hissed out as he drew his feet from the water. With a whimper of pain, the smaller boy lowered his feet from the banister, waiting for Percy to get the first aid kit.

Opening the latches on the white box, taking out gauze, bandages, burn cream, and a gel ice pack, Percy glanced at Nico once more and listened to him sniffle. The boy still had a few tears lingering on his cheeks. Forgetting his task at hand, Percy moved towards him, wiping a single hand along his cheek. Nico winced lightly, shoving the hand away in disgust.

"Don't." He noted with a grim face, "Just help me fix my feet."

"I didn't mean anything by it," Percy recoiled before snorting about the last comment, "Fix your feet? The way you said that is just kind of funny."

"You know if you just want to joke then go back outside. I actually need help here." Nico noted in annoyance. The trestle of pain was clearly evident in his voice. Percy simply nodded in acknowledgement, feeling sympathy for the other. He had always had a soft side for Nico and now it was going to show more than ever. He understood perfectly well why Nico was being so uneasy about him: Nico was cold in a way, but he had a reason to keep everyone at an arm's length. The fact that they had been through a lot just added to the flames.

Nico sighed deeply before adding to his latest comments, "Sei un fottuto idiota!"

"Alright." Percy sighed in resignation, before taking out the gauze with one hand. He gently undid the roll, watching breathlessly as the strips unrolled and hit the floor. He gasped with a sense of shock as he realized how long the roll had actually been, "Whoa…" He murmured

A stiff, cackling laugh burst through Nico's lips as he watched the boy's innocents and uncertainly, almost like a small child mesmerized by something amazing. He had the same look as a child: eyes wide and sparkling, lips opened in an o, cheeks dashed with a blush. Realizing how he had just compared Percy, Nico choked back the laugh, drowning it as he once again became monotone.

"Here…" Percy murmured as he laid the now crumbled gauze on the banister and uncapped the tube of burn cream. Squirting the gray cream on his thumb, Percy bent down below Nico on one knee. The boy sitting upon the sink looked down at Percy with surprised eyes, realizing how gentle and unarguably sweet he was being in these moments. With a single stroke Percy ran a thick coat of the cream along the red, looping burn. He was unsure whether or not this would help, however, he wanted to do something. Anything really.

"Does that feel any better?" Percy asked as he examined the boy's foot further. When a reply didn't come, Percy looked up at Nico, freezing in absolute and utter terror. Nico had his good hand clamped tightly between his teeth, head loped back as the surging pain ran through his body. Cheeks were flushed; a vivid reminder of his pain as tears tenderly streaked his face.

"Nico...Fucking hell, Nico! " Percy cried as he struggled to his feet. Grabbing the boy by his shoulder, ripping the hand from his mouth, Percy embraced the other into his arms. The bearish hug was meant to last mere second, just a faint comfort and reassurance, but Nico refused to let go as one hand grappled through Percy's thick matted locks.

Before Percy could question the action, confusion swirling inside, Nico burst, lips quivering and more tears coming forth although they were not from pain physical, "Percy….Percy! I'm so sorry! I'm sorry! I can't do this anymore! I miss you, okay! I fucking miss you with ever fucking part of me! I got my goddamn arm broken because I wanted to keep watch over you and now this shit is going on! I can't stand this. I just can't. Everything hurts way too much! And I…...I still love you…Please!"

Jerking backwards out of his arms, crinkling Percy's shirt collar, nearly knocking the boy over in surprise, Nico pulled him downwards. Lips met in a heat of passion. Although Nico had never meant for a kiss to occur it happened: soft, short, and sweet. There were no passionate moans or roaming hands. No murmurs of I love you or fingers in hair. It was just Nico and Percy. There. Holding each other. Breath mingling and lips pressing together in a wave of heat. Although there wasn't much hype to the kiss, the emotions that came next were overwhelming. It was like firecrackers being lite in their stomachs. Everything blurred as Nico lost himself in the kiss. He could feel the softness on his skin, taste the sweetness of his lips, and most of all he could smell the deep cologne and the faint hint of wood smoke.

After a second, Percy pulled back, breaking the kiss way sooner than Nico wished to. He had never seen Percy with so much self-restraint. And he had never seen himself so weak. Looking up at the larger boy, eyes half lidded, Nico gave a sigh of resignation followed by a deep intake of breath, choking back those remaining tears.

"Dammit, Jackson," Nico murmured as he buried his face into the other's shoulder. "Why do you make me love you?"

To be honest, Percy was in shock, still left at square one, however, he didn't fight the embrace. Drawling the boy closer to his chest, laying a hand around his lower thigh and the other around his shoulder, Percy grinned inwards although it hurt a little inside, listening as the first rain drops clicked upon the thick roof.

"You know what? I hate your damn smile, your damn voice, your fucking stupid laugh, and your damn ocean blue eyes. But out of everything I hate there is one thing that kills me a little inside: The fact that I love you." Nico sniffled again, a few tears trembling from his eyes as Percy once again tried to wipe his cheeks, "Even with that I know one thing. I know that you are my tutto. Ti amo, Percy Jackson."

Without thinking, Percy wrapped his arms tighter around Nico before breathing out, "Ti amo, Nico di Angelo. I love you, too."

Italian Words

(Hey you guys! I know sometimes I add Nico speaking Italian into my fan fictions because that's one of the languages that it mentions he is fluently in during the Percy Jackson series. Anyways, I thought it would be a good idea to add this at the bottom in case some don't know what the words are. I may not be very fluently myself in Italian, but I hope most of these are right. XD I just thought it would be helpful you guys. Once more thank you all for reading.)

Tutto- Everything (Can also be translated to all over or whole)

Ti amo- I love you

Sei un fottuto idiota!- You're a fucking idiot!

Ti voglio bene, amico mio.- I love you, my friend.