I apologize for the amount of time this took .

I wanted to get it up earlier, but shit happen…

Still, I hope you enjoy and please leave a review!

To any mortal, it was a normal Saturday afternoon when a crash sounded above the din of traffic. A few people peeked through the curtains of their kitchen windows, in search of the sound's mysterious origin. I'm sure if they looked up, they would have seen a scrawny teenager kneeling defeated on the rickety green fire escape.

Unlike the mortals, I had not been having a normal morning. Even before I found Nico on my fire escape, I'd been having a pretty stressful day.

You see, I'd known for days that Nico planned to tell Hazel about our relationship. I spent that Saturday afternoon alternating between Youtube and Netflix in a desperate attempt to distract myself.

Part of me was really, really happy. If everything went well, telling Hazel would just be another step towards Nico properly accepting his sexuality. I knew that it meant I would be able to tell my parents and friends about us.

I hoped that it would make us happy, at least happier than we were now.

But of course, I was terrified that it would end in disaster. I'd confidently explained to Nico that I was positive that Hazel would be okay with anything he would have to say. Even if she was a little awkward at first, I told him she would eventually get used to the idea.

I wasn't really that confident though. I was being stupidly optimistic and naive.

I liked to think that Hazel would be alright with Nico. I wanted to think that I knew her well enough after spending all those months traveling with her. Maybe this specific thing never came up in conversation, but she never really expressed any distaste for the modern world (except technology). It didn't help that Nico and I both had such positive experiences with Jason and Annabeth that it was scary to think that someone so close to us would abandon us. It was hard to imagine someone so sweet being so…bigoted.

I knew there was always the chance that Hazel would reject Nico. She could hate him for this, refuse to understand that's there is nothing he can do to change it, that he would never choose this ridicule. There was the chance that things would never be the same between the two of them. I really didn't want to consider this possibility, because I knew it would kill him and any chance of making this work.

If she reacted negatively, it could take her months for her to adjust and embrace Nico, and that was if she was even willing to go that far. Even if things were eventually okay, it was going to be hell dealing with it in the present.

I didn't want to see him like that again. Happy Nico was…wonderful. He'd gotten so comfortable with me over the past few weeks together, unafraid to share a chaste kiss. He had been gradually softening ever since we'd gotten together. He smiled and laughed more in the past month than I had ever seen. I didn't want to go back to seeing the hollow, sad Nico that had existed for years.

So when I heard a crash on the fire escape, I immediately assumed it was Nico and not some falling flower pot. Part of me hoped that he was just tired after shadow-traveling across the country. That tended to happen.

There was always the chance he'd collapsed of bodily harm. I tried not to think about it, but it was always a possibility. I knew Nico wasn't that stupid though. If he was really hurt, he would go straight to Will.

I knew before I opened the window, before I even looked, what was coming my way. I think I knew deep in my heart, but I was just trying to ignore it.

No amount of thought could have prepared me for reality though.

In reality, I was confronted with shaking, sobbing Nico, kneeling on my fire escape. He only acknowledged me when he heard me. His head slowly rose, and he rose stiffly and climbed through the window without a word.

He stood in front of me for a minute, just long enough so that I could get a look at him.

His hair hung lank in front his his red, puffy eyes. Tears continued to run tracks down his already wet face. He had his arms wrapped around himself, his should shaking with each shuddering breath. The skin exposed by the rips in his jeans was raw and bloody. Every once in a while, a whimper or sniffle would break the silence.

He met my eyes, misery plain on his face, and immediately threw himself at me, going limp in my arms as he buried his face in my should. The sobs only intensified from here, becoming heavier and louder. His breathing grew more ragged with each passing second.

I didn't have to ask him what was wrong. I already knew…

I hugged him back tightly because it was my job as his boyfriend, as his support, as someone who loved him more than I could admit. I placed my chin lightly on his head before leading him to my bed.

I don't know how long we lied there, tangled in each other. Muffled sobs and sniffles echoed, making me grateful I was home alone for the moment.

In the beginning, I panicked, unsure what I could do to calm him down. This was bad, really bad.

This wasn't like the nightmares we both had. I couldn't just tell him that it wasn't real, that he was safe. He was living in a nightmare right now. Hazel had really done the unthinkable, and there was nothing I could do to fix him right now.

Eventually, I settled on my usual method. It always worked when we had nightmares. Count with him so that he could try and regulate his breathing. Maybe it would help, at least a little.

"In through your nose. Five. Four. Three. Two. One," I whispered in his ear as I held his hand against my chest, surely leaving russet colored stains.

"And out."

I could keep doing this. I just had to stay strong.

It was hard though. It was always hard to watch someone you loved be this upset. Seeing Nico like this, erratic and utterly inconsolable, was terrifying and depressing in the same breath. I didn't know what to say, or if I could even help at this point.

We continued in this pattern for a surprisingly long time as I waited for him to calm down. I knew he had to stop eventually.

And he did. As we counted together, Nico's breathing evened out and he began peeling himself away. His head came to rest on my shoulder, sharp profile outlined against my blue shirt.

"I'll be right back," I spoke softly once I was sure he was okay (or okay enough).

I grabbed two washcloths from the tiny linen closet, wetting them with cold water in the bathroom. I grabbed a fistful of bandaids and Neosporin.

When I came back, Nico wasn't lying in my bed, curled up in a loose fetal position, his hair fanned across my pillow. He must be exhausted by this point, but I knew I couldn't let him go to sleep yet.

"Hey, time to get up," I whispered, leaning down to his ear. I knelt on the floor in front of him, carding my fingers through his hair in an attempt to comfort him.

He was silent during the whole first aid exchange. I kept one of the cold washcloths, using it to gently wipe the blood and dirt away from the cuts that dotted his skin. I encouraged him to place the other one across his eyes to cool down and reduce the swelling. After I bandaged the last cut (a particularly nasty one on his palm), I helped him back onto his side. I could sense his exhaustion.

I sat, maintaining contact with him until his eyes finally drooped shut and his breathing settled into a slow, easy pace.

Once he was asleep, I reluctantly left his side to wait in the living room for my mother to come home. I turned the TV on as a distraction, lowering the volume so I wouldn't wake Nico.

I let out a shaky breath as the full weight of the situation at hand hit me. This was really happening. Hazel had rejected Nico. I didn't have the heart to ask for specifics, especially not now. If I even so much as mentioned her name, he would probably break down again. But no, I couldn't cry. I had to be strong for him.

I began formulating a plan. I knew my mom would question why Nico was asleep in my bed. So I resolved to tell her the whole truth. I knew Nico would be angry when he woke up, but I could deal with that later. I needed to explain what was really going on if Nico was ever going to get better.

I knew my mom would understand, I wasn't at all afraid of her reaction, nor was I of Paul's. But for this weekend to work out, I needed their support.

I knew Nico wouldn't want to go back to camp, at least not anytime soon. News would spread surprisingly fast among the camps. Frank had probably found out by now after talking to Hazel. It was only a matter of time. And I knew Nico wouldn't want to deal with Jason. He would have so many questions, and Nico was in no position to relive those moments.

And even if he decided on his own to go back to camp, I wasn't comfortable with the idea myself. He was just going to go back to shutting himself away in his cabin. He wouldn't act like he had been lately, and he certainly wouldn't be participating in any activities.

So he was going to stay with me. I'd decided that was the best possible way to deal with this. A few days with me might make him feel a little better too. He could sleep on the couch, and have a little time away from his problems. And having such a motherly figure to support him would probably do wonders. He'd always liked my mom, ever since he'd first met her.

I just had to tell her about us first. I knew that my mom probably wouldn't ask about Nico. She was more than willing to shelter needy demigods from time to time. But there was no way I could have Nico here for a whole weekend without making it clear that we were closer than friends.

It would be for the better, in the end. He might be mad, but I just had to take the opportunity.

It felt like it took forever for my mom to get home, but eventually I heard the jingle of her keys in the lock. I was greeted to her short figure somehow managing to carry all the bags up in one trip, as she always did (and subsequently regretted).

I followed her into the kitchen as she chattered on about what she was making for dinner, or something funny that happened at work. I wasn't really paying attention. But usually I was laughing at her stories, or at least making some sort of comment. I leaned against the door frame awkwardly until she realized that something was going on.

She turned around from the kitchen counter littered with paper bags. Her brow furrowed when she caught the look on my face.

I bit my lip, "Can we talk about something?"

Despite my confidence, this was still nerve racking.

"Of course," she replied, lips already pulling into a frown and worry lines reforming on her face. I never talked to her like that. If I had something to say…I just said it.

She cleared a little space on the table and we sat down. I wrung my hands worriedly in front of me.

"So, um, I guess you've noticed that I've been feeling a bit, um, better lately. At least better than I have been since I came home. Well, it's all because I've been…keeping something from you," I began. This was a lot harder than I'd ever imagined, especially since my mom had always been such a huge supporter of Annabeth and I. I'm sure she'd gotten just as used to the idea of little blonde grandchildren as I had.

"Honey," she interrupted in a soft voice, "Anything you have to say to me is nothing to stress over. I love you, and I love having you back the way you should be. Now what is it?"

"I've been… I've been dating someone," I said simply.

A look of surprise passed over her face, but she hid it quickly. "Oh! Who is it? Is she from camp? Do I know her?" she questioned, obviously happy that I'd found someone after Annabeth. I suppose she was still under the impression that my spell of depression had been because of our breakup.

"Um, yeah. He's…he's from camp," I gulped. There, I'd finally said it.

Her mouth hung open a little, and she blinked confusedly. I knew this was sudden and out of nowhere. I'd never professed any interest in guys, not once when I was a kid. It's not like she ever would have expected it.

But instead of freaking out and shouting, as I assume Hazel had, my mother smiled a little once the shock wore off. The smile alone was enough to ensure me that everything was going to be alright between us.

"Percy…I-I don't care who you fall in love with. You're still my little boy, nothing has changed at all. I'm just glad that you're happy, sweetie. That's all I've ever wanted for you," she promised, face lighting up in a grin.

We stood up and hugged tightly. If I hadn't gotten so tall over the last few years, this hug would have been just like the ones I'd gotten when I was little.

She was right. Nothing had really changed. I wasn't any different, and neither was our relationship.

"And Paul's going to be just fine with this too. Everything's going to be fine…" she murmured into the hug.

"You do know him though," I chuckled as she pulled away and cocked a questioning eyebrow. She'd only met a handful of my male demigod friends, and couldn't see me ever dating a mortal (at least not after everything I've been through). Gods, she probably thought I was hooking up with Jason, especially since he was a blonde like Annabeth. She probably thought he was my type too. But no, we're strictly bros. Nothing going on there, I promise.

"Nico," I answered plainly, without explanation, knowing her reaction would be pretty comical. He wasn't exactly, or at least outwardly, my type, or even remotely like anyone I've ever dated or crushed on.

I had to chuckle even harder at the surprised smile on her face.

Hope that wasn't too sad! Let me know what you think or anything you want to see!