This has swearing. And angst. And protective!Will because I. Am. Trash for that.

Have a great Christmas guys.

"Do you even care?" Will Solace screamed, his normally calm face contorted in anger.

Nico tried not to shrink back fro his boyfriend, falling back on his other support; rage.

"I'm sorry!" He yelled, his tone implying he meant anything but that.

"I can't believe you!" Will said, his voice dying down.

Nico had screwed up, Nico could admit that at least, but Will was over-reacting far too much. He had been in a fight with a (small, there could have hardly been ore than ten) group of monsters, somewhere in rural America between Camp Jupiter and Camp Half-Blood, and then he'd shadow-travelled to Camp Half-Blood. It hardly seemed like an awful thing, until you count that Nico had been forbidden from shadow-travelling and that he'd pretty much passed out afterwards, in the Hades cabin for two days (Apparently raising a few skeletons to fight them off as well as doing all the fancy fight moves he'd leant from both of the camps had been too much)which no-one had bothered to check, until an extremely worried Hazel had been sent down to Camp Half-Blood after Nico had left Camp Jupiter with no word saying he'd arrived safely.

So it had led to this, Nico clutching the end of his infirmary bed, unsteady on his feet, while Will shouted at him.

"I couldn't help that I passed out!" Nico exclaimed, trying to shift his weight from his legs to relying on the rails at the end of his bed to keep him upright.

Will spun around, arms coming up to show his utter disappointment in his boyfriend. He kicked angrily at the floor, Nico wincing at the sharp squeaking sound.

"You know what? Fuck off. Go to fucking hell." Will spat in frustration, twisting around and glowering at the smaller boy.

"Okay." Nico said calmly, letting go of the bed and feeling his heart drop as Will didn't come forward to help him, even as he wobbled like Bambi.

And he was gone and Will's hands came up to his face again, hiding his eyes that were threatening to spill over.

Well done, Solace, a voice in his mind hisses, You managed to drive him away. You screwed up.

(*Mister Maker shape voice* I am, a line break.)

Nico collapsed outside Hades palace, breathing heavily. He was among Persephone's jewel flowers, a glinting red one just inches from his hands, which were clutching the loose ashy dirt.

Fuck. Fuck it, di Angelo. You fucked up with Will. He thought and he felt his stomach lurch. He had hated that look in his boyfriends (Did that title even still stand?) eyes.

He got to his feet, brushing soil off his clothes. He didn't have his coat, only his T-Shirt and black jeans that did nothing against the biting cold of the Underworld.

He staggered to the door and knocked on it, to be greeted by one of the zombies than ran the palace.

"Inform my father I will be staying a while." he told the corpse, who had an eye missing and a bandage wrapped around his upper arm.

It made a confirming noise and Nico waved it off when it tried to trail after him to his rooms.

He sank down on his bed, and clenched his eyes shut. His father would want to talk to him, and -as he lay down on the bed, making a mental note to check if the spare combat boots he had tucked away in his wardrobe still fit- he was not facing Hades when he felt like he was going to pass out.

As his head hit the pillow, he was asleep.

It was almost a full week later, when Nico arrived in Camp Half-Blood again. He had sent word fro his father's palace to tell Hazel he was okay, and he didn't doubt his sister had passed the message onto Will.

Nico dithered outside of the infirmary block, one hand running through his hair, as he wondered how he was going to do this.

Will might not even like you anymore, A spiteful voice in the back of his head said and that made Nico's mind up. He wasn't a coward and he would face his boyfriend's (possible) rage.

He walked through the door, and straight (Well, not straight) into an orange-clad chest.

"Nico?" No matter the horrendous scenarios Nico had ran through while he was in the Underworld, of Will laughing at the child of death, claiming their relationship was a joke, who would love him? Or of Will just ignoring him, pretending that they didn't happen. Nico had not been expecting a hitch of breath and a plaintive hopeful voice.

He also wasn't expecting the sudden hug, that all but lifted him off of his feet.

"Nico, I'm sorry." Nico must have imagined the way Will's voice cracked and how his arms grew tighter. "I'm so, so sorry. I was a dic-"

Nico wriggled an arm up, not even thinking of breaking the younger boy's hold on him, and slowly touched Will's face, wet eyes shining up at the blonde boy.

"Its okay." He whispered, and wiped away a tear that was making its pitiful way down the boy's tanned cheek. He stretched up, almost hesitantly, and kissed another away, his heart was beating faster and faster, Will had missed him this much? He thought and wound his other arm around Will, hiding his chest suddenly in his chest.

Will laughed, pulling Nico closer and burying his face in Nico's hair.

"I missed you," he heard the child of Apollo say, under his breath and simply tightened his hold on the younger boy, rocking him slightly.

"I missed you too."