Percy Jackson is not my doing. A great man named Rick Riordan owns it.

Sometimes, I look up at the stars and wonder why people wish upon them. They're cold, unreachable. Since I was a kid, I had always been wishing upon them. But none of them came true. My dad never came back, my sister was hardly smiling, my mom's health deteriorated. I stopped trusting in them. I stopped hoping that I would be like every kid in school with two cool parents and a nice house to stay in. My sister and I have been taking care of ourselves since I was twelve. Five whole years. And id am proud to say that we are still alive.

I haven't spoken in so long I forgot why I didn't, or how to do so in the first place. People keep their distance from me. I don't mind that. It's fine.

Stars are great big balls of fire that can burn you and kill you. If you can get there, that is. I think that we should wish on the little flower that sprung overnight on your porch. Or the cloud that looks like it's actually cotton candy and not a bunch of water droplets who were too high to fall back to the ground. Or even the one leaf that fell from its branches the minute it grew. Stuff that are completely relatable yet unpredictable.

"Hi there! I'm Will. You?" a cheerful voice broke Nico's train of thought. Will had a large optimistic smile on his face, along with a splash of freckles. He was wearing a bright yellow shirt that went oddly well with his blond hair. It, however, contrasted with Nico's pale skin and dark clothing. He seemed much too cheerful for this school.

Bright smile? Check. Badge that says 'Goode is Good'? Check. Colourful clothing? Check. This guy was definitely new.

For some reason, Nico felt like trusting him. Which was strange because he rarely trusted anyone.

Nico he scrawled on a piece of paper.

A look of confusion flashed across his face. "Why'd-" then he cut himself off. His confused expression morphed into one of understanding. "Oh. You can't talk?"

Normally, when someone said it like that, Nico would step on the offender's foot and walk off. But it felt different when Will said it. Like he understood. A surge of courage ran through him.

Do you want to sit here? The seat's empty, he wrote. Will looked up in delight and surprise. "Really? Thanks!" he dumped his bag on the seat and sat down. Nico wondered why the boy chose to sit down there in the first place—right under the teacher's nose. He was place in front because a) he was small and b) the teachers had this weird stereotype that students with disorders had to sit in front. The other boy next to him confirmed it. He was deaf, but could hear much better than most of the other people when he turned his hearing aids to the maximum volume. The kid played it in his favour, though, pretending he couldn't hear when the teacher called on him.

"So, who's the teacher?" Will asked, trying to start a conversation. As if on cue, a plump woman walked into the class. She was the exact definition of a teddy bear. The right shape, a head filled with cotton and no heart. He wasn't trying to be mean, really. But why would they let someone who couldn't differentiate left from right teach Math? Especially to those people who wanted a proper education like him.

"Hello children! I'm Mrs Dodds! I see we have a new student with us here today. Mr Solace, would you like to come up here? Children, please stand up and introduce yourself so he would know who you are. Starting from the back, please."

Nico's eyebrows creased slightly. Since when do teachers make us do this? Shouldn't it be the new kid doing it? Reluctantly, the students stood up and introduced themselves.

Jason, Harley, Luke, Piper.

The names blended together. How was it possible to remember all their names? Poor Will was standing in front of the class looking extremely lost.

Leo, Nyssa, Percy… him.

His eyes widened and Mrs Dodds smirked. Oh, he thought. So that's why she wanted to do that. To humiliate me even more. This lady should seriously consult Miss Iris. But Will shot him an encouraging smile. Hesitating slightly, he held up a paper with his name written on it in capital letters. Her ugly smile turned into an even uglier frown, but she said nothing and gestured for Will to go back. He walked back to his seat and whispered, "You did great."

Nico smiled for the first time that day.

The small movement caught his eye. It wasn't much, just the sudden change of lighting, the thick book placed in front of him and the cheerful and familiar "hi!". Nico tore his eyes away from his very interesting sandwich and looked up. Will Solace was standing in front of him wearing an even bigger smile, if it was even possible to.

"Look what I found in the library," he said excitedly. Long, slender fingers picked up the book and glossy black eyes skimmed across the title.

A COMPLETE GUIDE TO SIGN LANGUAGE

BY JOHN DADDARIO

"Now you don't have to write everything down when we speak."

Thoughts raced across his mind faster than any bullet train. What does he mean he'll learn it? Does that mean that he wants to continue talking to me? Is he going to be my friend? What am I supposed to say?

Without thinking, Nico pushed his sandwich away, got up and dragged Will along with him. He was going to teach Will Solace how to sign.

Do you understand what I'm saying? Nico signed.

Will grinned. "Totally. This is epic. I swear you've taught me more than any other teacher could." Then his expression turned serious. "Um, just out of curiosity, is um being mute like an inborn thing or something?" then his face went red and he continued on hurriedly. "That was insensitive, I'm sorry. You don't have to answer." Will silently cursed himself for being such a tactless friend.

Nico raised his eyebrows and shrugged, not in the least bit looking like he cared.

Letting out a long sigh, he looked up and said, "We're done for the day right?" Nico nodded, stood up and left the room. Will watched in silence as his footsteps receded down the hallway.

Unbeknownst to Will, Nico was standing behind the wall across the room, watching his every movement. Nico found him intriguing, curious. He was the only guy that was nice to him, while everyone ignored him. It was a pleasant change, but he doubted that it would be like any of the other friends he made. Something in Will's smile made him trust the blond boy.

The sun is so near, but yet so unreachable. We will never understand it. I think that we should wish on the sun instead. It is so much more beautiful than stars could ever get.

There, done. It sounds a bit choppy but I'm working on it. I'm throwing in some Solangelo cause I ship it :) Nothing too major though.
Please review and tell me what you think!

Yours in demigoddishness and all that,
Peace out

-tomatohunter