A/N school's about to start so updates will be super spread out unless I can help it. Anyways, enjoy, review, follow, favorite, whatever. I own nothing.
Will's POV
"Neeks, I wanna shower." Will states.
"That sounds like a good idea, but are you sure?" Nico analyzes.
"I need to. I've been sick for a while and haven't showered. I feel disgusting and I don't doubt that I'm starting to smell. Please Nico?" Will begs.
"Okay," Nico caves. "But you can't get your hands wet, the bandages need to stay clean and dry. How are we gonna do that?"
"We have silicone bags we keep in the infirmary to keep casts dry." Will suggests with a wince.
"But those are for casts and they aren't great at keeping it fully dry. Maybe I can go ask Percy if he would be willing to help keep the water from soaking your arms. I'm sure he would." Nico suggests.
"Sure, if he's up for it." Will swallows. "And if we could make it quick, that'd be great."
"You still not feeling great?" Nico asks. Will groans. "Do you feel like you're gonna be sick again?"
"Uh-uh. My head is pounding and my body hurts. My stomach still hurts a little but I have nothing to bring up." Will confesses.
"I'm sorry, Sunshine. Hopefully a shower will make it a little bit better. And if that doesn't, then I'll just have to cuddle you until it does." Nico replied.
"I like this Nico. He actually shows affection and is willing to snuggle without me having to ask for it." Will teases him.
"Shut up."
— — —
"Okay Will, Percy's here." Nico informs his boyfriend with Percy trailing him into the Apollo cabin.
"I can make the water flow off of your arms right above your elbows." Percy says.
"Sounds good." Will mumbles.
"Okay Percy, I'll come and let you know when you're good to leave." Nico informs. "C'mon Will." Nico ushers his boyfriend into the bathroom. The son of Hades turns on the shower to a comfortably warm temperature then turns to Will to help him strip off his clothes.
"Are you sure you want me with you?" Nico asks, referring to showering with Will.
"Yes. I'm sure." Will says, the only thing he's been fully confident in all day.
"Okay." Nico complies by taking off his clothes and following Will into the shower. Just like Percy said, the water flowed over his elbows like there was an air pocket around them.
Both naked and vulnerable, Nico helps Will wash off for the first time in almost a week. To Will, it feels good to be clean after being sick and injured for 6 days, but his adrenaline is also fading and the original feeling of 'sick' sets back in. Nico, of course, notices this once Will's body starts shaking and shivering uncontrollably.
"Is it too cold?" Nico asks, concerned.
"N-no." Will askers, teeth chattering.
"Are you sure? Cuz I can turn it up so that-"
"No. It-it's just the ad-adrenaline wearing off, it's n-no big deal… but can we hurry?" Will asks, hopefully.
"Yeah. Yeah!" Nico hurries with cleaning himself off. "Do you want to wash your hair now or I can do it later in the sink."
"L-later please. I'm really tired and I feel sick." Will confesses.
"Okay, ready to get out?" Nico asks. Will nods and they both step out of the shower. Nico wraps a towel around his waist and helps his boyfriend dry off so that he can get dressed in a new pair of sweats and a loose t-shirt. He leaves Will leaning on the counter while he throws his clothes on. "Percy, you're good to go. Thank you for helping, Will really needed it."
"Anytime. I'll come check up on you guys later. Call me if you need anything before then." Percy takes that as his cue to exit the cabin. Nico grabs a chair from next to one of the bunks and brings it into the bathroom. The son of Hades sits Will down right in front of the sink and uses a towel to cushion his neck on. He leans back with his head in the sink and Nico warms the water while he grabs Will's shampoo and conditioner from the shower.
"Ready?" Nico asks, waiting for a response.
"Yes, please." Will lets his head sink further into the water as Nico starts lathering his hair with shampoo. His fingers rub the soap into Will's hair while simultaneously massaging his scalp. It feels so good that Will feels like he might fall asleep right there and then.
Nico, of course, notices the slack in Will's body and his struggle to keep his eyes open so he speaks. "You can relax. I'll wake you up when I'm done." Will takes the newfound permission and lets sleep overtake him. He falls asleep to the feeling of Nico's hands washing his hair.
— — —
Nico's POV
I knew Will needed a shower and I knew he wanted his hair washed, but I didn't think he'd fall asleep while I was doing it. When I noticed his eyes start to droop, I knew there was no way he would be able to stay awake when my only intention was to make him feel good.
Will did fall asleep, almost 30 seconds after Nico gave him permission to. Nico told him that he would wake him up when he was done so that they could move to the bed, but that was never the intended plan. Nico knew Will needed rest since the adrenaline wore off rather quickly, so when he told Will he would wake him up, that was just to give him the reassurance that he could sleep. His new plan was to dry Will's hair as best as he could once he was done and then carry him to bed.
He grabs a towel and pats his boyfriend's hair dry then picks him up bridal style and carries him to his bunk. Being able to manhandle his 6 foot, 165 pound boyfriend is one thing that Nico has always taken great pride in.
Once they're both settled in bed Nico holds Will close and they drift off into a semi-peaceful sleep.
— — —
Will's POV
"Just because your hands are mostly healed and don't need to be bandaged 24/7 anymore, doesn't mean you can just go back to healing and being reckless about it." Nico warns him.
"I know, I know. I'll be better, I promise." Will replies. Nico holds his hand for the first time in two weeks.
"Good." Nico says.
"Are you nervous for your surgery tomorrow?" Will asks, looking at Nico with concern. The latter fidgets with his free hand.
"A little…" Nico answers, "A lot." Will squeezes his hand in reassurance.
"It's gonna be fine. I'll be right there with you, and Jason's coming right?"
"Yeah," Nico confirms. "Where are we going again?"
"To the infirmary," Nico groans. "You have one final checkup before your surgery so that's what we're going to do." Will explains.
"Do I really have to? You already know how I'm doing, so why do you need to do a formal checkup?" Nico complains.
"Because it's protocol. I mean I guess I made up the protocol but still. It'll be good to know to track your recovery and everything, besides even if you didn't have surgery, it'd be time for your monthly checkup so you'd have to do it anyway."
"Ugh." Nico groans as they walk into the infirmary. Knowing where to go and what to do, Nico makes his way to a back room and strips off his shoes and sweatshirt.
Will walks in shortly after with a cart full of medical supplies. He takes out a stethoscope and listens to his boyfriend's heart and breathing. Next, the son of Hades steps on a scale so that Will can document his weight.
106.3
"Good. Your weight is increasing so that you're closer to the normal range that you should be in." Nico gives Will a suspicious look. "That's good. Really good. I mean you're still underweight but it's a lot better than when it was a couple months ago."
The healer continues his exam by taking Nico's temperature, blood pressure, blood sugar, and overall making sure all of his injuries had healed correctly along with a brief check/exam on his head, eyes, ears, nose and throat. "Okay, you're all done. You look good, your injuries haven't been aggravated since they healed, which is good, and your weight has gone up. Vital signs have been good so you should be set for surgery."
"Thank you. Now let's get outta here." Nico suggests, as he pulls Will out of the infirmary.
— — —
"Will," Nico whispers to the boy lying next to him.
"Yeah?" Will asks.
"I'm scared." The son of Hades whimpers.
"Hey, it's gonna be okay. And if anything goes wrong, I will help the best I can. I'll be there for you." Will reassures his boyfriend. "I love you, you don't have to go through this alone."
"I know, I know. I'm just… I don't know, anxious, I guess. First there's the surgery then there's physical therapy and if something goes wrong I could have to have another surgery and there's guarantee that I'll be okay after that. There are endless things that could go wrong and with my luck, all of them would." Nico sighs.
"Nico, darlin', I know you're scared and I'm gonna be honest, I am too, but it's going to be okay." The son of Apollo wraps Nico in his arms with Will's head resting on top of Nico's. "It's gonna be okay. You are not alone and with me around you'll never have to be again, that is one thing I can promise."
"I love you. Thank you so much." Nico says into Will's shirt.
"You're welcome. I love you too, now let's get some sleep, tomorrow's gonna be a rough day." Will hugs Nico to his chest and they fall asleep in each other's arms.
— — —
"Neeks," Will whispers. "Nico, I've let you sleep as long as I can but you have to get up now." He gently shakes Nico awake and the latter groans.
"I don't wanna." Nico complains. "Let's just skip."
"Nico, we can't skip," Will chuckles. "You need your knee fixed. Now get up, we gotta go." The son of Apollo throws the blankets off of Nico and stands next to the bed to pull him up.
"Will!" Nico yelps, the cold washing over him.
"Nico, you need to get up," An idea comes to mind. "If you don't get up now I'm gonna have to start tickling you." Will smirks.
"You're bluffing. You wouldn't do that this early," Nico states, sure of himself.
"Am I?" Will wiggles his fingers threateningly close to Nico's stomach. He begins tickling low on Nico's stomach and his sides violently.
"Ah-ah! Will! St-sto-stop!" Nico tries to hold in his obnoxious laugh. "Ah-ah-ha!" He folds in on himself and tries to pry his boyfriend's hands off, doubling over and giving more opportunity to Will as he leaves his neck and underarms completely unguarded.
Will, being Will, took his chance and started attacking the crook of his neck with his nimble fingers and wiggling them lightly under Nico's arm.
"AhHaah! Wi-hiilll! Stop! Stop! I'll ge-get up, I sw-swear! Will!" Nico laughs, still trying to escape his grasp.
"Okay, darlin'," Will stills his hands and bends down to kiss his boyfriend. "Now, let's go, Chiron and Jason and Argus are gonna be waiting forever." Will drags Nico out of the bed and throws some clothes at him, a pair of shorts, boxers, a t-shirt, and Will's sweatshirt.
"Why do I have to wear shorts?" Nico complains more as he slips the clothes on.
"Because you're having surgery on your knee and it'll be easier to slip your pants back on over the brace and bandages if you're wearing shorts." Will explains for the fifth time. Will throws on his own outfit consisting of cargo shorts and a camp medic shirt covered by light blue sweatshirt.
"Why do you insist on wearing shorts all the freaking time?" Nico asks, exasperated. "It's October! I only ever wear shorts when I absolutely have to."
"Not everyone is the Prince of the Underworld, King of Ghosts, that has an aversion to sunlight and being tan." Will sasses. Nico smacks him in the arm. "Oh stop that, you love me. Now, let's go." Will grasps Nico's hand in his and they head out of the cabin to the Big House.
"Hey, Neeks, you ready?" Jason asks.
"Nope."
"Welp… at least he's honest." Jason looks at Will. Will just shrugs.
"Well boys, let's go." Chiron says as he wheels himself out of the Big House and to the camp van.
"Let's go get your surgery done." Will says, taking Nico's hand in his own and half dragging him to the big house.
— — —
"Wow, now I really wish we were allowed to have phones. You look so young and adorable and loopy in your hospital gown and surgical cap." Jason coos at his best friend. Nico raises his right hand and flips Jason off.
"Nico." Will chastises. "Jason's right though. You look so cute right now."
"I am not cute." Nico protests. "I am drugged."
"Chill out. It was a light sedative to help you calm down." Jason teases.
"Same thing." Nico says. The doctor walks into the room and draws out the incision sight on his right knee. She tells him she's going to have some nurses take him back in a couple of minutes and she leaves the room. Nico clenches his fists and his breathing picks up.
"Hey, deep breaths." Will takes Nico's hand in his and lightly squeezes. Nico and Will take a couple synced breaths, Nico's being quite shaky.
"Thank you." Nico gives his boyfriend a small smile.
"Okay, Nico," Some nurses walk into the room to take him to surgery. "Ready to go?"
Nico doesn't say anything, but he nods as they start to unlock the wheels of the gurney. They're ready to take him away when Will stands up to give him a last minute kiss.
"I love you." He whispers.
"Love you too." Nico reciprocates.
"We'll be here when you wake up." Will promises.
But what if they aren't? Nico thinks sadly. He smiles sadly at the boy as he's whisked away to an operating room.
"You really love him don't you?" Jason asks as Will stares sadly at the door his boyfriend just exited through.
"Yes. Yes, I do." Will responds confidently.
"Good. You make him happy. Keep it that way." Jason threatens lightly. "He has an army of people ready to kill you on sight if you hurt him."
"I know." Will says. "I don't plan on hurting him."
"Good."