Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

In his humble opinion, Nico di Angelo deserved the Sibling-of-the-Year reward.

If it were up to him, he'd be in his room, huddled under his comforter as he watched Mythomagic content on Twitch or YouTube, not interacting with another human. He had no homework for the first time since he'd begun high school a month prior—a miracle that would never be repeated—so his father and step-mother wouldn't yell at him for it, and he'd be content.

But, no, Nico had to be a good sibling and promise Hazel he'd go to an Art Club meeting with her. His younger sister had a way with her puppy dog eyes; Nico could never say no to her. Which was how he, a self-proclaimed non-artist, ended up going to an Art Club on a Tuesday afternoon when he would have rather taken advantage of the no-homework day. 

As much as he complained though, Art Club wasn't actually that bad. It was quite a small club, consisting mostly of Freshman like himself and Hazel, that preferred to keep to themselves as they doodled. Nico could appreciate that.

He also appreciated the fact that the meeting ended quickly. Call him pessimistic, but he'd been expecting the meeting to drag on while he watched the clock slowly tick until it finally faced the four. He quickly placed his and Hazel's paintings on the drying rack, while she cleaned the paint brushes, ready to leave the bright classroom. He was ready to go home and clock out.

Hazel said quick goodbyes to some of the other kids before the two were off, down the dark halls of their raggedy old school building towards the exit. 

"I don't know why you're always insistant you're a bad artist," Hazel said as she pushed open the exit door, holding it open so her brother could go through with a quick thanks. "Your painting was good."

Nico shrugged, sticking his hands in the pockets of his black jeans. "I'm not getting into an art school."

"That doesn't make you bad!" Hazel said.

"It doesn't make me good either."

Hazel bumped him with her elbow as they walked across the grassy terrain outside their school towards the make-shift archery range setup for the school team's practice. The mid-October weather was unusually warm for New York; students were content with just wearing a light sweater to classes, and the wind was slow, not disturbing the archer's shots too much. Their older sister, Bianca, who was on the archery team, raved about the wonderful weather this morning, praying that Sunday would turn out similarly for her first competition of the year.

The two stopped at the cautioned tape marking the edge of the range. A few of the archers who weren't shooting sat on lawn chairs, arm guards and shooting gloves still on. Bianca was there, talking vehemently with a boy who Nico didn't know (though that wasn't a surprise as Nico was a Freshman and while he had gone to some of Bianca's competitions in the past, he was known in his family for either falling asleep or ignoring every turn except Bianca's.) She waved when she noticed them, a bright smile on her face.

The coach blew a whistle three times, and the current group at the shooting line surged forward to collect their arrows. Nico quickly became bored of watching that, wanting the practice to end already so he could go home (normally he and Hazel took the bus, but since Art Club ended only a little before Archery did, his step-mother had promised to pick the three up together). He had a whole night of nothing to do.

Except, that was when he saw him.

Nico didn't believe in love at first sight. In fact, the jury was still out if he believed in love at all. If he did, he certainly wouldn't experience it yet. He was 14, he barely knew how to love himself. His classmates were falling over each other, declaring that their partner was their love until a month later they'd break up. He'd been in high school for a month, and he'd already witnessed countless loud and boisterous break ups in the hallways and in the cafeteria from other fourteen year olds. Sure, he had crushes, but he wasn't naive. He knew that wasn't love.

And this wasn't love either. But, that didn't mean the boy wasn't really, really pretty. 

He wore jeans and a bright yellow t-shirt that one would think would clash with his deep tan and abundance of freckles, but somehow didn't. Nico normally wasn't a fan of bright colors, but this boy made it work. And everything about him was bright. Not just his clothes, his hair (a mop of blonde curls) or his backpack (neon orange) but his overall aura. Something about him just screamed sunny.

He was sitting on a light blue lawn chair on the other end of the range, away from the archers, reading what looked to be a textbook, if its thick and large pages were anything to go by. Even from this distance, Nico could see that his eyes were a pale blue, the same color as the chair he sat on, which complimented the yellow perfectly.

He didn't even realize he was staring until Hazel bumped his hip with hers, and he was forced to look away. "He's pretty cute," Hazel said.

It took everything in Nico's power not to turn and look back at the boy. "No, he's not." Nico muttered. A lie, of course, but Nico was nothing if not a contrarian. 

Hazel clicked her tongue. "He's moving."

Nico would deny the speed he turned, only to see the boy still sitting in the exact same spot and Hazel doubled over in laughter beside him. 

"Shut up," mumbled Nico, his face darkening to a rather unflattering shade of red. "That didn't happen."

"Of course not." Hazel said earnestly. 

Nico bumped Hazel with his hip which made her double in laughter again. 

The two chattered quietly amongst themselves about anything and everything while the archery team took down the targets, unstrung their bows, and put away their arm guards. 

"Finally," groaned Nico when Bianca started walking towards them, "I thought this'll never end."

Hazel grinned. "Not in a boy who cried wolf way, Neeks, but the boy is actually moving now."

Nico, slowly, turned back towards the boy. He was, in fact, moving. Two of the archers were with him—the boy Bianca had been talking to when they arrived and a girl with hair a sea-sick green color—helping him fold up his chair and put his stuff away. He hadn't even noticed Bianca had reached their side until she tapped his shoulder.

"Whatcha watching?" Bianca asked, following Nico's gaze.

Nico scowled and looked away, and Hazel laughed.

"More like who," Hazel said.

Nico stomped on her foot as his face grew hot.

"I'm not looking at anyone."

Bianca flung her arm around his shoulder guiding him in the direction of the parking lot, Hazel on her other side. "Look, Neeks, I'm no expert on the art of romance, but you were definitely checking someone out if your strawberry look has anything to say about it."

"I hate you both." 

"No, you don't," sang Hazel, a slight skip in her step. 

Bianca nodded in agreement. "Come on, tell me what boy you've fallen for."

Nico gave Hazel a pointed look before twisting himself out of his older sister's arms. "I just thought he was cute," Nico said, though he knew his words wouldn't do much to sway his sisters. "Nothing more."

"Then why did you deny it when I said he was cute?" Hazel asked, her tone sickly sweet. 

"I'm a contrarian." 

Bianca looked between the two. "Come on, just tell me! I'm feeling left out. Is it someone on the team?"

Knowing it would be easier just to spill than to deal with Bianca's relentless questions, he sighed loudly before telling her. "The blonde boy who was reading on the other side of the range."

Bianca's face lit up in recognition. "Oh, Will!" she exclaimed, and Nico slapped her on the arm at how loud her voice was. "He's Michael and Kayla's brother," she continued quieter. "I'm pretty sure Mike said a Sophomore."

Nico was sure his face would become a permanent shade of red if his sisters' continued talking. Luckily, they reached the parking lot, and found Persephone's car before they could say more. He willed his face to return to its usual olive tone when he climbed in the back seat with Hazel, so Persephone didn't ask questions.

His face did not listen.

"Are you sunburnt?" asked Persephone as she adjusted the mirrors.

Both Hazel and Bianca cackled as Nico scowled, his face darkening. "No, I'm okay, Seph."

Hazel leaned over. "Burnt from love," she whispered.

Nico smacked her as she cackled again. Fitting, Nico thought, since she was acting like a witch.

"Nico!" scolded Persephone as she began to drive back home.

Nico didn't reply, just looking out the window. Realizing talking to Nico was useless, she turned her attention to her step-daughters, asking the two questions about their day, leaving Nico to think about Will.

Chapter Text

Nico bolted into his room the moment he entered the house, not even bothering to change out of his clothes before plopping on his bed. He could hear Persephone's voice scolding him in his head, but he ignored it, instead plugging his nearly dead phone in and opening YouTube to scroll through recommended videos until he saw something that caught his eye. None did. He was about to partake in his favorite pastime (contrarian comments on Twitter that sent the media into a frenzy) when he heard the door to his room crack open. 

He turned over to see Hazel sheepishly smiling at him as she made her way to him, sitting on the corner of his bed with her hands folded on her lap. She had managed to change out of her paint-stained clothes, now wearing a pair of cotton pajamas that said Let It Snow despite it being October. 

Unlike with Bianca; Hazel and him hadn’t been close until recently—probably at around ten or eleven. They knew of each other’s existence their whole lives, a half sibling that lived on the other side of the world and spoke in a different language than them, but never really interacted. They first met when they were three, and Hazel had just moved into their father’s care after a car accident claimed the life of her mother. Nico’s own mother immediately flocked to the girl, mollycoddling her the entire two weeks Hades and her were in Venice.

Nico’s first reaction to Hazel was that he didn’t like her; the child-like mindset when a younger kid comes and takes all the attention. Nico was used to being the baby, the one mamma and papà dotted over. Having another kid, especially one as close in age to him as Hazel, was a change he didn’t appreciate. Additionally, it was easy to tell that Nico was jealous of the girl. Nico had always adored his father, despite having never officially lived together due to his parents cordial separation before his birth, and always stayed attached to Hades’ hip the two weeks he visited per year. Hazel lived with him, away in a country Nico had never been to.

The first time he and Hazel talked was years later, at their father’s wedding on the island of Crete. As two of the only children in the wedding party, Nico and Hazel were forced into a silent camaraderie. Nico’s English wasn’t the best at the time, nor was Hazel’s Italian, so they were forced to rely on poor communication skills and Bianca’s eight-year-old attempt at being a translator. But, past the petty childhood jealousy, Nico had begun to like Hazel as much as a six year old can.

Despite the camaraderie, the two didn’t find themselves truly close until Nico’s mother’s death. Bianca and Nico were packed up and shipped off to the U.S. with barely any time to grieve in the middle of the school year. Hazel was a lifesaver when it came to stuff like homework; though fluent, his English often was intertwined with grammatical mistakes, and making friends. She also guided him through grief.

Looking back on their childhood, Nico often regretted not getting to know Hazel earlier. Without a doubt, the other girl was now his best friend, his rock and support. He and Bianca were close, but he and Hazel shared a bond only they could understand.

Now, as he watched her fiddle with her thumbs as she waited for him to speak, he could almost hear her thoughts, loud against the quiet of the room. “Yes?” It was the easiest thing to break the silence.

“I want to help you.”

Nico groaned, flopping back against his bed. “Is this still about Will?”

Hazel flopped back as well, turning her neck so she could look at Nico. “I want you to be happy, Nico. Especially after last Valentine’s Day.”

Nico flinched at the reminder. Valentine’s Day Eighth Grade was amongst the worst days of his life. Somehow, a kid had figured out he was gay and pressured him into revealing his crush on Percy Jackson, a then-Junior in High School who taught swim lessons at the local YMCA to the whole class, Hazel included. 

“You admit one guy is cute and suddenly everyone thinks you’re destined for life,” Nico lamented. “I’m fourteen, I don’t even like myself, much less another person.”

“We’re going to talk about that later,” Hazel said, “And who said anything about being together for life? People have small on and off relationships in high school all the time, it’s no big deal. It’s just for fun.”

“I don’t even know anything about him,” Nico argued. “I’m not going on a date with a guy I don’t know, Hazel. That’s a recipe for disaster.”

Hazel seemed completely unperplexed about the notion. “Well, that’s not a problem.” she said, “You just have to get to know him.”

“And how will I do that exactly?”

“That is where I come in.” Standing in the doorway was Bianca, hands on her hips.

Nico propped himself up with his elbows. “How long were you standing behind my door waiting to make a dramatic entrance?”

Bianca gasped loudly. “How dare you think so little of me, brother dearest? I did no such thing.”

"Just sit down and tell me yours and Hazel’s plan.”

Bianca grinned. “I thought you’d never ask.”

The plan was launched into action at dinner that night; planting the seed so that it had a strong and steady foundation. Nico wondered how Bianca and Hazel had managed to concoct such an intricate plan in such a short amount of time, but decided he didn’t really want to know. Sisters were capable of mysteries, it seems.

“Dad, Seph?” Hazel began, waiting just long enough after the food was served to not be suspicious, “Can I go to my classmate's house after school on Thursday for a group project?”

Hades frowned, poking at a potato. “What friend, Hazel? Do I know this person?”

“Her name’s Lavinia and she’s in my English class,” Hazel explained, “We need to write a paper on The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell. Thursday is the only day that Lavinia can do it because she’s on the dance and cheer teams. Her dad said he can pick us up and drive me home after.”

That part was true enough, but the essay was a solo project, not that Hades needed to know that.

“As long as you keep your location on and text me when you arrive, that should be alright.”

“Thanks, Dad!”

Hades turned to Bianca. “Do you have archery on Thursday, Bee?”

Bianca nodded. 

He turned his attention to Nico. “Are you alright riding the bus alone?”

Nico had to bite back his true answer, going over the plan in his head. “Is there any way Seph or you could pick me up?” He knew the answer already.

Persephone shook her head. “I can only get to the school at four the earliest.”

“I have a meeting on Thursday,” Hades said, “Maybe I can try and see if my sister could drive you.”

“Or,” Bianca piped up, “He could stay at the range with me until Seph comes. Siblings hang out all the time, so he won’t be alone, and even if he was, we all know how Nico is.”

“Hey!” 

“That’s an idea,” Hades looked at Nico, “Is that alright with you?”

Nico shrugged, though he still glared at Bianca to convey his annoyance, even if he had consented to the plan. “Fine.”

“Bring your portable charger, I don’t want to hear you complaining about you being bored.”

“Yes, Papà.”

Nico was simultaneously dreading and ecstatic for Thursday afternoon.

Chapter Text

Thursday came way too fast.

In hindsight, agreeing to go with Bianca to archery so he could, maybe, talk to Will was probably the stupidest idea Nico ever had. And that’s saying a lot, given the fact he’s the same kid that tried to dive off a 10 ft diving board at the age of eleven to impress Percy Jackson but psyched himself out at the end, tripped, hit the side of the pool, and broke his arm. And sure, talking to Will was a lot less physical pain then that day was, but talking to pretty boys is in fact mentally painful when you’re socially inept.

Nico still found himself following Bianca to the sectioned off archery range, after saying goodbye to Hazel and Lavinia. (Hazel, the traitor, winked at him before leaving).

To Nico's horror, Will was already there. He stood beside who Nico recognized as Michael and Kayla, an arm guard held above his head, while Michael—who must've been over a foot and a half shorter than him—was jumping in an attempt to grab it. Without warning, Bianca marched over, forcing Nico to follow at a jog.

"Bianca!" Michael called. He had stopped jumping, and was now resorting to jabbing Will in hopes he'd double over. "Tell Will stop being ableist."

"I'm not being ableist," Will retorted. 

"He's making fun of me for being short!"

"Am not."

"Are too."

Bianca held up her hands as if in surrender. "I just arrived, I don't know what's happening."

Kayla clicked her tongue as she tied her hair back. "Ignore them, they're always like this."

Bianca chuckled, jutting her elbow in the direction of Nico. "This one does annoying shit all the time."

Nico, in an impressive display of his maturity, stuck his tongue out.

Michael and Will stopped, noticing Nico for the first time. Michael was hanging from Will's neck like a koala, his feet a few inches off the ground.

Will examined Nico, and Nico felt his face heat as their eyes met. Will was taller than him, and Nico could now see individual freckles that stood out against his skin. His eyes were just as Nico remembered; the color of the sky just above horizon. His smile was warm, his teeth a cloudy white. He lowered his arm, which Michael took advantage of, grabbing his arm guard and jumping off Will's back. "Success!" he cried, adjusting the arm guard onto his left arm.

"Now that that's over," Bianca said, "This is my brother, Nico. Nico, this is Michael, Will, and Kayla."

"You're in Ms. Clio's history class, right? Third block on B days?" Kayla asked.

Nico nodded. Now that he thought of it, he does have a vague recollection of the green-haired girl sitting across the classroom. Kayla hummed acknowledgement. 

Michael raised the peace symbol as a form of greeting, which Nico responded with a curt nod of his head. 

Will's grin somehow softened and brightened at the same time. Nico wasn't sure how that was possible, but Will managed it. "Hey."

Nico's voice caught in his throat and he ended up stuttering out an incoherent form of hello. 

"Nico couldn't get a ride home, so he's staying, Will." Bianca said quickly. Nico appreciated it. He wasn't sure he could manage a full sentence without making a fool of himself. 

"Oh, okay! You can sit with me!"

Now Nico couldn't refuse. Fuck.

Nico managed to say, "Okay," without fully embarrassing himself. 

There was a loud whistle, and Bianca informed Nico that she, Kayla, and Michael had to go. And leave him alone with Will. 

"I usually just steal one of the team's spare lawn chairs," Will said once the other three were gone, guiding Nico to a spot just beyond the range with a stack of folded lawn chairs. "They're not very comfy, but better than the ground for sure." They both grabbed one each and Will started leading Nico to where he usually sat.

"Do you always stay?" Wow, a full sentence. Nico was rocking this socializing thing. Even if Bianca had told him the answer already. Will didn't know that though, so Nico counted that as a success.

"Yeah, I'm not a fan of buses and I can't get a ride any other time," Will explained, stopping and setting his chair up. He slipped his backpack off and plopped in the chair with a sigh. Nico followed, much more hesitantly, and looped his leg in the strap of his backpack, a habit he had adapted back in Italy when he and Bianca would go and sit at a gelato shop after school. 

"It's not that bad, but it does get boring." He paused for a minute. "Honey?"

Nico nearly choked on air. "What?"

"Honey?" Will repeated. "Do you want honey?"

"Like," Nico hesitated, "The food?"

Will chuckled. "Obviously." He dug through his bag and pulled out a brown paper bag. Out of the bag, he produced a honey stick, which he handed to Nico. 

Nico stared at it for a second. "You don't want it?"

Will's nose scrunched (It was not cute). "I don't like honey."

"Why do you have honey sticks then?"

"My brother, Ari, is a beekeeper," Will told him.

Nico ripped open the honey stick with his teeth and ate some, the sweet flavor erupting in his mouth. There was a second flavor he couldn't quite pinpoint. "What flavor is this?"

Will looked over from where he was putting away the rest of his honey sticks. "I think that's lavender. You like it? I can get you more if you like."

"It's very good," Nico admitted. The two fell into silence for a moment, and Nico had to physically stop himself from staring at Will as he organized his bookbag. It was neon orange, and had pins and patches decorating it ranging from Star Wars to science puns to—much to Nico's delight—bisexual pride. Hanging from the zippers were Star Wars keychains: one Death Star and one Mandalorian. The bag was bright, nerdy, and just captured the aura that Will emitted.

Somehow, Nico's social interactions were on a roll. He managed to ask Will about his siblings without stuttering, losing his place, or turning bright red. 

Will brightened at the mention of his siblings, dropping his bag to the ground with a grin that rivaled the sun. "I'm my mom's only kid," Will explained, "But my dad, for lack of better words, doesn't know what a condom is."

Nico choked on his own spit, which made Will chuckle. "I swear," Will said earnestly, "I love my dad, don't get me wrong. But, I'm one of ten."

He tried to not look too surprised, but clearly he failed. 

"That's a normal reaction." Will leaned back against his chair. 

"Do you all live together?" Nico asked. He wasn't sure what constituted as private matters, but his curiosity got the better of him. "Or at least part time?"

"I live with 5 of them right now, and my dad, for the school year. Asclepius, my oldest brother, lives down the block. My older brother, Lee, is in college. My brother, Jerry, he's like 12 or 13 if I remember correctly, lives in the U.K. with his mother, and Gracie, my youngest sister, lives in some small town in Idaho."

"That must be chaotic," Nico mused, "I live with just my dad, step-mother, and two sisters and our house is always a mess."

"It's a lot," Will responded. "I lived with my mom my whole life up until last month so I'm still not used to it."

"Can I ask?"

Will nodded. "My mom's a singer, and I grew up on tour with her. I've been homeschooled since second grade, I think. That's when she became a name. I decided I wanted to go to a public school to at least experience it, so here I am."

Nico wasn't sure what he was expecting but that sure wasn't it. "You wanted to go to school?"

Will shrugged, "My siblings had so many stories, I just wanted to see for myself. I don't really remember preschool to first grade well, so most of my memories are homeschooling."

Nico understood that. The jealousy that comes with having a different upbringing from a sibling. "That makes sense."

Will smiled softly, before continuing his story.

Despite his earlier hiccups, Nico found talking to Will easy. Will explained more about his upbringing, stories from living on the road and some from Texas, where Nico found out he was born, and many about his siblings. Nico, in turn explained more about himself then he ever had.

He hadn't even noticed practice ended until Bianca, Michael, and Kayla came over, and even then, he found himself not wanting to leave quite yet.

Chapter Text

Will was certain he was going to explode. Like, call him a star because he was about to go supernova. 

He was having trouble keeping his stimming in check; he wanted nothing more than to jump with excitement and dance around the archery range because a cute guy, not only sat next to him, but talked to him for the duration of practice. And not the "Will talks and cute person half-listens" talk, but the "actively engages in the conversation" talks. That never happens! He must be dreaming, or something.

After Bianca and Nico were ushered off by a woman Will assumed was their stepmother, Kayla turned towards him.

“Are you okay?”

Michael examined him as well, taking in Will’s giddy appearance. “We might need to sedate him, Kay.”

“Shut up, I’m fine.” Will was not fine, actually, but his siblings didn’t need to know that. 

"After talking to a boy?” Michael commented. “I doubt it.”

“What if I drop kicked you?” Will murmured. “How would that make you feel?”

His older brother shrugged. “Probably like a football.”

Kayla’s gaze ping ponged between her other brothers, her eyes narrowing slightly. “Could you even drop kick Michael?”

“Obviously,” Will said.

“Not at all,” Michael said. He frowned, as Will’s words slithered into his ears. “Hey! You couldn’t.”

Will rolled his eyes.

Michael, in true Michael fashion, spent the rest of the time waiting for Aristaeus complaining about Will being mean and trying to get him to say information about Nico to no avail. When Aristaeus pulled up, Michael stopped only long enough to yell, “Shotgun!” and hop in the passenger seat.

Will and Kayla climbed in the back, sliding over jars and jars of fresh honey so they had places to sit. “You need less honey,” grumbled Kayla. 

“Will appreciates my honey,” Ari said as he turned on the car. “Don’t you, Will?”

“Yeah,” Will lied. “You don’t happen to have more lavender honey, do you? I ran out.”

Michael leaned back, his head against the back of his chair. “Give some to Bianca’s brother, did you?”

“Shut it.”

Aristaeus glanced at Will through the mirror, and Will felt a feeling of dread wash over him. “Who’s Bianca’s brother?”

“No one!” claimed Will.

“Will’s crush,” sang Kayla.

“I literally talked to him for the first time today.” Will shot back, elbowing Kayla. It was a struggle given the huge jar of honey between them. 

“And?” Michael asked. Will kicked the back of his seat for good measures. Michael twisted and stuck his tongue out at him. “One of our teammates’ brothers stayed during practice and Will talked with him for hours.”

“I’m extroverted.” Will complained. “And he was nice to talk to, anyway.”

“That's all?" Aristaeus asked.

"That's all." 

"You got his number at least, right?" Kayla asked. "He has to have some compatibility with you to talk for so long."

Crap. That's what Will had forgotten in his giddiness.

"You didn't, did you?"

Aristaeus adjusted the mirror so he could see Will better. "You can't just give away lavender honey to potential dating prospects and not get their number, William."

"You'd give honey to a hermit crab if they showed interest in bees," shot back Will.

"Not lavender honey!"

"I got it," Kayla cut in. "I have History with Nico on B days, I can get his number then."

"Kayla, it's—"

"Too late," Michael interrupted. "Get ready, Will. 934—"

"Wait, what?"

"While you guys were arguing, I was being progressive and I texted Bianca."

"You what?" Will screeched, reaching over and grabbing Michael's phone. "Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, why would you do this? I hate you so much."

"I love you," Kayla squealed, reaching over and giving Michael a fistbump.

"I'm telling Dad," Will grumbled, though he still transferred Nico's number into his own phone.

"He'd give me a high-five and say good job," Michael grinned.

Aristaeus drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. "He's not wrong."

"You should be thanking Mike," Kayla said. 

"For calling me an idiot? No, thank you."

"For giving you a chance to shoot your shot," Michael replied. "Metaphorically, of course, as neither you nor Nico do archery."

"Rest my soul."

Will's words were met with three identical laughs.

Chapter Text

Nico propped his feet against the wall, allowing his head to dangle over the edge of the bed, his eyes closed. He had an earbud in his left ear, the wire so tangled the other side incapable of use, and music was blasting. Nico didn’t recognize the song—Bianca had made most of the playlists on their family Spotify account when she had hyperfixated on playlist making over the summer—but it had a nice beat to it. The metronome reminded him of his own heart rate. 

“Thank you, Bianca.”

Nico opened one eye to see his older sister standing in the doorframe to his room. Her hands were on her hips, and she stood as though she owned the world. 

“Vai via.”

Bianca did not go away. She marched over to Nico’s bed and plopped herself down, a grin stretching across her face. 

Nico groaned, adjusting himself so he could sit up. “What the hell do you want?”

“I got a text from Michael,” Bianca said. She was nearly jumping in her spot, which was very unlike her. Bianca was the calm sibling—the one who’s ADHD manifested itself through inattentiveness rather than hyperactivity like Nico and Hazel—and it was rare to see her giddy over something so mundane. “He said Will wanted your number.”

“What?” Nico half-screamed, eyes widening and jaw dropping. His earbud fell out, but he didn’t care. “You’re kidding? Did you give it to him? Tell me you didn’t.”

“I did.”

“Vaffanculo!” Nico pushed her, not very hard, but hard enough she wobbled in her spot. “Why would you do that?”

“Don’t tell me you don’t want it?”

“What if he texts me? What would I even say?”

“You talked to him for a whole hour,” Bianca reminded him. 

“I can’t make small talk,” Nico groaned, “It’s either one word sentences or my entire life story! I’m going to scare him away before we even kiss!”

Bianca raised an eyebrow, “You want to kiss him.”

“Mangia merde e morte.”

“Mamma’s rolling over in her grave, Niccolò.”

“Go away.”

“No can do.” Bianca pulled her legs onto her lap. “You need my help.”

“I need help from my chronically single older sister?”

“Fuck yourself.”

“Mamma’s rolling over in her grave.”

Bianca pushed Nico, sending the boy tumbling off the bed and onto the blue rug he had in his room. Nico held up both his middle fingers, which Bianca happily reciprocated.

“Nico! Bianca!”

Nico sat up and swiveled to face the hallway.

Hazel was a bit out of breath, still in her clothes she wore to school with her bag slung over her shoulder. “What happened? Did the plan work?”

“Did it ever!” Bianca grinned.

Hazel squealed, bouncing on the balls of her feet. “Is he your boyfriend, tell me he’s your boyfriend!”

“He’s not!” Nico shouted.

“Michael texted me saying Will asked for Nico’s number!”

“Oh mio dio!” Hazel haphazardly tossed her bag to the side, practically skipping over to her older siblings. “So you talked? About what?”

“Everything, I guess.” Nico laid back down on the floor, creating constellations in the popcorn ceiling. “He gave me honey.”

“Aww,” Hazel cooed. 

“He’s so into you,” Bianca grinned.

“His older brother’s a beekeeper,” Nico corrected. “And he doesn’t like honey. So, he was just giving it away.”

“Still,” Bianca scooted off the bed so she sat by Nico’s legs. “Don’t be such a Debbie Downer.”

“Has he texted yet?” Hazel asked.

Nico glanced over at where his phone sat on his comforter, the earbuds still tangled up. “I don’t think so.”

“Well, check!”

Nico honestly didn’t want to, but soon his phone was in his hands and his sisters were watching him, sitting cross-legged like curious schoolgirls, and he knew he had to. He quickly turned it on, scrolling through his countless notifications. Everything was normal at first; a couple Twitter comments, some Twitch streamers’ lives, and some emails from various school teachers. Then, at the very bottom was a text message from an unknown number. The area code was different from his own—and different from the other few codes that littered the surrounding area—but Nico still tapped it anyway and his heart dropped when he read the first message.

Hey! This is Will Solace! You know, from school? I hope this is the right number and not some elaborate prank Michael’s trying to pull on me. He does that a lot, so I wouldn’t be surprised. So, if this isn’t Nico please ignore this message and pretend this never happened.

“He texted,” Nico mumbled under his breath.

Both his sister’s squealed, throwing themselves on the floor beside him so they could see the message. 

“What are you waiting for?” Bianca shouted. “Answer!”

Nico twisted, trying to block his messages to no avail as he typed out a response. 

Hey! Yeah, this is Nico.

The message had barely been sent when there was a reply.

Thank god! 

There was a pause that was filled by more squealing in Nico’s ear, but was ended when a second message came through.

I would love to stay and chat, but my family’s about to have dinner and Asclepius is visiting so I can’t skive off, lol

That message was accompanied by a slightly blurry selfie. Will was in the front, grinning broadly, with Michael leaning over him, his tongue stuck out at the camera. Kayla was doing bunny ears on a boy a bit younger than her with cornrows, and a younger girl with shoulder length black hair seemed to be giggling, her eyes shut and her hands covering her lips. A man in his early twenties with the same blonde curls as Will leaned over the youngest girl’s chair, his nose scrunched in a playful manner, and a man in his late twenties stood by the door, a few boxes of pizza stacked precariously in his arms.

Pizza night! My dad’s in the kitchen getting some cups.

“We need to send a picture back!” Hazel declared. 

“We don’t—”

Nico’s phone was yanked out of his hands and Bianca held it up, snapping a picture and pressing send before he could react. “Hey!”

Bianca typed something and passed it back.

In the picture, Nico’s blue rug looked like a backdrop, framing the three siblings as they laid squished up against each other. The message underneath it plainly stated. That’s fine, ttyl .

Nico stared at the picture for a moment before going back to the one of Will and his siblings. 

“You’re an asshole, Bee.”

Bianca flicked him on his arm. “That’s why you’re still staring at his picture, right?”

Nico stuck his tongue out at her, but his eyes didn’t leave the blurry selfie.

Chapter Text

Nico might’ve stayed up till 2 a.m. on a school night texting Will. 

Might’ve being the key words.

Who is he kidding, he one thousand percent did.

But that meant Will also stayed awake till 2 on a school night texting him, and holy crap that felt good.

One would’ve thought that after they talked for over an hour straight they’d run out of things to say, but nope. It turns out that was only the beginning. With Will, talking was easy—in person and over text. He reciprocated Nico’s paragraph long rants that capped the character limit, matched Nico’s energy (which Bianca says is over the top, especially when he’s excited about something), and never made Nico feel stupid over anything. 

The only reason they stopped was Will realized the time and said they should probably sleep. “Tomorrow’s Friday,” Will had reasoned. “Well, today, but you know what I mean.”

Nico didn’t want to stop, but agreed anyway. He honestly was surprised he managed to fall asleep after, especially since his heart was pounding out of his chest.

Bianca woke him up at six-thirty by tugging his blanket off and rolling it up in a ball to toss on the end of his bed. Nico groaned, murmuring something he couldn’t even comprehend as he buried his head in his pillow.

“Don’t make me take the pillow too,” Bianca said, tapping her foot.

“Vai via, Bianca,” Nico grumbled. 

Bianca reached for Nico’s pillow, which Nico clutched to as if it were his lifeline. “Not the pillow.”

“You have to get up, Nico, come on.”

Nico hugged the pillow tighter, moving so he was sitting up on his bed. “Do I have to?”

“It’s not my fault you stayed up watching Twitch streams or YouTube videos or whatever nerds do.” Bianca’s grin was way too wide in Nico’s opinion. “You should be more like me.”

“No, I wasn’t.”

Bianca raised an eyebrow. “What were you doing then?”

Nico was an idiot. “Uh, nothing?”

“You went to sleep at a decent time?”

Nico shrugged. 

Bianca paused for a moment as if in thought before letting out an ear shattering screech that was way too loud and ear shattery for just after six thirty in the morning. 

“Che diavolo,” Nico said, hands flying to his ears. 

“You were texting Will, oh my god.”

“I never said that,” spluttered Nico, but he knew his reddened cheeks caught his bluff. Curse his pale complexion. “Who said that?”

“I need to tell Hazel right now!”

“Wait a minute—”

“What are you two doing?” said a voice from the hallway.

Persephone stood against the doorframe, arms crossed. She, unlike her two step-children, was already dressed for the day in a floral dress that probably looked right in place with the flowers at the shop she works at. 

“Nothing!” Nico said. Only after the words came out did he realize how suspiciously quick he said it.

Persephone raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

“Really,” Bianca agreed. “I was just leaving to get dressed.”

Bianca shot a quick we’ll talk about this later look before skipping out of the room.

Persephone looked very skeptical, but left Nico alone anyway. Thank whatever gods are out there for that.

Nico had never been more fortunate that he and Hazel had different homerooms. It really helped when he was avoiding his sister like the plague.

Bianca had apparently told Hazel her theory (it didn’t matter that it was true, his sisters didn’t need to know that) and the two had been trying to get information out of him all morning. 

Nico refused to answer any questions. Yes, it was probably more incriminating than saying something, but Nico didn’t trust himself to not say something stupid. His social skills were on point yesterday, there’s no way in hell they’d actually work two days in a row. 

So, as soon as their father dropped them off at school, Nico made his way to his homeroom, not bothering to stop at his locker. Sure, his bookbag was probably unnecessarily heavy now, but that was beside the point.

His homeroom teacher, an English and Psychology teacher by the name of Mr. D, whom Nico was certain had straight vodka in his coffee mug, sat at his desk in the front of the room, feet propped on his calendar, a stack of probably ungraded essays beside him. 

“You're usually with your sisters until two seconds before the bell, di Angelo.”

Nico glanced up from his phone (No he wasn’t texting Will) (Okay, maybe he was). “They’re busy.”

Mr. D hummed some tune Nico didn’t recognize. “Not that I care.”

“Of course not.” Mr. D took a swig of his drink, before ignoring Nico again.

Nico got a text from Will, and he opened it.

Where’s your homeroom?

Nico glanced up at the door to read the room number. 

208. Mr. D’s my homeroom teacher

It didn’t take too long before he saw Will waltz into the room as if he actually was in that homeroom. “Hey, Death Boy.”

“Hades is the god of the dead, Solace, not death.”

Will waved his name dismissively. “Potato, potato.”

Nico rolled his eyes. When Nico had revealed his favorite Mythomagic card was Hades, Will had taken to finding death-related nicknames for him. When Nico tried to explain that Thanatos was the god of death, not Hades, it made the nicknames stick even more. He probably was doing it just to bother Nico, the bitch.

“What do you want?” Nico asked.

Will reached into the side pocket of his book bag and produced a bundle of honey sticks. There were five of them, wrapped together with a small rubber band similar to the ones Hazel used to make bracelets. 

“Three are lavender and two are regular,” Will explained. Nico took the honey sticks gingerly. “I wanted to give them to you now since we don’t have the same lunch, and all.”

Nico looked down so Will couldn’t see the blood rushing to his cheeks. “Thanks.”

Will gave a lopsided grin. “Of course. Catch you later?”

Nico nodded, which made Will’s grin grow. “See ya!”

Nico watched as he left, the honey weighing a ton in his hands.

Chapter Text

Hazel practically cornered Nico at his locker right before lunch, and dragged him to their normal table before he could complain.

Suspiciously, Hazel said nothing about that morning. She was oddly quiet as she unzipped her lunchbox, a bright pink bag with horses she got as a child and continued to use despite being in high school, and pulled out her juice box to poke a hole in it. The only words she said were hellos as the rest of the people at their table: Lavinia, Claudia, Janice, and Blaise sat down. Nico wasn’t close to any of them, but Hazel had made friends with them, and therefore Nico sat with them at lunch. It was simple logic.

As Lavinia was ranting about tap dancing, and its lack of prevalence in their school’s dance club (Seriously? Does Nico look like he needs to know what a Tacky Annie is?), and the rest of them pretended to care (Hazel the most, his sister was far too kind for her own good), she was interrupted by the last people Nico would have expected to interrupt.

Michael Yew and Kayla Knowles.

Okay, Kayla probably shouldn’t have been that surprising, seeing as the girl was in his grade. But Michael was a senior, and usually seniors wouldn’t be caught dead in the Freshman area. Logistically, Nico knew that Seniors and Freshman ate lunch together (It was a shock to see Percy Jackson on the cafeteria line his first day, which was part of the reason he avoided hot lunch now), but the two groups were so segregated, it was rare to see them mingling. Though, Michael could have easily passed for a Freshman, if not for his hoodie that proclaimed him a Senior.

“Bianca's little siblings!” Michael grinned, ignoring the fact that Lavinia was talking, and plopping himself on an empty seat beside Nico. Damn the fact Nico usually made sure one seat next to him was empty to minimize his human interactions. “How are you doing on this fine day?”

Nico groaned, dropping his head into his arms. “What do you want?”

“Nico,” Hazel said aghast. “Don’t be mean.” She twisted so she could face Kayla, who decided chairs were for the weak, and crouched down between the two siblings. “Hi, I’m Hazel, but I’m sure you knew that if you know Bianca.”

“Kayla, and this is my brother Michael.”

Michael did some weird two finger salute.

Nico prayed to whatever deity he could think of (Asclepius, as he distinctly remembered Will’s oldest brother shared his name, and Will saying how much he admired his eldest brother) that Hazel wouldn’t make the connection between this Michael and Kayla, and Michael and Kayla, Will’s older brother and younger sister. However, Asclepius seemed to not be on Nico’s side, as he could see the exact moment where realization dawned in Hazel’s golden eyes.

“Oh my god. Will’s siblings?”

Nico lifted his head enough so he could bang it against the table. Curses.

Kayla giggled, an oddly childish gesture that did not match with her more alternative clothing style and mostly green hair. “That would be us. Though, mostly we’re known for our spot on the archery team.”

“Look,” Michael slouched back in the chair, his feet propped uncomfortably close to Nico’s lunchbox. “Normally, I wouldn’t come to the Freshman tables, though, as the most awesome and coolest Senior, nothing could tarnish my reputation.”

Nico noticed that Kayla snorted at the statement, but either Michael didn’t hear, or he didn’t care.

“But serious times call for serious measures.”

“By that he means you were texting William ‘I must turn off all electronics by nine p.m. to not hinder my sleeping schedule’ Solace until two in the morning.”

“Mio dio, so you were talking with Will all night?” Hazel grinned.

Nico wished he could disappear into the shadows, especially when Claudia leaned over her tray of food, ignoring the fact that the sleeves of her shirt were in a pile of honey mustard. “I’ll ask. Who’s Will?”

Nico groaned as Michael, Kayla, and Hazel dove into a detailed explanation of the boy.

“Is that the boy who came into our homeroom and gave you a bundle of honey sticks?” Lavinia asked, her pink hair bouncing on her shoulders, her rant about tap dancing long forgotten. “I mean, I’m a lesbian, but his freckles were to die for.”

Kayla scrunched up her nose. “Gross, that’s my brother.”

“Don’t worry, yours are cuter,” Lavinia winked. 

“Wait, wait, wait,” Hazel yelled, her hand out like a crossing guard making cars stop. “He brought you honey today and you didn’t bring it up? Niccolò, I’m ashamed.”

“I’m ashamed to be alive right now,” Nico grumbled. 

Michael whistled softly. “Damn, my little bros got game.” 

“He specifically asked Ari for lavender honey,” Kayla said. “Normally, he just takes whatever honey Ari gives him, so that’s a big deal.”

“Look.” Nico sat up and glanced around the table. Everyone was staring at him, and it made him wish he could hide away in his hoodie forever. “You are all far too invested in my friendship , especially you four,” he gestured to Lavinia, Claudia, Janice, and Blaise, “And I don’t appreciate it, so please, for the love of all things holy, shut the fuck up.”

Hazel was the only one to properly apologize, though Claudia did mumble something about needing tea. 

Michael looked like he wanted to say more, but a faculty member’s voice echoing, “Yew, feet off the table!” interrupted his train of thought.

“Damn teacher,” grumbled Michael. “I forgot what I wanted to say.”

“Happens a lot,” Lavinia agreed.

“Anyways, you seem like a nice kid, di Angelo, and I’m glad Will’s your friend.” Michael stood up. “I’ve got to skedaddle, I promised Annabeth I’d help her with her physics project, apparently she’s trying to emulate the velocity of an arrow with a machine, and as the captain of the archery team, I’m the best person to help with that. See you.”

Kayla stole her brother’s chair the moment he left. “So give it to me straight, di Angelo, what’s your opinion on my brother?”

Nico had to stop himself from physically growling at the girl in an attempt to get him to leave. He also had to stop himself from saying ‘Not very straight’ as that would be way too incriminating.

 “He’s fine.”

“A real sweetheart,” Kayla agreed. “You know, normally he sells the honey sticks for fifty cents. I’ve never seen him give one to someone for free before.”

“He had extra,” Nico attempted to rationalize in his head. “We’re barely even friends.”

“Totally.” Kayla grinned.

“That’s not the argument you think it is,” Claudia said.

Hazel nodded in agreement. “Neeks,” she began. “You texted him for hours yesterday. Our longest message thread is like five messages long. I think he’s your friend.”

The end of the period bell rang through the air like a savior, so Nico didn’t have to formulate a reply. Thank every deity out there for that. (Except Asclepius, as he had already wronged Nico enough that day).

Chapter Text

Nico attempted to hide his phone as best he could underneath the dinner table, hoping that his family wouldn’t notice and call him out. Michael’s boyfriend—Jake Mason, Will had said—had come over to their family’s for dinner, and it was going about as one might imagine. It didn’t help that Lee Fletcher was home for the weekend to attend Michael and Kayla’s archery competition on Sunday; meaning that there were eight siblings (as Gracie and Jerry were with their respective mothers), their father, Jake, Jake’s parents, and Jake’s three younger siblings. Will was narrating the event like a soap opera, and Nico would never admit how intrigued he was becoming.

Jake’s eight-year-old brother snuck out when no one was looking, and I found him playing with matches when I went to go get a cup of pineapple juice… Dad keeps the matches in the cabinet above the sink, I don’t even know how he got them. I might have to move back in with my mom because there might not be a house much longer

Update! I got Harley back from the kitchen. His father didn’t seem surprised he was playing with matches. It’s a common thing for him apparently. I don’t even want to know.

I figured out where Harley gets it from. Jake’s other brother is an arsonist.

You probably think I’m joking but I’m 100% serious. He lit up when he heard matches, like I thought he was going to burst into flames himself.

Fuck. Dad just said we’re going to do a campfire, and because I’m apparently closest in age to Leo, I get to babysit the arsonist while Mike and Jake make out. Fml

Good luck

I’m going to fucking need it.

Nico let out a quiet chuckle under his breath—or what he had assumed to be a quiet chuckle under his breath until his entire family turned towards him, matching looks of bewilderment on their faces. Nico flipped his phone around and pushed it under his thigh, attempting to feign ignorance. 

“What?”

“Did you just—” Bianca’s blinks were heavy and deliberate. “Did you just laugh?”

“Is laughing banned?” Nico shot back. 

“It’s just that nothing particularly funny is happening,” Bianca reiterated. “You can share with the class if you had a funny thought."

Nico stabbed into a pea with the prong of his fork. “No thanks.”

Persephone folded her hands on the table. “Does it perhaps have to do with the phone you have under your thigh?”

Nico’s face heated up, and he quickly grabbed his cup to block what he assumed was his overly red face. “What phone?”

“Nico.”

“Yes, Father?”

Nico’s father rolled his eyes and Nico’s continued feigned ignorance. “You do know that I can see your phone, right?”

Nico glanced down and saw that, indeed, the black of his phone case was visible on the white upholstery of the chair. He quickly moved it. “No you can’t.”

“Neeks, you’re not five,” Bianca chided, “Come up with a better rebuttal.”

Nico stuck his tongue out at his older sister.

“I’m not sure if it’s just me,” Hazel’s tone was sweet and unsuspecting, Nico knew it had to be a ruse. Nico glared at her. “But I’m curious what Nico found funny.”

“It’s just a fandom thing,” Nico quickly dismissed, “You wouldn’t understand the joke.”

“Try me.” Hazel was so nonchalant about it, it sent a shiver down Nico’s spine. “I’ve spent years hearing you rant about your fandoms, I’m sure I’ll recognize part of it.”

Fuck.

“It’s very complex lore,” Nico attempted to convince them. “I wouldn’t want to bore you.”

“If you’re interested in it, we want to hear,” Persephone said.

Fuck.

“Well, it’s just—” Nico backtracked. “It’s not very funny.”

“But you laughed,” pointed out his father.

“My sense of humor is broken.”

His family’s simultaneous suspicious gaze was really starting to freak him out.

“Sure,” Bianca said skeptically.

Nico burst out in nervous laughter. “See,” He said in an attempt to compose himself, “Broken.”

Nico was about to run, in a last ditch effort to save his dignity, when his phone began to ring. His eyes widened slightly as he slowly removed his phone from it’s spot underneath his thigh and stared at the caller ID for a moment: Will ☼

FUCK!

His father leaned over. “Who’s Will?”

“Nobody!” Nico shrieked. “I have to go.”

“But your dinner—” Persephone had begun to call out, but Nico was gone in a flash.

Nico locked his bedroom door before pressing the phone to his ear. “Hello?”

“I’m hiding in the bathroom from Leo,” Will breathed out. “He’s trying to get me to play twenty questions.”

“Not gonna trauma dump like you did when we met?” Nico teased.

“That wasn’t trauma dumping, I was just talking!”

"Sure.”

“It’s true!”

Nico could hear the jiggling of a doorknob, and for a heartstopping moment, he thought it was one of his sisters before he heard a voice call from the other line. “Will, I’m going to shit my pants, get out of there!”

“Fuck,” Will mumbled. “Coming, Lee!”

Nico could hear the rustling as Will opened the door. 

“If you’re trying to hide, the bathroom is not the place to do it.”

“There’s a second one downstairs,” Will whined.

“That’s currently occupied because there are a bajillion people here. Keep with the times. Now out!” The door slammed on the other side. 

“I have no clue where to hide,” Will said, his voice barely above a whisper. Nico could vividly picture him, back against a wall, peering around a corner.

“I’m hiding in my room since you called during dinner and my family got suspicious,” Nico suggested.

“No,” There was a screech on Will’s side, but Nico couldn’t identify it. “I share a room with Michael, and he and Jake are probably making out. I do not want to see that again.”

Nico’s nose scrunched. “I’m glad my sisters are both single.”

Will let out a startled yelp, and Nico could hear a second voice on the other end that appeared to be a boy about his age, maybe a bit older. “There you are! I thought I lost you!”

“Nope,” Will’s tone turned almost defeated. “Still here. I’m on the phone though, so I'm just looking for a quiet place to talk.”

“Funzies,” the boy said. Nico wasn’t sure he ever heard anyone say that unironically before. “You probably shouldn’t go into your room.”

Will sighed almost dejectedly. “Yeah, I expected as much.”

“Well, I’ll go find Nyssa, Kayla, Austin, and Yan then. Catch you on the flip side. Tell the mysterious figure I said hi!”

Will waited a few beats before speaking again. “Leo says hi.”

Nico’s mind was whirling from the conversation he just overheard, trying to place where he heard Leo’s voice before, when suddenly it hit him. “When you say ‘Leo’, you don’t mean Leo Valdez, do you?”

“That’s him,” Will agreed, “Why?”

“I shadowed him last fall.” Nico admitted. “He’s in all the same classes as Bianca, but Hazel was her shadow, so they put me with him. He’s… energetic… kept pointing out random things like holes in the walls and advertising them as a monument.”

“Sounds like a fun day.”

“It was something.”  

A door creaked, and Will triumphantly, “Aha!”ed.

“Found somewhere?”

“Ari and Lee’s room’s empty.” Will sighed as he plopped on one of his brother’s beds. “Say, sorry about ruining your dinner.”

“You didn’t ruin it,” Nico quickly blurted out. “The updates were entertaining.”

“That’s good.”

“Will, why the fuck are you on my bed?”

Nico chuckled as he heard Will sit up. “You just yelled at me for hiding in the bathroom!”

“I had to shit, that’s not my fault.”

“And so I find somewhere else to go, and here you are.”

“In my bedroom?”

“Michael’s making out in my room!”

Nico heard a soft sigh. “Fair point. Is everyone else in Kayla and Yan’s room?”

“Probably. Can you go?”

“Dude, this is my room!”

“And I’m on the phone!”

“I don’t care!”

Nico hadn’t even realized Will had begun to talk to him again until he heard his name. “—Nico, I’ll text you.”

“Alright.”

Nico had barely hung up when Will’s texts began again.