I'm really sorry for not updating last night, I accidentally fell asleep, but here it is!

Will's POV

The freezing wind at our backs pushed us into the ski lodge and I let out a sigh of relief as I felt the warmth flood into my bones. Kayla was winding her scarf off of her neck and Austin was shimmying out of his thick jacket, shaking flakes of snow off of his shoulders. I sat in the couch by the fire place, shutting my eyes as my body sank into the soft material. Already I could feel the peace of February break melting over me, the stress of life outside of the lodge melting away. Maybe I wasn't much for skiing, maybe I would stay inside for a week while the rest of my family flew down a mountain, but that was how I liked my February break.

"I'm going to put my bag down in mine and your father's room," my mother said, crossing the room to hover over my face. "You're fine with sharing a room with Kayla and Austin as usual?" I nodded, smiling at the countless memories of the twins arguing over the top bunk while I unpacked on the other top bunk, the perks of being just over a year older. "You might want to get there soon," she said. "They're old enough to realize that you don't get special privileges because you're older." I laughed. 

"Yeah, I know," I said. "I don't mind having the bottom bunk. I'm just going to stay here for a few minutes."

"You're sure?" she laughed. "You can't complain to me when you're stuck on the bottom?" I shook my head and she gave a small laugh and soon I could hear her footsteps receding down the hallway. Soon the noise of my family was replaced by the noise of another one and I glanced up to see the Jacksons stepping in, Sally and Paul laughing together and Percy talking to a boy I didn't recognize, his black hair swept across his forehead and his fingers fidgeting at his sides. I frowned, propping myself up on my elbows to get a better look. Our family came to the lodge once a year, the same time every year. It was a tradition for us, as it was for most families so there was hardly ever an unfamiliar face walking the halls. So who was this mysterious boy who had just walked in, covered in black with questions in his eyes?

"Hey, Will!" Percy waved, his familiar grin on his face. It had been a year since I had last seen that grin, and I had missed it. "Come meet Nico. He's my friend from New York." I pushed myself up from the couch, walking over and shoving my hands in my pockets as I smiled at Nico. He smiled back but it was more reserved, as if he was showing me an inch of a personality that went on for miles. 

"Hi," he said, his voice quiet."

"Hey," I said. "You ski?"

"Not really," he said. "Percy dragged me along because he said I needed to get out more. He said it would be good for you to meet new people."

"It will be," Percy said. "You can hang out with Will while we're skiing, since you've said so many times how much you don't want to ski."

"You don't like skiing either?" Nico turned to me and I could see something flash in his eyes, something almost like hope. I shook my head.

"I'm awful," I said. "I like it better here. It's nice and warm and peaceful. I'll be here every day, if you ever want to hang out." I saw a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, showing just a tiny bit more of his personality than I had seen before.

"Thanks." 

"Come on, Nico," Percy said, tugging on his sleeve. "I have to show you our room. See you, Will!" 

"See you," I said with a small wave. I watched until they disappeared into their room, just across the hall from my usual one, until I turned back to the couch.

That night, through the sounds of snoring of my siblings on the top bunks I heard footsteps. I frowned, rolling over to see the clock reading one thirty in big, bold red letters. I swung my legs to the floor, careful not to let the old boards creek underneath my feet. I cracked the door open just in time to see Nico slipping down the hallway, his pajamas hanging off of his thin frame and black socks running up his feet. I watched him heave a sigh, sitting down on the same couch I sat down one every day here. I watched as he smiled when he realized how comfortable the material was. I grinned at his obvious happiness until he glanced over in the direction of my room and I ducked inside, shutting the door.

From what I had seen of Nico, he was an enigma. Slipping around the lodge at night, dressed in black. Even so he seemed to draw me in, a strong pull that I couldn't seem to resist. But even if I could, I don't think I'd want to.

The lodge was a bustle when I cracked my eyes open, Kayla and Austin chatting loudly as they dragged on their three thick layers. "Are you going skiing already?" I asked. my voice thick with sleep.

"We need to leave early if we want to get the most out of the day," Kayla explained as if it was common knowledge. 

"Skiers," I said, shaking my head. "I don't think I'll ever understand them."

Breakfast was done by nine but there were still plates of cold bacon and eggs sitting on the table so I grabbed a slice of bacon and a glass of orange juice, sitting down an watching the sunlight hit the glistening snow outside the window. I looked a few seats down from me to see Nico peaceful in a seat, sipping coffee and flipping through a thick book propped up on the table. I moved over a few spots until I was next to him, giving him a smile.

"Hey," I said. "What're you reading?"

"Complete works of Edgar Allen Poe," he responded, flipping to the cover so I could see a black raven sitting on a long, reaching branch. "They're good."

"I'm sure they are," I said. "But today, you're not going to be reading much."

"What do you mean?"

"It's a big lodge, and you've never been here before," I said. "Did Percy give you a tour?" Nico shook his head. 

"Enough to get around, but not extensive. They left pretty early today."

"Well, I'm giving you the whole thing," I told him. "Attic, basement, game room."

"There's a game room?" I watched his face light up and he slipped a bookmark into the pages, shutting it and pushing it away.

"You'll see that later," I grinned. "You still hungry?" Nico shook his head. "Good, let's go. We've got a lot of ground to cover."

I waved a quick goodbye to my family as Nico and I raced up the stairs, pushing ourselves up to the second floor. "The second floor isn't really that eventful," I said. "It's the third floor that leads up to the attic."

"What's in the attic?"

"Changes every year," I said. "Usually pictures, skiing clothes, random stuff." We found the stairway up to the third floor and we inched down the hallway until we reached the room at the end of the hall, the door closed tight. "We have to be careful," I told him. "There's a ladder that leads up, but it's in this room and sometimes someone's in it."

"How do we figure out?" Nico asked. 

"We check." I pushed the door open, wincing as I waited for either an empty room or a yell of protest. I heard a sigh of relief from my side and I opened my eyes to see the bed freshly made and not a duffel bag in sight. "Come on," I said, stepping into the room. I pulled myself onto the bed, feeling around the ceiling. 

"Should you really be standing on the bed?" Nico asked, crossing his arms and standing at the foot of the bed.

"Everyone does it," I said as I pulled down the rope and the ladder tumbled down to the bed. "Percy has his share of stories on this bed, if you ever wanted to ask him. One time he was in the attic and an old couple came in and took a nap on the bed. He was up there for hours." Nico laughed as I began to climb up the ladder, the rope straining under my weight. I pulled myself into the attic, holding up my hand for Nico to follow. As soon as he stepped onto the ladder his eyes went wide and one hand immediately went to mine, squeezing tight. 

"This is so wobbly," he said, taking a tentative step.

"Hey, you'll be fine," I told him, giving his hand a squeeze. "Come on, you'll be fine."

It was slow going, as it was for most on their first time up but after a few minutes he flopped onto the floor like a fish, gasping. "That was harder than I thought it was going to be," he said. 

"Well, you're up now," I said. I flipped on the light switch, illuminating the framed photographs leaning against bulging cardboard boxes. Nico crawled over to one, picking it up and brushing off the dust. 

"Is this Percy?" he asked, smiling softly. I inched closer to him to see a gap-toothed Percy smiling widely at the camera with Sally's hand on his shoulder. Next to her, a few inches away from the rest of the family stood a stout man who I didn't recognize for a few minutes until something about his grumpy expression struck a cord. "Who's that man next to Percy and Sally?"

"Gabe," I muttered. "Sally divorced him five years ago. Everyone hated him. Paul's so much better." After a few more seconds of his eyes roving over the faded picture Nico set it back down, looking around the attic. 

"What else is here?" 

"Everything," I said. "You just have to look."

After hours of exploring we ended up in the basement, in a small room at the edge with paint splattered on the walls and dirty couches lining the edges of the room. "Is this the game room?" he asked, his eyes taking in every inch. 

"Yeah," I said, smiling at the memories scribbled on the walls. "See that?" I pointed at a blue scribble on the wall. "Percy did that when he was three. Ever since then, every single time we come here everyone draws on the wall. The adults used to hate it, but I think they've given up caring." I squatted down, my eyes scanning the wall until I found what I was looking for. "Jason Grace drew that when he was eight," I said, pointing at a crude drawing of a sun shining down on a mountain. "You'll probably meet him later today. He always comes at around this time." 

"Is there a crayon anywhere?" he asked, squatting down next to me. I ran my fingers along the edge of the wall until I felt a bump and I grabbed a black crayon. 

"Here." I handed it to him and he frowned for a second before moving it across the door, smiling. I watched as two people began to take shape, a shockingly detailed image of him and me smiling at something unknown in the distance. 

"Whenever you come here again you can look at this, and you can remember the days we spent together," he said, smiling at me.

"I'll be able to remember it because of other things, too," I said. "This is amazing, really, but you'l come next year, right? Convince Percy to keep bringing you, every year. It's going to be a little disappointing not having you here next year. Try to get him to bring you again?" He looked down, but I could see him smile. 

"I'll do my best."

That night I heard creaking as I had last night and I watched as Nico slipped down the hallway, taking his same spot on the couch. This time, after watching him for a few seconds I cracked open the door and moved down the hallway but before I met him on the couch I put on a pot of milk, dumping two hot chocolate packets into matching mugs. Careful not to spill it I stepped back out of the kitchen, sitting next to him and handing him a mug. "I made hot chocolate," I said. "It's cold out here."

"Thanks," Nico said, smiling. He sipped from the cup, a line of chocolate dotting her upper lip.

"What are you doing out here, anyway?" I asked. "You were out here last night, too."

"I like being alone for an hour or two," he said. "I get some reading done, it's nice."

"Do you want me to leave?" I asked. "I didn't want to impose."

"It's fine," Nico said. "With you, it's not like any other person's here. It's Will. I don't know, I can't really explain it. But I like your company." 

"Thanks," I said. "You're reading Edgar Allen Poe again?" He nodded. "Read to me."

"What?" 

"Read to me," I said. "I've never read Edgar Allen Poe." He picked the book up from the table and started reading, his deep voice washing over me and making me smile. After a few minutes I leaned my head on his shoulder but he didn't protest as I thought he might. On the contrary he smiled, reading happily. As the night grew deeper outside we were together, Nico's voice bringing us closer together, closer than some people got in years. As he read I felt myself smiling at the times we had behind us and the good times to come.

Hi, guys, I'm sorry that took longer to publish, but I hope you liked it!

Nina