Nico di Angelo

After the meeting, since people had nothing better anyways, a lot of then just hung around and talked and stuff and I could see Percy becoming very overwhelmed as Annabeth and Grover were both talking with him in the middle of them looking like he wouldn't know how to respond if the attention shifted to him.

Debating on how I could calm him down and get him out of the situation, Rachel (the only person besides Sally that knows we're dating) walked overli me.

"Our ride won't be here for at least an hour," so she had noticed Percy's state of mind, too. "You have some of Sally's Tupperware, right? From the last time you were over?"

Rachel's a fucking genius.

"I do!" I most certainly did not have any Tupperware because Sally gives me sweets either in plastic baggies or on a paper plate. "Thanks for the reminder, I'll go ask Percy if he wants them back. Just pop by when your ride is almost here. Cabin 13."

Telling me she would, Rachel walked over to Thalia and I walked over to my oh so incredibly anxious boyfriend.

"Hey," I said, not even thinking the other two noticed me as they were talking about something in great depth. Camp renovations, I think. I know Annabeth is in charge of a lot of that sort of thing. I got Percy's attention though, which is what mattered. "hi, I have a bunch of Tupperware and stuff that I keep forgetting to give back your mom. Do you want to head to my cabin before you have to go so I can give them to you to like, give to her?"

"Hm?" And it took him a second to realize that I'm just giving him an excuse to leave if he wants it. "Oh yeah, that would be... Good. Very good, um... Yeah. Hold on."

"What's up?" Annabeth asked after finally taking note of me.

"Oh, I'm just gonna run to Nico's cabin really fast to grab some Tupperware containers mom gave him the last few times he was over," but he went with it, which was good. "I should be back, I don't know when Rachel and I have to leave, but not for... Not for a while."

"Oh, okay, sounds good!" Grover said. "we'll be here or just outside the big house on the porch."

Could Grover read through my plan of wanting to be away from people and knowing that Percy also wanted to be away from people?

Probably, but I know he can't connect us dating so that's fine.

After all, he didn't say anything after that. Percy and I left and he played with his camp necklace the entire way to my cabin, and the moment we got into my cabin and the door was closed, he pulled me into a hug and buried his face in the top of my head, trying to regulate his breathing.

"Thank you," he said after a few moments of breathing while I took to rubbing his back while holding him in return. "Considering the fact that I've still barely processed like... A lot of things it's just... A lot and people were loud and just..."

"Shh, it's okay, I know," I reassured my boyfriend. "i also don't like the amount of people that we in there, but I could see that it was making you anxious. Rachel's the one who gave me the Tupperware excuse, though, because I couldn't think of a good reason to get you away from Grover and Annabeth. I don't have any Tupperware."

"It did confuse me at first," Percy insisted that he knew that. "It's a good excuse, though. Um..."

He paused for a second.

"Can we have a sleepover tonight?" My boyfriend asked, anxiety still lingering in his voice. "i know you were over like two days ago, but my mom works early tomorrow and if I have a nightmare I'm going to feel shitty waking her up and I don't want her to have to call in because she's tired and..."

"Focus on your breathing," I reminded the son of Poseidon. "Of course I'll have a sleepover, sweets, they're one of my favorite things to do. I'd probably get either anxious myself or worried that I can't IM you or anything if I stayed here tonight anyways."

"Are you sure?" Percy wanted to confirm, which was sweet, but also mostly because of his anxiety always making him second guess stuff. "Sorry that I'm so annoying when I'm anxious, I just want to make sure that things are okay and good."

"Hey," I wasn't letting that wording fly, though, because he's been getting better lately and a big part of it is his therapist helping him cut those ideas out because they're anxiety caused thoughts that bring him down. I pulled away a little so I could look him in the eye. "you're not annoying. You're anxious, and that's okay, you don't have to apologize for something that you can't stop. You're not annoying, I promise."

"Are you sure? Because you can tell me if I am because I feel like I am."

"You're not annoying, sweets," I stood my ground. "I'll tell you when you're annoying me, if you ever do, I promise."

"Pinkie promise?"

I put my pinkie out and made that a promise, sealing it with a kiss that seemed to be a good reminder to Percy that he would have to go do a lot for me to ever be properly annoyed by him.

After that, we just put a record on and kind of swayed to the music and I tried to teach him how to waltz to one song, which got him to lighten up a bit, although made me discover that Percy is indeed not well versed in ballroom dances.

One day I'll get him to kind of learn the steps enough to muster through.

Probably the same day he gets me to stand on a skateboard.

•••
Rachel Elizabeth Dare

I really hope they're just like, on Nico's couch or something and not doing something obviously coipley.

Because I got word that our ride is like 10 or 15 minutes away and so Thalia, Annabeth, and Grover came with me to say goodbye to Percy because Grover and Annabeth said that Percy went to Nico's cabin to grab something and just never came back.

I wonder why.

(I say, knowing and supporting exactly why).

Percy and Nico are just a cute couple, okay? I haven't seen them a ton together because I'm still at Clarion this semester until my dad transfers me back to Goode, but the things I heard before I knew and kind of connected the dots about Nico and asked Percy just to confirm just makes it better because he's super patient with Percy and he's receptive to Percy being touchy and clingy at times, especially when he's not doing well.

After all, Nico willingly stayed with him for two days in the hospital and I wouldn't be surprised if he came with us tonight because I have to go back to school tonight for classes tomorrow so Percy and I can't hang out.

He cares a lot more about Percy than I originally thought Nico could ever care about literally anything, but it's good to be proven wrong sometimes.

After all, Percy went a little crazy when Nico left after his 15th birthday because he was worried and he needs somebody who can return that energy at least a little.

I did knock on the door, so they had time to not be suspicious.

"It's open!" Nico called out after a second and so I open the door and see Percy sitting on the couch with a closed backpack between his feet (that has to be Nico's overnight bag) and Nico over by the bookshelf he had, turning a record off. "Hey. What's uh... What's up?"

"Just tracking Percy down," I reassured my best friend's boyfriend, earning Percy's attention by his name. "the car will be here in like 10 minutes so we should head out like, very soon. The others just came with to say bye."

"Oh! Okay, I'll put my shoes back on then," Percy said as he stood up and grabbed the backpack, putting it on as he walked over. "See ya, Nico. Thanks for like, letting me sit for a minute."

"Somebody's got to use the furniture," and I wanted to yell at them to give each other a hug and a kiss goodbye because everyone here besides Annabeth knows that one of them is dating somebody and none of them would be upset by it. "See you later."

With that, the other three gave Percy their own farewells and wished us well.

What those three didn't know at the time is that it would be a long term farewell. They wouldn't see Percy at the winter solstice like the plan was, or for a while after.

Luckily for Nico, this wasn't the case for him.

But it was for me.

I didn't know it, but after ridiculing him for being so held back with his boyfriend in front of the others, I gave him a hug goodbye and insisted I'd see him as soon as winter break started sand not a moment later.

I didn't know it when I watched him walk into his apartment complex, but that was the last time I saw Percy for over six months.