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buoyantsaturn · 5 years

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I’m in Hell (5/?)

summary: Will meets Nico’s dad. Nico meets Will’s mom. Angst follows.

word count: 12,426 (73,086 total)

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Nico called Annabeth as he started packing up a suitcase for him and Will. The three of them would be leaving for California with Hazel and Frank the next morning to introduce Frank and Will to Nico’s father, and Nico had no idea how to orchestrate a meet the parents. Meeting Will’s dad hadn’t exactly gone well, and Nico knew that his own father wasn’t going to be a peach, but he could only hope that there wouldn’t be any punches thrown - it would likely be a close call.

Seeing as Annabeth had had to introduce her mother and Percy, Nico figured she would give the best advice on how to handle a potentially dangerous situation.

“You’re taking Will home to meet your dad?” Annabeth asked, obviously surprised. “I didn’t realize things had gotten so serious already.”

“Yeah, well, I had a pretty shitty run-in with his dad, so I figured I’d repay the favor,” Nico said with a roll of his eyes as he opened up the closet. “Anyway, do you have any advice? I know your mom hates Percy, so I’m sure that first meeting wasn’t great.”

“There was quite a bit of name-calling,” Annabeth admitted, “but I wasn’t about to let her take any kind of control over my life, you know? She wasn’t around when I was growing up, so she doesn’t get a say in what I do as an adult, and I told her that. I made it clear that I was just showing her a basic courtesy in introducing her to my boyfriend before we got married, and I told her that if she continued to treat Percy like shit, then she wouldn’t be invited to the wedding.”

Nico stared into the closet as he thought. Should he pack nice clothes in case he was expected to go to Mass? “So, is that what I should say to my dad?”

“You’re an adult, Nico. I can’t tell you what you should say any more than your dad can,” Annabeth said. “I know how terribly your dad treated you when you were a teenager, but you don’t have to sit back and take it anymore. You need to make it clear that you and Will are together, and don’t even give him the chance to give you shit about it.”

Nico turned away from the closet, deciding against packing any dress clothes. “Oh, and I guess I should let you know that Will and I are engaged.”

“Yeah, I figured. Congrats, by the way.”

“What do you mean, you figured? I was expecting you to be surprised!”

“You and Hazel swore you would never go back there unless you were both engaged. If I remember correctly, you even said something about needing protection from your dad.”

“I forgot that other people knew about that.”

“Hey, since you’re going to California, you should try to meet up with Reyna. I bet she’d love to see you, and maybe introducing Will to her will be good practice, and you’ll be less nervous to introduce him to your dad.”

“Are you kidding me? I’m more anxious about Reyna and Will meeting than anything else. My dad’s just gonna take one look at Will and say he disapproves, or something, but Reyna? She’ll grill him within an inch of his life!”

“She’ll just want to make sure Will’s treating you right,” Annabeth teased.

Nico rolled his eyes. “It’s not like LA and San Francisco are anywhere near each other, anyway. I think it’d be pretty hard for us to meet up.”

“It wouldn’t hurt to try.”

Nico sighed. “Fine. I’ll text her. Anyway, thanks for the advice. I gotta finish packing before Will gets home, but I’ll let you know how everything goes.”

“Looking forward to it. Bye, Nico. Love you.”

“Uh huh.”

Nico ended the call and went to Bianca’s room to make sure she was packing.

Frank and Hazel met them at the Solace household early the next morning so that they could carpool to the airport. They had a very early flight, which mean that they had to be to the airport before the sun had even risen, and both Bianca and Will were still practically asleep as they loaded into the backseat of Hazel’s car. Nico had barely slept the night before, too anxious about the plane ride and seeing his father, and had already been awake when Will’s alarm went off.

Nico crammed into the backseat with Will and Bianca, their suitcases piled into the trunk, and they drove off to the airport. It was Will and Bianca’s first time on a plane, so Bianca had gotten the window seat with Will in the middle so that Nico could be as far from the window as possible.

Will set his hand over Nico’s where he was gripping the armrest so tight that his knuckles had turned white. “Are you going to be alright, Darling?”

Nico pressed his head back against the seat. “I hate planes.”

“We didn’t have to do this,” Will told him.

The plane rocked gently as they hit a small patch of turbulence, and Nico squeezed his eyes shut. “I owe it to my teenage self.”

Will stroked his thumb across the back of Nico’s hand. “How so?”

Nico groaned, gritting his teeth. “I don’t know!” “Okay, sorry,” Will said with a chuckle, pressing a kiss to the side of Nico’s head. “Why don’t you try to sleep? It might make the flight easier on you.”

“I don’t think I could.”

“Just try.” Will patted his shoulder with his free hand. “I’ve got the perfect pillow for you right here.”

“Your bony shoulder?”

“It’s not that bony!” Will argued. “Just...sleep. We’ll be on the ground in no time.”

With a huff, Nico leaned against Will’s side and moved his death-grip from the arm rest to Will’s bicep. Will pressed a kiss to the top of Nico’s head, and after a few moments Nico’s hold on him relaxed as he started to fall asleep.

He managed to sleep until the plane started its descent, and held Will’s hand so tightly he started losing feeling in his fingers until the wheels stopped rolling on the runway and Nico finally let go.

From landing to exiting the plane to collecting their suitcases from baggage claim, nearly an hour had passed. Nico had been about to call his dad or maybe a cab, whichever he got an answer from first, but then Hazel pointed something out across the entryway.

“Does that sign say di Angelo?” she asked, pointing to a man in a suit who was holding up a sign.

“Your dad sent a car for us?” Will asked.

Nico scoffed. “He couldn’t even pick us up himself.” He grabbed the handle of his suitcase with one hand and Bianca’s hand with the other, and started leading the group toward the driver.

Thankfully, he’d sent the small limo - both because the bigger one was always embarrassing, and because there had always been the chance they wouldn’t all fit in a smaller car. “I always forget that you come from money,” Frank said as the driver opened the door for them.

“Is this the normal treatment?” Will asked.

“Just be happy he sent the smaller limo,” Hazel said as she climbed into the car, and Nico smiled. As much as he was dreading seeing his father, he was glad he had Hazel there with him. “I’m sure you can imagine how embarrassing it was for me to get picked up from summer camp in a stretch limo.”

“That must’ve been tough on you, honey,” Frank teased as he followed her inside.

As Will and Bianca took their seats, Nico brought their suitcases to the trunk for the driver to put away before he climbed inside the limo, shutting the door behind himself.

The car started to pull away from the curb, and Will asked, “So, is there any last-minute information on your dad you forgot to share that we should know?”

Nico slumped against Will’s side. “If you see him drinking, don’t go near him. Actually, if he starts drinking then we’re leaving. We’ll get a hotel, or something.”

Will wrapped an arm around Nico and pressed a comforting kiss to the side of his head. “Anything else?”

“How should we address him?” Frank asked. “Mr. di Angelo? Or...his first name? What is his first name?”

“Don’t even bother addressing him,” Nico said at the same time that Hazel replied, “I think sir would probably be best.”

“What about your stepmom?” Frank asked.

“Oh, she’s great!” Hazel said with a smile. “She’ll be there now, but Dad probably has to work today, so hopefully he won’t be home until later.”

It was lunchtime when they arrived at Nico’s giant childhood home. As the driver removed their suitcases from the trunk, Nico pulled Will aside and hugged him.

“Thank you for doing this,” he said softly. “Thank you for coming here with me. But… Before we go in there, before anything happens, I want to tell you that I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s gonna happen, or how I’m gonna act, but if I say anything, or do anything-- If I snap at you--” Nico groaned and buried his face in Will’s chest. “Don’t hate me for it. Whatever happens, please don’t hate me afterwards.”

Will kissed the top of his head. “I could never hate you, Darling.”

Nico took a deep breath and said, “Okay. Let’s go.”

They grabbed their suitcases, and with Frank, Hazel, and Bianca, they made their way into the house. Nico didn’t bother knocking before he stepped inside and called out, “Hello? Seph?”

He expected to hear the clicking of high-heeled shoes coming toward them, but instead heard soft-soled shoes until his father was standing in front of them.

Will watched as Nico wiped all emotion from his face as he met eyes with his father.

“No hello for your own father?” he asked.

“Hi, Dad,” Hazel replied, as Nico said, “Hello, Hades.”

Hades’s eyes narrowed at his son. “Aren’t you going to introduce me to these others?”

Hazel stepped forward, pulling Frank with her by the hand, and said, “Dad, this is Frank, my fiance.”

Frank held out his free hand. “Hello, sir, it’s nice to meet you,” he said as he shook Hades’s hand.

Hades turned to Nico expectantly.

Nico gestured to Will and said, “This is Will.” Then he set a hand on Bianca’s shoulder and brought her out from behind her father. “And this is his daughter, Bianca.”

Hades’s eyes widened, obviously startled as he stared down at the little girl, but quickly school his features. He cleared his throat before he spoke. “Persephone is setting the table for lunch. Please show Will to the guest room--”

“We’re engaged.”

Hades appeared to deflate, and the look on his face could only be described as disappointment. “I’ll see you for lunch.”

With that, he turned and walked away.

Will reached forward and squeezed Nico’s hand. “That could’ve been worse, right?”

“I doubt it,” Nico replied, and tugged at Will’s hand. “C’mon, let’s take our stuff upstairs.”

The five of them went up the stairs, dragging their suitcases along behind them, and parted ways to separate bedrooms. Nico and Will left their suitcase in Nico’s childhood bedroom before dropping Bianca’s off in the nearest guest room.

Hazel and Frank were already at the table with Hades and Persephone once they’d made it back downstairs and into the dining room. Persephone stood from her seat with a smile when she saw them enter.

“You must be Will!” she said, and shook his hand. “It’s wonderful to meet you.” She looked down to find Bianca, and crouched down to shake her hand as well. “And Bianca, it’s so nice to meet you, too!” When she straightened again, she said, “Please, take your seats! It’s been so long since I’ve heard from you, I can’t wait to hear what you’ve been up to!”

As Nico, Will, and Bianca sat down at the table, Hazel said, “We wanted to come down to let you both know that Frank and I are engaged.”

“And so are we,” Will tagged on.

Persephone gasped, glancing between the two couples. “That’s fantastic! How did it happen? Who asked who? Oh, I just love proposal stories! And Hazel, you must have a ring, right? Let me see!”

“Oh, no ring,” Hazel said. “And it’s not much of a story, either.”

“I just graduated from West Point,” Frank told her. “I moved into Hazel’s apartment after school ended, and we started talking about marriage and agreed that we’re on the same page. So, we’re engaged, just without the ring or the proposal.”

“Very modern of you,” Persephone said, and turned to Nico and Will across the table. “And what about you? Nico, I didn’t even know you were seeing anybody! You should’ve told us when we called on your birthday.”

Nico tried his best not to sink down in his chair as he muttered, “We weren’t together yet.”

Will cleared his throat. “We had had a few conversations about getting married someday, and we were on the same page, or at least I’d thought we were, but then I got down on my knees at breakfast one morning and asked, and Nico said no--”

Nico felt himself starting to smile. “I didn’t say no, I--”

Hades cleared his throat from where he sat at the end of the table, and stood up. “Excuse me.” He turned on his heel and walked out of the room, and Nico felt the smile drop from his face.

Will grabbed Nico’s hand, and tried to carry on. “I asked, and he said no, but I think that’s just because he wanted to be the one to ask.”

Nico tried to listen, tried to contribute to the conversation for the rest of the meal, but his anger was keeping him from focusing on anything for too long. By the time they’d all finished eating, Hades still hadn’t returned to the table, and Nico was certain that it was because of him - because of Will.

Nico offered to take their empty dishes into the kitchen, and dropped them in the sink before he started toward his father’s office. He could see Hades sitting at his desk through the glass doors.

Nico knocked, not waiting for a response before he walked inside. He stood in the doorway for a moment in silence, though Hades never acknowledged him. “You missed lunch. And hearing about my engagement.”

“Seems I have,” Hades replied, not looking up from the papers on his desk.

Nico crossed his arms. “Do you even have an excuse?”

“I had to take a phone call.”

“Your phone wasn’t ringing.”

“It was on silent.”

“Just admit that you hate the idea of your son marrying another man!” Nico shouted, and tensed at the volume of his own voice. He gripped his t-shirt in his fist to avoid digging his nails into his own arm, and ducked his head when Hades finally turned to look at him.

“I don’t have a problem with it,” Hades said, fighting to keep the volume of his voice under control, “I’m just a little surprised!”

“What’s so surprising? You never thought your emotionally stunted son would ever find someone?”

“I’m surprised because you nearly stopped speaking to me after your sister died. Your birthday was the first time you’d spoken to me since you moved as far away as you possibly could without leaving the country, and for an hour-long phone call, you still barely said a word! Now you just show up at my doorstep with a fiance and a daughter who looks exactly like your dead sister, and you never even told me you were gay!”

Nico’s jaw dropped. “My whole life, I only ever talked about Percy Jackson! How did you not realize I was gay?”

Hades pinched the bridge of his nose and heaved a sigh. “I just want to be included in your life, Nico. I’m your father, and I love you, and I miss you, and I want to see you more than once every three years.”

“Then why don’t you act like it?” Nico spat. “You refused to even acknowledge me for months after Bianca died! Oh, except for when you were drunk, and then you were taking swings at me! You don’t hit the people you love!”

“Which is why I got sober!” Hades shouted, and Nico startled back a few steps, flinching like he was afraid of being hit even from across the room. Hades had lowered his voice when he continued by saying, “I haven’t had a drink in over a year. I called you on your birthday to make amends, but I couldn’t get the words out, so I kept stalling until you hung up on me--”

“I didn’t. There was a snowstorm.”

“--but I wanted to apologize.”

“Then do it. Right now. Apologize.”

Hades opened his mouth and shut it again without saying a word. He took a breath a tried again, but still no sound came out.

“That’s what I thought.”

Nico turned and left Hades’s office, leaving the door open behind him. He wandered the main floor until he found the others relaxing in the living room. Persephone was in an armchair and Frank and Hazel were sharing the loveseat. Bianca appeared to be playing a game on Will’s phone as she sat on one end of the couch, and Will sat on the other end with one arm draped over the back of the couch, almost like an invitation.

Nico sat down beside him, feeling as though he was shaking like a leaf, and hadn’t even noticed that he was scratching at his own arm until Will pulled his hand away. He pressed a kiss to Nico’s knuckles before intertwining their fingers. “Are you alright, Darling?” he whispered, and Nico shook his head. He curled up against Will’s side and tried to listen to the conversation around him.

Nico had successfully managed to avoid seeing his father for the rest of the day - aside from one very tense family dinner - and was getting ready for bed when Hazel dragged him back downstairs and into the living room. Hades was pacing in front of the couch, and looked up when the two entered the room. Nico tried to turn around and leave, but Hazel kept a strong grip on his wrist and forced him to sit next to her on the couch.

“Thank you, Hazel, for bringing him,” Hades said, and Nico rolled his eyes and he slumped back against the couch with crossed arms.

“I would’ve fought harder if I’d known what this was about.”

Hazel squeezed his hand in warning, so Nico shut his mouth.

Hades sat down awkwardly on the coffee table in front of them, and folded his hands on his lap. He took a breath and said, “When the two of you left, it broke my heart. I realized how poorly I’d treated the both of you over the years, and knew that I needed to change in order to get back on your good side - if I ever was in the first place. It was a long and difficult road, but I’ve officially been sober for a little over a year now. It’s important to my sobriety that I make amends to the people I’ve hurt in the past, and for the good of our family, I would like to apologize to you both. I acted out after Bianca’s death, and I treated you both so terribly. Nico, I am so sorry that I blamed you for her death, and for every time I hit you--”

“You hit him?” Hazel hissed, but this time Nico squeezed her hand to hold her back. Now that Hades was finally talking, Nico wanted to hear what he had to say.

Hades continued, “And I want to apologize for my behavior today. You fiances didn’t deserve that treatment, and your daughter deserves to have a grandfather… If you’ll have me.”

“That’s not up to me. It’s up to Will.”

“Of course,” Hades said with a nod, and turned to Hazel. “And Frank deserves an apology as well, but you are my children, and I should have said these things to you years ago. I’m not asking for your forgiveness, but I do ask that you accept my amends.”

“Thank you, Dad,” Hazel said, and stood up. She waited until Hades stood as well, and wrapped her arms around him.

Nico stood as well, though he wasn’t about to hug Hades, and tried to sneak off as Hazel left, but Hades stopped him with a, “Nico, wait, please.” He stepped around the coffee table and went to one of the bookshelves built into the wall. He returned with what looked like a photo album, and claimed Hazel’s seat on the couch. Hades stared up at Nico expectantly until he sat back down.

Hades flipped open the cover of the photo album, and the first picture inside was of Bianca and Maria. “This book has every picture of your mother that I have, and just about every picture of Bianca. I thought you would like to have it.” He held out the album until Nico took it from him, and slowly started to flip through the pages.

“Really?” Nico asked, and Hades nodded. “Thanks...Dad.”

Hades set a hand on Nico’s shoulder and smiled. “Goodnight, son.”

He stood and left the room, leaving Nico alone with the photo album. He got lost in his memories as he flipped through the pages, completely forgetting about his plan to sleep until he heard footsteps entering the room.

“You alright, babe?” Will asked as he made his way over to the couch. He leaned against the back, peering over Nico’s shoulder at the book in his lap. “What’s that?”

“A photo album,” Nico answered. “My dad just gave it to me. Come here.” He patted the space next to him, inviting Will to sit, and leaned into his side once he had. Nico set the album between them as he continued to slowly flip through the pages, pointing out pictures and describing the memory behind them.

“This is my mother,” Nico said, pointing to a picture of Maria. She must’ve gotten dressed up for something, because in the photo she was wearing a black cocktail dress with a full face of makeup.

“She’s beautiful,” Will commented. “You look just like her.”

Nico blushed. Had Will just called him beautiful? He flipped the page again, and heard Will gasp beside him. He picked up the album and brought it closer to his face as if it would give him a better look on a perfectly clear picture.

“That looks like…”

“Bianca,” Nico finished for him.

“Yeah, but--”

“That’s my sister,” Nico said, “Bianca.”

Will stared at him with wide eyes, his mouth dropping open like he wanted to speak, but no words were coming out. When Nico started to laugh, Will finally said, “They look exactly the same.”

“Not exactly,” Nico replied. “Bi has more freckles, and her hair is a little bit lighter.”

“How come you never told me? I mean, you had to notice, right?”

“Yeah, of course. The first second I saw her, I noticed, and it freaked me out. Same with my dad.”

“Nico,” Will said, dropping his gaze back to the photo, “how can two unrelated people look so similar?”

“I don’t know, but I think you’re worrying about this a little too much,” Nico said with a smile. “I think you need to get some sleep, because I know I do.”

Will sighed. “You’re right, let’s go to bed.” He stood up and set the album on the coffee table before he took Nico’s hand and pulled him up off the couch.

When Will finally managed to drag Nico out of bed and downstairs for breakfast, Nico saw Hades pulling Frank into the next room, and he realized that Will would probably be next in line for an amends. Nico led Will straight past the dining room and into the kitchen in the hope that he could hide Will for a little while longer in order to prepare him for what was about to come.

When they got to the kitchen, they found Hazel at the stove and Bianca sitting on the island.

“What’s going on?” Nico asked as Will said good morning to his daughter.

“Hazel’s making eggs for me,” Bianca answered.

“We’re not really sure what Seph made for breakfast,” Hazel elaborated, “so I didn’t want to risk letting Bianca eat it.”

“Thank you,” Will replied.

Nico stepped up to the stove and spoke quietly in the hope that only Hazel would hear him when he said, “So, Dad’s talking to Frank.”

Hazel bit her lip before saying, “I know. I think it’ll be fine, but I’m a little nervous.”

“Will’s probably next, right?”

“I would think so.”

“Next for what?” Will asked, and Nico winced. “Should I be concerned?”

“Probably not,” Hazel replied.

Nico cleared his throat. “Um. Dad got sober, and he’s going around making amends. He’s probably coming to you next.”

“Oh. Oh! Well, that’s great, right? And that means he talked to both of you already, so you’ve accepted his amends and you can move past it now.” Nico and Hazel shared a look. “You did accept his amends, right? It’s important to his sobriety that you do that. It’s really difficult for someone to put themselves out there during an amends, and you don’t have to forgive them but you have to accept the amends.”

Nico dropped his gaze and crossed his arms. “Yeah, uh. I guess I probably should do that.”

Bianca pulled on Will’s sleeve to get his attention. “Daddy, what’s an amends?”

“It’s sort of like a fancy apology,” Will answered.

“What makes it fancy?”

Will took a breath. “You have to...take special classes to learn how to do it.”

“Oh. Sounds boring.”

“But it’s important to apologize to people because it will help you to remember not to do the same thing over again.”

Nico huffed. “Alright, I’ll go accept his amends.”

As he left the kitchen, Hazel turned off the stove and announced, “Eggs are ready!”

Will raised an eyebrow at her. “Did you accept his amends?”

“I said thank you, isn’t that good enough?”

“Maybe, maybe not.”

Hazel groaned. “God, you’re such a dad.” She followed after Nico to find Hades, and passed Frank in the hallway. He smiled and offered a thumbs-up, so Hazel figured it couldn’t have been too bad.

She had to follow the sound of Nico’s voice in order to find them.

“I don’t forgive you,” she heard him say as she rounded the corner, finally spotting them just outside of Hades’s office, “and I don’t know if I’ll ever forgive you, but I...accept your amends.”

Hades smiled, though it came off rather sad. “Thank you, Nico.”

“You probably want to talk to Will now, right?” Nico asked, and Hades nodded. “I’ll go get him.”

He turned to head back to the kitchen, nodding at Hazel as he passed. He heard Hazel accept Hades’s amends just before he was out of earshot, and soon found Will just where he’d left him. “It’s your turn,” he said. “He’s waiting for you by his office.”

“And where’s that?” Will asked.

“By the door to the garden.”

Will sighed. “Babe, I couldn’t find the front door right now if I tried. I didn’t know there was a garden.”

“Down the hall, turn right, it’s the glass doors on your left.”

“Thank you.” He pressed a kiss to Nico’s forehead before he left the room.

Will followed Nico’s directions until he found himself, for the first time, alone with Hades. “Hello, sir,” he greeted. “You wanted to talk to me?”

“Yes, I--” he cleared his throat, visibly uncomfortable. “I’m sure Nico has shared with you how horribly I used to treat him, and I hope he has told you that I tried to reconnect with him last night after making an amends. I’m about a year sober, you see--”

“I know, Nico told me,” Will said, hoping to ease Hades’s discomfort.

“I want to apologize to you for my behavior yesterday. I had no right to treat you as coldly as I did, and I hope you can forgive me for that.”

“Thank you, sir. I accept your apology,” Will replied.

“I wanted to congratulate you on your engagement, as well. It’s clear to me that you make my son very happy, and after everything he’s been through - after everything I’ve put him through - he deserves all the happiness in the world. Thank you for taking care of him when I could not.”

At the end of the weekend, the five of them were more than ready to leave. Nico had made sure to pack up the night before so that they could leave quickly after waking up, though Will seemed to have a different plan.

As Nico tried to stand up to get dressed, Will pulled him back down into the bed. “Will, we have a plane to catch.”

“Actually, there’s been a slight change of plans,” Will told him, wrapping an arm around his waist to keep him from going anywhere. “We’re not leaving with Frank and Hazel.”

“Will, I am not staying here any longer than I absolutely have to, and that timer runs out in about half an hour.”

“We’re still leaving before lunch, we’re just taking a different flight back home. Our flight has a layover. In Nashville. For two days.”

“Two days?”

“I want you to meet my mom.”

Nico relaxed and tensed up again in under a second. “Your mom? Really?”

“Yeah, really. I just spent the whole weekend with your dad and stepmom. I’m in your childhood bedroom right now, of course I want you to meet my mom,” Will said with a chuckle. He pressed himself closer and knocked his forehead gently against Nico’s. “We’re gonna get married someday, and if my mom gets an invitation without ever meeting you, she’s gonna be pissed. I’d never hear the end of it.”

“Nobody’s ever brought me home to meet their mom before,” Nico said softly. “Do you think she’ll like me?”

“She’s going to love you,” Will assured him, and leaned in for a kiss. “Almost as much as I do, but nobody could love you like I do.”

Nico frowned. “Careful, that almost sounded like an insult.”

“What? How?”

“You made it sound like I’m unlovable.”

“No I didn’t! I said that I love you so much that nobody could ever compete with me!”

“You said that nobody could ever love me--”

“That’s not what I said, and you know it!” Nico snorted, and Will gasped. “You’re doing this on purpose! Do you think it’s fun to get me all riled up?”

“Maybe. You’re cute when you’re trying to prove your love for me.”

“Oh, I’ll show you cute,” Will said, and rolled himself on top of his fiance as he started to pepper his face with kisses.

Nico was just as fidgety and anxious as the last time he’d gotten on a plane, and had just about broken every bone in Will’s hand when they hit a rough patch of turbulence.

“I can’t believe you’re making me do this a third time,” Nico complained as he squeezed his eyes shut and slammed his head back against the seat. “I hate planes.”

“If I’d known about your fear of flying, then I wouldn’t have planned for this,” Will told him. “But it’s too late now.”

“I hate you,” Nico groaned.

“No you don’t.”

“Well, I don’t like you very much.”

“You love me.”

“Just because I love you doesn’t mean I have to like you.”

Due to the time change and their later flight, the plane landed around ten at night, and after getting off the plane, picking up their bags from baggage claim, and finding a cab, they didn’t even leave the airport until eleven.

Bianca fell asleep in the cab, so when they finally arrived at Naomi Solace’s house, Nico had to carry her to the door while Will collected their suitcases. Will let them in without knocking by using the spare key his mother kept under a rock near the door, hoping that he wouldn’t accidentally wake Naomi as they settled in for the night.

They’d barely made it into the house before a light turned on in the hallway. A woman came around the corner into the entryway, pulling a bathrobe on over her pajamas, and squinting to see in the dark. “Will, honey, is that you?”

“Hi, Mama,” Will whispered, stepping forward and pulling Naomi into a hug.

“You scared me half to death! What are you doing here?” She pushed herself away and stepped around Will as she said, “Where’s my favorite little girl?”

When Nico met Naomi’s gaze, he wanted to shrink down and hide.

“Will,” Naomi said to her son, though she kept her gaze locked on Nico as she spoke, “Aren’t you going to introduce us?”

Will was at Nico’s side in a second, placing an arm around his waist carefully so as to not disturb Bianca who was still asleep in Nico’s arms. “Mama, this is Nico.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Ms. Solace,” Nico said.

“Oh, honey, please, call me Naomi.” She glanced between them for a moment, her face twisted up in confusion. Finally, she said, “Well, as much as I would love to stay up and chat, I think we all ought to head off to bed. Will, I’m sure you can get yourselves settled in.”

“Of course. We’ll see you in the morning.” Will hugged Naomi once more before she ventured back into the house.

Will kicked off his shoes before taking Bianca from Nico so that he could do the same, and led Nico further into the house. He put Bianca to bed in her old room - it looked just like it had when they’d left - before taking Nico across the hall to Will’s room.

“I think that went well,” Will told him as he shut the door behind them.

“Really?” Nico asked. “She looked surprised, and not really in a good way.”

Will walked toward him and wrapped his arms around Nico. “So, I probably should’ve told her we were coming, but I wanted to surprise her. I don’t think it went poorly, do you?”

“It could’ve been better! Did your mom know that you’re bi?”

Will frowned. “Of course she did. Why would you think she didn’t?”

“She didn’t look happy, and--” Nico took a breath. “Okay, so, apparently, I never told my dad I was gay. I thought I did!” he said quickly before Will could interrupt. “But I guess I didn’t. I don’t know how he didn’t catch on even without me telling him, but--”

“You brought me home to meet your dad who thought you were straight,” Will said, and in a second he started to laugh. “What a way to come out, huh?”

Nico rolled his eyes. “Alright, well, it’s not that funny.”

“It kind of is.” Will dropped his head to rest against Nico’s. “I promise you, my mom knows I’m bi. I told her when I was in high school, and she… She was quiet, but she wasn’t upset.”

“So she most likely won’t throw me out of the house when she finds out we’re engaged?”

Will shrugged. “Probably not.”

“You’re not making me feel any better about this.”

Will had woken up early and had found his mom in the kitchen making breakfast. He’d tried to help, but just like Nico, Naomi refused to let Will anywhere near the stove. Bianca woke up just in time for breakfast, and when they sat down to eat, Naomi started asking about Nico - mainly about where he was.

After breakfast, Naomi decided to go on a grocery run, and Bianca volunteered to go with her. As soon as they left, Will returned to his old bedroom to check on Nico, only to see that he was already awake and scrolling through his phone.

Will walked up to him and knelt beside the bed, resting his chin on the mattress and waiting for Nico to set his phone aside. “Good morning,” he said when Nico finally met his gaze. “You missed breakfast. Are you alright?”

“What if your mom doesn’t like me?” Nico whispered.

“She won’t like you at all if you never get out of bed,” Will replied. “She’s gonna think you’re lazy, and then you’ll never get on her good side.”

“You’re terrible at this, did you know that?”

“C’mon, get up. Mom took Bi to the store, so we have the place to ourselves for a little while. Come get breakfast, and when they get back, I’ll help you convince my mom of how amazing you are.”

“Fine,” Nico said with a huff.

They went out to the kitchen where Nico reheated the leftover french toast that Naomi had made, and after he ate, the two of them went to the living room to watch some TV while they waited for Naomi and Bianca to return. After spending the weekend in Nico’s giant childhood home, he found comfort in the smaller size of Naomi’s house - it felt like the perfect environment to raise family, unlike the immaculate mansion in which he’d been raised. It was cozier here, and even with his spiked anxiety, Nico felt more comfortable in Naomi’s living room than he’d felt the entire weekend at his father’s house.

After a while, Nico heard the front door creak open, and Naomi called out, “Will, honey, is Nico awake yet?”

“Yeah, Mama, he’s right here,” Will answered, and Nico tensed. Will pulled him close on the couch and wound an arm around him, pressing a kiss to the side of his head.

“Oh, good, can you come help me with the dishes, dear?”

“Be right there.” Will was already standing when Naomi came around the corner.

“Oh, sorry, Will, I meant Nico,” she said with a smile in Nico’s direction. “If you’re that eager to help, Will, then you and Bianca can unpack all the groceries we just picked up.”

The kitchen was a little cramped with all four of them in there, but Nico was a lot more comfortable knowing that he wasn’t alone.

As Naomi started to fill the sink with water, she asked, “Now, honey, why don’t you tell me a little bit about yourself?”

Nico hesitated. “What do you want to know?” Will was trying to give him an encouraging smile over his mother’s shoulder, but it wasn’t making Nico feel any better.

“Anything you want to tell me,” she said. “Where are you from? How old are you? Where did you go to college? Ooh, and how did the two of you meet?”

As Naomi began washing the dishes from breakfast, Nico grabbed a towel to dry up after her. “Alright, well, uh. I was born in Venice, Italy, but I grew up in Los Angeles, then I moved to New York when I was twenty. I took all of my college classes online, so that all the moving around wouldn’t interfere with them, and I’m still waiting on my final grades from this last semester to see if I graduated. And, uh, I’m twenty-three, but we met when I was twenty-two.”

“Twenty-three?” Naomi repeated, eyeing her son. “I didn’t take you as a cradle-robber, William.”

“Mama, please,” Will whined, but perked up as soon as he saw Nico smiling.

“Now, tell me how the two of you met,” Naomi demanded, turning her gaze back to Nico.

Nico paused, biting his lip before he answered. “I was a creative writing major, and I was kind of in a rut with my writing. One of my friends suggested I go on one of those babysitter websites to see if taking care of someone’s kid would give me inspiration.”

“And he was the best babysitter I ever hired,” Will said dreamily as he put a few boxes away on a high shelf.

“You were Bianca’s babysitter?” Naomi asked in a tone that was making Nico nervous, and she raised an eyebrow at him.

“At first, yes,” Nico stuttered.

Will crossed the kitchen to press a kiss to Nico’s cheek before he said, “He won me over with his cooking and great sense of humor.”

“Of course, always about the food with you,” Naomi said, and while Will shot her a hurt look, Nico was starting to like her. “What was it that did him in? Brownies? He can’t say no to brownies.”

“Trust me, I know,” Nico said. “I made him a chocolate lava cake for his birthday.”

Naomi gasped. “I don’t know how he didn’t marry you on the spot.”

“I’m hurt, Mama,” Will said as Nico started to laugh. “I can’t believe this, the two people I love most - besides you, Bi, of course I love you the most - treating me in such a way. I won’t stand for it. C’mon, Bi.” Will took Bianca out of the kitchen, leaving Nico alone with Naomi.

Nico took a breath. He supposed now was as good a time as ever. He checked over his shoulder to make sure that Will had actually left before he cleared his throat and said, “Ms. Solace?”

“Naomi, honey, call me Naomi.”

“Of course, Naomi,” Nico tried again. “This is… This might sound a bit strange and old fashioned, but I was hoping for your permission-- Your blessing to marry your son.”

Naomi shut off the water and set down the sponge she’d been using to scrub dishes. She turned to Nico with a sigh and a, “Honey,” and Nico prepared himself to be let down easy. “You don’t need my permission. And you had my blessing the second you walked into my house and I saw you treating my granddaughter like she was your own. The only permission you need is Will’s, but it seems like you’re already the person he loves most in the world, so I don’t think you’ll have any problems.”

“Thank you, Naomi,” Nico said.

“You’ve got nothing to thank me for,” she told him. “I should be thanking you for taking such good care of them. When Will got that job in New York, I didn’t know how he was going to survive on his own. If it weren’t for you, he would have run himself into the ground for sure.”

“That’s absolutely right,” Nico said.

“Of course it’s right!” Naomi laughed, but calmed herself down quickly, and when she spoke again she used a much quieter voice. “Now, I couldn’t help but notice the rings the two of you have been wearing. Does that mean…?”

Nico couldn’t help but smile. “Yeah, we’re engaged. Not even for a month yet, but I’m really glad that Will brought me here. It was very important for me to get your blessing.”

“You are the sweetest thing,” Naomi told him. “I can’t believe Will was able to find someone so perfect for him, yet here you are.”

“Mama, I thought you were done embarrassing my when I graduated med school,” Will’s voice came from across the room. Nico whipped around to see him leaning against the doorway with his arms crossed and a soft smile across his lips - he looked like he’d been standing there long enough to get comfortable.

“A mother is never done embarrassing her baby,” Naomi said. She bumped Nico with her shoulder and nodded her head towards Will. “Go on, I can finish these on my own.”

“Are you sure? I don’t mind--”

“It’s fine, honey.” Naomi plucked the towel out of Nico’s hands and shooed him away.

Will lead Nico into the living room where Bianca was watching TV, and they sat together on the couch. “I can’t believe you asked my mom for her blessing,” Will said quietly as he draped an arm around Nico’s shoulders.

Nico pushed himself about a foot away from him. “What? How much of that did you hear?”

Will hummed. “Just about all of it. About how you’re so old fashioned and need my mother’s blessing to marry me. About how you kept me from running myself into the ground - which I wouldn’t have done, by the way, I would’ve been fine.”

“You would’ve killed yourself and Bianca, but go on.”

“About how you’re perfect.”

“I’m pretty sure that was ‘perfect for you,’ not perfect perfect,” Nico corrected.

“I’m pretty sure you’re perfect.”

Ever since they’d gotten home, Nico had seemed worn down. He didn’t appear to be sleeping much, and he was yawning constantly. He dragged his feet when he walked and he’d consistently been nodding off on the couch, and Will didn’t know he should be concerned or if Nico was just jetlagged.

When Will tried to ask about it, Nico shrugged him off. “I haven’t gotten my exam grades yet,” Nico told him. “I guess I’m just a little worked up over it. I’ll be fine.”

“If you say so,” Will replied, and kissed Nico’s cheek before heading off to work.

He tried to keep his mind off of it while he was working - Nico said he was fine, and Will needed to trust that he knew how to take care of himself. He checked on patients, assisted in surgeries, had lunch with Lou Ellen when she came to the hospital for physical therapy. It was a long day, relaxing compared to most but long nonetheless, and he wanted nothing more than to return home to his fiance and his daughter.

He texted Nico when he left the hospital, and while he usually got a response almost immediately, he wasn’t concerned when the response never came. It probably just meant that Nico was cooking, and just the thought of dinner made Will’s stomach growl. However, when he walked through the door, he didn’t see Nico in the kitchen, and he didn’t smell anything cooking. He saw Bianca sitting at the table with a box of crayons and a stack of coloring books, and she shushed him when he dropped his keys on the counter.

“Nico’s sleeping,” she stage whispered.

Will frowned. “Is he okay?”

“Yeah, he’s just sleeping. Do you wanna color with me?”

Will hesitated - should he check on Nico, or leave him to rest since he so clearly needed it? - but ended up sitting next to Bianca at the table and claimed a page in one of her coloring books. His stomach growled once more as he started to color, so he said, “Do you want pizza tonight?”

Nico was woken up by a gentle hand on his arm and a soft voice calling his name. He ground the heels of his palms into his eyes as he sat up, unaware that he’d even fallen asleep, and he definitely wasn’t feeling any more rested than he had earlier.

Will was kneeling on the ground in front of the couch, concern written all over his features. “Are you okay?” he asked, pressing the back of his hand to Nico’s forehead, and Nico was confused.

“Of course I am, why?” Nico responded, tugging Will’s hand away.

“You’ve been asleep since before I got home,” Will told him. “Have you not been sleeping well?”

Nico shrugged, and then, as he’d just remembered something important, jumped to his feet. “I never made dinner.”

“We ordered pizza.”

Nico’s shoulders drooped. “Oh. Okay,” he muttered, hand creeping up to grip at his other wrist. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have fallen asleep, I--”

Will snatched Nico’s hand away from his wrist before he could dig his nails into his skin. “You don’t have to apologize, I’m just worried about you.”

“You’ve got enough to worry about, so I should’ve been awake to make dinner,” Nico told him, tugging at Will’s hands. “I’m sorry.”

“Nico--”

The doorbell rang, and Nico squeezed Will’s hands. “I’ll get it,” Nico said, reaching up to peck at Will’s lips before moving away from his fiance.

Will had a surgery to study for the next morning, so after Bianca had gone to bed he’d brought out his laptop and patient notes and reviewed the surgical plan until he could recite it in his sleep. He’d glanced over at Nico once or twice during his studying to catch him staring blankly at whatever show was on TV, and saw that he soon started nodding off.

“Babe,” Will said after Nico’s eyes had been closed for a solid minute. “Don’t you think you’d be more comfortable if you went to bed?”

Nico shook his head a rubbed at his eyes, adjusting himself until he was sitting up straighter on the couch. “I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” Will asked. “Do you want to talk about...something?”

“You’re working. I don’t want to bother you.”

“You’re my fiance. You’re allowed to bother me.”

Nico hunched his shoulders up. “I’m fine.”

“Alright, but when I go to bed in a little while, you’re coming with me.”

Nico grumbled something in reply, and Will went back to work. In another twenty minutes or so, he felt confident enough in his memory and comfortable enough that a quick review before the surgery would be all he needed, and he put his work away. When he turned to his side, he saw Nico fast sleep against the arm of the couch.

Will reached over and brushed a bit of hair behind Nico’s ear. It was getting long enough that Will had started to notice a wavy texture to it - he was going to miss those little waves if Nico ever got a haircut.

“Nico,” he said softly. “It’s time for bed, Darling.”

Nico grunted, but didn’t move.

“C’mon, babe, you know you hate sleeping on this couch,” Will tried again. “I’d carry you if I could.”

Nico made another noise of complaint, though this time he sat up and leaned against Will’s side.

“Oh, no. You’re not falling asleep on me now. Stand up, let’s go.” Will stood up and pulled Nico with him before he draped an arm around Nico’s waist to lead him to their bedroom. Nico was asleep once again as soon as his head hit the pillow.

A short while after Will had fallen asleep, Nico sat upright with a gasp, his hands fisted in the sheets and a ringing in his ears. He didn’t remember most of the dream - just like every other nightmare he’d had since returning home - but he knew that the last thing he saw before he opened his eyes was his father swinging an empty bottle of whiskey straight at his head.

He took a few deep breaths as he scrubbed his hands over his face before carefully rising out of bed. He left the room, shutting the door softly behind him, and headed toward the kitchen for a glass of water. As he went to set the glass in the sink, he saw all the unwashed dishes from dinner and felt a surge of guilt rush through him. He couldn’t cook or clean? How could he expect Will to keep him around?

Nico splashed cold water on his face. Thinking that way would only lead to a shame spiral, and he was only thinking that way because he was tired. He should just...wash all of the dishes, and then he could go to bed. It would be the perfect way to get his mind off of his nightmares, and maybe he would be too tired to have any more dreams.

He was midway through scrubbing one of the plates when the faucet shut off and an arm wrapped around his waist. “Babe. What are you doing.”

“I didn’t do the dishes after dinner,” Nico replied.

“So you thought you would do them at--” Will glanced at the clock on the microwave, “--two-fifteen in the morning?”

“I wasn’t tired,” Nico lied.

“Babe.” Will sighed and dropped his head onto Nico’s shoulder. “I don’t have the time to argue with you. I have a surgery in the morning, and I need to sleep, and I’m not going back to bed without you.”

“I told you, I’m not tired.”

“Come back anyway. It’s better for you to rest even if you’re not going to sleep, they proved it on MythBusters.”

Nico snorted. “Alright, fine.” He set the plate back in the sink and allowed Will to lead him back to bed. He was asleep again in seconds.

“No, no! Please, no!”

Will’s eyes shot open at the sound of Nico’s shouting. He felt his arm being jostled as Nico reached out for him, and soon Nico’s shouts were replaced with sobs. Will couldn’t see him well in the dark, but he felt as Nico clutched at his shirt and tried to hide his face in Will’s chest.

“Nico?” Will questioned, running his fingers through dark, tangled hair.

“I’m sorry,” Nico hiccuped against Will’s chest. “I didn’t want to wake you, I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry,” Will told him, wrapping his arms around Nico’s shaking form. “What’s wrong, what happened?”

“Bia, it-- She was in the woods, and then in the road, and there were headlights and it wasn’t Bia anymore, it was Bi-- Bianca, I watched that car hit her and--” He choked on his words, clawing at Will’s shoulders and trying to get a grip on something.

“Darling,” Will whispered, holding his fiance closer.

Nico took a breath and continued. “And then I-I was at my dad’s, and someone knocked on the door so I answered it. It was that asshole drunk, b-but Bia wasn’t there. I-it was you, W-Will, and you were d-dead. There was s-so m-m-much blood and I could see your eyes, Will--” He heaved a breath, and Will pushed him up until they were both sitting. He switched on the bedside lamp and reached up to frame Nico’s face with his hands.

“Darling, look at me,” Will told him. “Look at my eyes, sweetheart, I’m fine. I’m alive, you’re alive, Bi’s alive. You’re just overtired and stressed, but there’s nothing to worry about, I promise.” He pulled Nico against his chest once again and stroked his hand up and down Nico’s back. “Just try to relax, Darling, everything’s alright.”

“I’m so sorry,” Nico whispered. “I… I didn’t want to worry you, and I know you have surgery, but I--” Nico hiccuped again and wiped at the tears still streaming from his eyes. “I’m so scared that you’ll leave me. Please don’t leave me. I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you, Will, please don’t leave me.”

Will tightened his hold on Nico, running his fingers through Nico’s hair once more. “I won’t, Nico, I promise, I promise.” He pressed a kiss to the top of Nico’s had, and held him until Nico’s sobs had finally quieted down. “Let’s lay back down, Darling. It’s still the middle of the night and you and I both need to rest.” He relaxed his hold and allowed Nico to settled back down against the pillows before he shut off the light. Will laid down beside Nico and wrapped him up in his arms once more. “I love you, Nico. I’m not going anywhere.”

Will woke up for the third and final time of the morning with the sun shining into the room and his fiance still asleep beside him.

He smiled, appreciating Nico’s peaceful expression, until the alarm clock on his nightstand began to buzz. Will groaned, rolling over and slamming his hand down on the alarm, and turned back to see Nico’s eyes blinking open slowly. Will wrapped an arm around Nico’s waist, pulling him close and tucking his face against Nico’s neck.

“I don’t wanna go to work today,” Will complained against Nico’s skin. Nico hummed, fingers reaching up to tangle in the hairs on the back of Will’s neck. “What if,” Will started, fingers drawing mindless shapes on Nico’s lower back, “I stay home today, and we don’t leave this spot?”

Nico grinned. “I would love to,” he answered as Will started biting gently at his neck. “There’s just one problem. You’ve got a surgery to do today, and a daughter who’s gonna be up in no time that definitely won’t leave us on our own all day.”

Will groaned again, flopping onto his back with a pout. “Why are you always right?”

Nico leaned over him, planting a hand on his chest and swooped down for a kiss. “Someone has to be.”

Will stroked a hand across Nico’s cheek and brushed his hair behind his ear. “Are you feeling better this morning?”

Nico’s smiled turned forced. “A little. You were probably right that I just needed a good night’s sleep.” He lowered himself back to lay beside Will, turned to face him as Will rolled on his side as well.

“I’ve got some time before I need to get ready to go,” Will told him. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Nico dropped his gaze. After a moment or two, he said, “That wasn’t the only nightmare. They’ve been… I’ve had at least one every night since we got home. Usually I wouldn’t even remember them, but I think talking to my dad must’ve...reopened an old wound. Last night… That was so much worse.”

“They’re just nightmares, Darling,” Will reminded him. “I’ll keep you safe, so there’s nothing to worry about.”

Lou Ellen returned to the hospital twice a week for physical therapy. She would text Will as soon as she arrived at the hospital and would wait for his response to see if he would meet her for lunch. Sometimes it was before lunch, sometimes after, and sometimes Will was too busy to meet up with her at all, but no matter what, Lou always got a response.

Except for this time. She’d texted him as soon as she reached the hospital, and checked her phone repeatedly until the start of her appointment. Afterwards, she still hadn’t received a response, and ended up trying to call Will. When there was no answer there either, Lou Ellen went up to the surgical floor of the hospital and went to the nearest information desk to ask if Will had shown up to work that day.

“Doctor Solace?” the nurse asked, smiling nervously. “He… He’s here today, yes, but he’s a bit...preoccupied at the moment. Would you like me to...leave a message?”

Lou frowned. “No, that’s alright, I’ll just talk to him the next time I’m here. Can you tell me if he’s scheduled to be here on Thursday?”

The nurse started to look panicked, like she wasn’t sure if she was allowed to answer. “Well, um. I can’t… I’m not at liberty to give out anyone’s schedules, but you can always call to check in on him.”

“Alright, thank you,” Lou said, and turned away from the desk. She tried not to overthink the way the nurse had acted - call to check in on him? That sounded more like she was talking about a patient than a doctor.

Around two, Nico texted Will asking if he’d be off work in time to pick a few things up from the store before dinner. After half an hour without an answer, Nico wasn’t worried. Will was usually busy, and it wasn’t like he couldn’t run to the store himself.

The two returned home, and Nico and Bianca put away the groceries before Nico made Bianca a snack. Around five, he called Will, and there was no answer. To Will’s voicemail, Nico said, “Hey, babe, call me back if you’re gonna be home in time for dinner, okay? Love you.”

Will didn’t call back.

Nico and Bianca had spaghetti for dinner and watched TV for a little while before it was time for Bianca to go to bed. It took more convincing than usual for Nico to get Bianca to stay in her room; she never wanted to sleep before Will got home to kiss her goodnight, and tonight was no different. Nico told her a bedtime story, one about a magic pirate ship (because honestly, Nico could never get enough of pirate stories), and promised her that as soon as Will got home, he would come say goodnight. He kissed Bianca on the forehead and turned off the light when he left the room.

He didn’t try calling Will again before he went to bed.

At this point in his life, Nico was too used to sleeping with someone beside him, so it was difficult to fall asleep in the first place, and after the couple of weeks he’d just had, he wasn’t exactly excited to sleep on his own. When he finally did manage to fall asleep, he was restless.

He tossed and turned all night, waking up fully around three and still feeling an empty bed next to him. He finally felt worry set in like a rock in his stomach, rolling out of bed and wandering the house for a few minutes for any sign that Will had come home, even for a moment, but there was nothing. No keys on the counter, no change of scrubs in the hamper, no tan, freckled body asleep on the couch or in the bed in the guest room.

Nico returned to his and Will’s shared bedroom, unplugging his phone from where it sat on the nightstand, and scrolled through his contacts, hitting the call button next to Will’s name.

“Will?” Nico said softly to his fiance’s voicemail. “I know you’re probably busy and I’m probably worrying for nothing, but-- But I am worrying. As soon as you get this, can you please call me or text me or something?” He paused. “I love you, Sunshine.” And he stopped recording.

Cecil was pacing in the hall outside one of the ICU rooms, reading and rereading everything the chart in his hands had to tell him. Each time he flipped through the pages, he tried to skip over the details of the accident, but his eyes couldn’t help but read over every word. He would remind himself each time that he was looking for something. Reading this over again would just make the panic worse, but he couldn’t help it.

Emergency Contact, he reminded himself again and again. That’s what he was looking for. Why couldn’t he find a single emergency contact?

His frantic reading was interrupted by somebody shouting his name down the hall, and a wheelchair flew down the hall so fast that he thought he was going to be hit.

“Lou?” he asked, slamming the chart closed and hiding the name on the front. “What are you doing here? Why are you in a wheelchair?”

“I’m here for physical therapy; they haven’t cleared me from the wheelchair yet,” she answered, peering around him to look into the room they were in front of, until Cecil blocked her line of sight. “What are you doing here? Outside what looks to be a grown man’s room when you’re a pediatric surgeon?”

Cecil froze, eyes darting through the glass doors to the man lying in the bed before his gaze fell back to Lou Ellen in front of him.

“He’s in there, isn’t he?” Lou asked quietly.

“I don’t know what you mean,” he lied, holding the chart close to his chest.

“He’s not answering my texts, he didn’t come to see me for lunch after physical therapy,” Lou told him. “I had him paged this morning and nobody would tell me where he was.”

Cecil remained silent.

“Give me the chart, Cecil,” Lou demanded.

“I could get fired for that!”

“Then tell me he’s not in there!” She pointed toward the glass separating them from the man in the bed.

Cecil ducked his head, unable to maintain eye contact any longer.

Lou’s breath hitched. “Why doesn’t he have anyone here for him? Didn’t you call anybody?”

“He doesn’t have any emergency contacts. He never listed any when he moved here.”

“Then find his phone and look for one.”

“I can’t just look through his stuff, that’s a violation of patient privacy!”

“He’s your best friend, Cecil, find his phone and call somebody.”

Bianca was cranky, and Nico knew that the only thing that would get her to behave herself was for Will to come home. Nico tried convincing her that Will came home after she went to sleep but had to leave again in the middle of the night, but the he knew the bags under his eyes and the tired tone of his voice couldn’t have convinced anyone.

Eventually, Nico called Hazel. He needed a break, and he wanted to find Will, so he asked his sister to watch Bianca for a few hours. Hazel had agreed, but Bianca had screamed at him when he told her they were leaving - she didn’t want to go anywhere until she saw Will, so Nico had to practically beg to get her dressed and out the door.

He pulled Hazel aside and hugged her as soon as they entered her apartment, which had her worried even more than she already was. “What’s wrong?” she asked as she returned the embrace.

“Will’s not answering my calls,” Nico muttered. “I’m worried about him. Is it too much for me to go to the hospital and try to find him?”

“How long has it been? A Day? Two?” Nico nodded. “Oh, Nico, I’m sure he’s just busy. Go find him, and let me know when you’re on your way back.” She kissed his cheek before guiding him back toward the door.

When Nico sat down in his car, he contemplated how comfortable of a pillow his steering wheel would make. He was still so exhausted, and he wanted nothing more to fall asleep and wake up beside Will like this whole thing had been just another bad dream.

He turned the key and drove out of the parking lot, heading toward the hospital. He hadn’t even gone a mile before he phone started ringing in his pocket, and Nico struggled to fish it out while driving.

He nearly dropped the phone when he saw the name on the screen. He pulled over onto the shoulder as he answered. “Will?”

“Is this Nico?” a voice that was very much not Will’s responded.

“Yes,” Nico said, surprised he could get the word out when he suddenly felt like he was going to throw up any second.

“My name is Doctor Cecil Markowitz,” the voice continued with a stable facade, though Nico could hear it shaking. “There’s been an accident.”

Nico choked on his words. There were so many thoughts running through his head, yet at the same time his mind was blank.

“Will is currently in the ICU,” Cecil continued. “I can tell you more once you get here. Can you… Are you available? To come up to the hospital?”

“I’m on my way,” Nico whispered.

“Ask for directions to the ICU at the front desk,” Cecil told him. “I’ll see you soon.”

Nico hung up the phone, and stared down at it for a moment. He couldn’t find it in himself to move until his stomach turned over, and Nico had to throw open the driver’s side door to vomit on the side of the road. Thankfully, he’d been too worried to eat much at breakfast, but that just meant that he sat hunched over in his seat for a few minutes, body trying to empty an already exhausted stomach. When he could move again, Nico rinsed out his mouth with a bottle of water he found in the door, and started to drive once more.

He thought his body might revolt against him again as he pulled into the parking lot, but he took a second to breathe, to try to calm himself down, and readied himself for whatever he was about to see.

The exterior doors slid open when he walked up. The lights in the lobby were too bright and the receptionist too happy. Her smile didn’t fade as she offered him directions to the ICU.

He shuffled down the hall, passing the waiting room attached to the ER, feeling his stomach clench as he remembered sitting there, waiting for Will to arrive after he’d almost poisoned their daughter--

He stopped. He staggered toward the wall, leaning against it for support as his vision started to blur. He leaned back against the wall, blinking up at the ceiling in hopes of persuading the tears back into his eyes before his legs practically gave out from under him and he slid down the wall. He hung his head between his knees, hoping to stop his head from spinning.

Nico heard the sound of wheels gliding across the floor, though he couldn’t get his legs to move out of the way.

“Hey, man,” a voice said above him, “are you alright?”

He lifted his head slowly to keep his head from spinning even more, and was met with a woman about his age with purple hair and a frown on her face.

“Oh god,” she said, expression falling from polite concern to devastation. “You’re Nico, aren’t you?”

He nodded, wiping under his eyes with the back of his hand. “How do you know that?”

“I’ve seen pictures of you,” she told him with a sad smile, and held out a hand. “I’m Lou Ellen. Your boy really likes to show you off.”

Nico’s breath hitched as he reached up, but hesitated before taking her hand. “Have you seen him?”

Lou Ellen shook her head. “They won’t let me in, but I’m friends with some of the doctors. They keep telling me he’ll be fine, but I’d kinda like to see for myself. I don’t suppose if I show you the way, you’ll let me in with you?”

Nico nodded. “Yes, please.” He took Lou’s hand and rose to his feet. He stepped behind her wheelchair to give the illusion that he would push her down the hall, but he really just needed something to help him stay standing.

As soon as Nico saw the first sign telling them that they were in the ICU, his legs turned almost gave out from under him, even with the support of Lou’s wheelchair. His heart started hammering in his chest and his vision started blurring once more, though he wasn’t sure whether that was from the nerves or another round of tears forming.

“Lou, I don’t know if I can do it,” he choked out.

“You’re gonna be fine, Nico, and so is he. He’s just knocked out from the surgery, that’s what Cecil said. He’ll wake up soon.”

They continued down the hall, and Nico noticed one doctor loitering around one of the rooms. He looked in their direction, stomping toward them the second he realized who it was. “Lou, I told you, you have to get off this floor--” he paused, seeming to notice Nico for the first time. “You-- You’re Nico?”

Nico nodded, recognizing the voice from the phone. “Cecil, right?”

He nodded back. “Thank God you’re here,” he said. “Now Lou and I have a reason to go in there--” He stopped himself again, eyes widening. “Unless you don’t want us there, of course.”

“It’s fine,” Nico told him, and looked around anxiously. “Where is he?”

“Down here.” Cecil led them a few rooms down the hall before stopping to open one of the doors, holding it open for Nico to walk through.

His heart stopped when he entered the room, eyes landing on his battered fiance and feeling a sob build in his throat. Will had a dark bruise underneath one eye, and a propped up leg in a cast. One arm was held across his chest in a cast. Nico moved toward the bed, dropping heavily into the bedside chair and taking Will’s uninjured hand in his own.

“Where’s his ring?” Nico asked, thumb brushing over the back of Will’s hand as he glanced up at Cecil across the room.

“We usually don’t allow the patients to wear jewelry while they’re here,” Cecil explained. “Especially rings and bracelets, because they can interfere with the blood pressure readings.”

Lou wheeled herself toward a table in the corner of the room, picking up a plastic bag. “He doesn’t care about that, Cecil, he wants his ring.” She propelled herself back over to Nico, handing him the bag. “This is all of his stuff.”

“Stuff?” Nico repeated, taking the bag and holding it in his lap.

“Clothes, shoes, wallet,” Cecil said. “Everything he had with him when he came in.” He jumped slightly, as if remembering something, and reached into his pocket. “Except for this.” He pulled out a phone with a shattered screen, handing it over to Nico.

“Do you know...what happened?” Nico asked.

Cecil scratched at the back of his head awkwardly. “I’m, uh, not actually Will’s doctor, I’m just his friend. So I don’t have all the information. I know it was a car accident, but I don’t really know the details. He has fractured ribs, a broken collarbone, and a crushed foot, but he’s already had surgeries reset all of his bones. He should be cleared as soon as he wakes up.”

“And when will that be?”

Cecil sighed. “We don’t know.”

Nico bit his lip and stared down at his fiance. “Can I have some time alone?”

Cecil nodded. “Of course.” He turned to leave, holding the door open for Lou on their way out.

Nico scooted his chair closer to the bedside, digging through the bag with one hand and still holding Will’s with the other.

“You should’ve tried harder to convince me to stay in bed,” he said softly, fingers closing around the ring and dragging it out.

“Bianca’s upset that you haven’t been home,” he continued, cautiously sliding the ring onto the hand in the sling, careful not to move Will’s arm at all as he did so. “She started singing that song yesterday, the one that makes me think of you.”

He dropped the bag of Will’s clothes, clutching at Will’s uninjured hand with both of his. “You know which one I’m talking about,” he said, and started to sing shakily. “You are my Sunshine, my only Sunshine--”

He started to sob.

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