The second chapter . First chapter:
http://skyekg.tumblr.com/post/113605158519/really
Also on AO3:http://archiveofourown.org/works/3542072/chapters/8230450
“Percy?” Nico tried, not knowing what to do since he had mixed feelings about waking the person next to him. “Percy!
He found Percy sleeping half way through the book, leaning against him with his arm contently wrapped around his waist. The dark-haired wanted to let it be like that for a while but the movie had ended and the light had already been on with some background music playing softly. He decided to prolong his time putting the containers and their possessions back to the bags.
Percy shifted and retracted his arm, his head fell back to his seat and for a second, Nico thought he should just climb on top of Percy and stare at him so when the green-eyed got up, he would get a hell of a scare. It wasn’t such a bad idea, if Nico didn’t have feelings for Percy, which made him reconsider the aftermath when both of them would be in awkward positions. The obsidian-eyed felt like whenever it came to Percy, he took double-caution. He felt more aware of many things that he would let slide with others. It was as if he were feeling the same thing as the characters he wrote. Nico sighed and shook Percy again.
“Huh?” Percy opened his eyes lazily, stretching his arms and legs before saying anything.
Nico tried to look at him accusingly. “You fell asleep.”
A blush slowly crept its way up on Percy’s face and he couldn’t utter a word with his hanging open mouth. Nico thought that he blushed more but Percy had proven otherwise so the boy felt smug and contented.
“Let’s go grab something to drink.” He offered a hand so that Percy could pull himself up. “I know a place.”
“Nico,” Percy said reluctantly, his eyes on the ground. “You seem to know much about crushes and love, don’t you?”
Nico wanted to laugh out loud, thinking of having spent years writing romance, which was by far more desirable than anything he’d ever experienced. He’d only got as far as a crush on a dude who probably would never like him back. To his rotten luck, it still lasted.
“What?!” Percy exclaimed at his chuckle. “You write that stuff all the time!”
“It’s not like I’ve experienced any of that,” Nico pointed out, hands in his hoodie pocket.
“At least you have a clue,” Percy muttered, his voice showed something hard to place, like fear. Nico arched up an eyebrow.
“Perseus, don’t tell me you need some love advice.”
“Something like that. You’re the only one who can help me.” Percy wouldn’t look at him.
Nico shrugged and walked ahead, feeling strangely embittered by the fact that Percy wanted to ask him how to please another person. Why Nico? For love’s sake, he could go on some stupid love websites to find some tips for himself and leave Nico alone for the rest of his life. If this were another joke from Percy…
They walked on busy streets, Nico with fast and too long stride for his own liking. Sometimes he would glance at the side windows of cars parked on their way to see Percy following him like a guilty puppy that had just broken a vase. To be honest, the dark-haired was starting to regret being angry at Percy. He wouldn’t look so sad if that were a joke and Percy had been one of his best friends who understood him the way he understood fictional characters. Maybe Percy wanted ask him because he had trusted Nico more than those websites, more than anyone.
They sat down at a coffe shop and Nico grabbed the menu, hid his face behind it so that his eyes were the only things Percy could see.
“Really?” Percy’s head jerked. “Oh, so do you think that…”
“Can two people, so different from each other, get together as a couple?” Percy asked, showing an inner nerd through his enthusiasm.
“Well,” Nico shifted and put his cup down. While Percy didn’t touch his drink, Nico enjoyed his coffee the way he did when he read a book. “The only difference here is your hobby and –”
“I think he’s an introvert and I’m just… everywhere.”
Nico held up his hand. “It doesn’t matter. None of that matters, actually. If he and you understand and respect each other, there’s a high chance. Does he like you?”
“I don’t know! He probably thinks I’m boring!”
Now there were two shouting nerds in the café.
Nico felt like he and Percy were having one of those rants about a fanfic, about characters and ships. Whoever the person Percy liked was, he must be very lucky, being able to make Percy show his inner nerd. The green-eyed promised an awesome fandom-er. If only he read. Because of his dyslexia, Percy didn’t read much. Nico wondered if Percy’s crush would read books out loud for him, because Nico definitely would.
But it was too late, wasn’t it?
“Are you sure? Only your opinion matters, actually.”
“What? Yeah, positive.” Nico blushed, wondering why Percy valued his opinion if the green-eyed were all about his crush.
Percy finally drank his blueberry smoothie, downed it all at once and when he finished it, the blue liquid was smeared across above his lips, similar to a blue pair of mustache. Nico suppressed his giggles as Percy drew in a deep breath. The tad-taller teen leaned forward and clapped his hands over Nico’s, which were resting on the table, causing the black-eyed to flinch.
“Nico, would you hang out with me? As boyfriends?”
The expressions on Nico’s face changed from laughing to being shocked.
“I don’t know, Nico. I like you so much that when I’m with you, I have super weird thoughts. I’m completely out of my mind and not myself,” Percy spilled out. “I know this sounds ridiculous, but it’s how I feel.”
Nico retracted his hands and pulled out some tissue to wipe Percy’s mouth, calmly, but his heart was thumping in his chest. He needed to think carefully but Nico had been distracted by the blue mustaches so the confession came as a double surprise. After disposing the ball of tissue, he didn’t dare to look at Percy in the eyes.
“Say what you want to say again?” he uttered, his hands on Percy’s this time, as if to keep the jet black-haired from running away. His eyes were still glued on the empty cup in front of him.
“I like you, Nico. Would you be my boyfriend?”
“Yes. Because I like you, too.”
Nico rolled his eyes, his heart fluttering inside. “I don’t know! I’m just as clueless as you are.”
A session of awkward glances at each other took place for 3 minutes before Nico spoke again.
“I think, you’re wonderful. Sometimes crazy, but wonderful,” was said sincerely.
“I think you are flawless,” Percy said, leaning closer and if Nico thought his heart couldn’t perform any worse, he was clearly wrong.
“Ask before you act, young man.” Nico placed his index finger against Percy’s lips, trying to calm himself down. The green-eyed blinked in surprise.
“May I kiss you now?” he smiled.
“Yes, you may.” The ear tips reddened, mind unable to process. Nico didn’t know what to expect from Percy and the kisses he read, wrote about were all so… desirable. What if he failed to provide Percy with the same satisfying feelings the characters received after kissing?
Their noses bumped and Nico was flooded with self-doubt. He had never kissed anyone lips to lips and had never been in a relationship before. Partly because he hadn’t tried to reach out for others and didn’t expect much from Percy, who used to give out an impression of a shallow athlete. Nico fell for him firstly because of his good looks, but then the swimmer started to unfold himself and Nico had no good reason to stop liking him. He didn’t try to deal with his crush, either.
Percy smiled reassuringly and Nico sighed, wanting to tell himself off for having doubt the chance of trying something new. He tilted his head and so did Percy, their noses out of the way. Nico closed his eyes and relaxed to feel the warmth and pressure from Percy’s lips.
Nico reopened his eyes and blinked in confusion when he realized his long time crush pecked him on the lips.
“Is that it?” he asked, his voice squeaky against his will.
“Yeah.” Percy grinned back sheepishly, a wake of pink was spread across his face, showing that he was as nervous as Nico was. “I don’t want to rush things up if you're not ready.”
“No, I’m born ready,” Nico said, showing determination. “Do it.”
“Kiss me, hard. French kiss, tongue play, stuff like that,” Nico insisted, regardless of Percy being helplessly flustered. The shorter quickly took hold of the swimmer’s hands to pull him closer but the bigger hands escaped to lace their fingers together.
This kiss was still lips pressing but it lingered longer than their first. Nico felt weirdly comfortable , satisfied and when he looked at Percy again, the latter was grinning brightly, hands hadn’t left his.
“I would like this, Nico. I think you do, too. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”
Nico blushed at Percy’s words, regarding them as a promise for new and unforgettable experiences.
“Yes, we will,” he said, loving how ‘we’ meant him and Percy.
