Leo realized too late that Nico di Angelo was extremely attractive.
Leo didn’t think of his friends as attractive.
Piper: angular features and gorgeous eyes and nice tits. But she was also Piper; the one who cried in his arms when she told him about her dad, the one who did his hair and nails, the one who could beat his ass. But he wasn’t attracted to her.
Jason: tall and strong and intense with a good chest. But he was also Jason; the one who saved him at the Grand Canyon, the one who never found Leo annoying, the one who died for the Prophecy so Leo could live.
And down the list of his friends. Were they gorgeous. Yes. Were they sexy. Yes. But they were his friends.
Nico had never been the kind of guy that every camper wanted to ask out. That was always Jason or Percy. And more importantly, the campers refused to ask Nico out directly.
They had deemed Leo as the approachable one. And that was how Leo realized his best friend was so incredibly attractive.
Random campers approached him to ask him if Nico was single or straight or gay or if he’d be interested in them.
Several instances of this later, and Leo had comprised a list of responses to these questions:
“No sorry, he accidentally entered a marriage contract with the devil during a spooky ritual.”
“Yeah sure! In the way that Viktor Frankenstein is gay: Nico is building himself a six foot tall boyfriend out of dead bodies.”
“Oh yeah totally. Loves ‘em. Especially virgins. He could probably use another sacrifice if youre interested in being carved open with a styngian iron sword.”
“Would he be interested in me?”
“No sorry, he prefers his lovers in the later stages of rigor mortus. If you get what im saying.”
And maybe Leo had taken it to far. Maybe he had made Nico seem too creepy. But so what. They didn’t have the balls to say anything to his face in the first place. Besides. Half the camp already thought Nico was weird and creepy; if they believed the stuff Leo had said, then they were assholes who didn’t deserve Nico in the first place.
The next time it happened. Leo snapped.
“Do you think he’d let me take him out on a date?”
“Hell fucking no! He wouldn’t let any of you assholes within twenty feet of him if he knew about this! He wouldn’t want anything to do with a shy asshole who is to scared of him to ask him out to his fucking face like he fucking deserves!”
The girl tried to stammer out a response but Leo was already marching in the direction of Cabin 13.
And then he was pounding on the big black door with his fists and all the strength he had in him.
The door opened a crack. Just enough that leo could observe an eye staring back at him through the darkness. Nico opened the door and stared at him.
“Are you okay? Is something wrong? Are you hurt?” Nico was asking him so many questions and ushering him quietly into the cabin and encouraging Leo to sit down on the edge of the bed.
Nico was crouching on the ground in front of him and all Leo could think about was how pretty his face was.
Nico, who had matured into such an attractive and kind individual. Nico with gorgeous hair that framed his face. With delicate eyeliner. With pretty lips and soft cheeks that Leo wanted to press gentle kisses to.
Nico put the back of his hand against Leo’s forehead.
“You’re so hot,” Nico said.
“Not like that.” Nico sighed. “You’re burning up. Worse than a fever. Is something wrong?”
“So it’s just a stress thing? Youre not burning up cause you’re sick?”
Nico sat on the bed next to him and pulled him into a hug. “Talk to me.”
“You’re a really good friend, Nico.”
“Thanks but,” Nico paused, “this isn’t about me Leo, it’s about you.”
“No.” Leo said. “It is about you.”
“It is?” Leo felt Nico start to pull away.
“No wait. Its not you. Its not I promise I just.”
“Its what?” Nico asked, cautiously.
“Half of the camp is in love with you.”
“Leo?” Nico asked. “Are you ok? When’s the last time you got some sleep?”
“No, no, listen, Im not crazy!” Leo stood and paced back and forth as he spoke. “Im not crazy. Every day for the past week there’s been at least five campers that have come up to me to ask about you. People who dont even know you!”
Lep paused to catch his breath. Then he pitched his voice and imitated the questions he’d been asked. “Is he gay? Is he interesten in me? Would he want to ho out with me? What does his ideal girl look like? What would a good date idea be? Is he single? Is he taken? Is he this is he that!”
“I’m just so sick of it. They don’t even know you and they’re to scared of you to ask you in the first place.” Leo tossed his head back and laughed. “So they come to me to ask! Because I’m your best friend. They harass me because they’re too scared to talk to you.”
“Im sorry-“ nico started.
“Don’t apologize! Its not you’re fault that they’re assholes. Its just. They dont even know you. They have this idea of who you are but its not you. Its not even close. They have no clue how kind or funny you are. They only want you because Alternative cultures are being seen as cool again.”
“They shouldn’t be bothering you.”
“They don’t know you like I know you. They don’t care about you like I do.”
“And I’m running out of excuses— running out of things to tell them so they’ll leave me alone. I don’t know what to do anymore. I don’t know what to tell them.”
“Tell them,” Nico started, his voice quiet. “Tell them that I’m yours.”
“But only if you want me to be— want me to be yours that is.”
“I- You- Are you asking me out?”
“Like for real? You want me to be your boyfriend?”
Nico nodded. He stared down at his shoes.
Leo approached him. And tilted Nico’s face up, forcing the son of Hades to look him in the eyes.
Nico’s whole face was red.
tangentwithtanner
gummygunk
prguitarman
areudirty
s-u-f-j-a-n-s-t-e-v-e-n-s
pixelskylines
stormborns
vaporwave
