Nico di Angelo could strangle Will Solace right about now. But that was his problem, wasn't it? He was constantly torn between wanting to deck the son of Apollo and wanting to kiss him. But, currently, the son of Hades was mere seconds away from screaming and crying.

"William! Listen to me!" Nico demanded while narrowing his eyes down. It was easier to be angry than it was to be sorrowful.

Will's grasp on Nico's hand was loose, resulting in the short boy's heart to race in his chest. He can't do this. Will can't do this to him. Nico couldn't mentally handle it.

"Nico... It's okay..." Will quietly promised him as Nico shook his head, tears steaming down his pale cheeks.

"Do not do this to me, Solace. Don't," Nico demanded, meanwhile the other individual in the room placed another needle in Will's arm, injecting another medication.

Will Solace was dying.

It was supposed to be okay. They were all supposed to be okay. After all, everyone usually was. Sure, there were injuries and close calls, but no one had expected this. The entire Apollo cabin had been attacked by gorgons who broke through the barrier and attempted to kill all their healers. And it almost worked. Will Solace was the last of his kind at Camp Half-Blood.

Chiron had been outraged that monsters had managed to come through the barriers. Due to his past in the medical field, Chiron was also doctoring up what remained of the Apollo cabin. Now, however, it was just down to Will. And Nico wasn't going to let him go. He couldn't.

"Deep breath, Will..." Chiron gently spoke as Will did so, meanwhile the medications began kicking in. Immediately, the blonde boy was beginning to feel less pain and more drowsiness.

"Get some rest. You need it," Chiron spoke as Will grabbed onto the centaur's arm.

"Be honest with me. Am I going to make it?" Will demanded as Nico's heart ached in his chest. He didn't want to hear this. Because he knew that Will wouldn't ask if he knew the answer; Will Solace wasn't even certain if he'd live through this or not.

"I'm sorry..." Chiron whispered, looking down at his hooves as Nico felt his soul shatter. Was that it? Just like that? How could he allow this to happen? That wasn't fair.

"Nico..." Chiron muttered next as the son of Hades abruptly shook his head, teeth gritted and eyes cast downwards. Will squeezed his hand, but that didn't clear the disaster occurring in Nico's brain.

"Nico... You need to calm down. You're fading..." Will muttered as Nico began observing himself.

Sure enough, Will was correct. Nico's edges were smoky and transparent, almost fading out entirely. This is what happened when Nico got overly emotional. Worst yet, he couldn't control it. How was he supposed to? Hot tears rolled down his cheeks as he looked up at Will's soft gaze.

"How am I supposed to calm down...?" Nico quietly asked, his hands trembling as he continued to think about the current situation. None of this was fair.

"Inhale deep breaths, Nico. It'll calm your heart rate," Will explained as Nico abruptly shook his head.

"I don't want to calm down. You're dying, Will. You're going to die..." Nico muttered as more tears rolled down the son of Hades's cheeks. He couldn't mentally handle this. First his mom, then Bianca, and now Will? No, Nico couldn't put up with another loss.

"Nico, look at me..." Will abruptly spoke, squeezing onto his boyfriend's hand as tightly as he could. Nico inhaled rugged breaths, not sure how to deal with everything taking place. When he met Will's eyes, he almost stopped breathing. Will looked serious, liquid blue eyes filled to the brim with both concern and sincerity.

"You're strong enough to keep going," Will breathed as Nico shook his head abruptly.

"Will, I cannot lose you. I've lost everything except you. I have no family and hardly any friends. All I have is you," Nico whispered, inhaling shaky breaths and attempting to stop himself from crying; however, all of his attempts were futile.

"I love you, Nico... And you have to keep going, okay?" Will explained as Nico abruptly shook his head.

"I don't think I can..." Nico breathed, inhaling a shaky breath as Will yanked him forwards, planting a soft kiss on the son of Hades's forehead. Nico choked out a sob, carefully cradling the son of Apollo's cheek and pressing a gentle kiss to the other boy's lips.

"I know you can," Will whispered with a weak smile, keeping Nico close to him. Nico just closed his eyes, inhaling shaky breaths and grasping onto Will's bloodstained Camp Half-Blood t-shirt.

The moment that Nico felt Will stop breathing, his tears became endless. William Solace, son of Apollo and Naomi Solace, was dead. He was murdered in order to prevent him from saving others; that thought alone was enough to make Nico di Angelo want to fight the gods. Will was gone. A familiar feeling filled the son of Hades, though it wasn't a welcome one: loneliness.

Once again, Nico di Angelo was filled to the brim with sorrow, anger, grief, and loneliness.

• • •

Will Solace groaned, wincing as he shifted in order to place himself in a more comfortable position. When he sat up and glanced around, he felt confusion almost immediately. A young woman knelt down before him, smiling kindly to him. She offered him her hand, which he reluctantly grabbed onto. The woman helped him to his feet, meanwhile Will took in his surroundings.

With a numbing feeling, he realized where he was: the Underworld. Worse yet, this was Hades's palace. Everything was dark with maroon accents and mahogany wood. The entire palace had a Victorian era vibe, which unnerved the deceased son of Apollo.

"Will Solace?" The woman questioned, meanwhile the blonde boy nodded in confirmation. The smile that appeared on her lips was genuine and warm, displaying that it was a true expression. There was even a glint of excitement in her eyes.

"Hades will want to see you," She explained as Will nodded, releasing the woman's caramel hued hand. Everything about her seemed inviting, warmth and comfort radiating off of her.

"You're Persephone, aren't you, ma'am?" Will asked as the female began leading him throughout the palace, her grin still in place.

"That would be correct, son of Apollo," She confirmed, eyes shining with that of the spring sky. She almost seemed impressed with Will's ability to put things together, meanwhile the son of Apollo felt anxiety gnawing at his insides. What was Hades going to want from him?

Silence loomed over the two of them for a while as they continued to make their way towards whatever room Hades was in. Will had so many questions roaming through his mind, yet he was rather uncertain as to how he should ask them. And, once again, Will felt so much anxiety just wondering what the god of the Underworld was going to want from him.

"Sweet little Nico has told us so much about you," Persephone spoke up, capturing Will's attention. A white smile spread over the son of Apollo's lips.

"Do you know if he's alright?" Will asked, eyes landing on his boyfriend's stepmom. It seemed strange to think of a god actually holding a stable relationship, but Hades and Persephone were as close to a committed relationship as it gets for the gods.

"For right now, he's alright. I worry about him in the long run, though," Persephone explained as Will felt even more worried.

"Me too, ma'am," Will whispered as Persephone grinned over at the blonde boy, seeming rather pleased with their interaction.

"You're a sweet kid, William. It's no wonder Nico is drawn to you," Persephone admitted as Will felt his cheeks go warm.

The goddess and demigod made it into a throne room, which was filled with the sound of crackling flames and someone humming 'Hells Bells' by AC/DC. Persephone waved for Will to follow her, the two of them stopping before the man that the son of Apollo assumed was the god of the Underworld. Standing before Hades, Will was definitely able to see some of the similarities between him and Nico. When Hades caught sight of the pair, he straightened up and arched an eyebrow.

"You should not be here, son of Apollo. Explain yourself," Hades began as Will arched an eyebrow in a curious manner.

"Um, I died, sir. Gorgons broke into Camp Half-Blood and killed off all the healers," Will explained to the god of the Underworld who was also his boyfriend's father. Hades seemed to contemplate this reasoning before shaking his head.

"No. I refuse. Zeus can throw a fit if he'd like, but I can't keep you here," Hades determined as Will arched an eyebrow.

"What do you mean by that, sir?" Will questioned as the god of the Underworld looked between his wife and the son of Apollo.

"I mean, I'd be an awful parent if I took you, too. First, I take Maria. Then I take Bianca. How am I supposed to take you, too?" Hades inquired as Will blinked, uncertain if he'd just heard the god correctly. But Hades seemed to act as if the conversation was over.

"I'll contact Nico," Persephone explained before stepping out of the room, still grinning widely. Will blinked, uncertain if any of this was really happening .

"According to Zeus's stupid laws, you have to stay here for twenty four hours. Dinner will be ready in a few hours and Nico should be here soon. I'll have Persephone take you to his bedroom and you can wait for him there. Tell me, Will, is smoked brisket and baked potatoes something you'd eat?" Hades asked, meanwhile Will was just attempting to process everything that had been said.

"Um, yes, sir," Will replied, offering the god of the Underworld a weak smile when he realized why they were eating that meal; clearly Hades was more than willing to partake in southern cuisine.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the tea sweetened where you're from?" Hades asked as the son of Apollo nodded, grinning at how welcoming his boyfriend's father was acting.

"That's correct. But don't just put sugar into unsweetened ice tea. You have to warm it up and then put the sugar in, that way the sugar melts into the beverage," Will explained as the god listened carefully, nodding along with the instructions.

"Would you like to help me?" Hades asked as Will nodded, finding something about this amusing. The son of Apollo was really about to help Hades make sweet tea.

Will and Hades made their way to the large kitchen, where a radio sat on the counter blaring Metallica. Nico and Hades seemed to also share a similar taste in music. Currently, Will was able to identify the song as 'Fade to Black'; something about that specific song being on seemed a bit unnerving. Maybe because the lyrics reminded him of the unstable nature that his boyfriend had been left in.

There was already tea made up, therefore the two of them warmed it. Hades was singing to the Metallica song while grabbing the sugar out of the cabinet. He slid the container over towards Will, who began scooping out the sugar and adding it to the pitcher of warmed tea, then stirred it in.

"What kind of music do you listen to, Will? I know that your dad is the god of music, so I'm rather curious," Hades asked as Will hummed in thought, thinking about all the music that he listened to.

"Y'know, I don't really listen to much music. I tend to just listen to whatever Nico likes. Currently, he's in a big Guns N' Roses phase," Will answered as Hades grinned, seeming proud of his son and his current taste of music.

"Well, then it sounds like you're listening to some good music. Which of his preferred bands is your favorite?" Hades questioned as Will hummed.

"I'm stuck between Alice in Chains and Smashing Pumpkins," Will answered honestly as Hades grinned, seeming proud of these answers.

"I'm so beyond glad you have a good taste in music. Your father should be proud," Hades spoke up as loud barking emanated from the other side of the palace. Will froze, listening to the abnormally loud howling.

"Oh, don't worry about that. It's just Cerberus. That means Persephone and Nico are home," Hades explained as Will felt his heart lurch in his chest, far beyond desperate to see his boyfriend again.

The two went back to preparing dinner, the tea being placed in the fridge after Will had finished stirring it. Hades explained that he had some servants smoking the brisket while the potatoes baked in the oven. Will turned as soon as the kitchen door opened, Persephone and Nico walking into the kitchen.

"Will!" Nico beamed, sprinting over towards his boyfriend and wrapping him up in a hug. Will exhaling a shaky breath, tightly grasping onto Nico.

"Oh thank the gods..." Nico whispered quietly; Will could feel the son of Hades trembling in his arms. The son of Apollo kept a tight hold on his boyfriend, resting his head on top of Nico's skull.

"You two can go catch up. Persephone and I will finish working on dinner," Hades explained as Persephone walked the the fridge, beginning to remove shredded cheese, butter, and sour cream for the baked potatoes.

Nico didn't need to be told twice as he began dragging his boyfriend out of the kitchen and down a ridiculous amount of hallways. Finally, they arrived at a door that looked just like every other one in the hall. Upon swinging the door open, Will was able to see that this was Nico's bedroom. Surprisingly, everything was cleaned up and most of the stuff was kept up to date. For instance, the pictures in the frames were newer images of Nico and Will from Camp Half-Blood.

The son of Hades shut the door, then immediately pulled Will in for a tender kiss. The son of Apollo didn't hesitate as he kissed his boyfriend, using his calloused hands to caress Nico's cheeks. Tears streamed down Nico's face, but Will silently wiped them away as the two continued kissing.

"It's okay, Nico... I promise..." Will whispered after the two broke apart for air. Nico nodded slowly, sniffing and attempting to stop himself from crying.

"You scared the shit out of me, Solace," Nico breathed as Will weakly laughed, pulling his boyfriend closer and pressing another sweet kiss to his lips.

"I'm sorry. But it's okay. Everything is going to be okay now," Will promised as Nico nodded, glad to hear that was the truth.

"I love you, too... I definitely do... And I didn't get to say that to you..." Nico whispered as Will smiled, recalling what he'd said to his boyfriend while he was dying. It filled the son of Apollo's heart to the brim just hearing Nico say those words to him.

"Shh... It's okay, Darlin'. I know. Just breathe..." Will whispered as the son of Hades nodded, resting his head against the blonde boy's shoulder and focusing on calming himself down.

The two stood there and held onto one another until dinner was ready, both boys heading to the dining room to partake in dinner. Fun fact, the god of the Underworld loves sweet tea. Nico refused to let go of his boyfriend, therefore they held hands throughout the entire meal.

Nico di Angelo might be one of the strongest demigods, but that didn't mean anything when it came to losing those he was close to. The son of Hades needed Will Solace; thankfully, Hades knew that. The god of the Underworld didn't want his son to be unhappy, therefore he'd do anything he could to protect him. He would do anything to keep Will safe on his son's behalf. Because Nico di Angelo couldn't be alone any longer. Luckily, he didn't have to be.