WPOV

I paced the room. I should stop this. Nico is a talented demigod who has probably shadow traveled thousands of times before—there's no need to worry that he might not be able to manage this. Right?

Because Nico would tell me if something was wrong...right?

Because he's always been so good at communication before.

...Oh gods, I'm screwed. I should not have agreed to this.

"Doctor Solace?" I turned around to see Rachel in her frizzy red-headed glory. "What's wrong with Percy?"

I sighed. I think I've told this story at least one hundred times today. "Some kind of monster attacked him, left a fang in his side that must've had traces of poison in it. Nico believes he faded into the shadows and that he can rescue Percy, but I don't know—because gods forbid that Nico would ever confide in me for this sort of thing. I mean, I know we haven't been together long, but I am a doctor, so you would think he would feel comfortable telling me if he's not well enough to—"

"Will?"

"What, Rachel?"

"You're ranting."

I shut my eyes against a sudden wave of nausea. "Oh. I'm sorry I didn't notice. Well, you can leave."

She starts to leave but then hesitates and turns back to me. Unsure of herself, she asks, "Are you sure you don't want somebody here with you?"

"Just—" I exhaled deeply. "Just go."

-*-*-*-*-

The beams of morning light hit my face. I hadn't gotten any sleep. I was simply staring at Percy's vacant unconscious state. Wouldn't Nico have been back with him at this point? I wasn't even sure if he was actually my boyfriend, or if he was just my close male friend who I kissed. Does being soulmates automatically make us boyfriends, or does that step come later? Crap, I miss him too much.

-*-*-*-*-

For an excruciating amount of time, there's no indication that anything is changing. I gradually become more and more worried. I sit next to Percy for the third day straight—I'm still in the same clothes that I wore when Nico first went into the shadows, and I feel disgusting. My only consolation is that I haven't lost the ability to see in color yet—Nico must still be alive somewhere.

Someone knocks on Percy's door. Piper slowly opens it, and the rest of the Seven are behind her. They all look worried, but Annabeth is a mess—I've never seen her look so disheveled and unsure of herself. She immediately joins me at Percy's bedside, and she takes Percy's hand and squeezes it.

"Hey Will!" Piper greets with gentle positivity.

"H-hey." I croak out. I don't think that I'd spoken in an entire day. Maybe longer.

"We brought coffee and bagels!" Hazel says happily, holding up the cup and brown bag in her hands. "We figured you need to eat something."

"Thanks." I accept the gift, but the thought of eating anything makes my stomach roil. I'm way too anxious for this—my mind keeps circling back around to the fact that Nico has gone to a dangerous shadow realm where no one can follow him, and I have no way of knowing if he's okay.

"Hey man," Leo says, looking like he wants to come closer to me but deciding against it. "If they could survive Tartarus, they've got this easy."

"Right." I am not convinced. At all. Nico and Percy are in serious danger, and I can't do anything at all. Three days is way too long to spend in the shadow realm—something must have gone wrong, and I can't do anything at all to help. "Could you guys excuse me for just a moment? I've gotta go to the bathroom." I set down my coffee and untouched bagel. As I walk out, Hazel and Annabeth share a look of concern, and Annabeth follows me out the door.

"Will, I know this is hard—I just want to offer that—I mean, my soulmate is in there, too. If you need someone to talk to—if you need anything at all...I'm here. You're not alone in this, and you don't have to try to pretend everything is okay." Her gray eyes search my face for any sign that I'm actually listening.

But suddenly her words don't matter. I pale, and my world tilts for a moment—and when I look back up at Annabeth, she looks like she's seen a ghost.

Because from that moment onward, Annabeth and I have something in common.

We are colorblind.

Word count: 735

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Love you.

Yours,

Sunny <3