Date: January 23, 1982

Will had just finished his appointment with Magnus and Alex when he saw another familiar face in the hospital. Magnus and Alex went to the tight-lipped receptionist to pay their copays while Will sauntered over to where Nico was flipping through a Men's Health magazine. Will wrinkled his nose at the cover depicting a shirtless guy with six-pack abs that looked artificially defined. Will had seen a few men in the hospital with complications from steroid abuse or overexercising and he knew that unattainable beauty standards were just as harmful for men as they were for women.

"Hey Nico," Will said. "I haven't seen you in a while."

Nico looked up from his magazine. His pale face seemed to flush slightly. He closed the magazine in his hands and stuck it under a stack of magazines. He looked like someone who had been caught reading the nuclear codes.

      "I'm here for my annual with Dr. Asclepius," Nico said, staring at his black sneakers as he spoke.

      "Alright, see you around," Will said.

     He left the blue-carpeted waiting room and headed towards the break room. It was lunch time and he was hungry. He walked into the break room to see Cecil and Lou making out on the sole black couch. They didn't even notice him as he grabbed his peanut butter sandwich and left.

   Will ate his lunch in a few quick bites and tried to digest the new information he had startled upon. He had suspected Lou and Cecil were attracted to each other for quite some time, but they never have any indication that they were more than friends. Even at the New Year's Eve party where they both ended up drunk at Dr. Asclepius's place, he had not seen any indication that they were going out.

     Will shook his head to prevent himself from ruminating over the live lives of his two best friends. He would just have to ask them outright sometime soon. That thought was shoved out of his mind when he saw Dr. Asclepius accompanying Nico.

    "Is it ok if I sit in on this appointment?" Will asked.

     "If it's alright with Nico di Angelo," Dr. Asclepius replies in his usual, matter-of-face tone.

     "You can see me get my temperature taken, Solace," Nico said. "I wouldn't want you to miss seeing me gag at the sight of a thermometer."

     Will suspected he was being sarcastic, but was rewarded a few minutes later by the sight of Nico making faces as his temperature was taken.

     "God, that device tastes horrid," Nico said as Dr. Asclepius removed the thermometer from underneath his tongue.

     "It's plastic," Will said.

       "Exactly," Nico replied. "The only worst-tasting thing is styrofoam."
 
     Will laughed. He had to agree that styrofoam did taste quite awful.

***

   "Nico, you appear to be quite healthy overall," Dr. Asclepius said as he concluded the appointment fifteen minutes later. "The only thing that concerns me is you've lost a bit of weight and you're always been on the lower side. Make sure you're getting enough nutrients."

     "Of course," Nico said.

      "Other than that, you're good," Dr. Asclepius said. "Your heart rate and blood pressure are fantastic and your iron levels are healthy. I'll see you in a year."

     Nico smiled slightly and left the room. Will wondered when he would see the pale man again.