Part 2 to my last one-shot!

Nico's POV

"You haven't heard from him yet, have you?" Hazel asks. 

"I would have told you if I had," Nico snaps. Hazel draws back, her mouth settling into a thin line and Nico sighs, scrubbing the bridge of his nose. "Sorry," he says. "It's just- it's been kinda hard lately." 

"Have you even talked to him since you asked him?" Hazel asks. "It's been, like, two weeks, right?" 

"I think he's avoiding me," Nico says. "I mean, I get it, he's scared. But he could at least talk to me. Like, we used to meet up almost every day. And now two weeks of nothing- it hurts, you know? It's like I'm going through withdrawal, but with my kind of boyfriend." He sighs, sitting on the edge of his bed. His head is pounding and Hazel is looking at him with big brown eyes that stink of pity. 

"You should talk to him." 

"He's made his decision," Nico says. "And I get it. He's scared, it's understandable. And I'm not gonna pressure him into anything, not if he doesn't want to come out yet. If he's not ready, it's not my place." He sniffs, flicks a tear off of his cheek. "Hey, aren't you supposed to be at Piper's right now? You guys are all getting ready together, right?" 

"I can stay, if you want," Hazel says. "It can be like a brother-sister thing."

"Haze, go get ready with your friends," Nico says, smiling. "I mean, Piper's makeup skills are unmatched. And you're really gonna miss Annabeth's trivia time?" Hazel laughs but her eyes are still wide, and she pats Nico's shoulder. 

"Are you sure?" 

"Yeah, I'm sure," Nico says. "Go have fun, I'll be fine." 

"You know, Percy's invitation still stands," she says. "You could go hang at his house. Sure, you might miss Mom's famous pre-prom spam stew, but the boys are ordering, like, five pizzas and watching bad romance to remind himself that they can't be any worse than the characters Netflix writes. Oddly ritualistic, but it sounds fun." 

"I'm good," Nico says. "I think I need to be alone right now, but you go have fun. I'll meet you there." 

"Call me if you need me," Hazel says. She wraps him in a side-hug before picking up her dress, kept safe in a plastic slip. It's long and white, with a scooping neck and a ruffled bottom. It makes her look like a goddess. Nico is just wearing a black tux like everyone else. He'll blend in, and he'll leave and pretend like the night never happened. 

"I will," Nico says. "I'll see you there." 

He watches her leave, sitting on the edge of the bed with his hands tucked between his knees. He tries to control his breathing but it's hard and as soon as Hazel's footsteps fade away Nico lets his chin drop to his chest as tears stream down his face. This was supposed to be a fun night; the last hurrah of his high school career. His freshman year identity crisis, the bullying he took when he first came out, the pain of hiding his relationship for a year and a half- tonight was supposed to justify all of that. And now his dreams of the perfect prom are crumpling underneath him as he mourns the loss of a night he never had in the first place. 

Will's POV

His tux is calling to him. It's black, gold details trailing up the front. He had immediately fallen in love with it, and the second he had tried it on he had felt so powerful, and all of his insecurities melted away. Subconsciously, almost without realizing it, he had been imagining himself next to Nico. The gold on Will's suit would contrast with Nico's all black and they would look beautiful together, all cheek hurting smiles and bright eyes. Maybe that was why Will had felt so powerful; it wasn't the suit, it was his hopeless fantasy of dancing under the disco lights with Nico. The idea of throwing aside all of his fears once and for all makes this giddy feeling bubble up in his chest. 

His phone buzzes with a text from Theo: we're at my place if you wanna come, mom ordered chinese food:). Will chews on his bottom lip as he stares at his phone, his hands shaking. He can see his tux in the corner of his eye, and he does love Chinese food. Almost without thinking, he grabs his tux, shoves his dress shoes, and a hairbrush into a backpack. i'll be there in five, he says before standing up, slinging his bag across his shoulder with pressure building up in his chest. 

When he knocks on Theo's door it swings open, a forty-something-year-old woman smiling at him with dazzling white teeth. She has Theo's unruly brown hair, and the dimples that just make him feel safe. "Hi, honey, you must be Will," she says. "The kids are upstairs in Theo's room, but there's Chinese food in the kitchen if you're hungry." 

"Thank you, Mrs, uh-" 

"You can call me Jenny," she says. "I've gotta get back to my workout video but you go have fun, okay? Theo's room is up two flights of stairs, second door on the left." 

As Will climbs the stairs his chest gets tighter, and with every step, he's wishing he could turn back. He knows Theo, but he's only exchanged pleasant greetings and occasional small talk with the other people there. He has no idea how they'll react to him crashing the party, but when he knocks and Theo opens his bedroom door, he's met with nothing but smiles. 

Theo is there, his girlfriend Daisy, along with Angelo and his girlfriend Bella, Milo, and Henry. Guys from the team he's never talked to quite as much as he should have and now that he's there, he's regretting that he didn't try and bond with them sooner. 

They all look like models in their suits and Will almost feels inadequate compared to them until he puts on his own suit, and the gold details glint in the light. Daisy squeals, saying that he looks like Prince Charming and sitting him down next to her pile of makeup, dusting his cheeks in blush and brushing gold eyeshadow across his lids. "Theo never lets me do this on him," she says. Her voice has a lift to it that makes her sound like a songbird. "I think his masculinity is too fragile." 

"It's not that fragile," Theo insists, slurping up lo-mein and doing his best not to get it on his tux. "Besides, you have Will now. He's more than willing. Right, Will?" He flashes his eyes at Will, in an expression that vaguely reads save me. Will bites back a laugh. 

"I guess," Daisy says with a sigh. "Tilt your chin up, Will. When I'm done with you, you're going to look like a god." 

Daisy works wonders for him. It isn't a lot of makeup, not like her and Bella's elaborate eyeshadow looks, but his face glitters and shines like he's made of gold and the blush makes him look softer, more relaxed. Daisy turns his head towards the mirror and he's staring back at a person he's never seen before. He glitters in the light as if there's a glow underneath his skin, and his eyes are bright with excitement. Just hours ago he had been dreading the night but now, he's ready. He feels like himself, for the first time in his life. "Thank you," he says, his voice thick with emotion. He traces his finger down his cheek. 

"Don't mention it," Daisy says. She smiles. "But you look nice." 

"She really does work wonders," Theo says. He crouches down, looking Will in the eyes as if he's a mother looking at a child. "Come on, get up. I think you're ready." 

Nico's POV

He ends up going to Percy's, just to get rid of the soul-crushing loneliness caused by Will's absence. He chases it away with greasy pizza and romances until they leave for prom but as soon as the movies shut off and the pizza is in his stomach, the loneliness is back. He finds himself withdrawn from his friend's conversation, the excited prom chatter, and he fades into the background as Sally drives them all in her minivan, overcome by the dreams of what almost was. 

The girls arrive at the same time, dressed in floor-sweeping gowns and glittering with makeup. Percy sweeps Annabeth up in his arms, pressing a kiss to her lips before they disappear into the crowd, the other couples following suit. Frank waits, hand outstretched for Hazel, but she lingers back, wrapper her arms around Nico. "Will's here," she says. "Maybe you could talk to him."

"Nah, he's already made it perfectly clear that he doesn't want anything to do with me," Nico says. "Besides, he's here with all his lacrosse friends. He would probably rather die than let them know about everything." 

"I'm sorry, Neeks," Hazel says quietly. "Are you going to be okay?" 

"I'll be fine," Nico says. "Go out there and have fun. Don't worry about me, I'll meet you in a couple of minutes." 

"It'll all be okay," Hazel says. One last utterance of support before Frank is sweeping her off of her feet and they're gone, swallowed up by the mob that dances to the beat of the music. 

He circles the dance floor, circling around the edges as if he's prowling for his prey. Every time he hopes to see it, the glitter of Will's golden hair under the disco light, the flash of his blue eyes that always stick out. He wants to feel Will's shoulders underneath his hands, Will's arms wrapping around his waist. But they aren't in that tiny shack anymore and it's as if their relationship never existed, disappearing into nothing. 

He does his best to dance with his friends, bobbing up and down to the music and trying to forget how Will's lips felt on his. But it's imprinted in his mind, the memory of his touch still tingles all over his skin, and he's only half paying attention to what Hazel is saying. "He's over there, you know," Hazel says. "Will. He's in the middle with Theo and Angelo and all those guys. He doesn't really strike me as a middle of the gym type of guy, but whatever. He seems like he's having fun. Anyway, that's beside the point, but you should go talk to him." 

"Do you think he'd mind?" Nico asked. He bites his lip, glancing towards the middle of the mob. He can't see Will but he knows that if he pushed through the throng he would be able to see Will, bathed in light and smiling wide. 

"Neeks, there's nothing gay about talking to someone," Hazel says. "You should just say hi. It's completely normal to say hi to someone." 

"Are you sure?" Nico asks. 

"God, Nico, yes," Hazel says. "Go. You don't really seem like you're having fun here, anyway." Nico purses his lips. He expects her to be angry but her eyes twinkle, and Nico's face cracks into a smile. 

He fights his way through the crowd, past bobbing heads and smiling faces. The bodies are glued together by sweat and endorphins but eventually, he breaks through the throng. 

"Will, hey," he says, tapping Will on the shoulder. Will turns around and suddenly, even though they've been seeing each other for a year and a half, Nico doesn't recognize the person before him. Will's face is glittering with gold, lashes long and cheeks dusted in pink. His face splits into a smile, and Nico falls in love again, and again, and again. 

"Hey," Will says. He takes a step, wrapping Nico in an awkward but tight hug. Nico can feel his heartbeat through Will's suit. 

"I'm glad you came," Nico says. 

"Yeah, so am I," Will says. He steps back, hands squeezing Nico's arms gently. "You look really nice."

"So do you," Nico says. "Like, really really nice." Nico blinks hard. 

"Thanks," Will says. "Daisy did my makeup. Uh, Theo's girlfriend. Anyway-" He takes his eyes off of Nico for the first time, glaring at his friends. Theo is leaning in, a grin spreading across his face. "You wanna get away from these idiots?" 

"Hey, we're not idiots," Theo says. "But you two crazy kids have fun." They start to walk away, but as they do, Nico swears he hears Theo lean into Will's ear and whisper "get it!" just before they're gone. 

They dance the night away, the disco ball lighting up Will's face in multicolor. They're on the outskirts of the gym, sure, but exhilaration runs through his veins, and by the time the slow song comes on he's dripping with sweat. He collapses into Will's arms and they sway to the music, holding each other as they dance. "Hey, can I ask you something?" Nico asks. 

"Shoot." 

"You didn't do this all for me, did you?" Nico asks. "Like dancing with me, the makeup- I know that I wanted you to come with me, but I never wanted to pressure you into anything. And I kinda feel like I did." 

"I mean, you kinda inspired me," Will says. "But I did all this because I wanted to. And besides, I think I'm ready. I mean, I was scared, but the longer I put this off, the harder it's gonna be. And besides, if I didn't come, I wouldn't be able to do this." Will has always been taller and it always makes Nico's heart flutter whenever he leaned down to kiss him. But this time, the butterflies in his stomach are stronger, and fireworks explode inside of him. Because this kiss sends a message. 

It isn't exactly a big message and to most, it wouldn't be important. It isn't as if they're the stars of the dance; right now they're just another couple in the gym, dancing away one of the last big nights of high school.  But to Nico, it's a message that means the world. That Will isn't ashamed to be gay, to be with Nico, and to anyone that may be watching or listening, it tells them that Nico belongs to Will, at least for this night. 

Hi guys, I had a ton of fun writing this, so I hope you liked it!

Nina