"I love you."

"I love you too."

They were the words Percy woke up with on his lips, but the only thing on his mind was Nico, because since yesterday, it was the only thing he thought about.

He couldn't think of any day as perfect as that one, apart from the day he met him on that stormy evening. That felt like so long ago, now. As he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, he thought back of yesterday, and how Nico's lips felt on his, and how perfect it was.

Sitting up, Percy smiled, remembering how hard his heart was beating in his chest, sounding like a bass drum in his throat, and how he was internally praying Nico didn't hear. But he grinned like an idiot as he thought about how he had finally kissed those lips, the ones he had lost himself in a long time ago, and how he had found himself back there only a few hours ago.

It was Sunday, and the sun was shining through the open windows, cradling Percy's body as he put on clothes and dressed himself before walking down the stairs, each step carefully calculated because he was desperately trying to focus and not fall because he was thinking about him. Since it was all about him now.

When he reached the kitchen, he found his parents smiling up at him, and Percy felt a flush of embarrassment tint his cheeks red as he recalled how he had ran into the house yesterday feeling alive again, shouting at what felt the top of his lungs about the way he was just so happy and in love.

"So... are you feeling okay, honey?" Sally Jackson inquired, a knowing smile sparking up her thin lips, sharing a look with her son. Percy bit the inside of his mouth nervously. Yesterday, after their heartfelt bonding moment, they had shared phone numbers and followed each other on social media, but still, he had received no notification except a like on his recent since then. "I'm sure he'll call you, love." his mother reassured him as she noticed his stressed demeanor.

"I guess, yeah." Percy admitted sheepishly, smiling against his will. "I just... I can't believe he likes me back and that... he can talk again, you know? I'm so proud of him."

"It's rare, darling. Take care of him." his mother advised him. She then burst into tears. "I can't believe it... my son's all grown up!"

Percy's stepdad jumped in, putting an arm around her shoulders. "I know. It's okay, sweetheart."

Suddenly feeling very small yet very noticeable, Percy hunched his shoulders and flashed his mother a sheepish look. "I can't believe it either, Mom."

And it was true. After all these days, the green-eyed boy couldn't come with the fact that Nico was, in fact, in love with him. And most importantly, not mute anymore.

When he had said those words, Percy couldn't stop the awestruck, flabbergasted expression. But inside, he was screaming about how his voice fitted his personality and physique so much. He didn't know it was possible. But he couldn't be more grateful.

The way his name rolled of Nico's tongue with such ease, it felt like they were made to be together. His voice had been slightly rusty, but Percy didn't want to find out how ugly his voice would be after he had stopped using it for a decade or so. Yet it didn't really matter how many flaws Nico's voice held, because to him, it was the most beautiful thing ever.

When you see a rose, your brain automatically registers it as something pretty. But the way the body works is another type of beautiful. Percy felt like Nico had his own version of flawless.

He smiled at the thought, not being able to block out just how smitten he was.

But it was okay, because the person he was smitten with deserved all the love in the world.

*   *   *

"Hey!"

Nico was sitting on his bed, a wide smile painting his lips.

Percy was standing in the doorway, beaming as well, beholding the beauty of the black-haired boy with half-lidded eyes and blood rushing to his face.

"Hey."

He walked over to where his lover was sitting and sat beside him, his eyes never leaving his face. This made Nico blush. What are you looking at? he signed, probably as a feeble attempt to pry off Percy's gaze off him.

"Well, you." he replied blatantly and unabashedly.

The brown-eyed boy turned red and punched his arm playfully, which made Percy laugh. "No but seriously, I have some questions to ask." he said, his tone sounding more worried now. He bit his bottom lip and looked at Nico. The teen looked like he was expecting it, yet was too shy to ask what was on his mind though.

"Nico." Percy took his pale hands, which would have looked affectionate, but it was the ASL version of putting a gag in someone's mouth. He wasn't sure if that was his intention, but he wanted Nico to reply with his voice. "I— this has been on my mind for a while now... your voice..."

He wasn't even sure what his question was, his thoughts so befuddled he couldn't process them as words. Glancing up at Nico furtively, he grimaced, hoping he would get the message. "And... what are we?"

He felt like as if the words had caught up in his throat. "...boyfriends?" He gulped, his Adam's apple bobbing. Percy wanted to shrink back as Nico just continued staring at him, his gaze seeming to burn through his skin.

"Boyfriends would be nice."

A hopeful glimmer shone through Percy's clouded eyes, and he grinned lopsidedly as Nico squeezed his hands. Without even knowing, he pressed a kiss on the brown-eyed boy's cheek, feeling too giddy with excitement to do anything else.

Me? Nico's boyfriend? It felt too good to be true.

But the touch of his lips on the boy's pale skin was real, and Percy couldn't be happier. "I love you."

Nico's pale olive skin flushed red, and he chuckled. "What about you though? I mean... how did you get your voice back. Does your family know?" The question counted for two of his worries. Were his parents okay with it? He made a mental note to thank Bianca later as well, because without her he was pretty sure Nico would have never been in his arms. Yet he was also wondering if he was the only one who knew he had regained his voice. A small part of him hoped he was. "My family knows already, of course... and my voice..."

Nico retreated one of his hands from Percy's grasp which made his skin tingle with the sole feeling of emptiness, but he still felt the warmth of his other hand, which warmed him to the core.

The black-haired boy grazed his fingers over his soft-looking lips, and Percy just gazed, wondering what was going to happen next. "I-I have been going to speech therapy for a while now... my therapist was almost 100% sure there was a chance I could get my voice back since it wasn't a physical problem but more of a mental one." He inhaled deeply, and Percy smiled encouragingly, making small circles in the palm of his hand reassuringly. "I just had to get over some things... make progress... exercise my grief..."

His breath hitched in his throat. The green-eyed boy peppered his face with small adoring kisses. "...And here you are today. You're so strong. Gods, I'm so proud of you."

He lowered his gaze as his smile wavered in the slightest. He was still blaming himself. "I— I'm still so sorry, Nico. I made some mistakes, but I hope I can make it up to you." he admitted.

Percy felt a hand on his cheek and looked up.

Nico was smiling down at him. "I forgave you already. I forgave you a long time ago."

He tugged at his boyfriend's arm and pulled him in for a hug. Percy melted into the embrace, tracing circles of different sizes on his back without realising it. "Gods, I love you. I'll never get tired of hearing your voice."

He could almost hear Nico blush right next to his ear, and he smirked as he buried his nose in the crook of his neck lovingly, breathing the scent of morning showers and pajamas. 

Percy wanted to stay here forever, his arms wrapped around Nico's small waist and the sunlight peering through the windows. Living in a small paradise on earth, he could not ask for more.

He held him tighter, feeling so, so lucky he was here.

When they pulled back, Percy could see a glimpse of his reflection in Nico's brown eyes, and he beamed. The sun made them look like pools of honey, and that just made him even happier.

"I know I've already said this, Neeks, but I love you. Gods, I love you." Percy said almost absentmindedly, his smile so wide he felt like his face was being cracked in two.

The black-haired boy blushed, which just made the green-eyed boy's heart thump even harder against his sternum. He loved that he could made Nico feel this way. He shoved his chest with a playful shimmer in his eyes, and Percy grinned, enfolding his lover in his arms. "Hey!" Nico protested, which made him laugh even more. 

Hearing his dark yet honey smooth voice pushed him to do something he will never get tired of. Percy connected their lips into a chaste kiss, their surroundings fading around the two until it was only them, them and their love, a love so pure and true that it made Percy's face muscles ache when he kept smiling and smiling until they disconnected, but their limbs still entangled on the bed. "You're beautiful, Nico."

Nico pulled away with a flustered expression on his face, their foreheads touching. "Wanna know something?" he mumbled, their lips almost touching. Percy raised an eyebrow, running his hands on the small boy's back, a small smirk forming on his lips. "Yeah, sure." The brown-eyed teenager smiled and rolled off his boyfriend, before settling in his arms, side by side, still laying down on the covers. "Can you guess the first word I ever said since all these years?" he asked innocently, interlacing their fingers together. 

Percy's eyes widened as he stared at their interlocked hands as he pondered deeply the question. "Uh... hello?" 

Nico laughed, sounding like crystal bells. "I'm not that basic, Percy."

"Hmm..." the green-eyed boy thought. He honestly didn't know. If it were him, it would probably be something dumb like cookies or blue, but he didn't even know Nico's favorite food or color, which sent him deeper into the everlasting abyss of overthinking than he would have ever thought possible.

Nico seemed to catch onto that as he rolled his eyes, yet his smile sending a different message. "Hint: it starts with a P." he said, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

Percy's eyes widened. Could it be...? 

"Is it... peepee?"

Nico laughed, shoving his arm playfully, tears gathering in his eyes. "Oh my gods, Percy, you're impossible!" The green-eyed boy grinned as the teen laughed even more. His name on Nico's lips made him want to kiss him again. "Yeah, I get that a lot."

When Nico calmed down, Percy regained his composure, a ghost of his smile still tracing his elegant lips. "No but seriously..." His gaze locked with Nico's. "Is it...?" He was too scared to finish the sentence.

Nico smiled back at him. "It's you, Percy." He cradled his face in his hand. "It's always you, and it has always been you."

His impossibly green gaze clouded as he pulled him in for a sweet kiss, never wanting this moment to end. He didn't deserve Nico. He was too angelic to be in this world. "I love you." he whispered against his soft lips before retreating, suddenly remembering why he came here in the first place, his back pocket feeling heavy all of a sudden.

"Nico, I have something to ask you as well."

His lover's eyes widened as he stared on, blush slowly filling his pale cheeks. Percy reached for the envelope in his back pocket and took out it's what was inside. He made a mental note to thank Will again later as well. So many people he owed for being with Nico, so many trials to finally be with him.

"Do you want to go with me to Paris this summer?" he inquired, holding the parts of his heart on a thin string, knowing that if he refused, it would break all over again.

Nico's eyes widened as he sat up, mouthing no way! an old habit of his from when he was still mute. Percy smiled bashfully, still holding onto the tickets in his hands loosely.

"I— Will— you—" he stammered, blush rising to his cheeks. He looked at Percy with a gaze full of broken love. "Do you... you really want to go... with me?" he whispered almost inaudibly.

He felt like he was melting. "Of course I do, Nico. I love you. I know I've not known you for a long time, and that's it's a bit early, but you don't have to act like I just proposed to you." the green-eyed boy laughed, holding Nico's fingertips.

The black-haired boy turned pink as he quickly averted his gaze in a weak attempt to cover his blush. "I— yeah, I'll go with you." he said, his voice so small that even he could barely hear it. Nico looked back at Percy with a coy smile before leaping into his arms, hugging him tightly. "I love you so much."

"You're so precious when you're like this." Percy said lovingly, his voice adoring, wrapping his arms around Nico as well, running his hand through the black curls of his hair.

A knock on the door made both boys retreat from their embrace. "Is everything okay in there?" the voice of Bianca called, and the sound of shuffling feet. Her sisterly face peeked in as she opened the door slightly.

"I'm going to Paris! I can't believe it!" Nico laughed breathlessly, squeezing Percy's hand as he shot him a knowing look full of love.

"What? That's— that's great, Nico!" Bianca spluttered, a smile gracing her lips as her brother jumped off the bed to run into her arms, hugging her tightly.

Percy smiled as he looked at the both of them.

As his gaze flickered over to Nico's joyful face, he beamed in a slightly wistful way. Those gorgeous brown eyes, those beautiful lips, those rosy cheeks... he still remembered how nervous he first felt around him, how much time he spent pining over him.

That felt like years ago, now. Since then, they had accomplished so much and did what felt like the impossible.

And as the sound of laughter filled the noon air, Percy knew that there was no way he could love anyone as much as he loved Nico.

∆     ∆     ∆

THE END (jk, there's still an epilogue coming)

oh my gods was this too fluffy????? you can never write too much fluff!! AAAA

just a small disclaimer: this story is not set in 2020 or else their flight would have been canceled and they could have never went to Paris QwQ

i hope you liked this ending because i spent a long time wondering how i would end this story, yet here we are!!

i would especially like to thank some people in my a/n at the end of this book later on, but i would just like y'all to know that this could have never happened without you! i love each and every single one of you!

stay safe and sound at home!

-drakonator