Soulmate Little Mermaid AU- Solangelo

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Will POV

That night, I had a dream. A strange dream. One that felt so real...I almost entertained the possibility of it being true.

Water. 

I was surrounded by water. And sea creatures. And...mermaids and mermen with bright colorful tails. Like the old legends of the Underworld Sea. I looked down and saw no trace of myself, like I had no body. Which, I guess, was a possibility as this was a dream. I turned around to see behind me and I gasped. There was a beautiful castle, maybe even grander than ours, pitch black like it was made of the darkest shadows. It was at least 13 stories but narrower than most castles I had seen. It looked like the classic villain lair you would see in Disney movies, but much, much creepier and much more interesting. 

I heard the most perfect laugh I had ever had the pleasure of hearing come from just outside the entrance. It was a toddlers laugh, around 2 or 3 years old, and it was coming closer. Soon I was able to make out a small figure with black hair and brown chocolate eyes. It wasn't hard to tell who it was. Same features, same smile, same adorableness. He had a black tail, red at the ends, unlike the other merpeople who had such colorful and vibrant ones, but I liked his more. It was different. 

He swam, and I assumed that was the mermaid equivalent of running, but since he was so young, he wasn't as fast as many of the others surrounding us. He paused right in front of me and looked over to where I was in confusion. He waved his hand towards me like he was seeing if I was really there, but it passed right through me. In that split second, I was able to see his forearm. William Solace. My heart started beating faster and faster until I was sure it would burst right out of my chest. 

Stop. 

This is just a dream. You want him to be your soulmate, so that's what your subconscious is showing you. It doesn't mean anything. 

"Nico?" A voice called out. Nico grinned and turned back, starting to run (or swim) again. Then, I woke up. 

"Will?" A hand shook me. "Happy birthday, bro!" Kayla's face entered my vision as I opened my eyes. I squinted, not used to the light she had turned on, and groaned miserably. She lightly shook me again. "Hey, be happy, 17-year-old. Don't forget, your birthday ball is today." 

"Yeah, the one that you guys planned." I said. I had forgotten about my birthday after everything that's happened with Nico. After the disaster of a trip to Delos, my parents had promised me they would have a big celebration, which I didn't particularly want, but they had insisted upon. I had made the guest list, but they handled everything else for me. I decided to have it be a free invitation, meaning that anyone could come as long as they didn't have any weapons or anything like that. 

"Well, you were too busy with a certain boy that you left us to do everything for you." She teased. I knew she didn't mean it. I knew for a fact that she didn't have a single thing to do with the ball at all. 

"Shut up. I didn't even want a ball." I said. 

"Yeah, well, you love parties so I know you're not complaining." She said, grinning. She was right, I loved hanging out with close friends and meeting new people, but that didn't mean I wanted to have one when I could be only hanging out with Nico. Who knows when he'll go back to wherever he came from. I had to savor the time I had left with him. 

"Go away. Let me get ready." I said in a fake mad voice. She gasped jokingly and left when I showed her away. The ball was going to start at 4:00 and go on till midnight. I had some time to get ready and do something with Nico. I took a short shower, put on another Greek robe, combed my hair, and brushed my teeth before heading to breakfast. My family and Nico were all already there when I came down. I sat down next to him and across from Kayla. Nico passed me the notebook so I could read what was written on it. 

Happy birthday. Why didn't you tell me?

I shrugged. "To be honest I haven't been thinking about it at all recently. If I had remembered, I would have told you." 

"You didn't even remember your own birthday?!" Austin asked, astonished. I shrugged again, slightly embarrassed. 

"I've had a lot to think about recently." Nico and I both blushed and looked away from each other. Kayla looked at us curiously. 

"What's going on with you two?" She leaned her head on her hand and pointed at the two of us accusingly. 

"Nico! We're hosting a ball tonight, you should come." I said, quickly changing the subject. He seemed a little (a lot) saddened at the word tonight but nodded. 

I will. If you want me to.

"Of course I do, Death Boy." I said, rolling my eyes. He did the same mockingly. I stuck my tongue out and he repeated the motion before I giggled. He did too, but no noise came out, disappointingly. 

"Will, maybe you'll meet your soulmate tonight." Mom said pointedly, emphasizing the word soulmate. Nico and I both deflated and sank back in our seats. I thought I saw Bia, who was passing out the food, glare at her. 

"Yes mother. Maybe I will." I said to keep her happy. I tried to find Nico's hand under the table and succeeded. I grabbed onto it and squeezed it. He sent a small smile my way, but it was sad. Dad cleared his throat as if ridding the room of the tenseness. It didn't work. If anything, it made it worse. 

"Let's eat, shall we?" Without waiting for an answer, he started chowing down faster than humanly possible as if wanting to get the meal done with. I followed quickly, as did everyone else except my mother who ate at a normal pace. I saw Bia and Nico share a glance like they were panicked. I didn't know they were close. To be honest, there was a lot I didn't know about Death Boy. But I would learn. I had all the time in the world to get to know the beautiful boy beside me.