Warming to You

The Flame

A single tear rolled down Nico's cheek.

It shone with a harsh beauty in the moonlight. A beauty that hurt Will more than any word or weapon ever could.

"Oh Nico," he said, his voice barely a whisper. He lifted his hand to cup Nico's face, wiping away the tear. The son of Hades leant into his hand, eyes closed. He couldn't bear to look at the blessing sitting before him, in case it wasn't there when they reopened

Nico half expected Will to be angry with him, to retaliate and lash out. But of course, that was not his way.

"It's beautiful out here," Will whispered, after a considerable silence. The pair looked up to the sky, where the last of the fireflies were making their way, blending in with the glittering lights of the celestial bodies above.

Will looked at Nico and smiled. His gaze so full of love it froze Nico in his place, barely able to breathe in his presence.

"I thought they were stars you know, coming up from the ground," he chuckled to himself, wrapping an arm around the son of Hades' shoulders. Nico smiled with relief.

"This - the night - it's so much more... impressive than the day, don't you think?" Will asked, phrasing his statement hesitantly, as if unsure how to find the words that could convey the admiration reflected amongst the stars in his eyes.

"I think," Nico responded, matching Will's hushed tones, "You should be careful. I doubt your father would approve of you saying such things."

Will's eyes stayed trained on the shadowy heavens above, but Nico saw his mouth quirk up in amusement.

"It's those stars I think," he said, more a question than a certainty. He lay back into the grass, beholding them in thoughtful contemplation.

"Their elegance is what makes the night so beautiful. Mere pinpricks, in the heavy cloth that we call nightfall. The pieces of beyond that the dark cover of sky cannot contain. The stars are beauty, in every essence of the word."

Nico lay down next to Will, gazing up at the obscurity that was the sky, trying to see what Will could. Trying to see its beauty, understand what drew him to it.

"Why do you love it so much?" Nico asked, still unsure of what secrets of wonder the sky held that the son of Apollo alone could see. He was also desperate to understand this side of Will. Nico was familiar with his laid back personality and had come to adore the care he showed with others. But never before had Nico met a Will as awed and poetic as the one laying beside him.

"I think," Will said, hesitant in his response. "It's because the night sky is a place where two opposing forces can exist, side by side, and be at peace. Not to fight one another, not to outdo each other, just to simply be. The glittering stars can take shelter in the inky blackness above and not fear their own suffocation. That two extremes can come together to make something so utterly beautiful it's," he said, taking a shuddering to breathe. "Well, it's remarkable."

Will turned and propped himself upon his arm, and Nico felt his own breath catch. He hated being close to people, and physical contact made him cringe. But this closeness with Will now didn't seem to be enough. Despite being less than an arms reach away, Nico wanted to draw him even closer, to close the space cruelly separating them. But Will had not finished, and Nico did not interrupt.

"The stars," Will continued, "Are our only beacon of hope on nights when even the moon has been shrouded. And," he said, reaching across to brush Nico's fringe from his face with a feathery touch, that made Nico's eyelashes flutter and his breathing turn shallow. "As long as I can find those stars reflected in your eyes, I will believe there is hope for me too."

Will leant so close, Nico could count the freckles spotted across the bridge of his nose. Their lips met for only a moment, Will drawing back to study Nico's eyes once more.

"I will wait for you Nico di Angelo," he said softly. "However long it takes, and for however long you'll have me, I will wait. Because you," he murmured, pressing a kiss to Nico's forehead, "Are worth every second, every sunrise, every star in the sky."

Will," croaked Nico, his voice breaking with emotion, "I think I'm in love."

"Well, that's good to hear, " Will chuckled. "Because I don't have any more awe-inspiring persuasive speeches left in me."

The boys smiled, to each other - the sun from above, the darkness from below - not even far enough for the dawn to come between them.

"But," Will continued, eyebrows raised, "Since you're still not fully convinced," He leaned in close, and whispered in Nico's ear a truth even the Gods were not worthy of hearing. Nico felt every word as Will murmured against his skin. "I think I am too."

The stars had a right to be jealous that night, as the light met the dark beneath them, outshining even their simple beauty. Theirs was a flame never to be put out.

And it was the best moonlit kiss ever.

A / N I'm not crying your crying.

 This is most likely the end, because I don't think there's much more I can add.  Yeah, long live Solangelo!