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Jasico Week 2024 - Day 1

Words: 3,058 Rating: General Audiences Type: Oneshot

Description: Nico, Camp Half-Bloods demigod with the largest contraband collection, helps Jason have a quiet birthday devoid of all Stoll pranks. Birthday cake and Mario Kart included.

Sidenote: This fic was written for @jasico-challenges Jasico week 2024 event!

Full fic under the cut! However, the formatting is a bit better on AO3 since I’m posting this from mobile lol.

Alone time at camp was hard to get. It was even harder if you happened to go to camp at a time that aligned with when the Stoll brothers went to camp. Unfortunately for Jason, he fell into that bracket of poor souls.

Not only did the Stolls insist on knowing everyone’s birthday, they also insisted on making a personalized prank on that very day. Beyond that sphere of horrible intent, they also told everyone they knew that it was your birthday—they knew everyone at camp.

Jason was still shuddering in remembrance of the last camper who the two of them had gotten their hands on. The prank wasn’t pretty, nor was the aftermath. Said camper still walked a wide circle around those two.

Nico had somehow managed to scrape away with never enduring one of their birthday pranks. Wether he paid them off or if they just respected him enough to leave him alone was up for debate. They were his first two real friends at camp, and was known for aiding their pranks when needed, so maybe they just couldn’t do as good of a prank without him that they didn’t bother.

However it happened didn’t matter to Jason. All that he cared about was Nico never got pranked, and he was determined not to either.

Jason slammed his breakfast tray down on the Hades table with enough conviction to conjure several glares from other campers. He didn’t care enough to look back, but he’d certainly gotten Nico’s attention.

Nico pulled off his headphones, hardly taking the time to set down his fork. “Good gods, what?” Nico said, pausing his iPod. It was the closest thing to updated technology that all of camp had, and Nico clung to the thing rather strong.

Jason sat down, ignoring the rules saying he should be at his own table. “I need a favor,” he said.

“Great?” Nico said, picking his fork back up.

Jason groaned. “Come on!”

“I didn’t say no.”

Jason took a breath, hope singing his name on the horizon. Maybe he was being dramatic, but he hadn’t had a birthday to himself in years, and he would’ve killed a titan by himself for one right now.

“My birthday is tomorrow,” Jason said leaning forward like it was a huge secret.

Nico picked at his oatmeal. “I’m aware.”

Of course, Nico was the only person other than Piper and Leo who knew his birthday at camp. He’d told him on the Argo II one night when they were both not tired enough to sleep but too tired to go to their own rooms. Nico had also told him his birthday, and they made a pact to not tell anyone and have secret birthdays.

Jason picked up his one apple. “I need you to keep Connor and Travis at bay.”

Nico raised an eyebrow. “You don’t want camp to know?”

Jason shook his head. “I just…want some alone time.”

Nico nodded, thick black hair falling into his eyes only to be pushed back into place. Jason watched a ringed hand settle back comfortably with his plastic fork a little too closely and happened to notice that he held it like it was the finest silverware in the world. Jason pried his eyes away.

“Ok,” Nico said, taking another bite.

“Really?”

“Yup.”

Jason felt mildly silly for all his forcefulness earlier. He really didn’t expect this to be so easy. However, knowing Nico, he should’ve known he caved easy when it came to asking favors—at least ones from Jason.

Jason nodded. He took a bite of his apple to punctuate the conversation. He stayed in his spot, deciding he’d just eat breakfast with Nico.

“Thanks. By the way,” Jason tacked on.

Nico shrugged, reaching for his iPod. “No problem.”

He put on his headphones again, defending his ears from the chatter of the rest of the camp currently eating breakfast. The two ate in silence, something Jason wasn’t particularly used to but couldn’t say he minded.

The next day, Jason woke up late and decided to just skip breakfast. He stretched, realizing like a kid on Christmas that it was his birthday. His birthday, and he had the whole day to himself.

He stayed in his pajamas, stretched out on his bed with the Nintendo DS Nico had leant him and played Pokemon White for an absurd amount of time.

Just as his beloved Pikachu was about to faint, he felt this sudden naggin in the back of his head. Something ebbed at his mind. He glanced towards the clock and realized that it was well into the afternoon. Secondly, he was bored.

Very bored.

He wasn’t sure when the boredom became so apparent, but it was there now. He chewed his lip, too distracted in his thoughts for pokemon, and willingly lost his currently battle before saving and tucking the DS away in his nightstand.

Jason laid back, listening to campers outside. He had assumed a day alone would be the best day of his life. After spending his whole life around everyone every day all the time, he figured some much needed alone time was in order. However, this was downright miserable.

Jason’s mind wandered to Nico, which it seemed to be doing very often as of late. He wondered how the Ghost King spent his time alone so frequently. Did he get lonely too? Was he ever bored cooped up in that cabin?

Jason glanced at the clock again, hoping some substantial time had passed. It hadn’t.

He groaned and pulled himself from his bed, lazily walking to his door and starting the trek to the Hades cabin. He walked around the back of the cabins, praying that training was keeping everyone distracted enough for them not to be crowding the back path made by sneaky teens looking for some alone time of their own.

He was lucky, as everyone was too distracted by whatever atrocity was happening on the rock climbing wall to notice him slinking around.

He walked around the front of Nico’s door, banging with enough urgency to get the point across. Nico called a “What?” mildly exasperatedly.

Jason tugged open the door before darting to hide behind it and slam it closed.

“Great Hades, Jason,” Nico said, setting down his controller and looking up from Mario Kart.

Jason let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. “Hello to you too.”

Nico rolled his eyes before raking them over Jason. “Nice pajamas.”

Jason looked down at his purple plaid pants and white shirt with a few too many holes in it to be written off as well loved. “Thanks. And to you as well.”

Nico’s hair was pulled off his neck with a hairband, and he wore a black camp hoodie, shorts, and fuzzy socks. It wasn’t the most practical summer wear, but Nico’s cabin was cold as ice.

“Happy birthday,” Nico said. “I assumed you would stay in your cabin all day and enjoy your day off.”

Jason shrugged. “Thanks. I got bored.”

Nico scooted over in the floor, letting Jason see into the bottom of his closet where all his contraband was hidden. A TV and a Wii U sat, accompanied by several video games.

“Wanna join?” he asked, patting the spot beside him and digging for a second controller. “I’ve been trying to beat Connor’s high score for an hour.”

Jason sat beside him, taking the controller. Nico had taught him how to play the Wii, but it still felt foreign in his hands.

Nico flipped back to the menu screen, letting Jason pick a character. Nico was playing as Rosalina. When no one was around, he was always Rosalina. Otherwise, he was Shy Guy. Jason was slightly embarrassed that he knew this and had committed it to memory, but decided it just meant Nico trusted him. Even with something as small as Mario Kart, Nico trusted him.

Jason picked Yoshi. Unlike Nico, he didn’t have much preference.

They began the game, Nico effortlessly in first place. Jason was dead last, but he couldn’t care less about that. It was probably because he couldn’t get his eyes off Nico’s screen, and to make matters worse, couldn’t get his eyes off Nico in general.

Jason hadn’t quite come to terms with his crush yet, if you couldn’t tell.

Nico knew every secret of every track. He knew how to cheat the game, to go backwards and still somehow win. It was almost as if he had the coding in his mind, mouse hovering and fingers clacking to will the game in his favor.

Some may think this made playing with him boring, seeing as no one but Connor could ever manage to beat him. Jason disagreed. This was something akin to Elysium.

Watching the way Nico’s hands worked against the controller, the way he scrunched his eyebrows just slightly in concentration, and most importantly, the glimmer of youth in his eyes that was so rare now. It was fun to lose. It was fun because Nico got to win.

Nico passed the final lap, throwing his arms up in celebration. “Finally!” he grinned. Jason watched as Nico wrote something down on a notebook beside him, stopping a stopwatch that looked older than both of them. He leaned over to see a list of names, each scratched one and replaced by one beneath it. Most of the names were either Nico, Connor, Travis, or Clovis, but a few other campers had weaseled their way into the leaderboard.

Nico scratched out an all-caps Connor and wrote Nico in his neat handwriting, accompanied by his winning time.

Jason struggled for a moment, but eventually passed the finish line in last place, also grinning.

“You did better this time,” Nico said, smiling at him.

“Still got last.”

“At least you didn’t go backwards the whole time this round.”

Jason watched the excited youth fade off Nico’s face, leaving just a mildly happy boy in its wake. He wanted more than anything to see the pure joy on Nico’s face again.

“Quite the improvement,” Jason said, matching his lopsided smile. “How’d you get so good at video games anyways?”

Nico shrugged. “Lotus Casino,” he replied, as if it cleared up anything. “Wanna go again?”

Jason nodded, letting him queue up another map. Nico eventually passed him controller 1, a sign of great respect.

“You pick.” He said. Nico had a very firm ‘you win, you choose,’ rule because he was very particular about his maps.

Jason threw up his eyebrows. “Really?”

“Yeah. Birthday boy picks. Just don’t pick Moo Moo Meadows.”

Jason picked Moo Moo Meadows. Nico groaned, but took controller 1 back and accepted his fate.

About halfway through the game, Nico was in first and Jason was, yet again, dead last.

Nico’s eyes flicked over to Jason’s hands. He sat down his own controller, putting his hands over Jason’s.

“If you just…” he started, guiding Jason’s hands over the controller.

Jason was a bit too flustered to fully take in what Nico was saying, but the slight burning sensation in his hands and face was enough for him to partially remember the hand movements.

This time, Nico finished in eighth, and Jason in fifth. Not Nico’s personal best, but definitely Jason’s.

Nico grinned. “You got top five.” Jason cheered. “Another?” Nico asked, dutifully writing down Jason’s place in the page of the notebook titled “Jason Grace’s Personal Bests”

Jason nodded, and they continued their game until light no longer poured in the windows, and the only thing illuminating them was the TV screen.

They finally tired themselves out on the game. Nico won every round after that, but Jason slowly climbed the leaderboard. Nico wrote down each small victory until one round, where Jason was second and Nico was first.

Wether it was on purpose or not, Nico’s Rosalina slipped on a banana peel at the last second, letting Jason win.

Jason cheered. While it didn’t earn him a spot on the notebooks leaderboard, considering his time still wasn’t all that good, Nico wrote down “Beat reigning champ, Nico Di Angelo” in the notebook with his pretty handwriting, only making the victory sweeter.

They both smiled and laughed together about the whole thing before realizing with sudden horror that they’d both missed dinner, and were starving.

“Guess we lost track of time,” Jason smiled. “I’m sure I have some snacks in my cabin somewhere.”

Nico held up a hand, stopping him. “I’ve got something better.”

Jason raised his eyebrows skeptically. “Better than trail mix?”

“Way better.”

Nico stuck his hand in the back of his contraband pile, digging around video games and other technology before his hands landed on what he was searching for.

He pulled out a box. Not just any box, a box of vanilla cake mix. Soon after, it was accompanied by a bottle of sprinkles and some questionable icing.

“Not even the Stolls know I have this,” Nico smiled, letting Jason gaze upon his treasure.

Jason looked at him quizzically. “How do you intend on cooking it?”

“I’ve got some arrangements with the harpies,” Nico smiled. “Kitchen’s all ours tonight.”

Nico pulled himself to his feet, watching Jason stand beside him.

“Just tonight?” Jason asked.

Nico shuffled his feet. “Yeah, I’ve been planning this for a while,” he said, slightly more bashful than usual. “Why do you think I got vanilla instead of an obviously better flavor?”

It was true, vanilla was Jason’s favorite. While he didn’t appreciate the slight roast from Nico, he did enjoy knowing that not only was he planning for his birthday, but he remembered his favorite flavor.

“Vanilla solos,” Jason corrected.

Nico rolled his eyes, stepping towards the door and slipping on some sandals. Socks and sandals, bold. “You just love being wrong.”

He silently led Jason through winding paths in the dark, secret pathways carved by hungry campers years before them. Why Nico knew of them was anyone’s guess, but Jason could appreciate it.

Once inside the kitchen, Nico flipped on a light, laid out their ingredients, and crossed his arms.

“I’ve never made a box cake before,” Nico said.

“Me neither,” Jason agreed, putting on his glasses to read the back of the box.

The two were oddly connected in that way. They were both so utterly separated from the teenage experience that they got to experience it themselves, together. Jason couldn’t ask for anything better.

Nico hunted down everything they needed and got to work, letting Jason hover over his shoulder.

“This was very nice of you, by the way,” Jason said, attempting very desperately not to blush all too hard as Nico pulled the cake from the oven.

Nico smiled. “It’s the least I could do. You’ve always been a good friend to me.”

Jason was ready to get on his knees and inform Aphrodite that love was, in fact, real. He held off for now, though, and settled on a soft smile.

He watched Nico do his best at icing the cake. He passed the sprinkles to Jason letting him pick his amount of sprinklage as he licked icing from his hands. Jason switched the top to the largest possible opening for the sprinkles, and proceeded to douse the thing.

They cut into it, both deciding it was walking a fine line between the most delicious and most disgusting thing they’d ever had.

Jason couldn’t tell if the cake was just exceptionally good, or if something about the lighting made Nico look quite like his last name wasn’t just a coincidence.

The golden lights above them bathed him far too beautifully. Nico was tanner now, happier than he had been on the Argo. He had vague tan lines that you could see if you squinted at where his bracelets usually laid. His hair curled up into wing shapes, making him look like a harpy himself.

Nico must’ve noticed him staring, as he sat down his plate and looked at Jason quizzically. “What?”

Jason shook his head, shaking himself from his thoughts. Maybe he was tired, maybe the cake was poisoned, but he just couldn’t manage to hold his tongue. “I…I think I’m in love with you?” he said, words falling out of his mouth with the grace of a strangled goose.

Nico sputtered. “I’m sorry?” he said, face getting redder.

Jason only now realized what he had just said, and was utterly mortified. “Sorry. I don’t know why I said that. Act like that didn’t-”

Nico interrupted him swiftly. “No, no. I didn’t mean to say that.” he said, leaning over the table to look at him. “I just mean…are you sure?”

Jason looked more confused than Nico now. He nodded slowly, watching Nico for signs of discomfort.

“Oh,” Nico said quietly. “Oh.”

Jason clicked his tongue. “It’s fine if you don’t feel the same, I totally get it-”

Nico slapped a hand over Jason’s mouth. “I have been flirting with you for the past month. I feel the same. You just surprised me.”

Jason’s face flushed red yet again. “Oh.”

“Yeah,” Nico said, shuffling his feet.

Just then, a harpy slammed open the door. “Times up, Di Angelo. We need the kitchen. Go back to your cabins before I tell Chiron.”

Nico groaned, but grabbed Jason quickly and pulled him out, shoving the cake into his arms gently but hard enough to get the point across.

“We’ll talk tomorrow. Happy birthday, Jason,” he said quickly. Even quicker, he pressed a kiss to Jason’s cheek, and promptly shadow traveled away before Jason could say anything.

The harpies practically dog piled Jason, who narrowly escaped punishment from Chiron by offering some cake. Turns out, harpies weren’t too hard to bribe.

That night, as he walked back to his cabin, grinning to himself, he passed the Hades cabin. Inside, he heard the roaring laughter of two Connor and Travis Stoll.

“You kissed Jason Grace?” the voice of Travis hounded.

“You let Jason Grace beat you in Mario Kart?” Connor demanded, followed by angry yelling from Nico.

Jason grinned to himself, and found his way back to his cabin. Maybe he didn’t get a lot of privacy at camp, and maybe he was ok with that. So long as it was Nico, his newly decided boyfriend as of the next day, it was fine by him.

Jasico Week 2024 - Day 2

Words: 1,212 Rating: General Audiences Type: Oneshot

Description: Jason doesn't know what a nickel allergy is, but he does know the bracelet Nico gave him kinda itches.

Sidenote: This fic was written for @jasico-challenges Jasico week 2024 event!

Full fic under the cut!

Jason never wore jewelry. It was half because he didn’t have any and half because he could never seem to find anything that looked quite right on him.

His frame was too broad for delicate pieces, and his personality was too soft for anything big to look natural. So, he settled on nothing.

Nico was quite the opposite. He had a ring on his hands and a bracelet around his wrist all hours of the day no matter what. Jason could agree that he just didn’t look himself without something to decorate his outfits.

It wasn’t a huge surprise when Nico gave Jason a simple bracelet for their anniversary. He was known among their friends for gifting jewelry and shiny things in general, much like a crow.

They had been curled up in Jason’s college dorm. Nico shadow traveled from camp, despite Jason’s reprimanding for using his powers when not totally necessary.

When presented with the bracelet, Jason studied it carefully. It was a simple golden chain with a heart-shaped charm in the middle and Nico’s initial carved into it. Nico held up his wrist, providing a clear view of his own. His was silver, with Jason’s initial where his was.

Jason grinned, allowing Nico to help his inexperienced hands put it on, and didn’t take it off for weeks.

There was the problem.

Weeks. Jason had gone weeks without looking all too closely at his arm, just looking at the bracelet.

One night, after slaving away on a model due for his architecture class, he found his hands covered in glue. He walked through the dorm halls until he got to the bathroom and briefly took off his bracelet to wash the glue off his hands and wrists.

That was when he saw it, a ring of red irritated skin. Jason pulled his wrist to his face to closer examine it. He pulled up his glasses as if that would help.

After a few seconds of staring, he decided it was nothing, put his bracelet back on, and walked to his dorm.

Jason was not a smart man.

He fell asleep, and the next morning started the way back to camp via every form of public transportation available for fall break. Could he get a driver's license? Yeah. Was he going to do that anytime soon? Probably not.

He got to camp at an awful hour of the night and proceeded to essentially break into Nico’s cabin and crash out next to him, hardly taking the time to change into his pajamas. Nico was dead asleep but didn’t seem to mind the cuddling. He woke up briefly to press a kiss to Jason’s cheek, but the second his boyfriend quit moving around, Nico was out again.

The next morning, Jason opened his eyes to Nico also awake, wrapped around him and playing a game on a gameboy with dubious origins. He pulled him closer, burying his face in his chest.

Nico laughed, the sound reverberating his chest against Jason’s ear. “‘Morning,” Nico said, stooping down to kiss Jason’s head. Jason could hear the smile in his voice without even having to look at him.

Jason grumbled in response and would’ve fallen right back asleep then and there if Nico hadn’t dragged him out of bed for breakfast. Nico got dressed, Jason did not.

They walked out, blinking against the morning sun, and reached the breakfast line. A few people greeted Jason, telling him how much they missed having him at camp. He was too tired and poorly dressed to have much comment but did his best to match their energy.

They sat down at the Hades table. Seeing as Jason was a guest, he could sit wherever he wanted. Also, he’d be damned if he came all the way to New York only to be forced to eat breakfast away from his boyfriend. The harpies could eat him whole for all he cared, he would sit where he damn well pleased.

Nico finished his food and played with Jason’s hand absently as he waited for him to finish his. It was a subtle routine. Nico liked to keep his hands busy, and he quite enjoyed non-extreme PDA, so hand-holding evolved into Nico toying with Jason’s hands from time to time.

Nico’s hands suddenly stopped, and he leaned down to examine Jason’s hand. After a few minutes of careful scrutinizing, Jason was starting to miss the sporadic nature of Nico’s physical touch.

“What?” Jason asked, attempting to rub sleep from his face. Nico held his hand down so he wouldn’t retract it. “What’s going on with your wrist?” Jason looked down, following Nico’s gaze. “Oh, I dunno. It just started doing that.”

Nico reeled back, looking up at his face. “And you didn’t…I don’t know…think it had something to do with the bracelet?” Jason returned his eyes to his breakfast with a shrug. “It’ll go away.”

Nico examined a little closer, taking off the bracelet and laying it on the table.

“Does it itch?” he asked. Jason sighed. “Sometimes. It’s fine though. It does that sometimes.” “When you wear jewelry?” Nico asked.

Jason sighed again, a little louder to get the point across. Then, he realized Nico’s question wasn’t all that dismissable. He wracked his brain for a moment before concluding that his answer was affirmative.

“Yes,” Jason said slowly. Nico snickered. “Jason, light of my life, my love, you have a nickel allergy.”

Jason looked down at his wrist again. “I do?” Nico nodded. “Mhm. The bracelet was not real gold.” “It wasn’t?”

Nico laughed again, this time slightly louder, as if that was a funny statement. Jason furrowed his eyebrows, but couldn’t help the smile that crept up his face.

He shook Nico’s leg. “What? What’s funny?” “Nothing, nothing,” Nico said, ending his laughter. Jason shook him again. “Why’re you laughing?” “It’s just-” Nico started snickering again. “You seriously didn’t think anything of it?”

Jason threw up his hands in feigned annoyance before returning to his oatmeal. Oatmeal could not save him from his giggling boyfriend, though.

A few weeks later, when Jason came back to camp for winter break, he spent the whole thing in Nico’s cabin.

About halfway through an Italian movie Jason did not understand but was happy to be a part of, Nico suddenly stood. “Oh, I forgot. I got you something,” he said, walking over to his desk and digging around for a minute. He returned, plopping back on the floor in front of Jason’s school-issued Chromebook. “Hold out your arm,” he instructed.

Jason did as told, pulling his arm from under the pillow he was lying on and holding it in front of Nico.

“Close your eyes,” Nico said again. Jason obliged like he always did when it came to Nico.

When he opened his eyes again, a bracelet made of purple thread adorned his wrist, no nickel to be seen. Nico held up his own wrist, showing his black matching bracelet.

Jason smiled. “Did you make these?” He asked, examining the slightly botched threading. Nico nodded, slight hints of embarrassment playing in the red of his cheeks. “Yeah.”

Nico opened his mouth to speak again, but Jason tackled him in a hug before he could get the words off his tongue.

Jasico Week 2024 - Day 3

Words: 2,002 Rating: General Audiences Type: Oneshot

Description: Jason Grace, ever aloof praetor, asks the new ambassador to spar with him. Nico isn't sure if this is a weird mating ritual or if Jason is going to murder him, but he has fun either way.

Sidenote: This fic was written for @jasico-challenges Jasico week 2024 event!

Full fic under the cut!

In Nico’s opinion, Camp Jupiter was pretty boring. Considering all the things he’d seen at Camp Half-Blood, this was a walk in the park. They were more organized and put together, which was both appreciated and vaguely disappointing.

One day, as Nico sat bored in a meeting with all the other senate members, he found himself zoning out. He rarely attended meetings but had been asked to be here. He probably should have paid attention, but gods this was lame. 

His attention was dragged away from its sharpened stare on the floor by a hand on his shoulder. He whipped around, instantly going into fight or flight. 

His shoulders dropped as he realized who it was. Jason Grace. The praetor. 

Jason flashed him a smile that looked more like a sad attempt at showing all his teeth. “Hello, ambassador,” he said. 

Nico shuffled awkwardly in his spot. “Afternoon. Praetor.”

Jason pointed to the seat beside him. “This spot taken?”

Nico shook his head, slightly less startled now that he realized he wasn’t in trouble for zoning out. Still, Jason freaked him out. 

Nico was well aware that he himself was a pretty scary guy. Jason, however, rattled even his nerves. 

He was just so untouchable. Nico often wondered if he had some kind of inordinate amount of human-to-god ratio that no other demigod had. 

He knew Jason was nice. He had experienced his kindness multiple times throughout his days at Camp Jupiter, but he just looked mean. 

Nico couldn’t blame him. He’d heard many stories about Jason’s upbringing, and how it was mostly done by Lupa. He’d probably be weird too if he was raised by wolves. 

One of the senate members started going on a rant that no one quite knew how to stop. Most people just quit paying attention. 

Jason leaned over. “Pretty boring meeting.”

Nico jumped again but recovered from his startle. “Yeah,” he agreed weakly.

Jason looked him up and down quickly, accompanied by the unabashed confidence only a man in his position could acquire. Nico yet again shuffled awkwardly, not sure what to do with himself. 

“Spar with me,” Jason said suddenly, eyes flipping back to Nico’s face. 

Nico sputtered before getting himself together. “Excuse me?”

Jason looked away. “You’re excused.”

Nico couldn’t stop the laugh that escaped his lips. “That’s not what I meant. It’s a figure of speech.”

The praetor’s head turned back to Nico, eyes settling on him with the same intensity of the sky before a storm. He raised an eyebrow, leaning forward just slightly. Nico resisted the urge to shy away and lean back. 

“What did you mean?” Jason asked. 

Nico took a beat to let his eyes wander over Jason’s face. “I meant ‘What?’” he explained. 

“I want you to spar with me,” Jason repeated, eyebrows furrowing. 

Nico couldn’t help but laugh again. He got that this guy spent the majority of his life so far either in the company of wolves or being trained for war, but come on. He also couldn’t help but notice the way Jason’s face softened when he laughed. He didn’t take time to ponder that, though. 

“No, no. I understood that part. I meant ‘why?’” Nico corrected, now aware of the few people looking at them, telling them to shut up. Oops. 

Jason lowered his voice. “Why didn’t you just say that?” he asked quietly. Upon Nico’s shrugging, he explained. “I’ve never sparred with you.”

Nico looked at him quizzically. Jason was like a puzzle no one but Reyna could really solve. He didn’t know much slang aside from what he heard every day, and he rarely felt the need to explain himself. Talking with him could be a task, but Nico always left their interactions feeling slightly—oddly— endeared. 

Jason watched him, waiting for an answer. Throughout his eager staring, the meeting was adjourned and people began filing out of the building. This included Reyna, who shot a curious glance toward Jason before shrugging and walking away. 

Nico decided that was enough explanation and nodded. “Sure.”

Jason smiled, slightly scary and slightly sweet. His smiles always were confusing, but it looked like he was really trying this time. 

“…right now?” Nico asked, standing. Jason nodded, just as eager as before. Something shone in his eyes, something Nico wasn’t used to seeing on him. 

Nico let him lead him out to the training area, following awkwardly. 

“Aren’t we, like, not supposed to be out here this late?” Nico asked, tilting his head to see the side of Jason’s face. 

Jason shrugged, though the act looked foreign on his stiff shoulders. “I’m a praetor,” he said as if it explained it.

Nico decided to let it go, following him onto the packed dirt of the coliseum. He pulled his sword from its hilt, standing in wait. 

Jason flipped a golden coin, which transformed into his own sword. Nico resisted the urge to say “That was cool,” deciding Jason already knew that. 

There was no warning or countdown, just Jason suddenly swinging his sword. Nico panicked and shadow traveled behind him, sweeping his leg under Jason’s to trip him forward. He poked the tip of his sword into his back as a sign he had accidentally won. 

“I didn’t say powers were allowed,” Jason said, though there was a hint of humor in his voice as he pulled himself up off his knees. 

“You didn’t say they weren’t,” Nico smiled back. 

Jason mimicked his smile, for once flashing one that didn’t look too threatening. Nico tried to keep his eyes from lingering too long, but he couldn’t help but notice how pleasant the setting sun looked on Jason’s face. 

He passed that off as admiration and let Jason come to his feet, readying again. He lowered his stance. Nico, again, couldn’t help but notice how good concentration looked on him. He shook his head, clearing his thoughts as he got into his own battle stance. 

“Powers?” Nico asked, not looking forward to a fight without his. 

Jason shrugged. “Go ahead.”

Nico let Jason advance again, shadow traveling behind him once more. Jason was able to anticipate it this time, swinging toward him. Nico blocked, forcing him to step out of the column’s shadow he had been standing in. 

Jason smiled, a cocky kind of smile that Nico would’ve been mad about if it was anyone else. However, he couldn’t seem to mind how the scar on his lip moved with his grin. 

Nico was forced farther into the light as Jason continued his advances. They were two skilled swordsmen, but without his powers, Nico often faltered. 

Jason had now figured out the trick to Nico’s powers and was about to show him his own. 

Electricity gathered on his arm in little bolts before shooting down his sword and onto Nico’s. It wasn’t enough electricity to actually hurt him, but enough for him to drop his sword and stumble. 

Jason held his weapon to Nico’s chest. Nico smiled, rubbing the elbow he’d fallen onto. 

Jason outstretched a hand, letting the gathered lightning fade away before offering it. Nico took his hand and stood. Their palms brushed for a second longer than they needed to. Nico tried not to think about that. 

They assumed their positions yet again, both formulating plans behind their eyes. 

Once Jason decided they were both ready, he advanced. Nico was not ready, but let it happen anyways, sword raising in defense. 

This time, he shadow traveled to Jason’s left. Just as he was about to kick him down, Jason shot electricity through his leg, effectively zapping Nico. 

Jason attempted to herd him out of the shadow again, but Nico knew better and evaded. He attempted to block another hit but was just zapped again. It seemed the two were at a crossroads. 

Well, until Nico decided shadow traveling above him would prove more successful, and set him up to do just that. 

He managed to push Jason to the ground with that method, catching himself mid-air to shadow travel just beside him. Nico had dropped his sword in the process, so he couldn’t officially end it. However, he stood triumphantly, taking the thud of Jason’s body against the dirt as clear evidence of his win. 

Before Nico could notice over his gloating, Jason reached out with his sword and zapped the back of his leg lightly, making Nico fall forward. He caught himself on his palms, one by Jason’s ribs and the other by his neck. His knees hit the dirt with a thud. 

He couldn’t help the laugh that fell from his lips soon after, kneeled over Jason. Jason laughed too, though his was more of a refined chuckle than Nico’s out-of-character cackling. 

When he collected himself enough to realize he was currently on top of the praetor, he pushed his hands off the ground, kneeling beside Jason with flushed cheeks. Jason sat up, rubbing the back of his head. His cheeks were equally red. 

Jason tugged himself to his feet, outstretching his hand. Nico, yet again, took it, tugging himself to his feet. 

“I’ll walk you to Temple Hill,” Jason said, dusting himself off. Nico usually used the easy access to the underworld in the Pluto temple to his advantage but wasn’t aware that Jason knew that. 

Nico took some time to dust off his clothes too. “Thanks.”

He knew Jason was just doing it so he didn’t get in trouble for being out past curfew, but it still felt nice. 

They walked silently for a second. However, the silence seemed less awkward than before. 

“What do you call that, by the way?” Jason asked, clearly wrapped up in his own thoughts.

Nico looked up at him, noticing swiftly how Jason didn’t meet his gaze. “Call what?” he asked, eyes lingering on the hints of embarrassment on Jason’s face. 

“The teleportation,” Jason said, footsteps beginning to fall in line with Nico’s. 

Nico considered. “I’ve always referred to it as shadow travel.”

Jason nodded. His eyes traced over Nico’s hands, they were paler than usual—nearly transparent, really. He realized he might have used that ability a few too many times. 

“Is that a side effect?” Jason asked, pointing to his hand. 

Nico held it up to let Jason see. “Oh, yeah. Don’t worry, it’ll go back to normal in a bit.”

Jason placed his hand under Nico’s to pull his hand closer to his face. Nico quickly looked away in a desperate attempt to hide his red face. ‘Gods, does he have any boundaries?’ Nico thought to himself. 

Jason ended the scrutinizing of Nico’s hand, dropping it. Their knuckles brushed in a way that was far from coincidental. Nico decided to focus his gaze on the ground. 

“You’re talented with that sword. What is it? I’ve never seen one like it,” Jason said, focusing on the sky. 

Now that they had their silent agreement of not watching each other very obviously blush, Nico felt confident enough to answer. “Thanks. It’s Stygian iron.”

Jason nodded, seemingly very focused on a cloud. “Interesting. Any special properties?” 

“It can evaporate ghosts,” Nico said, a little too casually. 

Jason nodded again. This dirt was really interesting. 

They found themselves at the Pluto temple. Nico was tempted to ask Jason if he wanted to come in but recognized that they probably shouldn’t go bending any more rules. 

Jason put a hand on his shoulder, flashing him the closest thing to a smile Nico had ever seen on him. “Thank you for indulging my curiosities, ambassador. I have enjoyed getting to know you.”

Nico nodded, doing his best to smile despite his fluster. “No problem. I had fun.”

Jason nodded. He looked behind him, looking at the setting sun. 

“Well, enjoy your night,” Jason said, starting to walk away. He didn’t give Nico the time to say, “You too,” so he mumbled it to no one. 

Nico disappeared into the dark temple and made a very sudden and awful realization. 

He had a crush. Godsdamn it. Not again.

Jasico Week 2024 - Day 4

Words: 1,859 Rating: General Audiences Type: Oneshot

Description: 3 times Jason Grace thought Nico Di Angelo was a god, and the 1 time he realized he wasn't.

Sidenote: This fic was written for @jasico-challenges Jasico week 2024 event!

Full fic under the cut!

Jason Grace had only met a few gods in his life. Though, he could say with utmost certainty that Nico Di Angelo was a unique one. 

Nico had blown into camp one day with no real explanation. He just showed up with Lupa’s blessing, got his branding like it was no big deal, and went on his merry way. He introduced himself as the Ambassador of Pluto, as if that made any sense of it all, and blatantly ignored most of his Camp Jupiter responsibilities with no real repercussions. 

Jason was convinced he was a minor god of sorts. He could almost feel Nico watching from over his shoulder like he was keeping an eye on things. 

Jason remembered the first time they met. He remembered how everyone seemed to walk a wide circle around him, but Nico didn’t act bothered in the slightest. 

It had been a normal day. Jason was going about his business when Reyna came to inform him of a senate meeting regarding a new ambassador. Of course, he got there as fast as he could, but Nico had beat the two of them to it. 

He remembered walking into the senate building and seeing him standing there. He was ghostly pale but in a porcelain kind of way. Thick black hair sat in perfect ringlets around his face, curling up like the camp’s statue’s wings. A blank expression cast on his face, and Jason couldn’t help but notice how the shadows in the room almost seemed to lean towards him. 

Jason stepped forward to introduce himself, taking notice of Nico’s robes. He held out a hand. “Jason Grace, praetor.”

Nico looked him up and down sideways before taking the handshake. “Nico Di Angelo, ambassador of Pluto.” His hand was deathly cold but oddly soft. 

Jason tried to distract himself by thinking about literally anything else. No matter what, his mind wandered to Nico. 

The meeting began, and Nico immediately the main topic of discussion. He was asked to walk to the stand and explain himself, which he did without complaint. 

He stood behind the stand, robes hanging off him a little too perfectly in Jason’s opinion. He elbowed Reyna. “Do you think he’s a demigod?” he whispered. 

She elbowed him back. “If you would shut up and listen, maybe we’d know.”

Nico’s eyes flicked to the two of them before focusing back on the rest of the faces in the room. “My name is Nico Di Angelo,” he said for the millionth time. “I was asked by Pluto to represent him and his children here at Camp Jupiter.”

He paused, looking around at the uneasy faces. A ghost raised his hand. Jason attempted to pay a normal amount of attention to the way the light caught Nico’s dark eyes as they flicked over to him, but he found himself staring for a second too long. 

“How do we know we can trust you?” The ghost asked rather unceremoniously. Nico shrugged. Reyna decided that was not helping his case, and stood to give him a hand. 

“Pluto has given us express confirmation that he would like Nico to represent him. Unless, of course, you’d like to challenge a god?” she said, putting on her ‘praetor voice.’

Nico didn’t seem too bothered by the whole thing, standing there with the light shining in from the columns. The shadows in the room gave away his underlying emotions, as tendrils of smoky darkness played nervously in the corners. Nico noticed Jason looking and quickly unclenched his jaw, the shadows falling flat. 

This kid had to be a god. Jason was sure of it. 

A few days later, Jason was determined to prove his theory. He stood in the Principia, talking with Reyna as if they weren’t in a giant, ornate room. Jason wasn’t sure when he got so used to the elaborate structures all around him, but they seemed so normal now. 

“So,” Jason started, studying her face. “What do you think of the new ambassador?” 

Reyna looked over, brow furrowed. “He’s fine.”

Jason crossed his arms. “Right.”

Reyna snickered. “What?”

“I was just asking your opinion. What, I can’t get my fellow praetor’s opinion?” he defended, waving his hands around a little more than necessary. 

She raised her eyebrows. “Right. What do you think about him.”

Jason crossed his arms again, looking everywhere but at Reyna. What did he think of Nico?

“Isn’t he…I don’t know,” Jason raised his shoulders. “Doesn’t he feel like he’s different from us somehow?”

Reyna shrugged. “He’s just not a legionnaire. It’s fine.”

Jason groaned. “No, he’s different.”

She raised her eyebrows. A smile played on her usually straight lips. Jason groaned again. 

“How so?” Reyna asked. 

“He’s just too…you know.”

“I don’t know.”

Jason sighed loudly. He decided he’d just come right out and say what he was thinking. 

“Do you think he’s a god?” Jason asked bluntly. 

Reyna sputtered. “No? Why would you think that?”

Jason began his wild hand motions again. “I don’t know! He just looks too…godly.”

Reyna snickered. Jason felt his face heat up. He wasn’t used to the feeling and decided he wasn’t fond of it. 

“Well, he’s sparring down in the coliseum,” Reyna said. “You can go be a creep and stalk him if you want, but I have some actual work to do.”

She turned on her heel, walking away and chuckling to herself the whole time. Jason wasn’t sure what was so funny to her, but he did know he was about to go find out more about this guy. 

Jason stood on the edge of the coliseum’s training area. His eyes followed Nico as he sparred with his sister, Hazel. While it obviously wasn’t a fair fight, considering Hazel had just come to camp, it was an interesting one. 

Nico was clearly trying to teach her something, as he stopped every few seconds to share some information with her. However, his fighting style was still clear through the watered-down movements. 

Jason had never seen anything like him before. He weaved in and out of the shadows, allowing Hazel to block his attacks. He made a mental note to tell Hazel she had improved a lot later, but for now, settled his eyes back on the ambassador he was investigating. 

Nico looked impossibly more divine when he battled, like something right out of an old painting. His hair was pulled up off his face with a hair tie, but some still hung in whispers around his neck and face. He had hardly broken a sweat, but the sun still glimmered off him radiantly. Jason was about to lose his mind. 

Nico had to be a god. There was no reason for any mortal to look that way, Jason had never even seen somebody quite like him. 

The shadows clearly belonged to him. They trailed behind him as he jumped and ran through them like smoke. They seemed to cling to him as if they knew him as an old friend, hanging off his clothing and mingling with his hair. He sliced his black sword, clearly not aiming to hurt his sister but still putting up a challenge for her. 

Nico deemed her as successful in whatever task he was presenting and stopped his onslaught of slashes to let her catch her breath. He said something briefly, then turned and began his walk to Pluto’s temple on Temple Hill. 

Jason considered following him but noticed a few people staring and decided to instead go clap Hazel on the shoulder and tell her good job. 

Jason wasn’t done speculating, though. 

A few days later, after a senate meeting, he watched as people filed out of the senate building, one of which being Nico. He looked over to make sure Reyna wasn’t watching and ducked out of the building himself. 

Jason was a bit ashamed to admit to himself that he was currently following Nico, and in a rather stalking manner at that. However, the man was curious and that just couldn’t be helped. 

He watched how Nico walked, soft footsteps hardly making a sound against the pavement. His robes, as always, fit him way too well. 

Jason was walking quite a ways behind him, but decided he had a question to ask and picked up his speed. 

Just as he was right behind Nico, hand outstretched to put on his shoulder, Nico checked beside him for people watching. He managed to not see Jason and turned the corner just behind a tree. 

Jason reached out, but his hand didn’t hit anything. He looked behind the tree, and Nico was nowhere to be found. 

The shadows looked oddly ruffled but settled back into place under Jason’s examination. 

He stood there, dumbfounded, before concluding that Nico had used whatever godly powers he had to zap himself right back to the underworld. 

Jason knew he was a god now. He had to be. No other demigod was capable of doing that, not even a child of the big three gods. He had to be a god, and Jason was sure of it. 

Days passed, and Nico became the only thing he ever thought about. 

He walked through the Forum, mulling over his thoughts. Reyna didn’t believe him and seemed thoroughly amused by his notions. So, Jason decided to keep his ideas to himself about Nico’s divinity. 

He ducked into the library, deciding to read through every single book about the gods they had and see if he could find any hints as to what Nico was, and ended up finding the biggest hint of all. The man himself. 

Nico stood beside a particularly large bookshelf, hand on his hip as he stared up at the tallest shelf. He jumped, but couldn’t reach the book he was aiming for, hand brushing it desperately. 

Jason bit back a laugh and walked over to assist like the Good Samaritan he was. 

He leaned over Nico, who turned around to face him. “Praetor,” Nico greeted. 

“Ambassador,” Jason tipped his head. “Need help?”

Nico’s eyes flicked back to the bookshelf. He looked embarrassed. “That would be appreciated.”

Jason reached up and pulled the book down, offering it to him. Nico took it, studying it in his hands. 

Nico looked back up at him. “Thanks.” 

“Are you a god?” Jason blurted out, unable to stop himself. 

Nico’s face changed from embarrassed to confused. He raised an eyebrow, holding the book in one arm. “No?” 

Jason looked him over for hints of a lie. He didn’t find any. “Oh. Are you sure?”

Nico snickered semi-discreetly. “Pretty sure.”

Jason leaned forward slightly, inspecting the face he deemed too perfect to be human. “Really?” Jason could feel his cheeks burning. 

“On the river Styx. Just a regular demigod like you.”

Jason nodded, embarrassment matching Nico’s. 

“Well then. Enjoy your afternoon, ambassador.” Jason turned on his heel, deciding that if he walked fast enough back to his bed he could bury his face in his pillow and scream the memory away. 

He left a very confused demigod in his wake and realized as he walked back that Nico wasn’t a god. He was just pretty.

Jasico Week 2024 - Day 5

Words: 1,913 Rating: General Audiences Type: Oneshot

Description: Jason Grace, college-bound, is the most nervous he's ever been. His boyfriend, Nico, helps him relax.

Sidenote: This fic was written for @jasico-challenges Jasico week 2024 event!

Full fic under the cut! The formatting is a little weird here on Tumblr, so I recommend reading it on AO3 if you're going to. But, if you can put up with the weird dialogue spacing, good on you, go for it

Jason was excited to go to college. He wasn’t so excited to leave Nico back at camp, though. 

He remembered when he had first started looking at colleges after graduating from Edgarton. He sat in the Zeus cabin at Camp Half-blood. While its high ceilings and fancy architecture had never been particularly welcoming, he found himself returning to it more often than not. 

Nico stretched out beside him on his bed. A laptop Leo had fixed up sat in Jason’s lap, likely overheating. He chewed his lip, staring rather intently at the New Rome University pamphlet beside him, and their webpage on the screen. 

He looked up ‘Colleges in California,’ and an abundance popped up, each one looking more appealing than the last. Nico stirred. He closed the tab, guilty for no reason. 

Nico must’ve felt his body tense or just had some keen sense of knowing when his boyfriend was upset because he eyed him curiously for a second before giving up and burring his face back in the pillows. Jason resumed his search. 

“You know you don’t have to go to New Rome, right?” Nico said, slightly muffled from the pillows. 

“What?” Jason asked, half because he couldn’t quite hear him and half because he thought that was a crazy thing to say. 

Everyone in the world had been asking Jason if he was planning on going to NRU. That was an exaggeration, but that was what it felt like to him. After Percy graduated and was proving successful, everyone just assumed Jason would follow in his footsteps. In fact, not following in them would be crazy. 

Nico lifted his head from the pillows. “You can go to a normal college.”

Jason stared at him blankly. “I…know.”

“You sure?” Nico smiled, raising an eyebrow. 

Jason huffed. Nico sat up, putting a hand over Jason’s. 

“You don’t have to be a demigod all the time. It’s fine to just be a person, Jason.”

Jason wasn’t sure when Nico got so profound, but over the years he was noticing that he suddenly had a lot more to say. He managed to read the son of Zeus like a book, constantly reminding him that he should do what he wants, and not what he thinks others would want. 

Nico rubbed Jason’s hand with his thumb. “I know everyone’s telling you to go to NRU, but you don’t have to do that if it’s not what you want.”

Jason intertwined their fingers. “We’d get to see each other more. You’d be at Camp Jupiter anyway.”

“I can teleport,” Nico reminded, leaning his head on his shoulder. 

Jason tangled a hand in his hair. “You shouldn’t. It’s bad for you.”

“We can Iris message.”

“It’s not the same.”

Nico let the silence pool around them for a second. Jason wished he didn’t. 

“I want you to be happy,” Nico said quietly, moving his other hand so Jason’s was sandwiched between his. 

“I know you do.”

“Then why won’t you let yourself?”

Jason looked down at him. He paused, letting the words sink in so deep they started echoing in his head. 

“I don’t know.”

Nico moved his head so he could see the computer screen. “Open the tab you closed,” he said. Jason groaned. “Yeah, you thought you were slick with that, huh?” Nico laughed, watching him open his history and click on the most recent search. Jason rolled his eyes, grinning. 

They spent the rest of the night looking at colleges, wrapped up in each other’s touch. 

A few months later, the two had just finished making their rounds at Camp Jupiter, informing everyone Jason was off to college. They settled into Jason’s brand new car, testing the capabilities of his equally new driving skills, and began the too-long trip to a nice little university on the coast. 

Nico sat in the passenger’s seat, legs crossed as he watched the hills roll by. Jason would’ve taken time to admire him if he wasn’t so busy trying not to crash. 

Once traffic had cleared and they were on a smaller, less stressful road, Nico spoke up. 

“Are you excited?” He asked if only to fill the silence. 

Jason nodded. “Yeah,” he smiled, watching Nico move so he was leaning on the armrest. 

“Nervous?”

“Very much so.”

Nico smiled. “You’ve got nothing to worry about. However, if you join a fraternity, I am legally obliged to break up with you. Sorry.”

Jason rolled his eyes, hands relaxing on the steering wheel. “Darn. There go my plans.”

Jason looked Nico over, now given the chance without the stress of other drivers. He looked so casual, feet perched up on the seat, smiling as they talked. 

“How’s school for you?” Jason asked. Nico had recently started using a homeschooling program with Sally Jackson as his non-legal guardian—the school didn’t have to know that they were of no relation. 

“Good. I like it,” Nico said simply. 

Jason didn’t know how Nico was so casual about things like that. He never shied away from a challenge, even if he was nervous deep down. Jason wished he could do that. 

“What if I don’t like my professors?” Jason said suddenly, vocalizing his fears for no real reason other than knowing Nico would soothe them. 

“Switch classes,” Nico said. “Or, complain about them on Rate My Professors.”

Jason hummed. He’d had bad teachers in school before, how much worse could a professor be? He leaned back in his seat before deciding something else was nagging at him. 

“Do you think I’ll make friends?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

Jason hummed again, trying to focus back on the road. His mind wandered yet again. 

“I don’t even really have a major picked out…”

Nico put his hand over Jason’s arm. “Jason.”

“What?”

“You’re freaking yourself out. It’ll be ok.”

He sighed, leaning back into the seat. “Yeah. I know.”

Nico rubbed slow circles into his forearm, watching the road for him. “Let yourself have fun with this.”

Silence filled the car again. Nico used his passenger princess privileges to take hold of the aux chord, subjecting Jason to the depths of his playlist. Jason didn’t actually mind as much as he pretended to, mostly because he got to watch Nico’s eyes light up as he explained in painful detail the backgrounds and facts of his favorite bands. 

They finally found themselves parked just outside the dorm building. Orientation was a few days ago, and Jason had attended and visited the dorm hall, so he had the key to his dorm practically burning a hole in his pocket. Nico carried a box with nearly all of Jason’s earthly belongings in it, while Jason had a clothes hamper full of everything he wore balanced on his hip. 

He finally managed to unlock his dorm, then turned to Nico before he opened it. 

“Oh my gods,” he said quietly. “What if I hate my roommate?”

Nico raised an eyebrow. “What?” he said back, not whispering. 

“You heard me!” he hissed. 

Nico chuckled before reaching over and opening the door himself. “You, Jason Grace, are not capable of hate. Besides, it’ll be fine.”

The door swung open, revealing a plain room with one desk and…one bed. It was a single room. 

Nico punched his arm playfully. “Boom. Just like I said. No problem.” He sat the box down on the floor, looking around. He tugged open the blinds, looking out at a bunch of concrete and the brick on the other side of the building. “And what a great view,” he joked. 

Jason rolled his eyes for the millionth time and walked over to wrap his arms around his boyfriend. 

“Are you going to be pessimistic all day?”

Nico feigned offensive. “I’ve been the picture of optimism all week, Jason. I’m wounded.”

Jason looked over at the slightly pathetic twin XL. An idea sprung to mind. 

“You should stay the night with me tonight.”

Nico laughed. “I don’t think that’s allowed.”

“When have you ever cared for rules?”

Nico laughed, letting Jason pull him into the middle of the room. He pulled Nico flush against his chest, wrapping his arms around him. 

“I don’t think we can both fit on that bed,” Nico said, a smile evident in his voice. 

“You can sleep on the floor.”

“I regret offering to help you move in.”

Jason laughed, and they got to work decorating his dorm with the few things he’d brought with him.

Once they were done, the sun had long set and it was far past visiting hours. Somehow, they hadn’t gotten caught yet. 

They both sat on the edge of the bed, talking absently about nothing and everything at the same time. Jason looked at the clock now on his nightstand and decided it was late enough to justify wrapping his arms around Nico and tugging him to lie down. 

Nico laughed as he was dragged, letting Jason put his head on his heart. Jason felt the laugh reverberate in his chest and decided it was his favorite sound. 

The bed was mildly uncomfortable, and they were practically on top of each other to fit. Although, they probably would’ve ended up like that anyway, so it didn’t matter all too much. 

“Do you remember, on the Argo, the night after the…” Jason trailed off. 

“Cupid incident?” Nico offered. 

“Yeah. When we stayed together in my room because I didn’t want you to take the couch again, but it was super awkward because we both had to fit on my bed.”

“I’m well aware. I was so embarrassed I thought I was going to die.”

Jason laughed. He was also pretty mortified at the time but was at least glad that Nico was getting some sleep. 

“That was when I realized I liked you,” Jason said. 

Nico looked down at him. “Really?”

“Yeah. You looked cute sleeping.”

Nico rolled his eyes, shoving him playfully. Jason pushed him back, starting a war. They had to stop pretty soon into their roughhousing, though, as they realized they were probably going to get caught if they kept being loud. 

“When did you realize you liked me?” Jason asked, moving to see Nico’s face. 

His cheeks twinged red. “It’s super dumb and embarrassing.”

Jason laughed, “I don’t care.”

Nico pushed him again, a little softer. “It was also on the Argo, near the end of the quest. I was sitting up in the crow’s nest, watching you and Leo talk on the deck. I was running on, like, ten minutes of sleep and it was late, so you were just in pajama pants, no shirt.”

Jason laughed, holding him tighter. “All it took was me being shirtless.”

Nico rolled his eyes. “I don’t know. I was just sitting there and thinking, mostly about you, then I looked down and you were just standing there. I had an ‘ah shit’ moment where I just kinda short-circuited.”

Jason laughed again, leaning against him. Nico huffed. “It’s not that funny,” he chuckled. 

Jason pulled him impossibly closer. “This really is just like old times.”

“The mattress is just as uncomfortable as the ones on the Argo.”

They continued their reminiscing late into the night, and mentally kicked themselves when Nico had to wake up early to catch the bus back to Camp Jupiter. 

Somehow, in the darkness of his dorm that night, Jason found all his worries melting away. He was starting something new, but, for once, he was excited about it.

Jasico Week 2024 - Day 6

Words: 2,396 Rating: General Audiences Type: Oneshot

Description: Nico “needs” a date for his work party. His best friend, Jason, agrees to tag along. Little do they know, they’ll be forced to face the feelings they’ve been avoiding for one another since high school.

Sidenote: This fic was written for @jasico-challenges Jasico week 2024 event!

Full fic under the cut! Small warning, the formatting is a bit weird here and I do prefer AO3 lol

Nico was successful. More so than he really liked being. 

He liked his job plenty. Being a lead programmer for a major video game company not only paid well but was also his dream. He got to sit at a desk in front of a computer alone all day. Heaven. 

Hell, in his best friend Jason Grace’s opinion. He always did nag Nico about things, from needing a more ergonomic desk chair to needing to invest in blue light glasses. Jason was somehow his biggest supporter and his number-one hater. 

They went out for coffee every Friday that their schedules would allow. It definitely wasn’t a date—although, they took turns paying and more often than not made some more than friendly comments. Nico was choosing to ignore that for now, though. 

He had a ginormous crush on Jason and had since they met in high school. Right now, though, his job left no room for commitment and his own personal struggles certainly couldn’t handle that kind of stress. So, his feelings were put on the back burner. 

Nico sat in the coffeehouse, currently thinking about that very problem like he always did before seeing Jason. He looked up as the bell on the door rang, and he locked eyes with the man himself. Somehow, he managed to pack his feelings away like neatly folded origami deep into the corners of his mind. That didn’t make it go away, though. 

Jason clapped him on the shoulder. “Hey,” he said, sitting down in the seat beside Nico rather than the one across from him. He always did that. Nico never knew why. 

Nico sipped his coffee. He didn’t actually like coffee in the slightest, but Jason did. “Hello,” he said back, eyes flicking to look at him. 

Jason wore a pretty regular outfit for him, blue jeans and a light purple hoodie. He had a hat with some sports logo on it Nico couldn’t bother to recognize. Somehow, he made basic clothing look like an angel’s robes. At least in Nico’s opinion. 

“How was work so far?” Nico asked, knowing Jason was on his lunch break currently. 

Jason groaned, sitting back. “No one told me I had to be good at math to be an architect,” he smiled. 

Nico snickered. “I remember telling you that.”

“You’re crazy. That didn’t happen.”

Jason ordered his drink before coming back. Nico tried not to watch. 

“How has work been for you lately?” Jason asked, settling back down. 

Nico practically winced. “Fine.”

“You sure?”

Jason could read him like a book, and Nico was not fond of it. 

Nico put his hands up dramatically. “Fine. Ya got me.” He sighed, starting a rant that had been bubbling inside him for quite a while. “There’s this work party coming up, and I have to go because, y’know.”

Jason nodded. He did know because he always knew when it came to Nico. 

“And I’d usually just have Hazel come as my plus one, but this is a Valentine’s Day-themed thing, and it was kinda implied that it was a couple plus ones only. And since I don’t want people to think I’m ’Sweet Home Alabama’-ing my sister, I just have to go alone. Which is gonna suck.”

Jason sipped his drink and nodded as Nico talked. He knew about Nico’s aversion to attending events alone, mostly because he had always been that way. Jason couldn’t think of a single time that Nico had willingly gone anywhere that included other people without begging someone to come along. Nico referred to it as the buddy system. Jason and Nico’s therapist referred to it as social anxiety. 

“I could go with you,” Jason proposed. 

Nico raised an eyebrow. “Jason. We’re not…together,” he said, half a statement and half a question. 

They had a pretty questionable past. A kiss in high school that they both brushed off as nothing and some here and there tipsy flirting were huge roadblocks in their ‘totally normal friendship’. They never bothered to address their own concerns, seeing as they didn’t think the other person minded. They both most definitely minded. 

“I’m aware,” Jason smiled. “Your coworkers don’t have to know that, though.”

Nico couldn’t help but smile back. “How rebellious.”

They went on about their conversation like nothing had happened, even though both their cheeks were a little redder than how that had started. 

A day later, Jason called to confirm their heist. Nico sent him the times, day, and dress code. 

Their stunt was working wonderfully. 

Nico picked him up thirty minutes before they had to be at the venue, very pointedly ignored how good his neat blue button-up looked on him, and parked his car right outside the front doors. 

“This will be hell. I won’t think any less of you if you jump ship now,” Nico said, putting his car in park. 

“I’m sure it can’t be that bad,” Jason laughed. 

Nico shrugged, getting out of the car and leading him inside. Almost immediately, it was hell. 

The music was too loud for Nico’s taste, even though it truly wasn’t all that loud. The food was questionable at best. Worst of all, everyone seemed very interested in who Jason was. 

Nico stood beside him in a corner, currently getting mobbed by two of his nosiest coworkers. By mobbed, they were just standing near them and whispering. However, Nico felt berated. 

Jason, out of habit, draped his arm over Nico’s shoulder. While it was definitely selling their clever lie, it was also only worsening Nico’s embarrassment. 

Nico leaned up to talk to him in an attempt to end his screaming thoughts. “Is this everything you dreamed of?” 

Jason snickered. “You weren’t lying. I see why you always bring a plus one.”

Nico’s attention was evaded as the cork of a bottle of wine was popped. The two turned their heads, ears assaulted by the cheering of a few coworkers. They watched as wine was poured into a few glasses, then another bottle was popped and more was poured. 

They looked at each other, grinned, then proceeded to make their way over. 

The second they reached the table, Nico’s boss clapped him on the shoulder. Jason’s face flashed with something Nico couldn’t quite pin. 

“Di Angelo,” he grinned. “Good to see you. Spouse?” he asked, pointing to Jason. 

Nico wasn’t sure why, but he nodded. “Boyfriend,” he said with enough ease to convince anyone it was true, including himself. 

He knew deep down he didn’t have to say that. This wasn’t truly a couple’s exclusive event, and no one would’ve cared if he just brought a friend. However, maybe he wanted to pretend, if only for a few hours, that Jason was more than that. Maybe Jason was ok with that too. 

Jason outstretched a hand to greet his boss, smiling a corporate smile. “Nice to meet you.”

The man smiled back, clapping his shoulder. “You too, sir.”

He said something Nico wasn’t fully listening to and wandered off to talk with more people. 

Nico practically chugged a glass of wine, using Jason for cover from watching eyes. Jason laughed, sipping his own like a normal person. 

“This does not taste good,” Nico said, putting the glass down. 

Jason nodded in agreement, putting his glass down still half-full. “Not as good as your fancy pants Italian ones.”

Nico rolled his eyes playfully, looking out at the sea of coworkers. Jason’s arm stayed around his shoulders as they talked, occasionally interrupted by people interacting with them. Almost like that’s what you’re meant to do at a party. 

One gross glass of wine later, and Nico was pretty sure he was dead and in hell. The conversations droned on, the people somehow got annoyingly louder, and worst of all, this was seriously cutting into the time Nico had set aside to nap on his couch and watch horrible reality TV. They had to get out of here. 

Then, one of their social media managers walked over, grinning like she always was. 

“Nico,” she smiled, “great to see you!”

Nico nodded back, less enthusiastic. “You too, Olivia.”

She addressed Jason, who had partially forgotten his arm was still around Nico. “And you are?”

He held his hand out. “Jason. Nico’s boyfriend,” he smiled back. 

She clapped her hands together before shaking his. “Oh, that’s lovely!”

Nico wasn’t sure where she got the energy to be so bubbly, and he was jealous. 

“Nico, I didn’t know you had a partner,” she said, turning back to him so fast the ruffles on her dress swished around. This was a nice way of saying “Nico, I thought all you did was work.” At least, that’s what Nico was pretty sure she meant. 

He nodded. “Recent development,” he smiled, leaning into Jason unintentionally. Jason put two hands on his shoulders to steady him, and hopefully hide how much wine he’d had tonight. 

Olivia nodded, grinning still. “Can I ask how you two met?” she asked, as always looking for a scoop. 

Nico faltered, but Jason spoke quickly. “Childhood friends,” he said, “I’ve had a crush on him since college, but he’s truly oblivious.”

Nico could feel his face getting red. He decided that the last part was unnecessary, and Jason just tossed it in to mess with him. Totally not a confession. Definitely not. He was just overthinking it. 

Olivia smiled so wide Nico thought her face would rip in half. “Well isn’t that sweet!” she looked over her shoulder at some commotion behind her. “I’ll get outta your hair now. Enjoy the party, you two,” she called, already walking away. 

As soon as she was out of earshot, Nico leaned up to Jason to whisper to him, “Let’s get out of here before my brain melts out of my ears.”

Jason laughed, significantly less tipsy and significantly less bothered by social interaction. “How could you say that, they just opened up the mic for your beloved coworkers to try their comedy skills out.”

Nico groaned, accidentally grabbing the attention of an intern he didn’t know the name of. “I need you to throw me out that window and into the highway, Jason.”

Jason laughed again, a little more sincere. “I can’t do that, then I’d have to actually buy a suit for your funeral.”

The seconds Micheal from art picked up the microphone, Nico decided that was enough for him and started shuffling towards the door. 

He waved bye to anyone who he knew would be texting him pictures from the party the next day and practically shoved Jason out the door. 

As soon as they were outside, they both sighed into the cool night air. 

“Give me your keys,” Jason said, holding out his hand. 

Nico raised an eyebrow, already starting to walk to the driver's side. “Why?”

“Because you’re tripping over your feet and I’d rather not get arrested tonight.”

He rolled his eyes but tossed him the keys and resigned himself to the passenger's side. 

Jason let the drive go by in silence, knowing that was how Nico liked it. Nico, meanwhile, was having a crisis. 

He just couldn’t wrap his mind around how they had done that so easily. It hardly even felt awkward. They didn’t even tweak how they acted with each other, they just said they were dating and everyone believed them just like that. 

Maybe it was the wine in his system, but Nico felt something nagging at him he just couldn’t ignore. 

“Hey,” he said, looking over at Jason.

His face was illuminated by street lights and whatever shone in from the city into the highway. “Hey,” he said back, smiling. His voice was soft, which wasn’t helping Nico’s dilemma. 

Nico shifted in his seat to see him better. “What was up with the college thing?” He asked, trying to sound nonchalant despite the screaming inside him. 

Jason stared straight ahead at the road. “Just telling the truth, Nico.” 

Nico tensed slightly. He couldn’t tell if Jason was joking or not. 

“What?” He asked, not thinking straight enough to see the glimmer of resignation in Jason’s eyes. 

“I wasn’t lying,” Jason repeated. 

“Oh.”

Jason looked at him, a quick panicked look with the closest thing to fear Nico had ever seen on him. 

Jason opened his mouth to speak, no doubt to backtrack. Nico put his hand over his mouth, face reddening by the second. 

“No, shut up,” Nico said, but there was no bite to his tone. “I’ve had a crush on you since high school.” 

Jason looked back to the road briefly. “Oh.”

“Yeah.”

They sat in silence while Jason pulled into Nico’s driveway, faces red as they tried to think of what to say next.

Jason looked over at Nico quickly, trying to decipher his emotions. “For the record,” Jason started, “I’m not trying to guilt you into a relationship right now.”

“I know,” Nico nodded. 

He leaned back. “Cool.”

“Cool.”

Nico paused. Their situation was almost comical but in an awful kind of way. 

“And, also for the record,” Nico said softly, “the only reason I never confessed was because I didn’t think it was the right time…for either of us.”

Jason nodded. They both avoided each other's gaze. 

“So, what now?” Jason asked. 

Nico thought for a second. “I don’t think I’m ready, I don’t have the time to date. It wouldn’t be fair to you.”

Jason hummed, though he looked disappointed. “Right. Me neither.”

Silence. The silence was painful, only the sound of the car running and Nico’s dog barking in his backyard bounced between them. 

Either the alcohol was getting to him, or Nico was losing his mind. “Hey, Jason?” Jason looked up, a glimmer of hope behind his usually confident eyes. “Can we just pretend? For tonight?”

Jason smiled. “Yeah. I think I’d like that.”

They stumbled inside, and for the rest of the night, they were lovers. It didn’t matter that they had work the next morning, and it didn’t matter that they had responsibilities to get home to. What mattered was they fell asleep beside each other, content for once. 

The next morning, when Nico woke up tangled in bedsheets, Jason was gone. They met up for their regular coffee day later that week and acted like nothing had happened. 

Maybe it wasn’t the right time just yet, but if they waited, maybe it would be.

Jasico Week 2024 - Day 7

Words: 619 Rating: General Audiences Type: Oneshot

Description: Jason is sick and decides to make it everyone else’s problem.

Sidenote: This fic was written for @jasico-challenges Jasico week 2024 event!

Full fic under the cut! Small warning, the formatting is a bit weird here and I do prefer AO3 lol

Nico’s husband could’ve been dead, for all he knew. It wasn’t very often that Jason called while he was at work, and it was even rarer for him to get sick at all.

Nico practically flew out of his office, giving a brief run down to his boss, who let him go mostly because he’d never seen Nico so frazzled. He got in his car, barely taking the time to turn the thing on, and almost got a speeding ticket driving back to his and Jason’s house.

He tugged open the door, nearly dropping his keys. His eyes scanned the room before falling on Jason, staring at him from the couch.

“Are you ok?” Nico asked, words falling out of his mouth breathlessly. Jason looked confused. “Yeah?” he said, slightly more nasally than he had been when Nico left that morning. Nico straightened up. “Oh.”

Jason sat on the couch with a blanket wrapped around him and a pile of tissues in front of him. Something played on the TV that Nico didn’t recognize and couldn’t be bothered to care about. Their dog sat happily beside Jason, wagging her tail like everything was completely normal. Probably because it was.

“Are you sure?” Nico asked, taking a second to smooth his wild hair. Jason nodded blankly. “Pretty sure.”

Nico looked at his phone, then Jason, then back at his phone. “You texted me “Come home. Dying. Now.” twenty minutes ago?” Jason laughed. “Can’t you see? I’m going to wither away.”

Nico rolled his eyes. He walked over, shoes clacking on the ground, and buried a hand in Jason’s short blonde hair. “I thought you got stabbed or something.” He smiled despite himself, unable to push away the humor of the situation.

Jason leaned back to look up at him. “I may as well have been,” he smiled back. Nico poked his shoulder. “What’s wrong with you?” “Common cold, according to Reyna.”

Nico rolled his eyes again. “You big baby,” he laughed, walking around the couch. He plopped down next to Jason, letting him lean his head on his shoulder while he rubbed his head. “Is it really that bad?” he asked, a little more sincerely.

Jason laughed. “No, I just wanted you to take a break from work. Being sick was my scapegoat.” He nuzzled his head on Nico’s shoulder. Nico leaned back a little to see his face. “Have I been working too much?” he asked. Jason sat up, raising an eyebrow. “I haven’t seen you in a month.”

That was an exaggeration, of course. Nico spent all his evenings at home, plus the weekends. However, even he could admit he spent most of it either worrying about work, trying to get ahead on work, or sleeping because he was tired from work. So maybe Jason had a point.

Nico buried his head in Jason’s hair. “Sorry,” he mumbled, letting his husband lay between his knees with his head on his stomach. “It’s fine. I know you. I know how you get,” he hummed, squeezing him a little too tight for comfort.

Their dog bumped Nico on the elbow with her nose, informing him that it was dinner time. In fact, it was past dinner time.

Nico kissed Jason’s head. “You gotta let me go.” Upon hearing that, Jason only tightened his iron grip. “Jason..? Jason!”

Nico squirmed, yet he was not released. The dog got fed, only much, much later than she probably would’ve liked.

A few days later, Nico ended up sick too, likely due to his husband smothering him for comfort. Jason was delighted in the situation, and saw to it that Nico took a real, proper break from work. Nico couldn't help but enjoy it.