Children of Loss 5

A/N: The song belongs to Adele. If you don't know it, the song is: Someone Like You.

Chapter 5

Nico woke up to the sound of his alarm clock. He groaned and silenced it. He sat up in bed and stretched. The rest of the week had flown by rather quickly for Nico and, thankfully, it was Friday. Nico dragged himself out of bed and made his way into the bathroom. He looked at his chest in the mirror. His appetite was almost back to normal now, but it would be a few more weeks before he probably noticed a change in his physical appearance. He wiped at his face as a tear fell down his cheek.

He got out of the shower and started to dry off. He cocked his head at the sound of knocking. He hadn't made plans for anyone to take him to school today, which may have been a mistake. He didn't know how he was going to get there. He slipped his pants on and grabbed his shirt as he made his way to the door. He cracked it open to find Percy on the other side. “Good morning, Nico,” Percy said cheerfully.

Nico smiled at him, slipping his shirt over his head. He caught Percy's eyes flickering up to his face as the material fell over his head. Had he been looking at his torso? He was probably just checking if his condition had improved. “Morning,” Nico replied, heading back to the bathroom. Percy followed after him.

“I thought I'd give you a lift to school.” Nico smiled at him in the mirror. “I have some business I have to take care of around town, so I figured I could give you a ride.” Nico nodded while brushing his teeth. “Oh, a few of the others are probably going to go do something tomorrow, if you want to join them I'll give you the day off.”

Nico spun around to look at Percy. “Wha-But I am supposed to work.”

Percy shrugged. “Don't worry about it. I'll get you covered. Go enjoy yourself. Talk to Thalia or Apollo, they are usually the ones who organize the plans.” Percy reached into his back pocket and pulled out a check and a debit card. “I almost forgot. You can cash this and go shopping today if you want. I wanted to give you your first paycheck personally.” Percy beamed at Nico as the boy took it.

Nico's eyes widened at the numbers on the check. “Holy shit, Percy!”

“Like I said, I gave you a little extra to help you get started. I had Leo set you up a standard account at a bank that's closely connected to Gaea. You can go deposit that there. I'll have whoever picks you up after school take you by the place. Then you can just use the card to buy whatever it is you want to buy.” Nico flung his arms around Percy's neck. The taller boy blinked down at Nico, slowly wrapping his arms around the smaller one.

“Thank you so much, Percy. This really means a lot. You've done a lot for me.”

“Really, don't worry about it. Now, hurry up. We need to get on the road.” Nico followed Percy out of his suite and down the hall to the elevator. It was a rather quiet trip down, but it didn't bother Nico. He had enjoyed Percy's company over the past week, though he hadn't gotten to see the green-eyed boy very much, and yet Percy seemed to make time to visit with him.

They exited into the garage, and Percy pulled a set of keys out of his pocket. “Wow,” Nico said when they arrived at a shiny blue car. “I don't think I've seen one like this before, I mean I don't know much about cars, but I don't think I've even seen a commercial for this.”

Percy chuckled as the two got into the car. “That's because it's not on the market yet. I know a guy, and he gave me this baby early. Pretty cool, right?” Nico nodded, rubbing his hand on the dashboard. Percy grabbed some papers and opened the glove compartment, sliding the documents inside. Something briefly caught Nico's eyes as Percy had the compartment open. Something metallic shone inside. Percy noticed Nico trying to get a better look inside and shut the compartment. He cranked the car without a word and the two set off out of the garage.

“Good afternoon, Nico,” Thalia greeted him as Nico slid into the passenger seat. “Ready to go cash your first paycheck?” Nico nodded. “I wanted to do some shopping, if you don't mind tagging along. Percy said you might want to get some new clothes.”

“Yeah, that would be great.” Nico tossed his backpack in the backseat. “Percy said you guys might be going out tomorrow?”

Thalia fooled around with the stereo, trying to find some good music. “Yeah, we try to take some time to do something fun on days we get off. I think Apollo wanted to go to the beach. You want to tag along?”

“Sure. It sounds like fun. Is the whole group going?” There were still a few Lost Kids that Nico hadn't met yet, and he was getting curious about them.

“No, some of us have to stay back and work. I think Will is going to be going. You haven't met him yet have you?” Nico shook his head. “He's kind of like Apollo. They even kind of look alike.” The car came to a stop. Nico opened the door and looked up at the bank in front of them. It was several stories tall, more than likely a bank that catered to special clients. Nico held the door open for Thalia as they went in, earning a smile from the girl.

Thalia led them into the building's lobby. Nico let his gaze rise up to look at the chandeliers that hung above them. He could see several floors above them. A few people stood around the edges, apparently carrying on conversations. Thalia tugged on his arm, drawing Nico's attention back to the ground floor. There was a short line of people in front of the teller windows. However, Thalia didn't wait, passing the people in line and going up to the first window that had just opened. Nico apologized as he followed after her, trying not to stare up at the glares he got. Thalia put an arm around his shoulders as he came up to her.

“Hey there, Lacy. I need to make a deposit and Nico here needs to make his first deposit,” Thalia said. She slid her paycheck under the window to the blonde girl behind the counter. Lacy typed in some numbers into her computer and pulled out a slip of paper. She filled it out and slid it back to Thalia.

“There you go, Thals. Now, let's get your friend all set up.” Thalia pushed Nico up to the window. “Leo called earlier and had your account set up, Nico. If you'll just hand me your paycheck, I can finish the process for you.” Nico pulled out the piece of paper and slid it to her. She repeated the same process she had with Thalia. She pulled out a card after she was done and wrote down some numbers on it. She slid the deposit slip and the card back across to Nico. “Alright, you're all finished. I wrote your account number on the card, so be sure you keep up with it, so you don't forget your account number. You can check your account balance online using your account information to log in on our website.” She gave them both a smile. “Alright. You are both ready to go. Have a nice day.” Thalia gave the girl a wave and dragged Nico out of the building.

“Alright, let's go shopping!” Thalia announced, jumping back into the car.

“We don't have to wait a while for it to deposit?” Nico asked.

“Nope. They clear our checks as soon as they get deposited. We don't have to worry about it.”

The two of them rode to the mall, where they spent some time looking around stores. Thalia had Nico pick out anything that caught his eye, and made him try all of it on. While Nico was in the middle of changing when Thalia stuck her head into Nico's dressing room. He yelped and covered his bare torso. Thalia laughed at him. “What's the matter, Nico?”

“I'm not really used to people seeing me undressed.” Thalia arched her eyebrow.

“Don't worry about it. All of the Lost Kids have seen each other naked. It's nothing I haven't seen before. It's not like you have anything to worry about, Nico. You are pretty attractive.”

Nico lowered his shirt, exposing his chest. “Yeah, but I lost a lot of weight while on the streets. It's really depressing to see myself like this.”

“It wasn't your fault, Nico. The rest of us looked similar to you when we were on the streets.” Thalia's eyes looked Nico's torso over. She exhaled after she was done. “I've seen worse. You'll have your old figure back within a few weeks' time. Talk to one of the guys. They can take you to the gym with them, if you want.” Nico nodded and Thalia exited the dressing room.

Nico emerged a few moments later, dressed in one of the outfits that she had picked out for him. “Well?”

Thalia's eyes brightened. “You look hot, Nico!” She fiddled with his black hair. “Remind me to take you down to get some better shampoo. We need to get your hair back to life. We'll make you sexy.”

“Why do my looks matter?”

“Better tips? You'll find you'll get more attention from the customers if you look good. Besides, it might help you get the attention of...a certain green-eyed guy.” Nico's cheeks darkened. “You might want to hide it a little more if you are going to act all embarrassed. Just be careful,” she said, stepping back from Nico. He gave her an odd look. “Percy doesn't usually take an interest with any of his employees, or anyone, for that matter.” Nico bit his lip to keep from frowning. Thalia gave him a sympathetic smile. “Let's get you this and anything else you want to buy.” Nico nodded and went back into the dressing room.

After they were done with clothes, they went down to the other end of the mall to find Nico some shampoo. Thalia shoved a few bottles at him. Nico looked each of them over, trying to decide which he liked best. He decided on one and he purchased it.

Thalia pulled into a parking space and the two emerged from her car. They pulled their bags from the backseat and headed to the elevator. Nico raised an eyebrow when Thalia hit the lobby button. “Apollo is going to be off work soon. I wanna catch him before he gets off,” Thalia said, noticing Nico's questioning look.

“What's he doing?” Nico asked as the elevator came to a stop. Nico followed Thalia out of the elevator and over to the hotel restaurant.

“Entertaining people.” Thalia gave a wave to a plump brown headed woman behind the podium. Nico's ears picked up on the piano playing. They turned a small corner and Nico spotted Apollo sitting behind a grand piano. He had his eyes on the keys as his fingers ran across them. Thalia pulled out a chair and sat at a table up close. Nico followed her lead and sat down with her. The two of them put their bags on the floor. Nico recognized the melody instantly. He listened to the intro play so beautifully.

Finally Apollo started to singing. His voice was beautiful as he sang the soulful song that Nico loved so much.

“I heard that you're settled down
That you found a girl and you're married now.
I heard that your dreams came true.
Guess she gave you things I didn't give to you.”

The room was quiet as Apollo played, everyone captivated by his voice, which was full of emotion.

“Old friend, why are you so shy?
Ain't like you to hold back or hide from the light.
I hate to turn up out of the blue uninvited
But I couldn't stay away, I couldn't fight it.
I had hoped you'd see my face and that you'd be reminded
That for me it isn't over.
Never mind, I'll find someone like you
I wish nothing but the best for you too
Don't forget me, I beg
I remember you said,
Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead,
Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead.”

Apollo had closed his eyes as he let his fingers play from memory. Nico felt so drawn in by the hypnotic sound of Apollo's voice. It was like he was driving his emotions into the song and everyone around him felt the boy's pain. Nico glanced away and saw a few women wiping their eyes.

“You know how the time flies
Only yesterday was the time of our lives
We were born and raised
In a summer haze
Bound by the surprise of our glory days
I hate to turn up out of the blue uninvited
But I couldn't stay away, I couldn't fight it.
I'd hoped you'd see my face and that you'd be reminded
That for me it isn't over.
Never mind, I'll find someone like you
I wish nothing but the best for you too
Don't forget me, I beg
I remember you said,
Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead.
Nothing compares
No worries or cares
Regrets and mistakes
They are memories made.
Who would have known how bittersweet this would taste?
Never mind, I'll find someone like you
I wish nothing but the best for you
Don't forget me, I beg
I remember you said,
Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead.
Never mind, I'll find someone like you
I wish nothing but the best for you too
Don't forget me, I beg
I remember you said,
Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead,
Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead.”

Apollo let out a breath as he opened his eyes. Everyone in the room started clapping. Nico even found himself clapping. Apollo locked eyes with Nico and gave him a wink. He stood up and bowed before walking over to Thalia and Nico. “Well hello there. What do I owe the pleasure of two such lovely people?” Apollo said with a smile.

Thalia rolled her eyes. “You done?” she asked. Apollo nodded. “Alright. You mind giving us a hand? We went shopping.”

“I see that,” Apollo chuckled. He picked up two bags and the three of them walked out of the restaurant. “Oh, what's this?” Nico turned to look at him. His eyes widened as he saw some of the underwear Thalia had made him buy. “My, my, Nico. You'll have to model these for me sometime.” Nico blushed. Thalia and Apollo shared a laugh. Apollo dropped the fabric back in the bag and the three boarded the elevator.

“We still on for the beach tomorrow, boo?” Thalia asked.

“Of course. I need to work on my tan. So do you, you're looking pale.” Apollo poked at Thalia's arm. His eyes glanced over to Nico. “Both of you.”

“I'm always pale,” Nico mumbled. Nico glanced at Apollo for a moment. “You have a really beautiful voice.”

Apollo beamed at him. “Well thank you. I aim to please.”

“Don't feed his ego, Nico. He already gets enough of that,” Thalia interjected.

Apollo feigned hurt. “Your words cut me deep, beautiful maiden.” Thalia rolled her eyes, giving Apollo a shove. Apollo only grinned at her. Nico had really started to notice over the past week that the others really were truly close. They seemed so comfortable with each other that Nico couldn't help but wonder if he would ever really be a part of their tight circle.

“That song sounded like it had meaning to you,” Nico stated, killing the laughter. Thalia cleared her throat as Apollo stared down at Nico.

“I suppose it does. A story for another time? It would only ruin the cheerful atmosphere.” Nico nodded. “Right now, we need to get ready for work.” The trio exited the elevator. “You two go drop your stuff off, and I will see you two in a few at the bar.”

The night had went by without much excitement. Nico exited the elevator into the garage, where the group had agreed to meet. He spotted everyone standing around Thalia and Apollo's cars. Apollo waved Nico over when he saw the boy. Everyone was already dressed in their beach attire. Thalia sat on the back of her car, currently talking with Piper. Calypso, Beckendorf, and Silena were nearby in their own conversation. Nico's eyes fell on a boy by Apollo's side. Judging by his looks, he was Will. Thalia was right, they did look alike. They had the same color blond hair, except Will's was straight and hung down into his eyes. He had the same color blue eyes as Apollo. He was a few inches shorter than Apollo, probably around six feet. They even had the same color tanned skin. If Nico didn't know they weren't related, he wouldn't be able to tell. He looked like a younger version of Apollo.

“Nico, this is Will,” Apollo said, motioning to the boy next to him. Will pushed off the back of Apollo's car and shook Nico's hand.

“Nice to meet you,” Will said with a smile. Damn, they even had the same bright smile. Nico smiled back at him and moved to stand on Apollo's other side.

“Alright,” Thalia said, clapping her hands. “We'll take my and Apollo's cars and divide evenly. Piper, Beckendorf, and Silena can ride with me. The rest of you losers can haul up in Apollo's car.” Apollo just rolled his eyes and pulled his keys out. They all piled into the cars and were soon on the road.

Nico sat in the back with Calypso, while the two blonds sat up front. The way the two interacted, you would guess they were brothers. Will kept trying to change the music, and Apollo would keep swatting his hand away. Calypso smiled at their antics. “So, how did you find yourself at the hotel?” Nico asked her, deciding he wanted to get to know the others better.

Calypso pursed her lips, she didn't look happy to answer. “I moved out here after high school, trying to chase my dreams. I had wanted to try modeling, but that didn't work out for me. Long story short, Percy found me and...alleviated a problem I had. He asked me if I had a place to stay, and when I told him no he brought me back to the Lotus.”

“You didn't make it as a model? You're so pretty, though. They must have been blind.”

Calypso smiled at Nico. “Thank you. I've gotten over it. I'm happy with my life now, I guess.” Nico looked out the window as the car stopped. They had arrived at the beach. He opened the door and followed the group across the sand. Thalia stopped and tossed her stuff down, claiming it as their spot. Apollo and Will wasted no time in stripping their shirts. Like Apollo, Will had the surfer body. He noticed something while looking them over, though. None of them had any traces of body hair. All of the guys' legs and underarms were completely barren of hair. Thalia tossed them some sun tan lotion and the blonds went about rubbing it on each other. When they were done, Apollo tossed the bottle to Nico.

Nico fidgeted a little, uncomfortable at having to be shirtless in front of them once again. “You have nothing to be shy about, Nico,” Silena said in a soothing voice. “All of our bodies were pretty bad when we first arrived, don't be ashamed. You'll be back to normal soon.”

“That reminds me,” Thalia said, tapping Apollo with her foot. “I don't suppose any of you boys would help him out and take him to the gym, would you?”

Beckendorf pat Nico on the back. “Sure. The next time we go we'll hit you up, Nico. I'm sure the Stolls or Will could make a good workout buddy for you.”

“Stolls?” Nico asked.

“Oh, I guess no one told you their last name. Travis and Connor, the Stoll twins,” Piper said, she had sat down on a towel. Nico nodded.

“Are all of you so conscious with your looks? Working out and eating properly?” Nico asked. He had noticed that most of the time the kids ate pretty healthy and now he learned they exercised too.

“Like I said, Nico, it's all about making those big bucks. Customers are more willing to tip if they think you are sexy,” Thalia said with a wink.

Nico nodded. He lowered his hands to the bottom of his shirt and pulled it over his head. Everyone smiled at him. “See, now that wasn't so bad, was it?” Apollo said, taking the sun screen from Nico and rubbing it on his back. “You do need this, though. Your skin is very pale, don't want you burning. That wouldn't draw you much attention.”

Beckendorf pulled out a volleyball from Silena's bag. “How about a rematch, Apollo?”

Apollo grinned at him. “I think I'd be willing to whip your ass again, big man.”

“Then it's a good thing we have even numbers,” Calypso added, going to stand with Apollo and Will. It looked like they were forming teams. “Come on, Nico, you can be on our team.”

Nico had surprisingly enjoyed the game. They had come out victorious, but he knew it was mostly because of Apollo and Will. The two of them just looked like naturals at everything beach related. Nico had accidentally gotten distracted on a few occasions during the game by staring at their bodies. After the game ended, the group headed into the water. Nico was currently seated on Apollo's shoulders as he faced off against Silena on Beckendorf's shoulders. Nico yelped when Beckendorf tripped Apollo and the two tumbled into the water. Apollo laughed as they emerged from the water, splashing at Beckendorf.

Things quieted down after that. Most of the group left the water and laid out in the sun. Nico stayed out with Apollo in the water, he had wanted to catch the boy alone so he could ask about that song. “Apollo?” Nico asked.

“Hmm?” Apollo asked, shaking his hair. “What's up, Nico?”

“Can I ask about that song you sang? What's it mean to you?”

Apollo's eyes shifted to the water. Nico saw pain flash through his eyes. “Well, when I came out to my father, it wasn't completely about school. I was stupid and did it mostly because of a guy I was seeing at the time. He was a few years older than me, just finishing college. Well, when my dad kicked me out, I just moved in with him. The problem was he had gotten a job offer here in California.” Apollo wiped a hand across his face. “I was stupid and moved with him.” Nico gave Apollo a sympathetic look. “I lived with him for a while out here, but things got awkward. He kind of was trying to go into politics, so having me around wouldn't have been good for his image.”

“He kicked you out on the streets?” Nico asked, shock written on his face.

“You can't tell me you are shocked to learn things like this? I know you've heard some of the others' backstories. We all had bad things happen to us in our pasts. Like we've told you before, the world isn't as nice a place as you think it is. You do what you have to survive, and don't look back on it with regret.”

“Did you ever see him again?”

Apollo's eyes seemed to be distant, looking off at the sunset. “Once. After I got the job at the Lotus, he showed up. He had gotten married.”

“What did he want?”

 “What everyone coming to the Lotus wants. A piece of paradise.” Nico looked at him in confusion. Apollo didn't say anything else, though. Nico knew he was done with the conversation. It was sad, all of their stories were. He wondered what Percy's backstory was. Annabeth had said he had not been as nice back when she had first met him, something bad must have happened to him too. He would have to ask Percy about it sometime.