Children of Loss 39

Chapter 39

Being locked in a dark room with a guy that normally wore a scowl on his face, one would think that Nico would have had other things at the front of his mind. But the first thing that came blurting out?

“You're in your underwear.”

Luke shot him an irritated look before tossing Nico onto his bed and pacing the room. Nico blinked, his eyes trailing up and down Luke's long body. Though he was nowhere near as muscular as Butch or Beckendorf, Luke's body was pure muscle. A fact that Nico could attest to from seeing what a simple punch from the blond could do to Cal's face. However, Luke was lean and built like a baseball player or swimmer. The fact that Nico preferred guys with that kind of build was completely irrelevant. It also had nothing to do with the fact that it probably explained why he found some of the others pleasing to look at.

Also, Nico had a hard time getting over how good Luke's ass looked in those tight, dark blue boxer-briefs. So distracted that he almost missed what Luke said. “Because I feel you need some more lessons,” the blond grumbled.

Nico frowned, pulling himself completely from his ongoing fantasy. “But I already have to put up with your brother. Who are you trying to stick me with-”

“You're taking lessons from me.” Nico's eyes widened as Luke hovered over him, leaning down so that his face was in very close proximity to the Nico's own face. Before Nico could register fully what was happening, he heard a faint clicking noise.

Nico quickly looked up to find that his wrists were handcuffed to the bed. “What the hell, Luke?”

The blond pulled back with a wicked grin on his face, resting his knees between Nico's flailing legs. “Now then, if you're a good boy, I won't have to break out the whip.”

This was not what Nico exactly had in mind for what it would be like to be sexually involved with Luke. Nico narrowed his eyes. “Can you let me go now?”

Nico's answer came in the form of his lower half being rolled over and a palm making contact with his ass. “You do not get to make the demands here, I'm afraid. I hold the power. You can be in control if a clients asks that you dominate them. But, for lessons, I find this much more entertaining.” Nico narrowed his eyes further, struggling to slip his wrists out of their cuffs. For this, he received another swat to his ass. “Care to keep going?”

The brown-eyed Lost Boy let out a sigh, shaking his head in defeat. “But is this really necessary?” Nico asked, nodding up the the handcuffs above his head.

Luke wagged his brows, placing his hands on either side of Nico's head. “I think I prefer you this way.” Nico felt his face heat up. Luke smirked and leaned down to whisper in his ear. “Now if only I had a gag to put in your mouth, I wouldn't have to listen to you talk.”

“Fuck you!”

Luke chuckled and pulled back. “All in due time.” He sat back, allowing Nico to have some space. The blond took in a deep breath. Nico gave him an odd look, though Luke seemed to be distracted by his own thoughts to notice. “There's a lot of things down in those rooms that you might find yourself uncomfortable with, but you're going to have to deal with it.”

Nico blinked. This was the softest that Luke had ever spoken to him, and he managed to do it with no trace of annoyance in his pale blue eyes

Finally, Luke let out his breath and looked up from the mattress. “You're just going to have to deal with whatever demands that the clients ask of you down in those rooms.” Nico opened his mouth, but Luke pressed on. “It doesn't matter if you don't like it, you have to comply with whatever it is. And even if your body starts to get uncomfortable with any device found in that room, you keep quiet.”

“Devices?” Nico asked.

Luke crawled on top of the boy. His icy blue gaze slowly trailed down Nico's body, while his hand reached under his shirt. “Collars, whips, racks and leather harnesses, things like that.” Nico hissed when Luke's fingernails dug into the skin of his back. “And the clients can sometimes be rough.”

Nico frowned when Luke pulled back and sat between Nico's legs, one of his knees pulled up to his chest. Nico blew at some of his bangs that were falling into his eyes. “And if they leave a bruise or scratch pretty hard?”

“That's what Will is around for,” Luke whispered. The blond pursed his lips, looking Nico over. “While we can't today, I do want to take you down there tomorrow or the next day. If you're lucky, no one will ask for you to go down there before then.”

Finally, Luke leaned above Nico and unlocked the handcuffs. Nico frowned as he sat up, rubbing gently at his wrists. “Why don't we just tell Percy about this? We could be subtle.”

Luke shook his head. “Don't,” he whispered, his eyes no longer looking up to meet Nico's own. “Kronos always finds a way to make you miserable for doing things like that.” This time, when Luke looked up, Nico noted how tired the blond looked. With all of the chaos going around right now, Nico wondered if Luke, Apollo, Annabeth, and Thalia were running themselves rampant trying to keep the others under control.

Nico's lips tilted down in a frown. “But-”

“Percy cares too much about Kronos, I've never seen them get angry with each other.”

Gripping the sheets, Nico's brow furrowed. “How can Percy consider someone like Kronos to be a friend? How can Percy put up with someone like him?”

Luke let out a grunt. “Perhaps because Kronos was Percy's first real friend.” That made Nico look up in surprise. “Yeah, Percy never had a friend before Kronos. His father abandoned his mother while Percy was still a baby, so Percy never got to experience growing up with kids his own age.” Luke rubbed at his face with a yawn. “And when Gaea took Percy in, Kronos took an immediate interest in Percy. Sure, at the time, it was probably that Kronos saw Percy as another toy; but to Percy, it stuck with him. And in Percy's mind, it sort of always made Kronos a good person, no matter what the other did.”

Nico had a hard time believing that. Sure Percy might, but there was no way Nico could accept that Kronos could have a decent side.

Apparently, Nico's face was easy to read. Luke smirked over at him. “Hard to believe, yeah? Well, believe it or not, even someone as horrible as Kronos can have a...somewhat decent side to him.” The blond shook his head. “But that's about as good as it gets, unless you are Percy or Gaea. At most, he'll just be indifferent towards you.”

Again, Nico had his doubts about this. After seeing what he had of their new manager, Nico did not see how Kronos could be anything other than a despicable human being. “Wasn't really expecting you to say something decent about him.”

Luke's smirk grew as he got off the bed and walked over to grab a pair of cotton shorts from the floor before slipping them on, much to Nico's disappointment. “Don't get me wrong, I still loathe the guy.” He turned around with an eyebrow raised. “But do you think he could be a manager if he didn't have some decent people skills? I could also say that he's very bright, went to one of the best universities on the planet, and that he has great management skills. None of that would change the fact that he can still be sickening to be around.”

“How did he even get to be a manager anyways?”

“Ah,” Luke began, sitting back down on the bed, “he killed his predecessor.” Nico's eyebrows rose at that. “Yep, cut his throat in front of his mother. Not sure how Gaea completely feels about Kronos, I've never asked. Obviously, she loves him, as he will always be her son, but I'm not sure she always approves of his actions. But you have to keep in mind the type of business we're all involved with.” Luke cocked a brow at the other Lost Boy. “If you were Gaea and running a dirty business like she is, would you want someone nice and honest, or someone who is willing to get the job done and has the potential to be ruthless?”

“Fair point,” Nico mumbled.

Luke gave a shrug. “Goes double for South America and the Middle East. Atlas and Kronos have to be extra cold, as they tend to deal with less...civilized customers.” Getting back up, Luke retrieved a shirt from his closet.

“Still, Kronos is a monster.”

“Not arguing with you there,” Luke replied, slipping the shirt over his head. Nico wasn't sure what it was, but Luke seemed a lot more sensitive today. Perhaps the blond really was exhausted, and just didn't have the energy to put forth his usual irritable demeanor. “Just keep in mind that Kronos rarely uses that 'decent' side of his.”

Nico gave a slow nod before climbing to his feet. “Okay,” he whispered. He nodded again before moving towards the door. “Are we done here? At least for now? You look like you could use a nap, or something.”

Luke got up and narrowed his eyes. He opened the door and Nico walked into the hallway. In the living room, Nico leaned down to pick up the bags he had dropped when Luke had yanked him into the suite. But when Nico was about to unlock the door to the suite, Luke placed a hand against the door.

“One more thing.”

Nico looked up and blinked. “What's up?”

“There's a lot of...things down in those room, more than what I mentioned a moment ago.” Luke chewed on his lip. “While Percy doesn't like us to do certain things, he does still offer clients those options.” Nico felt lost. “So, like upstairs, you will find alcohol in the rooms. Which, isn't really a big deal. But cigarettes are kept in stock within each room.”

“Okay,” Nico said slowly, still not really following. He had never felt the desire to take up smoking.

But Luke looked serious still, so Nico decided to be quiet. The blond chewed on his lip for a few more seconds, his eyes scanning over Nico's face. “There are also drugs, most of which are kept in supply by Dionysus.” The blond Lost Boy reached up and ran a hand through his hair. “Sometimes, the clients might try to offer you some, do not accept any of it. Just be careful, is what I'm saying. Right now, we don't need a disaster like your first night stripping to add onto the amount of stress that is filtering around the hotel, so I thought I'd let you know.”

“Thanks.” Nico regarded the blond carefully for a moment. All that he could see was the look of someone that was on the brink of passing out. He frowned. “You should really consider taking a nap.”

Luke rolled his eyes and shoved Nico out of the door. “Wish I could, but got all these sorry asses to check up on.” With a simple nod, the blond shut the door in Nico's face.

Though, as soon as it shut, Apollo's door swung open and out stormed Leo. Apollo leaned against the doorway, a small smirk threatening to show on his lips. Leo spun around and glared up at the blond. “You are insufferable. Do you have any idea what a selfish asshole you are?” The blond in question just shrugged. This only fueled Leo further. “I try to have one civilized conversation, and you just use the time to find ways to get me out of my clothes.”

To Nico, it looked like Leo was on the verge of rearing back and punching the blond in the face. As amusing as that might have been to see, Nico also doubted Leo could take Apollo in a fight. The blond might look like a beautiful model, but Apollo was lean and muscled. Apollo also did not look threatened by the shorter Lost Boy.

In fact, Apollo seemed to ignore Leo, picking at his curls instead. Finally, the blond looked down at Leo. “I'm sorry, were you saying something. I'm sure it has something to do with my body, as I catch you staring at it so much.”

“Ass!” Leo growled. Nico moved forward, but Leo pointed a finger at him. “Stay out of this.”

Nico held up his hands defensively. Apollo smirked. “Temper, temper, Leo.”

Leo shoved his finger in the blond's face. “You... You self-centered, jealous, pretty boy...asshole.” Leo clenched his teeth, his fists shaking at his side. Apollo just smirked at him. Will poked his head over Apollo's shoulder to get a view of what was happening, waving over to Nico when he noticed the boy's presence. Leo just growled up at the curly-haired blond. “Don't just stand there, you fucking ass!”

Apollo shrugged and Leo let out a huff before storming off to his room, the door slamming behind him. Apollo arched a brow in the direction Leo had gone before smirking at Nico. “Well, that was entertaining.”

“What did you do this time?” Will mumbled, rubbing his eyes. It looked like he had been woken up from a nap.

The eldest of the trio simply shrugged. “We were just talking, and then I offered him sex.”

Will shook his head with a sigh. “Yeah, because that has gone over so well in the past. I don't think he's quite let go what happened the last time you two hooked up.”

Apollo's response was in the form of a grunt. Nico blinked up at Apollo. “Why'd you just stand there and let him yell at you? It looked like you were biting your tongue.”

“Oh, I was.” A smirk crept across Apollo's lips as he propped an arm against the frame of the door. “It's just kind of hot to see him get riled up like that.” His attention turned to his roommate, where he gave Will a lopsided smile. “Sorry if we woke you up with the yelling.”

Will waved it off. “S'all good, I needed to wake up anyways.” Though he was addressing Apollo, Will's eyes had wandered over to Nico and was smiling at the pale Lost Boy. “So, what are you going to do until work?”

Nico held up the bags in his hands. “Unload all of this and try to relax.”

Will moved out from behind Apollo with a grin. “I could help with that.”

“I bet you could,” Apollo mumbled. He coughed and looked away innocently when Will and Nico both shot him dirty looks.

Nico regarded Will for a moment. “I-”

Without letting him finish, Will shot forward and grabbed Nico. “Excellent, it's decided then.”

“I don't recall deciding anything,” Nico mumbled as Will fished Nico's wallet out of the raven-haired boy's back pocket, making sure the give Nico's ass a squeeze in doing so.

Before Nico could protest further, Will had the door open and Nico inside. Shooting Apollo a grin, Will shut the door. “It's no problem.” Will smiled and took one of the two bags Nico was carrying before heading to Nico's room.

Something caught Nico's eye on the edge of the couch, though. While Will went on to his room, Nico stopped and walked over to the couch, picking up an empty pack of cigarettes. He let out a sigh. This was not good, Nico thought. From what he had seen last night, Jason's pack had been nearly full last night, and now it was completely gone. But as he headed down the hall, Nico noticed Jason's light was off, which ruled out talking with his roommate at the current time. Pursing his lips, Nico made a mental note to talk to Jason later about it.

When he entered his room, Nico found that Will was already storing his new outfits with the rest of the ones Nico already had. Without even saying anything, Will took the other bag from Nico. “I can do that myself, you know,” Nico mumbled.

Will just smiled. “It's no trouble.” Nico sat down on the edge of the bed, watching the blond move around the room to organize everything. After a few moments, though, Will found him staring. “What?”

Nico quickly shook his head. “Nothing.” Will smiled. Nico frowned and furrowed his brow. “Will?”

“Hmm?”

“How long have you been here?”

Will paused, scrunching his lips. “I don't know, probably around a year and a half now.” He turned back to face Nico. “Why?”

“Just thinking.” Nico pursed his lips and tapped his fingers against the comforter. “Was that girl here while you were? The one that committed suicide, I mean.”

Will slowed down, slowly placing a few outfits in a drawer in the closet. “Why are you wanting to know about her?” His blue eyes looked over to Nico curiously. “You shouldn't ask about her...or any of them.”

“'Them'? There have been more?”

Will cursed under his breath. “Um,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck, “I don't know how many. I did know Akhlys, but not very well. It wasn't long after I arrived that she killed herself.” Will shut the drawer and stepped out of the closet, regarding Nico carefully. “But ever since then, there haven't been any more cases. From what I've heard from Apollo or Luke, there were a few more cases. I think that's why they're on edge right now, because they don't want anyone doing something like that again. But, I mean, that's just our hotel, there are the other hotels that exist out there, and they each have suicides.”

“I just...” Nico tried to choose his words carefully. He fully understood that this was a delicate topic, and didn't want to go further than he needed to. “I'm just concerned, with Kronos currently in charge.”

Will nodded and laid down on Nico's bed, propping himself up on his side. “I understand.” His blue eyes refused to look up, too busy picking at Nico's comforter instead. “Just try not to ask anyone else about it? I think Ganymede and Aphrodite knew her pretty well, from what little I gathered during the time I was here. It, uh, happened maybe a month or two after Hazel and I first arrived here.”

“You arrived together?”

Will smiled sadly and shook his head. “Not far apart, though. Perhaps, at most, a couple of weeks.” He let out a long sigh and reached over to run his fingers along the back of Nico's hand. “Kronos was visiting.” Will chuckled at seeing the pale look Nico gave. “I know, right? A great way to start off our time here at the hotel.” Another sigh escaped the blond's lips. “Surprisingly, though, Kronos didn't bother either of us. Perhaps he acts more decently towards new arrivals? I'll probably never know for sure.”

This was the second time today that someone had said that Kronos was capable of being at least indifferent towards people. If only Kronos could be like that at all times.

“But I could tell that Kronos wasn't liked,” Will continued. “He creeped me out when I first met him.” Will smiled as he ran his fingers across Nico's arm. “Not as an enjoyable place before you came along.”

Nico narrowed his eyes. “Can we get back on subject.”

Will smiled, his eyes flickering down to Nico's lips, but never did anything. Letting out a sigh, Will's smile slowly faded. “I'm not sure what Kronos did exactly, but I never saw him threaten her or anything. Apollo claimed that Kronos didn't have to. I didn't really understand what that meant at the time, but I think I do now.” He shook his head. “I'm pretty sure Kronos brought up a lot of sensitive stuff with Akhlys, things like he used against Luke, Octavian, and Annabeth yesterday.”

That actually brought Nico to another question he had. “Is Annabeth's stepmother in an asylum?”

Will opened and closed his mouth a few times, apparently having a difficult time finding the the right words. “I'm not sure if I should answer that. Annabeth doesn't like talking about it, so don't bring it up.” Will's blue eyes narrowed at Nico. “I mean it. Not to anyone.”

Nico quickly nodded. “I promise.”

“Good.” Will let out a breath. “Anyways, on the morning that Kronos had to leave, they found her body. Or, at least, what was left of it.” Nico gave a curious look. “She sort of...jumped off of the top of the hotel.”

Nico was speechless. “That had to be...oh my god.”

“Yeah,” Will muttered. He licked his lips, his fingers trailing back down to Nico's hand. “It was definitely not the best way to get inducted into the hotel.” Will rubbed his head with the hand that wasn't busy touching Nico. “Kronos didn't seem bothered at all by it. And some of the Lost Kids suspect that Percy knows that Kronos coerced her into doing it, and never did anything about it. It just goes to show how far Percy is willing to overlook the atrocities of his 'brother'.”

“I...” Nico glanced down at his sheets, his eyes hypnotized by the soft movement of Will's hand on his own. “Percy-”

“Is not a knight in shining armor,” Will chuckled. He nudged the boy next to him lightly. “We tried to tell you from the very beginning. It wasn't just about the fact that Percy never took an interest in his employees, but also because Percy is dangerous. Being around Percy is dangerous. One of the reasons I never tried to pursue something like you or Apollo did was because it was too nerve wracking. Think about it, what would happen if Gaea didn't like you? Or just Kronos in general being involved in the situation.”

There was a long silence in the room. Nico refused to look up at the blond. He wasn't angry, not exactly anyways. It was just...hard to swallow.

After several long minutes, Nico looked up. “Did you ever...accept an offer that Percy gave you?”

There was a dull look in Will's eyes. Slowly, the blond sat up. “You mean, did I have him kill my parents? No, they are still alive. I think we've covered this.”

Nico shook his head. Briefly, the boy looked down. “Not them,” he whispered. “Did you ever...have him target the other kids from the orphanage? You said they were bad to you.”

When Nico was met with silence, he looked up. Will's eyes were hidden behind his short bangs, a deep frown marring his face. “They deserved to die,” Will whispered. “Mitchell's adopted parents, too. They deserved to die for abusing him and letting him die.” Nico reached forward and attempted to brush the blond's bangs away, only to have his hand swatted away. “They raped me, the kids in the orphanage. Said I was too pretty for my own good. And, afterward, they beat me. The adults that ran the orphanage didn't do anything.”

“But you had them killed,” Nico whispered. “You can't hold Percy accountable for something, when you asked him to do things like that.”

Will pulled away from Nico, his eyes still completely hidden. “They weren't nice people. I trusted them. The adults, the kids at the orphanage. I trusted them when I arrived, and they all hated me.” Nico swallowed a lump in his throat as he watched Will's fingers tighten as they clung to Nico's comforter. “Most nights, I woke up to a knife or something pressed against my throat, telling me that they'd kill me if I screamed.” Will reached up and touched at his lips. “I can still feel where I had to bite down to keep quiet, can still taste the blood that I drew.”

Will pulled his legs up to his chest and buried his face against them. Nico bit down on his lip before slowly reaching out and running his fingers through Will's hair in a soothing motion. This was so unlike Will, Nico had never seen the blond so...dark.

But that was how the hotel felt now. Dark, void of all light and hope. Perhaps it wasn't just nerves that were dwindling, perhaps the willpower of the Lost Kids were faltering. And with so many of them suffering, Nico had to wonder how Apollo, Luke, Thalia, and Annabeth were going to manage taking care of everyone.

“I'm sorry,” Nico whispered. “I didn't mean anything by it.” He stroked Will's hair again. “I don't think you're a bad person for asking Percy to do that.”

When Will finally looked up, Nico found himself wishing he hadn't. Nico wasn't sure how to describe what he saw in the blond's normally happy eyes. Pain. Suffering. Anger. Heartbreak. Misery. A hopeful look that might come from a small child, and perhaps Will was that small child once upon a time. But seeing Will now was very painful, and Nico found himself swallowing a lump in his throat.

Will ended up leaving not long after that. But fifteen minutes after the blond was gone, Nico still found himself sitting on his bed. He had a bad feeling about everything right now. Sure it was to be expected, what with Kronos being in charge, but he also had the feeling that some very dark days were ahead for everyone at the hotel.

When his phone went off, Nico climbed off his bed and picked up his phone from where it sat on his dresser. He was surprised to find his sister's name on the screen. Running his finger across the screen, Nico inspected her text.

She wanted him to meet her in the lobby. Apparently, she had more stuff for him.

Letting out a sigh, Nico grabbed his wallet and slipped his shoes back on before heading out the door. The elevator ride was quiet and felt longer than usual. Well, longer than normal for the ride down over sixty floors.

Bianca was already in the lobby when he arrived, three boxes sat beside her on the couch she had taken residence on. When she noticed him coming towards her, she got up and motioned excitedly towards the boxes. Ta-da! Look what I managed to confiscate before father could toss it out!”

Nico chuckled as he pulled one of the lids off the box on top, which contained some of his clothes from back home. The one underneath that contained his and Bianca's old Gamecube and the games they had managed to collect for it. And underneath that was a box that contained some old photos and a few things that belonged to their mother.

A small smile appeared on his face as Nico looked through the last box. “Thanks,” he mumbled.

“Don't mention it.”

Nico's eyes flickered over to Bianca's wrist. He frowned and put down a photo of him and his mother that he had been holding, his hand reaching out to grasp his sister's wrist. “Where did you get this?”

On Bianca's wrist was a diamond charm bracelet with tiny silver figurines attached to it. Bianca blushed and pulled her wrist away, rubbing it gently. “Um, yeah, about that. Dad's new friend got it for me.” She shook her head, a look of annoyance covering her face. “I don't know, I feel like Dad is moving on a little too fast, he's already going out to dinner with this woman and staying out late.” Her eyes inspected the bracelet on her wrist. “But she gave this to me for Christmas, probably as a bribe to like her.”

Nico gave a grunt. His father was earning a whole new low in his books right now. “I take it she's loaded?”

“I guess,” Bianca mumbled. “I'm not really trying to get to know her. I usually just go over to Daedalus's house when she's around.” Something must have caught Bianca's attention, as the girl waved at something behind Nico. “Annabeth!”

Sure enough, the blonde was exiting the hotel's restaurant with a carryout box, probably about to go eat in her room. The Lost Girl stopped and turned in their direction, a small smile crossing her lips as she noticed them. She came over to them and gave Bianca a one-armed hug, making sure to keep her food held away from the two of them.

“Nice to see you again, Bianca.”

Bianca smiled and slipped her hands into her pockets. “I hope you've been doing well.”

Annabeth smiled and nodded. “As well as I suppose I can be right now.”

Bianca gave her a curious look before placing a hand on Nico's shoulder. “I was just checking on Nico and dropping a few things off. He's not being any trouble, is he? Eating okay?”

“Ah.” Annabeth looked between the two siblings. “Well, he's eating just fine, though I've noticed he's eaten less over the past few days.” Nico scowled at her. How could she have possibly taken notice so quickly? “But we have all been under a lot of stress lately.” The blonde shifted her weight, holding her food with both hands. “Right now, the hotel is under temporary new management.”

Bianca quirked a brow before looking around. “Percy's not here?”

“No.” Grey eyes flickered over to where Nico stood, causing the boy to fidget. “Percy was called away due to...personal reasons.”

“Oh,” Bianca replied. “I take it you don't like the current manager?”

“That's one way of putting it,” Nico muttered.

Bianca gave him a curious look before her eyes widened and she reached into one of the boxes behind her. “Oh, I almost forgot.” Digging around, Bianca eventually pulled out a bottle of perfume. “I wanted to give you this,” she said, handing it to Annabeth.

The blonde blinked before she looked up in confusion. “What for?”

“Well, I don't plan on using it, and I still have another bottle for memory purposes, but Nico told me how nice you've been to him, so I just wanted to get you something as a way of saying thanks.” She offered the blonde girl a warm smile before continuing. “It belonged to our mother, something she picked up from one of our trips to Italy a few years ago. I suppose you can count it as a late Christmas present.”

It took Annabeth a moment, but she eventually smiled and placed the bottle in her hand that was underneath the food. “Thank you, I'll try it out and let you know how I like it.”

Bianca gave a chuckle. “I thought it might help you rope in that guy you mentioned back at the water park.

“Yes,” Annabeth said, a stoney quality lacing her words. “That.” The blonde pursed her lips. “Thank you.”

Bianca smiled again before nodding. She patted her pants before letting out a breath. “Well, I suppose I better head home.” Leaning in, she kissed Nico's forehead. “Behave yourself,” she told him before waving and heading towards the door.

After his sister was gone, Nico turned to stare at the blonde next to him. He had almost forgotten that Annabeth liked, or had liked, someone. “Were you serious when you told her you liked someone?”

“Yes,” was the only reply that Nico got.

Nico slowly nodded. “Okay, I guess you don't want to talk about it.” Annabeth didn't say anything. Nico fidgeted. “Um, so, I wanted to thank you as well, for being nice to my sister.”

“She's a nice girl.”

Nico nodded again. “Yeah, she is. But, I mean, everyone has been great to her.” He smiled a little. “And Percy even paid for her tuition, wasn't that amazing of him?”

Annabeth's brow furrowed. “What?”

“Oh.” Nico blinked twice. “Um, yeah, Percy's present to me was to pay for mine and Bianca's tuition.” He smiled with a shrug, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “It was very nice of him.”

There was a blank expression clouding Annabeth's face before she shrugged. “I suppose, but I wouldn't put much thought into it. It was probably just Percy's way of hinting that he still would like you to leave the hotel with as much of yourself still intact as can be managed.” That was a blow to Nico's stomach. The boy rubbed his arm. The blonde shrugged again. “Just giving my opinion. I mean, it's still nice of him, yes, but I wouldn't look at it as a romantic gesture.”

“Oh.” Nico nodded, his head down. “I guess you're probably right.”

Annabeth let out a sigh, reaching out to pat Nico on the shoulder. “Like I said, just giving my opinion.” She let out a breath. “As much as I hate to tell you this, Kronos wants to see you in his office. He was having a word with Jason not long ago, probably wants to have a word with the new additions.”

Nico nodded, letting out a groan. This was not a good day. Annabeth nodded back at him before heading towards one of the elevators. Nico let out a sigh before turning around and staring at the boxes that Bianca had brought him. As eager as he truly was to be alone with Kronos, Nico felt it couldn't hurt to put off that talk a little longer by dropping his boxes in his room first.

When Nico finally arrived in the office, Leo directed him to go ahead in the office that was supposed to belong to Percy. Opening the door, Nico found Kronos sitting behind the computer, rubbing his temple. Without looking up or speaking to Nico, Kronos pointed towards the chair directly across from the desk. Not needing to be told twice, Nico sat down.

Kronos let out a sigh. “As much as I'm sure you'd be shocked to learn, I cannot wait for Percy to get back.” Nico did find that hard to believe. “Because while he's getting to relax and listen to mother, I'm stuck running two hotels.” Another sigh escaped the young man's lips. “Which is why I sent Grover back to the Middle East, though I still get to manage the details from the computer. And this is on top of what I have to deal with here, since I can't very well trust those two out there to finalize documents.”

Nico frowned. “You wanted to see me?”

Kronos typed at the computer, ignoring Nico for a few moments before he pushed the keyboard away and leaned his elbows on the desk. “I did.” His eyes stared coldly over at the boy. “I'm fully aware that you've been doing this job for a few months now, but your recent change in job description could prove concerning.”

It wasn't Nico's call! If Kronos was so concerned about Nico screwing up, why was he throwing Nico into the kink rooms?

“Because it's not about what you want, it's about what you should be expected to do,” Kronos stated, like he could very well read Nico's mind. “I don't like it when clients are disappointed by their time purchases.” Kronos leaned back in his chair, slouching heavily. Closing his eyes, the young man rubbed his face with a yawn. “I expect you to do your job, regardless of how uncomfortable you are. I also expect you to make your clients happy.” Once again, Kronos leaned on the desk, burying his face in his hands.

Was it just Nico, or did Kronos look exhausted? He also had yet to really say anything truly insulting, which Nico found the most concerning. He glanced over his shoulder, unsure if there might have been a laser pointed at the back of his head from some sniper attack, or perhaps a hidden knife under his chair that might trigger and stab him. Kronos just rolled his eyes before resting his head on the desk.

“Um,” Nico shifted in his seat, “is that it?”

Kronos sat up and buried his face in his hands again. “Your voice is beginning to give me a headache.” Nico wanted to point that he had barely said a word since he had entered the office. Kronos let out a sigh and motioned for Nico to leave.

Nico continued to sit there for a moment, unsure if he was truly free to go or not. Slowly, he rose from his chair. “That's it?” Nico asked curiously. Kronos shot him an irritated look. “No hurtful comment to make me cry at work?”

Kronos popped his knuckles with a glare. “I can always change my mind, kid.” Nico swallowed a lump in his throat. “If you don't mind, I have more pressing matters to deal with, rather than concern myself with insufferable people in my office.”

“Sorry,” Nico mumbled, reaching for the door.

But before he could go. “I'm just amazed that you have adapted so quickly.”

Nico found himself smiling, slowly turning around. “Thank-”

“Frankly, I'm surprised you're even still surviving in this hotel, what with how pathetic I truly find you.” There it was. Kronos tapped his fingers on the desk as he gave Nico a look that made the Lost Boy feel like he was lower than scum. “And I still think you're a fool for turning down a free ride through the hotel and disappointing Percy by volunteering to do this job.”

Nico slowly took in a deep breath, nodding his head in silence. Responding that would only put a bigger target on his back, and Nico did not need that. Kronos went back to typing and Nico slipped out the door, releasing the breath he had been holding once the door was securely shut.

Luck was not on Nico's side today it seemed. Halfway through the night, Leo took Nico aside and told the pale Lost Boy that Nico was expected to go to the kink rooms towards the end of his shift. That had not helped Nico's nerves the rest of the night. And unlike his first few times being in the rooms upstairs, Kronos had not allowed any of the other Lost Kids to accompany Nico into these rooms.

They were a lot different than the ones upstairs. There was a bit more lighting, but the room he was currently in used a red bulb. The fact that there was a bondage rack in the corner of the room did not help his nerves either. Luke had been right about what they kept in stock down here. The cabinets and a table in the room were stocked with various alcohols, packs of cigarettes, and various forms of—what Nico could only assume was—drugs. The walls also seemed to be thinner down here, as he could hear a client screaming in one of the other rooms, though considering the nature of these rooms, Nico was uncertain if it was out of pain or pleasure. Perhaps a mixture of both.

But perhaps the most concerning thing was the fact that there was a chain and collar attached to the foot of the bed.

The one thing that did catch Nico's eye, though, was a glass bowl next to the small bed that was kept in the room. From the looks of it, the bowl was stocked with various candy. Most looked a lot like Skittles or M&Ms. Scrunching his lips, Nico picked one up for inspection. Not exactly what he had been expecting to find in a place like this.

The door opened, startling Nico, and Nico found himself staring at a rather young man, probably only a few years older than Percy or Luke. On the bright side, the guy was attractive. Just not Nico's usual type. He was too pretty. Which would sound very odd, since Nico had a crush on Percy. But this boy reminded him of some of the rich kid that walked around the school that he was currently enrolled in. The way the guy dressed made Nico think he went to Yale or Harvard. If Nico had to guess, this guy was not here because of his own money.

And for the first time, Nico didn't really feel as intimidated being in a situation like this. Aside from selling his body, there was one important job that he was here for. Information. If this college kid was allowed up to the top floor or down into these rooms, he had to have some information that Gaea would value.

Perhaps it was just way for Nico to take out all of his bully frustrations from the past, but he wanted to make the guy squirm until he gave Nico all the information that he could.

Smirking, Nico stood up and yanked his shirt over his head. “So, how do you want to do this?”

The fact that the guy seemed rather bored only added to Nico's irritation with the guy. A simple shrug was all he got. “I like it rough, so let's see if I can get my money's worth.”

Nico shoved the guy onto the bed, a dark look inhabiting his dark gaze. “You mean daddy's money?”

The guy fidgeted. “Yeah, I'd prefer he didn't know I was here, especially with a male prostitute.” Nico knew what he technically was, but hearing the words from someone else still stung. “Don't need to get cut off.”

Nico crawled onto the bed, biting down on his lip. With a wag of his brows, he cuffed one of the guy's hands to the railing at the head of the bed. “Your secret's safe with me,” he practically purred against the guy's brown curly locks.

A grin crept across the brunet's lips as he reached over into the bowl and popped a piece of candy into his mouth. Nico's gaze flickered over to the bowl while he slowly worked on getting the young man's pants off. Maybe the rich snob had requested a bowl of candy be put into the room? It would make sense, Nico supposed, since these rooms were more about catering to the desires of clients.

Nico bit down on his lip as he stared at the bowl. “Can...can I have some?”

The brunet's eyebrows rose before he slowly sat up. “Um, yeah, sure. I didn't offer you any, though.”

Nico arched a brow as he reached over and popped two red ones into his mouth and chewed. “Okay,” he mumbled. Rolling his eyes, Nico fastened the guy's other hand into the other cuff. With a huge grin, Nico grabbed a short whip from the side table. “I hope you're ready.”

Nico did not wait for an answer before cracking the leather across the guy's stomach. The young man let out a yelp, but did not ask Nico to stop, so the Lost Boy could only assume that the rich jerk liked it. The only enjoyable part for Nico was getting to inflict pain on someone that could have once bullied a kid like Nico. That was quite satisfying.

“So,” Nico began, deciding to pry a little, “what does daddy dearest do?”

The brunet rolled his blue eyes. Compared to the blue eyes of most of the other Lost Boys, they weren't anything special. In fact, Nico thought they were rather dull compared to the different shades of blue that Connor, Luke, Octavian, Will, Jason, Travis, and Apollo had.

“Not around a whole lot, never was.” Nico wanted to motion for the kid to hurry up, he had no interest in hearing this guy's life story. “Most of the world thinks he's an entrepreneur, but he actually smuggles valuable cargo around the world for the right price.” The brunet smirked up at Nico, raising his knees to bring the Lost Boy closer to him. “In fact, I guess I can thank him for turning me onto this place, as he gets most of his business from the other people here. He let me go up to the bar with him over this past summer, and even up to see a show. But I thought I'd come back and have a little taste of what else you had to offer here.”

Nico smirked and leaned down to nibble on the guy's ear, raking his nails down the young man's chest. This earned him a low moan. Leaning back, Nico had to admire his handiwork on the guy's chest. There was no way this guy was going to be taking his shirt off anytime soon, not with all those red marks on his chest.

Nico had to shake his head, realizing that he was swaying a little. He must have been zoning out.

Clearing his throat, Nico climbed off of the rich asshole. Walking over to where a lit candle was, Nico picked it up. He held it up to the guy. “How about this?” The smirk that Nico got appeared to be his answer. Shrugging, Nico sauntered back over to the bed and bit down on his lip, holding the lit candle over the brunet's chest.

The rich young man hissed and Nico watched as his toned muscles contracted from the sting of the wax. Placing the candle on the bedside table, Nico straddled the brunet's lap, grabbing the back of the guy's hair rather harshly to get the guy to lean up towards Nico. The Lost Boy crashed their lips together, making sure to bite down on the rich snob's lip as he pulled back. The guy moaned and attempted to kiss Nico again, but Nico smirked and leaned back, just out of the guy's reach.

Perhaps it was a little fun to toy with the clients.

As if he was part cat, Nico slid out of his shorts while hovering over his client. The brunet licked his lips at Nico's nude form. This made Nico smirk. Getting information from this one would be too easy.

Nico pressed his nude form against the young man's bare chest. “I'm sure your father must trust you then, since he let you come here to play with the big boys and girls.” Nico grinned at the irritated look he got.

“I'm pretty sure I'm older than you, kid.”

Nico smirked. “Well, I won't call the cops if you won't.”

That shut the guy up. Once again, he raised his knees to situate Nico into his lap before rolling his hips against Nico's ass. While Nico felt no real pleasure from the action, he closed his eyes with a moan. Biting down on his lip, Nico raised a hand to run through his hair.

Feeling something wet, Nico stopped and pulled his hand away. He was sweating. He looked back at the young man tied to the bed and found that his vision was getting a little fuzzy. Shaking his head, Nico went back to work on getting the guy out of his expensive looking boxers.

“And, um-” Nico had to blink to get his vision to focus. He was starting to not feel so great. A bead of sweat rolled down his nose and dripped onto the guy's chest. “So, do you ever, um, get to meet with any of your father's clients? Would be exciting.” Nico worked on looking sexy, biting down on his lip, though his head was spinning.

“A few,” the brunet mumbled, rolling his hardened member against Nico's butt. “We can discuss that all you want, if that's what gets you in the mood, baby.”

“Um, yeah,” Nico muttered. Nico's eyes widened as he nearly fell off of the bed, barely catching hold of the sheets to gain his balance back. What was wrong with him?

But Nico did not have any time to question it as the brunet requested that he be let go. Doing as he was told, Nico found himself with a collar around his neck and the brunet's length inside of him. But the weird thing was that Nico could not feel any of it. It wasn't that the guy was small down there. No, Nico had seen the guy's penis, and it was, unfortunately, not small like he had hoped it would be. There just was no feeling anywhere on Nico's body.

Even the collar, even though Nico could barely feel it digging into his skin, offered no pain. The room began to spin as Nico's hazy gaze stared up at the red lights above the bed. Even his client was a blur, and Nico was no longer to make out anything that the young man was doing.

Nico's head rolled back, his mouth open. Fear started to overtake him, but his body did not want to cooperate. Instead of pain, Nico's body was flooded with a euphoric sensation, every inch of him feeling as if he was on fire.

And it all kept going, the room spinning faster and faster, until Nico's head rolled to the side and he blacked out.

To say that Nico's dream was weird was a bit of an understatement. From what little he could make out, the dream involved a unicorn that was offering to take him on a ride through a forest made out of bacon and hotdogs. And there was something about a pirate guarding a treasure chest full of bananas that really made no sense to Nico, even while he was dreaming. It wasn't until the sun fell from the sky and landed on top of him that Nico woke up.

And he did so with a scream. He nearly ended up smacking Will in the head, but luckily the blond was quick enough to pull away. As it turned out, the sun from Nico's dream had actually been Will shining a flashlight into his eyes.

Nico looked around him in confusion. He was definitely no longer in the kink rooms. It took him a moment, but he soon realized that he was in his own bed. “What—what happened?” Nico asked groggily.

Will smiled and turned off the flashlight, dropping it into a small medical bag that Nico would often see in the blond's room. It was only then that Nico took notice of the fact that Clarisse and Jason were also in the room. Clarisse stood at the foot of the bed, her arms crossed over her chest, while Jason leaned against the frame of Nico's bedroom door.

The blond Lost Boy that currently sat on the edge of Nico's bed smiled and leaned in, tilting Nico's chin up and holding Nico's eyelids open. “You passed out,” finally came his answer.

To put it mildly, Nico felt like shit, like a building had fallen on top of him. Nico let out a groan and rubbed his face while Will took his other wrist and checked his pulse. “Well,” Will began, “we can only assume you consumed some of the drugs that were in the room.” He gave the smaller boy a weak smile. “Lucky for you, Clarisse was keeping an eye on you from the security room.”

“Asshole didn't even say anything before he left,” Clarisse mumbled.

He had just left Nico there? Nico pulled his legs up to his chest, a frown marring his face. What if he had died? Swallowing the lump currently in his throat, Nico gave Clarisse a nod. “Thank you.”

But the Lost Girl smirked a cocky smirk back at him. “Looks like you broke Percy's cardinal rule. No drugs.”

Will let out a sigh before turning his attention back to Nico. “What happened Nico? You were unresponsive and just laying there when I arrived.”

Nico rubbed his head. He felt weak, barely able to move. His throat hurt and felt raw, like he had thrown up. “I don't know. I remember starting to have sex with the client, but then I just passed out.”

Will gave a slow nod. “Yeah, okay. Um, so, I was afraid this would be the case.” He cleared his throat and felt Nico's head before pressing on. “First off, Luke wanted me to apologize if this was the case, which it is. He sort of forgot to mention that some of the drugs we keep in stock look a lot like candy, and the guy from last night had requested a lot of it.” Will pressed against Nico's chest when the other Lost Boy attempted to get up. “It can also taste like candy. You wouldn't know it was actually a drug until it was taking effect in your system.”

Even though he felt weak, a hint of anger flowed through him. Had this just been another stunt against him, this time by Luke? Nico stumbled to his feet, pushing Will's hands away when the blond moved to catch him. “I'm fine,” he mumbled. He stumbled against, but Jason managed to catch him.

“Don't be mad,” his roommate whispered. “Luke feels bad, so don't be upset with him.”

Luke? Feel bad? Nico scoffed. He wasn't sure feeling bad was actually in the blond's vocabulary.

Will got up and closed his bag. “I promise this isn't like what Apollo did, Luke really did forget. We just don't think about it, and I guess he thought you'd realize what it was. We forget sometimes what it can be like for someone new to go down there without experience.”

Nico took in a deep breath. “I need to wash my face,” the boy muttered before moving past Jason and entering the hall, where he stopped.

Sitting against the wall of the hallway was Luke. The blond looked up with a pained look and all of Nico's anger dissipated. Had the blond been concerned about him enough to come wait until Nico woke up?

“Hi,” Nico whispered.

“Hey,” Luke mumbled back. The blond's brow furrowed as he climbed to his feet. “Listen...I just forgot how easy it can be to not know what that stuff is for someone new. I had planned on showing you everything in those rooms when I took you down there myself, but I guess you got a client before I could get the chance.” The taller Lost Boy nodded, looking anywhere but at Nico's face. “Anyways, I just wanted to say that...” Luke muttered the rest under his breath.

Nico tilted his head to the side. “What?”

“I said, I'm sorry,” Luke mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck.

A small smile touched at Nico's lips as he took a step towards the blond and wrapped his arms around the blond's neck. Luke blinked in surprise, frozen in place. He pushed Nico back with a scowl, but Nico just continued to smile. “Thanks,” Nico finally replied.

Luke scowled at him and crossed his arms. “Yeah, well, don't get used to it, twerp.”

Children of Loss 38

Chapter 38

There were no words to express the pain that Nico felt inside himself right now. His chest hurt, and he did not know how to make it stop. For the most part of last night, the boy had cried in his room. As much as he wanted to deny it, Nico felt like this was his fault. If he had been paying better attention, perhaps Percy would not have to leave.

And, so, with sad eyes, Nico looked up at Percy for what he was scared would be the last time. Percy just smiled back at the boy with his usual smile that could melt the coldest of ice. Nico tried to control his breathing, fully aware that his face was still red from when he had been crying. But he did not care at the moment.

“Please, don't go,” Nico whispered, looking down at his feet.

They stood in the middle of the hotel lobby, surrounded by the other Lost Kids, Gaea, and Kronos. But at the moment, Nico did not care who was watching them. What more could they do? Gaea was already ripping Percy away from all of them, and Kronos was going to be horrible to them no matter what they did. Nothing mattered except what he needed to say to Percy.

Percy reached out, hovered his hand over Nico's head for a moment, and then patted the boy on the head. “You'll be fine, I know you will.” He smiled, tilting his head to the side to catch Nico's gaze. Nico finally looked up, holding back a fresh wave of tears. “It's not like I'm dying or anything, I'll be back eventually.”

Nico pressed his lips together. “And what if you don't?”

Percy raised a brow at Nico, still smiling. “Then I'd expect you to leave the hotel, rather than stay here.” His fingers brushed through Nico's hair. “Just don't cause Kronos any trouble, and I'm sure you'll be fine.” His voice was so calm, so relaxing, but it did nothing to calm Nico's already dwindling nerves.

“I-I could go,” Nico said desperately, his eyes wild as he looked up at Nico.

Percy's eyes darted over to some of the others, who looked over with Nico's outburst. “What are you talking about, Nico?”

Nico quickly nodded. “I could go, so you don't have to. I could leave, go stay with Daedalus. Or even be placed at another hotel.” He couldn't help himself, Nico reached out and grabbed onto Percy's shirt, needing to be reassured that the young man was still there. “Just, please, don't go. I screwed up, all of this is my fault. I don't want to put this on everyone else. I-”

Percy pulled Nico against his chest. “Nico, shhh.” The young man stroked Nico's hair. “You didn't do anything.” Nico breathed in Percy's scent, knowing there was no way to know when he would ever smell the scent again. It was like the ocean. And if Nico closed his eyes, he could almost hear the ocean and the gulls cawing above him. “I need to go, but this isn't your fault. I'll...” He looked over his shoulder when Gaea cleared her throat. “I need to go. One day, you'll understand.”

Nico did not see how that would ever be a possibility. As he watched Percy walk towards the door with Gaea, Nico's heart began to break. It hurt, just seeing the young man leave. Never knowing when he would see those green eyes again, or that smile. When would he hear Percy's enticing voice again? Nico would take Percy being angry with him, if it just meant that Percy would not leave them, if he would not leave him.

Percy blinked and turned around when he felt a tug on the back of his shirt. Nico kept his eyes shut, his fingers holding tight to the hem of Percy's shirt. He didn't want to let Percy go. He knew that the second he let go, Percy would be gone and Nico might not ever see him again.

“We need to go, Percy,” Gaea whispered.

Percy gave a nod. He smiled and looked down at Nico, tilting the boy's chin up. “Hey, smile a little,” he told the boy. Nico shook his head. Percy smiled a little more. “You can still talk to me, just ask Leo or Rachel for my Skype. Okay?”

Nico's eyes were still closed as he leaned up and wrapped his arms around Percy's neck. Before he could even process what he was doing, Nico pressed his lips to Percy's cheek and cried. When Nico pulled back, though his eyes were now clouded with tears, he was able to make out the stunned look on Percy's face. The young man's arms hovered in the air awkwardly, like he had been considering hugging Nico back. Percy's mouth opened, but no words ever came out.

Gaea clamped onto Percy's wrist. “We don't want to be late for our flight,” she said before her and Percy left.

Gone. Percy was gone. Nico just stood there, watching as Percy climbed into the limousine that was waiting for them. He stopped before climbing inside, looking at Nico through the large, glass doors. He gave the boy a weak smile and waved before sliding into the back of the limo and shut the door.

A pair of hands were placed on Nico's shoulders. Thalia guided the boy over to a chair and sat him down, sitting down on the arm of the chair herself. No one really moved in the lobby, save for the normal guests, but they didn't understand what had just happened.

Thalia rubbed Nico's back. “I'm not even sure where to start,” she whispered. Her eyes were not on Nico, though. “But first things first, you need to watch your back.”

“Why, because the other Lost Kids hate me?” Nico grumbled, wiping at his face.

“No.” Her hands on his back did nothing to calm the boy. “Well, I'm sure some of them are irritated, but they will get over it eventually.” She nudged Nico. “But there's something else you need to worry about.” Nico finally looked up and followed her gaze over to Kronos. “I don't think what you just did was the smartest idea.”

Kronos had probably never liked Nico, the boy was aware of that. But the look he gave Nico now, it was one of pure detestation. His lip curled as he stared across the room at Nico.

Perhaps it would have been a better idea to look scared, perhaps it would have not painted as big of a target on his back. But Nico could not find the strength to care at the moment. His dark eyes stared back at Kronos with a burning hatred. Seeing this caused Kronos's lips to twitch and tilt up into a smirk.

And if to make it all worse, Kronos stopped the Lost Kids before any could leave. He herded them all into the corner where Nico and Thalia sat, a smug look plastered onto his face. Swiping a thumb across his lips, he grinned down at the group.

“I just wanted to let you all know just how excited I am about getting the chance to work with all of you until Percy's return.” Biting down on his lip, the young man slipped his hands into his pocket. “Now, we do still have the other managers here for a few more days, so I expect you to see to it that they are taken care of.”

“You can't even look like you aren't enjoying this,” Luke ground out, his eyes burning into Kronos.

The young man arched his dark brows. “Well now, Luke, that's just hurtful. Of course I'm happy that I'm going to be staying here. After all, it is one of our best hotels, and all of you are some of the higher sources of incomes amongst the groups of Lost Kids.” He held a hand up, his grin returning. “However, I feel that things can always be improved on, so I think I'll be making some changes around here.”

Luke growled at their new manager. “You are a horrible excuse of a human being, you asshole.”

Kronos wagged his finger. “Now, now, Luke, that's no way to speak to your new boss.” He grinned his wicked, toothy grin down at the group. “Now, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, there will be some changes around here. For one, I feel the clients are entitled to a little more than what Percy had been previously offering them.” There was such a heavy silence from the Lost Kids that someone could have dropped a needle and heard it. “That being said, I feel we have a severe lack of Lost Kids in our kink rooms. And as such, I feel that each of you should participate in working those rooms, no exceptions.

“You'll all be more open-minded to client demands. And, with that, I feel that there should be no restrictions on multiple Lost Kids that clients are allowed to request. Why, just last night, there apparently was a request for the Grace siblings. But, as it was Percy's last night, I felt his rules should still apply.” The way Kronos grinned, it was beginning to remind the boy a lot of the Joker. A very dark and twisted version of the Joker. “And I do believe that client is staying with us another night. So, if you two wouldn't mind, do a good job and treat our client right.”

Thalia shot out of her seat. “You can't be serious. He's my brother!” She hissed. Jason looked rather pale, unable to meet his sister's eyes. “Percy wouldn't-”

“Percy. Isn't. Here.” Kronos shot the girl a dark look and she sat back down. “I'm in charge, and you'll do as I say. When I say it, whatever I might say. My word is law, and you will all abide by it. If not...well, perhaps you'll get to see if some of those nasty rumors I'm sure you've all heard about me are true.” The young man sneered at the group. “Try to quit, fail to do your job, or even if you're stupid enough to run...” He placed his hand on top of Annabeth's head with a creepy smile. “Do any of that, and I'll hunt you down personally and break your pretty face. And then...no one will want you.”

Luke was up and out of his seat, putting himself in between Kronos and Annabeth. “You know why we all respect Percy?” The blond growled. Kronos raised his eyebrows. “It's because he doesn't feel the need to throw his power around, and doesn't feel so insecure that he needs to threaten us.”

One of Kronos's hands came up and patted Luke gently on the cheek. “You were always one of my favorites, Luke. I think that when Grover and Rhea are gone that you and I are going to have a lot of fun.” Sneering, Kronos squeezed Luke's cheek rather harshly, and Luke jerked away, rubbing his now red cheek. “Speak to me like that again, and I'll give you another scar. But how about I punish you by punishing your brother?” He tapped his lips for a second before smiling. “I know. I do believe your mother is expected to come to Los Angeles soon. Why don't I let her know that she is welcome to stay here? After all, like I said, Percy's rules no longer apply.”

Luke glared back at the young man, but Octavian looked shaken. The already pale boy looked sick. Connor and Reyna caught the blond when he nearly fell out of his seat. Kronos just laughed. It was nothing like the warm laugh of Percy, this one could scare zombies back into their graves. It was cold, and it sent chills down Nico's spine.

Now it was Annabeth's turn to stand to her feet. She pushed Luke aside and crossed her arms in front of Kronos. “This isn't how you should go about getting us to fall in line behind you.”

Kronos nodded his head, like he understood the blonde perfectly. “Wow, I never thought about it like that.” Drawing back his hand, he sent it flying across Annabeth's cheek. “Sit down, stupid girl, or I'll talk to some friends about releasing your stepmother from the asylum. If I wanted you all to like me, I would let you know.”

Annabeth clenched her jaw as Kronos smirked and walked off, leaving all of the Lost Kids to sit there in a mixture of anger and fear. Nico looked down when a few of the Lost Kids looked his way with dirty looks. It was expected, really.

“Way to go,” Drew hissed in Nico's direction.

Nico stood up to go to his room, but Luke's voice brought him to a halt. “Shut up, and leave him alone.” The blond's blue eyes were glaring over at the Asian girl. “He's not the enemy, our enemy just got on the elevator.”

Octavian did not look as happy with Nico as his brother did. “But it's his fault Percy's gone. If he had just listened to us about how things worked with Percy-”

“It doesn't matter,” Annabeth sighed. She stood back up and squeezed Nico's shoulder. “Luke's right, we need to remember who the real enemy is.”

There was a grumble from several of the Lost Kids. Apollo smiled and jumped to his feet. “I think we can all at least appreciate the fact that Nico is not a pancake right now.”

“I am,” Will whispered. There were a few more nods from some of the other Lost Kids. Will got to his feet and clapped Nico on the shoulder. “I'm not mad at you, dude.”

If only the whole group felt that way, Nico thought.

If Nico had one thing to be thankful about, it was that Kronos did not feel the need to come to the bar during the night. In fact, since Kronos arrived with his mother, Nico was not sure either Percy, Gaea, or Kronos had visited the bar, save for a rare lunch. And with any luck, that tradition would keep holding while Kronos was in charge.

Unfortunately, Nico had already been informed that he was not allowed to report anything Kronos did to Percy. Apollo had taken him aside before work and made that very clear. “If Kronos finds out, it'll only make things worse,” the blond had said.

And since Nico did not want to make things worse, he intended to keep his mouth shut. He did not have to like it, but Nico needed to do his best at recovering from the damage that he felt he had caused.

Nico stood at the bar for a moment, taking a short break until he needed to check on his tables. At least it was a quiet night, he thought sadly. In all honesty, Nico felt drained and unmotivated to do anything. And he was not the only one. All of the Lost Kids had looked a little lifeless after Percy's departure. It was like the young man kept the group running, and without him, they were just zombies. This was what ran through Nico's head as he watched Will and Drew drag their feet along the floor.

It was a little sad, seeing how the Lost Kids all went from being so full of energy and seductive, to barely giving a fuck about what was going on around them. And it was only day one. Perhaps, with a few days, they would adjust back to their normal selves. Or, at least, that was Nico's hope.

Seeing them like this, it only made him more depressed.

When Nico finally headed to one of his tables, he threw on a decently presentable face like he saw the others do. It actually hurt his face to smile, because all he wanted to do with frown. But, if customers noticed, they did not say anything.

Nico shuddered to think what the others might be going through right now, with Kronos being upstairs with them. And the new bomb that Kronos had dropped on them only scared Nico more. He was going to be subject to working in those rooms that the others had told him about. From the few times he had seen those rooms from the security room, Nico had mostly seen things like whips, chains, and bondage mask. He could even recall seeing a rack with leather ropes to tie someone up. Nico chewed harshly on his bottom lip as he worked on putting together a table's bill.

“I hope you're happy,” Drew said harshly as she moved in behind the bar.

Nico refused to make eye contact with her. In his mind, he deserved it. If he had been more careful, or if he had even been paying better attention, none of this would have happened. If he had even listened and backed off of Percy, perhaps things would have been different. But he had been too stubborn and determined.

But where had that gotten him?

“Pay her no mind, my child,” Chiron said once Drew was gone. He sat down his drink mixer for a moment to rub Nico's back. “Everything will be all right, Nico.”

Nico shook his head, still staring down. “I don't see how that's possible.” He printed out the receipt he had been working on. “This is my fault.”

And with that, he left before Chiron could say anything more to him. Will looked at him with concern as Nico slid out from behind the bar, but did not attempt to stop the brown-eyed boy.

Whether it be luck or his misfortune, Nico found a familiar face at his next table. He threw on a little smile as he approached Persephone, who sat alone at her table. “Well, hello again, Persephone,” Nico greeted the woman.

The woman looked up from her menu and smiled at him. “Oh, hello there, Nico.” She reached out and ran her fingers through his hair. “My, you look like someone shot your favorite puppy. Is everything all right?”

Nico placed his pen and pad on her table, leaning on its surface lightly. “Of course,” he lied. “All out by yourself?”

Persephone patted Nico on the hand. “I am, sadly. My husband passed away not long ago, but I wanted to get my mind off things for a while. And, well, upstairs is just too loud for my liking right now.” Nico smiled at her. “But, I have been trying to convince this new friend of mine to join me here one night. He's a very nice man, and very charming, too. And he actually pays attention to me, unlike my last husband.”

Nico chuckled. “Well, maybe that will work out for you.”

She squeezed his hand. “Perhaps I'll arrange some time with you before then.” With a wink, she sat back in her chair. “I mean, a girl only lives once, and you are just too cute to pass up before I try to go off the market again.”

Nico did not find himself as sick as the last few times he had been with a woman. Maybe it was that he was getting used to it, or maybe he was just slightly more comfortable with Persephone. She was a nice woman, and Nico really had nothing against the woman. She was not unpleasant, like most of the customers he found around the upper parts of the hotel.

After taking Persephone's drink order to Chiron and delivering the drink to the woman, Nico went on his break. Nico sat down on the couch, his eyes quickly becoming unfocused as his mind began to race. The room was silent, but inside his mind was screaming. He felt so cold and empty.

His dark brown eyes flickered up when he noticed the door open. Will pursed his lips as he watched Nico from across the room. The brown-eyed boy could tell the blond was concerned, but right now Nico just wanted to be left alone. But he supposed that was just not meant to be.

Will slowly walked over and took a seat on the other side of the couch, resting his arm across the back of the couch, but making sure it did not come in contact with Nico's neck or shoulders. “Hey,” the blond whispered.

“Hey,” Nico mumbled, not looking away from the floor.

“Are you okay?”

Nico's dark eyes gave the blond all the answer he needed. “Does it look like I'm okay?”

Will let out a breath. “This isn't your fault, Nico.” He spoke so softly and with such assurance, but Nico couldn't find himself able to believe Will. The last time he had thought things weren't his fault, it turned out he was completely to blame. A small smile spread across Will's lips. “I miss seeing you smile.”

Nico scooted away from the blond. “Don't really feel like smiling right now.”

The blond's shoulders slumped, his eyes turning sad. Will's eyes were starting to remind Nico of a heavy rain. “Maybe you should talk about it. I just want to help.”

Nico was up off the couch before Will could blink, his eyes full of anger. “I don't want to be helped! If you could send me back in time to the moment I got crushed, that would be great. Or perhaps even before then, so I could smack some sense into myself!”

“Nico,” Will whispered, lowering his gaze. “Calm down, it's not your fault. I don't want you getting angry at yourself.”

The blond looked slightly taken aback from the dark look that was coming from Nico's eyes. Nico's dark bangs fell into his face. “I don't need your pity,” Nico growled. “Everyone hates me because I got Percy shipped back to Germany.”

“It's not like that.” Will stood up, trying to reach out for Nico, but the boy jerked his arm away. “No one hates you. Everyone's just upset right now-”

“And I'm to blame.”

“No!” Will's brow furrowed. “This isn't your fault, Nico. Stop blaming yourself for something that was entirely out of your hands. I don't think Percy would want you beating yourself up like this.”

Nico scoffed. “Well that doesn't really matter now, does it?” Nico motioned around them. “In case you haven't noticed, he's not here anymore.”

Will shook his head, staring down at his feet. “You're not thinking clearly right now. I get it, you're mad, but you need to cool off before you do something you might actually regret.” Glaring at Nico, the blond shoved his way past the raven-haired Lost Boy and headed towards the door. “Let me know when you're done being an ass.”

Nico glared after the blond, until he was left with the door swinging in his face. What did he know anyways? Will was just mad that Nico was still thinking about Percy, when Nico knew that the blond wanted Nico to focus on him. Huffing loudly, Nico sat back down on the couch for the remainder of his break.

When it was finally time for Nico to help close the bar, the brown-eyed boy felt miserable. He wasn't quite sure if he wanted to cry, but he sure felt like screaming. Even the simple act of a customer trying to touch him made Nico upset. Before Drew left, the Lost Girl managed to sneer at Nico.

Nico glared back at her, flipping her off once she was standing in the elevator. Will worked on helping Chiron clean the glasses, while Nico finished counting the cash register. He was also not looking forward to school starting in a week, as it would mean that he would be getting less sleep. Nico looked up once he was finished with the fives to find Will staring at him. The blond offered him a small smile, and Nico nodded back at him. Will's smile brightened.

Okay, so perhaps Nico was a little harsh on him, but it did not change Nico's theory about why Will was upset in the first place. “Looks like we're done here,” Chiron told Will.

The blond smirked. “All right, good night, Chiron.” On his way out from behind the bar, Will stopped beside Nico, resting an elbow on the bar. “Would you be interested in coming my room for a bit? I'm not really tired.”

Nico sighed as he finished another stack of cash. “Not tonight, I just need some time to myself.”

Will gave a simple nod before he pulled Nico's head towards him and pressed his lips to Nico's temple. “Okay. Just don't do anything stupid.” Nico rolled his eyes as the blond walked off. As he neared the elevators, Will turned and pointed a finger back at Nico. “I mean it, Nico, nothing stupid.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Nico mumbled.

Chiron chuckled and picked up the last stack of bills to help Nico finish. “You look like you have quite a bit on your mind.”

Nico rubbed at his eyes, fighting off a yawn. “Nothing I can't handle.” He looked up. Chiron wasn't looking at him, but the man was arching a brow. Nico's eyes dulled. “I'm not sure what's going to happen anymore. Percy was like this safety net that everyone had, and now it's been ripped out from under us. This place just seems...less bright, and I feel like the others are just going to start fighting because of all of this.”

Chiron hummed in response. “I fear you may be right, my boy, but there's not much that you can do about that. Percy will remain in Germany, due to his loyalty to Gaea, even if all of you did beg for him to come back on a daily basis.”

“And what about if we told him what Kronos was doing?”

Chiron finished counting his stack and placed it back in the register, while Nico worked on putting together the profit they had made for the night. “I believe that it would not change anything. Percy would still have to fly back here, which would give Kronos plenty of time to torment all of you as he sees fit. And Percy and Kronos...I don't see them getting into an argument over it.” Chiron squeezed Nico's shoulder. “Percy does care about all of you, but he also does trust Kronos. I feel the others are right in their idea that it would be better to keep silent over everything.”

Nico let out a sigh as he handed Chiron the sealed envelope with the extra cash. “So we just have to let Kronos abuse us?”

“I would suggest giving him as little trouble as possible.” Chiron scribbled the amount they had made on the envelope. “I don't care much for Kronos, never have, but I would also never speak ill of Kronos to Percy.” The man gave Nico a stern look. “And physical abuse isn't much of Kronos's style.”

“He hit Annabeth today.”

“Just for some show,” Chiron replied. “I'd be more concerned about his other threats and the verbal and mental abuse he is capable of.”

Nico nodded. “Thanks, Chiron.”

“No trouble at all, my boy.” Chiron smiled at him as Nico stepped out from behind the bar. “Try to get some rest, I have the feeling that we will all need some for the days ahead.”

Nico had intended to do just that, up until the point he got back to his suite.

As soon as he opened the door, Nico's nose picked up on a very nasty and familiar smell. He knew it all too well from being around all those customers on the top two floors. Nico wrinkled his nose as he slid into the suite and found Jason with his back to him, leaning out their open window.

Once the door was shut, Jason turned to look at Nico curiously, a lit cigarette in his hand. The blond's hair was still wet, so he must have just gotten out of the shower. “Hey,” Jason said casually.

“Hey.” Nico tossed his keys onto the counter, his eyebrow raised at Jason. “I thought you quit?”

“I did.” Jason tapped the cigarette against the window before raising it to his lips and inhaling. Like a professional, Jason casually blew out the smoke. “I also need it right now.”

Nico slipped his hands into his pockets, walking over to stand next to Jason. “What happened?”

Jason shivered, causing some ashes to fall from his cigarette. “For starters, seeing Thalia naked. And then there was the sex with an old woman that reminded me of my aunt.” The blond put the cigarette in between his lips. “And if that wasn't bad enough, I was made to have sex with my sister tonight. Let's not forget that.” The blond snuffed out the remainder of his cigarette and rubbed at his face, some smoke flowing out of his nostrils. “I really feel like getting drunk right now.”

Nico blew out a breath. What was he supposed to say to that? “That...really sucks. How's your sister taking it?”

The blond shook his head, burying his face in his hand. “Last I saw, she was swapping between gargling mouthwash and downing some vodka. I think Apollo said he was gonna look after her while she got smashed.” He sighed and looked over at Nico. “You know, I'm fine with what we've done, I know it's just business and all that, but there are some things that I shouldn't have to be put through.”

The brown-eyed boy pursed his lips, nodding lightly. “I know,” he whispered.

Jason lurched, and for a moment, Nico thought he was about to throw up. But the blond covered his mouth and closed his eyes. “I feel miserable,” the blue-eyed Lost Boy groaned. He ran a hand through his short blond hair. “It was so awkward, dude!”

Nico couldn't help but smile a little. Not because he enjoyed seeing his roommate suffer, but because Jason's reaction was just a little amusing. He hid his chuckle as Jason began flailing helplessly, until the blond ended up laying down on the couch. Nico sat down on the arm of the couch, right above Jason's head. Reaching down, he stroked the blond's hair.

Jason groaned, rolling onto his side. “I don't think any amount of alcohol could help me forget this.” His blue eyes found their way up to Nico. “I think I am finally realizing just how much I appreciate Percy. I mean, I already did, because he treated me much better than my father ever did, but I guess I was just starting to get comfortable with the way things were around here.”

“Yeah,” Nico whispered. He pulled his knees up to his chest. “I think everyone is sort of experiencing that right now. I heard some of the others talk about how Percy treated his employees the best, but I guess I just didn't want to believe it could have been this bad.”

“And it hasn't even started yet.” The blond sat up, burying his face into his hands for a moment before looking up at Nico with panic. “What if I have to do this again? What if there's some other sick fuck out there that has a thing for a brother and sister having sex?”

Nico placed his hand on Jason's shoulder. “I'm sure there aren't that many people out there with that fantasy.”

Jason lightly shook his head. “I don't know, the Stolls seem to find quite a few customers interested in having sex with the both of them.”

“That's because twincest is hot,” Nico smirked.

Jason rolled his eyes. “Yeah, okay, I'll let them know you would like some private time with them.”

Nico grunted and crawled over Jason to sit down on the couch next to him. “I miss Percy. Everything was much better, and easier, with him here.”

“Yeah,” Jason said quietly before standing up and stretching. “Well, I think I'm going to try and get some sleep.”

Nico nodded and jumped up. He followed Jason down the hall before waving to the blond and disappeared into his room. He heard Jason shut his door as he yanked his shirt over his head. Nico let out a sigh and ran a hand down his chest, falling back onto his bed. It had been a very long day. He really hoped that Percy would not be gone for too long, Nico did not know how long he was going to be able to handle having Kronos around.

Still laying on his bed, Nico lifted his legs and got his pants off, kicking his shoes and socks off with them. Groaning, Nico ran a hand through his hair as he got back to his feet. Flipping the light off, Nico collapsed onto his mattress and crawled under the covers.

But not five minutes later, Nico cracked an eye open to a knock at his door. Sliding up into a sitting position, Nico quirked a brow. “Come in?”

A second later, Jason poked his head in. “Um, would you mind if...um, if I stayed in here?” The blond winched. “That sounds weird.” Nico noted how Jason chewed on his lip. “I just...don't really want to be alone right now.”

Nico pursed his lips before nodding his head. He let out a sigh as Jason smiled and slipped into the room, shutting the door behind him. Well, it looked like Nico was not going to be alone tonight. Jason slid into the bed next to him, facing Nico.

The blond smiled in the darkness. “Thanks.”

Nico rolled his eyes, though he knew Jason wouldn't be able to see it. “Don't mention it.” He sighed and laid back down.

Wednesday was not looking better than the day before. While Kronos hadn't hit anyone, several of the Lost Girls had locked themselves in their rooms in tears. Something about looking fat. Nico let out a sigh as he stood in the hall with the other Lost Boys and what few Lost Girls had not locked themselves away yet, aside from the three Lost Kids that had to work lunch today.

Beckendorf banged on Silena and Clarisse's door. “Come on, baby, talk to me.”

“Go away,” Silena cried out from the other side.

The door opened for a moment and Clarisse stuck her head out, glaring at the group. “Stop banging on my door, I'm trying to watch a game.” Beckendorf attempted to move past the girl, but she blocked him. “Whoa there, big guy, where do you think you're going?”

Beckendorf glared back at the Lost Girl. “I want to see my girlfriend. Move.”

“Can't really let you do that.”

“Clarisse, move,” Beckendorf growled.

Clarisse shoved the Lost Boy. “Make me.”

But before Beckendorf could follow up on that threat, Apollo inserted himself in the middle of the two. “Calm down, both of you. It's still early, none of us probably got that much sleep. Let's all just cool off and take it easy.”

Annabeth nodded her head. “No reason to divide, that's just what Kronos wants.”

“He's just sitting up there and laughing probably,” Rachel mumbled.

“Is there anything that we can organize for today?” Annabeth sighed.

Zoë gave a shrug. “I could take a group to see Aphrodite. Never too early to get a jump on the Valentines attire.”

Annabeth nodded in agreement. “Sound fine to me.” She pushed Nico forward. “Take him and get him some stuff, if you don't mind.”

Zoë looked between Nico and Annabeth for a moment before nodding. “Okay. Any takers on joining us?”

Travis and Rachel raised their hands. Travis gave Rachel an odd look. “What do you need to go for?” He asked, arching a brow at her.

Rachel gave the brunet a look like he was crazy. “Hello, who is the one that has to be around Kronos all day? I'll take whatever I can get, if it means I'm away from him for a couple of hours.”

“Fair point,” Travis mumbled.

As Nico followed the other three towards the elevator, he received a few dirty looks, the main one being from Octavian. The blond bumped his shoulder roughly against Nico's and sent the boy tumbling into the wall.

“Whoops,” Octavian said causally. “How clumsy of me.”

Luke smacked his brother on the back of his head. “You should clean your room, it's a mess.”

“Yes, mother,” Octavian grumbled, but headed back towards his suite.

Luke glared after his brother. “At least I didn't abuse you!” He shouted after the other blond, which caused Octavian to flinch.

Octavian whirled around, his eyes dark with anger. “No, you decided to leave me there with our bitch of a mother, knowing father was too busy to even pay attention to what was actually going on at home.” Laughing coldly, Octavian placed a hand on his chest. “Where were you when she tried cleansing me of all my impurities, because she thought I was her gay son. When she failed to see the real bisexual living right in front of her.”

Luke grabbed his brother's collar and shoved him against the wall. Apollo and Annabeth grabbed onto Luke's shoulders, trying to pry their friend off his brother, but Luke wouldn't budge. “Oh, yeah, that's right, brat, I never protected you. I never did anything for you.” Octavian was no longer looking at his brother's face. In fact, the skinny blond looked close to tears. “I guess I just never really stepped in, isn't that right?”

“Shut up!” Octavian yelled, tears flowing down his cheeks.

Luke sneered and shoved his brother, letting Octavian fall to the floor. Luke's eyes widened when Annabeth's hand came in contact with his face. “Stop it,” she practically cried. Her own eyes looked on the brink of tears. “That's enough,” she whispered.

Reaching up, Luke massaged his red cheek. “Whatever,” he mumbled before going to his suite and slamming the door.

Rachel silently pressed against Nico's back, urging the boy to move. Pursing his lips, Nico followed after the others until they were inside one of the elevators. Travis blew out a breath once they were inside. “So, who wants to stop off by a bar while we're out? I feel like a drink all of a sudden.”

While there was a grin on the brunet's face, Nico could tell it was a fake. The brunet's eyes were worn and tired, a sad look feeling their blue depths. No one laughed, though.

Nico looked over at Rachel. “Wait, so Octavian wants to get into politics, but I get the feeling that at least one, if not both, of their parents were in politics as well.”

Rachel looked around the elevator. No one said anything. She turned back to Nico with a sigh. “Both of them are, yes. Their mother is a member of the tea party, while their father is in the senate.”

“Not really a difference so far,” Travis mumbled.

Rachel gave a nod. “That's true, but their father is more of just a Republican, not really a tea party member. Their mother is currently a governor.” She rubbed the back of her neck with a frown. “As you can imagine, there was a lot of time where their father wasn't home, and when he was, he just sort of shut himself in his study.”

“I don't think they'd want you telling this,” Zoë.

“Luke's going to tell him soon,” Rachel replied with a shrug.

“He told you this?”

Rachel ran her fingers through her hair. “Well, no, but I can just tell. He's been contemplating it.” Her eyes twinkled at Nico. “I think you'll find it quite enlightening about why Luke has yet to touch you.”

Nico let out a breath. “Let me guess, everyone else around here already know the answer to that.” The other three grinned. Nico nodded. “Well then.”

The car ride to Aphrodite's shop was much needed, in Nico's opinion. The tension seemed to be left behind, and the four of them were just relaxing during the entire ride. Rachel and Travis even sang along to the music that was playing, at least until Zoë got annoyed and turned the station.

However, Nico's tension instantly returned to him once he was inside the woman's shop and she practically shrieked upon seeing them. He did not have the energy for her happiness. She practically slid across the counter to greet them. “Welcome!” She shrieked, placing a hand on Travis's back to guide him and the rest of the group inside. “Let me tell you, it has been so slow today, I don't know what to do with myself.”

“There's a change,” Rachel mumbled.

The woman blinked at her in surprise. “Oh, Rachel, what brings you here?”

The Lost Girl let out a groan. “Needed to get away from Kronos, he's turning the hotel into a nightmare.”

It wasn't already? Nico thought to himself. The woman pressed a finger to her lips. “So it's true what Ganymede told me yesterday.” She cursed and went back around on the other side of the counter to check something on her computer. “I do hope he doesn't decide he wants to check in here.”

Rachel gave a shrug. “Haven't heard anything about it yet.”

Aphrodite breathed a sigh of relief. “Good, good.” She groaned and let her head fall onto the counter. “That guy gives me the creeps. I thought it was bad enough when he was just visiting.” Standing back up, she looked at the group frantically. “When will Percy be back?”

“We don't know,” Zoë told her. Nico looked down when her dark eyes flickered over to him.

Aphrodite motioned to her store. “Well, have a look around. Take as long as you like, just make sure you're not late for work. Wouldn't want you guys to get in trouble.” She smiled at Nico, though it only managed to make him worry. “Nico, would you like my help finding anything? I don't believe you've gotten any Valentines attire yet.”

Nico narrowed his eyes. “I think I can manage dressing myself.”

“Fine, just ruin all of my fun,” the woman sighed.

Zoë, Travis, and Nico poked around the store for about fifteen minutes, while Rachel sat behind the counter with Aphrodite. Nico blew out a breath as he followed along behind Travis, letting the brunet make a few suggestions for him. None of them sounded that appealing, as about ninety percent of the choices involved very revealing attire.

Nico frowned at the latest one. “But part of my butt will be showing,” he grumbled.

The brunet winked. “That's the point. Show a little skin,” the taller Lost Boy chuckled, pushing up against Nico. “Have a little fun with the job, or it'll just tear you apart.”

While he was smiling, Nico could tell Travis was being serious. So, with a heavy sigh, he took the outfit that the brunet was holding. He had to question if his ass would even fit into the thing, what with how small it looked.

“Here,” Travis said, tossing a long strand of wide, red ribbon at Nico.

Nico attempted to unravel it, but it was longer than both of his arms. “What am I supposed to do with this?”

The brunet chuckled. “Tie it around your body, duh!”

Nico's eyes widened as he examined the ribbon. “What if it falls off?”

“Well,” Zoë called over to them, “I guess you better make sure it is secure.” Giving Travis a dark look, Nico accepted the ribbon with no further question.

After a few minutes of silence, Nico decided to break it. “Travis?” He asked. The brunet grunted, still poking around some of the racks. “Did you and Connor ever find out who your real parents are?”

The brunet looked at him curiously. “No, not really.” He shrugged. “We stole our birth certificate from our last foster home, but we never looked into it. We had each other, and it wasn't like they probably wanted us.” The brunet tossed an outfit into his growing pile. “And, I mean, we already knew our surname anyways, so it wasn't like we needed anything from them. I wouldn't say I'm angry at them, but I don't really feel anything for them. They just sort of...don't exist to me.”

“That's sad,” Nico whispered.

Travis smirked at that. “Not really. I mean, look at some of the others with their parents. Not like anything good came from their parents. After getting to the hotel and finding out about the trend in all of us, Connor and I decided it wasn't worth looking into. I mean, look at Will. The guy got into fights at school, mostly in attempts to make himself not look like his father. I didn't want that potential damage put on Connor if we had the same results from our parents.”

Nico had not known that much, it sort of made him feel guilty for not knowing that about Will. But it was not like he made no attempt to find things out about the Lost Kids. Sure some of it was to understand when he was walking on eggshells, but Nico had been wondering lately if it was his subconscious’s way of keeping the attention off of him.

But with that, Nico also had to realize that the others were uncomfortable with sharing things, just like he had been in his early time here. And especially when they started asking him about his past life. Even when Percy had done it, Nico had felt very awkward. It was like an old wound being torn back open.

Travis nudged his shoulder. “You okay?”

Nico shook his head, clearing his thoughts. He blinked up at Travis. “Sorry, was just thinking.”

The brunet grinned. “Well come on, we need to try on our selections.”

And so the three Lost Kids all picked a changing room and slipped inside. Nico was in the middle of getting his pants off when Zoë spoke up. “If I didn't need him here, I'd feel jealous of Percy. God, there are just some times that I miss being in Germany.”

“Never got to see it myself,” Travis called back from his changing room.

“I heard it was nice,” Nico added.

“Oh it is,” Zoë sighed. “It's practically a resort, but the business is about the same as it is here. There's just more to do around the hotel there. Like, on break, Percy and a few of us would sneak off to ride around in some of the golf cars. It was very awkward to explain to Athena how Percy and I managed to get one stuck in a tree.”

Travis snorted. “Oh, I'd loved to have seen that.”

“It was fun.”

“No, I mean that you were actually trying to have fun.”

Nico heard Zoë's door swing open right before a hard smack filled the air. Travis yelped. “I know how to have fun,” Zoë grumbled.

“And yet you won't assist me or Connor.”

Nico slid himself into the outfit that Connor had picked out for him, groaning slightly as he struggled to get the material up to his thighs. Holy shit, how tight was this thing? There was no way it was him, he knew full well that he was as thin as a toothpick. But damn, who did they expect to wear this thing? Once he was done, Nico turned around to inspect himself. As expected, the lower halves of his ass cheeks were exposed.

Blowing out a breath, Nico put his hands on both of his lower cheeks. He did have to admit, though, the outfit did make his ass look good. The one drawback was the lack of circulation to his balls. Nico let out a silent groan as he worked to tug the fabric down a little, seeing if it would help any. It did not.

As he looked at the mirror again, Nico asked, “So, what was Percy like back then?”

A small chuckle came from Zoë's room. “Not as charming as he is now. As I mentioned before, Percy was a troublemaker, who would sometimes get into at least one fight a week at school. Though, I will say that he almost always one the fights he got in.” The girl cursed her under breath, which made Nico wonder what she was doing. “Anyways, none of the Lost Kids at the hotel got to see much of him. From what I heard, it was even worse before he started stripping. The others told me that Gaea practically kept Percy isolated in her mansion behind the hotel, and would rarely let him come watch the shows with her.”

Nico's eyebrows shot up, his hands freezing in place from where they were attempting to straighten the material that was cutting into his hips. “Wait, Gaea let him go to the shows? At what age?”

“Um, I believe early on. I think around the time she found him.”

“Wow,” Nico sighed.

“Not something unusual,” Zoë replied. “From what the others told me, Kronos came with her to work even when he was eight or nine.”

A red and black speedo was slung on top of the dividing wall between Nico and Travis's changing rooms. “Did you ever get to see the inside of Gaea's mansion?” The brunet asked.

“Only twice,” the Lost Girl chuckled. “Since it's not actually attached to the hotel, just on the grounds, we didn't really have a reason to go over there.” Nico wished he could get the chance to see it some day, the whole place sounded amazing. “And the first time I got to, Percy and Kronos had just finished breaking an antique piano.” The girl let out a sigh. “Don't ask me how they did it, I never got an answer. I just know that there was some skateboards and a broken window from the second floor.”

Travis let out a sigh. “I miss Percy already.”

“Yeah,” Zoë whispered. There was a brief pause before she continued. “But while I was there, Percy actually spent most of his time with Kronos. During most of the day, Gaea kept him inside with a professor that she had hired to be Percy's tutor. It was at night when we saw the most of him, since he was already stripping by this point. But, even being different than the rest of us, Percy got along great with the majority of the Lost Kids at the hotel.”

Nico scrunched his lips. “So, he didn't get to go outside at all?”

The Lost Girl let out a small chuckle. “Oh, no, he got time outside. But I think part of the reason Gaea kept him inside most of the time was to keep us from being distracted.” Nico actually stopped what he was doing at what the girl said. Zoë let out a light moan. “Hot days were the best, because Percy would often be out at the pool or playing a sport, so pretty much all of us stood by the windows to watch him stand around shirtless.”

“Sucks he doesn't do that here,” Nico mumbled.

Travis laughed and stuck his head up to look over the dividing wall, which had Nico covering himself as he finished getting on his boxers. “Oh, he does, but you just missed it. It's mostly during the summer, when he tries to fit a little more free time into his schedule.” The brunet shrugged. “Percy actually spends days at the pool during the summer, or even goes off with our groups on their days off.”

Nico stuck his tongue out at Travis, feeling slightly jealous. “So, if it was so nice over there, why did you move back here?” Nico asked the Lost Girl.

Zoë opened her door and poked her head inside Nico's changing room. The raven-haired Lost Boy glared at both of the others, not even caring that he was still changing. “Well,” she began, “Percy asked me to.” She gave a shrug. “But, I mean, I was still unsure, so he made me a deal.”

Nico quirked a brow. “Which was?”

“To crash my family's finances.”

“Oh.” Nico slid his shirt over his head. “That's...something. Why did you want that?”

The Lost Girl had a sharp look in her eyes as she looked him over. “Because, they abandoned me. Just tossed me out, like I no longer mattered to them. Just because I was willing to give out information against our money hungry father and his dirty dealings. But I felt my old boyfriend deserved the same, as he just used me to get the information. So, I had Percy return the favor to his family as well.”

Travis crossed his arms on top of the dividing wall. “I'm surprised you didn't ask the same of Percy with your father, Neeks. The man seems like a real asshole...no offense.”

“Yeah, it doesn't really bother me,” Nico mumbled. He worked on getting his socks and shoes on. “I know he was a lousy father, but at least he takes care of my sister. I don't want Bianca to end up at the hotel like I did.”

“You sound like Apollo,” Travis mumbled. Nico looked at him curiously. The brunet nodded. “Yeah, blondie turned down Percy's offer as well, for the exact same reason you did. Though, I will never understand why he doesn't at least try talking to his sister. She doesn't even know he's still alive, much less that he got tossed out onto the streets after Robert dumped him.”

As Nico and the other two exited the changing rooms, a tall girl with legs that seemed to stretch on forever came out from the back with a distressed look on her face. “Aphrodite, we're running pretty low on some change. Would you mind if I borrowed some from back here?”

Aphrodite smiled and motioned to the cash register. “Sure, Gwen, grab as much as you need.”

The girl gave her thanks and scooped out a handful of quarters and nickles. She looked up as Travis, Zoë, and Nico approached the counter. “Hey, Travis and Zoë, How have you guys been?”

It was at this point that Nico noted that Rachel was no longer behind the counter. He frowned and looked around, until he spotted the girl's red hair outside on the phone. Arching a brow, Nico deposited his clothing onto the counter.

Travis smiled, leaning in on the counter. “We're good. How's Aphrodite treating you these days?”

The girl blushed slightly and finished gathering up the coins she had come for. “We're doing good. Business is just hectic today.” She let out a sigh. “I think I've learned my lesson about suggesting that we have a sale a few days after New Years.”

Aphrodite sighed with contentment. “But it'll be so good for business,” she said dreamily.

Gwen smiled and nodded to the two before disappearing into the back again. Nico leaned forward to watch her leave. “Um, what's back there anyways?”

“Ah.” Aphrodite jumped up from the stool that she sat on. “I run a normal clothing store on the other side of the building, but I prefer to stay back here. Makes it more convenient for you guys, since my girls don't know what kind of business you lot actually do.”

Nico nodded in understanding. “I see.”

“And it makes it much more simple when I don't have to explain why I'm closing down the store when you guys come in.”

As Travis was checking out with Aphrodite, Rachel came back inside, chewing on her lip. “What's up?” Nico asked her.

She looked up, stopping in her tracks. She regarded Nico for a moment before looking down at her phone. “We need to get back to the hotel. That was Leo. Apparently, Calypso, Piper, and Drew are about to kill each other.”

“Not seriously, though, right?” Travis asked. However, the look on Rachel's face seemed to say otherwise. “Right,” the Lost Boy sighed.

Aphrodite smiled as she moved on to dealing with Zoë's small pile of outfits. “Sounds like fun. I'm thankful that I'm safely here all of a sudden.” Travis narrowed his eyes at the woman.

On the way back, Nico sat up front with Rachel, while Travis and Zoë took a short nap. The Lost Boy looked over at the girl as she drove. “Are you sure we shouldn't tell Percy?”

The girl pressed her lips into a thin line, keeping her eyes on the road. “It'll be a while before any of us even get to talk to Percy probably. At least a week, if not two.” She finally glanced over at the boy, and Nico took quick note of the worry that was filling the girl's eyes. “I'm just concerned if we'll be able to hold together or not.”

“Isn't that Apollo, Annabeth, Thalia, and Luke's job?”

The Lost Girl nodded. “Normally, unless they start bickering.” She let out a sigh as she looked back to the road. “Annabeth struck Luke today, she's never raised a hand to him before. None of them have actually had a physical fight of any degree. I can only imagine what it might be like if Percy doesn't come back soon. We've never had to deal with Kronos for more than two weeks before.”

Nico pursed his lips. “But he runs his hotel, and he has Lost Kids there.”

“Yes, but Grover does a good job of looking after them. Kronos's hotel also has the highest suicide and quit rate of Lost Kids. I heard one Lost Girl decided she'd rather live on the streets than work for Kronos.”

Nico gulped and looked over at Rachel. “But...we'll be okay, won't we?”

Rachel's eyes darted over to him. She reached out and squeezed his hand. “I don't know,” she whispered.

Once they were back at the hotel, Rachel left them to go help Leo sort out the latest incident. When they were pulling into the garage, Leo had called again and told Rachel that Frank had barged into the office and demanded that Hazel left with him. Nico let out a sigh as he rode up the elevator with Zoë and Travis. It was going to be a long day, he could just tell.

The elevator stopped on their floor and the three gathered up their bags and headed to their respective halls. But as they passed by the first set of doors on the right hall, the door on Nico's left opened and he felt a hand grasp the back of his neck.

“I need to have a word with you,” Luke practically growled before slamming the door, trapping Nico inside with him.