Children of Loss 55

Chapter 55

It was the sound of dripping water that brought Nico to consciousness. He let out a groan as his eyes cracked open, only to be met with darkness. As he attempted to sit up, a searing pain shot through the back of his head. The raven haired boy hissed under his breath and pressed a hand to the back of his head. While he couldn't see anything, his hair was hard and stuck together.

Dried blood.

Well, it was a very likely possibility, given his situation. Nico peered around the dark room, trying to remember what had happened. His memory was a little fuzzy at what had happened. Perhaps if he went over what he did remember? Maybe that would help.

If today was still Monday, then yesterday had been Sunday. Everyone had been together for Clarisse's birthday party, which Chris and Silena had organized. And, when it came to an end, Beckendorf took Silena by the hand and asked her to marry him. Of course, as expected, the answer had been yes. They had also announced that they would be moving to Europe to get a fresh start with raising their family when the time came. Percy had also gone on to give Beckendorf a new job as his personal mechanic for the vehicles around the hotel, as well as the private jet that Percy would be getting very soon.

Before work, Percy had Rachel sit Nico down and discuss his university choices. Nico had applied to quite a few over the past months, and nearly all of them had accepted him. Rachel also went on to point out that Nico could still apply to universities in Europe, if he wanted, Percy would just need to make a phone call or two. It was definitely a lot to think about.

And while he hated the thought that he'd get accepted somewhere because of Percy, did Nico really want to go to school in a different continent from where Percy would be? It was just amazing to Nico that he actually got accepted to so many high rated universities. Before he came to the Lotus, Nico would have never dreamed at being accepted to places like Brown, Berkeley, or even Yale. It was a lot to think over.

Nico's brow furrowed as he tried to jump forward to Monday morning. He had gotten up and showered, and then he and Jason left for school. Nico's eyes snapped open. Police sirens. He remembered police sirens.

There was a cop behind Jason's vehicle. The blond had stopped to see what the problem was. Nico had never really gotten a look at the man's face, since the hat was mostly covering the guy's eyes. “What seems to be the problem-” Jason hadn't even gotten to finish his sentence.

Nico remembered panicking as Jason's head hit the steering wheel when the cop hit him directly in the head. The brown-eyed boy had bolted out of the car and tried to make a run for it. As he tried to get his phone out of his pocket, Nico's body was tackled to the ground. He remembered watching as his phone was slammed down onto the concrete, where it shattered into pieces. But before he could even roll over and try to fight back, an electric current made contact with the back of his neck.

Nico had blacked out after that.

And now he was trapped in some dark room with no windows, and no visible door. His only source of light came from a small lantern that barely lit a corner of the room. It was just quiet, other than the occasional drip of water. Nico shuddered and rubbed at his arms. The room was cold and Nico had not worn a jacket when he left for school. Well, in his defense, it wasn't like he thought he'd need one.

Letting out a breath, Nico rested his palm against the ground. His hand balled into fists, pulling up dirt. There was no actual flooring. Pursing his lips together, Nico slowly crawled with a hand outstretched until his palm made contact with a metal wall. Nico pressed his ear against the cold surface, seeing if he could hear anyone.

Nothing.

“Help me!” Nico yelled as loud as he could. “Someone, please help!” The boy banged his fists against the metal wall, trying to make as much noise as he could. “Is anyone out there?”

Silence. There was nothing. He couldn't hear a thing, not even footsteps. He reached into his pockets for things like his keys and wallet, but they were gone. There was no point in trying to find his phone, since it had been smashed. Whoever it was definitely wanted Nico, and didn't want the boy making contact with anyone.

Nico took in a deep breath to try and stay calm. He could already feel his heart beating faster. Who would have taken him? There were a few people that Nico would put on that list. His father was one, but the man that attacked him didn't fit his father's build. Kronos could have always hired someone, but Nico highly doubted it. Then all that was left was someone trying to get to Percy. There was also Mr. Callahan, Nico supposed.

Pressing his back to the cold wall, Nico slid down to the ground. His eyes closed and his head fell back. “Can anyone hear me?” When he was once again met with silence, Nico slammed his fist back against the wall. His throat was already starting to hurt from the screaming.

It was so dry. And that only ended up making his stomach growl. He had no idea how much time had passed, but Nico was definitely in need of some food and something to drink. Nico licked his dry and chapped lips. His pulse quickened and Nico found it hard to breathe. He felt dizzy and light-headed. The room probably wasn't ventilated that well, which meant his heavy breathing was only making it worse.

But he couldn't stop. Nico was panicking. What if he never got out of here? Was he going to die? Even if Nico was supposed to be taken for ransom, would whoever took him let him go if Percy paid it? Probably not. If Nico was let go, it would only make it easier for Percy to find out who did it. Nico would probably be killed if a ransom was paid, and he'd probably be killed if it wasn't paid. Or he'd just die slowly of starvation or a lack of air.

Was this to be his end?

He had gone through all that he had, finally gotten Percy, only to end up dying. How shitty would that be? No. He would not die so easily. Nico's eyes hardened and the boy got onto his knees. Turning around, Nico frantically dug his fingers into the dirt. He began to rake out as much as he could near the wall, hoping and praying that he'd be able to crawl under it.

Minutes or hours could have passed, Nico had really no way of telling. Sweat dripped from the boy's brow, some of it getting into his eyes. Inhaling sharply, Nico reached up and rubbed to clear it out of his eyes. Nothing. Nico frantically felt in the hole that he had been making. More wall. It was all he could find. There wasn't even a hint that he was close to a bottom.

Nico sat back and hugged his knees to his chest. His chest heaved as his vision clouded with tears. He was going to die down here, and nobody would probably know what became of him. He would die cold and alone, just like he had always thought would be his fate during his time on the streets.

In a state of panic, Nico went back to digging. He would not stop, he couldn't. There had to be a way out. Dig. He had to keep going. And so he did, even when his head began to spin. He did not stop until his body collapsed from exhaustion and he once again fell back into unconsciousness.

There was no telling how much time had passed since Nico passed out, since there was no source of light from beyond the room he was kept in. As Nico sat up, the boy rubbed some dirt and mud off of his arm and face. However, something was different about the room when he woke up this time.

Just a few inches beside him was a small tray with a cup of water and some mushed up substance that was supposed to pass for food. Not about to look a gift horse in the mouth, Nico pulled the tray closer to him and stuck his hand into the food. Without a second thought, the Lost Boy shoved the oddly colored food into his mouth.

He nearly choked.

Nico began to cough, his taste buds on fire. The food had been doused with a spice. Some sort of pepper. It reminded Nico a lot of what his mother used to put into the chili she made during the winter months. What had that been?

Cayenne pepper. Nico felt his stomach tie into knots. He looked down at his food and dropped what was left in his hand back onto the tray. Why would someone randomly put that into his food? Coughing again, Nico lifted the water to his lips.

And immediately spit it back out. Nico's face contorted in disgust as he took another sip. It was saltwater. It finally clicked. Nico was supposed to eat, so he could stay alive, but it wasn't going to be an enjoyable process.

The food was hot and spicy, which would make him want to drink something. Which was where the water came in. Saltwater would just make him more thirsty, giving him something to drink, but never satisfying his thirst. It was sadistic and cruel.

Nico's stomach growled, only reminding him of his hunger. When had he even eaten last? He hadn't had time to eat breakfast on Monday, and there was no telling how much time had passed. Sunday night would have been his last meal. Nico felt his throat tighten as he pursed his lips and grabbed another handful of whatever it was his captor had made for him.

It was so bland, whatever it was. The only taste that Nico could really distinguish was the cayenne pepper, which had him grasping for the saltwater after a few more bites. Whoever did this must have used quite a bit, because there was quite a kick to the food.

After he downed most of his water, Nico rested his head against his knees. Was this going to be common with all of his meals? Would he even get any more food or water? Nico did know that he couldn't survive on saltwater, not alone anyways. It basically came down to how slow Nico wanted to die.

Taking in a deep breath, Nico leaned his head back and let it out. Percy would find him, right? He just needed to be patient. Percy had the resources to find him, and surely he'd be looking. Jason would have reported what happened. Nico's eyes snapped open wide.

Jason.

Was he even alive? What if the person that took Nico had killed the blond? Nico felt sick at the thought. Jason didn't deserve that. He had to believe that the blond was okay, and that he was trying to find Nico as well.

It was then that Nico's eyes snapped their focus onto something on the ceiling. His brow furrowed as he got to his feet. Walking over, Nico peered up. “What the fuck...?” Nico breathed out.

There, on the ceiling, was a small tube, around the size of his fist, poking out from the ceiling. There didn't appear to be any light coming from the other side, which either meant that it curved off somewhere or the other end was closed.

Nico turned back to the wall he had been digging at. Someone had come down here and delivered his meal, but they had not even bothered to refill the hole that Nico had dug. That did not bode well for the Lost Boy. Nico's eyes returned to the ceiling, his lips tightly pursed. There had to be some way in and out of this room, and that had been confirmed by the fact that someone came in with food.

There.

If Nico hadn't been looking for it, he probably wouldn't have noticed it. But there it was, a square sealed hatch on the ceiling, not all that far from the tube. He crossed his arms. How the hell had someone gotten a tray of food down from there without spilling it? Jumping would have left the person trapped in the room as well, while a rope or ladder would have made balancing the tray rather hard. Nico's dark eyes slowly fell to the floor beneath the hatch, right where his food had been placed.

Had they lowered it down? Nico frowned. How did he get down here? Dropping him would have surely woken Nico up, no matter how deep of a sleeper he was. Even though he knew the outcome, Nico tried to jump up and touch the hatch. Just out of reach. Nico yelped as soon as his feet hit the ground again, the mud causing him to slip and fall on his back.

Nico groaned, but made no effort to move. He wished he had some idea of what was going on outside of this room. At the very least, the boy wanted to know how long he had been trapped here. He wanted to just close his eyes and wake up back in his room at the Lotus Hotel. He just wanted this to be a dream. So close to the end, and it all just got ripped away from him. Or maybe he was ripped away from it.

With all the silence, it sounded like thunder, but Nico soon realized the hatch was being opened. He squinted and raised a hand to shield his eyes when a bright light hit his face. There was a loud bang and then the sound of footsteps on metal. When Nico pulled his hand away, he found that a metal ladder had been lowered into the room, where a tall man was now descending it.

He wore black leather gloves and his face was covered by a stitched hood, which looked like it had been made from an old sack. He stared down at Nico, who was frozen in place. Was he just going to kill Nico? Better than the slow death, he supposed.

But then the man thrust out his hand, which contained a metal flask. Nico arched a brow as the man tossed it onto the boy's chest. Slowly, Nico reached down and unscrewed the lid. He sniffed it for good measure. With a frown, Nico tilted the flask over his empty palm. His eyes widened as water poured out and spilled onto the dirt. Nico quickly raised his palm to his mouth, but he didn't get much. He tried the flask, but it was mostly empty. All he got was just a few drops.

A dry laugh from the man reminded Nico that he was not alone. “Figured you'd be cautious, so I put more than I intended. And you did what I thought you would.” Crouching down, he snatched the empty flask from Nico. “That was all you were gonna get, too bad you wasted it.”

That was all? Nico felt the color drain from his face. “What-” He licked his lips. “What are you going to do with me?” He got onto his knees, ready to tackle the man if he had to, in order to try and escape. “What do you want?”

Another laugh. “What I want is money, enough to live comfortably the rest of my life. And you are my ticket to getting that.” From the back of his pants, the man pulled out a gun and pointed it at Nico. “I wouldn't think about trying anything, not that it really matters. You see, I'm not stupid. If I let you go after getting your ransom, your beloved Percy will just find a way to track me down using whatever details you can give him. And, quite frankly, I'd like to live to enjoy what I've earned.”

“You're just going to leave me here then?”

The man's head tilted to the side as he backed towards the ladder. “Don't be stupid, kid, I'm sure someone would find the body eventually.” Nico couldn't see it, but he was certain there was a smirk on the man's face. “I don't plan on anyone finding your body.” As he climbed the ladder, he aimed the gun directly at Nico.

And with the pull of the trigger, a sharp pain coursed through his chest. Nico's vision faded until darkness took him.

The air felt tight when Nico woke up. But that didn't matter at the moment, because Nico was just happy to be alive. That bastard had used a tranquilizer gun. Why would he need to use one of those, and what had the asshole meant by nobody would find his body?

Nico tried to reach up and rub at his chest, but a solid force prevented him from doing so. Brown eyes snapped open. The color slowly drained from Nico's face at what he found.

The boy was still in the dark room, but now he was encased in a clear, solid box that was barely big enough to fit his body in. “No!” Nico yelled, pressing his palms to the surface. “Let me out! Please! I didn't do anything!”

The man with the mask came into view. He stooped over the box that Nico was in and hooked up a hose to the bottom. It did not take long before Nico felt something moving around his feet. He screamed and banged harder on the box. Looking down, the boy found several rats moving and sitting around his lower half.

Standing back up, the man removed the hood on his head, though the lack of a proper light source prevented Nico from making out a face. “They'll keep you company for now, but I'm afraid they will get hungry eventually. I hear death by rats is a very unpleasant way to die.”

Nico slammed his fists against the box. “Someone will find me, even if it's just my remains!”

“No, they won't,” the man replied calmly. He pointed over his shoulder, up to the tube that Nico had discovered. “I'm going to bury you down here in that box. And then I'll just cement the floor directly above this room, so nobody will ever know it's here. No one is going to find you. You are going to die down here, cold and alone. While I enjoy a nice, long holiday, paid for by your loving boyfriend.”

Nico could make out a smirk on the man's face. From a pocket on his shirt, the man pulled something out and dropped it on top of the box. Nico felt his face drain of color as he watched it fall and land on top of him. A single red rose.

Panic flooded throughout Nico's entire body as the man that had given him the rose at the hotel turned and climbed up the ladder. Without any concern for his hands, Nico banged as hard as he could against the surface, even tried pushing the lid off. Nothing. Not moments after the man was gone did dirt begin to pour through the tube in the ceiling. Rocks banged onto the surface of the box just above Nico's face, as dirt slowly became all that the boy could see.

A ringing formed in Nico's ears as everything began to spin. He was going to die down here, and nobody would ever find him. Soon the dirt had covered the box that Nico was in and all that Nico could hear was the sound of more dirt pouring into the room and the rats squeaking around his feet. Hot tears streamed down Nico's cheeks as he continued to bang against the hard surface of the box that would be his coffin, not even caring that his knuckles had started to bleed.

The boy yelled when one of the rats sank its teeth into his leg. Crying, Nico did his best to shake the rat off of him. “Please!” Nico sobbed. “Someone help me, please.”

He didn't want to die like this.

Nico's vain attempts at escapes came to a halt when he could no longer hear dirt pouring down on top of him. His throat hurt from all of his screaming, but he remained quiet and still. His breath hitched when something heavy landed directly on top of him.

He felt like he might hyperventilate when cracks of light broke through all of the dirt. But just as they came, darkness fell back over him. There was a voice, but it sounded so far away. Nico's head began to spin more. He could see light now, but it seemed fuzzy. A rat bit him on his arm and Nico barely moved. It took him a moment, but Nico soon realized that he couldn't breath. As much as he tried, there was no air.

How long had he been in the box before he woke up?

Was he going to die so close to salvation?

As light broke through onto Nico's face, a hand pressed against the other side of the glass. Someone yelled, but the ringing in Nico's ears was too loud to understand any of it. Nico's head lulled to the side and his eyes closed.

As his thoughts began to drift away, the banging got louder. Something else must have landed on the box, because it shook three times. Nico's eyes kept opening and closing. He wanted to hold on. If he could just make it a little longer. The dirt was ripped away from the lid and it was slid off of him. Dirt hit Nico in the face as the boy gasped for air.

Before he could properly open his eyes, Nico was ripped out of the box and arms wrapped tightly around him. “Here, we've got him,” a female voice said as a blanket was draped over Nico's shoulders.

Tilting his head up, Nico was met by the sight of vivid sea-green eyes and a smile. “Help me get him upstairs,” Percy said softly. “You're safe, Nico.”

Jason and Luke took Nico from Percy, much to the boy's protest. It took some effort, but Jason finally helped get Nico onto Luke's back and the blond climbed up the ladder. Nico was placed on the floor until Percy and Thalia climbed out after them. Nico shot up into Percy's arms and buried his face into the young man's chest, not even caring that he was crying in front of other people.

When Percy pulled back, he tucked Nico against his side. Nico blinked up as he noticed that they were surrounded by police officers and a S.W.A.T team. “Bring him to me,” Percy practically growled.

Not two seconds later, the man that had taken Nico was dropped at Percy's feet. There was a severe gash on the man's head and a bullet hole in his left leg. “How could you have possibly have found me so soon?” He demanded.

Percy glared down at the man, his arm around Nico tightening. “Which way would you like? Your purchase of all the dirt, which I had to do several traces to track back to your real identity? There's the false identification that we uncovered that you used to gain entry to my establishment. I had someone locate all the phones in the area during the time that my friend here, who you knocked out,” Percy motioned to Jason, “provided me. You might have not been using it, but that doesn't mean I can't track it. It also meant I could track it here.”

“How long was I down there?” Nico managed to get out, his voice hoarse.

Percy continued to glare at the man, who remained silent on the floor. “Answer him!” The green-eyed young man yelled in a angry tone that Nico could never recall having heard before. It made even the S.W.A.T team flinch.

“Two days,” the man on the floor hissed.

Pulling Nico back a little, Percy looked down and examined the boy. “Are you okay?” His voice was much more gentle than it had been a few seconds ago. Nico just nodded, too drawn in by those sea-green eyes to give a proper response. Not that his voice would probably allow for one anyways. Percy breathed a sigh of relief and tucked Nico under his arm. “At least I found you in time.”

Nico closed his eyes and clung to Percy's shirt. He just wanted to make sure this was real and not his imagination playing a trick on him. As he took in a deep breath, the smell of the ocean hit him. No, this was definitely real.

Holding Nico close with one arm, Percy reached to the back of his pants. When Nico's eyes shot open, he found Percy had a gun in his hand. The man on the floor's eyes went wide, but he was restrained by Luke and Thalia. Nico's breath hitched as Percy turned the safety off.

“Percy, wait!” Nico tried to yell, but it was too late.

The gunshot rang out and filled Nico's ears. The boy felt like ice ran all along his body as the sound echoed in his ears, unable to take his eyes off the man that had been holding him hostage. Luke and Thalia released the man's body, which slumped to the floor. As Percy pocketed the gun again, his eyes made contact with one of the cops. With the heel of his foot, Percy kicked the man's dead body into the hole that they had brought Nico out of. “Turn it back on,” Percy said darkly.

Briefly glancing at each other, one of the cops reached down and turned on a machine, which began to guzzle more dirt into the room below. One of the S.W.A.T. members removed his helmet. “Sir, we could use the boy for some questioning.”

Percy's arm did not budge from around Nico's back. “I'm taking him back to my hotel. He was never here, is that clear?” There was a frighting tone in Percy's voice, but Nico could not pull away. His eyes were still glued to the hole that the man had just been dropped in. “Are we done here?”

The police all nodded. “The building is condemned,” one of them supplied. “It'll be torn down and paved over.”

Percy nodded. “Good. Now, if you'll excuse me...” Without removing his arm from Nico, the young man led the brown-eyed boy outside. Instantly, Nico had to bury his face into Percy's chest to shield it from the sun.

“Here,” Jason said. Nico looked up and the blond's sunglasses were placed over his eyes.

“Thanks,” Nico managed to whisper as he was placed into the back of a car. Percy climbed in beside him and Nico instantly curled against the young man's side. Jason took Nico's other side, while Luke and Thalia got into the front. With a brief glance back at them, Luke cranked the car and drove.

As they drove, Nico looked down at his hands. They were shaking. It was hard sometimes to remember that there was this side to Percy. Yet, for whatever reason, Nico didn't feel threatened. But it didn't make what he had just witnessed any easier to deal with. Percy killed people sometimes, Nico needed to always remember that, but it didn't mean he would hurt Nico. Perhaps he was delusional for thinking that, but it was what he felt deep down.

Warm hands enveloped Nico's shaking ones. The boy looked up with wide eyes as Percy placed the Lost Boy's hands against his chest. Letting out a sigh, Nico leaned over and rested his head on the young man's shoulder. The rest of the world might have been in danger from Percy, but it didn't seem like the young man would ever do Nico harm. Nico groaned a little and buried his face against Percy's shoulder.

He sounded like someone out of some sappy romance novel.

Yet it didn't change his feelings. Perhaps he was a little scared, but fear was not always a bad thing. He tilted his head to the side to steal a glance at Percy. Those sea-green eyes were already staring back at him in an unreadable silence. It was a little frustrating how Percy could do that, even after all this time. What was going on in that head of his?

Once they were back at the hotel, Nico was handed over to Jason. “Make sure he stays in your suite and eats as much food as he wants,” Percy ordered without even looking at Nico. It made the boy frown, though that didn't even get Percy's attention. “I've got to run and make a few last minute arrangements for the convention.”

Thalia gave a nod. “Nico needs a few nights off from work. Do you want-”

“He's not working anymore,” Percy interjected, already staring at his phone. His face was so blank and he acted like he had just announced something completely normal, but everyone stared at him with the same emotion. Shock. “Is there a problem?”

“No,” Thalia quickly replied, recovering from her shock. “Um, I'll have Leo or Rachel contact the school for you, if you want, and have them informed that Nico will be out of school for the next few days.”

Percy simply nodded and stepped through the doors of the hotel. Luke stared down at Nico for a moment, his brow furrowed, before he followed after their boss. Jason nodded to Thalia. “I've got him,” the blond said softly. Thalia pursed her lips and dashed after the two young men.

Nico's eyes remained on the floor as Jason helped him to the elevator. If it had been two days, then it was now Wednesday, sometime in the afternoon. This meant that the conference would be on Saturday, and Gaea would be arriving the day before.

As soon as they were back in their suite, Jason let Nico collapse on the couch. The boy just sat there, staring off into nothing. He was still in shock, even as Jason called down to order Nico some food.

Nico...wasn't working anymore?

His brow furrowed. The date they had set for Nico to quit hadn't arrived just yet. Nico was supposed to work at the conference, tending to the politicians and other important people. But that was no longer the case now? It felt strange, but a relief. It was still weird hearing it from Percy, because the young man never really made decisions for Nico. But this did not seem to be up for discussion.

Nico didn't even bat an eye when Jason placed some orange juice in front of him, too busy wrapped up in his own head.

“Guys, I'm sure that Nico appreciates all the concern, but Percy will kill me if I don't have him get some rest,” Jason announced, ushering several of the Lost Kids towards the door.

Over the course of the afternoon, most of the Lost Kids had dropped by to see Nico. Even Annaberth, though Nico was not really sure if it was out of genuine concern or to keep up appearances. The only person that Nico really hadn't seen was Percy, which rather bothered Nico, if he were being honest. Even Dionysus had dropped by, offering Nico some alcohol to take any edge off that the boy might have.

“Why don't you come by and sit with us backstage?” Hazel suggested as she dropped a thermos full of soup on the coffee table in front of Nico. Said table was also completely hidden by a layer of food that the others had brought, which had buried the food that Nico had originally ordered for dinner from the restaurant downstairs.

“I'll think about it,” Nico sighed. His face scrunched a little as he picked up a dish that Juniper had brought him. Whatever it was, there was haggis in it. “Not like I have anything else to do, I guess.”

Annabeth ran a hand through her hair. “Well, you do have your finals coming up.”

There was that. Nico sighed and nodded. For the most part, the others had not really commented about Percy's sudden decision. Drew made a few snippy comments and Nico could tell that Annabeth silently disliked it, but that was about the extent of it. The others just seemed to be about as stunned about it as Nico himself was.

Jason had just finished shutting the door behind Hazel and Annabeth, when it swung open and hit him in the face. Nico's eyes widened a little as Rachel poked her head in. “Sorry, Jason,” she casually apologized. The blond shot her a glare as he rubbed his forehead. The girl turned to Nico with a smile, sitting down on the edge of the couch. “Percy wanted to know how you were doing.”

Nico's lips quickly tilted down. “Why doesn't he just come and find out for himself, like he normally would?”

“Ah.” Rachel chuckled nervously, scratching her cheek. “Percy is rather swamped at the moment, but it was important to him to know how you were feeling.”

Nico grumbled and opened the thermos that Hazel had left him. “Tell him come see me, if he is so concerned.”

Rachel opened her mouth, but Nico shot her a look that clearly said he'd rather be left alone. He didn't really mean to be rude, this was just bothering him. Percy had seemed so affectionate and concerned when he had found Nico, but then had been so distant once they made it back to the hotel. It was almost like he wasn't himself. If this had been some science fiction novel, Nico would probably think a body snatcher had gotten to the green-eyed idiot.

Jason arched a brow as he got up from the floor. His blue eyes drifted over to the door as Rachel made her way out before they quickly fell back to the raven haired boy on the couch. “You okay, buddy?”

“Why doesn't he just come see me in person?”

The blond let out a sigh. “Wish I had an answer for you. You know, maybe he really is swamped. I mean, the conference is this weekend.” Rubbing his cheek, Jason sat down next to his roommate. “Or maybe something is bothering him.”

“Maybe,” Nico muttered.

Something was indeed wrong.

Nico ended up taking Hazel's advice and going upstairs. Unlike most nights, Nico dressed in casual clothing, which earned him several looks from people that had probably seen him working there in the past. Nobody said anything to him, though, even as he pushed his way up the line.

Ethan let him pass without any questioning and Nico headed up to the left side, where the girls were. Nico spotted Percy rather easily. The young man was standing around with a tall man that was probably in his late forties. The young man's sea-green eyes flickered over to the now ex-Lost Boy. Nico held up his hand in a small wave, but Percy did not return the gesture. Instead, those eyes looked Nico over, like the boy was under the microscope. Nico bit down on his lip and rubbed his arm.

Sucking in a breath, Nico headed over towards Percy.

But he didn't make it very far. Percy leaned over and whispered something to Chris, who happened to be standing a few feet behind him. The brunet arched a brow and followed Percy's gaze over to Nico. With a brief cock of his head, Chris gave a nod and walked in Nico's direction.

Nico could already feel a lump forming in his throat. “Is everything okay?” He asked, peering over Chris's shoulder to where Percy was sitting down in a booth. The young man propped his chin up with his palm. “Can I see Percy?”

Chris rubbed the back of his neck. “Sorry, Nico, but Percy's rather busy at the moment.” He placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. “Maybe you could go backstage and the others could keep you company?”

Nico couldn't help but huff. “Is he avoiding me?” Brown eyes grew dark. “He's not doing anything, just sitting there.” Chris didn't budge. “Fine, whatever. Tell him that if he so unconcerned about me, then perhaps he should have just left me with the guy that was trying to bury me alive!”

Chris's mouth floundered as Nico stormed off, letting the door slam against the wall as he went backstage. With a final glare, Nico turned back to Percy as the door swung back and forth, slowing down every few swings. There was a brief flash of pain in those sea-green eyes before they broke away from Nico and found something else to hold their attention.

For most of the night, Nico remained backstage. Some of the Lost Boys came over and sat with him whenever they could, but it was mostly the girls. Silena kept offering him water bottles to the point where Nico thought he might drown. “You're going to want a lot of water,” she kept telling him.

Nico laid down on the couch while the girls went and did a group number. With a sigh, he propped his feet up on the back of the couch, blinking up at the ceiling. What the hell was Percy's deal? This was no time to go back a few steps on the board. And it would kind of be nice to have Percy to lean on right now. Releasing a breath a breath, Nico held up a hand to his face.

They were still shaking.

He hadn't said anything, but Nico was still expecting to open his eyes and find himself back in that box. Perhaps that was why he hadn't shut his eyes when Jason had him lie down for a few hours. He didn't want to sleep, not with the risk of waking up back in that room.

“You okay, little man?” Came Beckendorf's deep voice.

Nico tilted his head back to look at the Lost Boy. “Just thinking.”

Sitting down on the edge of the couch, Beckendorf handed him a bottle of water. “I can see that. Care to share your thoughts?”

Nico eyed the water. “Your girlfriend keeps giving me water. I actually haven't finished the last bottle she gave me.” With a grunt, Nico put the bottle on the floor. “I'm just trying to wrap my head around things.”

“You should take Silena's advice.” Nico tilted his head to look at the muscular young man, but those brown eyes were on the floor. “She had to look out for herself a lot growing up, since her mother was...a bit unpleasant. She got dehydrated a lot, so I'd imagine she's just looking out for you.” He gave Nico's shoulder a hard pat. “Heard you made quite the outburst earlier. You're going to be on edge a lot for a few days.” Leaning forward, Beckendorf looked Nico over. “You should also have Will give you some sleeping pills, because you look exhausted. I get it, though, you don't feel safe falling asleep.”

Nico blinked a single time. “Have you ever been in a situation like that?”

“Not exactly like that.” Beckendorf looked down at his hands. “It's just that... Well, I grew up in a bad neighborhood. I'd often wake up to gunshots and police sirens.” The young man shrugged. “My brother inducted me into a local gang when I was a few years younger than you. It got bad. I remember one night my mother had to come and drag me out of bed, because someone had thrown a moltav into our front window. I never really admitted it, but I was scared. Hell, I was scared that I even had to sleep with a gun under my pillow.

“I thought it was cool in the beginning. You know, I was just a kid, I didn't know any better.” Beckendorf gave a small chuckle. “It wasn't until my brother got shot that I think it really sunk in. My mother was devastated, begged me to quit the gang life, but it wasn't that simple. You didn't just quit the gang life. Besides, I wasn't going to let what happened to my brother go unpunished.”

Nico slowly sat up, his brow furrowed. “What happened? You ended up on the streets, right? I mean, Percy did end up finding you, so it only makes sense.”

Beckendorf gave a small nod. “Yeah. We hit up an abandoned factory, shot a few guys and burned the place down. The bitches had been selling some drugs there, so we destroyed their merchandise on top of that. But...”

“But?”

“When I got home, the windows of my house had been shot out and the door was kicked in.” Beckendorf shook his head, his jaw tight. His large fist clenched around his knee. “The rest of their fucking gang had hit our neighborhood while we were gone. Of course the cops never showed up, at least not until we got back there. They shot all of them. My mom had been sitting up, waiting for me, knitting or some shit. They shot her in her rocking chair. Every house got hit. And, of course, the cops show up around that time, start doing what they do best and trying to take us in for murder and vandalism. Being charged for the shit that happened in our own fucking neighborhood!” Beckendorf let out a breath. “So, I ran. Left the neighborhood, left the city. Left all my contacts behind and disappeared.”

Nico frowned. “You never went back?”

“No,” was Beckendorf's reply. “There was nothing to go back to, not with my mom and brother dead. Before I got into all that, though, I had wanted to do some mechanic work, like my old man did before he passed away. Didn't think I'd ever see that happen, until Percy came along. I was about to be arrested for a grand theft auto when he simply addressed the cops and said that I was with him.” Beckendorf rolled his eyes. “Wanted to hate him and thank him at the same time. Back then, I thought he was just some entitled rich kid that wanted me to score some drugs for him.”

With a smirk, Beckendorf patted Nico on the knee and stood up. Nico rubbed at his neck, sitting in silence as Beckendorf walked a few paces away. “What happened to the other gang?”

The muscular Lost Boy came to a stop and shoved his hands into his pockets. “I let Percy take care of it for me. The same policemen that had come to shoot and arrest us that night got charged to go to my old rival gang's neighborhood and return the favor they gave us. After they returned to the station, each of the cops taken into a room and beaten, and then they were fired.” Beckendorf shrugged. “Guess we can't really say that Percy doesn't look after his own.”

Nico let Beckendorf leave. With a frown, Nico brought his knees up to his chest. It was odd to think about how desperate he had been to hear all these stories almost an entire year ago, and now here he was, wishing they could be wiped from his memory. He knew all of them now, save for Silena. Back then, when he first got here, Nico didn't really understand just how traumatic everyone's past really was. Not that his own had been that great.

Pursing his lips, Nico rested his head against his knees. He had told the others some about what had happened to him, but not even Percy knew everything. Some of them had asked or Nico had mentioned some things here and there, but not really to the extent of what he had always asked of the others.

Releasing one last sigh, Nico got to his feet. He wanted to go back to his suite. Not to sleep, but just to get away from everyone for a while and have some actual quiet time. He needed time to think. He needed to get the past off his chest in order to truly put it behind him. It seemed important now that it be shared, especially with Percy.

If Percy was ever going to talk to him.