Jenna, I'm Not Gonna Lie To You. I Have Felt Things These Past Few Weeks That I Didn't Know I Could Feel

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME - PERCY/NICO AU HIGH SCHOOL - CHAPTER XXIII

Hi, how are you? Things are going well, aren't they? I've decided to set a day for posting this story, (at least for the next few weeks) starting on Tuesdays from next week. Sometimes I don't have much energy at the beginning of the week, so just to be sure, we'll meet on Tuesdays. Oh, and if you can, give me a helping hand on:

Tapas - (Original version) and on AO3 for a cleaner version.

Good reading!

CHAPTER I / CHAPTER II / CHAPTER III / CHAPTER IV / CHAPTER V / CHAPTER VI / CHAPTER VII / CHAPTER VIII / CHAPTER IX / CHAPTER X / CHAPTER XI / CHAPTER XII / CHAPTER XIII / CHAPTER XIV / CHAPTER XV / CHAPTER XVI / CHAPTER XVII / CHAPTER XVIII / CHAPTER XIX / CHAPTER XX / CHAPTER XXI / CHAPTER XXII

Percy felt like a criminal. He was fully aware that he shouldn't have gone to see Apollo and Vanessa without his parents' permission. After all, technically, he was still 17 and wouldn't be considered an adult for another two months. His only option was to sneak around the house. He hid in the servants' entrance and only moved when he saw no one around. He passed through the kitchen and then ran upstairs, hearing his mother's voice and Nico's in the living room. It was a shame. If Nico was still asleep, he could finally do what he had to do before his mother convinced him against it.

Honestly? Sally was right. They shouldn't mess around with certain things, especially since they were too young and because, according to the law, they wouldn't be responsible if something went wrong. But... if Nico had already practiced this kind of dynamic with other people and he too was up to his neck in it, what was wrong with rushing things? Just a little? It would be just enough to reassure Nico who was determined to drive him crazy.

Really, Percy had no choice. It was the worst kind of feeling to see Nico begging for attention as if Percy was ignoring him on purpose; and if that was what Nico wanted, at least Percy would do it the right way. Like, he had already given Nico a journal and they had the safe words too, even if Nico hadn't realized what they really were. So maybe it was the best alternative. That way, they could finally clear things up once and for all.

Giving up, Percy walked to his room, placed the box on the bed and left the room quickly. Percy didn't want Nico to think he had abandoned him just as they had reconciled. It was his own fault, of course. How could Percy give Nico what he wanted when Percy knew the responsibility of dominating someone? Most of the time it wouldn't just be obedience and fun. It was the expectation behind the word, of what it really meant to dominate someone's life. The care, the concern, making sure that Nico would be safe and happy even in the midst of pain and frustration. It was the real responsibility of having someone's complete surrender and the trust, to the point that Nico would take every word or order to the letter. And from what Percy had seen, some submissives expected the dominant to make all the decisions for them, and in that, Percy didn't know if he would be able to consent. That was the real reason he was so hesitant, if only it were just Nico's fantasies, the expectation would always be heavier than anything they could do.

"Percy? I thought I saw you come in. I think we need to have a talk."

The worst he feared happened, someone had really caught him off guard. It was his mother, furious and with her arms crossed. Percy didn't even have time to go downstairs, at least he had closed the bedroom door, preventing her from seeing the logo on the box's packaging.

"Look, it's not what you think."

"I know everything. Nico told me."

"Everything?" What would that all be?”

“Don't try to fool me.”

Percy paused for a moment, realizing that his mother was bluffing. If she knew anything, Sally would already be raging in a much more specific way. At most, she must have seen something on Nico's shoulders or neck. But... should he hide these things from his mother? It was always better to have a backup plan in case he messed up.

“Fine. We had sex, okay?” Percy raised his hand before Sally could continue, seeing her face deepen in fury, like a mother lioness defending her cub. “I know I promised, I tried to do it your way and look what happened! Nico thought I didn't want to be with him. I found out that he…”

“He what?”

“You know…”

“No, I don't.’

“Nico thinks I'm rejecting him if I don't... touch him.”

“Oh.” Sally sighed and leaned against the wall, looking defeated.

“I'm going to do things the right way this time.”

“Percy, what are you saying? Nico isn't like that. He's kind and calm and…”

“Super obedient? Likes to please everyone around him?”

“Percy, I forbid you to--”

“He's a submissive, Mom. What do you want me to do? Why do you think I've distanced myself from him? Is that what you want?”

“I decide what happens in this house and that's not going to happen.”

“It's too late, don't you see? I didn't start this.”

“What?”

“That's right. Nico has been having fun without me in Italy. And if I found a place and was welcomed, I'm sure he did too.”

That finally put an end to the argument. Sally looked devastated to a point Percy hadn't seen before, not even when she found out Percy was suicidal.

“What could have happened to make Nico want these things? He must have learned it from someone.”

It was a good question. For a little boy who avoided even the mention of sex to become a submissive, it was a big step.

“Maybe what he told us about Hades is worse than we thought?”

“Percy! I don’t want to think about that possibility.” Sally put her hand to her face, refusing to believe that Hades would be capable of sexually abusing such a defenseless little boy. When she looked back at Percy, Sally had a strange glint in her eyes. “It seems like we have more work to do.”

“Mom, no! Nico didn’t say anything about it. I don’t want him to feel pressured.”

“Honey, of course he didn’t say anything about it. Would you? That’s what abusers do. They manipulate people who are more fragile than they are and make them believe that no one will believe them. Nico needs a little push in the right direction.”

“I don’t know. We’ll talk to him, if that’s the case—”

“Leave it to me.” Hades Di Ângelo doesn't know who he's messed with!

***

Percy's life was a big ball of tiredness, because that's how he felt. A small thing that seemed unimportant, from one moment to the next, grew and grew, and before he knew it, the small signs of danger became a whirlwind of problems. He wasn't complaining, it was better to know what was going on than to be caught off guard later. The first of them was his mother always getting involved in things she shouldn't. They went down the stairs and he knew right away; as soon as they got downstairs, he saw Sally straighten her spine, as if she was getting ready to go to war.

Luckily, the three people present hadn't noticed their presence. Nico was sitting in front of the dining table, looking irritated by something Tyson was saying to him, while Grover just laughed, stretched out in the chair where he sat. Then, before anything could happen, Percy grabbed her shoulder, smiled and leaned down towards his mother, whispering:

“Mom, we talked about this.”

“I need to--”

“No, I'll talk to him when the time is right.”

“Per--”

“Promise me. I'm serious.”

“Perseus Jackson!”

That finally caught Nico's attention. Percy ignored his mother's glare at him and walked towards Nico. Sally could get all annoyed, today was not the right day to discuss these things; today, he would put Nico on a pretty leash and do things the right way.

That is, Percy would do that if Nico would let him. Because that was his second problem of the day. It was even funny if Percy was honest with himself. Nico glanced in his direction for a brief moment and, just like that, ignored him. Nico went back to looking at the plate in front of him, moving the food with his fork from side to side, not seeming interested in eating.

“Looks like someone didn't have a very good night.” Tyson continued, chewing as he spoke. It was kind of disgusting. What could Percy do? When his brother was in this kind of mood, nothing could stop him. Except when Nico was in an even worse mood.

In slow motion, Percy saw Nico pick up a still-warm bagel, stare at it for a moment and then Nico threw the bagel in Tyson's face, ending his brother's laughter, but making Grover laugh out loud, who almost fell backwards from laughing so hard.

“Now, who's not having a good day? Hm?” A victorious smile appeared on Nico's face and in the greatest display of childishness, Tyson stuck his tongue out at Nico, picking up the roll that had fallen on his plate and taking a big bite of it.

“Thrown food tastes even better. Let's see who wins?”

It was clear that immaturity had won this round. Percy saw no other alternative but to play the adult. Just as Nico was about to throw another piece of bread, Percy stopped beside Nico and touched the back of his neck. He didn't even hold him, just placed his hand on Nico's neck. The effect was immediate. Nico stopped with his hand raised and looked up, his face a mischievous boyish expression. 

"Behave yourself." Those words seemed to have an even more powerful effect. 

Slowly, Nico lowered his arm, put the bread on his own plate and looked down, all embarrassed. Percy hadn't even scolded him or told him to stop, but it was as if he had. It was... intoxicating. If Percy gave Nico any order, would he obey? 

"Eat," Percy said and waited to see what would happen. For a moment, no one moved. Nico remained huddled against the seat of the chair, fidgeting uncomfortably. Not even the sound of his mother's heels approaching seemed to wake Nico from his bubble of shame. Nico remained like that for a few more moments and finally picked up the fork again, this time cutting a piece of the pancake and bringing it to his lips, looking like he was going to burst into tears at any moment.

“Good boy.” Percy said once more, testing to see what Nico would do. 

He stroked the hair there and felt Nico immediately relax, chewing slowly under his attentive gaze and blushing discreetly. The real question was whether things had always been like this or if it was something new. 

Percy looked at his family who now seemed as well-behaved as Nico, although he saw how Tyson and Grover looked at him with a strange smile on their faces or how his mother disapproved of him, still with her arms crossed, now sitting in her chair. The important thing here was that no one had found the scene strange. It was true that sometimes he had to break up arguments like this, without importance. The question there was, had Nico always reacted to him this way? Percy hated what his brain did to him, erasing this type of information and then making him question if it was real or if it was just his fertile imagination inventing fantasy scenarios. 

“Where did you…” Nico began to say, still looking at his own plate. “You weren't in bed when I woke up... did something happen?”

“I had to leave really fast. It's a surprise.”

“Surprise? I’m gonna like this?”

What Percy heard was a "will it be fun?"

“I promise you will.”

“I just... don't like waking up alone.”

Hm. Percy understood, he really did. But since Nico wanted to go down that path, Percy had an obligation to be responsible.

“This won't happen again. I had a good reason.”

“And that is...?”

“You'll find out. Soon.”

Percy had spoken with a tone of finality that he usually didn't like to use. See, he was the dominant one here, right? So, he would act like one. And Nico seemed to be aware of that, even if they hadn't had a serious and definitive conversation. Percy knew this because Nico looked away from his own plate and looked at him curiously, and instead of arguing, Nico pouted, going back to eating, taking a forkful of scrambled eggs.

“Do you want some?” Nico took another bite and offered it to Percy, who accepted it only to see a smile appear on Nico's face.

Well, what could he do? Percy pulled a chair closer and let Nico feed him in intervals, where things returned to normal; his family resumed talking and Nico remained quiet, accepting whatever Percy put on his plate.

***

Nico picked up his bag from the floor and accepted it when Percy offered him his hand, hearing the bell ring. It was Friday and that was usually Nico's favorite day, a day with few classes and the whole weekend to rest. Or so it used to be. Since he had come back, every day had been full of ups and downs, little moments that Nico treasured, hoping they would last the rest of his life. He just... he just didn't expect that after so many misunderstandings, things would become so easy. Unpredictable? Yes. But never forced, even when something happened that made his head spin.

Fortunately, this was one of the good times. Since he had woken up that morning, his head had been... empty. Nico couldn't worry about his problems, like the upcoming exams or Annabeth who kept hovering over them. Not even when Percy scolded him at breakfast, taking control of the situation, like he hadn't seen anyone do in a long time, not when it came to him, the "innocent and delicate Nico". Things just seemed to be in the right place again, as if he had never left, however, they seemed to be even better, feeling like they had taken an important step towards the future he had always dreamed of.

“Baby? Are you okay?”

“Hm. Just tired.”

“We're almost there.”

“Okay.”

They really were. Nico had barely noticed the moment they had gotten into Percy's car, he didn't remember putting on his seatbelt or when they had arrived in the neighborhood where they lived. Nico stared out the window, not registering anything, letting his mind wander, empty, Nico feeling so calm and at peace like he had never felt before. Had it been the sex last night? Or was it just Percy's presence? And where did all this peace of mind come from? It didn't matter, he got out of the car when Percy opened the door for him, accepted the hand Percy offered him once again and went upstairs while Percy guided him. Hm... maybe that was it. Things had always been like that for him, hadn't they? The absence of duties and obligations? Not always and not everything, just a little bit. It was okay if Nico allowed himself to not make any decisions for a few hours, right?

"Beautiful. Lift your leg."

"Oh." He did, lifting one leg and then the other, allowing Percy to take off his sneakers, socks and pants.

When had they entered the house and gone to Percy's room?

"Arms."

Nico lifted them too, Percy exchanging his shirt for a comfortable t-shirt.

"Better? Some water?"

Nico didn't hesitate, took the glass of water from Percy's hand and drank it in one breath, feeling better immediately.

Could something have happened during the day to make him feel this way?

"Good boy." Percy said and kissed his face, holding him by the back of the neck, practically cradling him in his lap.

Something ignited in his brain, pleasure radiating through his body for no reason.

Oh, so that was it? That must be the reason he was feeling so light and content. It shouldn't be normal to feel like that for so long, right? He had woken up in a bad mood, but soon that feeling of doing the right thing and being in the right place filled him, making him forget that he should be mad at Percy.

“I... don't talk to me like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like that... with that voice... touching me like that…”

“I've always done that. What’s changed now?”

“I…” Nico was starting to not care if Percy did that on purpose. Was it normal to hear someone's voice and immediately feel all those things?

Nico heard Percy laugh and a shiver ran down his spine. It was a low, deep sound near his ear, making him realize that Percy was, in fact, doing that on purpose. Maybe he had groaned and clung to Percy's neck, Percy nibbling on his shoulder, moving up until he found his earlobe once more.

"Okay, I admit it," Percy murmured. "You've been very susceptible to... suggestions. Is it me or is it something general?"

"Just you," Nico found himself saying, realizing it was the truth. "I think... I trust you."

"I feel honored," Percy said without any irony, his low, velvety tone giving way to something more normal. "I was afraid this would happen. I will never abuse the trust you put on me."

"I know that. I’ve never doubted that."

"That's why I have to talk to you about something."

Oh, no. Was he in trouble?

Thank you for joining me on this journey. See you next time.

For all you worldbuilders out there, I don't know if you know, but r/worldbuilding on Reddit made this Google Doc with a ton of resources they gathered. Thought that might help some of you.

Sterek Teacher!AU | Part 2 [Click here for Part 1]

“That wasn’t very subtle.”

Stiles shrugged and walked closer to him, sitting on his desk. “Wasn’t meant to be.”

“Stiles.”

“What? It’s not like everyone doesn’t know I have a crush on my history teacher. They just don’t know the good part.”

Derek sighed, raising his hand to run his fingers through Stiles’ hair. “You’re gonna get me arrested.”

Stiles scoffed and leaned forward, throwing a quick glance at the closed door. “That’s okay, I’ve got a double of the keys.”

Rolling his eyes, Derek put his hands on Stiles’ hips and used them as leverage to push his chair forward, placing his body between Stiles’ thighs. “Why does that not surprise me.”

“Besides, my dad already knows and he doesn’t care.”

“What?!”

TBC

i felt like there wasn’t enough polyam trio art memes so i decided to make my own <3 self indulgence be damned

❤️💛💙

( feel free to share and tag me in any of the cute art you make i would love to see!!! 🥺💕)

Who else gets this kind of surprises? 😅

Weird how the non canon ships in Rick Riordan's books tend to have a better and more interesting history together, better chemistry, healthier dynamics,and feel more natural than the canon couples; plus a lot of wasted potential. Examples are Reyna x Jason, Nico x Percy, Rachel x Percy, Leo x Piper, Jason x Nico or Jason x Leo.

It's like the more Rick wants you to ship something,the more it feels forced and has red flags that are kinda hard to ignore. The only exception being Hazel and Frank