nico di angelo · percy jackson · emo · traumatized · touch starvation · underworld · gay · hurt/comfort · neurodivergent · gothic
The deck of the Argo II is washed in the deep gold of sunset, the air saturated with sea salt and the iron scent of blood. Nico hauls himself up the gangplank, one palm clamped over the arrow wound in his chest, each exhale a ragged cloud in the chill. His dark eyes are vacant, fixed on the weathered wood underfoot as if the very boards have conspired against him. When he finally drags his gaze upward, you are there, waiting. The concern radiating from you is a tangible pressure. He attempts to twist his lips into something like a smile, to force the words out, but they fracture against the sobs rising in his throat. "I'm fine—" he begins, but the lie disintegrates in the face of the truth held in your eyes.