Archive of Our Own ^beta

Nico came back at exactly eleven minutes past two a.m.. Percy knew that with certainty because he had been alternating between staring at the door and at the clock for the most part of the day, since the moment Nico had contacted him via Iris Message to tell him he would come home today.

He had looked so tired, smiling softly at Percy when he told him he missed him, and Percy wanted nothing more than to cradle him into his arms, kiss him wherever he could reach, and make sure he was really okay.

Of course, he knew that Nico wouldn't use the door to get inside the house. Instead, like every good son of Hades, he materialized in the shadows in a way that would have scared anyone who didn't know him. Percy was used to it though, and he did expect to see him stumble into the room from the shadows - he had kept the room dark enough precisely because of that.

What he did not expect was for Nico to choose the shadow on the ceiling and to literally fall into the room. But it didn't really matter, because Percy's senses were so used to be tuned on Nico's presence and his every movement that his body moved before he even registered it, catching the falling man easily into his arms.

“Welcome back”, Percy said. He didn't let Nico go, holding him close to himself, bridal style - the weight in his arms was familiar and welcome, as was the beautiful eyes looking into his own.

“I'm home”, Nico murmured back. There was mirth in his smile as he looked at Percy, hugging him around the neck, head resting against his shoulder. He looked as happy to stay there as Percy felt. “You caught me”.

“Of course”, Percy said. “Was it a test?”

Nico hummed in assent. “You passed”.

“Of course I did”.

“I knew you would”.

Oh, Percy had missed him so much. Here, standing in the middle of the room with the man he loved in his arms, Percy thought that this was what home felt like. As dramatic as it might have seemed, he had been feeling like a part of himself was missing for the whole three weeks Nico had been away. They had kept in contact through Iris Message as frequently as they could, but it wasn't the same; it wasn't enough to lighten the burden weighting on Percy's heart, a weight he knew Nico shared. 

Nico seemed to read his mind. He hugged Percy closer, hiding his face in the crook of Percy's neck, leaving a feather soft kiss there.

“I missed you”.

“Me too”, Percy said. “So much. I'm never letting you go again”.

Nico let out a soft laugh at that, and Percy felt it tickling on his skin. “I don't think my father would agree with that”.

“I have some experience in defying you father, I think I can manage”.

Another laugh. Oh, how Percy had missed the sound.

A beat, a moment of silence. Percy buried his nose in Nico’s messy hair, breathing him in. 

“I really really missed you, Neeks”. 

He had been worried, too, but he didn’t say that out loud. It wouldn’t be fair, not when Nico had his job as the ambassador of Pluto to do, not when Percy himself sometimes had quests to participate in to help the Camps - it was their job, and being worried about each other came together with it, it was a given in a demigod’s life; they couldn’t help it and they both knew, but it didn’t make it any easier. 

When their eyes met, Percy knew Nico was thinking the same thing.

When they kissed, they could taste relief on each other’s lips.

They had been together for long enough that kissing and being into each other’s arms should have probably lost its magic; it should have been familiar like something that you have always there, that is such a huge part of your everyday life that it becomes an afterthought. It wasn’t. Instead, it was familiar in a way that made it impossible to take it for granted, it was familiar in a way that Percy needed , in the way that made their everyday life worth living. They kissed, and every time Percy thought this is why I survived everything I have. To have this.  

Percy kissed him now, and thought that he would never get tired of doing it, even in a million years spent together.

Nico melted into his arms, lips spontaneously opening against his. The sound of a content sigh got lost in between them, and Percy wasn’t sure if it was his or Nico’s. It didn’t matter, they were breathing into each other’s mouths anyway, the sound swallowed in between them.

They stood there in the middle of the room, Nico still cradled in Percy’s arms, kissing and kissing and kissing until they had no breath left in their lungs. 

“You can put me down now, you know”, Nico said after a moment of silence.

Percy just adjusted his hold on him, hugged him closer. He would probably need to do it in a short while when his arms would inevitably start to complain, but for now he was perfectly happy and comfortable like this. “Don’t wanna”.

Nico looked at him, smiled, and kissed him again. Percy knew what the light in his eyes meant, felt it in the heated way their lips met this time, in the way Nico was holding onto him almost desperately, the way he pushed his tongue into Percy’s mouth like he wanted nothing more than to devour him. 

It was different from the languid sweet kiss from just a few moments before. This was a different kind of I missed you , a different kind of I need you , another face of their I love you .

It was the kind of kiss that made Percy feel like Nico was touching him everywhere all at once, that demanded everything from him, every bit of attention, every bit of his soul.

When Nico kissed him like that, it made Percy want to give up everything just to fall on his knees and worship Nico like he deserved.

He kissed back, just as hungry, just as desperate, giving Nico everything he was asking for. 

It had always been like that, between them - one single glance, one single word, and things escalated. That was how they had found themselves falling into bed together even before confessing and getting together properly; it had caused problems, back then, but now they could allow themselves to give in to it without a second thought, could get lost in the feeling of want eating them up without worrying about what waited for them on the other side of it.

Percy only forced himself to move back when he remembered, amidst the haze that was filling his mind, that Nico had just come back after a three weeks long job. Nico whined at the loss of contact. 

Percy took a moment to catch his breath. 

“Wait”, he said. “Have you eaten?”

Nico nodded. The way he was clearly a little annoyed made Percy smile. 

“You sure?”

This time Nico rolled his eyes fondly at him. “Hazel was with me, you know what that means”.

“Mh, yeah, I can trust her to take care of you”.

“You should trust me” , Nico said. Anyone else would have thought that his frown meant he was seriously mad, but Percy knew him too well. 

“I do, with everything”, he said, kissing his nose gently. “But I also know how quests can go, and how they can distract you”.

Another kiss, long and sweet. The heat from before was still there, boiling just underneath the surface. Honestly Percy just wanted to give in to it.

“You sure you’re not tired?”, he asked, in between shared breaths. He could feel the heaviness of Nico’s tired bones, had noticed the way his eyelids had looked heavy earlier when he had just arrived; and he knew how tiring a quest could be, especially such a long one. Nico could sleep, and they could just start again the next morning.

“I am, a little”, Nico replied, and Percy was about to put him down and let him get some well deserved rest. He stopped when Nico held onto him tighter, got his lips close to Percy’s ear, and murmured, “So, take care of me tonight?”

And it was like a fire was lit inside of Percy.

How could he deny him?

Just those words were enough to make arousal fill every inch of his body, strong and prepotent and impossible to ignore. Nico knew the effects it would have on him, of course, knew exactly what to say and do to make Percy do whatever he wanted. And Percy loved it.

Barely suppressing a groan he changed his hold on Nico, moving his hands under his thighs as Nico wrapped his legs around him. Kissing him was easier like this, the new angle making their lips fit perfectly together, the higher position allowing Nico to push for more as Percy opened up against him. Hands were buried in Percy's hair, touching and pulling on it impatient and demanding.

Without breaking apart, with his eyes still closed and lost in the malestorm that was Nico, Percy started walking towards their bedroom. He didn't need to see to know where he was going, and the house was coated in shadows anyway - still he was too busy to worry about bumping into anything. There wasn't anything that could make him separate from Nico right now.

Only when they did reach the bedroom Percy moved back, putting just enough space between their lips that he could catch his breath. He could feel Nico's hard breaths mixing with his own.

Gently he let him down, resting him on the bed. Their bed, sometimes it was still hard to believe it. But there they were now, in their home, on their bed, hands still touching each other like they couldn't bear to separate even for one instant - and Nico was looking up at him, looking beautiful and ethereal in the moonlight coming in from the window. There was lust and anticipation in his eyes, and so much love Percy felt himself drown in it.

Under that stare he took a moment to take off his shirt, then his trousers, and finally his underwear, leaving himself naked and bare for Nico to see. Oh how he loved this, how he loved to be the only object of those eyes, the only one who had the privilege of being at the receiving end of that passionate and devoted look. He could feel himself grow harder just by the weight of it.

Nico reached out, and Percy joined him on the bed. He helped him out of his clothes, slow and gentle, as he could feel the weight of Nico's weary bones, the tiredness of his every move mixed with the need for this, the need for the contact and the touch.

It was a familiar thing, that of taking off each other’s clothes, slowly getting bare before one another, as familiar was the sight of Nico’s beautiful scarred pale skin - yet it never failed to make Percy’s breath stop in his throat, his heart beating like crazy in his chest and blood boiling in his veins. Even in the heat of the moment he could never deny himself a few moments just to look , hungry eyes caressing every inch of skin they could reach, hands following behind shortly after on the same path. He pulled Nico in closer, and the kiss that followed was heated and slow at the same time. Nico’s hands left a burning trail where they moved along on Percy’s skin. They moved on the bed until Nico was on his back and Percy on top of him.

It never failed to amaze Percy how perfectly they fitted together, skin against skin, bodies finding where they belonged against each other. Nico was still smaller than him, and Percy loved that he could cover him like that, having him underneath himself, swallow him whole. He loved that despite this, Nico almost always had the reins of the situation anyway.

They broke the kiss in a moan when their half hard lengths pressed together, leaving them panting into each other’s mouth.

“Are you going to show me just how much you missed me?”, Nico said, whispering the words directly into Percy’s soul.

Percy could feel his pleased smirk against his own lips. Even in his tired state, Nico knew perfectly well how to push every one of Percy’s buttons.

“As if I could ever deny you”, Percy replied, blood rushing into his veins. “Whatever you want”.

“I want you”.

It was such a simple thing to say, such an obvious truth that Percy knew already, had known for years, and it had been so long since the last time he had doubted it. But it still got his heart running, jumping into his throat like it wanted to escape and leap into Nico’s waiting hands.

Percy moved back enough to look into Nico’s eyes. He couldn’t see him properly, as he was coated in the shadows casted by Percy’s own body; it didn’t matter, Percy could see the look in his eyes even in the dark, would see it in his dreams and with his own eyes closed. “You have me”, he said. “Always”.

Another kiss. Nico tasted like everything Percy wanted, now and forever. 

He moved his lips to Nico’s neck, sucking on the sensitive skin, taking it in between his teeth, soothing the bruise with his tongue. Every little sound that was coming out of Nico’s mouth pushed him to bite a little harder, to leave a more permanent mark. Bite marks looked especially pretty on Nico’s neck, their color a stark contrast against the pale skin.

Nico moved to give him better access, one of his hands buried in Percy’s hair, keeping him in place, his legs around Percy’s waist, pulling him closer. Percy could feel the breath catching in his throat every time a movement made their hard cocks slid between their bodies, the pressure and friction so good and not nearly enough at the same time.

“I’m gonna make you feel so good”, he said into Nico’s ear, before taking the lobe in between his lips.

“I- ah , I know you will, baby”.

Percy couldn't help it - he preened at the word,  an unintentional pleased sound escaping from his throat. There was just something about Nico calling him that, something that made Percy lose himself a little more every time. He loved getting lost in Nico, forgetting himself for a little while and just focusing on him, on how to give him pleasure, how to make him feel good.

And so he moved from his neck to his collarbone to his chest, kissing and biting every inch of skin he could reach, letting himself get lost in the taste under his tongue and the sweet sounds coming from Nico and filling his ears. Tomorrow Nico's skin would be a beautiful map of every heated touch, and Percy would wake up and trace it with his fingers, marveling at how beautiful he was.

Down, and he took a pink hard nipple between his lips, sucking and biting just hard enough, just how Nico liked - and he was rewarded with a high moan and a hand gripping his hair so tight it almost hurt.

Few things felt as good as having Nico underneath himself like that, all bare and waiting for him, all for Percy to taste and touch and give pleasure to; tired and exhausted and yet waiting and wanting nothing but Percy. Percy wanted nothing more than to be good for him, to give him pleasure to the point he couldn't take it anymore, to make him arch under his touch at the plea of his name.

A kiss, just where Nico's heart was. A kiss, long and lingering.

I love you so much , he thought, and believed that Nico could feel it, hear it in the sound of his own heartbeat.

Down, again, leaving a trail of soft gentle kisses behind, on Nico's sternum, on his belly, on his hipbones. Nico's legs opened to accommodate him, and Percy moved to his thighs, beautiful and sensitive and so easily marked up. The soft skin tasted perfect under Percy's teeth and tongue. He kissed over a few scars - that was a habit they both had, that of wanting to leave marks over scars, like an attempt to rewrite with something better whatever painful moment had left a sign on their bodies.

“Percy…”, Nico called, breathless already. The name always sounded so beautiful on his lips. It was a request, and Percy understood. 

He licked his lips before finally bringing his mouth on Nico's hard length, wrapping his lips around the head, teasing with his tongue that spot he knew would help to drive Nico crazy. Just a little, not enough to make him come, but enough to make him arch under Percy, to make him moan and cry out asking for something more. 

The broken moans of Percy, and baby, went to Percy's head and groin, and he moved down a little more, taking more of Nico into his mouth, closing his eyes as he drowned in the sounds and taste filling his senses. Nico's legs were wrapped around him, his hands on the back of Percy's head, forceful yet careful at the same time.

Percy loved this, loved how he knew perfectly where to touch to make Nico come undone under him, loved that he could just do this, could love him and show it with every part of his body and every part of his soul. Loved that Nico's taste was so engraved in his senses that it almost felt like his own.

When he could feel that Nico was about to come, he moved back, letting him fall out of his mouth. A whine escaped Nico at the loss of contact, and Percy, breathless, let his tongue run over the length of his cock one last time, a final kiss lingering on the head.

Nico brought his hand under Percy's chin, pushing to make him look up at him. Fingers brushed against his lips, thumb stroking his lower lip, gentle at first then harder, pushing in between until it was inside Percy's mouth.

Nico was beautiful - there was no proper word to describe him, but beautiful was what always came up to Percy's mind whenever he tried to find the right way to describe him. Sometimes, the word was almost enough - never quite able to encompass everything that Nico was, but close, almost good enough. Now though, the sight before Percy's eyes was more - more than beautiful, more than perfect, mesmerizing in a way that the word itself couldn't catch; there were no words that could describe the way Nico looked right now, bathed in moonlight, with his sensitive skin flushed pink, white and shining with sweat, marks starting to form on it, his swollen lips parted, breathing hard. And his eyes, soft and intense at the same time, fixed on Percy, lust and love tangled together in them, and so strong Percy found himself unable to breathe. He knew that the same look was probably mirrored into his own eyes as he looked back at Nico. 

There were no words to describe Nico like this, and there was no need for them - this was a sight no one but Percy was privy to, it was his .

“Come here”, Nico said, his voice raw and breathless, and it pulled Percy out of his own dazed thoughts.

They met in a long messy kiss, mouth opened against each other, like they couldn't get enough, like they wanted, needed, to devour one another. 

“You're being so good for me”, Nico said, and Percy melted at the words. “You're so good at taking care of me”.

A whine escaped Percy and Nico swallowed it in the next kiss.

Hands were traveling all over each other, legs tangled together, every inch of their bodies pressed together. Percy couldn’t wait to be inside him, feeling Nico surrounding him completely. It didn’t matter how many times they did this, it always felt as heart-stopping and significant as the first time.

Nico always seemed to be reading his mind, because the next thing he said was, “I really need you inside me now, Percy”, with a low and clearly affected voice, speaking the words against Percy’s lips.

“Yeah”, Percy breathing, nodding.

He moved back enough to reach out and take the lube and a condom from their bedside table, opened the bottle and coated his fingers in it, then went back to kissing Nico. He really couldn’t go too long without doing it. He kept kissing him as he opened him up with his fingers, careful and slow, taking his time both because he didn’t want to hurt him and simply because he loved doing this. 

As they kissed, Percy could feel on his lips every breath broken in pleasure, every moan and every whine as he kept moving his fingers inside him. 

“I’m- ah, I’m good”, Nico said. “Come on, baby”.

One more kiss, heated in anticipation. 

Nico’s eyes were locked on him, hungrily following his every move as Percy put on the condom and coated himself in lube. The heat and weight of that stare would end up driving Percy crazy one day - crazy with need and passion and so much love that he didn’t know how he hadn’t gone mad yet; or maybe he had, and Nico with him, but as long as they were together in this nothing mattered anyway.

Nico pulled him down and Percy went willingly, putty in his hands. Their lips were made to kiss each other.

“I love you, Neeks”.

Percy had to say it. The words weren’t enough, but he needed to say them, just three little words to describe something that was so big, impossible to really put into words. Their hands found each other, fingers interlacing naturally.

“So much”, Nico replied, squeezing his hand. “ So much , love”.

When he finally slid home inside of Nico, they stayed there, panting into each other's mouths for a handful of long moments, getting adjusted and just feeling each other.

“You feel so good”, Nico said, voice row and broken. “You always feel so good”.

A moan cut him off when Percy shifted a little, the movement enough to make his eyes roll back.

“Move, Percy, please”.

And Percy did. Slow at first, then harder and faster, as control started slipping from his fingers and Nico kept pulling him in with the legs wrapped around his back. They were one, joined in every possible way - this was what made Percy lose his mind. It felt impossibly good, to be with Nico like this, a gift so precious it had taken Percy a long time to believe and accept he really could have this.

Their mouths were still pressed together, the kiss broken by moans but they still kept breathing together, swallowing each other’s every sound.

Percy wrapped his free hand around Nico’s cock, and the next moment Nico was coming with a moan and a broken plea of Percy’s name.

It took barely another few thrusts, and the whisper of “come for me, baby”, from Nico, to push him over the edge, and then Percy was coming too.

Time slowed down as they caught their breaths, long moments of stasis that stretched over as the intense heat from before gave way to the slow and lazy intimity that always came after.

Slowly, gently, Percy pulled off Nico, kissing his cheek at the weak sound of protest that elicited. He tied and threw away the condom, and then he was back with Nico, pulling a blanket on top of both of them and wrapping him tight into his arms.

Nico looked content and spent, his eyes already threatening to fall shut as he looked up at Percy with a soft smile on his lips. It seemed that exhaustion was catching up to him all together, and he looked seconds away from falling asleep. Percy leaned in to kiss him again, soft and chaste. These were some of Percy’s favorite moments, the slow lazy moments in between, when time seemed to stop existing, like it was waiting for them to catch their breaths.

“I really missed you”, Nico said, the words coming out slurred. “I never want to be away for so long again”.

Percy agreed. It might have sounded dramatic and silly, but he hated it - he could be away from Nico, but he simply didn’t want to.

“Next time, I’m coming with you”.

It didn’t matter if it wasn’t easy, they would find a way.

Nico hummed happily as he got comfortable with his head pillowed on Percy’s chest, Percy’s hand on his head, caressing his hair slowly. The weight of Nico’s body on him was everything Percy needed after way too many nights spent sleeping alone.

“You should sleep now”, he said, leaving a kiss on top of Nico’s head.

Tomorrow, as time would start moving again, Percy would kiss him good morning and make him breakfast, they would stay in bed the whole morning kissing lazily, and Nico would tell him about his quest, and Percy would tell him about the little mundane things that had happened while he was away. And they both would think that that was what they wanted from life.

Tonight, Percy fell asleep thinking that this was the forever he wanted.