Nico and Jason made their way up to the dining hall one morning, discussing tactics to get to the House of Hades and to rescue Percy and Annabeth from Tartarus. Jason had been adopted as the leader of the quest, and Nico had been to Tartarus and escaped before, so who else better to ask for assistance in making a rescue plan than the one person who knew what it was like? As they made their way into the dining hall, the last two to enter, their discussion got heated. "What if we, like, swooped down like a bird, dropped a bunch of bombs, pick up Annabeth and Percy, and fly away into the sunset?" Jason suggested. Nico sighed. "Look, Jason, it isn't that easy. If they even make it to the Doors, let's just say they do for the sake of a plan, it's surrounded by monsters. They're two of the most powerful demigods in history. It will not be easy for them to escape."

Jason hadn't thought of that. He had imagined the Doors as a neat little doorway in a little hut in the forest where monsters popped out every couple of minutes. He hadn't realized it was that complex.

"So, let's say Annabeth figures out a plan for the two of them to get out, and they get out somehow. What if one's not there? What if one of them-one of them…" Jason trails off, and the room becomes quiet. Nico sighs. "Jason, you're a smart kid, but I honestly don't think you realize what these two are capable of. Especially together." Nico's face distorts itself into a frown. They were capable of a lot of things, especially because of their genders. They could have kids, in the future, and most likely, they would. They were capable of so many things Nico and Percy weren't, it almost shattered Nico's brain and his heart thinking about it.

Jason saw Nico's unhappy look and looked down, mumbling, "But Percy..."

Piper was able to put two and two together at this point. Jason had told her that him and Nico had seen Eros, and nothing more. She saw Nico's heartbroken expression. She heard their talks about Percy and Annabeth, and the slightly jealous tone of voice Nico took when he said Annabeth's name.

"Oh my gods," Piper said quietly. "Nico, you don't like Annabeth, do you?"

Nico's dark eyes looked up at her, silently willing her not to say anything. But once Piper was on a roll, she was on a roll. Piper shook her head. "No, you don't. You like Percy, don't you?" There was no reaction from anyone at the table, except a small gasp from Hazel, who came from the era where being gay was unheard of. Nico's sullen expression only confirmed Piper's thoughts. Nico glanced at Jason, who slightly shook his head no. He didn't tell Piper. She figured it out on her own.

Frank stood up, and quickly sat back down when everyone looked at him. "Nico, is that true?" Frank asked the boy, who seemed to radiate an aura of shame. Nico looked at everyone around him. Sat around the table was Leo, the fire boy, Hazel, the only family he had left, Frank, Hazel's shape-shifting boyfriend, Jason, the son of Zeus and sister to his second closest cousin, and Piper, the not-so-Aphrodite daughter of Aphrodite who had given his biggest secret away. If he couldn't trust the small group of demigods before him, he couldn't trust anyone. Nico took a deep breath.

"Uh- yeah. It's true."

The murmured talking and questions came within a second after he finished.

"Don't you realize he's dating Annabeth?"

"You know you're cousins, right?"

"But aren't you a guy too?"

Nico decided to ignore his half-sister's question.

"Yes, I realize he has a girlfriend. Yes, I realize he loves said girlfriend. A lot. The cousin thing didn't occur to me until after I knew who we both were, and by then, it was too late to stop the feelings. I also realize he's happy with Annabeth. And you know what? I'm fine with that. Wanna know why? Because when you really like someone, all you want is for them to be happy. If you're not the one who makes them happy, then fine, so be it. But you accept it and try to move on, because that's the power of love. I'm sorry I expected all of you to understand that." Nico stood up, pushed in his chair, and returned to his cabin.

Leo followed Nico into his cabin. Before he could tell Leo to get out, he held up a finger. "Hear me out, man. Alright. I can't say I feel the same way about Percy as you do, which might be good for you, because you have enough competition with Annabeth. Woah, didn't mean to say that. Forget about that last comment. Anyway, I understand what it's like to love somebody who doesn't love you back. I took a journey to Calypso's island and fell for the girl, which might not have been the smoothest move. But I had to left, which heartbroke me, and if I can't get back to her, I'll have to move on. But I understand, dude. I'll always be here if you need to talk." Leo finished out of breath and with an expectant look on his face. Nico gave a small sigh.

"Thanks, but get out. Don't tell Annabeth." Nico said, shooing Leo out of his cabin and closing the door behind him.

His other visitor was Jason. "Look, Nico, I didn't tell Piper." Jason says, walking into the cabin about three minutes after Leo was banished. Nico looks up at Jason expectantly. "I believe you. I saw the look in her eyes right before she brought it up." Jason heaved a sigh of relief.

"Good. I thought you were gonna, like, beat me up or something."

Nico smiled at the thought of him beating up Jason. "Nah. Why'd you think I would?"

Jason rubbed his neck nervously. "I, uh, heard it somewhere."

"Where in the Underworld did you hear that I beat people up?"

"Percy."

Despite all his nervous energy, Nico managed to laugh.