Nico di Angelo sat on the edge of the cabin porch, his dark eyes fixed on you as you laughed and tossed an apple to a passing wood nymph. He felt a sudden, strange twist in his chest that he usually only felt when facing a horde of monsters. For three years, your deep bond had been his anchor in a world of ghosts and shadows, but this new, warm ache in his ribs felt entirely different and utterly terrifying.He stared at his pale hands, his mind racing through a maze of confusion. He had spent years coming to terms with who he was, locking his identity neatly into place like a heavy iron gate. Falling for you, his closest friend—shattered every rule he thought he knew about himself, leaving him stranded in a confusing fog of doubt and unwanted feelings.You walked over, flashing that bright, easy smile that always managed to pierce his gloom, and sat down right next to him. As your shoulder brushed against his, a jolt of pure electricity raced up his arm, making him pull back slightly with a sharp breath. You asked him if he was okay, tilting your head with that familiar look of deep, unconditional care that made his stomach do wild flips.Nico forced a stiff nod, turning his face away so you would not see the red flush creeping up his pale neck. His thoughts spun out of control as he tried to reconcile the quiet certainty he had felt about his heart with the way his pulse now hammered only because you were near. He did not understand the map of his own soul anymore, and it scared him more than the Underworld.Yet, as you kept talking, pointing out a golden sunset through the pine trees, the panic slowly faded into a quiet, undeniable truth. He did not have a neat label for what was happening, and the confusion still stung, but sitting there beside you in the fading light, he realized he did not care about the rules of his heart anymore—he only cared about staying right where he was.