Chapter Text
Eris’ promise hung over them like the sword of Damocles. Ready to fall precisely three weeks from now. The worries in the back of Nico’s mind grew bigger and stronger every passing day. Looking over the table, into the growing pensive fires in Logan’s eyes, he could see the exact same happening to him.
Logan leaned over the table.
Nico joined in.
“I need to pick something up at my grandparents’ house” Logan said gravely.
“What?! Right now?!” Nico shouted. “We can’t keep ignoring Eris for all these random sidequests! Time’s flying by… We haven’t even come up with a plan yet!”. He waved an angry hand in Logan’s face, accidentally wiping the grave look right off.
“What do you mean plan?” Logan laughed. “We know where she’s at right? That’s where we’ll go. That’s not going to take three weeks”.
Nico glared at his shoulders, stopping them mid shrug.
“Okay, okay. I get it, promise” Logan assured. “But, it’s important. It can’t wait till after… There might not even be an after. And if we die I at least want my grandparents to know who you are”.
Nico sighed deeply. “Alright… You followed me through Hades. Meeting your grandparents seems like a pretty fair trade…” he weighed, making Logan smile “But, what is this mysterious McGuffin we’re picking up?”.
Logan smiled wider. “I'll tell you later”.
Nico gave him a suspicious look, narrowing his eyes a bit.
“Don't you trust me?” Logan pleaded. He nudged Nico in the stomach with his fist.
Nico narrowed his eyes further. “Depends… With my life? Then yeah, sure… With literally anything else? Fuck no”.
Logan cocked his head. “Smart man”. He gave him a pleading look. “Still, just go along with it for now, okay?”.
Nico pursed his lips. “Ugh! Fine”.
The next conflict waited for them outside, in the form of a beat up, red pick up truck. Logan stuck his key in the lock.
Nico blinked at him. “What are you doing?”.
Logan stared at him, slowly turning the key. “Unlocking… The door…?” he explained with a click.
Nico’s eyelids dropped. “Why” he clarified more than asked.
Logan smiled warmly. “I figured we could drive” he shrugged.
Nico’s eyelids dropped all the way down. Drive. To Salt Lake City. No. No way. One day would have been bad enough. This would take days. Days they couldn’t afford. None of this was necessary in the first place. And in this dumptruck no less? There was no fucking way he was going to let him-!
“You’re always the one getting us places. Let me do it this time. Just once” Logan pleaded. “I promise we’ll have enough time left to catastrophize and think of something stupid, okay?” he added with a grin.
Ha! Nice try! Nico huffed smugly. There was no way pleading was going to work on him. Neither was joking. Not this time!
Nico made sure to punish the cursed red rustbucket for being in his life by slamming the door behind him extra hard. He tore the seatbelt around himself. The sharp click locked down his fate for the coming days.
Logan got behind the steering wheel and glanced over, his smile clearly more appreciative than smug, but a close call. Nonetheless, Nico’s scowl folded into a pout.
Logan wasn't afraid to die. Nico had known that, probably from the start, but he’d never realized just how little he feared death until now.
Logan had kicked down the gas pedal before he'd even lowered the handbrake, making the car quite literally leap forward with a loud roar of the engine. Nico couldn't drive, but he was pretty sure that wasn't normal. It hadn't felt normal when he'd gotten thrown into the back of his seat, anyway. The insane pace the truck had shot out with, somehow only kept rising.
After getting used to moving at warp speed, Nico glanced over. No, Logan definitely wasn't messing with him either. He looked more calm than he usually did… Nico braced himself mentally. At least at this pace, it might save them a day…
Nico held up a CD with a scowl, presenting the ‘very badass’ skeleton aiming not one, but two guns at whoever dared to look at it. “Oh, Gods. Am I going to have to suffer through all the two thousand's worst hardrock bands this whole drive?” he asked with genuine horror.
Logan almost tore his eyes off the road to glare at him, barely managing to turn his offense straight ahead. “You actually think I listen to Butt rock?!” he asked in disbelief. “That's a low blow, man! Even for you…”. He shook his head dramatically.
“Well the evidence is right here, isn't it?” Nico countered accusatorily.
Logan quickly glanced over. He turned back to the road with a faint smile. “No, that was my mom's… She probably forgot about it… I hate it, but I can't bring myself to throw it away” he said, low and quiet.
Crap… Nico quickly put it back in the dashboard. “Sorry…”.
“No, don't be! My mom had absolute shit taste in music. It was one of my favourite things about her” Logan said, the faint smile brightened, then turned a little toothier in a clear threat. “But don't ever accuse me of liking that shit again”.
Nico sank into his chair with relief. “So, what are you going to subject me to?” he asked. Whatever it was, he would manage.
Logan got an evil look on his face. “Oh, don't worry. You'll hate it. It's going to be great” he teased.
Nico groaned.
“Only the best for you, Spooky!” Logan promised cheerfully, patting him on the knee.
Despite Logan's threatening words earlier Nico only barely managed to hate the music he'd put on. Some of it was even kinda good. He'd never admit that though. All of it was loud and rough, as he should have expected. It felt very fitting, very Logan. It almost made him feel comfortable…
The sudden hard stop they made sure didn’t. Nico gripped onto his seat, hitting the back with a gasp. He looked around to see what was wrong, to find nothing but a stop sign. Right in the middle of nowhere. Seriously?
“Really? You drive like a maniac, but you listen to traffic signs?” Nico asked in actual genuine interest. “I thought it would go against the whole kinda ‘punk thing’ you've got going on…”.
“What are you talking about ‘punk thing’? Labels aren’t real. They're just a construct” Logan retorted with a smug grin.
Nico pointed at him. “Yeah, see? That right there!” he noted, a little excited.
The corner of Logan’s mouth twitched. “Stop stereotyping me! I’m just saying, they’re just dumb words made up by society to pigeonhole people!” he grumbled.
This was it. He had him right where he wanted him. Nico grinned an evil grin. He exaggerated an angry fist shake “Society” he muttered intensely.
Logan grimaced for a second, with a quick jerk of his head. He avoided Nico’s eyes, keeping them fixed on the road. He opened his mouth and started to say something then quickly clenched his teeth.
Nico had never won this hard. He felt a little bad for him… He decided to spare him. Most of him. “I’m sorry, honey” he offered. He quickly looked away to make sure Logan wouldn’t catch him cracking up. He felt his eyes burn in the back of his head. Nico raised his fist and bit down on it to stop himself from laughing. He heard Logan's fingers rap against the steering wheel, finally urging him to glance around, as apologetically as he could manage through his smirk.
Logan ground his teeth, slowly grinding into a grin. “You're so cute when you say stuff like that. Like one of those pugs”.
Nico stared at him. Then he bent over and put his forehead on the dashboard trying not to show how much that got to him. “I hate how much I love you” he muttered lying through his teeth.
“Love you too, Babe” Logan responded.
Nico glared before he’d even turned to him. “Babe?” he spat "That's way worse than honey. Straight up verbal abuse”.
Logan grinned slightly, glancing over at him. “You're right, you batshit little asshole. I went too far. Sorry".
Nico smiled and leaned back into his seat. “Way better”. He looked at Logan for a while. He thought back to when they first met. Things had changed so much over the past year…
Logan glanced at him again after a few minutes. “You're being a little weird, bud. It's making it hard to concentrate”.
Nico smiled again. “Sorry, reminded me of when we first met and you called me a stuck up bastard... I miss when you really tried to romance me”.
Logan looked a little hurt. “Yeah, sorry…”. He cocked his head a bit. “In my defense, you were being a stuck up asshole though, just a little bit”.
Nico pursed his lips. Yeah… I know. “But, in my defense, you were being kind of an unhinged psycho”.
Logan smiled, a little faintly but sincerely. “Yeah… I know”.
Nico’s smile returned with a warm feeling. He let out an amused huff. Logan side-eyed him, a little warily. “Just hit me how lucky you are to have me, that's all” Nico said reassuringly.
Logan smiled, genuinely. “Yeah, we both could have done a lot worse, huh?” he said with a low voice.
Nico felt himself warm up even more. “Yeah” he muttered back quietly. “Don’t think there is any better” he added, so quietly it wasn’t even a whisper.
‘I heard that’ a nudge in the arm warned.
Nico had never stayed at a roadside motel before. It wasn’t something he’d been that keen on trying out, but here they were. The run down rectangle made up of even more run down rectangles tried its very best to prove all assumptions people made about motels right. The chained down appliances, large dark stain in the middle of the carpet and suspicious amount of locks on the inside of the door promised their safety was in the worst hands.
Nico wasn’t actually all that worried, of course. Them being themselves, the murderers were probably more scared of them than the other way around. They seemed shy enough this early at least, as the hasty clicks of locks and fluttering of curtains led the way back to the car.
Nico and the motel gave each other one last apathetic glance goodbye before he got in. He wasn’t going to miss it, or all the things going bump in the night. To be fair, most bumps were theirs. He chuckled soundlessly.
Logan paused and tossed the car door back shut. “Be right back” he said quickly, bending down to grab something through the open window.
Nico stuck up a hand and watched him walk back inside. Logan didn’t bother adjusting his coat when it slipped off one shoulder. Combat boots untied. Tired, Nico concluded. Driving hours on end will do that to you, even after a goodish night’s sleep. Nico wasn’t even driving, and still grew more weary every mile.
He looked out the other window. The mid-west had its charm, with its rolling rivers, plains and farmlands, but after a while… He stared at the horizon for a bit, angry music shouting at him from the background.
The sound of a familiar, melancholic piano flowed out of the radio. A haunting, ethereal voice gracefully overpowered it. My Immortal…? He hadn't guessed Logan would be into that. In a very roundabout way it wasn't that far off from his usual taste, but still. Nico smiled to himself. It wasn't exactly his favourite, but it was kind of a guilty pleasure. Good to know he could pick on Logan for this later.
He looked out the window again for a bit as he listened. He actually kinda loved that song… He looked around. Literally nobody. Oh, what the hell, he decided. He knew all the words by heart anyway, and when was he going to get another chance. He sang along loudly as he looked at the sky next to him. It brought him back. Far back. He remembered how he used to sing when he was little. He used to sing a lot. So much he'd get picked on because of it. Man, what happened to him? He'd stopped doing almost anything he loved over the years… Well, there hadn't been much reason to sing.
He started singing louder. He got a little lost in it. Before he knew it the song was over.
Gods, what’s taking Logan so long? He turned to look.
Logan stared back at him leaning on the window frame.
Nico turned to stone. Logan's grin was easily one of the most devious he’d seen yet, but even worse, it was clearly full of admiration too.
“You can actually sing?!” Logan asked loudly with amusement and awe.
Nico finally regained the ability to move, barely. He buried his face in his hands in pure anguish and despair. He sank onto the dashboard.
“Why have you been hiding that?! You're great!” Logan practically shouted at him.
“Just… Get in the fucking car!” Nico demanded, throwing up a hand and slapping the dashboard. He heard the door open and shut. He turned his head a little to glare at him.
Logan chuckled and shook his head. “That's insanely hot” he said proudly.
Nico groaned. “Please, never bring this up again” he pleaded weakly.
Logan smiled brightly. “No way I'm going to promise that~!”. His evil tone didn't match his smile at all. He messed around with the radio. “And I'm definitely putting that on loop”.
Nico's hand shot out to stop him. Their fingers fought tooth and nail.
“Okay! Fine!” Logan laughed, putting up his hand in surrender. “But, then you'll have to put up with me singing” he bargained.
Nico raised an eyebrow. He was actually offering to embarrass himself? That was objectively in Nico's favor. “Uhuh…” he said reluctantly.
Logan punched in some buttons. He started up the car and put on his seatbelt. Suspiciously calm.
Nico groaned as he recognized Kelly Clarkson's voice. Of. Fucking. Course. He stared out the window trying, and failing, to tune out Logan absolutely vandalizing Behind These Hazel Eyes. He looked at the side of the road, debating opening the door and throwing himself out. Probably wouldn't survive… Good… Eh… That would be kinda rude to the farmers though…
Gods, he hoped Logan didn’t find that song too relatable. The words stung a little… He pursed his lips and glanced over, taking in Logan's malicious glee as he shouted over the music. He couldn't help but smile.
The smile endured hundreds more acres of floodplain rolling by.
Nico startled awake at the sound of a car door slamming shut. He rolled over, blinking in the dark. The nothingness around him didn't look right. Unfamiliar shapes lurked right beyond the edge of visibility. Even the quiet sounded wrong somehow. A low, undefined hum flowed down from the ceiling. His heartbeat sped up. He gasped quietly and-!
Wait. A faint, sunny, woodland smell broke through the scent of cheap detergent and triggered his memory. He reached over, finding a warm hand.
Right. They were in a motel. The second one even. He gently squeezed Logan's hand. His breathing slowed down. His muscles relaxed. Man, was he sore from the two day drive… Well, not just the drive, the messy sheets reminded him. He smirked. Guess not everything about motels was bad.
Planted at dusk
He blossomed through the night
Decaying in silence
Dying to see the morning light
Nico narrowed his eyes at the words on the other end of his pen. He slowly pulled the tip back over them, crossing them out. Guess he really wasn’t the ‘dark dramatic poetry type of guy’… Or maybe his time as a plant had been less inspirational than he thought. Well, in any case-!
“Can I see?” Logan asked with poorly hidden excitement, already leaning closer dangerously fast from the driver side.
“Nope!” Nico shouted, tearing the pen all over the paper as hard and fast as he could. He balled up the paper in his fist. For a second, he debated eating it, to get all the shameful ‘feelings’ right back where they belonged. He slumped his forehead against the window instead, watching life pass by.
This time, life didn’t ignore him, lazily glancing over the shoddy wooden fence with hundreds of beautiful brown eyes. Under the splotches of cow all over the pasture, the yellow tips of the earliest dandelions reached for the stars, inspired to take to the sky themselves some day soon.
With one more motel stop they’d finally breached the Utah border, and with that Mormon territory in all its political complexity. It was hard to gauge how the people would react sometimes. Sometimes it wasn’t.
“You two seem close” the motel desk clerk noted, walking a tight line between friendliness and wariness.
Logan pulled Nico against him. “Oh yeah, we're super close. You might even say we're soulmates” he said tauntingly.
The clerk widened her eyes and pursed her lips. Nico shoved him off and walked outside, not sure who he was more annoyed with.
Logan followed soon after, still grinning.
“Stop using me to scare the Mormons” Nico ordered.
“But we’re such a good team!” Logan whined. “I have to try so much harder by myself…”. He pulled Nico against him, kissing him behind the ear.
Nico almost fell for it, until he heard a quiet snicker. He glanced over, at the clerk staring at them wide eyed, pen halfway through a sentence. “I said stop that…” he warned. He went to give Logan an accusatory little smack on the back. He went too low. Way too low…
Logan jolted slightly. He leaned in on Nico's ear. “Harder” he whispered in a husky voice.
Nico's face caught fire instantly.
Nico pulled his eyes off the window to set them on Logan, eyes diligently on the road, but still clearly aware of him.
The amber flared up a bit. “Piercing eyes again, huh? Got anything to say?” he asked.
Nico pursed his lips. He had to give it to him. Driving might have been a complete waste of time, expensive and uncomfortable to add… But when it came to the scenery it had shadow travel beat. Well, when it came to the cohesion of the scenery. Shadow travel was so quick and easy, it was like each place he went was an island, completely detached from the rest of the world. Seeing the cities turn into woods, into farmland, into deserts and finally into the rocky mountains, slow and deliberate, was strangely beautiful in a holistic sense. Not something he got to experience often. His ass hoped he wouldn’t have to do it again soon…
“You're doing it again” Logan said a little accusatorily.
Wh-? Right. “I can multitask” Nico defended.
“Okay, so what did I just say?” Logan countered effortlessly.
Crap. Nico thought as hard as he could. Right! “Something stupid. Final answer” he offered with full conviction.
Logan cocked his head in frustration, stifling a laugh.
Salt Lake city hid between all the hills and highways, then seemingly jumped out all at once. Before Nico was ready, they’d drifted into a parking spot in front of a door and rang the bell.
An elderly woman in an absolutely massive black, knit sweater dress opened the door. She wore her snow white hair in a tight bun. The heavy, seemingly hastily applied make-up on her face hinted at a taste for non traditional art. Her light brown eyes lit up looking at them.
She screeched excitedly at Logan, tossed her cane aside and waddled up to him. After pulling him down to her, she immediately opened fire, kissing him aggressively on the cheek over and over. Logan put his hands on her shoulders and just let it happen, probably used to this.
Nico smiled at the old gentleman still in the doorway, earning a faint smile in return. He also seemed used to this.
Logan definitely took after his grandfather. He had a sturdy build, especially for his age. His dark gray hair was cut a lot shorter than Logan's, but there were still hints of its unruly temper. Short, straight strands stood in various directions, mostly upward. Nico couldn't help making a comparison to a, very handsome, old paintbrush. His expression was stoic, but his warm amber eyes seemed friendly.
Nico was about to introduce himself when Logan's grandmother snapped her face to him, grinning deviously. Nope. On second thought, Logan was the spitting image of her…
“Who's this handsome young man?” she asked accusatorily, jabbing Logan in the stomach roughly.
Nico was about to make another attempt to introduce himself when Logan's grandmother put her hands on his cheeks. Very warm hands. He could feel her get ready to pull him down to her when Logan rescued him.
“Grandma, back off” he scolded, putting a hand on Nico's chest to keep him in place.
Ms. Venema scowled at Logan and reluctantly let go of Nico's face.
Logan scowled back, then smirked. “Grandma, grandpa, this is my ex-boyfriend”.
Fuck…! Nico’s polite smile froze solid, as did Logan’s grandparents. Nico kicked Logan in the ankle.
Logan quickly put up his hands. “Right. Don’t worry! He’s also my rebound!”.
Nico and Logan’s grandfather stared at each other, unblinking, mildly horrified. Logan’s grandmother snickered quietly. She smiled at him expectantly.
“Uh. Hello, I'm Nico. Nice to meet you” he said, sticking out a hand.
She eagerly grasped it with both of hers. “Now, that's a name you don't hear often!” she chirped.
“He's Italian” Logan offered.
Her devious grin returned. “Ooh~! Exciting! I'm so proud of you!” she declared, jabbing Logan in the stomach again.
Nico felt his face burn.
“Grandma!” Logan pleaded angrily.
Mr. Venema slowly pulled Nico's hand free from her grasp and shook it. “We're Logan's grandparents. Nice to meet you too” he offered. He spoke very calmly, soothing even, if it hadn’t been for the slightly authoritarian tone. He gestured inside and made room for them, pulling grandma to his side.
Nico made sure to let Logan go first, giving his nerves some buffer to protect themselves. A long wall filled with memories looked on as they made their way through the house. Nico stopped to admire a memory that caught his attention in particular.
A much younger Logan, probably about eight years old, scowled at the camera in his boy scouts uniform. Nico smiled at him. He took out his phone and quickly snuck a picture.
Nico kept on moving, slowly, eyes on the other pictures as he made his way past. A beautiful young couple smiled back at him.
The young man's smile was subtle, but warm and genuine. He was wearing Logan's coat. The difference being that it wasn't slightly too big for him. That and the very spiky haircut he was sporting.
He held onto a little girl. Her hair gathered in a dark blonde, messy ponytail right on top of her tiny head. She was probably the cutest pineapple Nico had ever seen. The intense amber eyes she would later pass onto Logan looked right at him with wonder.
A pretty looking, young woman clung onto both of them, her back to the camera. All her hair sacrificed to a short buzzcut. She wore a familiar, devious smile. He looked down a little at her very, very short leather skirt. Just a little too short for the pose she was in. Oops. Nico quickly turned away out of respect. Wait, they hung that up themselves…
He glanced at a last picture while walking past. The now slightly less young man sat in the middle of a group of firefighters, in full gear. Stoic as today. A firefighter? Yeah, that made sense, actually…
Ms. Venema proudly tossed a homemade cake onto the coffee table, still damping a warm pleasant odour. She started cutting it in large, uneven pieces.
Nico offered a quiet thanks as she shoved one of the pieces in his face, almost directly into his mouth. He decided to be a little more brave and attempt to break the ice. “I was looking at some of your pictures earlier” he said, gesturing to the hallway.
Before he could continue Ms. Venema trampled over him. “Ooh! You saw my ass!” she chirped excitedly.
Yes, he had. Nico almost choked on his cake.
“Grandma…” Logan pleaded weakly.
“It was in its prime…” Ms. Venema added mournfully.
Anything Nico could say to that would be the exact wrong thing. He turned to Mr. Venema instead. “I saw you were a firefighter”.
Mr. Venema nodded, giving him a pleased look. “Yes” he stated. He inhaled like he was going to say something. Then he went on and just… didn't, taking a sip of his tea.
Logan shot him an irritated look. “You know that's not funny” he said angrily.
Mr. Venema’s eyes twinkled ever so slightly with amusement and mischief, like he absolutely didn't know that. He looked back to Nico. “I was a firefighter for forty two years. I had a pretty good run. That picture is from a few years before my promotion to chief” he explained calmly. “So, you’re from Italy? Being here must be quite the adjustment…”.
Nico smiled. “Well, I’ve been in the US for a couple of years now”. He quickly continued when he saw a devious grin spread on Logan’s face. “I’ve never been in Utah before, though. Logan told me the Mormon community is very big here”.
Mr. Venema raised an eyebrow ever so slightly. “Well yes, but I doubt he was that polite about it” he said, looking at Logan.
Logan smirked at him.
“Still, it would be good to know people aren’t very fond of the word ‘Mormon’ around here” his grandfather gently pointed out.
Nico felt his face heat up. He should have probably asked Logan about social etiquette around the religion before coming along to his grandparents. Then again, he probably would have used it to mess with him… “Ah, I’m really sorry” he said quickly.
Ms. Venema’s cane fell over. She bent down and propped it back up. She waved his words away. “Oh, don’t worry sweetheart. No harm done. We’re not members of the church. Well, not anymore. We’re disaffiliates. Have been for decades, before Logan’s mother was even born” she explained.
“Ah, so you left? That must have been hard” Nico said thoughtfully.
“Yes, I followed Logan’s grandfather out when he left. Used to be a little controversial in the community, but nowadays people don’t seem to mind much. My father did though, I don’t think he ever forgave either of us. Especially not you”. She laughed as she grabbed Mr. Venema’s hand.
Nico gave him a questioning look. Would it be rude to ask? Would it be rude not to?
Mr. Venema met his eyes and smiled slightly before turning stoic again. He spared him the dilemma. “When I turned nineteen the church asked me to go on a mission trip. I figured I would, and I went and traveled for two years with a small group of other young men. It was a little jarring that wherever we went people avoided us like the plague…”. His eyes narrowed a little, lost in the memories.
Ms. Venema’s cane fell over. She bent down and propped it back up.
Mr. Venema continued. “I’d never considered how different other people lived before, or that we weren’t what most people considered ‘normal’. My world was very small at the time. The church was all I knew. In the end I did end up meeting a lot of people who were very different from us and heard tons of life stories. They asked me lots of questions I didn’t have the answer to. I didn’t know what to believe anymore. Either I wasn’t as ready as the church thought I was, or it was bound to happen, but I left the church after that mission trip. Their ideas just stopped making sense to me. I lost a lot of people because of that, but not any I’d want back” he concluded matter-of-factly.
Ms. Venema’s cane fell over. She bent down and propped it back up. She chuckled. “And then you spent years doing everything God forbids".
Mr. Venema’s eyes glimmered. “Guess I had to make up for some lost time. There were lots of new philosophies to try out”.
She looked at him dreamily. “I have way too many memories of those exciting times” she ran her hand over his arm as she said it.
A faint smile crept over Mr. Venema’s face. “Oh I remember too. I also remember that suddenly I did catch your eye. I had been nearly invisible to you before”.
Ms. Venema laughed. “You were such a bad influence on me” she almost whispered as she leaned into him.
“You were already bad to the bone before I met you” Mr. Venema responded leaning into her in turn.
Logan stuck up his hands. “Okay, now please stop. This is starting to get gross”.
Ms. Venema laughed again and kissed Mr. Venema on the cheek, then she pulled back. Ms. Venema’s cane fell over. She bent down and-!
Logan swiped it off the ground and slammed it down onto the table. His grandmother grabbed hold of it, he didn’t let go. They stared each other down, grinning. The cane trembled between them in fear.
She finally let go. As soon as Logan did the same, she grabbed it and propped it back up.
Like a sweet dessert, the conversation finally took a turn Nico had been secretly hoping for all dinner, a turn away from him, and towards embarrassing anecdotes.
“Remember that time in elementary school? When that sweet young lady asked you to meet behind the shed and you showed up ready for a fight? You scared her so bad that her mother almost had you expelled” Ms. Venema suddenly threw in Logan’s face.
“Well, what else do you meet behind a shed for?” Logan countered with mild annoyance.
His grandmother tutted. “You're lucky you're a looker, sweetheart. That brain of yours isn't going to get you very far…”.
Logan scowled. “I was seven, I wasn't interested in that stuff yet”.
His grandfather let out a gruff hum in agreement. “Back then you were only interested in dinosaurs”.
Nico bit his lip to prevent himself from laughing. Logan closed his eyes in annoyance and leaned away a little.
“You were a boy scout and a dinosaur kid?” Nico asked, unable to let it slide.
“Not at the same time…” Logan defended weakly. “And I stand by dinosaurs, by the way. They're huge vicious monsters” he continued, seemingly getting his nerve back. “It's Utah's fault. They keep making a big deal about them”.
His grandmother shook her head slightly, clearly reminiscing. “The first thing he had to say about any dinosaur he saw was whether or not he could beat it in a fight”.
“That sounds about right” Nico agreed with a smile. “Sounds like he was a handful” he based on all the new information. Well, and all the information he already had…
“Oh, sweetheart. He was a breeze. We’ve dealt with the original. If anything that God of war watered him down” Ms. Venema huffed.
Mr. Venema suddenly seemed a little guarded. “Don’t say that. Samantha might not have been an angel, but…”. He stopped himself.
Ms. Venema gave him a fond smile. “Still daddy’s little girl, hm?”.
Mr. Venema looked down at the table.
Ms. Venema put her hand on his arm. “I know. She was a little rough around the edges, but… She was so sweet, and funny, and warm, and so… Bright. Our adorable little she-devil” she wiped at the corner of her eye as she finished.
A mournful hue hung over Mr. Venema stoic demeanor. Nico felt Logan shift next to him. He looked over. No expression, but he could tell he was uncomfortable.
“She had so much charm. Everyone was drawn to her. Especially men. Those poor bastards” Ms. Venema chuckled. “Remember when she burned that boy’s car down?” she asked.
“Of course I do. I was on call that night. I’m the one who put it out” Mr. Venema responded with mild annoyance. “It cost us an entire paycheck” he added.
Ms. Venema smirked. “Well, he did cheat on her. That wasn’t very smart of him” she countered.
Mr. Venema looked unimpressed. Logan snickered quietly at him.
Ms. Venema continued. “Remember that other boy? The really persistent one who kept standing under her bedroom window even after she broke up with him?” she asked, obviously amused.
“How could I forget? She tried to pour a bottle of detergent on him and took the entire window frame with her when she fell out. She fell right on top of him… He cried so much I took him to the hospital, only to find out all that was wrong with him was a couple of bruises and a broken heart”. Mr. Venema sighed deeply.
Nico put his fist in front of his mouth to hide his grin.
“Not long after that, she met your father” Mr. Venema said.
Nico could tell Logan shifted again. He looked. Logan was a whole different kind of uncomfortable now, almost all of it annoyance.
Ms. Venema hummed. “I remember the first time she brought him home with her. Right out of deployment. So smitten”
“So pregnant…” Mr. Venema complained.
“You always only focus on the smallest details” Ms. Venema complained back at him.
“Large age gap too… Thousands of years…” Mr. Venema added to his growing list of complaints.
Nico snorted, then stopped himself and realized… A couple of decades was much less bad right…? He sure hoped so. Better not to bring it up, to be safe.
Ms. Venema shook her head and rolled her eyes. A faint little smile on her face.
“Aside from that, it was clear she finally met someone with the guts to deal with her. He was head over heels too. You could tell from the way he looked at her that he just adored her. He was so proud when he told us how they met. Said she walked up to him to make fun of him for wearing his sunglasses inside and then drank his beer right in front of him… So Sammy” she reminisced. “Every time she got mad at him he’d send her flowers. Sometimes so many that it looked like a garden in here. She always took him back in the end”.
Logan folded his arms. “Yeah, well, guess that didn’t last very long. After Curt showed up he didn’t dare to show his face even once” he muttered angrily.
There was a tense silence.
“They didn’t see eye to eye on a lot of things. Important things. Sometimes things don’t work out and they get very… Complicated” Mr. Venema tried.
“Why do you always have to stick up for him?” Logan asked, annoyance turning into frustration. “You know he doesn’t deserve it. You don’t like him any better than I do”
Mr. Venema narrowed his eyes a little, looking at Logan pensively. “Well… As I said. It’s complicated” he finally concluded.
“Sure” Logan concluded coldly on his turn.
Another tense silence.
“The bouquet on the coffin was his, you know?” Mr. Venema added, still pensive.
That seemed to set Logan off. Frustration turned to anger. “I don’t care about the flowers!”.
Mr. Venema shifted in his seat. “I know you're angry at him, you aren’t wrong... But you have to try to understand his position. He's the God of war, he can't always do what he wants. He's… Well…” he started stammering.
“Busy? Yeah, I bet. Starting wars, killing people all over the place. Ruining lives. Sounds like a time consuming hobby!” Logan spat. He shot up and threw his chair back, making it hit the wall with a slam.
His grandparents didn't even flinch, calmly watching him storm off.
That was Nico’s cue. He slowly stood up. “I should probably go put out that fire” he offered, gesturing in the direction Logan had just gone.
Mr. Venema gestured for him to sit back down. “I've gotten burned enough times to learn sometimes it's best to let a fire burn out on its own, son” he stated. “He'll come back 'round soon”.
Nico thought about it. Then sat back down. Mister Venema was an expert, after all.
The silence was more awkward than tense now. Ms. Venema excused herself to the bathroom, leaving Nico and Mr. Venema to stew in it by themselves.
Nico cleared his throat. “I guess his father is kind of a touchy subject for him” he stated.
Mr. Venema hummed. “Very” he agreed. “They both are. Not just Ares, but Curtis too”.
Nico felt his chest tighten a little. Oh great, way less awkward. Let’s talk about the man who killed your daughter. Somehow he’d opened a can of worms.
“Ah…” Nico said weakly. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to… You don’t have to talk about him if… I mean…” he stammered.
“Hm, so he told you about him?” Mr. Venema asked, his expression was hard to read.
Nico pulled his lips in a straight line. “Well… I know what he’s done. But no, he doesn’t really talk about him”.
Mr. Venema looked mournful again. “Curtis wasn’t always the monster he turned into. He was a pretty great guy once. A great father too. Not that long ago. Logan Idolized Curtis, you know?”.
Nico swallowed. He wasn’t sure if it was smart to talk about this. He wanted to know more, but this subject seemed very private. Logan would probably get angry at his grandfather too, if he found out.
“Oh” he started “Uhm, I’m not sure if Logan would want you to tell me about that”. Nico saw a faint sad smile on Mr. Venema's face.
“Probably not” he agreed quietly. “But if you’re planning on sticking around it’s probably good to know”.
Nico thought back to the night on the balcony. Logan wasn't very good at talking about this stuff himself. Which was actually kinda rare. He hummed in agreement. “Yes, sir” Nico said. “If you don’t mind, of course” he added.
Mr. Venema looked him in the eye, he seemed lost in thought for a few seconds. ”Well, it’s not that I don’t mind. But, not talking about him isn’t going to erase what happened” he said matter-of-factly.
Nico nodded.
Mr. Venema smiled again. “When my daughter brought Curtis home with her, it was very different. Much less dramatic than Ares. He was a real gentleman. Polite. Calm. Honest. He treated my daughter with nothing but love and respect. He didn't keep it secret that he would have done anything for her. And he doted on Logan from the beginning. He was almost the complete opposite of Ares. In the ways that mattered, at least. He was a bit stern, but warm. Curt wasn’t easily fazed… Even when things got difficult”. Mr. Venema paused, visibly reevaluating the last part of what he said.
He went on. “They seemed so happy for all those years… Nobody saw it coming... This isn’t a story about an evil stepfather. He really, truly, was a kind soul... Curt was very dear to me too... I'm still grateful for all the good he's done…”. His expression turned stone cold. “Of course I would have put a bullet right between his eyes myself if I'd known what would happen…”.
Nico drew a breath.
Mr. Venema met his eyes, his face softened slightly. “It's a terrible shame he didn't get the help he needed in time. We found out much too late what had been going on”.
Nico pursed his lips.
“That's why it's so important to talk about things. Even when they're hard to talk about. Maybe even especially when they're hard to talk about…” Mr Venema concluded almost more to himself than Nico.
Nico agreed with a nod. “Yes, sir…”
“I hope Logan's going to see that soon too” Mr Venema added, still lost in thought.
Nico gave him a reassuring smile. “Well. He's working on it. You know, going to therapy and all”.
Mr. Venema snapped his eyes at his, wide eyed. For a second his stoic demeanor was completely gone in the surprise.
Crap. He didn't know? Was he not supposed to tell him?
Mr. Venema regained his composure. His eyes showed he was still a little affected, he seemed moved.
“That's good to hear” he stated quietly. Mr. Venema smiled faintly.
The door opened and shut quietly. Logan appeared in the doorframe. He ran his hand through his grandfather's hair.
“I'm sorry about earlier”.
Mr. Venema hummed in approval. “You're fine” he replied.
“Cool down a bit?” Nico asked.
Logan shrugged. “Staring angrily at the sun isn't as fun anymore now that I've stopped smoking. So I figured I might as well think about what I'm doing with my life. Apparently yelling at the few people I actually like isn't what I really want”.
Mr Venema looked up at Logan from his chair. Pride in his eyes.
At bedtime, Nico found himself looking at a familiar pensive expression, just not on exactly same face as usual. Mr. Venema glanced at Nico, then at Logan, then back again. He fidgeted with his wedding ring. The slightest furrow in his brow betrayed that he was in the middle of a hardfought internal battle.
Ms. Venema side-eyed him with a grin. “Mr. Venema is still a little old fashioned so he doesn't want you to sleep in the same room, but he's afraid you'll think it's because you're both boys” she explained for him.
He looked at her with mild irritation, but his deep exhale confirmed her theory.
“That's alright, sir” Nico quickly reassured him.
Mr. Venema gave him a faint, grateful smile.
Logan shrugged. “Yeah, that's fine. We'll just have sex in the shower”.
Nico and his grandfather both stared at him, wide eyed. Logan and his grandmother snickered deviously. Mr. Venema quickly made his escape into the hallway. Ms. Venema tapped Logan on the nose on her way to follow him, still grinning.
Merely minutes later Logan barged in.
“I'm not allowed to have boys in my room” Nico warned.
Logan smirked, but otherwise ignored him. He opened every drawer, apparently not finding what he was looking for. He hummed in frustration and rapped his fingers against the last cabinet he'd rummaged through.
“Want help?” Nico offered. “What are you looking for?” he asked, already getting up.
Logan’s eyes lit up. “Nice try, Spooky. You’ll see”. He pushed him back on the bed.
Nico huffed. “It’s hard to hide things from me. I have my ways” he threatened. He willed the shadows to flicker, making sure to smile extra creepily.
Logan’s eyes flashed warm orange. “If you think acting cute is going to get you anywhere, you're wrong” he mused, completely sincerely.
Wh-! Nico sighed in defeat, igniting his face.
Logan chuckled, patting him on the shoulder. His eyes narrowed as his grin grew. The warm grip on Nico’s shoulder tightened the tiniest bit.
Nico put a hand on his knee to stop him before he could pounce. “No fun allowed” he reminded him sternly.
“Fuck the rules” Logan shrugged, inching his knee forward.
“No fucking anything tonight”. Nico shoved it right back in place.
Logan groaned, but let go. He moved his hand up to Nico’s chin, tilting it a bit to the side, then gave him a quick kiss on the forehead, right on the scar. Before Nico’s face could catch fire again, Logan backed off completely. Nico tucked himself into bed, by far the best bed he’d had in days. He curled up, closed his eyes and reached over, at nothing…