Chapter IX

Nico Di Angelo

I was not even sure why I ran. But I did.It was not because Will hurt me. He hadn't. It was nothing like that. I just— I could not stay there anymore. Not in that room. Not with him.The moment his fingers brushed my chest, something inside me twisted. It was not pain. It was not fear. I had given him permission. But there was this feeling — strange and unfamiliar — spreading through me like a spark under my skin.It was warmth. A flutter low in my stomach.And that terrified me more than anything.My feet pounded against the grass as I ran, faster and faster, until the infirmary was far behind me and the air burned in my lungs. I slowed when I reached the edge of the woods, clutching at my shirt as if that could steady the wild rhythm of my heart.Something was wrong with me.It had to be.I had not felt anything like that in years — not since...My breath caught.Since I first met Percy.The realization hit like a wave, knocking the air out of me. I stood frozen beneath the trees, the world spinning around me, the memory of Will's gentle touch still lingering like a ghost against my skin.Gods. What was happening to me?

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