**Falling into Darkness**

Prompt: Please create a 20 thousand word story of Percy and Nico falling in Tartarus instead of Percy and Annabeth, who are dating. However, throughout the story, Percy and Nico end up falling madly in love Also, include sexual tension scenes between Percy and Nico throughout the story. The first scene, Percy back away because he does not want to cheat on Annabeth. However, in the next sexual tension scene, Percy ends up kissing and saving sex with Nico after neither of them could deny their feelings any longer.

Percy Jackson felt the world collapse around him as he and Nico di Angelo plummeted into the darkness of Tartarus. The air grew heavy, thick with dread and the echoes of lost souls swirling around them. He barely heard Nico’s voice beside him, shouting about how this was all Annabeth’s fault for getting them into this situation. Percy couldn’t help but smirk at the irony — Annabeth, his girlfriend, was up on the surface, fighting against time and monsters to save him. And here he was, falling into a pit of hell with the son of Hades. The sensation of falling was terrifying, of course, but what Percy found even more alarming was the way Nico’s presence seeped into his thoughts. Percy had always felt a strange bond with Nico, one that combined camaraderie and an odd, inexplicable energy that crackled between them. As they hit the ground — the unforgiving surface of Tartarus — the world exploded around them, throwing dirt and debris into the air. They stumbled to a stop, breathless and disoriented. Percy shook the dust from his hair, glancing over at Nico. The younger demigod was brushing himself off, his dark hair falling over his eyes, and Percy felt a rush of warmth flood his cheeks. It wasn’t the danger of Tartarus or the pit looming behind them; it was the sudden jolt of something raw and powerful between them. “Nico, we need to find a way out of here. Annabeth—” Percy started. “Annabeth has no idea what it’s like to be down here,” Nico cut in sharply, frustration boiling over. “You think it’s just all about her?” “I’m not saying that!” Percy protested, and then took a breath, steadying himself. The last thing he wanted was a fight when they were already in the depths of despair. But he couldn’t ignore the glint in Nico’s eyes, that fierce determination mixed with something else — something secret that was lurking beneath the surface. After what felt like hours of wandering through the twisted landscapes of Tartarus, they set up camp in a cave that offered some semblance of shelter. The walls were damp and echoed their movements, a reminder that they were still very much in enemy territory. As they settled down, Percy felt the tension in the air, thickening like the silence before a storm. “Maybe we should strategize, figure out our next move,” he suggested, trying to keep his focus away from what he felt. The way Nico was staring at him, those dark eyes flickering with uncertainties and desires, made it hard to think straight. “Strategies are useless when we’re outmatched,” Nico replied, sitting closer. “You know that.” The closeness sent tremors of intuition through Percy. “Nico, we can’t lose focus. We can’t let this place drive us apart.” Nico was quiet for a moment, but the tension between them was palpable. Percy felt a magnetic pull, and he instinctively leaned back, creating distance. Deep down, he knew he shouldn’t feel this way. He didn’t want to cheat on Annabeth, no matter what chaos surrounded them. But as the hours passed, the darkness began to weave strange thoughts. Facing monsters had a way of making people confront their feelings. Percy could no longer resist stealing glances at Nico, who had become engrossed in his own thoughts. The way the shadows played on Nico’s face, the gentle curve of his jaw, the slight smirk that teased around his lips — it was dangerously intoxicating. “Nico, listen…” Percy started, but fell silent as Nico looked up. He had intended to set boundaries, but they both knew that boundaries were beginning to crack. “What is it, Percy?” Nico asked softly, his voice laced with both challenge and invitation. Percy opened his mouth, his heart pounding wildly. He wanted to push Nico away, to deny the magnetic energy that had trapped him. But instead, he felt something else — a violent, uncontained desire that threatened to consume him. Finally, in a moment of weakness, Percy leaned in closer, his breath mingling with Nico’s. The walls of the cave seemed to melt away, and in that fragile silence, everything else vanished — even the thought of Annabeth. “Nico…” Percy murmured, torn. But before he could second-guess himself, Nico reached out, fingers brushing against Percy’s wrist, igniting a flame that swept through them both. “You’re not going to push me away this time,” Nico said, his voice barely a whisper, but the command in it was unmistakable. Then it happened. Their lips crashed together, heat colliding against each other with wild urgency. It was as if they had both been holding their breath, and this kiss was the release they desperately needed. Percy moaned softly, surrendering to the moment, the taste of despair and longing flooding his senses. But even as they kissed, a part of Percy screamed out in agony. Annabeth. He couldn’t betray her. He couldn’t do this. With a strength fueled by guilt, he pulled away, breathing heavily, the shock of what they had just done washing over him like a cold wave. “Nico, we can’t…” Percy gasped, his heart pounding as if it were beating for both of them. “I can’t do this to Annabeth.” Nico’s expression fell, hurt flashing in his eyes. “And I can’t pretend this isn’t real,” he snapped, voice tight with emotion. “We’re down here, facing the darkness, and somehow you still want to hold on to that life?” “It doesn’t mean I don’t feel it, too. Don’t you dare think I don’t feel something,” Percy argued, panic rising, yet Nico’s resolve only strengthened. In that dim cave, filled with echoes of their past and the weight of the choices they had made, Percy and Nico were left at the precipice of something greater — something terrifying yet so undeniably right. But the memories of their previous lives held them captive, both aware that every moment they spent together stretched the fragile thread of their resolve. And so they sat in silence, each plagued by their own thoughts, but the silence held a whisper of what was to come — the thin line between desire and duty trembling in the depths of Tartarus, echoing with the possibilities that lay ahead.