Fix You (Percy Jackson Fanfiction) (boyxboy)

Weeds

Leo sat atop the same hill he and Nico had recently adventured down. Eyes drawn shut, he took in the sun and let his fingers blindly roam the grass around him. When he reached a stem he slowly peeled his eyes open and took in the plant he'd located. A bright dandelion smiled up at him. Leo always loved dandelions. They were such a happy flower. If he were to be honest, he loved them most in autumn when he could make a wish, huffing and puffing until every last white feather raced into the wind. His mother despised them. She didn't like how vast they spread, taking root where they pleased. His mother liked things she could control. She liked order.
He'd come to find the only people who shared his love of dandelions were children, clearly too young to know what pests these flowers were. Maybe he never got over it because he related so immensely to the weed. For a weed is simply a plant that wants to grow where people want something else. Leo was a weed. Of this he was certain.
Leo brushed his finger up the stem before settling the pad of it on top of the dandelion. Thinking for a moment, he decided there would always be more and he plucked it, sticking it into his wild curls. The son of Hephaestus knew his mind was spiraling when his deduction about the flower threw itself at him. Maybe he, and those like him, were disposed of so easily because surely another pest would come along. Eyebrows dipping downward, Leo felt an upsetting clinching in his gut. He didn't want to be disposed of. And he didn't want to change. And he just wanted to be what he wanted to be. And he wanted to build what he wanted to build.
The man in the warehouse had been fickle. He'd caressed Leo sickeningly one moment, but in the next he'd throw the boy to the ground. He couldn't understand why Leo couldn't just do what he was told. If he could go back, Leo would have yelled at the man and told him that he can't expect a dandelion or a morning glory or even crab grass to live up to his expectations. That would have ended quite painfully, but maybe the man would've understood the analogy. Probably not.
As his thoughts wandered he failed to notice the approach of his friends until he was book-ended by their warmth. A delicate hand on his knee, a firm grasp on the nape of his neck. Though surprised at their presence, Leo didn't have to second guess who had joined him this afternoon. Jason and Piper. He glanced up and met the eyes of his greatest friend. The usually sky blue eyes were dark and stormy. Leo waited for him to speak as Piper rubbed circles into his back.
"I'm not gonna lie," huffed the blonde. "I was pissed when I found out... And that nobody contacted us. That's got to be a violation of some kind of friend code."
A smile danced its way onto Leo's face. "Yeah, well I don't know how things were on this end, but I was sort of tied up," he joked. The attempt at humor was lost on his current company. Jason scowled fiercely. "Don't," he growled. "They hurt you. And you were there for so long. Just...Don't make a joke out of this Valdez."
Slowly Leo's shoulders were raising in defense, his hands starting to smoke. He couldn't keep his temper in check this time. "Don't joke?" he practically spit, "IT'S WHAT I DO!" He stood up forcefully, ripping himself from their arms. "I've cried and yelled and whatever, but I can't just keep doing that. I can't stay in that place, because I'd go crazy. I'm not just throwing up walls. I know that's what you think. But...I'm not, okay?"
By the end of his rant Leo had lost steam. Piper slowly lent forward and gently gripped his hand in hers. "It's okay Leo. He didn't mean it like that. We just care. A lot," she whispered softly. "You know that right?" The curly haired demigod allowed himself to be drawn back to the ground. Jason's shoulders had slumped and his eyes had softened. The three sprawled out on the grass just taking in the silence for a few beats.
"Guys, I don't think I can handle such a drawn out touching moment," declared Leo and Piper burst into giggles while Jason rolled his eyes and bumped Leo's shoulder with his own.
"Some things never change."

A few hours later the trio had sufficiently caught up and Leo had managed to convince the two that he wasn't really okay, but he was healing. Like always, he'd pull through. Campfire time had begun a bit ago and Leo sat on a log playing with balls of fire in his hands and aiming them into the bonfire that steadily grew to the sound of campers singing merrily. Nico never came to campfire. It just wasn't his thing and he wasn't one to engage in things that he didn't enjoy. Of course Leo and his hobbies and pleasures were the exception to that rule.
Regardless, this night Leo sat alone as he stared into the flames. He glanced up when a hand dropped to his shoulder and he couldn't refrain from smiling warmly. "Is this seat taken?" asked the native. "By you," Leo retorted before motioning to the rest of the log he'd been perched on.
"He really impacts you," Piper murmured. Leo almost didn't catch it, but he asked nonetheless. "What?" She smiled and looked him in the eye. "Nico, he effects you. When he's here you glow, and when he leaves it fades. When he's upset you practically buzz with nervous, negative energy. Being the daughter of Aphrodite, I already know the answer, but I'd like to hear it from you. Do you love him?"
A sly grin wormed its way onto Leo's face. She clearly didn't realize this bridge had long since been crossed. "I love him more than life itself Pipes. I love him more than any project I've ever laid hands on, more than life itself to be honest. And yeah, it's freaking scary, but like, he is team Leo. Ya know?" Piper beamed at her friend. He'd always been a little brother to her and she wanted more than anything for him to be happy.
It was never her intention to make Leo a third wheel and she'd done everything within her power to avoid that, but it was inevitable. She'd watched him struggle and it hurt so badly. So to see someone give Leo the love he deserves warmed her heart. "Come here you," she said before pulling the younger demigod into a tight hug. "I'm so happy for you."