The Moon and the Stars || Heroes of Olympus

Chapter 64

Back on the ship, Alessa greeted Leo, but that didn't distract him from the state the Argo II was in for long. Our days at Notus' palace had barely allowed us time to get the ship tidy and functioning, let alone begin the more complicated repairs.

Though he never released my hand or lost the faraway look in his eyes, he insisted on carefully examining Festus after a joyful reunion. The metal dragon clicked and purred, probably explaining our shoddy attempts at repairs.

When Leo had finally finished checking every inch of Festus and the control panel, we headed belowdecks as the ship broke free from the harbour, beginning the final stretch of our journey to Epirus.

Rather than allowing myself to be pulled down to the engine room and spend hours inspecting and repairing it too, I gently nudged him towards the door to my room.

"We need to talk."

Even as he nodded he refused to meet my eyes.

I pushed open the door and sat on the bed, finally letting go of Leo's hand. Whatever he had to say would change our relationship forever. The words had to force themselves out of me. "So .... you met Calypso."

"Yeah I ...." He searched for the right words, his eyebrows furrowing as he confirmed my fears. "I crash landed on her island."

Generally demigods are familiar with the story of the Odyssey, me moreso than most, after studying the myths for our own Ancient Greek sea voyage. Nevertheless, after Percy spent time there, we all knew about Calypso and her island, and how it remained inescapable until she fell in love with you. If Calypso had fallen for Leo, I couldn't blame him for returning her affections. It wouldn't even be the first time a goddess had offered him romance.

"And she fell in love with you." The bitter words finally escaped.

"It's not like that, Neo." He said. There was something in his expression I couldn't quite make out, something he was holding back. "I didn't - I couldn't even if I wanted to. Calypso's a friend. Nothing more."

A sigh of giddy relief rushed through me. "A friend? The immortal goddess Calypso is a friend? Nicely done."

Leo grinned, though the smile didn't quite meet his eyes. "More like a mutually beneficial partnership." Still no mention of a secret. "She helped me get back here .... and figure some stuff out."

"What kind of stuff?" I tilted my head slightly, not quite able to lose the apprehension pressing down on me. He seemed close to choking on his own words.

A few moments of silence passed as Leo gathered himself.

"The kind of stuff I've been lying to myself about for a while now." He sighed. "I watched her fall in love with me, and I kept wondering why I didn't feel anything more than friendship for her. It was like .... it felt like being with you when we first met, before all this."

Flashes of my time at the Wilderness School enveloped my mind. It was less than a year ago and yet seemed like an entirely different timeline. Before we came to Camp, the two of us weren't particularly close, but since Dylan had attacked us at the Grand Canyon, our relationship developed quickly.

"When I was younger, I thought I'd just think about relationships when I was older. An then when I met you I thought, 'She's pretty, and smart, and funny. This must be what it feels like to want someone.' I was barely figuring out my feelings then BAM! Greek gods are real! We went on that quest and I was so confused. I even considered Jason for a moment. But then he got with Piper and it was just the two of us .... and I liked it, I liked you."