Hold Me While I Cry

'I love you guys.'

That was the last thing Leo ever said.

Piper remembers everything in that moment; the way his voice cracked at the end and wavered at the 'love', and the smile that didn't match with the tears falling down his face. His hand on one of Festus controls to drop her and Jason as fire danced along his other arm.

She remembers having the cure in her jacket pocket, it feeling so heavy and she only reached for it when she saw the explosion (It didn't matter anyway. It was fake). She remembers feeling so numb to the point where she couldn't even make a sound while she sobbed. She didn't register Hazel and Annabeth trying to comfort her as she stared at the ash that fell- multiple parts of Festus along with it.

She remembers running and clawing through the rubble and debris, until her hands were bruised and bloodied, desperate to find him- anything. She couldn't hear anything over the ringing in her ears along with her own heavy panting- Leo's own words repeating over and over again. She was vaguely aware of the others plus Nico, some blond kid, and Reyna digging around her too while everyone else checked for injuries and the sky for any sign.

She remembers finally breaking down after hours of searching and finding nothing the moment the sun set and rain slowly fell. She remembers her screams and pleads and cries to the gods to just bring him back- because that's when it really hit.

Leo was her best friend- the little brother she's always wanted. He was barely sixteen, but had already accepted death more than he accepted love and affection. That she wasn't even seventeen and had to fight so many monsters and watch him die in some stupid war that wasn't even their fault.

And then the memories hit.

Her dad in so much pain and so bloody- forcing his memories to be wiped. The Roman camp exploding after a misunderstanding. Percy and Annabeth falling into Tartarus. Jason being stabbed in the chest, just on the brink of death. Leo, feeling the need to have to sacrifice himself to be useful.

She remembers Annabeth and Hazel having to drag her up and away from the rubble and her weak, but loud, cries and begging that she can't leave him and this wasn't how it was supposed to go. She remembers fighting against the others to search more before going limp and screaming so loud that she gave herself a headache before breaking down in sobs again. Not feeling the pain in her hands or all the cuts along them that a few were sure to leave scars.

She had to stay in the infirmary for the night. Not like she got any sleep anyway over crying the whole time because, apparently, the gods thought it would be funny to make sure she never ran out.

With his words repeating. Over and over again.

(Jason stayed by her side throughout the night. Lost in his own world too).

He's always been sappy like that- saying I love you randomly or just giving her hugs when he knows she's feeling insecure with the occasional forehead kiss which is kinda awkward because he's so short, but it does help cheer her up.

He was really shy about it at first- because he didn't want to scare her off. But she said it 'really helped, you know'? With an absent mom and a dad always working, she never got affection often- or at all.