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Chapter Seventeen

I looked over my shoulder, blushing even more as Leo Holmes stood up straight with his arms crossed, a smirk on his face. I pulled my headphones off my head, saying quietly, "N-No I don't..! Shut up!"

Leo pulled the plug off my monitor, letting Lukas's call audio fill the room. "Meredith?" He called, confused. "You still there?"

My eyes widened, and I quickly responded, "Y-Yeah! I'm just really.. ecstatic that you care a lot."

"Of course I do!" Lukas said happily, almost in a chirpy voice. "There's no way a sane person wouldn't help someone who pulled through another person's awful actions." I noticed Leo's presence behind me falter, as if Lukas's words affected him as well. Suddenly, he muted his mic, and came back a few seconds later. "Hey, I gotta go help my sister with her Romeo and Juliet draft. I'll see you later after your dinner or something?"

I smiled. "Sure! See you then!"

I ended the call quickly, standing up from my seat and turning to face Leo. He looked upset with himself, his eyes off to the side in an unsure manner. Before he could say anything to me, I jumped onto him, hugging him tightly. He froze, almost afraid that I was holding him in my arms, which began to glow a mellow orange.

"What are you doing..?" He mumbled, looking down at me.

I pulled away, looking up at him with my eyes bright. "I know there's something you want to tell me. I'm not that naive, Holmes."

Leo glanced down at me, still unsure about what to do. He sighed heavily, breaking off our eye contact, and sat down on the edge of my bed. Patting the space next to him, he said, "Sit down, Meredith. It's about time I tell you one of my unforgivable sins."

Eagerly, I sat down beside him, pulling my knees to my chest.

The orange glow around him faded away, and I saw his icy blue eyes glower down at his boots. His blonde hair shifted to cover his gaze, and he inhaled heavily. "I was once someone almost like Dexter." My heart pounded at his words, but then he said, "And no, before you say anything, no. I didn't sexually assault someone. But I had the same understanding of that as him. I thought it wasn't a big deal."

"Why..?" I whispered.

"My parents.. let's just say they had romantic issues.." he mumbled quietly, his hands clasping. "Because of them, I never truly knew love. They always blamed each other for whose fault it was for bringing me into this world. After I killed them for trying to throw me into the oven, a man named William Kei, the infamous leader and head criminal boss of the Atlas Bomb assassination plan, found me after I ran away. He took me in as his accomplice, his own son of sorts. It wasn't the same as love though."

"You never understood love, did you..?"

"No," Leo responded in a hushed cold voice, "Not yet at the very least. Your mother was the first to teach me a form of admiration. She amazed me with her attributes and abilities. I thought I loved her. But, every time your father came by to talk to me at school when I was sent to spy on her, the way he described loving her was different. Different from how I saw loving her." My eyes looked down at the carpet. Papa really does have a way with words. He always does. "I realized I didn't love her, but her powers. Her abilities. Because that's what William Kei wanted. He wanted the most powerful attribute of all, and because he raised me, that want rubbed off on me. I wanted her attributes."

"So what happened after that?" I asked.

Lukas smiled wearily, "Your parents came to stop the Atlas Bomb plan. This caused a rift to the fifth World War, even though many thought of the wars ending. It wasn't even because of the countries fighting. They call it the fifth World War because of the two opposing sides. Two teenagers versus a whole army." His eyes dimmed as he whispered, "At the fight to death with Tristan, I told him of all the times he had chances to love Cheryl. To be able to make her belong to him. I told him because that's what I thought love was. He responded saying things that opened my eyes. He was the one who made me realize that I was wrong. My vision of love.. was wrong. What your friend Lukas said about that Dexter guy being wrong made me remember who I was before I loved someone."

I leaned over, trying to catch a glimpse of Leo's eyes. "Does that mean you found someone you love?"

Leo smiled, huffing slightly. "Your mother would be proud of my answer. You're just like her, always curious." He leaned back and smiled at me, this time, it being more brighter and happier. "I found someone. Really, she slapped some sense into me, but I don't mind it at all. She's my first real glimpse at love, and I'm lucky enough to have all the time in the world to be with her."

"Who is she?" I asked curiously.

I watched as Leo leaned over, placing a small kiss on my head. It was.. almost like a warm feeling of reassurance. Reassurance that I would be safe and sound one day. I looked up at him, and he grinned, patting my head gently.

"That's a story to tell you some other time, Meredith."

I almost thought he would disappear right before me, but my arm suddenly began to glow red. Julia appeared in a red mist, opening her eyes to see the two of us. "C'mon Leo," she sighed, putting a hand on her hip in annoyance. She shifted her weight onto one leg, raising an eyebrow at the blonde beside me. "We still have to visit Beijing today. Did you forget?"

Leo stood up, walking up to Julia and grabbing her hand, as to which she flinched, her cheeks flushing the slightest bit. It went unnoticed by Leo. "Of course not. I was just talking with Meredith."

Julia turned and waved at me with a gentle smile on her face. "We'll see you later, little one."

I waved back.

Before the couple disappeared in a flash, I saw the light in Leo's blue eyes as he stared at Julia, who inaudibly began ranting. The soft smile on his face made me realize the answer to my previous question.

Leo found love.. in Julia.

A/N This is the last chapter of 2018 you guys.

Thanks for it all!