Learning to Trust (A Leo Valdez Love Story)

Chapter 13

LEO'S POV

      Leo groggily woke up at a table of a sidewalk café to the sound of a piercing shriek. 

     "Mother!" Piper yelled.

     Kyra jolted awake with a gasp and looked around wildly. 

      "What?" Hedge demanded. "Fight who? Where?!" 

      "Falling!" Leo grabbed the table and looked at it confused. "No- not falling. Where are we?"

      Jason blinked and looked around before his eyes landed on Piper and he made a choking sound. "What are you wearing?" 

      Piper looked down at her clothes, a turquoise dress with leggings and leather boots and blushed. She pulled out Katoptris and checked her reflection too, blushing. "It's nothing," she said. "It's my--- it's nothing" she trailed off. 

      Leo grinned. "Aphrodite strikes again huh? You're gonna be the best dressed warrior in town, Beauty Queen." he laughed.

      Jason looked around and his eyes landed on Kyra. "Hey Leo," he said turning to the smirking boy, "You might wanna rethink that sentence," he said motioning with his head over to Kyra. 

       Leo turned and looked at Kyra and his mouth dropped open, a bright red blush immediately coming to his cheeks. Kyra had calmed down and was no longer looking around scared. She realized everyone was looking at her and glanced at them confused.

       "What?" she asked. 

      "Kyra we weren't the only ones dressed up by my mom," Piper said also looking at Kyra in awe. 

      Kyra glanced down at what she was wearing and gasped. She wore a light blue dress with sleeves that went down three quarters of the way down her arms, covering her scars but not the bruises the chains had left behind. Her hair was pulled up into an elegant updo and she was wearing light makeup. She, like Piper, had on leggings under her dress and brown combat boots. She looked gorgeous.  She looked back up at the group who was staring at her and blushed deeply, looking down. 

      "Wow," Leo whispered, or at least he had hoped he whispered. But every eye turned to look at him, including Kyra who blushed deeper, if possible, and started fidgeting in her seat.

      "Leo you might wanna close your mouth or you'll catch flies," Jason said whilst smirking. 

      Leo quickly shut his mouth and rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed. 

      Piper sensed how uncomfortable all the attention made Kyra so she turned the attention to someone else. "Hey Leo," she said. "Have you looked at yourself recently?" 

      "What?" he asked snapping out of his daze. "Oh."

      Leo was wearing pinstripe pants, black leather shoes, a white collarless shirt with suspenders, his tool belt, and a pair of Ray Bans sunglasses as well as a porkpie hat. 

      "Gods Leo," Piper said, trying not to laugh. "I think my dad wore that to his last premier, minus the tool belt." 

      "Hey! Shut up!" he said. 

      "I think he looks good," Coach said. "Although I look better." 

      The satyr was a pastel nightmare. Aphrodite had given  him a canary yellow suit with a bright blue shirt, rose tie and a matching carnation which he promptly sniffed then ate. 

      "Umm," Kyra said, still looking mildly uncomfortable, "How did we get here?"

      "Oh that would be Mellie," Coach said, chewing happily on his carnation. "She shot us halfway around the country but couldn't go farther than here. We would have been squashed flat but her last gift to us was a gentle breeze."