Short Stories

My R (Leo Valdez Edition)

Summary: Every day, Leo goes up to the roof. Every day, Leo finds someone new there.

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Just as I was about to take my shoes

Off of the rooftop, there I see

Leo climbed up the stairs, towards a door. It had a large KEEP OUT sign on it, the kind that was impossible to miss. If he was here with his friends, he'd probably make a joke about it. Maybe something like how demigods were basically made to violate KEEP OUT signs.

But he wasn't with his friends. So he only stared blankly at it before attempting to open the door. It was locked, as expected. So Leo pulled out a lockpick and, well, lockpicked the door. It swung open easily.

Leo stepped onto the roof and made a move to take off his shoes when he noticed something, or rather, someone, else.

A girl with braided hair there before me

Piper stood there, overlooking the railing. Leo couldn't see too much of her face, but the bit he could see was emotionless, just like the face he'd seen himself wear so many times before. She made a move to step over the railing.

Despite myself I go and scream

Leo's mind went blank. Before he could stop himself, he screamed.

"Hey, don't do it, please!"

Piper looked back at him, surprise written all over her face. Leo stopped short, nearly clamping a hand over his mouth, but decided against it.

Whoa, wait a minute, what did I just say?

I couldn't care less either way

"Leo?" Piper said softly. "What are you doing here?"

Leo met her gaze. "That's exactly what I should be asking you."

"Er..." Piper looked down, not responding. Just as Leo expected.

To be honest I was somewhat pissed

This was an opportunity missed

"Were you about to jump?" Leo asked, anger and sadness audible in his voice. He crossed his arms, one finger tapping away at his flesh. Stupid ADHD. Piper didn't respond, again. Leo couldn't help the wave of anger that washed over him.

Leo went over to Piper and helped her back over the railing, and back onto solid ground. Piper sat down, wiping her eyes, and Leo sat down beside her.

The girl with braided hair told me her woes

"Heh... I suppose I have to talk now, huh?" Piper said with a chuckle that held no emotion.

"Don't push yourself." Leo said absentmindedly, his fingers tapping on the cold concrete of the roof.

Piper took a deep breath. "I know." She said, and took another deep breath.

"You've probably heard it all before

I really thought that he might be the one

but then he told me he was done."

Leo stared at her. "So, the only reason you're doing this is because Jason broke up with you?"

Piper shrugged. "I know it sounds really petty. Trust me, I know that. But it hurts a lot more than it sounds. I feel like I'm dying every day."

Leo couldn't stop his hand from bursting into flames. causing Piper to jump. He quickly put it out, then turned to face Piper. He felt the anger and sadness grow bigger and bigger inside him before it finally burst out of his mouth through words.