Percy is angry.
Not about anything important, actually.
He's in the Poseidon cabin, playing UNO with Leo on the floor while Annabeth reads a book next to him. It's their turn to be with him, after all. So he and his girlfriend decide to take a break from studying. It took a lot of convincing to convince Annabeth, but he did it.
The problem is that Leo seems to know his way around. They've been playing for two rounds now, and he's won every round. Now, he has one card left while Percy has more than seven. He has no idea how they ended up like this, although he suspects Annabeth is passing her cards to Leo by morse code.
"And I win!" Leo grins, throwing down a plus four.
"Damn, again!" complains Percy, showing off his entire deck. It's mostly normal numbers, with no special cards. "How do you do it?"
"You'll never know, Aquaman." The Latino smiles mischievously, crossing his arms proudly.
"I told you not to call me that." Percy lets out a sigh, and begins to gather the cards. "Do you want to play another round or something else?"
Leo shrugs. "I don't know. I actually got bored already."
The son of Poseidon begins to think about what to do. First he looks at Annabeth, peacefully leaning against his shoulder, and then at Leo.
"Did Annabeth pass you my cards by morse code or are you just really good at this?" he asks, out of curiosity.
Leo lets out a chuckle. "I'm just good at it. I only know one phrase in Morse code."
"Which one?" Percy raises an eyebrow.
The son of Hephaestus turns slightly red. "I love you, Mom." (A/N: Correct me if this isn't the phrase. I haven't read the books in months.)
Percy can't help but crack a smile. "Aww, that's sweet, man."
They stand in silence for what seems like hours (though it's only a couple of seconds) until Leo speaks again.
"Percy, can we talk alone?"
Percy doesn't hesitate to nod and head out of the cabin next to Leo. He leans against the wall, asking a question. "What happened, Leo?"
"I- just wanted to talk to someone. About... well, what I did." Leo confesses, but not before waiting for confirmation from Percy.
"Go ahead. I'm listening."
"I feel lonely, Percy. Very lonely. I guess it's the whole 'Seventh Wheel' thing and feeling like everyone around me is superior to me." Leo begins.
Percy's ADHD causes his brain to dissociate during the conversation, but he is capable enough to grasp the idea of the conversation; Leo feels lonely because of how others around him interact with him. Every now and then he blurts out things from his past that need to be talked about in depth, but that is not the focus of the conversation.
But, in the end, Percy is only able to advise him.
"Look, Leo, I know it's not nice to feel alone in life, but you have us." He says, resting a hand on his shoulder. "And I think I speak for everyone when I say that none of us wanted you to feel this way because of you. So, on behalf of all of us, I apologize."
Leo lets out a small smile. It must feel good to hear that, even if Percy knows that deep down he must not have improved much. But that gets worked out over time.
"Thank you, Percy." The son of Hephaestus thanks. "Now, how about we have a rematch?"
"I thought you'd never ask."
-
A/N: This is short, but it is what it is, I guess.
Thanks to all for the messages of support. In the end I don't have Dengue (thank my luck, because I'm an atheist), just a very nasty stomach virus. I'm feeling a lot better now.
