Shake it off

intro

Leo

Leo fiddled with his army jacket, sitting moodily in the armchair. This is so stupid. Why would someone spill to some old, creepy guy who thinks he's slick?

"That's another day." Dr. Rogers sighed. "No progress. Leo, you need to open up about your feelings to someone. If not me than I will set an appointment with another client of mine who needs help."

"Yay," Leo mumbled. "Crazy-people support group, here I come!"

"It's not support group, and you're not talking to a crazy person." Rogers chided. "It helps give way to environmental study, interacting-"

"With people in your own situation." The Latino finished boredly. "Is Ms. Kathie paying for it again or something?"

"Yes," the therapist replied. "It's what makes her a good teacher. She can see when her students are struggling." He wrote down a number on a sticky note. Leo frowned at it. Now he wants me to spill for some girl/guy who probably just lost their dog?

"This is his"- well, now I know it's a guy.-"phone number. If you want to call him before your session, I recommend it." He passed it to Leo.

"You've got shit handwriting." He commented when he saw the numbers. The end of Dr.Rogers' mouth twitched downward in annoyance. Leo grinned. "And I'm not troubled. Just because I get in trouble doesn't mean I've got something wrong with me."

"April, 7th." He said simply. Leo visibly tensed and grabbed his back pack.

"I've got evening classes. Bye." He managed to say before abruptly leaving. Meawhile, hoping the doctor for his little note. The one he slipped into the guy's pocket at the beginning of the session.

Fuck you.

-Leo Valdez :)

--

He went to his evening class. It wasn't much, just some calculus. Leo was actually quite fond of math. It help him when he was building, engineering, feeling close to his mom. Mom who was always so sweet. Mom, who made the best food.

Mom who died when he was eight years old.

Leo shook his head. He couldn't think about that right then. He had to get his studies together. If he failed he'd be like most of the people in his family. Mom was the first to go to college. Even if she went to some ruddy community college. What was it called again?...

Leo slammed his head against the desk. "Focus!" Leo whispered to himself. A few of his peers turned their heads towards him. He felt his ears burn. Idiota. He thought. Stupid ADHD.

Although Leo's grade was better than anyone in that school, he had to do better. His goal was MIT , aim high, hit low. If he wanted to get into that prestigious school anyone can tell him he can't, and they'd be right, but if that was his goal, he could try to do it, and not lose anything along the way. He could still get into a less important one.

He would do it. Even if Sam and Tony were too busy being drunk, or fighting, or beating Leo. If they were shit foster parents. If they only took him in for money. He would do it, and he wouldn't take anything from anyone. Leo learned not too long ago that the human race was a despicable thing. It takes no gratitude, and uses its adaptive habit to kill and bring their own species down. For some unknown reason it takes a fond look at the obliteration of its people. While Leo was on the streets- he remembered as a nine year old, not even a decade old- and pedestrians would walk past him as he reached out for someone. No one came. And the ones that did only bothered themselves with him by crushing him.

He couldn't remember a single time when the world's evolutionary stage should have just stopped until then.

He shut his locker, stuffing his hands in his pockets, thinking about what Rogers said. He could say he just didn't want to, and not go. But that would strike up suspicion, and the social workers will check out his home life. And then: square one. He'd be back to getting new foster parents, and they could possibly be worst than these. Maybe like Ms. Teresa, who locked him in a tight closet for days on end. After that he became really claustrophobic, which sucked horribly for a mechanic, but there was nothing else he could do, besides join gangs and hurt people. That of which he left behind after one exceptionally bad one.

Back on topic- that guy... Leo should be blowing it off, but for some reason he couldn't seem to think of anything else. Was he just some kid who was being annoying, and the doc couldn't wait to get him off his hands? Or maybe... Maybe he was like Leo. Maybe he legitimately had a reason and didn't want to talk about it.

His phone (a gift from Piper's dad) buzzed in his pocket.

-

JasonGrace: I think Piper wants to go to the dance with me. I can't.

Leo texted back immediately.

LeoValdez: Why?

JasonGrace: My dad wants me to go with him. Check out the company.

LeoValdez: Tell both of them no, and sit in your room for the rest of the week eating Cheetos.:)

Nah, joking, go with Pipes. Your dad's an asshat.

JasonGrace: Piper hadn't brought it up yet.

LeoValdez: Shut up. I've got to go.

JasonGrace: But Leo, I need your help!

LeoValdez: Bye.

-

Leo shut off his phone and stepped out of the school. He knew it was sort of rude to just stop texting him. But he was complaining about not knowing how to ask out his (already) girlfriend- the girl of his dreams. Leo wished he had as trivial problems as that.

He sighed distastefully and headed "home".

-

The place was simply a small trailer with rust and two bedrooms. One for whatever foster-kid they want to get money off, and another for the two douches. He picked the lock to the window. Someone was always in the front, and they hated when he came in. Leo even remembered when Piper came there, asking for him. Sam screeched throughout the house. Telling Leo to get his, and he quotes, "Shitfaced brat out of my Goddamn living room, you Mexican fuck!" Oh, the love could be felt for miles round. Technically Leo wasn't even Mexican or Hispanic, which was the same difference. He was Latino. The same thing as Spanish. Of course Sam would need a few more, well placed narcotics to ever know the difference again. Piper immediately ran out, looking appalled. Leo unlocked his window for her and apologized fiercely. She ranted about their misplaced attitude and weird behaviour. "What are they?! Drunk?! High?"

Leo wanted to respond with "Yes, all the time." Instead he supported with a small lie of how Sam was on meds that makes her angry, and that she's got a disability. (But, seriously, no meds could make someone that pissed). So he told her to come in through the window from that point on. She thought it was strange, and Leo hoped she would back down and not come ever again. Instead she just nodded and came the very next day.

Afterwards, though, he didn't get a glimpse of her face for weeks.

She and Jason were already dating, but then, she started devoting most of her time with him. Leaving Leo to be cast out, forgotten, only turned to when one of them needed advice for the other.

He grit his teeth, and locked his window back up, clenching his fists. Not their fault, though, never their fault. They had to keep up with their own lives, cherish their own feelings, not to be brought down by the joker, the jester, that funny guy...

That broken guy.

You know, the one that's mastered fake laughs.