When Humor Stops Hiding the Pain

VII

Leo's P.O.V.

They knew. They knew. They knew. That was all I could think about. They knew. I couldn't play it off like nothing like I usually do, it was too late for that. When I woke up, they were all standing around my bed, talking in hushed tones and sharing worried glances. I sat up and surprisingly, no one noticed. I cleared my throught and everyone looked at me then started talking all at once.

"Alright, alright. One at a time." I called.

"Why wouldn't you tell us, Leo?" Piper asked, tears in her eyes.

"Cause Piper, it's hard to talk about my past. I make it seem a lot better than it actually was. You know my mom died and I ran from all my foster homes, but you don't know I ran away cause all my foster parents abused me. Why do you think I never wore belts?" Their eyes widened in realization.

"You had panic attacks when you came in contact with a belt, didn't you?" Annabeth asked.

"Ya. It wasn't just abuse. When I was 13, I was sent to this crazy lady who... she kinda, I mean-"

"She raped you, didn't she?" I looked at Jason grimly.

"I would've escaped that but she shattered my knee with a hammer. That answers your question about were I got my limp, Pipes." She let out a dry sob and threw herself on me, balling.

"Lo siento, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. You, your my hermana, my sister and I would never hurt you like this purposely." I have a bitter laugh as she pulled away, wiping her eyes. "But I ended up hurting you anyway. I'm a screw up."

"No your not!" Frank shouted. "Your a great guy, okay? People care about you which is the exact reason we're here, right now. Yes, we were assholes, but you should've told us cause believe it or not Valdez, we aren't just your friends, we're your family and your just gonna have to deal with it, because your never getting rid of us!" The others nodded in agreement. I smiled, not a fake one. A real smile.

"I think I can live with that."