RELÁMPAGO, leo valdez

I. nadia steals all of jason's oxygen

0001. | NADIA STEALS ALL
OF JASON'S OXYGEN

         The sun was shining through the finger smudged windows of the school-bus, reflecting off the silver zip on her red leather jacket. Nadia fit nicely in the small seat, just enough room to cross her legs, though her seat was being furiously kicked courtesy of Piper McLean, her so-called best friend. Piper had a wonderful skill of incessant irritation that she always practiced with Nadia. The only issue being, no matter how hard anyone tried, Nadia just couldn't be made mad.

         She was sandwiched between the window that had bright blue bubblegum stuck under the armrest and Leo. Leo Valdez, a Hispanic Texan with features like an elf and the most gorgeous crooked smile that could light up a room. Leo always smiled, even when he didn't mean to, as he was then, when he was fiddling with some paperclips, his tongue touching the corner of his lifted lips in a smile. Leo was fantastic to watch, always too busy in his own little world to notice his surroundings. Courtesy of his short attention span gifted to him by his dyslexia and ADHD.

         That characteristic was probably most useful when Nadia's fingertips would spark red, and no one would ever notice, least alone Leo. It was all a strange occurrence that had been happening since Nadia was a child, the first incident being her breaking the China cabinet when she was five. She hadn't meant to, it was just that, well sometimes, her fingertips would flicker with scarlet sparks like fireworks protruding from her skin. It always caused problems, like how she ended up in the Wilderness School.

          Long story short, Nadia had exploded the swing set at her last school when she was eleven. No deaths or injuries, though this little girl Rachel Elizabeth swore she saw something red near Nadia. Nadia's dad moved her to the Wilderness School that very same week.

          Nadia had been at the school for four years and had only ever befriended Leo and Piper along the way. All the others were insufferable troublemakers and bullies, like Dylan and Isabelle. Ugh, they were horrid. Nadia was always the victim of height jokes. Though Leo was always there to remind her how terrifying she could be for her towering height of five foot four. As if Leo could make fun of her when he was only five foot six himself, yet he still managed. But it was obvious Leo wasn't exactly any Jason Grace.

          Jason was a six foot one blond superman with toned muscles and startling blue eyes as bright as the sky, another Wilderness survivor the group had picked up along the way. He had a small scar that ran over his chin from his childhood, and he had only recently started dating Piper. In all fairness to him, he had only joined the school... well, Nadia couldn't remember exactly, but it was recently. Very recently, actually. It felt like yesterday.

          Leo managed to snap Nadia out of her daze, bringing her back to the world of the living by (creatively) snapping his fingers in front of her frowning face (Nadia frowned whenever she concentrated). "Turn that frown, upside down, novia." Leo grinned his crooked grin, successfully bringing a smile onto Nadia's face. She never knew what Leo's little nicknames meant, but they always made her smile. Leo handed her something small, something cold made from the assortment of paperclips he had been playing with earlier. It looked like a small origami bird with its wings spread wide. Very pretty and delicate. "For you," he winked at her.