Scars - A PJO/HOO Soulmates AU

27.

I shouldn't be updating this late, but whatever.

Chapter 26 - Percy Actually Has a Good Idea For Once

Leo heard a random loud noise and jerked upwards, slamming his forehead onto the bottom of the car he was working on.

He groaned and rubbed his head, and rolled himself out from under the car.

A person was speaking, "Oh gods Leo, I'm sorry! Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," Leo said, standing up and staring clearly at the person who had come into the garage.

It was Percy Jackson.

Leo knew Percy from school, as they had pulled quite a few pranks together. But he didn't know him personally, all he did know is that he had dyslexia and ADHD like Leo and was extremely sassy.

Other than that, they never actually spoke as normal people.

"Sorry about that," Percy said, once making sure Leo was okay, "I slammed the car door and it was pretty quiet here. I didn't see you."

"Oh, that's what the noise was?" Leo asked, before tugging at the edge of his dirty work gloves.

He was about to pull them off, before thinking better of it. Percy didn't need to question all the burn scars on his hands and fingers.

"So..." Leo asked, the awkwardness too much for his hyperactivity, "What's up with the car?"

Percy shrugged, "Nothing too major, there is a weird noise coming from the engine. And I don't think I'm qualified to fix it."

Leo strolled over to the car and opened the hood, "It could be a loose nut."

"Nut?" Percy asked, bewildered.

"Like a screw."

"Oh."

Leo managed to break the silence by humming and checking out the different containers in the engine.

"I didn't know you worked here?" Percy said, though it came out like a question.

"Actually, my dad owns the garage. I just come and help out when I'm free," Leo responded, wiping sweat off his brow.

It took a while for Leo to pinpoint where exactly the noise was located, but it was a pretty easy job after that. His conversation with Percy became less strained and he realized that they had more to talk about than just pranks.

It was funny in a way. Leo thought people like Percy should be hanging with the popular crowd instead of scrawny old Leo. Percy was what girls would call "hot" and he had "dreamy eyes", so Leo never expected that they might actually become friends.

Percy was different. Leo decided. He wasn't rude or full of himself, the opposite actually. He seemed to genuinely like speaking to Leo, and was extremely humble, blushing whenever he received a compliment.

".. and then I said, "So Muffy was a dog the whole time!" and they stared at me so weirdly Piper started laughing," Leo explained, while putting the tools back onto the cart next to him, while Percy was cracking up behind him.

He grinned, glad that Percy understood the hilarious ingenuity behind the story. Leo took off his tool belt and paused.

"Hey Perce, do you mind flipping that switch over there?" Leo said, waving his arm in the general direction of the switchboard.

Percy nodded and gave a thumbs up, and Leo turned back to the tool cart to arrange the screws and mini-wrenches.

"Leo, is it this switch?"