I hate problems that I can't solve. They make me feel inadequate, like if I stuck some new screws in everything would be fixed. But my luck has always sucked, so of course not all things can be fixed with screws. Humans, for example. Ever tried sticking a nail into a human? Let me tell you, it ends with tears. Humans have emotions, which complicate everything. And right now, I have a very human problem. In fact, one most teenage males have.
I have no idea how to deal with a crying girl.
Piper was inside the engine room, where I guess she thought she would have privacy. Not a very good plan, if you ask me. Of course I would come down here, the Argo II doesn't run itself!
Whatever. Doesn't matter how she got there, I still have to deal with her. I walked in between the unstained rafters to my workbench. Piper was on the floor in front of the workbench cabinets with my tool belt swinging dangerously near her noggin. The pajama bottoms she was wearing only went to mid calf, and her t- shirt was rumpled. But her hair still shone from the glare of an uncovered light bulb, and she was still beautiful. I'm not attracted to her or anything, thank the gods, but I once again was jealous of Jason. Why did he get to have a drop dead gorgeous, smart, and witty girl like him? Thalia won't even look at me. Khione tried to kill me. Seriously, if there's a Hunter's of Artemis for boys, I would consider joining. I sat down on the floor in front of drawers next to Piper.
"Hey, Beauty Queen, something up? Lost a pageant?" I gave her a hopefully convincing smile. I didn't want to make her feel like I didn't care if she was upset. After all, she is my friend.
"Don't call me that! And in what world would I have entered into a pageant?" Her voice was choked, and a bit lower than normal. But at least she was trying.
"If someone had enough blackmail... You never know. But seriously, what's wrong? And don't give me that I'm fine crap, 'cause you're crying in the engine room at ten o'clock at night." I scooted myself so I was seated directly in front of her bare feet.
"Well, I wanted to be alone... No, not alone really. Just somewhere Jason couldn't find me like this. He's holding back something about that Reyna girl, I just know it. They were not just colleagues. But I don't want to ruin any of his past friendships... And I just don't know anything right now." Piper tucked her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, like she was holding herself together. Of course, this would be about Jason.
"Well, that brings you to my level of intelligence. The not knowing anything thing. I'm not gonna argue with your Aphrodite instincts about the Reyna girl. But I know that if anything had really happened between Jason and her, he would have told us. And I'm pretty sure he likes you, Pipes," I stated, awkwardly patting her knee.
"You think so?" The crying had stopped, and she looked hopeful. A braid swung across her face and settled on her nose.
"Psh, yeah, of course! Honestly, he sure as heck doesn't make googly- eyes at me! How long has this been bothering you?" I raised an eyebrow. Well, I tried to raise an eyebrow. Probably looked like a pigeon with a twitch.
"Ever since Jason got his memories back. I didn't want to say anything, 'cause Annabeth lost Percy and they were actually dating." Jeez, for the daughter of the love goddess, Piper was pretty clueless. I'm pretty sure Clarissa knew Jason liked her.
"Seriously, Piper, you have friends. I could see not telling your cabin mates, cuz then it would be all, 'Piper lovessss Jason? Isn't Jasper such a sweet couple name? They are sooo cute!' But you can talk to me whenever. And Annabeth might want to hear about it. You're the only one who has the slightest idea what she's dealing with right now. What I'm saying is, don't bottle your feelings up."
I ran my hands through my hair, but they got stuck in the tangled curls after an inch. I can't pull of anything vaguely suave. Piper's voice was now completely clear. "You think I should talk to Annabeth?" I nodded, and said,
"Yes!" in an exasperated tone. Piper smiled, tucked the braid on her nose behind her ear, and got up. She reached out a hand.
"Thanks, Valdez, that was a pep talk worthy of Coach Hedge. Now, let's get to bed. You have a lot of work to do, captaining the Argo II tomorrow." I took her hand and pulled myself up.
"Should I be insulted?" I asked, brushing the dust from the seat of my pants. "No thanks, I'll hit the sack in a few minutes. I'm just going to clean up from my project today. Never got around to it before dinner." I nodded my head at the mess that was my workbench. Three blueprints for the Argo, my tool belt, a Philip screwdriver, adjustable wrench, Greek fire containers (Caution! Open at your own risk!), and a half eaten sandwich were just some of the miscellaneous crap I had thrown onto the desk. Six months ago, I wouldn't have bothered to clean it. But with Annabeth getting on me about how organization makes for faster work, I've started to tidy up. Believe me, that girl can lecture like nobody's business. When I finally consented to clean up the space, she made me cool engraved metal labels. Which kinda made up for the 1 hour and 43 minutes I was forced to listen to her. Whoever that Percy guy is, he must be a saint.
"Okay. Throw that sandwich away, I think I just saw something crawl out of it. 'Night, Leo," Piper smiled and shrugged one shoulder before walking away. I sat down on my stool and rested my chin in my palms. It seemed like I was the only one without any real problems on this ship. Annabeth, as OCD and touchy as she is, must really be missing Percy. I've heard some stories, and he sounds like an awesome dude. And he might not even remember Annabeth. Piper is afraid she will lose Jason to an unknown rival at Camp Jupiter. Jason is going to be seeing all his old friends tomorrow, all the people that he cares about, and that must be making him anxious. But I don't know how he feels.
All my problems are slightly less tangible. They're general problems, ones I've been having for years. My mom is dead, I can't control my fire powers, and I look less Mario Lopez and more Santa's evil elf. And I can't deal with emotions.
But, I thought, lifting my head, I didn't to that bad of a job tonight.
Give yourself a pat on the back, Valdez.
A/N: Word count (not counting author's note): 1182
Leo does not get enough love. He is the best of the HoO characters. His humor was probably the only thing that kept me awake in TLH. I hope I didn't butcher him too badly. XD This will be a friendship fic between Leo and Reyna, ending when he leaves for The Prophecy of Seven. I hope to update this regularly, in addition to editing Fellow Pranksters. Leave a review!
