A/N: Quasi-smut set in a real-world college AU in which Reyna and Jason share an apartment and Leo plays with lighters instead of having pyrokinetics. (I actually wrote this for "Obviously" and then decided to go a different direction.) Contains profanity and semismut.

Reyna thought it was a little warm—had Jason turned up the heat while they were out? Because there was no way she was getting hot and bothered over Leo just because his hair was a mess and he'd put on dress clothes and a tie for once and his button-down shirt pulled at his fucking perfect shoulder just tight enough—

Shit. She was hot and bothered. And when Leo looked over and saw her staring, he gave her a nervous smile and reached into his chest pocket to pull out that lighter. He flicked it on, off, on, off, the flame flickering in and out of existence as fast as lightning, his thumb sometimes slipping on the catch. When his eyes met hers, it slipped.

Reyna propped herself up on her elbows and then leaned into a vertical sitting position, just long enough to reach forward and slip the lighter out of his hands.

"Rei—" he started, and then she very deliberately dropped the off lighter onto the carpet. And she dragged her hands through his hair, down his neck, over his shoulders, down his chest along the line of buttons, buttons she began to unclasp as she tugged him closer to herself.

"Um?" he squeaked when her lips touched the side of his jaw. She breathed out long, slow, warm, ticklish if the way his breathing hitched was any indication.

Her fingers continued to work their way nimbly down the front of his shirt. She pressed a kiss under her ear— "you" —under his jaw— "look" —on his neck— "perfecto."

"Perf—? Oh," he groaned, apparently okay with her sucking on the side of his neck. Thank god, the last button. She slid her hands up to his shoulders, hooked her thumbs inside his button-down, and pulled the shirt over his shoulders, relishing the soft crinkle as it hit the floor.

She fisted her hands in his undershirt and pulled him closer, wishing she could feel his chest pressing against hers. She could feel the heat of his skin, hotter than normal, but he didn't seem to be responding, much less initiating or even countering touches. Was something wrong?

Oh, no. Shit shit shit. She'd misread it; she'd been too forward. Reyna released Leo and scooted backward, tucking a wayward strand of hair behind her ear to mask the embarrassed blush rising in her face. She searched his face for hesitancy, embarrassment, even disgust—but found only wide eyes where he looked her over.

She drew in a breath, however lust-ridden and shaky it might have been. "If I did something wrong," she started, but he shook his head no.

He was quiet for a moment, and then quietly he asked, "You . . . you're interested?" His big, dark eyes flicked up to meet hers, brows drawing together. It took her a second to realize he was being serious. All his false bravado was long melted away.

"Of course I'm interested."

"In me?"

She almost laughed, raking her hand through her hair. "God. Yes, Leo, in you. I think the attempted undressing was pretty good evidence—"

"I don't want you to settle," he said forcefully, almost angrily.

This gave Reyna pause. "Who said anything about me settling?"

"I'm not stupid, you're the most beautiful girl I've ever met, and you could have any guy you wanted at this school," Leo insisted, looking at his hands instead of at her. "And I love that you're spending time with me, I wouldn't trade it for anything, but you don't have to—"

A giggle choked up through her throat, and before she could stop she was laughing, though the sound was muffled by her hand over her mouth.

He looked offended. "I wasn't trying to be funny."

She tried to sober up. "No, I know. It's just, you make it sound like I made you a charity case or something, when in reality I was thinking you deserved better."

This, it seemed, totally threw him off. "Me?"

"Yeah. You're funny and talented and you manage to keep your head up even when life's shit, and you make people happy—at least, you make me happy, and Piper and Jason." She shook her head. "I can barely manage to hold onto the two friends I have. I'm a mess." She looked at her hands: "You haven't made overtures in weeks, and I practically assaulted you just now. You didn't ask for that. I'm sorry. Shit. I'm settling? You'd be settling."

"¿En serio?" he asked, and when she looked up he was leaning toward her, his concerned gaze boring into her. "I would never in a million years have even dreamed of you."

"'Cause I'm a boring jackass," she prompted, a half-joking smile twisting her expression.

"Hey," he warned. "No bad-mouthing yourself. I happen to like that person a lot."

"Do you now?" She bit her lip and, without realizing it, let her gaze trail along his face, lingering at the mouth.

And then he was leaning in, and when his fingertips touched the side of her face, her eyelids fluttered shut just before she felt the pressure of his mouth on hers for the first time, soft and tentative. Heat rose in her cheeks and her stomach; she gasped and reached out again to tangle her fingers in his hair, his perfect hair.

"'S okay?" he mumbled, and she could barely manage the breathy "uh-huh" that made his hands wander. And after that, well. Jason wouldn't be back until tomorrow.