"Look, I had to do it," Leo said, "You would've done the same, too." After Jason and Piper had gotten him off David, Will took him to the infirmary. They all still thought the Leo just got a bit out of control and they hadn't let him anything until he stopped trying to go punch the creep again. He was now sitting on a chair being interrogated by Reyna and Frank, with Hazel and the others standing near him to make sure he was under control.
"Look, Leo. You can't just burst into flames and start fights like that," Frank explained.
"That asshole grabbed your girlfriend's ass! I was just defending her, unlike you." Leo hissed at him.
"What?" He looked at Hazel, but she averted her eyes. "Is that true?"
"I just..." Hazel tried to give him an explanation.
"Are you not listening?" Leo was starting to get really irritated by Frank's ignorance. He was the boyfriend here and he didn't even know what was going on. Frank looked like he wanted to turn into a bear and maybe go on a rampage or something, but Reyna gave him a look that said, I'll handle this.
"We'll deal with David, but you still shouldn't use your powers like that. It's extremely dangerous, Valdez. What if you started a fire and you burned the whole camp?" Leo got angry. He hated when people reminded him of what his power could do. Why did they always think he was going to destroy something? They thought he couldn't control it and sure from time to time, it would slip but he wasn't dangerous.
"Whatever," He shoved past the Praetors. "I'm out of here."
"We're not done here, Leo," Frank told him, but Leo was already out the door.
Leo found himself in Bunker nine, alone. His half siblings didn't come as often because of construction of the city. He couldn't believe his friends. They knew him better than some crazy pyromaniac. He was so angry that he kicked a tool box that was on the floor. Leo watched as the various tools rolled all over the floor. He took a deep breath to calm himself. I hope people don't start to avoid me, Leo thought. He didn't want to be a freak again.
"Why didn't you tell me earlier about David?!" Frank demanded angrily at Hazel. The rest of their friends left them to talk, but Hazel didn't want to fight with Frank.
"I thought I could handle him, alright?" Hazel countered.
"And that worked out great, didn't it," Frank said sarcastically.
"Get off my back. You're not my keeper!"
"I'm your boyfriend and I have to take care of you, Hazel!"
"You think I can't take care of myself or something?" Frank didn't say anything for a while. He looked away from her eyes.
"I just...I don't want you to get hurt," He said almost in a whisper. Hazel's anger melted from her. Of course Frank only wanted to keep her safe. She felt stupid for yelling at him like that. "I'm sorry," He continued, "I know you can take care of yourself. It's just that I don't want you to get hurt in any way if I can help it." He sounded so sincere that it made Hazel feel fuzzy like she always felt around Frank. She hugged him tightly.
She felt so comfortable in his embrace, but she couldn't help but let Leo seep into her mind. He made her feel a more intense emotion where she got nervous and jittery. It was a very uncomfortable yet pleasing feeling. Hazel didn't want to think of Leo, especially not now. She felt so ashamed at that moment that she started to cry a little. Frank pulled her away at arms length.
"I'm sorry, Hazel. I didn't mean to sound so mean. Please don't cry and he held her close again. That only made Hazel cry more because Frank was blaming himself and it only made Hazel feel more guilty.
Three Days Later
Leo skipped out on his classes. He would be in big trouble for it, not that it was unusual for him though. He just didn't feel like having every eye on him. He spend most of his time in Bunker Nine and no one came to disturb him, not even Hazel. Leo felt upset that she didn't come talk to him but after the way he acted a few days ago, maybe he finally managed to scare her away.
It was almost midnight and Leo was leaving to his cabin. It was dark in the woods so he brought a flashlight so he would trip on something. He was walking out the woods when he suddenly heard rustling around him. Leo quickly turned around but he didn't see anything. I'm becoming too paranoid, he thought to himself as he continued to walk. Then he heard it again. Now he knew there was something out there.
"Alright, that's enough. Come out now!" Leo said out loud. Silence. He waited a few more minutes. He slowly turned around and felt someone suddenly punch him in the stomach. His knees buckled and he fell on the ground. Then three more figures came out and crowded around him. Leo's flashlight laid beside him, illuminating his attackers' feet. That's when he felt pain all over his body. He barely heard their insults and laughter. Leo tried not to cry out in pain. That's what they wanted to hear, so he held it for as long as he could. After what felt like an eternity to Leo, the blows finally subsided. He felt someone pull his hair from the ground and a guy in a ski mask whispered in his ear, "That's what happens when you mess with me. You really think I don't know. Well you'll never have Hazel." He might as well put a glow-in-the-dark sign that said his name. Leo knew it was non other than David. After David let go of his hair, he and his friends made a run for it.
Leo didn't move for quiet some time. He was too weak to even lift his head up, but David's words kept echoing in his mind. You'll never have Hazel. Then the other Leo from his dream suddenly appeared in his mind and started speaking to him.
"This is what I mean. You can't let anyone push you around like that, especially that bastard," He said, "Remember what I told you. You can't let David or anyone else get in the way. Not this time. There's no other option. You know what to do." Leo let those words sink in. At first Leo didn't understand what the other Leo meant, but the longer he laid on the ground, with blood streaming from his nose, he started to understand. That other Leo was right. There was no other way to do this.
I'm not sure if you guys will figure it out but you probably will.
~Melissa L.
