55. Smile

It's seven months until he sees her again, but that doesn't stop it from feeling like a punch to the gut at the sight of her.

The last time they'd spoke he'd crept into her room in the Big House at CHB at night and tried to see if he could convince her to stay.

He couldn't.

The last time he'd seen her he'd been hiding like a coward behind the Demeter cabin as she'd walked by and away, back to California, back to Camp Jupiter, and away from him. She hadn't seen him and he'd turned away before she'd even fully made it past his hiding place.

And now the Seven had been called to Camp Jupiter- by Reyna and the other Roman campers request- to celebrate the anniversary of Gaea's downfall.

Leo tries to tell the others that he's sick, that he's busy in the forges, that his cabin can't survive without him and that he'd miss Chiron too much if he went with them for the week long stay, but they didn't buy it.

In the end Annabeth has a private talk with him in his room on the Argo II and there's no further discussion of the subject of Leo staying.

Piper stands next to him as they're greeted at the base of a rope ladder coming from the Argo II and holds his hand in silent support.

He doesn't miss her squeeze when Reyna finally appears.

Quiet takes over the crowd of demigods and he pulls his hand away from Piper's immediately, not wanting to show her- to give any sign- that he's not absolutely, perfectly, 100 percent fine.

He feels too many stares to count on his face, sees that many of the demigods are eyeing Reyna warily before their gaze flickers to him, and he wonders what rumors have circulated about the end of their relationship.

He's two seconds too late in telling himself that he doesn't care.

He stares at her longer than he should, and he knows she knows he is because she told him once that she can feel his eyes on her the minute they're on her, but she ignores him with much more strength than he has at the moment.

Percy nudges him so covertly that Leo almost misses it himself, and he catches a glimpse of the son of Poseidon shaking his head.

Right. Reality must be acknowledged once more. He's grateful Percy stepped in before he could make a fool of himself by doing something like trying to talk to her. Or apologize. Or confess that he's been eaten up inside because he misses her so goddamn much and it hurts and he never knew someone else could affect him so deeply and irreparably.

He's glad Percy stepped in before he did something irreversibly damaging like telling her he's still in love with her.

She greets the other six professionally, but with a warmth that shows lingering friendliness. He's last, and when she finally looks at him it's a knife twisting slowly in his gut because even if nobody else sees it, her eyes are haunted and sad and full of regret.

But she greets him with a smile, and with unknown strength he returns it.

She turns and walks away, leading them to a feast, and he wonders at how they'd gone from what they had been to people who couldn't even look at one another without it hurting.