Heaven
The old beat-up radio was covered in cobwebs and dust when Leo found it. He didn't care, as long as it played some music to drown out the empty echo of the massive Bunker. He brought it over to his work bench and plugged it in to the nearest outlet, praying to the gods for a decent radio station. Did they even get reception in here? He knew they couldn't have cool stuff, like phones or iPods, but he hoped an old cassette deck with an FM tuner wasn't a total monster magnet.
After several minutes of swearing and banging, he finally tuned into a station at the tail end of a song. As the next song started to play, Leo felt his heart skip a beat as it sank and kicked him in the gut.
The Rolling Stones melody danced through the crackling speakers. Now all he could do was hold his breath and think of his mami all those years ago in the mechanic shop.
It was her favorite band to listen to while she worked. She would hum along and sway with the music, although she always tried to hide it from Leo's wandering eyes. He would laugh and jump around like a maniac, and she would shake her head and squeeze him tight. She always said she loved the sound of a guitar, or any string instrument, and that it reminded her of her family from long ago.
"… Smell of you baby, my senses, my senses be praised; kissing and running, kissing and running away…"
She always smelled like engines and grease, and it was the most comforting smell he could think of. Not the kind of engine that was brand spankin' new, sitting in a showroom where dust wasn't allowed to land. No, she always reminded him of an older one, a reliable one. An old truck engine that had its fair share of hard work each and every day, while still turning over and starting the next day. One that you could depend on if you got stuck or one that would never break down in the middle of nowhere. One that could carry you far away without a care in the world, so you would never have to turn around and look back.
"… You're my saving grace, saving grace; nothing will harm you; nothing will stand in your way; nothing, nothing…"
He laughed to himself as he buried his hands into his tool belt, hoping to pull out something useful. When a hair-tie and a pair of pliers came out, he rolled his eyes. How was he supposed to be a saving grace with this? He couldn't save his mom, even though he desperately tried. He remembered the malicious look on Gaea's ugly face as that building burned to the ground and he helplessly stood outside. Anger boiled his blood, but it was quickly washed away with sadness and longing.
And why in Hermes' name was there a friggen hair tie in his tool belt? Apparently the only thing that might stand in his way was someone's unruly hairdo. He set the seemingly useless offerings down.
He dove into his work, revising drawings and putting the finishing touches on his control panel. If he could pull this off, this would be the sweetest and sexiest warship the modern world has ever seen. He buzzed on, aware of the music in the background, but tried to ignore the depressing memories the Stones brought with them.
"… Nothing will stop you; and nothing will stand in your way; no one will harm you; and no one will stand in your way; no one will bar you; no one will stand in your way…"
He shoved his nose deeper into the engineering paperwork. He shouldn't have fixed that fucking radio.
Apparently everything and everyone was trying to stop him. Even these bat-shit crazy gods were driving him insane and making everything almost impossible to accomplish. Their ridiculous ideas, their moronic attempts at teamwork, the obnoxious quests and monsters – everything was one big shit show.
Leo heard a snap and looked down to see his pencil in splinters. It appeared that thinking about his ever-loving immortal family was bad for his writing utensils.
Family. That was something that Leo never truly experienced. At least, not since his mother passed away. But here at Camp Half-Blood he did have a family of sorts. It was one big mumbo-jumbo pile of chaos spliced together, with crazy pushing at the seams. He never really thought about it, but Jason and Piper were the closest things he had to a family. Hell, they were his family. Jason was the perfect role-model brother who was an All-American athlete that got straight A's and volunteered thirty-three hours a day. And Piper was the beautiful daughter that everyone wanted – charming, humble, honest, and caring.
And Leo? Well, he figured he was the fool that balanced everything else out. The one that drove the other two nuts. That's what family was for, right?
"… Nothing will stand in your way; nothing; there's nothing."
The demigod sighed and leaned back on his stool, running a skinny hand through his twisted hair.
But family wasn't only for driving each other loco. They protected him, and he protected them. Holy Hephaestus, they went all over the country together, kicking ass and taking names every day. All three of them would have been toast without each other – well, Leo would be, anyway. He needed them. And he needed to help them.
His family.
Leo cracked his knuckles with a satisfying pop and he grinned. Looking up to the ceiling, he shouted, "Ya hear that? Even Jagger knows what's up!"
The only sound was his voice as it echoed through the empty warehouse.
"Ha! Nothing will stand in my way. Absolutely NOTHING!" he called triumphantly. Both hands were raised over his head, as if beckoning for the gods to strike him down where he stood.
After grinning like a mad man for another silent moment, he realized the radio had gone silent. He suddenly missed the background noise and felt eerie without it. He lugged it back to his cluttered work area and started tinkering with it, trying to get it to play again.
He was glad he found the radio.
What are the chances that Leo would find an old and unloved radio that has been hidden in a secret bunker that hasn't been occupied since the Civil War? Zilch. Do I care? Nope.
The song is called Heaven, by The Rolling Stones. Which, obviously, I don't own.
I was in a bad mood when I wrote this chapter, so it's not as fun and light as the previous ones. But I can definitely say I was in an awesome mood for the next chapter, and I am so excited to share it with you lovely people :)
Speaking of lovelies, thank you so much for the support! AsumeKona, lordofthenight97, and ObsessedwReading for messaging and reviewing and all that wonderful stuff! And for the poor people who are actually reading and staying quiet, thank you as well. I really really appreciate it :)