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Chapter Text

Jason couldn't stop thinking about last night. He had finally kissed Leo. 

After they returned to camp after rescuing Hera and Piper's dad, Jason realized his feelings for Leo. He had sat on the roof with Piper and told her that he just didn't like her in the way she wanted. She said that she understood, and that she had noticed how he looked at Leo. Jason then proceeded to ramble about Leo for the rest of the night to Piper. It had taken her a while to get over Jason, but ultimately she just wanted him to be happy, and now she was their biggest supporter. 

And until last night, Jason had been perfectly content being in love with Leo from afar. 

Jason had been reading in bed when Piper burst into his room. 

“You have to tell him, tonight.” She said, slamming the door shut behind her. 

“Ah, Piper, please, come in, no need to knock or anything.” Jason said, looking up from his book. 

“I'm serious! He was talking to Hazel and me about the girl he met on the island, Calypso.” She said, sitting down on his bed. 

“Pipes, if he likes a girl, I'm not gonna get in the way of that.” Jason said, going back to his reading. 

“I don't think he does though. I think he just thinks he does. He has this tendency to ‘fall’ for girls who are way out of his league and he knows he doesn't have a chance with.” Piper explained. 

“Hey, they are not out of his league!” Jason exclaimed. 

“Dude, you're so whipped.” Piper sighed, “Anyway, I don't think he actually likes her, he just thinks he's supposed to.” 

“And how could you possibly know this?” Jason raised an eyebrow at her. 

“Because I'm a daughter of Aphrodite.” she joked, “I'm his best friend, I notice these things.” 

“I'm his best friend too! How come I don't notice these things?” Jason asked. He realized he was not going to be able to go back to his book tonight, so he closed it and set it on his bedside table. 

“Like I said, you're whipped. You overthink everything.” She sighed again. 

“Okay okay, let's say he doesn't like her, what do I do?” Jason asked. 

“Go to his room, tell him how you feel! Or y’know, just like kiss him or something.” She said, leaning back on her elbows. 

“I can't do that! There's no way he likes me and if I go kiss him it's just going to make things awkward!” 

“Ugh, you're hopeless. If you don't, he might end up dating Calypso, and isn't she like thousands of years old? That's super weird.” Piper said, making a face that clearly said “gross.” 

“Fine.” Jason said, getting out of bed, revealing his pajama shorts covered in little wolves. 

Piper stifled a laugh. “Dude, you can't wear those to go confess your love.”

“What's wrong with them?” He asked, a little hurt. 

“Nothing, nothing… let me pick out something for you.” She said, opening his dresser and rifling through his clothes. 

“Here!” She exclaimed, holding out a pair of blue plaid pajama pants and a white ribbed tank. 

“Are you serious?” He asked. 

“Yes! The tank will show off your muscles!” She gave his arm a squeeze. 

“You're crazy, you know that?” He said, reluctantly taking the clothes from her. 

She grinned at him, and left his room. 

He got changed into the outfit Piper had picked out for him and fixed his hair in the mirror. 

He left his room, and walked down the hallway to Leo's room. He could hear music coming from his room, but couldn't make out what it was. 

“Here goes nothing.” He muttered before knocking. 

About 20 seconds later, the door opened, revealing a grease covered, shirtless Leo. 

Jason gulped as he saw Leo in nothing but his pajama pants, hair messy, covered in sweat and grease. It took a lot of his self control to not just kiss Leo right there. 

“Hey, what's up, ese?” Leo asked, removing the goggles from his eyes, and resting them on his curly hair. Leo blinked up at Jason, almost as if he was batting his eyes at Jason. 

“Uh… can I come in?” Jason managed to get out. 

Leo motioned for Jason to follow him. “Sorry about the mess, working on some stuff.” Leo said, stepping over a pile of tools. 

Jason looked around and saw a drawing of a girl on the wall. 

Jason nodded toward the picture, “is that her?” He asked, a hint of sadness in his voice. 

“Hmm? Oh. Yeah, Calypso…” Leo sighed, sitting in his desk chair across from his bed, where Jason sat down. 

“So what's up? Any reason in particular you came to see me?” Leo asked, raising an eyebrow. 

“Um. Yeah…” Jason looked down at his hands. 

“Whatever it is, man, you can tell me.” Leo said, encouragingly. Leo was watching him so intently, as if what Jason had to say was the most important thing in the world. 

“I–” he started, “I can't do this…” Jason muttered, getting up to leave and walking towards the door. 

“Wait!” Leo got up, grabbing Jason's wrist to hold him back. 

Surprised, Jason spun around to face Leo. His breath hitched in his throat, as Leo stared up at him. Jason couldn't help but look down at Leo's lips. 

“Fuck it.” Jason muttered to himself. He leaned down, placing his free hand on Leo's cheek, and kissed him. 

Leo's eyes widened in shock, and he let go of Jason's wrist. 

“I'm sorry…” Jason said quietly as he pulled away. “Can we pretend this didn't happen?” He asked, then before getting an answer he ran back to his room, leaving Leo standing there in surprise. 

Now Jason lay in his bed, staring at his ceiling, going over the events of last night. He looked over at the alarm clock. It read 5:04am. 

“Well, happy birthday to me.” He said to himself. He wondered if anyone would notice if he just stayed in his room all day. He couldn't face the embarrassment of seeing Leo. 

He turned on his lamp and opened his book. 

A few hours later everyone was gathered in the dining room, having breakfast. 

“Where's Jason?” Leo asked, “He usually never skips breakfast.” 

Piper raised an eyebrow at him, “I can check his room, but I would've thought he was with you.” She winked at Leo, getting up and leaving the room. 

Jason heard a knock at his door. “Jason, you in there?” 

He sighed and got out of bed. Opening the door to Piper standing with her hand on her hip. 

“What did you do?!” She exclaimed, hitting him on the arm between each word. 

Jason sighed and went to sit back down on his bed. Piper followed. 

“I went to go tell him, I chickened out, and then he grabbed my fucking wrist and spun me around. What was I supposed to do? I kissed him. And then bolted like an idiot.” Jason let out, burying his face in his hands. 

“Oh my gods…” Piper muttered and then started laughing, “you are so bad at this.” 

“Come on, let's get breakfast.” She said, trying to pull Jason up from the bed. 

“Is Leo there?” He asked, looking up at her like a hurt puppy. 

“Yes, dumbass, it's breakfast, everyone is there.” She sighed. 

Jason flopped down on his back. “I can't do this.” 

“Yes you can, you need breakfast.” 

“I'm going to die of embarrassment. Can't you just bring me food?” He asked. 

“Nope. Hey, maybe it'll be less awkward with everyone else there.” 

“But, Piperrrr, it's my birthday, can't I just hide in my room as a birthday present?” He complained. 

“Absolutely not! Besides, I have… plans…” She said mysteriously. 

“Piper, please do not throw me a party.” Jason said, completely seriously. 

“A party? Never!” She lied, “now stop avoiding Leo and come have breakfast.” She said, successfully pulling Jason out of bed. 

When Jason arrived at breakfast, he didn't say anything, he just sat down. But instead of sitting in his usual spot next to Leo, he sat on the other end of the table from him. 

Piper rolled her eyes at Jason and sat back down to finish her breakfast. 

As they all ate, Jason and Leo kept glancing at each and then quickly looking away when they made eye contact. 

No one was talking either, they were all too focused on whatever was going on with Jason and Leo. 

They thought they were being subtle, but the stolen glances and silence made it unbearable. 

Slowly everyone else started leaving as they finished eating. Leaving only Leo and Jason. Still in silence, still glancing at each and pretending like they didn't. 

The tension only grew stronger when Coach Hedge walked in, “Morning, boys!” He sat down with an armful of empty soda cans. 

“Man, is it tense in here or what?” He laughed. 

Neither of them said anything. 

“Maybe I'll go eat on the deck…” He decided, “but no funny business!” He yelled, pointing between the two of them as he walked out.

“Jas–” Leo started to say, but was interrupted by the sliding of Jason's chair on the floor. 

“Jason, please. Can we talk about last night?” Leo asked as Jason started to leave. 

Jason stopped in the doorway, “What is there to talk about? Nothing happened, remember?” Jason said, walking out. 

For most of the day, Jason did stay in his room, he kept trying to read his book, but his mind kept wandering off. What if he had screwed everything up? What did Leo want to say? He wanted to know, but he couldn't bear either outcome. If Leo liked him and he acted like this, that would be so embarrassing. On the other hand, if he didn't, their friendship would be ruined. 

His head was spinning, going through every possible scenario. 

He was pacing back and forth, rehearsing what he might say to Leo, when a knock at the door interrupted his train of thought. 

“Jason, it's time!” Piper called. 

Jason walked to the door and opened it. “I am doing this against my will, just so you know.” He grumbled to Piper. Then followed her out to the deck of the Argo II. 

There were big string lights hanging from the mast to the head of the ship, and to the back towards the cabins. 

Everyone was sitting at a table where there was a birthday cake waiting for him. 

“You guys didn't have to do this.” Jason said, as he sat down between Percy and Frank, across from Leo. 

“Well we wanted to. We don't get many reasons to celebrate.” Percy said. 

“Oh, so it's not actually about me, it's about an excuse to throw a party.” Jason laughed. 

He felt a bit more relaxed now. 

“We also got this…” Piper pulled out a bottle of tequila. 

“Won't Hedge be pissed?” Jason asked. 

“Nah, we told him to take the night off, he's watching his shows.” Leo said. 

Jason briefly met Leo's eyes, and then looked away. 

He turned to Piper, “Gimme that.” He reached for the bottle. Deciding that the way the calm his nerves was by drinking (not a smart idea btw). 

“Nope. Cake first. Can't have you drinking on an empty stomach.” Piper pulled the bottle back. 

They all sang happy birthday and ate cake. Jason got up and ate his cake looking over the railing down at the city below them. The lights looked like little yellow stars. 

He felt someone come up next to him. 

“Can we talk now?” Leo asked. “Not yet, I need a drink.” Jason left Leo at the balcony. He was surprised at how badly Leo wanted to talk to him, usually he was more of a don't talk about your feelings till they become life-threatening kinda guy. 

Maybe Jason should have taken it as a good sign, but his anxiety got the better of him. 

He went up to Piper and asked for the tequila. She handed it over to him. “Drink responsibly!” She grinned at him. Spoiler alert: he did not. 

About 20 minutes and a quarter of a bottle of tequila later, Jason could confidently say that his anxiety was gone. But so was any amount of self control. 

Jason was dancing around without a care in the world. Leo watched him from a bench, he was enamoured with how Jason moved. He hadn't stopped thinking about last night. He suddenly got the urge to get up and dance with Jason, knowing full well that Jason wouldn't remember any of it. 

He got up from the bench and walked over to where Jason was dancing alone. “Can I join you?” He asked. 

“Leeeeooooooo!” Jason said, excitedly. “You're so cute!” He grinned, leaning down over Leo. 

Leo felt himself blush. Especially when Jason grabbed Leo's hips and pulled him closer. 

“Jase… what are you doing?” Leo asked, nervously. 

“Dancing!” Jason replied, moving back and forth, pulling Leo's body against his. 

Leo gulped, and began to lean into Jason more, becoming more at ease. 

They moved slowly together, dancing. Leo tried to ignore the feeling of his friends watching them, and just enjoying this moment. 

That was until Jason almost passed out on Leo. 

“Okay, let's get you to bed.” Leo said, moving so that Jason's arm was resting over his shoulders. 

“Pipes, a little help?” Leo strained under Jason's weight. 

Piper got up and placed herself under Jason's other arm. They carried Jason back to his room. 

“So…” Piper started to say, “I saw you two dancing out there.” She grinned. 

“Shut up.” Leo said, blushing. 

“What's going on with you two?” She asked. Leo couldn't see the massive grin on her face. 

“He kissed me! Just out of nowhere!” Leo sighed. 

“Uh-huh… out of nowhere…” Piper muttered. 

“Wait! Did you know about this?” Leo asked, using his free hand to open Jason's bedroom door. 

“Oh, come on, Leo! You can't possibly be this oblivious!” Piper exclaimed. 

They brought Jason inside and laid him down on his bed. 

“What do you mean?” Leo asked, sitting at the door of Jason's bed. 

“Jason's feelings for you? It's so obvious! The longing stares, always offering to help you with your projects, always sitting next to you at br

eakfast?” 

“That's just friend stuff!” Leo said, looking down at the sleeping Jason. 

“Dude, for real?” Piper raised an eyebrow at Leo. 

“Jason likes me?” Leo muttered to himself.

“You're literally the last person to realize it.” Piper said, and then left. 

Chapter Text

Leo sat at the foot of Jason's bed, watching him closely.

“Gods…” Leo muttered, watching Jason’s chest rise and fall with each breath.

Leo got up and moved to the head of Jason’s bed. Kneeling down, he began stroking Jason’s forehead.

“Jase… I don’t know what to do.” He sighed.

“I can’t even figure out how I feel.” He said in a whisper.
“You’re my best friend… and it’s not like the thought hadn’t crossed my mind. It’s just that I promised Calypso I would come back for her. She’s the first person who’s actually shown an interest in me.

Well I guess that’s not true…” Leo began running his hands through Jason’s hair as he processed his feelings in a hushed tone, so as to not wake Jason.

“I mean, if I had known this was even a possibility, I wouldn’t have flirted with Calypso…

You don’t know how many times I wanted to be with you, but you were with Piper. And then you weren’t…

I could have said something, but I actually care about you. I would never want to ruin this friendship by telling you how I felt.

I just wish you would talk to me… I know you’re avoiding me because you’re afraid, but you don’t have to be.” Leo’s quiet whispers turned into quiet tears.

“I’m just so confused right now. I don’t know what to do. I have feelings for Calypso, but I also have feelings for you. And I can’t just abandon her… And what if something happens between us, and then you realize that you don’t actually like me, just like everyone else…” Leo sighed, resting his head on Jason’s bed.

“What if I'm just reading too much into this and you just wanted to kiss me and don’t even have feelings for me?” Leo muttered.

“But Piper said you did… UGH” Leo let out a little too loudly. Jason grumbled and rolled over in his sleep, now fully facing Leo.

“Gods… you’re gorgeous…” Leo whispers, stroking Jason’s cheek. “How is this even a question…” Leo shook his head.

“Calypso’s got nothing on you…” Leo whispered, examining Jason’s features in the dim light. He loved how sharp and strong Jason’s jaw was. He loved how Roman Jason’s nose was. He loved how bright and beautiful his eyes were. He loved Jason’s lips, soft and round, and the adorable scar on his upper lip. He wished he hadn’t been in shock when Jason had kissed him, he couldn’t remember how Jason’s lips had felt on his. Most of all he loved Jason’s hair, how soft it was, how long it had gotten, and the way Jason would run his hands through it when it fell in his face. Leo pushed a few strands of hair that had fallen on Jason’s face out of the way.

“But I can’t leave her. I promised on the River Styx that I would return for her…”

Leo kept going through this cycle of Jason or Calypso till he fell asleep on Jason’s floor.

Chapter Text

As Jason slept, his mind was filled with memories of Leo. Waking up on the bus next to Piper, and seeing Leo for the first time. The first time he saw Leo’s golden-brown eyes staring up at him. The first time he ruffled Leo’s curly black hair, surprised at how soft it was.

In his dream, Jason was now back at the campfire at Camp Half-Blood. It was the night they got their quest. Jason felt like he was really back there. The feeling of relief and the way his heart skipped a beat when Leo said that he would go on the quest too.

They were now at Boreas’ penthouse in Quebec. They were heading up to meet Boreas but Leo was told to stay behind. Jason couldn’t help but feel worried for him. He didn’t like being separated from Leo, especially when he didn’t know if Leo was safe or not.

Now they were below the streets of Chicago. Piper was asleep in his lap, Leo sat across from him, fire and embers illuminating Leo’s face. This was the first time they had been alone, Jason felt relaxed for the first time. This was the first time Jason thought about Leo in more than a friend way. He couldn’t help noticing how cute Leo looked in the firelight.

They talked a bit about Leo’s fire powers. Jason thought that it was the coolest thing in the world. He thought Leo was the coolest person in the world.

Jason’s heart sank when Leo told him he felt like a freak for having them. And then he told Jason that his fire powers were responsible for his mothers death. Jason tried telling Leo that he was amazing, and it wasn’t his fault, and how important Leo was, but Leo was a world champion in feeling bad about himself.

Finally Leo fell asleep too, leaving Jason on watch duty. But in all honesty, Jason was mostly watching Leo and playing with Piper’s hair. Part of him wished he was playing with Leo’s hair, but he chided himself for thinking that.

The scene in Jason’s dream changed, Jason had just met his sister, Thalia. Coach Hedge was carrying Piper away and Leo was about to go with them. Before Jason knew what he was doing, he asked Leo to stay. He didn’t know why but was scared to be alone with his sister. And Leo made everything better.

They followed Thalia into the cave, Jason and Leo sat down next to each other, their knees touching. Jason tried to focus on what Thalia was saying, but his mind kept wandering to the feeling of Leo’s knee pressed up against his. He felt the vibrations of Leo tapping something in morse code on his knee, but he didn’t know what it was. He was just grateful that Leo was there with him.

And then Leo told him how much Jason reminded him of Thalia. Thalia who Leo had been flirting with earlier. That was the first time that Jason felt his heart flutter around Leo.

Now they were back at camp. Leo was showing everyone Bunker 9. Jason thought that Leo was seriously amazing, which he promptly told Leo, who brushed it off.

He was then sitting on the roof of Cabin 1 with Piper. Telling her that he couldn’t be with her.

All of a sudden, Jason woke up from his dream. He looked at the clock. It was 1:30am. He heard a loud snoring noise coming from his floor and looked over the edge of his bed. He saw Leo sleeping on his floor. He let out a sigh and let his head fall back on his pillow. A sudden spout of dizziness washed over him, and then his head started throbbing. He decided that would be the last time he drank tequila.

As Jason was having his lovely clip-show of a dream, Leo was having a very different dream.

He saw Jason, Piper, Medea, and three people he didn’t recognize all on the deck of a yacht. Piper was laying on the floor, bloody and shivering. The girl with short black hair and glasses was in a cage. The boy with brown curly hair had an arrow lodged in his chest. And Jason… Jason had just broken free of his cage with a rage of wind. Sending the black-haired girl into a wall. Leo didn’t know why but he felt worried for the girl.

The ship began to split in two and Jason got farther and farther away. He got up and began fighting the man on the half of the ship. Meanwhile, Piper had gotten up and started fighting Medea.

The fight between Jason and the other guy grew more and more intense. Suddenly the surroundings shifted. Still on the ship, but It was the aftermath of an explosion. All Leo could see was Jason and the man fighting still. Leo could see Jason shout something but couldn’t hear. And then the spear punctured Jason’s ribcage.

Leo let out a scream, and suddenly woke up, still screaming, tears running down his face.

Jason bolted up (which did not help his throbbing headache). “Leo!” He somehow ended up on the floor, at Leo’s side. “Are you okay? What happened?” Jason asked, putting a hand on Leo’s back.

Leo caught his breath, and wiped the tears from his face. “I had a nightmare… about you.” Leo looked up at Jason, his face barely visible in the dark. Then Leo asked, “Can we talk?”

Chapter Text

Unfortunately for Jason’s headache, Leo decided that he needed to get up and walk around a bit. Every step Jason took, another pounding in his head, but he didn’t care. He wanted to make sure Leo was okay.

Leo said nothing as they walked. Jason didn’t even know where they were going, he was just following Leo. He was still terrified to talk to Leo, afraid that everything would be ruined in a moment, but his concern for Leo vastly outweighed his own anxieties.

Leo turned a corner and opened a door. The door opened to the stables at the bottom of the ship. Jason looked down through the glass bay doors, the city below glowed in the dark.

“What are we doing here?” Jason asked, remembering how everyone had reacted when Percy and Annabeth had been found here together.

“I come here to think sometimes. Especially at night when I can’t sleep.” Leo said, grabbing a blanket and a couple of pillows from a shelf.

“It’s so peaceful.” Jason said, unable to look away from the city lights. “You’re not scared of falling through the doors?” He asked.

“Nah, I built them, I know they won’t fail. And even if they do, you’ll catch me.” Leo said, nudging Jason with his shoulder. Jason’s heart fluttered upon contact with Leo.

Leo lay the blanket down and set the pillows up against one of the stalls, so they could still see the lights below them.

They sat down, and Leo instinctively rested his head against Jason’s arm. This made Jason hold his breath for a moment.

“So, you want to talk about your dream?” Jason asked, nervously.

Leo let out a sigh, and sat up from Jason’s arm. Jason’s arm felt cold without Leo’s head on it.

“You and Piper were on a boat. Piper was laying on the ground shaking and covered in blood.” Leo started to say, then paused.

“There were these other two kids who I didn’t recognize but I knew they were important. One of them was in a cage, the other one had driven an arrow into his chest.” Leo sighed.

“You had just made a wind explosion and then you got separated from Piper and the others. And then you and this crazy guy started fighting.”

Leo stopped talking.

“Leo… What happened?” Jason asked quietly.

“You- you died.” Leo’s voice broke into a quiet sob. Jason instinctively pulled Leo into his arms. Leo’s head, now resting on Jason’s chest. Jason’s hand gently stroked Leo’s hair. Jason thought that under different circumstances, this would be a dream come true… Leo in his lap, head in his chest, playing with his hair, alone with a gorgeous view.

“Leo, it was just a dream.” Jason said softly. “It felt SO real. It didn’t feel like a normal nightmare…” Leo choked out.

“It’s okay…” Jason said as Leo cried.

“I think that this is going to happen soon… You didn’t look much older than you do now.” Leo whispered.

“If it does, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it, okay?” Jason said, pulling Leo’s face up to look at him. “Right now, we’re both safe, I’ve got you.” Jason tried to comfort Leo.

They stayed there for a while, until Leo fell asleep in Jason’s arms. Jason thought that he was possibly dreaming. He couldn’t fall back asleep, despite trying. He couldn’t stop looking at Leo, his mind racing.

He had imagined this so many times, but never thought in a million years that it would happen. His heart skipped a beat every time Leo moved slightly.

Usually Jason got cold pretty easily, but the heat from Leo’s body was enough to keep him warm without a blanket. Jason wondered if this was what it would be like to share a bed with Leo. Never needing a blanket because Leo was hot enough for the both of them. Jason smiled, “Leo WAS hot enough for the both of them.” He thought.

Eventually, Jason did fall back asleep, only to be awoken an hour later by the rising sun. He looked down, and let out a sigh, Leo was still there.

Jason gently shook Leo awake. “Hey, man…” Jason said quietly as Leo woke up. Leo groaned and rubbed his eyes, sitting up away from Jason’s chest.

“Hey.” Leo smiled.

“We should get some breakfast.” Jason said, standing up and offering a hand to Leo.

Leo took Jason’s hand, standing up. “Does this mean you’re done avoiding me?” Leo asked, grinning.

Jason started walking towards the door. “Hmm… I’ll think about it.”

Chapter Text

Over the next couple of days Leo and Jason didn’t see each other very much. Leo was spending most of his time in the engine room fixing things, and Jason spent most of his time training. Occasionally Piper would come in and hang out with Leo.

“I can’t believe you still haven’t told him you like him.” Piper said, taking a sip of her soda. “Look, beauty queen, we had our little moment in the stables and then things started going wrong with the ship. Would you have preferred I didn’t fix the ship and told him instead?” Leo raised an eyebrow at her as he tightened a bolt.

“No, but there’s no reason you couldn’t have done both.” Piper sighed.

“Yeah, I could have been like ‘Hey, by the way, I like you too. Gotta go!’ I’m sure that wouldn’t have been awkward at all!”

“Well he could be the one hanging out with you instead of me sitting here listening to you yap.” Piper said, rolling her eyes.

“That’s true, at least he would be more helpful!” Leo said, sticking his tongue out at her.

Piper laughed, taking another sip. “So ARE you going to tell him?” She asked.

“Of course I am! I just don’t have the time to think about that right now.” Leo sighed as another pipe burst.

“Good! Because he is a complete disaster and he wouldn’t have even admitted he liked you if it wasn’t for me.” She smiled.

“Wait!” Leo pointed his wrench at her in an accusatory manner, “You were the reason he kissed me?” He exclaimed.

“Yeah, I just didn’t expect him to be quite so stupid about it.” Piper said, “But then again, I don’t know what I thought would happen.”

“I don’t know whether I should hug you or punch you.” Leo muttered. Piper just grinned at him.

“I’m gonna go get lunch. Do you want me to bring you something?” She asked, standing up.

“Nah, I’m good! See you later, beauty queen.” Leo responded, digging around in his tool belt and pulling out a soldering iron.

As Leo continued working on his repairs, his mind started to wander back to Jason. He knew the ship like the back of his hand, it didn't take much mental effort to know how to fix it. This gave him plenty of time to think about Jason.

He kept going back to the other night in the stables. The way Jason had pushed aside all of his avoidant tendencies away to help Leo. If he hadn’t been so tired and upset he might have felt self conscious about falling asleep in Jason’s lap.

The way Jason had pulled him into a hug, made Leo’s heart skip a beat. The feeling of Jason’s arms around him, the way he had played with Leo’s hair. How Leo had, for the first time, felt safe enough to be honest about how he felt. Leo chided himself for not using that opportunity to tell Jason how he felt.

He remembered the way he had felt when Jason said “I’ve got you.” How it seemed as though the whole world had melted away. And how Jason had looked at him. Not to mention the feeling of Jason’s cold hand under his chin, moving his head to meet his eyes. It sent a shudder down Leo’s spine just thinking about it.

Leo remembered the way Jason’s electric blue eyes sparkled with the reflection of the city lights, and how two loose strands of hair had fallen in Jason’s face.

He kept thinking about Jason as he did his repairs, until one of the main gas pipes started hissing. “Oh no oh no oh no!” Leo rushed over to the pipe. “Shit shit shit.” He muttered as the hissing got louder. Then came the loud BOOM!

Leo went flying backwards in the explosion, his body slamming against the wall, knocking him out.

Up on the deck, they all heard and felt the boom. Jason dropped his sword. “Leo!” He cried, rushing to the engine room, Piper, Percy, and Annabeth following him. As Jason opened the hatch, a cloud of smoke billowed out of the room. Jason coughed and covered his face from the smoke.

Jason ran in, frantically looking for Leo. Then he saw him, on the floor against the wall. Jason picked up Leo, who, aside from being hit against the wall, was seemingly uninjured. “Thank Hephaestus!” Jason muttered, seeing that Leo was mostly fine. Leo started coughing. “Thanks, Superman.” Leo said quietly, as Jason carried him out bridal style.

Jason carried Leo to the med bay, laying him down in one of the beds. Jason sat down next to Leo’s bed and got him nectar and ambrosia. “Here.” Jason set it down on the bedside table.

“Jase, I’m fine, just a little banged up.” Leo smiled. “Even for you and your magical fireproof-ness, all that smoke inhalation isn’t good for you.” Jason worried over him.

“Jason, I need to go fix the engine or we might crash land.” Leo said, trying to get up, before falling back onto the bed as he felt a twinge in his side.

“You need to rest. Someone else will take care of it.” Jason said. “Dude, that does not make me feel better! I would rather we crash land than someone else touch my engine.” Leo exclaimed.

Jason refrained from making a dirty joke about touching Leo’s engine.

For the next day or so as Leo rested, Jason stayed by his side.

Chapter Text

After Leo got better, he immediately went back to work on fixing the engine. Luckily the explosion hadn’t done too much damage that Leo couldn’t fix it.

Jason decided that it was finally time to actually talk to Leo about his feelings, the anxiety was driving him crazy. He was going to go to the engine room to talk to Leo, but decided that was probably a bad idea while Leo was working.

He decided he would wait till tomorrow. Realizing tomorrow was Leo’s birthday, Jason headed to the kitchen to make Leo a birthday cupcake.

Jason was not a good baker, so he made Piper help him.

“Thank the gods! It has been so painful watching you two be idiots about your feelings.” Piper said when Jason told her he was actually going to talk to Leo.

By the time they were done it was 9pm and Jason’s bedtime. That night Jason kept tossing and turning, unable to stop thinking about tomorrow.

When he woke, it was already 11am. He jumped out of bed, ran to the kitchen, and then headed to Leo’s room.

Jason stood outside Leo’s door, holding the cupcake in his hand. He took a deep breath and knocked. Leo opened it, wearing a loose tank and a pair of shorts. “Jason?” He asked.

“Happy birthday.” Jason said, quietly, handing Leo the cupcake. “How did you know?” Leo asked.

“Piper told me.” Jason smiled. “Thank you.” Leo said, opening the door wider, for Jason to come in. “You seem to be the only one who cares that it’s my birthday.” Leo said in a slightly despondent tone.

“I’m sorry.” Jason said, walking into Leo’s room. He couldn’t help but notice that the drawing of Calypso wasn’t on the wall, but instead on Leo’s desk. “It’s to be expected.” Leo sighed, taking a bite of the cupcake. “Oh my gods!” Leo said with a mouthful of cupcake. Jason smiled. “This is amazing.” Leo said.

“Well, it’s the least I could do. If there’s anything you want to do, I could fly you anywhere.” Jason offered, trying not to blush.

Leo set the other half of the cupcake down on his bedside table and walked over to Jason. “Actually… There is something I want to do.” Leo said quietly, looking up at Jason.

“Oh?” Jason asked. Leo took Jason’s hand, and stood on his tiptoes, using his other hand to pull Jason’s face down. “I want to kiss you.” Leo said in barely a whisper.“Wha-” Jason managed to get out before Leo pulled him into a kiss.

Jason ended up being the one to pull away first, releasing Leo’s hand. Jason looked towards the drawing and asked, “What about Calypso?”

“She’s not you…”

Jason’s eyes widened as he processed what Leo had just said. Then, as if he was possessed, Jason pulled Leo towards his bed. Jason sat at the edge, pulling Leo into his lap. Using one hand to hold Leo in place, and the other to pull Leo into a kiss. Leo wrapped his arms around Jason’s neck, fingers intertwined in Jason’s hair.

After about two minutes, they pulled away for air. Leo was grinning like a madman, “Best birthday ever.” He sighed. Kissing his boyfriend again.