My número uno.
In which reader reassures Leo of how needed and important he is.
word count: 1080 + gender neutral.
trigger warnings: mentions of blood and wounds!
lúa vs ignoring the requests and writing a leo one shot ✌🏼😚 ily all im SORRY pls enjoy.
You sighed deeply, your cold feet covered only in a fuzzy pair of socks dragging through the corridors as you looked for Leo.
You’d be lying if you said you had no idea where he was, because you did. But it saddened you, the thought of it. Of him having spent another whole night in his workshop.
You rubbed your eyes as you looked at your watch, groaning at the sight of the time: 4:36 am.
The cold floor of the Argo II got warmer as you got closer and closer, and you run your hands through your hair, scratching the back of your head as you walked into the boiling room, your eyes soon falling over the boy.
He was sat on his chair, fidgeting with a pen as he looked over some papers, turning them with exhaustion in his eyes.
“Leo”, you called softly, your body resting against the doorframe, arms crossed over your chest.
The dark haired boy didn’t look up at first, clicking his tongue and writing something on one of the papers, as if he had finally solved the hardest riddle in the world.
“Night night, cariño”, he answered as he finally turned his head to you, coal covering his nose and the side of his face he had been holding with his palm, “You’re awake?”.
You nodded slowly, the warmth of the room, but also of him, inviting you closer, and as you yawned, you walked inside.
Leo got up from his chair, a bright smile on his lips as he chuckled, and you couldn’t help embracing him. You wrapped your arms around his waist, head tucked under his chin, earning another light giggle from the boy.
“Soooo clingy”, he joked, as he struggled to hug you, not wanting to get your pyjamas dirty with oil or coal. He rubbed his palms against his pants, and just then hugged you, “Missed me too much, corazón?”.
Your boyfriend always made that kind of comments, lighthearted and flirty, but your small nod made his heart swell with happiness.
“You’ve been busy here”, you complained, the tip of your nose brushing against his slightly sweaty neck, “It’s late as fuck, also”.
You felt him hesitate when answering. You were sleepy, eyes half closed as you pressed yourself closer to him, and Leo knew you were more asleep than you were awake. Somehow, that made him behave a little seriously for once, and that adding to the way you were cuddling to his chest, made his walls crumble.
“I have to do the one thing I am good at, corazón”.
He felt you sigh softly, hands moving from his sides to his chest, then his cheeks, as you pulled away a little. You had a small frown on your face, and he pouted, wondering if he had upset you.
“Don’t say that, mi león”, you spoke, and he giggled once again at the nickname, but also at your soft look, “Are you okay?”.
“Just fixing some things Percy told me to fix, checking some stuff Jason told me to check…”.
“That’s not an answer, babe”.
His hands moved from the small of your back to your hips, fingertips drumming gently against your body as he hummed.
Even when half asleep, you could read him like an open book. All of you had weak points, your own fatal flaws that were destined to be the reason for your respective downfalls. Leo’s was feeling inferior to others, feeling less, and you could tell from miles away when the lingering, silent whisper of the thought was going through his mind.
And when it did, he’d spiral into long, unhealthy periods of non-stop work, keeping his mind busy, doing what he thought made him relevant, and useful.
“Talk to me, Leo…”, you whispered softly, thumbs caressing his cheeks.
“I can’t get the last fight off of my head”, he admitted, looking away from you, “You know, the way you all handled it so bravely. The way you all fought. And when you—”.
Your heart sank at the reminder, the side of your stomach suddenly hurting again as you became aware of the wound that healed under your shirt. You had been hurt at your last battle, and Leo had frozen right as you fell against Percy’s body, his hand covered in your blood as he tried to keep you from bleeding out.
“But I am okay, babe”, you reassured him, just when he looked back at you.
“Not thanks to me, am I right?”.
His eyes were sad, but a small smile appeared on his face as you got on your toes to kiss the tip of his nose, arms wrapping around his neck.
“I don’t remember Annabeth being the one to make me laugh so I would stay awake all the way back to the ship, though”, you spoke, and he rolled his sweet, brown eyes, “Or Frank holding my hand as I bled, or Hazel whipping away my tears as I sobbed in pain”.
You smiled softly at him, as he leaned his head down, forehead resting against yours.
“I guess that was all me”, he said softly, his frown disappearing as he closed his eyes.
“Or so I recall, yeah… You saved me, dummy. I had to get through it so I could spend the rest of my atrocious demi-god life listening to your horrible jokes”.
He cupped the side of your face softly, as he kissed your forehead, then your eyelids, and the bridge of your nose.
“They’re not horrible, please”, he chuckled, bubbly as you loved him, and you rolled your eyes.
Your lips met his, his laugh stopping just for a few seconds, and he pulled you closer, his warm palm resting on your blushed cheek as he hummed against your lips, making your shiver.
“You’ll always be my hero, Leo. None of us would be here without you, good fighter or not. You’re as important as each of the rest, you’re one of the seven... And you matter as much as any of them… You matter the most to me, dear”.
“You’ll always be my número uno, though”.
“Oh, shut up”, you laughed at his corny comment, fingers tangling with his dark curls as he laughed too.
“I love you, mi amor”, he said sweetly, pulling you into a hug, “Thank you for checking on me”.
“Always, repair boy”, you said softly, and as he giggled, he pressed his lips against yours once again.
