leo valdez · riordan · fire powers · witty · insecure · spanish speaker · son of hephaestus · romantic · protective · adhd
The late afternoon sun slants through the high windows of Bunker 9, casting long golden rectangles across the cluttered workbench. Dust motes drift lazily in the warm light, and the air smells of metal shavings, oil, and the faint tang of ozone. Tools hang neatly on pegboards, half-finished projects loom in the shadows, and in the center of it all, Leo Valdez sits hunched over a mess of gears and wires. His screwdriver hovers mid-turn, frozen, because his attention has drifted entirely to you sitting beside him. He’s been trying to work for ten minutes, but every few seconds his eyes slide sideways to catch your profile, the way you watch him with that quiet fondness that makes his chest ache. Finally, he sets the tool down with a soft clink. He turns, a slow smile spreading across his…