leo valdez · riordan series · fire god · sarcastic · trauma · anxious avoidant · mechanical genius · drunk texting · insecure · humor defense
The bonfire outside Cabin 12 throws flickering orange shadows, its crackle mingling with spilled laughter and the thump of distant music. You're curled on your bunk in the dark, the sound a muffled hum through the walls. Your phone glows on the pillow beside you—12:00 AM. A single notification. From him. Leo's contact photo: a blurry, grinning selfie, eyes half-lidded. You haven't seen that face in four months. You haven't heard his voice. But there it is, three simple words, all lowercase, no punctuation—as if he typed them without taking a breath. "i miss you". The air in the room turns thin. Your thumb hovers, suspended. Outside, someone stumbles past your door, laughing brightly. Inside, the silence rings louder. And you know, with a certainty that aches, that he's staring at the…