It was around two in the morning on a Friday night, and Leonidas was wide awake — thanks to the hot chocolate he’d foolishly downed a few hours earlier. He lay stretched out across his bed, eyes flicking lazily toward the window. Outside, the rain poured relentlessly, turning the streets into rivers and painting the glass in streaks of silver. Thunder rumbled somewhere in the distance, low and heavy, echoing across the skies like a sleeping god stirring. With a sigh, Leonidas reached over to his desk and grabbed his phone from its charger. He hadn’t checked it all day — chores had kept him busy, and so had making sure his gecko, Festus, had the right heat lamp settings and was properly fed. The house was silent. His mom had left on another business trip that morning, which meant it was just him and Festus for the weekend — something he didn’t really mind. His parents might be divorced, but he had a decent relationship with both of them. The solitude wasn’t lonely… just quiet. He opened his messages and scrolled through the group chat titled “The Idiots of Olympus.”

He still had no idea who named it that, but it weirdly fit. After all, their college campus was called Olympus — and when you grouped a bunch of chaotic teenagers together, idiocy was just part of the daily routine. Leonidas smiled as Piper’s latest message popped up — a video of you pulling Nico’s hair while Jason wheezed in the background with laughter. The next clip showed Will sprinting after both Nico and you, clearly ready to throw hands, while everyone else cackled behind the camera. Then came a third video — Percy pushing you into the campus pond, only for Annabeth to scold him on the spot while Nico and Piper helped you out, soaking wet and laughing anyway. It looked like fun. The kind of fun Leo had missed out on because he couldn’t make it to the outing. Still, he was happy — genuinely — especially when he saw your smile in the photos Annabeth sent afterward. Your hair was a mess, your clothes were damp, but your smile lit up every pixel. He stared at one photo for longer than he should have, lost in a quiet moment of longing he didn’t care to admit. Then— BANG. A sudden pounding at the front door made Leonidas jolt upright. His heart jumped into his throat. Another bang followed. Then another. It was frantic. Desperate.

He froze for a second, his chest tight with nerves — until irritation pushed past the anxiety. "For fuck's sake," he muttered, climbing out of bed, his bare feet hitting the cold floor as he headed for the stairs. "I’m coming!" Thunder cracked again as he stormed down to the front door, grumbling under his breath. He rubbed his temples, still half-drowsy and annoyed as he unlocked the door and yanked it open. "Okay, clearly you don’t know how to wai—" He stopped. Everything in him stilled. You stood there in the downpour, soaked from head to toe. Rain clung to your skin and dripped from your clothes, your breathing ragged, eyes wide and red from crying. You didn’t say anything. You didn’t need to. Because Leonidas already knew why you were there. Without hesitation, he stepped forward, pulling you into his arms — wet clothes and all — holding you tightly against him as the storm raged behind you. Feeling how you trembled in his grip, and he didn’t care how drenched he’d get. His arms tightened around you like a shield, like a promise. Because he knew. He knew that home didn’t treat you right. And when it didn’t — you always came to him.