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supercutszns · 26 days

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sweet on you | jason grace

wc + pairing: 1k, jason grace x f!reader

notes: short-ish jason blurb while i chalk up some of my beefier fics (& my 1k celebration thank u again)<3 this is my first time publishing for him so hopefully this isn't too ooc! i need to let myself write shorter stream of consciousness things,, all fluff, just jason taking your makeup off after a party <33 also its set at chb because i said so

Whenever Jason washes off your makeup, he acts like it's his sworn duty.

You’re a little hazy as he wets a cloth in the sink, repositioning himself between your legs that hang limply off the bathroom counter. You keep scanning his face for any trace of weariness or urgency. After a long day of camp duties, the last thing you think he’d want was to clean up his drunken girlfriend after a secret party. But he’s as kind and patient as ever, and you don’t know if it’s your heart or the alcohol talking, but you are deliriously in love with him right now. He’s a leader—a brave, powerful demigod—but he’s only that good because he’s gentle. That's what you see, anyway. Everyone loves him for a reason, but you're still sure you love him most.

You got drunk. You got anxious. But it’s more than worth it if Jason takes care of you after. Even under these fluorescent bathroom lights, he’s beautiful.

“Why thank you,” he says, a bemused smile on his face.

You blink. “Did I say that out loud?”

“Sure did.”

The scar on the corner of his lip lifts as he kisses your cheek. You hum pleasantly, and you feel the ghost of his laugh before he pulls away. “Close your eyes for me?”

You oblige. In seconds, you’re greeted with the warm press of a towel on your face. Jason keeps you in place with his hand cupping your chin. “Let me know if I poke your eyes, okay?”

“If you do I’ll just bite your finger.”

“Awesome.” He works on sweeping the cloth over your skin to drag off all that makeup. You wait patiently, happily, indulging in the occasional idle chatter and the steady brush of Jason’s thumb underneath your chin. Every pass of his fingers against your face lulls you further into your haze. He’s warm, methodical, sweet. He switches the cloth to a different side and drags up your cheekbones. Your brain is mush with alcohol and appreciation.

“‘M sorry I got carried away, Jace,” you mumble, head swaying involuntarily. “Didn’t need to come get me like this.”

His soft laugh swims in your ears, and he lowers himself a bit to see you better. “Trust me, I wasn’t doing much. The only notable thing this evening was crossing the hundred-page threshold in my book.”

“Is it good?” You slur, toying with his dog-tag necklace you’d gotten him for his birthday.

He tilts his head, “Eh. Alright. I still like taking care of you more, though.”

You must be beaming stupidly wide, because Jason shakes his head with a smile, and he wraps his arms around you to kiss your jaw. “Besides, you’re sweet on me when you’re drunk.”

The feel of his lips would have shut you up in any normal circumstance, but your idiotic thoughts only heighten. “Sweet on you?”

“Mmhm.”

“That’s a thing?”

“Yes! They … people say it.”

His cheeks flush red in that insanely adorable way, and he presses his face back into your neck. “They said it in my book,” he mumbles, and you laugh so hard he has to shush you.

He goes through the rest of your rather particular skincare routine as per your instructions. He’s seen you do it a thousand times, but you repeat the order anyways just to be sure—although it’s likely you’re jumbling up your words and taking too many pauses for any of it to come out coherent. He takes his time, focused intently on the planes and ridges of your skin. If you were any more sober you’d probably be self-conscious, but sometimes his thumb runs across your cheek with a tenderness that has nothing to do with your serums.

Once all’s said and done, your skin refreshed, you’re practically snoozing on the counter. “Sweetheart,” Jason hums, winding arms around you once more, “Let’s get you to bed.”

“Only if it’s with you,” you yawn, cheek smushing into his chest.

“Well, that’s a given.”

He’s smiling again as he runs his hands down to your thighs, so you can loop your legs around his hips. “Hold on, okay?”

You oblige, relishing in the curl of his biceps against your sides as he hoists you off the counter. Usually you’d be hesitant to let him carry you around with you clinging to him like this, but your capacity for embarrassment had vanished about two drinks ago. You hear him chuckling into your hair as the breeze tickles your face, although it's far less severe in his arms.

Camp’s practically deserted this time of night so Jason has no problem getting you into his cabin. He puts you down on his lonely bed in a sea of marble, lit with nothing but the warmth of his reading lamp. “Thank you, baby,” you murmur as he helps you out of your clothes and gives you a shirt of his own. The way he smells reminds you of morning mist as he ties your hair back.

Soon you’re in your favourite place in the world: drowned in blankets on a cool summer night in Jason’s bed. You’re nestled snug against his chest, letting the fog in your mind settle as he traces shapes on your back beneath your shirt. Transfixed by the ebb and flow of his breath, you can’t help but press your lips to his collarbone, lazy chapstick kisses spooling onto his skin.

“Y’re right,” you mumble, “I am sweet on you.”

Jason laughs quietly, setting down his book. He taps on your chin to draw you out of his chest, leading you to his mouth. You’re giggling and falling into him before you even kiss. He tastes like sweet mint as he cages you against him with his arms, nothing but gentle. “Love you,” you whisper with a plucky smile.

He kisses your forehead, “I love you.” He disposes of his glasses and turns off his lamp, sinking the both of you down onto the mattress. “Get some sleep, angel.”

You must be a lot better at following instructions than you thought, because you smother yourself in his warmth and you’re sure you’ve never slept better.

#perrie’s fics #jason grace x reader #jason grace #jason grace fic #jason grace x you #pjo x reader #pjo fic #jason grace blurb #jason grace imagine #jason grace fluff

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lafleshlumpeater · 11 months

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: ̗̀➛ ꜱᴏ, ᴡʜᴀᴛ ʏᴏᴜ ᴅᴏɪɴɢ ᴛᴏɴɪɢʜᴛ? — ˢᵉⁿᵈ ᵐᵉ ᵃ ᵖʳᵒᵐᵖᵗ, ᵃ ᵗʳᵒᵖᵉ, ᵃ ᶠᵃⁿᵈᵒᵐ ᵃⁿᵈ ᵃ ᵍᵉⁿᵈᵉʳ ᵖʳᵉᶠ ᵃⁿᵈ ⁱ'ˡˡ ʷʳⁱᵗᵉ ᵃ ᵇˡᵘʳᵇ ᶠᵒʳ ⁱᵗ!!

chaotic but smart with no regard for their own safety x sensible one who keeps them alive but also starts to loosen up being around them with jason grace<33

omg this was so fun to write xx

(also includes platonic leo x reader)

jason grace masterlist leo valdez masterlist

You watched eagerly as Leo scribbled a drawing of the contraption you two had been talking about inventing for the past two minutes.

"And, you may be wondering, where do the actual mechanisms go? Well, my friend, they go into a little box that you will carry on your back here," he grinned excitedly as he sketched the idea out on the stickman you.

You tutted at him. "Idiot, just make shoes for it- sneakers, and make the sole slightly thicker, and that's where they'll go. That way, the motion sensors will be more sensitive so there's no chance of it landing when we don't want it to, also there'll be no need for the Wii remote controllers to control the direction of where you fly," you nod. "And-" you snatch the pencil off of him and scrawl the ideas messily as they come to you; "-we add little wings, to make it look like Hermes' rad boots, add LED lights for flair, before we ask for a little help from the Hecate cabin for the wings to be able to set on fire- on command- without actually burning- oh, and so the whole thing doesn't overheat."

Leo looked at you in awe. "Oh my gods, and I thought I had the good ideas."

You merely grinned back at him in response, picking up the sketchpad and practically sprinting towards bunker nine, eager to make your thoughts come to life.

After a long three hours (you and Leo together were practically criminal masterminds- no one could decide whether it was a good thing or not), and a trip to the Hecate cabin who were more than happy to oblige, the sneakers were done.

Leo let out a low whistle. "Oh, man."

"I know, right," you squealed, quickly pulling them on. You tugged on the perfectly tied laces of both shoes at the same time, and you were instantly in the air. You laughed triumphantly, getting used to the feel of them as you twirled in circles mid- air, snapping your fingers and shrieking in delight as the Hermes wings set alight to a vibrant, multi- coloured fire.

"It worked!" you exclaimed, and Leo whooped and jumped up and down whilst cheering.

"Get down- let's use these for our original plan."

You sidled up to your boyfriend innocently, wearing the seemingly- normal yet very fashionable sneakers.

"Jason?"

"Hmm?" he hummed, looking up at you from where he was thumbing through a magazine Percy had lent him, before breaking out into his gorgeous, golden- retriever grin. "Hey, sweetheart."

His sweetness was almost enough to make you feel bad for what you were about to do next. Almost.

You grabbed his glasses from where they were resting on his nose, and before he could react, pulled the laces like you had done before as you were elevated into the air, holding the glasses over your head, laughing gleefully.

Jason gasped, scandalised. "Sweetheart! How- you-"

You smirked back mischievously. "Come get them then, Grace."

"Babe, get down- you- you're gonna-" he stuttered as you flew higher up.

His initial reaction was to be scared for your life, but after you waved his glasses in the air tantalisingly and swooped through the air comfortably, his fear grew into an indignant, teasing laughter.

"Oh, you're so on."

Using his powers, he flew into the air as you giggled and screamed happily, flying away from him. He quickly caught up to you, and just as his arms were about to engulf you in a strong embrace, you snapped your fingers.

He flinched back in shock at the dancing flames which engulfed the wings.

"Shoot!" he cursed good- naturedly, laughing loudly as he began to fly after you where you had left him metres behind.

Eventually, he caught up to you and clasped you to his chest, out of breath. "Got you." You giggled, tapping his nose fondly as you somewhat sheepishly placed his glasses on his face. "My bad."

He laughed and his chest rumbled.

"You're so cute," he observed, keeping both of you suspended in the air as your sneakers stopped working their powers, both of you catching your breaths.

You blushed and slapped his chest gently. "I love you."

"I love you more," he replied automatically, yet you know he meant every word. His lips met yours in a short, sweet kiss, only pulling away because you were both smiling too much to do so any longer. you let out an exhilarated, breathless giggle, as he looked at you with so much love in his cool, blue eyes that you could cry. Your hands found the other's, intertwining them, and you didn't think there was a thing you wanted more in the world than Percy yelling at you for being saps from the ground, Leo gagging in mock- disgust alongside him, and best of all, losing yourself in your lover's eyes as your lips met again.

READ: this account stands with palestine, and so— i require everyone who interacts to educate themselves, and support/donate. READ THESE; 1 and 2, HELP HERE, BOYCOTT. silence is complicity, do not scroll past this.

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your-honor-im-zesty · 5 days

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Seeking Paradise- Part 1

"Fuck, it's so damn hot in here."

Yeah, 'cause you're right here.

Jason flushed red as Leo turned around, squinting. "What was that, Grace?"

They were standing in his workshop, in the forge at Camp Half-Blood. It was nighttime, and they were the only ones here. Everyone else, like the sensible demigods they were, had gone to sleep. It was just them, the oppressive heat, and Leo's scraggly invention that laid limply on the table.

"Nothing," said Jason hurriedly. He hadn't even realized he had spoken aloud. Shit. Over the past few weeks, he'd been having some strange thoughts around Leo...but he'd always kept them to himself, and tried not to think too hard about it. His life was already complicated enough; he didn't need any more problems.

Leo looked at him suspiciously. "You're not still pining over Piper, are you?" he asked shrewdly.

Jason winced. "No," he lied. "I'm not...It's okay, really. I'm not still mooning after her."

Leo snorted. "Sure."

It had been 8 months and 4 days since Piper and Jason had broken up (not that he was counting). Jason preferred to speak of it as a mutual thing, but truly, it was Piper who had dumped his ass. We just aren't a good match, she had explained. I love you, I really do, but I can't be in a relationship that was orchestrated by a goddess.

It wasn't that much of a surprise, really. Piper was a free spirit, who was passionate about her own choices and freedom and decisions. All things that were foreign to Jason, but maybe that was why he had been drawn to her in the first place. She had been almost an act of rebellion for him; a way to defy the natural order of the demigod world, to break the rule of Roman and Greek enmity.

He should've known better. Nothing good ever lasted for long. That was something he understood quite well; experience was a painfully thorough teacher. But it did nothing to remove his constant, almost obsessive thoughts about Piper.

And maybe Leo knew it too. Maybe it was much too visible on his face, because the curly-haired boy narrowed his eyes and announced, "We're going on a trip!"

"A- what?"

"A trip," Leo repeated. He grinned, tapping his finger on his chin, his face turning thoughtful. "Yeah, you've moped over Beauty Queen long enough to get off your ass and move on with your life. Time to get back out there, man. Maybe date some new girls- plenty of fish out there in the sea, right?"

Jason swallowed. Against his will, his eyes drifted to a stray curl hanging in Leo's face. Yes, there certainly is.

He looked away immediately. Snap out of it, Grace, he chided himself. You're the son of Jupiter, not a pathetic lover boy. He shouldn't even be looking at Leo like that. It was weird.

"I dunno," he said. "I mean, I still have to finish building all those temples for the minor gods- you know how many of them there are-"

It wasn't necessarily a lie. Even with all the progress he'd made lately, with late nights immersed in his work and days spent checking over papers, Jason had barely made a dent in his work. But still- that didn't bother him as much as the thought of going out and about, facing the real world. Ever since the break up, he'd thrown himself into his work; it had worked before, on other occasions, like when he was mourning his friends' deaths after the slaughter on Mount Othrys. Or trying to rid his mind of the monstrous Scythian Dracanae that had wiped out nearly half the legion.

"You're such a workaholic," Leo rolled his eyes. He reached over and plucked a single screw out of his invention; the whole thing collapsed into pieces within seconds, spilling across the table in shambles. It didn't seem to faze Leo in the slightest. "Sometimes you gotta let go, man. Like this. See? I let go. It was a project doomed from the start."

"Piper and I weren't doomed from the start," Jason said instantly, his voice defensive. Maybe Hera had set them up together, but his feelings for her had always been real. He was sure about that, if nothing else.

Leo cocked an eyebrow. "Who said anything about Piper?"

Shit. Jason deflated. He was an idiot, walking into that trap. "I hate your mind tricks. You're an ass. Seriously."

"No idea what you're talking about!" Leo said cheerfully, throwing an arm around Jason. He smelled heavily of grease and oil, but Jason was used to that. "Point is, Superman, you need to get out there. It's not healthy to do that much work. It makes you look kind of pathetic, like the pining wimp who can't get over his ex."

Jason scoffed. "Says the guy who spends half his days down here, tinkering with a new random-ass invention."

Leo wagged a finger at him. "Nuh-uh, Grace! You don't get to deflect your way out of this one. Don't follow Solace's bad example. He's hella addicted to work, and look how the kid is right now! I mean, have you seen him lately?"

"That's true," admitted Jason grudgingly. He wasn't anything more than acquaintances with Will, but even he had to admit the toll of working so much in the infirmary was obvious. Heavy eyebags, skipped breakfast, irregular sleep schedule...

Oh shit, was that what he was like right now?

Yikes. Leo was right. That was kind of pathetic of him.

"Fine," he said, after a few moments. "We'll go...on a trip. But we need to get Chiron's permission," he added hastily as Leo's face lit up. "You know we can't go running off without warning."

"Of course," the mechanic promised. "You know me, Jason. I always follow the rules."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Leo did not, in fact, follow the rules, and Jason loved hated him for that.

"Valdez," he growled through gritted teeth. "I am going to kill you."

They were on the streets of New York, on a small motorbike that Leo had built weeks prior. Leo was in the front, manning the motorbike, while Jason clung to his best friend for dear life and dreamed of all the possibilities of homicide.

"If we die, I will kill you," he said again.

Leo's response was a maniacal cackle as they rounded the corner in a quick, sharp arc that nearly hurled Jason into the sidewalk. He clenched Leo's waist tighter and scooted closer. His palms grew sweaty at the contact. Only because he was nearly about to die via motorcycle, he assured himself. There would be no other reason for such feelings.

"I fucking love motorcycles!" Leo screamed as they whizzed past an old lady and her cat; she shot them a dirty look, which went unnoticed by Leo, being the fucking madman he was. He slowed down as they approached a steady onslaught of traffic. He twisted around to grin at Jason, his cheeks flushed and eyes bright. He looked quite windswept, but happy. Maybe time out of camp was doing wonders for him too. "What say you, Jason?"

"Chiron is going to kill us," Jason deadpanned, but his lips were twitching.

Leo waved him off, looking unworried. "Don't worry, I had Connor Stoll feed him some bullshit story about us making an emergency trip to Camp Jupiter via pegasus. He won't suspect a thing, trust me. Connor's the expert at lying- I paid him five drachmas."

"What happened to following the rules?" asked Jason drily, but this time, he couldn't help it. The smile stretched across his face.

"That's your fault," Leo replied airily. He swiveled back around. "You should've known that was a load of crap- you're too naive for your own good."

Jason laughed, relaxing enough to lean into Leo's back. "So, where're we going, then?" he said.

Leo shrugged as the motorcycle geared up; the traffic light had flashed green. "Your trip, your choice. I don't make the rules here, Grace."

Your choice. The words were a bit unnerving. Most of the time, Jason didn't have to pick. His path was already chosen, decided by other people. The gods, mostly. Juno.

Not to mention, he had never been to New York City before. No, correction- he had never been to New York City before for purely recreational purposes. What did kids his age do for fun around here? Last he'd checked, this generation was mostly just obsessed with cell phones and computers and things like TikTok and Instagram (which confused the hell out of Jason, because what was a TikTok and why was it so..noisy?) Nothing that he could engage in anyway, since technology was as fatal as a knife to demigods.

"Er, I dunno," Jason said. "I guess...coffee?" He had heard Percy mention a Starbucks once, so he decided to go with that, since Percy was probably the most modern demigod he knew. "Yeah, coffee. At Starbucks."

"Aye aye, captain!" Leo said gleefully as the motorcycle began to weave between cars, rearing forward. Jason cringed, tightening his grip on Leo. Gods, this would be a long drive.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So," said Jason as they strolled into Starbucks. "Have you ever been here before?"

"What- to Starbucks?" Leo glanced at him, amused. "'Course I have. Everyone's been to Starbucks at least once in their life."

Not everyone. Not me. New Rome had coffee shops, sure, but they didn't have a Starbucks.

But Jason didn't say this. Instead, he tilted his face up to look up at the menu; there were a whole bunch of words scribbled in messy cursive. He could read them, sure; he was one of the few demigods who didn't have dyslexia. But his literacy skills had never exactly been honed in on as a child (fighting was always more important, and in a place full of dyslexic demigods, what use was that anyway?), and as he squinted at the board, he wondered if his skills were regressing, from disuse. "Iced caramel machiato?" he asked, glancing at Leo. "Am I reading that right?"

"Hell if I know," Leo answered pleasantly. "Dyslexic, remember? Can't read shit." He shrugged, reaching into his pockets. His hand emerged with a wad of cash- his savings, maybe? "I always just order the Triple Shot Mocha, since they have it everywhere."

"Alright- I guess I'll just have that, then," said Jason tentatively. They joined the line of people in front of the counter. There was a lot, he noted. Starbucks seemed to be popular among mortals.

After they'd ordered and gone to grab a table in a secluded corner of the shop, Leo clasped his hands together and looked at Jason expectantly. "So, where to after this, Superman?"

Jason just shrugged. It wasn't that he was disinterested in this trip, but he genuinely had no ideas on what to do. He'd never been on a vacation before. Maybe if he had, this would be easier. Yet another policy to change in New Rome- lack of vacations. He made a mental note to bring it up in the next Senate meeting.

"You want to visit Percy?" Leo suggested. "He lives around here, somewhere...we could pop in, say hey to his mom and stepdad. I hear his stepsister's cute as shit."

"Thought you didn't like babies."

"I don't like kids," Leo corrected. "They're annoying little shits who talk too much and have the emotional capacity of a Cyclops. But babies are cute. They haven't developed their taste of independence yet, you see. They're still respectful."

"You mean they have no personality," Jason pointed out.

"Tomato, tomato." Leo made a psh noise. "Look, dude, our drinks are ready- I'll go get them. Make up your mind when I come back, okay?"

"Sure," Jason said uncertainly as Leo stood from his seat and strolled across the room casually. He almost admired his swagger, until his curly-haired boy nearly tripped over a chair. Then he had to turn away to hide his laugh.

He pondered, for a few moments, drumming his fingers against the table. Going to Percy's sounded like a decent idea..Jason had yet to meet the famous Sally Jackson, amazing mother and excellent baker, but he figured Percy didn't want any reminder of his demigod life at the moment. Jason wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he had some idea on how to read people. He could see how much Percy despised his demigod status, even if he did love Camp Half-Blood like a second home and would give his life to defend it. Normalcy was a gift to him, and who was Jason to intrude on it?

His eyes wandered around, taking in his surroundings. What had Reyna said to him, once? Use your surroundings, you never know when it'll be useful. It was battle advice, but it could still be used in this scenario. In any scenario, really. Her advice was always universal.

He missed her and her words of wisdom. Their relationship had never been completely the same since that quest to Charleston, and he loathed to admit that he'd never tried to repair it, even after the Giant War. Maybe someday, when their paths crossed again, he would make it up to her.

For now, though, he was content to use her words. He observed the old, balding man who sat a table away, flipping through a newspaper, his drink completely forgotten beside him. He raised it in front of his face, peering intently.

Jason's stomach dropped.

There was a huge photo on top of the front page, of a lovely-looking young woman. She had rosy cheeks and laughing eyes and gorgeous blond curls, teased high in a pile on her head. Her lips were stretched into a wide grin- an all too familiar one. Jason knew that grin, because he had spent hours practicing it in the mirror back when he was younger, trying to master the perfect jovial hero facade. The grin was a little too big to be true, showing too much teeth. Teeth that were strikingly similar to Thalia's.

Mom?

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EEEE ok so i've always wanted to write a jason grace angst fic so yeah here it is, it'll be broken down into multiple parts lmao. yes this is a character study of him, yes this is a slow-burn valgrace fanfic, and yes this is an au where trials of apollo didn't happen and my lovely boy didn't die.

I added in the Starbucks bit for fun lmao I always wondered how Jason would react in modern-day Starbucks haha

#percy jackson #pjo #hoo #pjo fandom #percy jackson fandom #hoo fandom #heroes of olympus #heroes of olympus fandom #jason grace #leo valdez #valgrace #valgrace fic #jason grace fic #jason grace centric fic #jason grace angst

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ya9amicide · 7 months

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♡ percy jackson masterlist ♡

pov: your camera roll if you were dating jason grace.

#𐙚 sfw !#jason grace #jason grace aesthetic #jason grace fic #jason grace fanfiction #jason grace x reader #jason grace x y/n #jason grace x you #jason grace fluff #percy jackson fanfiction #percy jackson fic #percy jackson aesthetic #pjo fic #pjo fanfiction #pjo aesthetic #camera roll fic #camera roll fanfiction

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sodamnbored · 8 months

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Gonna give him a big part in a fic, so what kind of version of Will do people typically enjoy most?

If you like something totally different stick it in a reblog or in the notes. 😊

I have never been so excited to write Will in anything ever. This is gonna be great 😆

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helpimstuckinafandom · 1 year

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Fuck it if anyone knows any Jason in Valhalla fics hand them over. this is a stick up I am robbing you

#jason grace #mcatgoa valhalla #pjo #hoo #toa #jason grace fic #pjo fic #valgrace

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thebigqueer · 3 months

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"Crooked Glasses" - Valgrace - One-Shot

Summary: leo & jason confess their feelings for each other in an arcane-themed alternate universe. Word Count: 5620 TW: blood, violence, gore (sort of). Read on AO3

Jason knows it’s probably a bad idea to be playing with Leo’s newest stink bomb. He has no idea how it works, and it’s possible he might just trigger it, but he doesn’t really care. He needs a distraction.

They’re in the training room, for whatever reason. Leo didn’t really give Jason much explanation other than, “I’m bored. Come with me.” And Jason, being Jason, didn’t think twice about following. It’s a natural instinct at this point — Leo tells him to do something, and he’s already on his knees, ready to do whatever it is Leo tells him. It should embarrass him, but he’s too desperate for any moment alone with him to care.

Leo’s on the other side of the room, in the corner with the punching bag and a few other various machines. Jason can hear him clanging around, probably trying to be interested in doing something, but Jason hopes he gives up. They only just came back from their latest haul an hour ago, and he has no energy to do anything but sit here and play with Leo’s bomb.

So he’s not surprised when, eventually, Leo calls, “Jason!”

Jason suppresses a groan, fixes his glasses, and looks up. “What?”

“Fight with me.” Leo gestures to the machine next to him, which has painted faces and bright lights whirring now that Leo’s turned it on. Instead of waiting for an answer from Jason, he immediately starts putting on boxing gloves from a box on the floor.

“Leo, I’m tired.” Jason shakes the bomb in his hand. “How do you turn this on?”

“You’re just afraid you’re gonna lose,” Leo jeers, throwing over a grin. As he starts tightening on his next glove, he stalks over. “What could you possibly be tired from?”

“Being around you all day.”

“If it weren't for me, you’d have no excitement in your life, Sparky.” Leo slides down next to Jason, nudging him with his shoulder playfully, and Jason’s heart pounds at the touch. He buries his gaze back into the stink bomb, if only to try to hide the blush raging across his face right now.

At this point, he’s decided there’s no use denying his crush on Leo. It’s been there since they were fourteen, maybe even before, and he’s learned to live with the ache in his chest at every sight of him and the ringing in his stomach every time he said something flirtatious. After all, if he can’t get rid of it, he might as well accept it as a part of him.

For a good portion of his crush, he was sure that Leo had no idea. He was convinced that in all his time staring longingly at him from across the room, he’d never notice. But it’s not like he entirely hated that, though — he liked where they were in their friendship, and he didn’t see a point in ruining something that mattered so much to him. Besides, he never was good with crushes.

For example, when they were twelve, he had a small thing for Piper. But that got shut down real quick when, during one of their sleepovers, Piper crawled over to him and, staring at him with her big eyes, asked him if Thalia liked girls. That was when Jason realized she might not like him back.

There was also Luke when he was thirteen. Jason, Leo, and Percy worked with the pawn shop owner in the Lanes, where they met him. Jason was pretty sure he wasn’t the only person totally gutted for him, based on the way Leo and Percy would blush around him, too. It’s not like any of them actually had a chance, because Luke was already nineteen and had a girlfriend, but that didn’t stop the boys from dreaming about him. It was all fun and games, trying to battle each other for even a glimpse of a smile or the smallest laugh — until Luke got arrested for a disruption on Topside. So maybe it was better that he never got the chance to confess.

There was also Percy when they were fourteen, but that was smaller than most of his crushes. If anything, Percy was just a distraction from Jason’s raging feelings for Leo. There was that one night, when the four of them — Jason, Piper, Leo, and Percy — were in the training room, with a bottle of beer that Percy had stolen from his step-dad. Jason and Percy were alone, sitting and watching Piper and Leo drunkenly try to spar each other, when Percy leaned his head against Jason’s shoulder and joked about how stupid Leo looked. Jason doesn’t know what did him in — maybe it was something in the drinks, or maybe it was something in the way Percy’s eyes looked like buttons of the glimmering sea trapped in his eyes. Whatever it was, he couldn’t take back what he did next — he kissed him.

At the time, Percy kissed back. But the next morning Percy told him he had a crush on Annabeth, and that was when Jason started wondering why he was cursed with liking people.

But now, at sixteen, Jason doesn’t feel so nervous with Leo. Maybe it’s the fact that he’s more comfortable with rejection. Maybe it’s the fact that he’s more mature now.

Or maybe it’s the fact that he’s pretty sure Leo might like him back.

Leo has always been flirty. When he casually smirks at Jason and tells him how handsome he looks; when he bites his lip suggestively and tells Jason that no, he doesn’t mind if he changes his shirt in front of him; when Jason asks what’s for dinner and Leo responds, “Not sure, but I know you’re the desert,” Jason doesn’t make much of it. Sure, an occasional blush and an attempt at jokingly flirting back, but Jason knows he doesn’t mean it. Besides, he isn’t special. If Jason had to count the amount of people Leo had made out with just in the past year, it might take both his hands.

But lately it’s been different. There’s a softness in Leo’s eyes when he catches sight of Jason, a more soulful smirk when he offers that they sleep in the same bed, a hopefulness when he asks Jason if he wants to come with him on his next haul.

It’s possible that it’s really just all in Jason’s head. But he doesn’t think he’s imagining the way Leo’s leaning against him now, his bare shoulder brushing against Jason’s own. He doesn’t think he’s imagining the way Leo’s ankle is locked into his. He doesn’t think he’s imagining how close Leo’s lips are, so close that if Jason bowed his head even a bit, he might just be kissing him.

Jason looks away, if only to distract himself from how pretty Leo’s eyes look. He starts shaking the bomb in his hands again. “How do you work this thing?”

Leo rolls his eyes and pushes Jason’s glasses down the bridge of his nose, and he laughs. “Stop playing with it!” Leo demands. “Unless you want to smell bad. Then by all means, do it.”

“Fine.” Jason holds it out for Leo to take back, but Leo only raises his eyebrows and holds out his box-gloved hands. Jason snorts and fixes his glasses. “I’m not going to spar with you, Leo. My neck still hurts from last night.”

“Aw, does he have an owie?” Leo throws off one of his gloves and presses his hand to the side of Jason’s neck, pouting. “Does he need a widdle bandage?”

“That’s weird,” Jason says, but he’s laughing. “Don’t talk like that.”

Leo switches back to his normal voice, but his words bubble as he brushes a finger against Jason’s cheek and says, “You look so cute when you blush, though.”

Jason hesitates before responding. This is one of those moments, again — he knows Leo’s just trying to get a rise out of him. But this time, Jason decides maybe it’s time to start playing his game. He turns to meet Leo’s eyes and, tilting his head, he says, “Then all you have to do is just keep sitting next to me.”

A wave of pride surges through Jason’s chest as Leo’s eyes widen. He wishes he could just frame the blush on Leo’s cheeks and pin it to the wall. He’s quiet for a moment — which Jason considers a pretty epic feat considering Leo never shuts up — but the warm blazing in his eyes and the flushed smile against his lips send Jason’s skin aflame, prickling with anticipation.

Jason sighs, then leans his head back so it rests against the wall. “I feel like we need to talk.”

Leo leans his head back, too, so that he’s following Jasons’ gaze. “About what?”

“I think you know.”

“Jason, just because we’re best friends doesn’t mean I can just read your mind.” Leo taps his head. “Sometimes even the most intelligent people need things spelled out for them.”

Jason lets a beat of silence pass between them. There’s an eagerness in Leo’s eyes, a sort of excitement that has Jason’s own heart thumping. He takes a deep breath, and then, with all the courage he can force out of himself, he murmurs, “Just friends?”

Now Leo’s eyebrows jump in surprise, and he bites on his bottom lip to suppress a grin. “I don’t know,” he says, leaning closer. “Is there something else you had in mind?”

“I think I might have had a couple.”

Leo opens his mouth to say something, and Jason steels himself for whatever response Leo has — but then his face falls and he snaps his gaze to something in the corner of the room. “Did you hear that?” Leo whispers.

Jason’s heart falls in his chest, and he sighs. So much for confrontation. “If you didn’t want to talk about it, then you—”

Leo throws a hand over Jason’s mouth and starts looking around more nervously, a frown carving itself onto his features. “No, I’m serious,” he whispers. “I feel like I heard a… shift. Like metal.”

Now Jason’s own eyebrows scrunch into a frown, and he tilts his head, trying to hone his ears on any sort of noise he can. For a moment, he hears nothing — until, there, he hears a low, frantic whispering…

And it isn’t coming from Leo.

Jason’s eyes widen, anxiety surging through his veins, and he lets out the smallest squeak. Leo takes his hand off Jason’s mouth, his frown deepening, and he leans forward, trying to listen closer. The whispering continues, and while Jason can’t decipher what’s being said, he’s pretty sure it’s coming from behind one of the machines in the far right corner.

“Do you think it’s Piper or Thalia?” Jason asks.

Leo shrugs. “I’m not sure. They’re supposed to be out at the Night Market.” He squints his eyes and cranes his neck up and down, trying to look for some sort of glimpse of the intruders, but after a minute he just shakes his head and glances at Jason. “Better to be on the safe side. Could be thieves.” He throws off his other glove, leaving both his hands now clad in their wrist wraps, and opens his hand. “Give me the bomb.”

Jason nods confidently, but it’s only a mask to hide how fast his heart is beating. Not just out of anxiety — though that is a big part of it — but rather, because of the determination in Leo’s eyes and the straight set of his mouth and the clench of his fists. The sight of him, so rigid with confidence and courage, makes Jason’s stomach ring with a nauseating yearning. There’s no time Leo looks more attractive than when he’s ready to beat someone’s ass.

Jason drops the bomb into his hand. Leo juts his head towards some of the “weapons” to the corner nearest to them, and Jason realizes he’s telling him to get something in his hands.

He tiptoes over and grabs a bat, and when Leo sees that he’s now properly equipped, he offers the barest nod. He pulls up his fingers and starts counting down: Three, two, one…

And then he launches the bomb.

It lands with a soft clang near the machine in the far corner. For a second, everything’s quiet. Jason briefly wonders if maybe the bomb is defective.

But then a low hissing starts through the bomb, which turns into full blown jets of terrible gas — and then the screaming begins. Two boys jump up from behind the machine, coughing and sputtering and stumbling as fast as they can away from the stink bomb, and Jason would grin if he weren’t so freaked out by them.

Jason raises his bat higher by reflex, and next to him he can feel Leo tensing up, throwing his fists into defensive positions. Even from this far away, his nose burns at the scent of the gas, probably made of some science-y gas that Jason has no idea how to pronounce. His glasses start fogging up, and he has to lower his bat for a second to clean them.

As the haze clears, the figures of the intruders become clearer. One is tall and bulky, with buzzed black hair; the other is lanky and skinny, with curly hair that flops with each cough. At the sight of them, Leo grits his teeth. “You guys. What the hell do you want?”

The beefier one, who Jason realizes is Sherman Yang from the building just a few blocks down, starts to step forward. He coughs a few more times, and then, in a raspy voice, he says, “Relax, Valdez. We’re not here to hurt you, so you can lower your baby hands.” Sherman points a look at Jason and smirks. “And you can lower your bat.”

Leo shakes his head at Jason. Jason only holds onto his bat tighter.

Sherman shrugs. “Suit yourselves. I—”

“Answer the question,” growls Jason. “What do you guys want? How did you even get in?”

“Come on, Grace,” the other boy — who Jason realizes is Connor Stoll — says, rolling his eyes. “You guys make breaking in too easy.” Connor raises his eyebrows at Leo. “Don’t you remember who taught you to pick locks?”

“If you wanted to come in so bad, you could have just knocked.” Leo crosses his arms, so Jason lowers his bat, only a little bit. “What could be so necessary that you had to break in?”

“We’re not here to pick a fight,” Sherman says, and his muscles loosen as he puts his hands on his hips. “We were just looking for something, but since you’ve caught us, might as well ask you.”

“What is it?”

Sherman’s eyes narrow as he steps closer. Leo’s fists rise again, determination reborn in his eyes, and Jason takes that as his cue to raise his bat. Sherman only smirks. “Word on the street is your mommy’s got her hands on some shimmer. We were looking for a fix.”

Leo’s eyes widen ever so slightly, only hinting at his shock. Other than that, though, there are no other tells — at the very least, his reaction could be taken as just a flinch of surprise.

But Jason knows better.

The only people Leo told were Jason, Piper, and Thalia, and he swore to them that they had to keep it a secret. “She didn’t actually tell me until I found a few jars of it,” Leo explained a week ago, his voice shivering as it came out. “But she said she wasn’t using it; she’s only experimenting with it, trying to see what chemical properties it has.”

“Do you believe her?” Piper asked, laying a gentle hand on his shoulder.

Leo looked at Piper, and at the sight of his dark eyes glazing over in fear, Jason’s stomach sank with guilt. “I don’t think I can afford to not believe her.”

It’s not really that she’d had much of a history with drugs in the past, Leo explained to them. Sure, the occasional pipe, but that’s as much as Leo really knew about it. And anyway, she liked to experiment with new chemicals or discoveries at her machine shop when she could get her hands on them. So when shimmer started cropping up, and with barely much information about its effects or how it worked, naturally she was interested in experimenting with it. At least, that’s what Leo was choosing to believe.

“Did you ask her where she got it?” asked Thalia, her eyebrows furrowing.

“Yeah, but she wouldn’t tell me.” Leo took a deep breath, and then he leaned back on his hands and exhaled. “But I trust her. I’ve never had a reason not to.”

At the time, Jason felt a little frustrated. If Leo could have so much trust in his mother, why couldn’t she have the same in him? And why was she hiding the shimmer, anyway? In Jason’s experience, that was the most suspicious thing a parent could do. Why didn’t she just show Leo right away, so he was aware?

Maybe a part of that frustration also came from Jason’s jealousy. The fact that Leo had the privilege to trust his mother so much even when she was acting so suspicious… Jason could never relate. His dad left him and Thalia when they were younger, and their mother went into a life of drinking and sabotage, to the point that she died alone in a bathtub. Their parents left them to fend for themselves, so the fact that Leo’s mother was risking a bond so strong with her son over a science experiment… it just didn’t sit right.

But now, as Sherman’s eyes gleam hungrily at him and Leo, Jason understands why she was so quiet about it. The less information, the better.

“Look, man,” Leo says, stepping forward, his eyes locking onto Shermans. “I don’t know where the hell you heard that, but it’s not true. And anyway, why do you care? Do you know the kinda shit that could do to your body?”

“If it’s not true,” Sherman mutters, thudding closer to Leo, “then why did I hear it?”

“I don’t know,” Leo bites out, and even though he’s at least a head shorter than Sherman, the blazing in his eyes makes even Jason nervous. “But if you don’t step back, the only thing you’ll be hearing is the ringing in your ears when I crack your head against the wall.”

“Look,” Jason calls, and everyone’s gaze turn to him. “Even if it were true, we don’t have anything here. We don’t mess with that. So you can leave and find someone else to get your fix.”

Sherman’s eyes glaze over, and for a second, Jason allows himself to believe he’s finally bored him enough to make him want to leave. But then a revitalized energy broils in his eyes, and he throws Leo to the side and starts walking towards Jason. “That’s cool,” he says, shrugging. “We can do this the hard way, then.”

Jason starts to step back, his heart hammering in his chest. He doesn’t like the hunger in Sherman’s eyes, the cruel grin slicing across his face.

Connor, who’s been quiet up until now, lets out an exasperated sigh. “Man, come on. We can just search the place, and if there’s nothing we can just leave. They’re just kids, anyway.”

“Yeah,” Jason mutters, trying his hardest to keep his voice from breaking. “Doesn’t it look a little pathetic for someone your age to be messing with sixteen-year-olds?”

“Does it?” Sherman cracks his knuckles, and Jason can only think of it as a foreshadowing of the sound his own bones will make soon when Sherman slams him around. “That’s too bad.” Then he whips his gaze to Connor. “We asked nicely, Stoll. If beating them up doesn’t get an answer out of them, then we can leave. Not like they’ll be able to talk, anyway.”

Sherman starts to turn his gaze back towards Jason — and then lets loose a piercing howl when Jason cracks the bat against his left arm.

His face burst with red and he claws for his arm. In the time it takes for him to recover from his shock, Jason’s already back at Leo’s side with his bat raised again and a new rush of adrenaline flooding his veins. Leo offers him a hint of a smile, and all Jason can think about is how anyone would need shimmer when just the sight of him is enough to send him into a frenzy.

“Oh, you think that was funny, don’t you?” Sherman growls, turning on them again. “Don’t worry, I’m going to have a nice laugh, too.”

He charges.

But Leo’s quick on his feet. As soon as Sherman throws out a punch, Leo dodges and kicks him in the ribs. While it doesn’t make him fly away like Jason wishes it would have, he still stumbles back, and that’s as good a win as any.

Sherman straightens and scowls at Leo, then throws a look at Connor. “What the hell do you think you’re doing? Don’t just stand there!”

Connor catches Jason’s eyes, and regret flashes across his face before he rushes towards him. Jason raises his bat to strike Connor, too, but this time he doesn’t have the element of surprise — as soon as he starts to bring it down, Connor gets a grip on it, stopping its momentum, and throws it to the side. Jason’s bones shiver with each clacking of the bat, and he looks at Connor in newfound fear.

“Sorry, dude,” Connor mutters, then slams Jason against the wall. His head rings with pain when it collides with the cement, and his glasses slide down the bridge of his nose, but he barely has time to process any of it before Connor throws him to the ground.

Jason groans, his head pounding and his shoulders aching. The lights above him shine too bright, and he has to squint up at Connor, who towers over him as he waits for a sign that Jason’s alive. In the distance, Leo cries out, but Jason’s powerless to stop it; he’s too busy not trying to get murdered himself. He just hopes Sherman has enough sympathy to not kill anyone tonight. It would be really sad if Leo got killed before Jason could even kiss him.

Connor bends over Jason, hands on his knees, and tilts his head. “Come on, dude. Just tell us where it is, or where to find it. We need something. Then we’ll stop.”

“I don’t know anything,” Jason spits. “And the fact you’re so desperate for it is just really embarrassing.”

Connor shakes his head in shame and sighs. He opens his mouth to speak, but whatever he wants to say, Jason beats him to it. “Why do you let him bully you like that?” he demands. He’s really just stalling, trying to gather his strength and think of a plan.

“He’s not bullying me,” Connor scoffs. “We’ve been best friends forever.”

“If he’s not bullying then how come you just do whatever it is he says?” Jason tries to raise an eyebrow. “What happened to earning pride, Connor? Are you really making a name for yourself if you just do whatever it is he says?”

“Man, don’t talk like that.” Connor rolls his eyes. “You sound like some prissy councilor. It’s really not that deep. We’ve just been friends forever.”

“And you’ve known me and Thalia since we first came here. Doesn’t that count for something?”

“None of this is personal. This is just how Sherman is.”

“So you just let him bully you because it’s just how it is?” Jason claws himself up, trying not to hiss through the pain, and the fact that Connor doesn’t seem to acknowledge is only a good thing. “Might as well call yourself a Topsider with that attitude.”

The betrayal striking Connor’s face is all the distraction Jason needs. He pounces, his hands colliding with Connor’s shoulders as he forces him to the ground. Connor wriggles under his weight, and it takes all of Jason’s strength just to keep him down. He catches sight of the baseball bat, which is only a few feet away, but then he looks down at Connor, whose eyes echo with betrayal and frustration, and Jason considers the chances — stand up to get the bat and risk Connor escaping, or keep attacking him?

But in the time that it takes for Jason to make his decision, Connor’s gathered all his strength and shoves Jason off, this time making it his turn to pin Jason by the shoulders. A new rage flames in his eyes, and he opens his mouth to say something, but then Jason kicks Connor in the stomach, yanking any and all words out of him. He grunts and tumbles to the ground, and Jason takes his chance to scramble away and reach for the bat.

When Connor gets back up, holding his stomach, he glares at Jason. “Got your toy? Good. It’s only a fair game.”

Then he charges towards him, arms outreached, his face bubbling with rage. At the last second, just as Connor is about to grab for Jason’s neck, Jason jerks out of the way and extends his leg to trip Connor. He slams face-first into the ground, a sickening crunch following after him, and when he turns onto his back, Jason sees that his nose is a little crooked, blood leaking from his nostril. Guilt starts trickling through Jason’s veins at the sight, but he pretends not to notice it as he leans over Connor and presses the bat against his shoulders. As Connor’s eyes widen, Jason starts dragging the bat so that it digs into his throat. Jason wishes he could say he’s proud to finally have bested him, but Connor’s gasping and blubbering only make Jason’s heart pulse with regret.

“Do you really want to see how the rest of this goes?” Jason asks. He means it to come out as a growl, but it only sputters out of him, like a dying machine trying to exhale its last breaths. “Worst case scenario, you could be lying dead on my ground. Up to you.”

Connor glares at him, and Jason’s about to say something again when, behind him, Leo calls, “Jason!”

Just like that, all of Jason’s attention is violently twisted away. He whips his head at the sound of Leo’s voice, and it takes a moment for his eyes to make sense of the scene before him — Leo stands with a foot over Sherman’s lumpy, unconscious body on the ground, panting and running a hand through his sweat-lined curls. There’s a bit of blood spattered on his face and knuckles, and some dripping off a cut at his temple, but for some reason, the only word that comes to Jason’s mind is godly.

“It’s cool,” Leo pants, nodding towards Connor. “Let him go. I think we’ve reached an agreement.”

Sherman just groans underneath Leo’s foot.

Jason wishes he could have gotten to see Leo beat the Sherman Yang. Not that he’s surprised — testing Leo is the dumbest decision anyone could ever make — but he would’ve loved to proudly announce that he saw every detail of Leo beating his ass.

Jason offers a slight nod, then bares his teeth at Connor. “Consider yourself lucky.”

Then he punches Connor across the jaw and releases his hold on him. Connor rolls over and spits out blood and a tooth on the floor, and Jason briefly wonders how they’re gonna clean all this when they leave.

“Come pick up your friend,” jeers Leo.

Connor struggles to his feet and narrows his eyes at him. He crawls his way to Sherman and, after several minutes of tripping, groaning, and bickering, he gets the two of them onto their feet. Sherman leans against him, one of his legs crookedly bent underneath him and an arm around Connor’s shoulders to keep balance. Now that he’s upright, Jason has a better view of Sherman’s face, and he’s just glad he’s not him right now. His teeth are stained with blood, and a gash on his forehead makes Jason want to rub his own head in sympathy, not to mention the swelling in his cheekbones.

Connor and Sherman limp towards the staircase, but not without a whole lot of threatening on Sherman’s end. “I'll get you for this, Valdez!” he exclaims through his bloodied lip, and Jason has to move out of the way to avoid any of the blood splattering onto him. “Just you fucking wait.”

Jason and Leo watch as Connor tries to drag Sherman up, and it takes another several moments before the thudding on the stairs stops. Jason swears he hears something shatter upstairs, but he figures that’s a problem for later.

Finally, after what feels like ages, a door slams upstairs, and Leo exhales. Jason’s attention turns back to him, and with a start, he notices the exhaustion weighing on Leo’s eyes. Leo runs a hand gingerly against the right side of his ribs, and his breath hitches as he runs over a spot at the center. His right eye is swollen, and next to the blood splattered over his cheek (which Jason is pretty sure is Sherman’s) a bruise starts to form. Another trail of blood leaks from the cut at his temple.

Jason’s chest rings with guilt for him. He fixes his glasses on his nose — which have, by some miracle, not shattered — and walks over. He lays a hand gently on his bicep, and at the touch, Leo looks up, pain sizzling in his eyes. “You alright?” Jason murmurs.

Leo takes a deep breath. “Yeah, I will be.” He does his best to straighten himself and smirks. The pain in his eyes gives way to glimmering adrenaline, and Jason can only hope that he doesn’t hear the way his heart is beating at the very sight. “That was eventful.”

“Yeah.” Jason huffs out a laugh. “I can’t believe you beat up Sherman. He’s literally so much taller than you. And stronger.”

“Are you surprised?”

“No.” Jason smiles. “I think I’ve gotten used to you impressing me.”

“Don’t say that.” Now Leo steps closer, his eyes simmering with electricity, and some of that energy must transfer into Jason because he swears he can feel his blood singing. “It’ll make it harder for me to impress you.”

He locks eyes with Jason. And then, after a beat of silence, he rests his hand on his chest.

Underneath the weight of his palm, Jason’s heart ticks like a bomb; if Leo moves his hand even a little bit, he might just explode. Despite all the pain in Jason’s body — the overwhelming ringing in his head, the throbbing pain in his shoulders, the pulsing in his back — all he can feel is the warmth of Leo’s hand over his T-shirt.

Jason’s gaze is glued to the hand on his chest, and he has to force himself to look back at Leo again, but that only makes matters worse. Leo’s eyes, so big and brown and brilliant, like stars captured in dense amber, swallow him whole. Even with all the scars and bruises and blood mapped onto his face, Jason decides that he’s never looked so mesmerizing.

“You have something on your here,” Jason whispers. He raises his hand and brushes his thumb against Leo’s cheek, wiping away most of the blood. Even though he gets most of it off, it still smears across his skin.

Leo smiles, but doesn’t move his eyes away from Jason’s. “We should frame it,” he murmurs. “‘Sherman Yang’s blood.’”

“Yeah,” Jason breathes.

Leo squints at him, then reaches for Jason’s glasses and fidgets with them. “They’re crooked.”

Jason smiles. “No, they weren’t.”

“No.” Leo returns the smile. “They weren’t.”

And then he kisses Jason.

Jason’s brain sizzles into static. All he can hear is the ringing in his head and his heartbeat echoing in his ears, and he’s certain that he has a concussion, because his senses are completely overloaded. He swears he can taste sound.

But he comes to senses quick enough. He closes his eyes and lays his hands on Leo’s waist. Leo wraps his arms around Jason’s neck as he tugs him closer, and he smiles against his lips. Jason loves the way he has to get on his tip-toes just to kiss him properly. He loves having to hold him just to make sure he doesn’t trip. He loves kissing Leo, period.

It’s better than he could have ever imagined. He might just have to thank Sherman for this.

But just as Jason’s getting used to this, Leo pulls away, and it takes all of Jason’s power to not just pull him right back in.

“Is there anything you want to tell me, Jason?” Leo asks coyly, brushing his hand against Jason’s neck.

Jason smiles, then takes Leo’s hand and rubs his thumb — the one not covered with blood — over his knuckles. He runs over all the calluses and cuts and scars raised above his skin, and he has to fight the urge to kiss all of it. “I do, actually,” he murmurs, chewing on his bottom lip. “I think I like you. And I think you like me, too.”

“‘Like’ is a strong word,” Leo says, squinting in feigned contemplation. “I would say ‘tolerate,’ maybe.” Then he tilts his head. “But if you keep kissing me like that, I might reconsider.”

Jason kisses him again. “What about now?”

“Well, scientifically-speaking, you can’t have a theory without—”

Jason kisses him again, if only to make him shut up.

#valgrace #percy jackson and the olympians #jason grace #leo valdez #riordanverse #heroes of olympus #trials of apollo #pjo #hoo #toa #arcane au #valgrace fanfic #valgrace fic #jason grace fanfic #jason grace fic #leo valdez fanfic #leo valdez fic

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makebelievegrilledcheese · 24 days

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Which percabeth do you prefer?

#percabeth #percy jackson fic #percy jackson headcanon #percy and annabeth #percy jackson #percy pjo #pjo #heroes of olympus #hereos of olympus #pjo hoo toa #jason grace #piper mclean #leo valdez #annabeth chase #percy jackson oneshot #percy x annabeth #percy jackon and the olympians #percy series #percy jackson art

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waitingonher · 4 months

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ELECTRIC TOUCH — [jason grace dating headcanons]

author's note: i need 2024 to be THE year. 2023 did me soooo dirty. im praying

dating JASON GRACE would be like dating someone from a regency era romance novel…he’s just SUCH a hopeless romantic but he would rather die than admit it.

in the initial first few weeks of dating, jason was sosososooooo shy about pda/physical touch. it’s not that he was uncomfortable, he LOVES physical touch, but he had just gone so long without it that he wasn’t used to it. but eventually, he warms up to it…and now he can’t go without having at least one part of him touching you 😭

when it came to things like hugs, kisses, handholding, etc. jason would always wait for you to initiate it because he was so anxious about making you uncomfortable ?? fjsldfjs

but when you communicated that he didn’t need to ask/wait for you all the time, jason started initiating things more. even still, he occasionally gets nervous to even hold your hand? like wdym you’ve been dating for over six months and you still get nervous doing simple couple things 😭 it’s very endearing though

chivalry is NOT dead,, and it’s because of jason LMAO. he’s the type to swap shoes with you even though you’re wearing heels that are 3x too small for him, but hey, at least your feet don’t hurt anymore!

jason’s also hellbent on carrying things for you, opening doors for you, pulling out/pushing in chairs for you, etc… GOD HE’S SO CUTE.

since dating him, you don’t think you’ve ever touched a single door or car handle when he’s with you.

jason is NOT afraid to advocate or stand up for you, especially if you’re more on the quiet & non-confrontational side. if you’re in a group setting and someone interrupts you, he’s making sure you get your chance to say what you wanted to say. and he doesn’t do it in a way that leaves you embarrassed, he’s very very classy with it!

if you’re a big music person, jason will literally learn your favorite artist’s entire discography so you guys have another thing to talk about.

you guys also have a shared playlist of “your songs” and he’s so serious about it 😭 if jason hears a song that even remotely reminds him of you, he’s going to the ends of the earth to figure out what it’s called.

rip to anyone around him if shazam doesn’t work! he’s gonna send voice messages to your big group chat humming the tune, but he’s so tone deaf that no one knows the song…and his search history is just variations of “song that goes du du ooh du ooh du du ooh” a for effort though babes…

jason’s love languages are definitely acts of service and quality time. over the years and throughout the many battles he’s fought, he’s come to realize that all he wants to do when he comes home is just spend time with his loved ones.

after a busy day, you’ll come home to find your laundry folded, bed sheets washed & freshly made, along with a sweet little note from jason <3

your guys’ thing are writing notes to each other. considering his and your busy schedule, you’ll write and leave tiny notes around the house for each other to find. it’s one of the many reasons why jason gets up in the morning.

he loves coming home to you after a long day to simply melt in your arms. there’s just something so soothing about cuddling with you after a busy day.

it does not matter where you are, you guys could literally be cleaning the camp toilets and he’d still be able to find the fun in it. you’re his home, and he’d follow you wherever you go.

if you play sports, you already know he’s showing up to ALL your games. it doesn’t matter if it’s pouring rain or if it’s hours away, he’s absolutely determined to show his support. jason even makes posters with your jersey number and when you have big tournaments he’ll show up with posters of your face 😭 the refs are SO tired of jason help

i feel like if he really tried, jason would be a good cook.

one day you sent him a recipe you saw online saying you wanted to make it with him, but then he decided to make it himself to surprise you. and it was actually so good???

JASON IN A “KISS THE COOK” APRON OMFG. that’s what you got him for his birthday and every single time without fail, he’ll wear it when he’s cooking.

one of his hidden talents is that he’s super good at origami. he originally picked it up because he heard it was a good stress reliever, but now he also does it for you <3

he loves your reaction when he gives you little paper rings or an origami version of your favorite animal!

this guy DREAMS of domesticity. he’s always been the type to date to marry, and that’s just what he intends to do with you! even though you guys are still young, he’s been planning your proposal sfjfls

tell me why he already knows what kind of ring he wants to get you… omg.

he really wants to just settle down with you in new rome. but honestly, he’s willing to do anything as long as you’re at his side.

expect flowers from jason at least once a month! he even keeps one flower so he knows when it’s time to get you a new bouquet. and if he’s away, he’ll get one of his friends to deliver it!

i have this headcanon that the aphrodite cabin teams up with the hephaestus cabin to throw a really elaborate party, essentially like prom. anyways, jason would go all out for your promposal jfdsls i feel like he would either do a super funny poster/proposal like y’know that one guy who did that medieval promposal 😭 yeah well jason would do something like that but like...more roman... LMFAO him pulling up to your place in a chariot

or he would do something super super intricate and planned out…like a fancy picnic and then he’d have the fauns arrange fireflies to spell out “prom?” when it’s dark out.

ugh! jason grace the man that you are… <3 best bf ever,, i can confirm btw

#jason grace #jason grace x reader #jason grace x y/n #jason grace x you #jason grace fanfiction #jason grace fanfic #jason grace fluff #jason grace fic #percy jackson #percy jackson x reader #heroes of olympus #heroes of olympus x reader #rick riordan #riordanverse #percy jackson fandom #percy jackson headcanon #percy jackson fic #percy jackson fanfiction

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mallowsweetmiri · 1 month

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*At Camp Half-Blood*

Percy: I love my hot girlfriend and I like kissing her a lot and looking at her beautiful face lalalalala

*In Tartarus*

Percy: I will literally choke you with your own blood if you even think of touching my Annabeth

*At Camp Jupiter*

Percy: My girlfriend is so hot when she Judo flips me lalalalala

#percabeth #percy jackson #annabeth chase #pjo hoo toa #percy series #percy jackson headcanon #percy jackson oneshot #percy jackson fic #percy x annabeth #piper mclean #jason grace #leo valdez #frank zhang #hazel levesque

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lafleshlumpeater · 4 months

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jason grace x chaotic!reader

#jason grace x yn #jason grace x you #jason grace fic #jason grace #jason grace blurb #jason grace imagine #jason grace headcanon #jason grace masterlist<3 #jason grace masterlist #jason grace x reader #jason grace x y/n

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percyluvr · 2 months

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hi! i loved u recent pjo angst fic, n maybe (if ur willing to write pt2!) (a bit of a back story (for the prompt) before i rq, reader & percy have always met up like every 2 weeks in a spot, n he usually forgets so reader stops coming.) reader gradually gets over him. and one evening percy & annabeth have like... an argument (on the today he and reader used to hang out on) so he goes there expecting to find her there but instead it's her n another character? (probably grover since he's also percy's best-friend, it can be another character if you wish!) n he gets kind of jealous cs their getting along more n like giggling teasing stuff and percy gets kind of jealous? (it can still be angst or fluff if you prefer.) tyty

percy jackson x reader, jason grace x reader summary: when percy's relationship ends, he goes to you hoping to get a second chance to be with you, but finds you happy and in love with someone else wc: 1714 pt 1

When Percy, whom you considered to be the love of your life, got with Annabeth, you thought your heart had shattered beyond repair. Watching them be happy, while you were completely alone, ignored by the one person that you thought understood you, had completely broken you. You found yourself at a new low, thinking of how they were probably hanging out and kissing, while you were sat at the place you and percy used to hang out, alone for the nth time. You couldn't blame Percy for forgetting, or purposefully ignoring your planned hangouts together when he had her, his dream girl.

Eventually, you realized that your and his friendship was most likely beyond repair, and you stopped coming to the spot, I mean, it wasn't like he would notice, right? But you were wrong, he did notice. He didn't start going again, but he did realize when you were with the rest of the campers at the time the two of you would usually go to the spot to hang out, and it made him realize what he had done to your friendship. Though he now knew it was him that ruined the friendship, he tried his best to put it at the back of his mind and focus on his relationship with Annabeth.

Meanwhile, you had met Jason, or rather, began hanging out with him more. It's not like the two of you had never met before, but you'd never really clicked or anything, so the most you two did was give each other a little smile when you crossed paths, but now, it was different. You thought that this friendship was even better than what you had with Percy. Jason really understood you, he knew what it was like to lose someone that you cared so deeply about at one point in your life and have to watch them be happy with someone else, while you sit alone, thinking about all the great memories the two of you had shared.

At first, you thought you would never be able to get over Percy, even if you met someone else.

"Jason, have you ever loved someone so deeply that you thought you would never in a million years be able to get over them?" You asked him one sunny day, as the two of you sat at the spot near the river that you and percy used to hangout all the time.

"Yeah, a few times. Only one of them was in a romantic way, though. I really thought I would never be able to get over her, but here I am now," he said, a small smile gracing his face, which was quite handsome you realized. The thought came as a surprise because you'd never really found anyone attractive when you had been completely infatuated with percy.

"Do you think you've completely gotten over her?"

"Yeah, I think so. She's still my friend, so if she's happy, then I am, too," he says, as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

"Do you think there's any chance for me to get over Percy completely?" You inquire.

There was a long moment of silence before he finally spoke again, "Yes, I do. and I think you know it, too."

And you realized he was right. You hadn't thought about percy in days.

The two of you continued talking, and you realized that you really were getting over Percy. It was all happening excruciatingly slowly, but it was happening nonetheless, and the more you thought about it, the more you realized that you were beginning to develop a crush on Jason.

While it was nothing in comparison to how you had once felt about Percy, you thought that maybe, just maybe, this could be good for you. Contrary to how you once felt when Percy looked at you and you saw nothing but platonic love for you in his eyes, when you looked into Jason's eyes, you definitely saw something else. Not quite love, but he was definitely interested in you, and that made you feel better than you had ever felt in your life. for once, you felt adequate about yourself.

As you and Jason continued to hang out, you slowly realized you were falling in love, and you desperately hoped that he was too. Every lingering gaze, every lingering touch, and every word on the tip of his tongue that was left unsaid had you praying every night that he truly felt the same way about you that you felt about him.

"Hey, has anyone ever told you that you're gorgeous?" He asks you randomly one day, causing you to move your head from its place on his broad shoulder.

"No, actually. Why?"

"Because," he takes a deep breath. "You are gorgeous, and I just thought that if no one had told you, I would want to be the one to make you realize that you are," he finally says, his hand softly running up and down your arm.

"Really? I mean, you're not just saying that, right?" You ask, turning your head down in a failed attempt to hide your flustered state.

"Of course not, I don't say things I don't mean. You are pretty and you should know that. anyone that doesn't see that is just plain stupid," he states matter-of-factly, making you smile.

"Thanks sparky," you playfully say. "If it means anything, I think you're very handsome too."

This statement, and the endearing nickname, causes all the blood to rush to his face, and you hear the way his heartbeat speeds up immediately after you say it.

You felt that this moment was what marked the start of a romance for the history books between you and Jason. And while yours and Jason's romantic journey was just beginning, Percy and Annabeth's may be ending.

At first, their fight wasn't anything serious, but it quickly escalated as Annabeth slowly got more and more annoyed by how incompetent Percy had been acting lately. Deep down, she knew that something was up with him, and that something had to do with you, and she was almost 100% sure of that. She knew something was up, she just didn't know what.

It had started when she noticed Percy staring at you and Jason whenever you two were in view, and continued from there. Annabeth felt that he wasn't paying as much attention to their relationship, or literally anything but you and Jason for that matter, and she had enough of it, telling him to fix his priorities and quick if he didn't want to lose her.

This argument led to many others of the same variety, all of which were contributors to the inevitable breakup. He saw it coming, but didn't do anything to stop it. All he could think of was how he ruined a beautiful friendship by not being able to balance a relationship and a friendship, and now the two of you were more distant than ever. He knew that you and Jason were getting close, he just didn't know how close, and now he was experiencing the insecurity and inadequacy about himself that you did while watching him and Annabeth fall in love.

Watching you and Jason was probably the most painful experience Percy had ever gone through in his life, which anyone would find insane if he ever told them, because really, he had been through so many things that he should consider to be more painful, but he somehow didn't.

Now, Percy wasn't a stalker or anything, but he couldn't help but notice the small things that you had once noticed about him and Annabeth when they were falling in love.

He noticed the way the two of you shyly looked at each other, you giggling and something Jason had said, which probably wasn't even that funny, Percy thought.

To say he was jealous was an understatement. The once happy and sarcastic boy was now a heartbroken, jealous, and bitter boy. He wasn't sure if he was heartbroken over his breakup with Annabeth, seeing you with Jason, or a strange combination of both, but he did know that no matter what, his heart was so shattered that he would probably never feel happy again.

This point was pushed even further when he saw the two of you happily cuddling at the campfire one night. He saw the way you were looking up at Jason, body completely leaning on him, and whispering things that must've been flirtatious judging by how Jason's face went up in flames. You two acted like you didn't care who or if anyone saw you. if it was even possible, Percy's heart broke even more.

The universe seemed to be playing a cruel joke on Percy, as your positions had now switched. He'd been going back to your hangout spot on the days you two would've hung out, and was severely disappointed each and every time when you didn't show up.

That was, until the time you finally were there, but to his dismay, you were not alone. He didn't want to be weird, but he couldn't help it when he acted on his thoughts and hid behind a tree, intently watching the two of you interact. When he saw the two of you share a sweet kiss, he wished that he hadn't been watching, and he wished that he hadn't even come at all. He didn't know why he expected you to be there alone, not when you weren't there any of the other times. He didn't know why his heart broke more in this moment than it did when he broke up with Annabeth.

Until he did. He realized that he was in love with you, and there was absolutely nothing he could do about it, because you looked at Jason like he was the only person in the world, and Jason looked at you like you personally created every good thing on earth, and there was nothing Percy could do to get in between this love, not when you finally looked happy with yourself. Not when you were happier than he had ever seen you in the 10 years he’d known you.

Not when you were more in love with Jason than you had ever been with Percy.

a/n: i went a littleee crazy with this & ik it wasn't exactly what u req but i hope u'll like this idea too!

#pjo #percy jackson x reader #percy jackson x you #pjo series #pjo x reader #percy jackson #percy jackson fic #percy jackson imagine #pjo x you #percy jackson angst #book percy jackson #jason grace #jason grace x reader #jason grace x you #heroes of olympus #hoo #the heroes of olympus #jason grace imagine #jason grace fluff

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