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Leo wasn’t a hug guy. At all. Hugs meant affection, attachment, fear, and inevitable burns. So to say he was shaken the first time Piper threw her arms around him when there wasn’t a life-threatening emergency would be an understatement. Leo froze, going completely stiff in her arms as she pulled him close. He stayed like that, stiff and frozen, until she noticed his lack of reciprocation.
“Leo?” she asked with concern, pulling back just enough to look at him, “Are you okay?”
“Fine.” Leo wasn’t proud of how his voice cracked, “Just... not a big hugger. Not used to it, you know? Too busy being amazing to rake in the love.”
“Well, that’s unacceptable.” Piper cracked a grin, “No best friend of mine is gonna be deprived of hugs.”
“I mean, the last person who hugged me got a nasty burn, so...” he tried to joke, trailing off at the sad look she was giving him, “Hey now, what’s with that face?”
“Is that why you don’t hug?” she asked quietly, looking like her heart was aching for him. It made Leo feel bad, like his skin was crawling, too tight. She shouldn’t be worrying about him. No one should.
“Yeah, but it’s fine.” Leo waved her concern away, “Don’t worry about it.” But he could see the gears turning behind those kaleidoscope eyes, analyzing what, he wasn’t sure.
“It explains so much.” she said quietly, “A lot of your behavior, actually. I can’t believe I never put it together before now.”
“Don’t go psychoanalyzing me now.” Leo warned, “It’s fine, beauty queen, it’s just hugs.” Piper responded by pulling him close again, arms tight and firm around him.
“Just hugs. That’s all. And I’m gonna get you used to them if it kills me.” she said into his ear, “Get ready for more love and support than you can even imagine.”
“Did I piss you off?” Leo bemoaned, “Is that was this is?” Piper laughed, giving him a squeeze.
“Nope.” she grinned, “Just my delicate sensibilities.”
“Delicate my foot.” Leo snorted, “You just love impossible causes.”
“I think you’re far less impossible than you think you are.” Piper said sternly, “You’ll see. You’ll be asking for hugs before you know it.”
“I doubt it, but I know it’s pointless to fight you.” Leo sighed, “Fine, whatever. Hug to your heart’s content.”
“I will.” she happily squeezed him again, seeming totally content to stay standing there hugging him even if he didn’t hug back. He figured it was only right that he reciprocate, no matter how frightened the simple act of settling his hands at her back made him tremble a little. She seemed to perk up when he did, so he counted that as a win. Leo frowned nervously, a little worried about her promise, but he didn’t dare pull away.
—-
Winter sucked, being stranded in a freezing cave sucked, the cold sucked, everything sucked right now. It didn’t help that he was stuck with Hazel and Frank, so he was third-wheeling all over the place. That’s why it came as a total surprise when big solid arms slipped around him from behind, freezing him in place.
“Uh-“
“Holy crap.” Frank moaned, “Hazel, come try this. He’s so warm.” Hazel peered curiously at them, and Leo felt a spark of fear when she began to approach.
“I-Uh-That’s-“ Leo wasn’t sure what to say. He had literally no idea how to react in a situation like this, “This is-“
“Oh gods, you’re right.” Hazel gasped with delight as she wrapped her arms around him from the front, her hair in his face and chin digging into his shoulder. The end result was a Leo sandwich with a side of skittish fire user, “Leo, get comfortable, I’m staying right here until the others get here.”
“Do I get a say in this?” Leo asked weakly, jumping a little when they both pulled back suddenly.
“Is this okay?” Hazel asked worriedly, golden eyes seeming to pierce his, “Sorry, we should have asked.”
“It’s okay to say no.” Frank said, looking guilty, “I shouldn’t have just hugged you out of no where. Is it... can we hug you? It’s just-It’s so cold.” He was fine in the cold, but they weren’t. And they were shivering so miserably, but still worrying about making him uncomfortable.
How could he say no?
“Go nuts.” Leo forced himself to open his arms, “I live to serve.” They latched into him like leeches on a swimmer, sighing in unison as his unnatural warmth seeped into them, “Easy now, plenty of Leo to go around. I feel so loved, so popular. Eat your heart out, Percy.”
“Watch the ego, Valdez.” Frank grumbled good naturedly as he navigated them all to sit on the ground, “It’s freezing. You’re warm.”
“So warm.” Hazel sighed, nuzzling his chest, “Like a fireplace.”
“Glad to be of service.” Leo complained half-heartedly, some of the rigidity draining from him. Once he got over the awkwardness, the hug felt... kinda nice. Okay, scratch that, really nice. Frank’s arms were huge and ensconced him completely, acting like a shield against the outside world. Leo was surprised at how safe he felt, like nothing could touch him. Especially with Hazel laying against his front like a cat on a heat pad, dozing happily.
“Am I just team heater now?” Leo asked lightly, finally resting his hands over them, one on Hazel’s back and one on Frank’s arm. Frank chuckled, the vibration soothing against Leo’s back.
“Yes.” Hazel answered, “Leo Valdez, team heater. They’ll write songs about it.”
“They better be good songs.” Leo laughed as he felt the warmth seep into him, “Maybe written by Prince in Elysium.” Frank laughed at that.
“Who’s Prince?” Hazel asked, and both Leo and Frank gasped in horror.
—-
Jason leapt at him with a shout, knocking him aside just as Mrs. O’Leary bounded past them with singleminded focus. Leo’s head smacked into the ground, but Jason’s arms had probably prevented more bruises than they’d caused, so he couldn’t completely complain. He felt kind of embarrassed that he’d been so lost in his blueprint he hadn’t heard a freaking hellhound charging towards him.
“You good?” Jason asked, peering down with worried eyes. Leo rubbed his head with a scowl, glancing at the blueprint crumpled beside them.
“Yeah yeah, I’m fine.” he grumbled, “The only casualty is my pride.”
“So nothing major.” Jason grinned, earning a scowl and a light slap on the arm.
“Rude.” Leo said, and then he noticed that Jason hadn’t let him go yet. Leo was still held securely in his arms, and he didn’t seem too eager to release him. It kinda worried him how nice it felt. Curse Piper for getting into his head. “Uh, sparky, I know I’m irresistible but you mustn’t hoard my brilliance, you know. All this Leo cannot be contained.”
“Huh?” Jason frowned at him, confused. Leo wanted to face palm.
“You’re still hugging me.” he said, the anxiety starting to creep in the longer he was held, “I’m safe now. You can let go.”
“Oh! Sorry.” Jason quickly let him go, sheepishly helping him stand, “I just saw it about to hit you and panicked.”
“Awww.” Leo grinned teasingly, “That’s so cute. What, do you care about me or something?”
“Uh, yes?” Jason said with confusion, looking like Leo had said something particularly stupid, “You’re my best friend. I care about you a lot. Hell, I love you. We all do.” Leo found his mouth had gone dry, heart pounding like it always did whenever someone tried to show him any kind of affection.
“N-Neat!” he gave a wide grin that didn’t really feel real, “Awesome! Of course you do, I’m amazing!” he flexed his arms, earning a laugh from Jason.
“Yeah, you are.” Jason grinned, and Leo thanked all the gods above for his obliviousness, “The most awesome mechanic I know!”
“And don’t you forget it!” Leo shoved down his unease, his feelings of unworthiness, “Now buy your favorite mechanic a muffin.”
“Great idea! I know Nyssa would really appreciate it!”
“Hey!”
—-
Leo was half asleep at his workbench when he felt a tug at his pants. He roused himself with a yawn, cracking his back and looking down to the source of the tug. Harley peered up at him with big eyes and grease on his arms, wringing his hands slightly.
“It’s late.” he said softly, “And it’s dark out. I don’t wanna walk back alone.” Leo felt his heart pang. He’d hoped to get more work done before he totally conked out, but how could he say no to that face?
“Alright.” he said with another yawn, “Lemme just gather my stuff.” The walk back to the cabin was uneventful, and Harley kept a tight grip on his hand the whole time, eyes scanning the woods around them.
“It’s okay, Leo.” he said nervously, “If anything jumps out at us, I’ll protect you.”
“You’ll protect me, huh?” Leo chuckled, “You punch ‘em and I roast ‘em?”
“Yeah.” Harley pressed closer to him, eyes on the woods, “Yeah. You’re big and scary, you can... I mean, I can protect you. Because I’m big and scary too.”
“Yeah, you are.” Leo ruffled his hair, “No monster or harpy is messing with you.” Harley seemed to relax a little at his confidence, but he didn’t let go of him until they’d gotten back to the cabin. Leo all but collapsed into his bed with a groan, not even bothering to change his clothes. It took him an embarrassingly long moment to figure out that his hand was still held captive in Harley’s. He cracked an eye open, looking tiredly at his little brother.
“What’s up?” he asked with a jaw-cracking yawn. Harley shifted nervously, seemingly reluctant to relinquish the hand.
“Can I sleep with you?” he asked quietly, “You know, to make sure no monsters get you?”
“No one’s getting in here, Harley.” Leo mumbled, “You’re safe.”
“Please?” Harley asked again, voice a little squeaky, and Leo caved. He lifted an arm tiredly, and Harley wasted no time in crawling under it.
“I may catch fire during the night.” Leo warned half-heartedly. Harley burrowed into his side, buff arms snaking around his waist and clinging tightly.
“I installed fire suppression systems.” he said, sounding much less afraid now. Leo huffed, but wrapped his arm a little more securely around him. He had to admit, it felt kinda nice to be a big brother.
—-
Leo didn’t even know the next guy who hugged him. He was just grabbing a coffee to decompress after an unfortunate accident with Hedge had left his hair green, and then the next thing he knew he heard a joyous shout of “Alex!” from behind him and a pair of arms wrapped around his neck in an impressive chokehold. He made a strangled noise, coffee dropping as his hands automatically came up to set the offender’s sleeves on fire. The offender leapt back with a yelp, and then there was a floating sword at his throat.
“Whoa, dude.” the sword said, and Leo should probably be concerned about how little a talking sword fazed him, “Not cool!”
“You’re not Alex.” the offender said confusedly, having patted out the flames. Leo doused the flames in his own hands, trying not to be put out (ha). Damn it, he’d already paid for that coffee.
“Yeah, no shit.” he said, warily eying the sword, “You uh... wanna tell your sword to back off?”
“Oh!” the guy said, “Sorry. Jack, it’s okay, this was my bad.”
“As usual.” the sword sounded huffy, but it vanished all the same. Leo kinda wished he could examine it. See if it worked at all similar to Riptide. Relaxing a bit now that imminent death was no longer a danger, he smiled reassuringly at the guy.
“Was it the hair? It was the hair wasn’t it?” he joked, “Two words: green gatorade. And angry satyr. Big mad. Okay, so maybe a lot of words.” The guy laughed, and Leo finally noticed that he was kinda cute, with dimples and gray eyes that reminded him a lot of-
“Annabeth?” he said out loud, “Do you know a girl named Annabeth?”
“I have a cousin named Annabeth.” the guy said with a blink, “Annabeth Chase, you know her?”
“I do.” Leo said, assuming the guy was a demigod based on the sword and the lack of terror at his fire powers, “I’ve been on a quest or two with her.”
“Hey, wait a minute.” the guy peered at him, “Fire powers, southern accent, goofy jokes... you wouldn’t happen to be Leo Valdez, would you?”
“You’ve heard of me?” he perked up, “Then you’ll know I’m the kickass mechanic with a sparkling personality and killer dance moves, as well as the hottest of the seven.” The guy laughed again. Finally, someone who appreciated his comedic genius!
“Annabeth told me a little bit.” the guy said, “But if you’re free, I’m always down to hear more. My friend shouldn’t be here for another half hour at least, so I’d love to hear some stories. If that’s alright with you.”
“How can I pass up the chance to brag to the brainiac’s cousin?” Leo grinned, offering a fist bump, “Offer accepted, compadre. Prepare for lots of embellishments and awesomeness.”
“Sweet.” the guy accepted the fist bump, “I’m Magnus.”
“Leo, as you know.” Leo said, “But you did make me drop my coffee, so...”
“I’ll get you another one.” Magnus offered, “If you tell me all about the adventures Annabeth won’t.” Leo smiled widely, sitting back at his table and gesturing for Magnus to sit opposite him.
“Happy to oblige a fan.” Magnus laughed again, and Leo was more than happy to draw it out of him again and again.
—-
“Why is everyone hugging me lately?” Leo asked Piper as they stood out on the dock, watching the mermaids splash around. Piper glanced over at him with an inquisitive frown.
“Because we love you?” she phrased it as more of a question, “Because you’re our friend?”
“But like everyone has been doing it!” Leo threw his hands up, “Even Frank! Frank!”
“I’m not putting them up to it, if that’s what you’re asking.” Piper said with a frown, “I haven’t told them anything. Is it really so hard to believe that our friends genuinely like you?”
“Yes!” Leo exclaimed, “And on that note, Jason was saying stuff like that too! He even said that he loved me. That everyone did, it was nuts! Harley I can understand, he’s a kid, but everyone else is just ludicrous! It doesn’t make any-“
“Leo.” Piper’s hands on his shoulders stopped his rant, “What’s easier to believe? That we’re all secretly lying to you and pretending to love you for funsies, or that we really, truly do care about you?” Leo... didn’t know. He just didn’t know anymore and it scared him. This was why he’d avoided people, not just because they ended up getting hurt, but because they were confusing and weird.
“I don’t know.” he said, looking down, “I’m not good at this stuff, Piper. People aren’t machines, I have no idea how they work.”
“That’s what I’m here for.” Piper grinned, squeezing his shoulders, “You deal with the machines, I deal the people. Valdez and McLean, dream team.”
“Dream team, huh? Well, if that’s the case...” Leo opened his arms shyly, staring at the wall behind her rather than her to try and feel less awkward, “It’s only fair. I guess you were right this time. Here I am, asking for a hug.” Piper stared at him for a moment, blinking in surprise before letting out a joyous yell and launching herself at him. She wrapped him up snugly in her arms, and this time he returned the embrace immediately.
He liked hugs. He liked them a lot.