Holy Land of PJO/HOO One-Shots

Hanahaki - (Jason/Leo)

(A/N) Jason and Piper are NOT dating in this one-shot. Piper's love is unrequited, just like Jason's. This will explain her knowledge of the disease and her means of helping Jason later on.

Please note that this chapter is, as most Hanahaki fics are, angsty. Very, very angsty. There also will be character death, both mentions of a character dying, and a character dying during this. Also a warning that there will be mentions of blood.

Jason stared at the fiery colored flower in his hands, his eyes stinging and chest still heaving from the strain that coughing it up had caused him. With shaky hands, he gently examined the petals and—oh my gods, that's a broken stem. Jason's breathing remained uneven as he tried to get a grip on what the heck was happening. Are people supposed to cough up flowers? Is this normal? Shaking his head, he tipped his hand sideways and watched as the flower floated into the trash. Cool tears spilled down his cheeks and for once he allowed them to fall. He didn't care who came in or if someone saw him. His chest was aching and heaving again, though nothing would come up. The light from the afternoon sun burned his skin as he sat, hunched over the sink in his cabin, trying to cough up whatever was manifesting in his chest.

"Hey, Sparky—holy Hades, are you okay?"

Piper raced to her crush's side, turning his face towards her so that she could see what was wrong. This was one of the first few times she saw him crying like this. It felt so odd to be the one comforting him, because normally it was Jason comforting her. Piper pulled Jason into a loose hug, rubbing his back in an attempt to comfort him, and to maybe help him with whatever it was that he was trying to cough up. Her heart clenched painfully when she heard him sobbing, and she immediately pulled him closer to her.

"Hey, hey. You're okay, Jase. You're okay." She whispered softly, relief filling her when his coughs ceased. However, dread came back when something landed on her shoulder. She gently pulled away from Jason and stared at the beautiful orange flower which had perched on her.

Confused, she glanced up to meet Jason's watery gaze. Heaving a sigh of acceptance, she took the flower in her hands and gently chucked it into the trash can. "You don't know what's wrong, do you?" Her tone was full of fear and regret, which just got Jason's nerves heightened.

"Piper, do you know something that I don't?" He asked, his voice shaky and raspy. His throat burned as he spoke, but curiosity was definitely getting the better of him.

"This will take a while to explain. Let's get you cleaned up and comfy first, okay? I promise I'll answer your questions to the best of my ability." Piper placed a small hand on Jason's bicep and carefully led him out into the main part of his cabin. Sitting him down on his bed, she pecked him on the cheek and then reentered the bathroom. She tried to work as efficiently and quickly as she could, but her eyes kept getting stuck on the bright orange flowers in the trash. The orange was so vivid and fiery, it reminded her of fire. Which only led her to her next thought: Leo.

Biting her lip, she clenched her fists around a glass of water that she had gotten ready for Jason. Her knuckles turned white as she clenched as hard as she could. Thought by thought invaded her mind, leaving her feeling overwhelmed and upset. You're not good enough. Heck, he prefers a fire-willing elf over you. No one will love you. You've been used once, and it will happen again. You're ugly, inside and out. You made yourself this way. A tear trickled down her tanned cheek as the thoughts consumed her mind.

Jason continued to wait for a while, but Piper's silence was deafening. He shakily stood and made his way back to the bathroom. His electric blue eyes widened significantly at the sight of Piper crying. He took the water out of her hands and gently set it farther from her on the counter. He then took her tanned hands into his own pale ones and gave her a concerned look. "Piper, whatever this is, if it's upsetting you, then you just have to tell me. I won't know unless you can explain." His voice was calm and caring; a voice he used a lot when he needed to give her comfort.