"And then Mr. Harrison, I swear, his wig almost fell off. Right in the middle of the lecture on the Civil War."
Jessica laughed, a high, bright sound that made the guy in the next booth at the diner look over. "No, he didn't!"
"Hand to God," Leo said, leaning forward with his most sincere expression. He flashed his easy smile. "I'm pretty sure I saw the glue."
He was laying it on thick, and he knew it. Here, in this small Mississippi town, his old-money charisma was like a superpower. Jessica, pretty and popular, was completely hooked. For Leo, this was just... Tuesday. A way to kill time.
The waitress dropped off the check. Leo picked it up instantly, a reflex from his old life. Twenty-two dollars for two milkshakes and a plate of fries. He felt a familiar, dull throb of impatience. Twenty-two dollars. His mom spent an hour clipping coupons to save that much at the grocery store. His dad's hands were cracked and bleeding from the manual labor to earn it.
And Leo was spending it on a girl he was already bored with.
"I got this," he said, pulling a twenty and a five from his wallet. He'd earned it doing yard work for a neighbor, and he hated every second of it.
"You're sure?" Jessica asked, already reaching for her purse in a token gesture.
"Don't worry about it," he said, waving it off. "It's just money."
The lie tasted like ash, but it was part of the persona. The 'effortless' Leo.
Later that afternoon, he was sprawled on the living room floor, supposedly helping Anna Marie with her math homework.
"I just don't get it, Leo," she complained, erasing a hole through her paper. "Why does 'x' have to be on this side?"
"Because that's the rule, fox," he said, not looking up from his phone. He was scrolling through news feeds. Stark. Oscorp. Nothing. Still no hint of his "real" life starting.
"You're not even listening!"
"I am. 'x' wants to be alone. He's an introvert. Just move all his friends to the other side of the equal sign."
She threw her eraser at his head. "You're useless."
"I'm wounded," he said, finally putting his phone down. He looked at her, really looked at her. Her brow was furrowed in genuine frustration. He sighed, the boredom and impatience fading, replaced by that familiar, protective warmth.
"Okay, okay, look..." he said, sitting up and pulling the paper toward him. "Think of it like this..."
His mom, Sharon, came in, dropping the mail on the table. She looked tired. "Where were you after school, Leo? I called your phone."
"I was at the diner. With Jessica," he said, already focused on the math problem.
His mom went very still. "The diner? Leo, we talked about this. That place is expensive. We can't just... throw money around on milkshakes."
"It was my money, Mom," he said, his voice a little sharper than he intended.
"It's family money until that transmission is paid for," she said, her voice tight. "Don't you get it?"
Leo felt a flash of the anger. He hated this. Hated accounting for every dollar. He was about to snap back when he saw Anna watching them, her eyes wide, her pencil frozen.
He took a breath. "You're right. Sorry,Mom" he mumbled, turning back to the homework. "My bad."
His mom sighed, rubbing her temples. "Just... think, Leo. Please."
She walked into the kitchen, and the tension left the room with her.
"Are you in trouble?" Anna whispered.
"Nah. C'mon. Let's finish this. 'x' is still lonely."
He helped her for another hour until she finally got it. He felt good. Real. Helping her was the one thing that didn't feel like a lie.
That night, he was in his room, about to go to sleep. His phone buzzed on the nightstand. It was a text from Jessica.
[Friday was amazing!!! <3 <3 Cant wait to see u 2morrow :)]
Leo stared at the message. He read the words, saw the 'less than three' hearts. He felt... nothing. Just a vast, hollow boredom. She was a nice girl. But she was part of this small, beige life he was so desperate to escape.
He didn't reply.
He just put the phone, screen down, on the nightstand, rolled over, and closed his eyes. The shallow cut wasn't a public breakup. It was the silence. The casual, thoughtless dismissal. He was already done, and she just didn't know it yet.