HIS GOD COMPLEX | under construction!

13 | δεκατρία

13 | δεκατρία

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UNFORTUNATELY FOR ME, Ares was lucky enough to snag a room with an en suite bathroom, which meant that instead of running away like I had initially planned, I would still have to face him when I finished my business. I didn't want to, it was just too awkward.

Thoughts of what I would say were swirling through my head as I washed my hands, heart racing against my chest.

It was time, I ambled out of the bathroom nervously, and just as I had predicted, Ares was there waiting for me to finish so that we could talk.

He was sat on the edge of his bed, running fingers through his fire-red hair. He had taken his shirt off now, a thin silver chain was around his neck and I could definitely see a six-page bulging out from where his stomach was supposed to do.

I didn't even notice the fact that he'd now acknowledged my existence and was smirking boastfully at me. "Careful, there Ariel. You've got some drool spilling off of the edge of your lips." He could barely help his smug tone as I crossed my hands over my chest. "Oh, please. Like I would ever drool over your pitiful two-pack. A lady has standards, you know." I was pointing my index finger reprimandingly at the god, thankful that things had taken a turn for playful turn. We chuckled to ourselves for a while until there was silence once again.

I was looking down, avoiding his glare so that he wouldn't know what I was thinking. "You didn't want to kill her, did you?" I spoke up, finally gaining the courage to face my fated love. His brown eyes were glazed over, watching me intently as he shifted on the bed.

I didn't have to mention a name, he already knew who I was talking about. I could see it in his eyes. I was shifting on my feet, finding it increasingly difficult to stand still.

He didn't answer me, instead, he got up on his feet and began to tread towards me. I didn't move, though my eyes had widened immensely. Everyday I was less and less scared of Ares, I knew I had grown a little too comfortable around him in such a short time but I couldn't help it. He wouldn't hurt me. I knew he wouldn't.

He didn't stop after he reached me, and instead headed for the glass table behind me. There was a whiskey bottle on it and two empty glasses next to it. I turned around, making eye contact with his back when I saw it.

A symbol. It looked like a drawing of a helmet had been carved into his tanned skin, and I would have believed it was a tattoo, if it hadn't been glowing an electrifying neon red. The glow was not too bright, just lightly along the lines, and if I hadn't been standing so close I probably would not have seen it.

Ares was pouring himself a glass of whiskey, filling it to the brim. "Would you like some?" His voice was as low as a whisper, and I shook my head. Suddenly my throat had become dry and I had no words. He turned around to face me, gently placing a half-full glass I hadn't seen him fill between my fingers.

There was a momentary touch between us, and my stomach was doing somersaults because of it. I shook my head, trying to snap out of this trance I had been in.

"Please let me in." My voice was a whisper as I peered into his swirling brown eyes. "I'm begging you." The words were flying out of my lips before I could process them. I put the glass down on the table, I wasn't very interested in drinking at the moment.

His eyes were glazed over as he ran a frustrated hand over his fire-red locks. "Of course I didn't want to kill her. I was in love with her." He downed some more whiskey. He was already halfway through his glass, showing no reaction as he finished the last bit. He placed the glass down next to mine.

"I knew her before Apollo — I saw her first, did you know that? Did he tell you that? I fell for her first. I thought she was my fated love." He wasn't looking at me anymore, instead his eyes were glued to the distance in heavy reverie.

"I thought she felt it too, the energy when we touched." He was now getting restless, pacing around anxiously. "That was until I found out she was fucking Apollo behind my back." He chuckled bitterly, shaking his head at his stupidity. He trudged to the very corner of his room, where a large punching bag was stationed. How had I not seen it before?

He began to throw his hands into the bag, punching it anxiously. "I had to know. I had to know if she was my fated love, so I kissed her." He stopped punching the bag and looked right at me.

I had somehow ambled towards him, only a few centimeters away. "And she died. Her soul was ripped to pieces. Turns out my dearest father had planted a curse on me." He let out a low 'hmph', shaking his head. "Anyone I shared a kiss with would have their soul torn to pieces."

I slowly let the words sink in. How could Zeus have been so cruel? Why would anyone do that?

"Apollo was never the same after that. It wasn't just his eye colour that changed. It was everything. Cyrene's death broke him. All of a sudden, I was in the wrong. I was everything everybody told him I was." My eyes were watering, Ares was staring into the distance. "The more I tried... I fell in love twice more after that, they both ended the same." He shook his head, tears began to stream down his pale cheeks all the way down to his pink lips. "I'm fucked in the head, Ariel. You need to stay away — " but he stopped mid-sentence for I had wrapped my arms around him and pressed myself against his bare chest. He was frozen, not returning my hug for a moment.

I don't know why I did it. I was never a hugger. Handshakes were as far as I would go with people, and a day in the Underworld had landed me more hugs than I ever had in my lifetime.

He finally wrapped his arms around me and a warmth I had never felt in my life began to envelope me until it had consumed me whole. I never wanted to move. I was gently running my fingers through his hair, trying my best to sooth that storm inside of him.

We stayed like that for a while, just me in his arms and the silence around us. "Can I stay here tonight?" I whispered, hoping he wouldn't just throw me out after all of this. There was a momentary silence. "Of course." He mumbled back, pulling me tighter into him. "Always."