•°•°•°•°•°•°•°
Coeus was a Titan god of intelligence and farsight.
Due to his inquisitive mind and desire to learn,
He gained knowledge and understanding,
He could see beyond the obvious.
•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°
I snapped out of my dream in a jet-like manner. My spine straightened up against the seat. A thick line of drool streamed from one corner of my lip to my chin. I quickly wiped it and glanced around, my breathing a bit rapid.
The library was quiet and almost empty. The yellow rays of light from the setting sun bathed the rows of bookshelves. There was nothing out of the ordinary. I took a deep breath, glad I didn't meet a sin waiting for me.
"The library is closing."
I jumped and turned to a woman who stood at my side. She had a tight bun that pulled against her scalp. Her arms held a bundle of books to her chest. She frowned at me like sleeping in the library was a major insult to her.
I tried to get my bearings right. "What?"
She glanced at the binder before me. I did too. It was crumbled from my beauty sleep. A small wet patch of drool stained the pages. I quickly shut the greek book close.
The librarian continued. "School just closed for the day. I'm locking this place up."
My jaw dropped. I've been here since the break? "What time is it?"
"5:20."
Shit!
I was supposed to meet Dimitri and Zion after school. I quickly packed my books and rushed out of the library. I briskly walked down the hallway, adjusting the bag strapped to my shoulders. School had closed and the place looked deserted. At least no one will have a glimpse at my sleepy face.
I made a sharp turn and met Dimitri at our planned location. He leaned against the wall with one knee propped up. His eyes furrowed in concentration as he horizontally held his smartphone close to his face. His thumbs busily tapped against the screen.
He was playing an android game. I groaned. Typical.
Hearing my footsteps he glanced up and gave a wide smile. The sunlight reflected against one side of his face, turning one brown iris into liquid gold. But I knew better, when Dimitri means business, it always turns bright purple.
"Pee!"
I stumbled against the tiled floor and grabbed the wall for support. I was not expecting that. "What?"
He shrugged and focused back on his game. "Your name is too long. So I'm saying the first letter to preserve some energy."
Just great, he's giving weird names as he did with Zion. Dimitri was a lanky fellow with sharp contours. The black sweatpants and sweater had a puma logo stitched on them. For some reason, he's obsessed with the brand.
I looked around him, expecting to see someone else but he seemed to be alone. I scrunched my eyebrows and stepped closer. "Um...Dimitri?"
"Mhmm." His eyes never left the phone.
I straightened my backpack. "Where's Hunter?"
With a thumb, he pointed at the classroom by him. I should've known, Hunter never goes anywhere without Dimitri. The two were practically joined at the hip.
I purse my lips and pried the door open. The first sound I heard was the clinking of something metallic before I spotted Hunter sitting at the farthest corner of the room.
He grunted in frustration as he jerked at the handcuffs which bound his wrists to the chair. His hair was disheveled as he kept struggling, not seeming to notice me. My eyes went wide, clearly not expecting that. I silently pulled the door shut and turned to Dimitri.
He was still tapping away on his phone. Taking a good look at the screen I noticed he was playing some Zombie apocalypse game. I rolled my eyes and snatched the device.
"What the hell!" He reached for the phone but I took steps back. Unfortunately, Dimitri was tall, like Pedro. Which means he covered much of the distance in one step and grabbed my arm, pulling me back. He snatched his phone and went back to the game. "That was the hardest level."
I broke free and folded my arms. "Care to explain why Zion's brother is handcuffed to a chair?"
Dimitri paused his game and turned to me with a small smile. "A few friends convinced Hunter to escort them to an arcade. I told him 'no' but he wouldn't listen."
I pursed my lip. "If you're worried about his safety, you could just go with him."
Dimitri shook his head. "It's not about that." He looked troubled as his lips thinned into a grim line. "I've been hearing things concerning Wyatt."
I stiffened, remembering the manticore who had kidnapped Pedro just to get back at Zion for everything he had done. He attended our rival school, Gevaldor high school.
Dimitri continued. "There's a speculation. People think Wyatt is the reason behind Pedro's absence in class. They think Wyatt has bruised him so bad that he's bedridden in the hospital, awaiting recovery. They aren't too far from the mark though. And now I hear Wyatt is coming for Hunter and I'm not surprised."
He bit his lip. "I don't mean to brag but Hunter is mostly seen as 'The golden boy' -- untouchable to any threats, and it's all because of me. Wyatt wants to break that trend.
"Zion had asked that I should take care of Hunter since he's not always around and I had promised to do that. I've protected Hunter from anything and everything for a long time and it's going to stay that way. So if it means stopping him from going out with some unknown friends at night then so be it."
So he's trying to protect him from Wyatt.
Just then Hunter's faint voice muffled through the door, calling out to Dimitri. Normally I'm supposed to feel bad but since Hunter practically hates me, I didn't really care.
Dimitri sighed, pressing his lips into a thin line as he battled with himself. "To be honest, I want Hunter to be free; to do whatever he wants but right now, it's too dangerous. I mean, he has Hades, the god of the underworld, meaning he's a target. But he hasn't shown any powers yet and it makes him vulnerable. But I have a feeling it wouldn't be for long."
"What do you mean?"
Dimitri scoffed but his lips broke into a smile. "It wasn't easy handcuffing his stubborn ass to a chair. His strength has increased remarkedly. Almost rivaling mine. It only means one thing..." He turned to me, brown eyes kind and inviting but his words didn't match. "...Hades is resurfacing."
Hades, god of the underworld.
To be honest, that statement had a good and bad side. If Hades makes an appearance, it's bound to give Hunter inhuman powers, but there's more. The god would also try to take over Hunter's body. And since I have Pandora's spirit, he'll try to annihilate me. Either that or Hunter will try to bury me alive with his godly powers.
"How do you keep winning control over Dionysus?" I asked.
Dimitri observed his open palm and clenched it. For a moment, his eyes illuminated into a purplish wine color before dimming down. The first time I noticed him use Dionysus' powers was in a cave and it was remarkable.
"I don't." He finally said.
I rose an eyebrow. "What?"
"I converse with him." Surprise took over my facial features. He chats with the wine god?
"How's that possible?"
Dimitri smirked and pointed to his temple. "He talks to me in here. It's more like a second conscience. Turns out, Dionysus isn't too keen on ascending like the big three. He says the gods are annoying and with me, he gets his piece of mind."
I laughed. "That's amazing."
"I know," he said and cleared his throat. "Come on. Let's keep Hunter company."
He pushed the door open and walked inside. I followed. Hunter was still struggling with the metallic restraints. His head snapped up the moment we came. His warm eyes landed on Dimitri for a second before turning it to me. Like a switch, it shifted into pure anger.
His amber eyes were beautiful. Fascinating. It was an unnatural yellow and for the second time in a while, I couldn't shake the fact that Hades was looking at me through Hunter's eyes.
For all those who waited for Hunter and Dimitri to join the plot. It's finally here.
Any thoughts about Hunter and Dimitri's relationship?
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