•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Artemis was a virgin, 

And had attracted many gods and men,

But only her hunting companion, Orion, won her heart.

However, when he tried taking off her robe,

The goddess killed him.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

The rest of the day hasn't been that interesting. Eros and I had told the others about the Medallion and we have finally agreed on a plan.

What's the plan exactly?

We're stealing the Martyr's shackles -- or whatever they call it -- right from under Hephaestus' nose.

Our final destination -- A crappy graveyard.

Right now, I just hope we don't actually get to see him.

For all we know, the god hasn't ascended and could be trapped in a poor man's body.

Not that I'm crossing my fingers or anything.

We had a few more training before heading to a party at the beach.

What party? Good question.

It was surprising really, but Pedro had reminded Zion of his promise to our classmate. Dimitri had planned another get-together at the beach and Zion was funding every coin.

Even though we had other things planned up, it wasn't advisable to be absent.

They'll know something is up.

We'll be able to sneak out when they've seen enough of us.

At the moment, I was nestling comfortably at the backseat of Pedro's car.

Well...not really.

The Greek mark was annoying the crap out of me. And yes, it only indicated one thing...

I turned to the one person who sat at the opposite end.

Liam's arms were crossed as he stared at the buildings that whisked by in a steady motion.

It was twilight, and the sky was beautifully painted with a red and yellow tinge.

Pedro and Gwen sat in front. They were in a deep conversation, laughing at some joke.

Eros had to join Zion in his car. Mainly to catch up on some other important info.

I furiously rubbed the burnt mark on my wrist, trying to pull enough pain to mask the annoying itch.

I turned to my side.

Liam's elbow rested on the door handle. His safety glass had rolled down, causing the cold wind to push through the opening and ruffle his hair.

The thick strands rasped over his forehead, some sticking out at the sides.

He unconsciously brushed a few strands from his eyes, not even bothering to solve the main issue.

As if he noticed me staring, he turned.

His ever-present smirk was absent. In its place was nothing but a troubled expression. His eyes went to my wrist before meeting mine.

Are you okay? He mouthed.

I forced a smile and nodded.

I will be.

He didn't seem convinced. He stole a glance at the two settled in the front seat before sliding closer to me.

He sat sideways; his knees touched mine through the jeans we wore and an arm nuzzled behind me on the headrest.

The close proximity only seemed to worsen the case; my mark burned like molten magma.

Okay, maybe I was overexaggerating.

I pulled frantically on the sleeve of my dark jacket, trying to endure it.

"You don't look okay." He whispered under his breath. His eyes probed mine with many questions.

"It's nothing really." I tried focusing on the seat before me, or my lap, anything to avoid his eyes.

"It's me, isn't it?" His gaze dragged to the mark on my wrist. "It hurts every time I'm near."

I wouldn't call it 'hurt' per se, rather an annoying buzz, like an alarm waking you up at 4:00 am.

I sucked in a breath when Liam slipped his fingers through mine. The cold touch caused my skin to prickle.

That instant, the annoying buzz stopped, like a stray boat lying buoyant in the eye of a storm.

It was a comforting yet conflicting feeling; I couldn't hold back the small sigh of relief.

"How is it now?" He whispered. Hot air traced the outline of my cheek.

I turned to him. The tip our noses brushed against each other for a mere moment.

A feather-light touch.

Liam's lips tilted on one side, his eyes had turned cat-like. It made me wonder what thought had caused it.

I forced a half-nod. "It's easy to handle."

Liam had said the mark tingles because of his uncontrolled ability to detect bonds.

But what if there's more to that?

"Good." He bit his lips and turned my wrist in his palm. It was a soft and gentle gesture, one I didn't anticipate.

His eyes locked on the second greek mark. I expected him to feel shocked but he was oddly calm.

"When did it happen?" His thumb grazed the rough scar.

My breathing pattern was a garbled mess and I tried smothering it.

I felt elated.

"At the boutique. During our dress up." I breathed. His focus remained on the mark and I couldn't help but stare.

He had a sharp profile. His cheekbones were accentuated and chiseled, unlike Zion who had a strong and more elevated version.

"Does Zion know about this?" He said.

"Zion doesn't need to know everything."

Liam's eyes locked with mine. An expression crossed his features; his pupils had narrowed down into a thin slit.

But I wasn't scared.

His hand caught a wisp of black hair which had strayed from my french braid. "Where did you go after training?"

I parted my lips, trying to process his words. The air in the vehicle had suddenly turned light. "I just had a chat with Eros, Pedro, and Gwen."

My voice sounded funny.

"What happened to your girlfriend, Ocypete?" I blurted out.

He smirked. "She isn't my girlfriend."

"Does she know that?"

"She's having a hard time listening to anything I say." He palmed my cheek, his eyes skimmed over my face before moving lower, resting above my chin. "She's not what I want."

Questions tumbled out of my head in waves and I couldn't control it.

"Did you carve those markings on your bow? The one Eros lent you." After the second encounter with Zeus, I couldn't get those words out of my head.

"Méchri na tin écho." He said. Until I have her. "Eros wrote that. Not me. It was meant for Psyche."

I smiled. As frustrating as Eros can be, he still has a soft side.

Liam observed me; his face completely blank and stoic. And somehow, he had drawn impossibly closer.

His hand was cold against my cheek. I felt his thumb graze my skin, leaving an icy trail in its wake.

I remember the bat-like demon that had taken his form. I remembered its hoarse tone.

He's wasting too much time.

Warm lips brushed mine and I couldn't tell what happened next, but it felt like I had been jerked wildly from a daydream.

My hand shot to his chest, immediately halting his movement.

Green glowing eyes stared back at me. His lips pulled into a grin.

I pushed him back.

Liam chuckled as he fell against the seat. "You really know how to play hard-to-get."

I felt my senses fire back to life like I had fallen down to earth. The light feeling had disappeared.

"You used your ability on me." My tone was filled with controlled rage.

He shifted his jaw but his eyes held no regret. "I wasn't going to hurt you."

"That's not a committed assurance."

"I'm just trying to finish what you started. Besides..." His annoying smirk was back. "...If you don't like it, you can always give it back."

"Use your abilities on me one more time and you'll hate the results."

The car jerked to a stop and I took a quick glance at our current location. We had parked in a forest a few feet away from the beach.

Pedro turned back in his seat. "Let's go, Chips! We have a mission to complete."

Gwen shifted her glasses before reaching for her door handle. A smile was glued to her face.

Liam had already opened his door and stepped out. His hands fidgeted a bit as he tried pulling on his combat gloves.

"You okay, Pickles?" Pedro asked, his eyes filled with worry.

"I'm fine." I slid out of the car and swung the door shut with more force than intended.

It had nothing to do with my current boxed-in anger...or confusion. Certainly not the persistent ache in my chest.

Whatever I was feeling...

I couldn't let Liam get to me.

Any thoughts about Liam?

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