Samantha

I watch Apollo from the near distance.

His wavy locks glisten golden underneath Helios' parting rays, leaving soft, peach impressions on his skin beneath their curly tips on his temple, eliciting that lively something about him that makes him stand out in the crowd, that something that makes him look divine-born.

 If you're not careful and stare at him for too long, you can feel your breath start to slip away, like little remnants of carbon begging to leave your body just to be closer to him as they die. He's that agonizingly beautiful. 

I'd be jealous if it wasn't for the fact that in my timeline, he's a total fucking moron.

Currently, he stands several feet away from me, waving his arms around in front of the owner of a small stand in a local market. He negotiates with him as he's closing down his tent, flashing him his two rows of perfect, pearly teeth. His smile is somehow even more radiant than the loose locks on his head-- white and blinding and irritatingly charming as he lifts up the cloth-covered items in his hands, no doubt letting the seller know they aren't worth as much as he claims. 

Without thinking, a corner of my lips tugs up into an amused smile, consequence of a sudden warmth constricting my heart. 

I instinctively reach out a hand to my chest, half expecting my ribs to begin to hurt and my breathing to stop again, but pain and discomfort forget to come as he turns to me, gesturing to me with his hands. Next to him, the vendor follows suit and turns around, glancing at me for a second before sighing and nodding his head, conceding and earning himself another bright smile.

We're out and about below mount Olympus, walking the busy streets of Thessaly and visiting some local markets and vendors. He says he wants to show me something, but the sun will soon set and the village people are beginning to pack their merchandise and leave. 

Whatever he wants to show me, it might have to wait until tomorrow if he doesn't hurry up.

"Brilliance," he calls, raising an arm and waving me over. I shake my head, lips curving up as he insists and gestures to me again, causing the vendor to cast me another glance, frowning. 

Against my better judgment, I find myself walking to him, watching as all around us, the villagers become a blur of tunics and cloaks carrying clay trappings and fabrics while Helios deposits the sun behind the hills and mountains-- somewhere beyond the horizon.

A warm palm cups my elbow as I reach Apollo's spot next to the closed tent. He says something to the seller I don't understand, and now that I'm up close, the man takes the time to look at me for a moment before returning his gaze to the god's, debating. 

After a couple seconds, he nods, extending a hand and making a motion with his fingers, eliciting a laugh from the shrewd negotiator beside me. Apollo reaches into the bag slung across his chest, taking out a couple copper and silver coins from a small pouch and handing them to the vendor.

I suppress the urge to roll my eyes after he grabs what he wanted and steers us away from the tent. Behind us, I can hear the man grumbling under his breath before sounds of movement follow it.

"Did you just use me to get a better deal?" I ask, feeling a scowl play on my lips.

Apollo is all radiance as he grins and takes my hand, walking us in the direction we came from, away from the fading noises of clanking merchandise and the hum of negotiating chatter.

"Beauty is persuasive," he shrugs. I raise my brows, pausing my walk.

"And you couldn't use your own?"

A smug expression crosses his features as he pulls me along, headed towards a bend just around the proximal winding hill.

"You believe me handsome?"

This time, I do roll my eyes. That's a rhetorical question, all gods are gorgeous. They're gods. Even Thanatos with all his stillness and eeriness is devastatingly handsome, so why inflate his ego? It's not like he's in short supply of admirers. Men, women, and gods alike flock to him like fleas to a cow's ass. 

The second we stepped foot on the market, people crowded around him, ignorant to the fact he was a god. His charms alone did that.

"I never said that."

My voice is tinged with annoyance. Hopefully, Hades has rubbed off on me enough for me to emulate his brief, clipped replies, the ones that leave no room for additional comment. But Apollo doesn't seem to get the hint, my response doesn't even put a dent in his armor, it merely bounces off him.

"But you speak the truth, all the divine are subject to beauty in abundance! Which is why I knew your presence alone would spur the man to provide me a better offer." 

With a smirk, he tugs on my hand, gesturing with his other to a spot at the approaching top of the hill. Grass covers the entire area, a stark contrast to the stone-laid paths winding beneath the rest of the mountain, where only the base and the land beyond are shrouded by trees, plants and other vegetation. 

I turn to him.

"What did you say to him, anyway?"

Looking down to our clasped hands, his grin widens.

"I asked him if he would be willing to cheat a maiden as fair as you, and of course, he was unable."

I knit my brows, frowning, hoping to god he can't see the involuntary upward twitching of my lips. It's one thing to know you're guaranteed good looks as an immortal, it's another entirely for another immortal to say so and prove it to you.

"So you scammed the poor man?" disapproval laces my voice, "You're a god, you can afford to pay full price for an item."

Shaking his head, Apollo climbs a small dirt incline towards the top of the hill, pulling me up behind him when my sandal slips on a couple crumbling rocks.

"The man was out to thieve," he says flatly, lips dimming into a frown for the first time since I met him. Well, again.

I give him a look. Anyone can say that to justify their own scamming.

"And you know this how?"

Letting go of my hand to amble over by the edge of the cliff, he moves to stand beneath a lone laurel tree, its trunk surrounded by violet, rose, lavender, and ivory hyacinth flowers. With the last of Helios' rays caressing his golden head in sorrow farewell, the entire scene looks like a renaissance painting came to life for a moment, leaving behind traces of nature that can't be replicated elsewhere. Present company included.

Apollo looks to his feet before bending and retrieving something from the ground, enclosing his fingers around it before straightening up, bringing his arm back, and throwing the object forward.

"I am the god of truth," he says, turning to me with lips quirking up into a grin again, "Which is why I know you believe me terribly, unreasonably, and irresistibly handsome."  

"Don't flatter yourself, even Thanatos is beautiful. Doesn't mean I'm attracted to him."

If possible, Apollo's smile only becomes bigger as he lifts an index finger to his chin, tapping his lower lip a couple times.

"Interesting, I failed to mention attraction."

My mouth quickly dips into a frown. I haven't mentioned anything about Hades since I assumed he knew, so I can't outright shame him for flirting with me. But, I mean, why else would I want to stay in the Underworld after he shot arrows at me and then impaled me with his sword? Logic doesn't apply to the situation, so I feel like it should be obvious feelings are involved.

Laughing, he extends a hand, gesturing for me to join him underneath the tree. I hesitate, his palm hovering between us as I contemplate whether or not I would want Hades to join a gorgeous girl in watching the sunset alone with him. 

Well, technically it would only apply if I had attempted to kill him twice, and then walked around the palace with a goofy expression on my face as I trailed behind my ex husband who didn't reciprocate my feelings. 

Biting my lip, I take his hand.