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vision of him inhaling the food, cramming as much food into
his mouth as possible with his hands, eager to ease the
hunger inside of him. But doesn t eat like a savage. He
eats mannerly and he chews all of the muscles in his jaw
tighten and flex.
For a second I forget that I m gawking at him until he
catches me. And suddenly, I m embarrassed and upset
because I feel like I could stare at him for hours and never
want to look away. Lowering his fork, he picks up a black
napkin and wipes the corners of his mouth. Is something
wrong? he asks a worried look on his face.
No.
Do I frighten you? He seems like he wants me to be
afraid of him. Maybe that s because he s used to it. Most
people fear the reaper. Unfortunately for him, I m not most
people.
No, I answer quickly. But you could smile more often.
You re beautiful when you smile. I catch myself after the last
comment and clamp my jaw shut. I shouldn t have said that.
I don t want to give false hope in case I do decide to leave,
but I can t help but feel more attached to him with every
second we spend together.
Inside I m a Picasso painting. Scattered, deformed,
and messy. Bright colors splashed here and there. More
than anything I m flustered and I know that I m blushing. An
unsettling silence swirls around us. He smirks, studying my
face. I stare back at him, trying to think of words to break
the quiet, but I can t think of anything. His radiant,
wandering eyes rip my tongue out. I m mute. I wish I knew
sign language.
Hades starts to crack. He s a tremor, rippling across
the ground, a miniscule fracture spreading vastly, tearing up
the soil. Then his mouth opens and the fracture widens. His
mouth is a crater and he smiles wide and laughs. A deep
booming laugh. A harmonious laugh that rings out and
makes me laugh in return. He extends his hand. Come on.
I take his hand and we rise from our chairs. What are
we doing now? I ask. Every time he makes a gesture I feel
like he has another surprise in store for me.
I thought you might like to dance, he muses.
I laugh. You re right. I would.
In a flash, he vanishes and appears behind me, his
warm hands resting against my bare shoulders. His lips are
inch away from my earlobe. Will you dance with me then,
he whispers. And his whisper blows up inside of my head
like a monsoon sound system. He voice trickles from my
head into my throat before resting in my heart cavity.
I will, I say as his hands slide down my back and rest
on my waist. He spins me around to face him and I close
my eyes for a moment and when I open them we re in the
middle of the dance floor swaying back and forth as the
band plays another ballad.
Lights flicker and dance across his face, highlighting
his high cheekbones as he pulls me closer, enveloping me
in his arms. I didn t think you d be a good dancer, I joke.
Are you kidding? I m an excellent dancer, but I will say
I ve done a lot of improving in the last five thousand years,
he says, dipping me backwards.
Well, then you ll have to forgive me if I step on your
toes, I reply as he pulls me back up. I m afraid I don t have
that much experience.
He laughs. You can step on my toes anytime you
want. I smile and rest my head against his shoulder as he
wraps his arms around me tighter. I even feel him plant a
soft kiss on the top of my head. But I don t care. This
moment is too perfect to interrupt.
I never thought that I d be in an elaborately decorated
ballroom, at my own prom dancing with death himself. And I
never thought that I d actually be falling for him.
Hades
At the end of the night Hades escorted Persephone
back to her room, said goodnight, and retired to his own
room. But he didn t intend on actually staying in his room.
He waited until he was certain Persephone was sleeping
and walked back to her room.
Hades stood outside of her doorway watching her
sleep. Her soft breathing filled the room melodically and it
reminded him of a musician plucking the strings on a harp
and the soft look on her face reminded him of peace.
Today had gone exactly as he planned. Actually it had
gone better than he planned. He was pleased that he was
able to pull it off. He knew he had never been the romantic
type, but slowly when it came to Persephone he realized
that anything was possible.
She was the light to his darkness. The compassion to
his rage. The key to his heart. Point blank, Persephone was
everything to him.
The moment he first saw her ages ago he knew he
was attracted to her, but that attraction had blossomed into
something true and beautiful. Something he d wanted his
whole life. Love.
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