HADES

Ego

"Two rooms, please" Hades said to the reception lady. After another long day, they had decided to crash at some motel. Celina who was yawning tiredly, suddenly ran to the reception and pushed the broad man away.

"A room for two" she smiled faking innocence as she batted her eyelashes to the lady. "Right, baby?"

Hades coughed loudly as the girl in front of him caressed his chest and looked up at him. The nickname was new and so was the affection she was showing. Not that she hadn't before, but they had only kissed and held hands a couple of times. She hadn't caressed his- "God, am I really that fucking lame now" he whispered to himself as he realized what kind of teenage thoughts were running through his mind.

"What?" Celina asked, not catching on to what he had mumbled.

"Two rooms, please" Hades repeated to the receptionist and ignored how Celina rolled her eyes at him, stomping away from him.

Truth to be told, Hades was hesitant to share a room with the princess. He remembered how she had been present the last time he had a nightmare and the way her attitude had changed towards him the next day. She had been awkward, and he understood that he had put her in that position. He should have known better; he had thought to himself. That was the sole purpose to why he chose to stay in different rooms.

"Room 15 and 22" The lady muttered in a monotone voice before handing him the two keys.

Hades started walking towards the rooms upon seeing her looking at him with her arms crossed. Knowing that she would run behind him, he ignored her and took her bag with him instead. It didn't pass a moment before he heard her small steps trying to catch up at him.

§

"You are not a baby, Celina. Also, I will be at the end of the hall, so you don't have to be scared. Let me settle you in first" Hades said, stopping in front of room 15. Celina watched as the man who was covered in tattoos and wearing a leather jacket held her pink bag that was covered in Hello Kitty designs. It was the best she could have found in the horrible store that he had brought her to.

"I can do it myself" she said sassily as she pulled the bag from his hands and stepped in the room.

"Princess I-"

The door was slammed on his face, leaving him shocked. With a loud sigh, he walked to his room that was at the end of the hall, wondering why she would be offended by him wanting to give her privacy. "She is a princess after all. Wouldn't she like some privacy? I thought girls liked boys who didn't cling to them". As he walked away, Celina sat on the bed in bewilderment.

"Oh my god" she breathed out as she realized why he had said no to sharing a room. In her complex mind that liked jumping to conclusions, she figured out exactly why he switched his mood like that. In pure irritation, she threw her bag down and started taking out her night clothes as she sulked. "How stupid of me to mention his ex-girlfriend" she said, as she undressed while muttering things to herself.

"He must have remembered how pretty she was" Celina struggled to take off the big jumper that she had forcibly stolen from Hades. It was several sizes too big and now that she looked at herself in the mirror, she jumped in fright. She really needed to do something with the messy bun that looked like a bird nest and the mascara that had smeared itself around her eyes from rubbing her tired eyes. "She was my first love so naturally I think she is beautiful- blah blah blah" she mimicked him and grunted as she finally pulled the jumper off her.

"Maybe I got too comfortable. Greta was right about never showing guys my true colors- aghhh" her hair was stuck in the messy bun and she looked like a possessed madman trying to take out the hairpins she had used. "Does he really not find me attractive?" she asked herself and stripped out of the sweatpants that were also borrowed.

"Stupid boys. He must be out of his mind to think that he is able to say no to me. One doesn't get cool by having threesomes and fucking others wives. That's just outrages and-"

A knock on the door made her halt in her steps. There she was in her undergarments with his borrowed clothes like a pool at the floor. She looked at her half loose bun and shook her head like a terrified rat.

"Princess? Can you open the door?" Hades voice was heard from the outside. He had not been able to shower before asking her if she was fine. He wanted to make sure that she had settled comfortably before he could lie down himself. He ran his hair through his long locks and then caressed the beard that had grown out again.

After not hearing a reply, he knocked again. "Princess?" he called out again and this time, she answered back. "I am going to sleep, Samuel- oh, I mean Michael"

"Samuel?" Hades whispered to himself and was left speechless for a while. "Can I at least check up on you, gattina? I won't disturb you again" he spoke so only she could hear him. Celina, who so badly wanted to open the door, watched her own reflection and pouted. "I am not a baby that you have to check up on. We will meet tomorrow. Goodnight" she rushed out and waited to hear him walk away. He did after a while, to which she sighed out loudly. "Have I gotten so used to lying that I just described Paul Pogba as my first love? I guess I really am made for this life" Celina proudly straightened her back, perfectly in sync with the hair tie breaking and her hair falling around her face.

"Now, its game on. Let's do this" she said out loud, sitting down on the floor with her long legs tucked under her backside. She took out one clothing piece after another thinking about how Hades had managed to convince her to buy them in the first place. "Too boring. Too colorful. Too much. Too revealing. Too- wait, yes!" she said as Sebastians word of advice stood out in her mind. Sebastian had liked her in revealing clothes and so did the other guys she had dated. Hades was a man and when she thought about it, he was even more open about his dirty little secrets so he would like it. Right?

With that thought in mind, she continued looking for an outfit to impress the man she had kissed, but not attracted enough. In the other room, Hades was panting loudly, as he clutched his head. His body was whimpering without the cold and just as he felt something rising up his throat, he rushed to the bathroom and there it was- red liquid splattered on the mirror and his clothes.

Blood.