Athena

Chapter 26

"And a new day will dawn, for those who stand long and the forests will echo with laughter"
-Led Zeppelin

That's definitely not what I expected when Apollo said abandoned buildings. My mind immediately created this creepy image consisting of dusty furniture and dark rooms. I mean, abandoned equals haunted in my mind.

Instead of a burned down house though, Ares took us to a huge building with perfectly white and smooth walls. There, stood the rest of my brothers, grinning like idiots.

"So, I'm gonna take a wild guess and  say that we won't be exploring any haunted houses today."

Apollo shakes his head and grins at me, "Nope!"

"Bummer." I sigh as I exit the car.

We had to drop off Matt at home because he apparently had some business to attend to along with Enzo and Leo. He went to explain further but I just spaced out, not caring about the boring mafia details.

Getting closer to my brothers, I finally notice that they are standing in front of some boxes. I raise an eyebrow in question and look at Alex expectantly. He just shrugs with a smirk on his face. I roll my eyes.

Anthony clears his throat, successfully gaining our attention. "Athena, do you remember a list we talked about?"

I look at him and hum. "Mhm."

He smiles. "This is the first activity we organized! Graffiti." He says while stepping aside and giving me a full view of the boxes.

"Isn't graffiti, like, illegal or something." I ask with a raised eyebrow.

"That's what makes it exciting!" Ares winks and begins to spray paint on the wall.

We all follow his steps and begin our own creations.

I don't know how long we spent, just painting and having fun, occasionally taking snack breaks, but by the time we all settled down, the moon was getting out.

"Thena, look how beautiful it is!" Noah whispers, sitting beside me. Currently we were relaxing, just watching the sunset.

"I know, right! It's mesmerizing."

A peaceful silence engulfed us before Alex spoke up.

"I think I have a few blankets in the car, how would you feel about staying a little longer, just watching the stars?" He suggests.

"Please!" I say hopefully. I've always been a sucker for the night sky. I don't know why, I just love the way it makes me feel. So serene and peaceful. We are so small and insignificant in contrast to the universe that maybe the same could apply for our problems. When I'm looking at the night sky, everything else disappears. It's just me and the stars and that fact gives me a strange feeling of comfort.

He smiles softly at me. "Of course, bambina, I'll be right back." He says while getting up and heading towards his car.

When he gets back he hands me a blanket and I mumble a small thanks in return.

Its not long after that Noah falls asleep in my arms. Atlas notices and he smiles down at us.

"Little guy has had a long day. He must be exhausted." He says quietly.