Issue #06. Helps From A Nice Friend

[Ch. 3]

 It was not long after he hid from me when I finally found him in the library on the fourth floor. He was reading a book, sitting on a comfortable chair. A while after he lifted his head up to see who has entered the place, his lips twitched into a smile.

"You found me," he said.

 I crossed my arms. "That's not an attitude to treat your girlfriend."

"Who made those standards on which is a good way or not?" He asked lowly.

"It's a common sense-"

"I can do what you want, but I won't always follow something you say right," he said.

"Yeah... okay, I understand," I said, flinching at the strange atmosphere made between us. He felt far away from me. And this feeling... was bad.

 He bit his lips.

"Okay, let's don't fight. We've just been in this 'crazy' relationship for only a day." He said awkwardly.

"Yeah..." I said.

 He put his arm around me. "Anyway... I was going to ask you about what to say to the campers. I know, you don't know much about military services, but you are a demigod... that's why."

"But I'm not the same as them," I said.

"I know," he muttered. "But I can't just confront them without having you delivering the information. You know how I am not good with demigods..."

"Why don't you ask Luke instead?" I asked, then soon got hit with his serious words.

"He's already in shape," Kronos muttered.

"Oh wait," I said, getting his attention back to me.

"Huh?"

"Where is Luke anyway? I couldn't see him these days. Is he okay?" I asked, worriedly.

 Kronos snorted. "He's very alive here, chatting this and that."

"Why don't you just let me...?" I asked.

"It's no use," he said, after few seconds.

"What's the matter?" I asked again.

 He looked at me, his eyes glittering softly.

"Can't you see?" He asked, his eyes almost in tears. "I'm losing my identity."

 His words fell omniously upon the atmosphere between us. When I glanced at him, his eyes blinked blue then back to golden.

"Kronos!" I shouted as he crouched down, at the corner of the library. He buried his head in his arms.

"I don't think that I would die in the upcoming war," he said, smiling awkwardly at me, despite of the pain and hardship. "I would die in the battle between us. But the dangerous thing is that Luke would have to suffer the same amount of pain with me... and you know what that means."

"Luke would..." I was unable to speak.

"We've got about five years left, Jamie. This is the main reason why I am trying to start and finish this war as quickly as I can. If it doesn't end in five years... this world, the world I grew on would vanish like a pile of dust. And everything would go bad."

"And you say that you don't want any of it," I murmured. "So this is why you were hiding the whole fact that all this time, you and Luke's lives were already destined to end after five years?"

"I don't wanted you to know it because you would be freaking worried," he said, not looking at me.

"Let me talk to Luke. I gotta say something to him. And don't say that you're unable to give his control back to him. I know that you've got enough health to do that at least once."

 He sighed deeply, and closed his eyes, which were full of pain. I felt really sorry for him, since I love him this and that, but I knew that I couldn't live without Luke talking to me.

 When this guy opened his eyes again, he was back to Luke, and I let out a cry of joy. His blue eyes made me happy. He embraced me tightly, and I did it back. Luke, my brother, was at last back for a memorable moment.

"Luke..." I murmured, not wanting to let the moment go. Without saying a word, he shuffled my hair, which meant great attention for him.

"Hey..." He said, his voice tight with emotion.

"Tell me that you're okay," I said, glancing back at his face, worried because we've got only 5 years to be together like this.

"I'm fine... I don't feel that ill like you think."

"But Kronos-"

"It's okay, we're carrying the same pain. It doesn't hurt that much." He reassured me.

"How long did you know that you don't have much time left?" I asked.

"About a moment ago?" He asked, smiling at me. "But I can say that I wasn't surprised at all."

"How? I mean... You don't blame Kronos at all?"

"How can I blame him when he's the one who made me meet my cutest sister by resurrecting me?"

"I'm your only sister," I said.

"Exactly. The things have changed. We're not a host and an evil spirit lingering on his body anymore. We're more than that. You can see it, don't you? We were always meant to be like this."

 Luke spoke in a positive perspective, but I could hear some serious tone in his voice. I looked at him. And I wish I didn't. When I peered into his eyes, I could see some gold inside the vast pools of blue. Luke and Kronos had no time left.

 And this was probably the first time I felt useless because I couldn't help them in any ways.