Hades' Second Chance

Chapter 3

I woke up about three days after my first date with Apollo, to a text from the man himself:

Apollo: Hey!

Hades: Good Morning.

Apollo: I have the tickets and pass for that concert, if you're still interested?

Hades: I am!

Apollo: Awesome! Why don't you drop by my apartment?

Hades: Sound fine by me.

Apollo: Alright, my apartment is about two miles from campus, on Carmen street. The building's address is 128 Carmen street. My apartment number is 17b, on the second floor.

Hades: What time?

Apollo: Does noon work? I can make lunch.

Hades: Noon works fine. Don't worry about lunch, I'll bring something. Any allergies?

Apollo: No food allergies, but I'm allergic to bees.

Hades: Really?

Apollo: Really. But I'll eat just about anything, especially since I'm a broke college student.

Hades: Alright. I'll pick something up and see you then.

Apollo: Sweet! I'll consider it a date. ;)

I sighed and stood up, stretching. I glanced in the mirror and grunted. My black hair was a mess, and my gold eyes glinted with excitement, although they were still glazed over from sleep. My skin wasn't as tanned as my brothers, but I wasn't as pale as I could get, despite living on the California shores.

I took a shower, and put on my usual clothes, which consisted of a white t-shirt, run down jeans, and a "vintage" leather jacket. I fixed my hair, combing it back, but letting some of it fall in my face.

I sighed, and made a quick breakfast, then got to work on the last of the work I had, which took till about eleven.

After finishing the work, I put on my shoes and headed out to get lunch and head to Apollo's place. I picked up lunch at a local Chinese place, and headed to his apartment. I found the building and parked across the street, putting a couple quarters into the parking meters, and headed to the door of the building. I glanced at the buttons till I found 17b, so I rang.

After a moment, a familiar voice came in over the intercom.

"Hello?"

"Apollo? It's Hades. I have lunch." I said.

"Oh, Hey! I'll buzz you in, hold on!"

There was the sound of a lock clicking, and Apollo's voice came back over the intercom.

"Alright! Head on in!"

I opened the door and walked in, before I found the stairs and walked up to the second floor. After a few moments of searching, I found 17b and knocked. Someone inside, presumably Apollo, yelled "Hold on!" and the sound of footsteps echoed in the apartment, and the door was opened after a few moments. Sure enough, Apollo stood there, his hair slightly mussed, and his blue eyes glowing. He smiled at me, then turned to the side, and waved me in. After I walked in he closed the door behind me.

I set the food on the coffee table and looked around. Apollo's apartment was bright, and well lit, with large windows looking out on the ocean. The walls were painted a light blue, and the trim was white. The floors were a light colored wood, and the living room had a white rug and light brown leather couch, a small TV, and a glass coffee table. A bookshelf stood in the corner, and was well stocked, with a used acoustic guitar sitting in a stand next to it. I could see part of his kitchen, and a small dining table. In all, it was a very nice apartment.

We sat on the couch and ate, talking for a while.

"Remember how I mentioned being allergic to bees?"

I nodded. "Yes, why?"

"Well, when I was little, my twin sister, Artemis, and I lived in a small town in Tennessee, with our parents, near our Aunt and Uncle's house. They owned a bee farm, and made and sold honey. We usually had an overstock of the stuff, and we would visit the house often, but when I was about ten, we visited the bee farm for the first time, and we didn't know I was allergic to bees at the time. After spending only five minutes at the farm, and decided I wanted to be a bee farmer."

"A bee farmer?" I asked, amused.

Apollo laughed. "Yes, a bee farmer. As it was, I got stung after getting too close to a hive. I had to be taken to the emergency room, and that's how we figured out I was allergic to bees. Of course, when they told me that's what happened, I threw a temper tantrum. I can tell you right now that I was a little... over dramatic. Still am, according to Artemis."

I laughed quietly, "Well, I think you should probably stick to your band for now."

Apollo grinned, "Oh most definitely."

The two of us went silent for a moment, but it wasn't an awkward silence, more of a quiet companionship. It felt comfortable and right, to just be sitting here with Apollo, eating quietly. It wasn't odd, it was ordinary. It was right.

Before long, we started talking about the concert. Apollo was excited, as it was his band's first performance in a real stadium. They had, as he had told me on Friday, played in several nightclubs and at a few parties and local events, and bars.

"Anyways, I should get you the tickets and pass." Apollo said, standing up to go get the tickets.

It only took a few seconds for him to grab the tickets. He came back and handed them to me. We talked for a little bit, just about things we had in common, how school was going, which professors were the worst, and so on and so forth. It may have been pretty casual, but it wasn't necessarily a bad conversation. It was almost nice to have a normal conversation.

By the time we wrapped up our conversation, almost all of the afternoon had gone by. I said my goodbye, and left for home in an almost dream like state.

And I could feel the start of romance blooming in my chest.