Let the Games Begin

Things went horribly wrong so easily and I can't understand why these feelings are showing up again. My wife is furious with me as a result of my foolishness. Truly, I do love my wife but I love him too. I have loved him for a very long time, much longer than my wife, but I knew I had to give up on him. Hopefully, me leaving after the harvest festival is going to help me get rid of these feelings, but they seem to have other plans in mind.

Ever since that newcomer showed up, the situation has left me on edge. I heard the report as well so I have issues believing whether or not this guy really is safe. The only problem is that my thoughts on Perseus and his opinion matters more than the opinion of others. I rely on his opinion more than I do my own. Some may think that my way of thinking towards Perseus might seem toxic but if you knew Perseus like I did, then you wouldn't think to question his judgement. The only problem is that Perseus is oblivious when others like him romantically despite the fact that his judgement is so sharp.

Perseus has had so many offers for marriage but he declined them all. It almost makes me feel a bit relieved that I don't have to see Perseus get married. I know it is only a matter of time before it does happen but I'm not ready to see him be married off to someone. Now, Perseus was in a room with a complete stranger by himself. Livid would be the best way to describe my feelings right now, livid and jealous. You see, I am usually there whenever Perseus figures out how to handle some situations to give him advice. Right now, he hasn't even asked for my opinion on the matter and also, he has yet to come out of that room.

I have been his best friend since childhood, surely that should mean something in a tense situation like this. The only reason I haven't barged into that room myself is because I respect him too much to come in without him asking for me. I could blame my wife for snapping at him like she did since it wasn't necessary. That wouldn't be a reasonable excuse and I'd be a poor husband for thinking like that.

Athena is the best woman I could ask to be my wife. Her blonde hair that moved gracefully in the wind and sparkling sapphire eyes that were as beautiful as the sapphire gemstones themselves. We fell in love so quickly, maybe a bit too quickly compared to most relationships. Our love was as beautiful as the rose despite the thorns it had but we always tried to work around each thorn that comes up. She has such patience with me despite her short-tempered attitude and tenacity. She was like a female warrior, my female warrior.

I knew the reasoning for her acting up. When we started courting each other, I was honest to her about my feelings towards Perseus and how much I cared for him. She feels like he plays with my feelings and manipulates me into helping him out when he finds himself in trouble. The only problem is that I help him out of trouble because I want to, not because he asks me for help. I'd follow him into the underworld if it meant his happiness and that is what infuriates her. I wish that things could be different and she knows this. Whenever she gets worried about me, she always tries to blame Perseus for it even though she knows full well that I do it without him needing to ask me. Athena has a habit of running her mouth without thinking through things first. That was the main reason she settled down so quickly after I got her to calm down.

Now here I am, laying in the bed we shared while she was sleeping peacefully at my side. I lifted my hand and ran it through her soft hair with a small smile on my face. Despite having these conflicting feelings between Athena and Perseus, I would never dare to betray my wife and the vows we took the day we were married. I am loyal to Athena as my wife and I am loyal to Perseus as my secret crush and childhood friend. If people besides Athena knew about my feelings, they would accuse me of betraying my beloved wife for not giving her my everything. The funny thing is, you can never get over your first love entirely. Those feelings will haunt you until you die.

Getting out of bed, I put on my robes and situated my clothing before heading out to see what Perseus was up to now. I moved out of the room and my home, heading over to Perseus's family home. My eyes wandered around to see people moving out of their own homes. It was just a little after sunrise and people were still finishing up on harvesting from the fields. Everyone should have it done by the harvest festival. The only reason why I wasn't doing the same was because Perseus didn't want to burden my wife and I when we plan on leaving after the harvest festival. That way we have time to pack and get everything taken care of before we leave.

The day we leave is going to be the hardest day I have to handle before I can actually move on with my life. Leaving was Athena's idea as she thinks it might help my feelings towards Perseus fade. Trust me, that's what I want and Athena did give me the option of us staying instead, raising our family here. I felt it was best for me to move to another island because that is what I want to do. We gave Perseus the excuse that we wanted to become musicians on a more populated island. While that is the goal when we do leave, that's not the reason we decided to leave.

I knocked on the front door of Perseus's house but it wasn't Perseus that answered. It was him. Jealousy, stay down, you shouldn't involve yourself in this too much. Perseus believes he's not a bad guy and I should trust his judgement. "Hello...?" I greeted slowly as I raised a brow towards the taller, dark haired male.

His eyebrows raised before blinking a bit. "Oh, my name is Cephalus. Perseus is still sleeping, but if you want to talk to him, I can wake him up for you." He spoke as he was at a loss on how to talk to me. Of course he doesn't know my relationship with Perseus but the way he stood seemed as if he was a bit threatened by my presence. Maybe Perseus has mentioned me to this guy and feels that I am a threat. Good, I am a threat since I still cared for Perseus deeply.

"Of course I want to talk to him but I can wake him up myself," I spoke with a bit of hostility to show that I didn't trust him at all. "I am his childhood friend, of course." That felt good to show off the close relationship I shared with Perseus. I can tell that I pinched a nerve with that statement with the way his green eyes narrowed on me.

Putting my hand on the door, I pushed my way inside the house and slipped by Cephalus. The heat I felt on my back was the obvious glare of this guy watching my every move. Of course, I couldn't help myself as I simply walked to Perseus's bedroom as if I owned the place. I just wanted to see how many buttons I could push before I could get a decent reaction. Maybe I'll just have to take it up a notch since he still seemed to keep himself in line still.

I opened the door to the bedroom with a devious thought in my head. Oh, this would be extremely entertaining as I sat down and leaned over Perseus. I took a moment to admire his tanned skin and the peaceful expression he held. How could this man be so oblivious but so attractive is beyond what I could understand? I lifted a hand to brush hair from his face before I shook him gently, whispering sweetly to him. "Perseus, it's morning. You need to get up." I felt extremely satisfied as I glanced over my shoulder to see Cephalus with his hands tightening into fists of how close I was to Perseus. Oh yeah, this guy definitely had an attraction towards Perseus.

I leaned back as Perseus's eyes started to flutter open. I got up from the bed and looked towards Cephalus with a wide grin. I want this guy to impress me before I'll let him have Perseus. That is, if he wanted a relationship with Perseus of course. Right now, there was too much happening for Perseus to ever think about such things.

I moved towards Cephalus, placing a hand on his shoulder as I whispered in his ears while Perseus was still waking up. "Good luck..." I spoke carefully before turning around and leaning against the wall of his bedroom by the doorway, where Cephalus stood like a statue. He was irritated and I couldn't help but find it fun to push his buttons a bit. My jealousy may bother me but I have a wife. Cephalus doesn't know that though, so that made things all the more entertaining for me. I shared a glance with Cephalus as I still had that grin on my face. I knew I was sharing one thought with him. Let the games begin.