Aries || Calum Hood

twenty-three

ARIES: Although their trust in people is pretty low, they have trust in fate and the future.  They are daring and choose to live life dangerously because they trust that they will be okay.

A T H E N A

VEXATION DOMINATED ATHENA'S short span of rest when hauntings of previous events conjured to a nightmare that emphasized the weakness Athena felt run through her very veins, she felt her blood rush straight into her pounding heart, breath caught into her throat while she felt power drain out with her hoarse voice.  Sweat dripped down her neck, her throat ached as her voice ripped out while her wrists began to purple at the ruthless grip from the same hand that rubbed her back assuring that everything would be okay.

Athena's voice diminished into a diminutive whisper, she shook her head with her body struggling to regain control.  Her eyes blurred with tears as she began to stop breathing, her lungs heaved with struggle as she was battling more with her mind than Luke.  She was on the verge of either quit trying or to fight back.

"Athena, baby, wake up."  Athena gasped when her eyes finally opened, she was surrounded by the dark as her body quivered and tears began to slide down her cheeks.  She felt palpitations when coming into the realization that unlike her previous nightmares, this wasn't just a dream.  It did happen, and she couldn't escape it, awake or asleep.

The lamp turned on as Athena diverted herself to the source of light, Calum pushed his body against the headboard as he pulled Athena into his lap.  Her cold body was still shaking as she pressed herself against his warmth, he kissed her forehead while wrapping his arms around her.  "I feel weak, Calum.  I feel hopeless and unhappy, and my small trust in people has shortened yet again."

"Stop calling yourself weak because you are the complete opposite of that. You're safe with me, okay?" Calum reassured Athena, his fingers lightly traced shapes around her back as Athena nodded her head and played with her bracelet. "Who gave you that bracelet?"

"It was my brother's." The gold lion charm glimmered under the light while the matte black wooden beads allowed it to stand out.

"Michael?"

"No, Matthew." Calum was probably the only person Athena trusted right now, but was she ready to talk about it yet?

Of course she was, she needed to stop pitying herself every time something bad happens.

It wasn't her fault, yet she couldn't help but to hang her head down in guilt.

"Wait what?" Calum stopped trailing his fingers up and down Athena's back for a few seconds before resuming again.

"My older brother."

"How come I've never heard of him before?"

"Because he's dead." Athena removed herself from Calum's grip and sat in front of him, she decided to tell him the entire story face-to-face instead of avoiding eye contact.

Calum's eyes showed a hint of tiredness within them, he probably didn't think she would notice, but Athena knew he wasn't getting enough sleep lately. His eyebrows came to a furrow as he opened his mouth, but no words were able to form.

"January 31, 1998 was when he died due to a car accident. His girlfriend broke up with him, and he went to a party to," Athena began to trail off, she shivered at her memories slowly creeping back into her mind like cold ice sliding down her skin, "-to drink his sorrows away basically. He drank a lot, Calum. I can still see how his eyes burned red and his mind started going into insanity-"

"What do you mean you can still see?"

Athena took off her bracelet, she revealed a small scar on her wrist while she got closer to Calum and placed her finger on her cheekbone to address another faded mark. "I was in the car when it crashed."