Your Loyalty to Me

EPILOGUE

I hereby, finish my book with this final chapter. On the 24th November 2020 with 20K reads ALREADY.
Thank you all SO MUCH for reading my book and being so supportive, so I present to you, your dinne-

I'm kidding. The epilogue...

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Apollo's POV

When the Fates gives you lemons, cry.

The "make lemonade" policy? Yeah no, that doesn't exist in my life. Apparently I don't get to experience plot twists as twisted as the colours in candy canes.

But oh, how I wished I could twist my fate! Why me? Why did this happened to me? To Aria?

I couldn't change it this time. How could I have been so careless so as to lose the most precious gift in my life TWICE? I had gotten Hades to bring her back when she got bitten by Python, but now... I don't think I'll be that lucky. The gods were never so kind or patient so as to give third chances. Even my second chance was... Unusual.

Aria had smiled. She was smiling, one of her brightest smiles, as the bricks crumbled on top of her. Her eyes still locked with mine, full of happiness that I remembered her.

"ARIA!" I screamed and sprinted to the huge dusty pile of bricks, coughing and gasping for breath.

"ARIA NO!! ARIA!" I uselessly dug through the mountain of bricks that she was buried under knowing full well that I would not be able to get through to her under so many bricks.

After a while of fruitlessly shoving bricks away and coughing through the thick, dense cloud of dust, I gave up. I sank to my knees on the ground and rocked back and forth, shaking, sobbing, muttering comforting lies.

"It's okay, Aria," I mumbled, my eyes shut tight. "You're okay, Y-you'll be fine. I- I'll get you out. I will. I love you, okay? I love you."

But I got no answer. Anything, please anything, I prayed. Any kind of a sign for me to know that she had somehow survived. A groan, a tiny whisper, anything.

But the only sound that could be heard was of me crying.

Why? Why would she push me out of the way when I had no other thought but of killing her? I am a eurynomos! I don't- I don't have a future anymore. She did. Why did she sacrifice herself for me when there's nothing here for me anymore?

But even as I thought that, I knew the answer anyways. When she got bitten by Python, some of her last words to me were, "And I realised that a life without you is a life not worth living."

I lost it. The flashback of her dying in my arms saying those words to me, pale and out of breath, sent me over the edge.

I kneeled over, my forehead touching the ground as I cried. My whole body shook.

Don't you think I feel the same way, Aria?

Don't you know that I don't want to live in a world without you either?

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Third POV

If you ever encounter a eurynomos, hope and pray that you meet this one.

For he does not kill. Everyday, he mopes about, begging demigods to kill him off. To end his life.

And every time he disintegrates to dust, he dies with a smile. Hoping, that he'll wake up looking at her. Seeing her waiting for him in Elysium. Watching her smile at him as they finally get to be together again.

But he never does. Every time he opens his eyes again, he sees himself fully healed and back in the mortal world as a eurynomos.

And he would keep hoping. Keep hoping even when every part of him knows he'll never see her again.

Keep hoping that he will one day get to be with her, or at least even see her once more, though he knows he won't. He knows.

But there will always forever be, that one tiny part of him, not letting go of hope.

~ THE END ~

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Why? Because I wanted to. Because I've had this idea for years and nothing was gonna make me change it.

But! I will do an alternate ending for those of you who adore happy endings, or just really want Apollo and Aria to get the time they deserve together.

I will come up with an alternate ending ONLY IF... I get 15 or more requests to do so.

I mean come on, I know more than 15 people will see this chapter. All you have to do is ask.