Chapter Eighteen

Athena's POV

''Athena?'' The same voice that became my drug, my comfort. I can't believe I am meeting him here. Out of many places in the world, I am meeting him here, in Rome. Why? Seeing his face just makes me want to shove a knife down his throat and let it cut through.

Even though I don't have feelings for him anymore. My anger toward him will never disappear. After all those cheating he has let me go through—how can he be so calm right now? How can he show me his innocent look? How can it not give him pain?

How did I manage to fall for the man who never once care for me?

''Jeremy.'' I mutter under my breath, my voice sounding a little bit faint. My eyes never looking away from his—they show shock and realisation but I know they are all lies. Lies that I would never end up believing. Ever.

I can't seem to smile or show any expression. I'm utterly speechless—seeing him here. We are not supposed to meet each other. Even in New York, I was grateful not never seeing him again after knowing he has been cheating on me continuously. But right now, I feel like slapping him across the face and leave.

''How are you?'' A smile appears on his face as he ask.

Turning around, facing Alex who is now looking at Jeremy. His jaw clenched as he keep on looking. Both of his hands are in fists. Seeing his jaw harden gives me clue that he could just hurt Jeremy right now, right here. But why would he do so?

I breathe out, trying to go on with the act. Alright Jeremy, if you're playing casual then I'm playing the game, ''I'm happy.'' I reply as I meet up with his eyes once more, ''Now that I'm married, there's nothing better.''

Jeremy furrow his eyebrows before landing his eyes on Alex. Noticing that Alex is two inches taller than Jeremy somehow makes me feel proud. He looks at Alex before looking back at me, ''To him?'' His voice came out cracking a little bit.

My lips curve up into a smile as I grab onto Alex's hand, ''Yeah. How about you? Have you finally learn to stick with one woman?'' Within seconds, I feel Alex holding back my hand—giving me a squeeze.

''Athena,'' Jeremy shakes his head, ''I still love you. We both know that. I know you still have feelings for me, deep down there,'' He points, ''I know you still want us back together.''

Those words were like poison to my ears. I feel like they are stabbing me in the back without me noticing. I breathe in and out, ''Why would I want you?'' I bite my lower lip, trying my best to control my anger.

''Because we're perfect for each other.'' Jeremy replies bluntly—not even a single regret shown on his face.

My other hand lifts up and touches his cheek in an instant. It came out a little bit rough and harder than I thought when I see his cheek starts to redden, ''That shows how much I want you.'' I feel Alex's grasp on my hand tighten before I can move forward—he has already hold me back, ''So get the fuck out of my life because I would really appreciate it.''

Jeremy holds up his cheek, caressing it slowly. His eyes shows hurt and regret but I won't be falling for it. He lied, too many times to count. He hurt me that it can hardly be healed. Suddenly, he did the unexpected. Jeremy pulls me away from Alex so that Alex let go of my hand in accident.

He holds onto my shoulders, ''You need to come back to me. I need you!'' He shouts at me causing my eyes to widen in shock. He has never raise his voice at me, ever. ''Can't you see that I'm doing this for you, Athena? I fucking care for you!''

''Let go of me!'' I struggle to get away from his hold but his grip tightens which cause me to yelp. Alex touches Jeremy's chest before pushing him against the wall. Jeremy let go of me in the process.

I lightly run my hand onto the spot he held.

Alex throws a punch onto Jeremy's face which cause his nose to bleed instantly. My breathing increases when I see Jeremy wipes the blood away from his nose. Some tourists starts to gasp when they see what's happening in front of them.

''Alex, stop.'' I try to hold him back but my feet fail me.

From the side, I can see Alex holding tightly onto him, not letting him go. He clenches his jaw as he stares deeply into Jeremy's eyes, ''I want you to stay away from her. Don't come near her, don't talk to her, don't—hell, you are not even allowed to look at her! Don't even think laying eyes on her because I swear if you do, I'll ruin your life.'' Alex says toward him.

Jeremy tries to struggle out but he finally surrender and nod lightly at Alex.

Alex let go of him rougly, brushing off his shirt. Then he takes a few step back, making sure Jeremy won't make any moves to come toward me. I stand quiet at the edge, trying my best to keep my distance from Jeremy.

People now starts to walk again, leaving us. They stopped a few minutes ago, looking at the scene we caused. Jeremy lightly lifts his body up. He looks straight at Alex—in anger, mostly—but he didn't even glance my way as he walk away to the other direction.

Knowing Jeremy, he wouldn't just leave.

My hands are now shaking from everything so I hold them together but they won't stop. I look up to find Alex letting out a deep sigh—calming himself before he turn around and look at me, ''You okay?'' He steps closer toward me.

I nod, ''I'm fine.'' I mutter under my breath.

Alex seems unsatisfied as he quickly move the sleeve of my shirt away, revealing my collarbone and my shoulder. My eyes widen and try to move his hand away but he looks down. I follow his gaze, finding a light small bruise right at the same spot Jeremy held me.

I look away, pushing Alex's hand before pulling back the sleeves.

My eyes meet Alex in an instant. He is already staring at me, ''He did that to you.'' He state.

''No shit Sherlock,'' I roll my eyes, rubbing the bruise. I wanted to smile a little and cheer up our moods but Alex seem to furrow his eyebrows and not even giving me a smile.

I touch his arm, ''You know, I'm fine.''

''I'm not worried about you. Just your bruise. If people see that, they might think I abuse you or that someone hurt you and I'm not good enough to protect you.'' He says. A smirk suddenly appears on his face which cause my jaw to drop down on the ground. Not.

Well that was unexpected.

Alex shrugs, bumping into my shoulder with his arm as he walk past me. I am now staring at his back in shock. I can't believe he said that.

Of course he doesn't care. Why would he care?

I follow up to him and within seconds, we are now walking side by side as we walk back to the hotel. None of us wanted to bring up the conversation and I think it's better that way. Alex didn't say a word and neither do I.

When we arrive at the hotel, Alex just quickly enter the bathroom to take a shower. When I enter the bedroom, I see two luggage on the king sized bed. I quickly open the luggage, revealing my clothes and my stuff. I wanted to jump in joy—knowing that I can change into my comfortable pyjamas.

I assume that the other luggage belongs to Alex so I leave it untouched. The bathroom door's is now slightly ajar, making me look at Alex who has a towel hanging low—showing his V line. I try my best to mutter religious words but my mind seems blocked and I end up staring at his perfectly built body.

Those toned abs and hard chest. His biceps.

Come on, Athena! Look away, look away.

I wanted to look away but within seconds, I end up looking at him again. Alex takes another towel away from his hair and his eyes meet mine in instant. My eyes widen—knowing that he just caught me staring at his mouth watering body.

Clearing my throat, ''When did this arrive?'' I look away and end up staring at my fingers.

Hearing his footsteps coming closer, I end up glancing toward him. He is now standing beside me, opening his luggage. He takes out a black shirt with dark brown pants, ''When we were out.'' He replies and with that he turns to face the other way.

When I see him loosening his towel, I turn away immediately, ''Oh my god! What are you doing?'' My voice came out louder than I thought it would be as I cover both of my eyes with my hands.

I hear him laugh, ''Changing.''

''God damn it, I'm in the room for fuck's sake.'' I groan and mumble to myself, ''Are you done?'' I try to peek but I'm too scared so I just close my eyes and use my hands as a protection in case I end up opening my eyes.

Not hearing an answer from Alex makes me feel curious. ''Alex.'' I call out his name but nothing.

I hear something moves and I turn around—eyes closed, ''Alex come on, stop playing around.'' I groan in frustration, before everything went completely silence again.

My heartbeat is raising every single second as I smell a familiar scent. His scent. I feel someone touches my hand and slowly remove them away from my eyes. My eyes are still closed and I hear him chuckle, ''Open your eyes, princess.'' His voice low and seductive.

I open my eyes slowly, meeting his fully clothed chest. I look up, seeing that he is looking down at me. There's a smile on his face. Then he just have to ruin the moment by throwing a towel onto my face, covering my view. I groan before pulling the towel away, ''Alex!'' I scream.

He chuckles before walking out of the bedroom, ''You stink! Take a shower.'' And with that, he disappears from my sight—closing the door behind him. The whole room went silent once more.

I let out a sigh before letting my body fall onto the bed. Closing my eyes for a few seconds and I realise that I am starting to fall asleep so I quickly walk into the bathroom and take a shower.

The warm water calms me down and soothes my body. I step out of the shower, looking at myself in the mirror. Seeing two small bruise on both of my shoulders near my collarbones. They hurt if someone touches them. They almost look like a love bite instead of a beaten up bruise.

With a sigh, I step out of the bathroom—seeing that it is empty just like how I left before I enter the bathroom. Quickly changing into my oversized shirt and long pants before walking out of the room. I am greeted with the scent of vanilla.

Looking around, I see that the light has become dimmer. I see a glimpse of Alex's dirty blonde hair and I immediately walk toward him, seeing that he's laying on the sofa, watching TV. I walk closer.

His eyes are closed.

More like sleeping. I walk toward the remote control, turning off the TV. Alex hasn't move a bit as he hold onto his phone near his chest. His eyebrows furrow as his chest raise up and down slowly.

I wanted to take a picture because I always see him sleep but he seems to frown in his sleep a lot. I let him be because I don't really want him to pull me toward him again.

I walk back into the bedroom, laying on the bed. I snuggle onto the pillow before closing my eyes. The silence somehow make me feel much more sleepy than I already am. Minutes passed and I find myself falling asleep.

When it felt like hours, I feel the bed moves a little. Too tired to even open my eyes, I keep on closing them and just feel the sudden presence beside me. The bed stops moving and I feel warmth up till my stomach. I snuggle closer to the pillow, feeling comfort.

And just like that, I end up going back to sleep.

The next morning, I awaken by finding myself on the ground. I groan in pain as I use my elbows to support myself. I breathe out before fixing my hair. Slowly, I stand up to go back into bed but my eyes widen when I see Alex's figure sleeping soundly right beside my spot.

He has one arm near my pillow wall and the other on his side. I didn't feel like going to bed anymore so I just step inside the shower, taking a quick warm shower. When I'm done, I walk out and see that Alex is still sleeping. He doesn't move much in his sleep.

I change into a grey tank top and a maroon skinny jeans. I don't know who packed my clothes but he or she surely does know my style. I take out a long necklace which ends up till the top of my stomach. I take out my black heels and black small clutch. Finishing off with a bracelet which is the same colour as my necklace and a maroon lipstick.

Turning around, I see that Alex has move but there's no sign of him waking up any time sooner. So I quickly walk out of the hotel, leaving him behind. If I wait for him, I wouldn't explore and walk around Rome.

Right now, I am standing in front of the Trevi Fountain. My eyes wander around to the tourists who seems interested in the Trevi Fountain. I watch as it just doesn't really impress me. Yes, everything in Rome has their own history but I just end up looking around—not fully understanding. It took me about fifteen minutes to arrive at the Trevi Fountain from the hotel.

Peeking down at the clear water—I can see a coins shining with the sun shining brightly. It somehow attracts me when people throw coins and believe for something better in return. I, for one, am not going to do that.

I don't know, I just find something like this hard to believe.

''Have you ever been here before?'' Someone asks me from beside. I turn around to see a woman around my age smiling at me. She has beautiful light brown eyes.

''No, I haven't.'' I reply.

''Well, you must be wondering what happens when you throw a coin in the Trevi Fountain, right?'' She raises an eyebrow at me, ''I've been here almost five times now. I would always visit the Trevi Fountain and throw my coin.''

''Um—'' I mutter, ''What happens then?''

''It ensures your return to Rome.'' She shrugs, ''Well, it turns out that there's an even better reason to toss your coin into the Trevi Fountain than just wishing for a return trip to Rome. Each day the gushing torrents of the Trevi Fountain are silenced for one hour while city workers sweep the coins from the fountain. The Roman Catholic charity Caritas has been sorting and cleaning the daily loot from the fountain.''

I nod my head, ''But is the legend true?''

''I don't know, you have to try it yourself.'' She smiles at me. Then she starts to walk away, disappearing just like that before I can even ask anything else.

People start to walk away from the fountain, some have already thrown their coin and some just decided to take pictures. I walk straight toward the fountain. Looking down, I take out a coin out from my clutch and turn my back facing the fountain. I shrug as I throw the coin into the fountain.

I hear as the coin drops into the water.

I wanted to laugh at myself because of this but I end up walking away, leaving the fountain.

I have been walking for twenty minutes and I glad I found Colosseum without trouble. After entering inside, there's a group of people listening to some sort of explanation. I decide to walk toward them and try to listen.

''Built in 72 A.D, the Colosseum has remained the largest amphitheater in the world and is considered to be Rome's most popular tourist attraction. Standing as the iconic symbol of Ancient Rome, this monument that once hosted the inhuman ¨games¨ of man vs. beast, is considered a Modern day Wonder! But there is so much about the Colosseum in Rome that no one knows about.'' The man standing in the middle starts to talk. I cross my arms, paying attention.

''—There's ten interesting facts about Colosseum in Rome. First of all, The Coliseum in Rome has over 80 entrances and can accommodate about 50,000 spectators. Amazing isn't it?'' He continues and the group of people starts to whisper as they agree.

The man walks toward the middle and we all follow him, he shows around and we get the time to enjoy the surroundings, ''It is thought that over 500,000 people lost their lives and over a million wild animals were killed throughout the duration of the Colosseum hosted people vs. beast games.''

''Look around.'' Someone says and I take my chances to look around. How beautiful something could be. Even though it was built a very long time ago, it still somehow manage to open my heart and appreciate something so small.

''Oh and the last gladiatorial fights took place in 435 AD. All Ancient Romans had free entry to the Colosseum for events, and was also fed throughout the show. Festivals as well as games could last up to 100 days in the Coliseum.'' The man goes on and on, ''Interesting how something can have lots of facts.''

''Shall I go on?'' The man asks the group and they all nod in agreement, ''Alright. The Ancient Romans would sometimes flood the Colosseum and have miniature ship naval battles inside as a way of entertainment. Colosseum only took 9 years to build using over 60,000 Jewish slaves.''

''Many natural disasters devastated the structure of the Colosseum, but it was the earthquakes of 847 AD and 1231 AD that caused most of the damage you see today.'' He starts to point out at the top and I look up to see the damage. I never really take anything like this as something important but knowing it right now makes me feel interested, ''The original name of the Coliseum was Flavian Amphitheater, after the Flavian Dynasty of Emperors.''

''Last but not least, Rome's most popular monument was built for three reasons. As a gift to the Roman Citizens from the Flavian Dynasty to increase their popularity, to stage various forms of entertainment, and to showcase Roman engineering techniques to the world.'' The man ends and everyone starts to clap at the ten facts. It wasn't as interesting as he mentioned but I join them clapping.

''Now heading to the history,'' He says, standing on one of the stones, ''The History of Colosseum includes the First Gladiatorial Fight in Rome, the Rise of the Gladiator Games, the Origin and Concept of the Colosseum, Vespasian and the Flavian Amphitheatre (the Colosseum), History of the Colosseum and the Roman Emperors and the story of Telemachus and the end of the Gladiatorial Games. ''

''This history of the Roman Colosseum started hundreds of years before it was actually built when the tastes of Roman citizens craved the excitement and blood lust of the gladiatorial games. Their taste for blood and this form of entertainment dates back to 264AD when the first recorded Roman gladiatorial combats took place in Rome. The Roman Colosseum was opened in 80AD and was originally the called the Flavian Amphitheatre. The idea of this great arena was that of the Roman Emperor Vespasian and the construction started in c70AD and was financed from the proceeds gained from the Roman sacking of Jerusalem.'' He walks forward, ''The history of the arena continues through the reigns of various emperors, the emergence of the Christian religion, the horror stories regarding the deaths of Christian martyrs in the Colosseum, the Gladiator fights and the killing of thousands of exotic wild animals in Ancient Rome. The madness of the mob and craving for this type of entertainment finally ended in the 6th century. Interesting facts and history about the Colosseum of Ancient Rome.''

The man sighs, ''Well this is the famous arena of death.''

''Measuring some 620 by 513 feet, the Colosseum was the largest amphitheater in the Roman world. Unlike many earlier amphitheaters, which had been dug into hillsides to provide adequate support, the Colosseum was a freestanding structure made of stone and concrete. The distinctive exterior had three stories of arched entrances—a total of around 80—supported by semi-circular columns. Each story contained columns of a different order (or style): At the bottom were columns of the relatively simple Doric order, followed by Ionic and topped by the ornate Corinthian order. Located just near the main entrance to the Colosseum was the Arch of Constantine, built in A.D. 315 in honor of Constantine I's victory over Maxentius at Pons Milvius.''

I step backwards as I head out of Colosseum. I need to rush things if I wanted to explore almost everywhere in Rome and know about their history. It makes me feel much more interested than I was before.

Stepping out of the cab as I walk forward to Vatican Museums. I walk inside and was impressed by the design. My eyes widen as I keep on walking around. People are busy talking and slowly discussing.

I let out a sigh.

''The Vatican Museums originated as a group of sculptures collected by Pope Julius II from 1503 till 1513 and placed in what today is the Cortile Ottagono within the museum complex.'' Someone says from beside me and I turn around to see a man with dark brown hair and dark brown eyes, smiling at me.

I smile back, ''That's interesting.'' I say the first thing that came through my mind.

''Yeah, it is actually.'' He looks down, ''The popes were among the first sovereigns who opened the art collections of their palaces to the public thus promoting knowledge of art history and culture. As seen today, the Vatican Museums are a complex of different pontifical museums and galleries that began under the patronage of the popes Clement XIV from 1769 till 1774 and Pius VI from 1775 till 1799.'' He then looks back up at me, ''Would you like to know more?''

''Um sure, even though it's quite confusing.'' I chuckle and he joins me afterwards.

''Well, at least you gain some knowledge about Vatican Museums afterwards.'' I realise his Italian accent as I just nod at him. He clears his throat, ''I'm Anthony, by the way and I'll be your storyteller for today.''

Anthony grins at me and I just let out a light laugh, ''Athena.'' I accept him for a handshake.

''Athena?'' He raises an eyebrow, ''That's a very historical name.'' Before I could say anything, Anthony let out a breath and continue, ''Nice meeting you Athena.''

''Nice meeting you too.'' I mutter.

''Shall I go on?''

''Yeah.'' I nod.

''Alright,'' He puts both of his hands behind him, ''Where was I—Oh yes. In fact, the Pio-Clementine Museum was named after these two popes, who set up this first major curatorial section. Later, Pius VII from 1800 till 1823, considerably expanded the collections of Classical Antiquities, to which he added the Chiaromonti Museum and the Braccio Nuovo gallery. He also enriched the Epigraphic Collection, which was conserved in the Lapidary Gallery.''

''Gregory XVI from 1831 till 1846 founded the Etruscan Museum during 1837 with archaeological finds discovered during excavations carried out from 1828 onward in southern Etruria. Later, he established the Egyptian Museum on 1839, which houses ancient artifacts from explorations in Egypt, together with other pieces already conserved in the Vatican and in the Museo Capitolino, and the Lateran Profane Museum on 1844, with statues, bas—relief sculptures and mosaics of the Roman era, which could not be adequately placed in the Vatican Palace. The Lateran Profane Museum was expanded in 1854 under Pius IX from 1846 till 1878 with the addition of the Pio Christian Museum. This museum is comprised of ancient sculptures (especially sarcophagi) and inscriptions with ancient Christian content. In 1910, under the pontificate of Saint Pius X from 1903 till 1914, the Hebrew Lapidary was established. This section of the museum contains 137 inscriptions from ancient Hebrew cemeteries in Rome mostly from via Portuense and donated by the Marquisate Pellegrini-Quarantotti. These last collections Gregorian Profane Museum, Pio Christian Museum and the Hebrew Lapidary were transferred, under the pontificate of Pope John XXIII from 1958 till 1963, from the Lateran Palace to their present building within the Vatican and inaugurated in 1970.''

We walk to the other side and I keep on nodding as these new informations feels odd to me. He looks at me and I gesture him to continue, he did as told, ''The Museums also include the Gallery of Tapestries, a collection of various 15th and 17th century tapestries; the Gallery of Maps, decorated under the pontificate of Gregory XIII on 1572 till 1585 and restored by Urban VIII from 1623 till 1644, the Sobieski Room and the Room of the Immaculate Conception; the Raphael Stanze and the Loggia, which were decorated by order of Julius II and Leo X on 1513 till 1521, the Chapel of Nicholas V from 1447 till 1455, painted by Fra Angelico; the Sistine Chapel, which takes the name of its founder, Pope Sixtus IV; the Borgia Apartment—''

''—where Pope Alexander VI lived until his death. He was born on 1431 and his life ended on 1503, the Vatican Pinacoteca, created under Pius XI on 1922 till 1932 in a special building near the new entrance to the Museums; the Missionary-Ethnological Museumwhich was founded by Pius XI in 1926, arranged on the upper floors of the Lateran Palace and later transferred, under Pope John XXIII, to the Vatican where it has been opened again to the public in the same building which housed the former Lateran collections.''

''In 1973 the Collection of Modern and Contemporary Religious Art was added and inaugurated by Pope Paul VI on 1963 till 1978 in the Borgia Apartment. The Vatican Historical Museum, founded in 1973 and transferred in 1987 to the Papal Apartment in the Lateran Palace, houses a series of papal portraits along with objects of the past Pontifical Military Corps and of the Pontifical Chapel and Family and historic ceremonial objects no longer in use. The Carriage and Automobile Museum is a section of the Vatican Historical Museum. In the year 2000, the Vatican Museums opened a new large entrance that provides visitor information and other services; on display are many new artworks, two of which were specially created for this grand entrance hall.'' Anthony stops and let out a deep sigh, ''And that is all I know, mio caro.''

''That was a lot, to be honest.'' I let out a laugh.

Anthony smiles, ''Yes, history is a lot. Especially in Rome and well, Greece.'' He then nods, ''You surely know that since you're the goddess.''

I look down before giving him a small smile, ''If that's all then I better get going, Anthony.'' I step to the side, ''It was wonderful—the explanation. It was great, thank you.''

''La vostra accoglienza, bellissima.'' He takes a hold of my hand before planting a kiss at the back of my hand.

A bit surprise at his sudden action, I just push the thought away, ''Oh and um—'' I clear my throat, ''I really hope I know what that means.''

''Oh mio caro, it means you're welcome, beautiful.'' He smiles, showing off his straight teeth.

I nod, ''Well, thanks again.'' I wave at him, ''Goodbye, Anthony.''

He waves and I quickly turn around, leaving Vatican Museums.

It took me thirty minutes to arrive at Plazza Navona. It made me realise that I have been travelling around Rome for the whole day. I sit down on one of the benches, letting out a sigh of fatigue. I have been walking around—believe me, I don't really have much stamina. Looking around, I see couples kissing and smiling to each other as they talk.

A family walking as they hold their child's hand. Smile forming on their face as they keep on walking. I look down at my wrist watch that it is almost 5pm—the sun is setting soon. I let out another sigh as I look inside my clutch.

My eyebrows furrow in confusion as I search for my phone.

Where is it? I thought to myself.

After knowing that my phone isn't in my clutch, I stand up to search it at my back pockets but none. Did I not realise that I didn't bring my phone at all? The map that I had gotten from the hotel had completely disappear and I don't even bother to search for it or even buy a new one.

Feeling pretty much confident that I know the way back to the hotel.

I stand up and start to walk toward the direction that I think is the way toward the hotel. My feet starts to hurt after five minutes of walking. The sun has already set and the lights has been turned on due to the darkness.

Holding tightly onto my clutch as I keep on walking as if I know this place.

Wait, I think this is the wrong way.

My mind went completely numb as I stop walking. If I continue on walking, there's completely no one there so I stop. I turn around, walking back to the same direction from before. I keep on walking faster, trying to find a place full of people.

I hear footsteps behind me and I don't have the courage to turn around as I keep on walking. My arms wrapping around my body as I quicken my pace. I keep on chanting how I'm going to be alright but the footsteps keep on coming closer.

My legs end up walking faster than I expected. I turn around to see a figure in the darkness walking fast toward me. I turn around, trying to run and as I do, I couldn't stop.

The footsteps fasten from behind as I hear the mysterious man mutter something but it wasn't clear. I take a left turn which was a huge mistake because it leads to a darker road. I curse mentally at my stupidity for not checking if I bring my phone or not and for not waking Alex up.

Suddenly, someone grabs me around my waist which causes me to scream as loud as I can—as I feel my feet kicking out in thin air for help.