That evening, the penthouse was warm and golden.
Ken sat cross-legged on the couch, his sketchpad in his lap, drawing something abstract—swirls of color that didn't mean anything yet but felt right. Hades was beside him, reading a book in Ancient Greek, his bare feet tucked under Ken's thigh.
"Can I ask you something?" Ken said.
"You just did."
"Smartass." Ken set his pencil down. "You had a tattoo when you played Jake, didn't you?"
"Yes, I did." Hades looked up, his expression entirely unreadable. "Is something bothering you?"
"Not really," Ken replied. "I just wanted to know what it meant. I know it wasn't what you told me."
Hades set his book aside. "Omnium rerum mors est extremum. It means 'Death is the ultimate end of all things'."
"Really? You lied about that too, and you even made it obvious." Ken shook his head. "I was so naive."
"Apologies for that. And I don't think you were naive, Ken—I think you were just human."
