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"Um.. Ares?" Aphrodite called his name again.

"What?" Ares had already ditched his attempt to leave when she was persistent in having a conversation with him.

He himself didn't know why he was like this. His heart should be hard like steel but it was easily swayed by Aphrodite.

"I'm sorry for not recognizing you earlier. I never thought the one laying here just now was you. I remember your hair color was quite different from yesterday."

Ares' mouth twitched slightly when he heard her. He glared at her with a passion. Aphrodite was surprised when she saw his reaction so she asked why.

"So you're just the same as others." he said, scoffing.

Then he continued in a condescending tone "What? You're going to say that I'm strange, right? I'm not a black bearer and neither am I wearing blue."

Aphrodite circled her eyes in confusion as she shook her head rapidly.

"No..! That's not what I meant!" she exclaimed.

Aphrodite then struggled to form words as she explained "It- it's actually.. a- a very beautiful color! I- It shows just how different and unique you are than the others!"

"I love your color! It's grey and.. and I think it has meaning.." Aphrodite said slowly as she faced down at her own feet.

Ares narrowed his eyes considerably as he asked "What kind of meaning?"

"Well.. do you know how the color grey should be in between black and white? It symbolizes your standing between the two. It means you're as free as the color itself. You're not dark like black, and you're also not pure like white."

Ares widened his eyes after hearing Aphrodite's explanation. That was the first time someone had told him that his strange color held meaning.

For some reason, he felt good about himself after centuries of resenting his own appearance. Her words struck a cord in his heartstring and he felt weird.

Ares turned to look away and he didn't say anything to rebuke Aphrodite's words. Somehow he felt.. that she was different than the others.

"What about you?" he suddenly asked.

"Me?"

"Yeah, you. You have two different colors for your hair and eyes. It's supposed to be just either one of them." he said.

Aphrodite realized that she was also a bit like him and she was inwardly happy. Then she said "Oh yeah! That's true."

Then she smiled sadly "Others are also wary of me but it's not entirely due to the colors. It's because of my whole appearance."

Ares was taken aback.

"You see.. there are many rumors surrounding me and sometimes they cause troubles. I've been told not to walk around freely at this palace and even outside." Aphrodite faked a grin.

"I.. don't know why.. it's as if my own self is just.. treated like a merchandise.."

Ares stared at Aphrodite for so long as if he wanted to drill holes onto her. He didn't know she also had it hard. He first thought of her as a sheltered princess and was childish. She could do anything she wanted just because she was pretty.

But it seemed as if his first impression of her was full of prejudice..

At this moment, Ares thought he was being selfish all along. So he decided to give away to conscience and have a proper introduction with her, to start a brand new first impression.

*

Time flew by and it was already one year after their first encounter. Aphrodite often went to the lake to see Ares sleeping under the big tree. This place was their secret rendezvous.

"Ares!" Aphrodite's sweet voice was heard from behind.

Ares turned around and saw the most beautiful goddess in the entire land, waving her hand towards him as if she was a child.

"Hey." he said. A smile unconsciously appeared on his face.

For one year, their friendship was blossoming splendidly. Even though Ares was still acting pretty detached and arrogant, he was actually quite nice to Aphrodite.

Aphrodite learned from rumors that Ares usually wouldn't entertain others. He wore a cold persona and was hard to approach. She rejoiced when she got to know that Ares actually treated her a bit special.

When they met, the one who often talked was Aphrodite. She always opened a conversation first and Ares would answer in a curt manner or even act like he was uninterested.

Even if he was like that, Aphrodite thought she was making a big progress. He never once broke her feelings or said something mean. He was just indifferent.

Ares also never once rejected her invitation to meet again. When she said 'see you tomorrow', he would reply with a light nod.

It came to the point that going to the lake was Aphrodite's only hobby. She loved seeing him up close. She learned that he really didn't have a distinctive color to identify himself.

His hair had many different shades starting from his head to the tip of the hair. It was grey at day, but black at night. While it became dark blue by twilight.

It was fascinating to see.. as if he was born by the graces of the light. When the light changed and disappeared at night, his hair looked as if it also changed color. But when the light appeared at the crease of dawn, his hair changed back again.

The same could be said by his eye color. It was truly impressive and Aphrodite fell in love with his unique appearance day by day. She gradually found out he was the most handsome man she had ever known in her life.

For Ares, he came to know that Aphrodite wasn't like how he first thought she was. She was like a beautiful flower blooming in the garden. She could be any flower other than a rose because Aphrodite wasn't thorny at all. She was gentle and was the kindest woman he ever knew.

And in recent time, he began to soften around her. He started to feel comfortable hanging out with her. Aphrodite's company was addictive and yet so soothing like music.

This friendship continued on until a few more years. The two became closer than ever as if there was a deep connection that tied them together.