Better than you expected

Chapter 42: Clearing things up.

I jolted awake in bed, my heart racing as if I had been running for miles. The remnants of a dream, or was it a memory?. It hit me like a freight train, leaving my head throbbing. I winced, pressing my palms against my temples, hoping to ease the shrieking pain.

“Finally awake, I see,” Noor’s voice pierced the haze, steady and sharp, as she stood in the corner of the tent, arms crossed. Her usual playful smirk was tinged with something sterner, an edge I wasn’t accustomed to.

“Noor?” I croaked, my voice raw. My eyes darted around the tent, trying to piece together where I was. Thankfully, it seemed I was still at the camp.

“And me,” Iris’s voice chimed in from the opposite corner. She leaned against the canvas wall, her expression unreadable but her posture rigid. The tent door was tightly closed, as if sealing us off from the rest of the world. The atmosphere screamed interrogation.

I blinked at both of them, still dazed. “What… what’s going on? You two look like you’re about to put me on trial. Did I… did I hurt you during the memory recovery?” Concern laced my words as guilt began to bubble up.

“No,” Noor replied bluntly, her smirk deepening but lacking warmth. “But we are pissed off at you.”

“Indeed,” Iris added, pushing off the wall and stepping closer. “We have a lot to talk about, and you’re not getting out of this.” The two of them loomed over me, their combined presence making me feel like a cornered animal.

“You two look like you saw something important,” I muttered, trying to shake off the fog in my mind.
“That makes three of us.” The memory of Athena burned fresh in my mind, a night of passion, the spark of a love that once blazed like an eternal flame.

“Well, about that…” Iris began, her tone serious as she laid out the events I had missed. The Erebosian trap, a defensive mechanism in my mind, had nearly drowned me in its suffocating grip. She explained how Athena and Artemis had performed a ritual to save me, completing the memory in the process. Both Noor and Iris, along with the goddesses, had entered my mind during the ritual, witnessing everything I had just recovered.
Everything.

“So, we’re all on the same page now,” I said cautiously, sitting up straighter. My chest tightened as I asked, “Are you angry about what I had with her?”

Noor’s eyes narrowed. “Well, yes. What do you think?” she shot back, her tone dripping with blunt honesty. Iris nodded in agreement. “Iris and I agreed to share, but we didn’t agree to Athena. Hell, we didn’t even know you two had a thing until we saw your past. And now, to top it off, she’s made it pretty clear she still feels something for you.”

I swallowed hard. “I know. I should have told you, but honestly, I’m not sure I can explain it myself. It’s like… when I’m near her, there’s this pull, this connection. I love both of you deeply, but with Athena, it’s… different. Strong, yes, but different. Words fail me.”

Iris arched a brow. “It’s like you’re connected?”

I nodded, lowering my gaze. “Yeah… something like that.”

“Huh. Funny. Athena said the same thing,” Iris murmured, her expression softening just a fraction. She sighed heavily. “Listen, I’ll be honest. I like what we have. Hell, I love it. But I can’t just let Athena waltz in like nothing happened. She’s been keeping secrets, even after everything we’ve done for the gods these past months. I can’t deny what you feel for her, I saw it with my own eyes. But I’m not thrilled about it.”

“Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” Noor cut in, her gaze flicking to Iris.

Iris nodded slowly. “I’m saying that if you want, you can be with Athena. But don’t expect us to be happy about how you and she have handled this. I’m beyond angry with her right now. Still, this is something the two of you need to resolve. We need her, whether I like it or not.”

I turned to Noor. “And you?”

Noor sighed, biting her lip. “If you ask me personally? Fuck her. She’s a lying bitch. But… I agree with Iris. We still need her, and I can’t deny the bond you share. Besides…” Her lips curled into a sly grin. “It wasn’t a bad sight.”

“Noor!” Iris exclaimed, her tone both scandalised and resigned as she rolled her eyes.

I rubbed the back of my neck. “So… are we good?”

“On that matter, yes. For now,” Iris replied, her voice firm. “But we need to talk about us now.”

“Iris and I,” Noor began, glancing at her companion, “have been talking about our… romantic triangle.” She hesitated, then continued.
“We want to try giving this a go. The three of us.”

My eyebrows shot up. “Are you saying you want us to… date? Together?” My voice betrayed my shock, though inwardly, excitement bubbled up like champagne.

Noor stepped closer, her voice dropping to a sultry whisper. “Why not? Besides, Iris is pretty gorgeous herself.” She wrapped her arms around Iris from behind, making the Spartan woman blush furiously.

“I wouldn’t oppose it either,” Iris said, her cheeks still flushed. She leaned in and placed a kiss on Noor’s lips, a tender but confident gesture. Noor reciprocated, the moment charged with unspoken understanding. Then Iris turned to me. “So, Kayn… are you in?”

I stood up, taking a step toward them. My heart felt like it might burst from my chest, but my answer was clear. “Fuck yeah.”

The three of us came together, sharing a kiss that was equal parts passion and promise, sealing our newfound relationship in a way that words never could.