Jennie couldn't breathe, and her heart was fighting a losing fight against time. She felt like dying, and closed her eyes, as she sank to the ground holding her arms around her knees. Flashes of the life of Ares in his human form as a Roman emperor haunted her mind, and the memories of the sweetest of kisses by Aphrodite still made her skin tingles. 

"What is happening to me?" She whispered to herself. Her hands now formed into fists, to hide the shaking, and suddenly a need to puke assaulted her senses, it was as if she could taste blood on her tongue and it was absolutely disgusting, yet at the same time, a part of her, the darker side of her lusted after that taste. 

Everything was spinning out of control and she needed to get a grip now.

The cause of that was the touch of Irene. 

She gripped her head, and shuddered.

"Ares, what its happening? Please, help me, father" but a demigod should've known better than ask a favor from their parents, the gods are always so busy that don't have time for their children. Since a very young age, Jennie learned to not hope for her father to be a decent parent, in fact, it was better when she didn't see him. The God had quite the attitude, and sometimes, most of it, he was very angry, and could be a ruthless guy, not really caring for other people feelings. She sometimes asked her mom what did she see in Ares? But her mother often answered that she found him charming in the time she met him, and that she liked rebel kind of men. Jennie often questions her mother's choices in life. 

Still remembering the only time that Ares visited the household in five years, the big man, all muscles and leather, bears a resemblance to Jennie, who loves leather. He patted the back of Jennie quite hard, not caring that Jennie is a girl. Ares treats all his kids the same, not caring between genders roles, to him, every single kid of his is a soldier. He wasn't warm or treated Jennie with the affection of a father. That made her question if all the parents that are gods are the same, all distant and cold, but Jisoo commented how her mother gushed over her beauty and praised her for being a good girl, when the Goddess of love visited her for vacations. 

Ares was different. He sat down on their old battered couch, and drank beer with her mother babbling to him like some high school girl in love. He offered beer to Jennie, and grunted when she politely declined, saying she was a minor. He told her to man up, and Jennie got no choice but drink with her father, grimacing about the taste of the alcohol. He would mock Jennie, and laugh at her expense, making his kid go to the grocery store for more beer, as he flirted with her mother. That made Jennie uncomfortable, because maybe Ares was planning to make more demigod babies with her mother and she didn't want to be around to see that. 

So, she intended delayed her time on the store, feigning confusion over brands to spend the time away from home. Then, when she thought it was enough, she walked slowly, very slowly back home. Then, she even made a show of talking to Jisoo, her best friend and neighbor, to lose more time.

Jisoo stared at her with a weird smile on her face and red cheeks.

"What are you doing? I thought Ares was in town, shouldn't you be with your dad?" Jisoo definitely didn't understand what is it to be the kid of the God of war. Jennie shrugged her tiny shoulders as she lifted the bag that contained the beers for her father.

"I think he was planning to make babies with mom, so I didn't want to be around" Jisoo blushed at the implications. And Jennie sighed, sitting down next to her friend on the pavement, brushing shoulders.

"Oh?" Jisoo seemed to think something, and Jennie feared it "Do you thing us, demigods, can have babies with other demigods?" 

Jennie frowned thinking about it. That was actually a good question, but as she is twelve years old, doesn't actually know much about that special matter. Still her blunt mouth couldn't be refrained to say.

"Don't you think is a bit early to plan babies with Bobby?" Jisoo chocked on her saliva, only being a year older than Jennie, wasn't mature enough. 

"I want thinking about that with bobby, ew" Jisoo was blushing hard, and Jennie laughed. Her older friend punched her hard.

Their time was interrupted however by the gruff voice of a man.

"And here I thought you were lost as your mother was thinking, but in fact you were with your little friend" Ares said with his big arms crossed over his broad chest. He looked like a a guy that escaped jail, with all those tattoos over his body, and muscles from a sumo wrestler. 

Jennie quickly got up, muttering under her breath. Keeping her head bowed down. Ares lifted an eyebrow and clapped her daughter's shoulder tightly, almost painfully.

"Hey, aren't you going to present your old man to this lovely lady?" Ares loved pretty girls. And Jennie grimaced at the promiscuity of the Greek Gods, specially her father and Zeus. Apollo was almost alright. Jennie beckoned for Jisoo to stand up. And when Ares set his eyes on Jennie's friend, his eyes widened comically, and Jennie had to refrain to laugh at his look.

"You are an Aphrodite's kid, right?" He walked to where Jisoo was, and Jennie walked with him, worried about her friend safety, since a very young age she played Jisoo's bodyguard or knight in shining armor. Ares kept staring at Jisoo, and it made the girl squirm under his intense stare "Interesting, you look like your mother, a lot, an exact replica of her smile. What is your name, young lady?" 

Jisoo stuttered, and her voice came out soft.

"Kim Jisoo, sir" she bowed respectfully. Ares laughed, his booming laugh. Jennie felt something inside her chest, a weird sensation. His father never laughed like that with her. Ares then stared at her daughter.

"This is very interesting" he said, hitting Jennie's back, with that same mischievous smile of his. "You didn't tell me that you had an Aphrodite's child as a friend" then looked back at Jisoo "how is your mother, kid? It's been a while since I've seen her"

Jennie felt her stomach clench. Her mother was so happy that Ares came to visit, but of course, Aphrodite never stayed away from his mind. That was unfair. So unfair, her mother was the most loyal to him, and still he was after another woman, Goddess. That made her despise a little her friend heritage. That made her resent Aphrodite. Because compared to her, everything, including Jennie and her mother were the last things  Ares worried about, cared about. 

"She is good, sir. She visited last summer" 

Ares caressed his chin, his smile widened at the expression of true despair on Jennie's face. Then touched Jisoo's shoulder, "innocently". 

"Please give her my greetings when you see her again. I know for a fact that you hold a special place in her heart, one of her favorite children, and now that I see the resemblance, I can tell why. You are going to be a really beautiful woman one day, or the most beautiful daughter of hers that ever existed. You should be proud of that, child, a true descendant of my lovely Goddess. Sadly, I can't say the same with my kids" 

That comment made her heart broke a little. Knowing that he was referring to her. Since the very beginning, he made clear that he was displeased with Jennie, seeing not a brave kid of his, but a clingy one. Her mother tried to console her, saying he didn't mean that, but knowing Ares, she knows is the truth.

Jisoo blushed harder, and bowed in thanks. Jennie felt something ugly rearing in the back of her head towards her friend, a wave of negative feelings never felt before. Resentment, jealousy, envy, fury. Jennie was surprised at the attack, she never once felt that way towards Jisoo, she loved her with all her heart. But this feelings are consuming her being, then one look towards Jisoo and they stopped. Jennie was relieved, because she could breath again freely. And noticed that Ares was watching her reactions with interest, and Jennie knew that moment that the ugly feelings were produced by her father. She was terrified by that, by what she could have done under the influence. Why he wanted her to hate Jisoo? 

Jisoo was called by her own father, and she said goodbye, quite shyly to the duo. Ares stared after her.

"Your girlfriend was quite i