Categories > Original > Romance > Dancing with Death
I got lucky the next two hours. No sign of Gerard in history or grammar. Then of course, he showed up across the room from my spot in literature. I sighed and kept my eyes focused on the teacher, an action I never committed, and tried to ignore him while thinking about how I could ever possibly approach the subject with him. And I knew he would say no. And when he did, it would just be his fault when rumors about us spread. Because I would be completely oblivious to the fact that stories were circulating about me and blossoming into something completely warped and parallel to the original rumor. And he would be the one this all blew up on. He would probably care. Get all down-trod and cast out.
This was starting to sound better and better.
“So, class, as you know, we have been studying Greek mythology lately. And, two weeks from now, you’ll present a simple oral presentation about one god or goddess. It can be a minor god, an Olympian, or any kind of mythical creature presented in the stories we’ve gone over in class. Pretty simple, right? All you gotta do is describe who they were, what they could do, and what part of the world they explained. Here’s where it gets harder. You’ll have to partner up with someone I already picked at random, and make the presentation together.” A collective groan passed through the class as Mr. Smith stood and began passing out papers explaining the requirements. “These papers list who you’ve partnered with. Have fun!”
Bite me, I snapped mentally just as one of the crisp white papers landed on my desk. I was paired with…Gerard. I felt my head hit the desk rather painfully. I just couldn’t escape this guy. Mr. Smith let the partners partner up (go figure) to work out a good idea. I was just straightening up to get my stuff together before the bell rang when I noticed Gerard was standing in front of me.
I rolled my eyes when I noticed his glare. “When are you free next?” I asked.
“Tonight, I guess. And the night after that. Being the new kid here doesn’t exactly open up a lot of chances to go clubbing.”
I had to snicker at that. “Tell you what. I’ve been wanting some good hot chocolate for a few days now. Can we meet at that coffee shop down the street after school?”
“Sure. You text?”
I laughed. “More than most people.”
So I’m pretty sure this is assault in some country in the Middle East, but he pulled out a pen and scribbled his number onto the back of my hand. I felt my heart beat speed up in my chest. His hand was cold. Not like stone or like he’d been outside too long, but cold and clammy.
Like that of a dead body.
“Call me anytime. I never sleep.”
Then the bell rang and he left, leaving me wondering what just happened.
I shook my head and gathered up my books. After stopping at my locker to dump in my stuff, I found my car in the maze that is the parking lot and threw open the spray-painted door. That’s right. I freaking spray painted my car. I decided, since it was a piece of crap and all, it didn’t deserve a fancy paint job. And I really wanted it black.
I got in and blared the crappy stereo so that it drowned out the wail of the engine. I flipped on a My Chemical Romance album, which sounded amazingly better than the radio, and I was on my way. When I got home I had three missed calls. I rolled my eyes, thankful that my music made it hard for me to answer when Tina called. I had a voicemail from her too, asking if I’d done it yet. I was wondering why I hadn’t deleted her from my phone already when I realized I was still in my car.
I climbed out and went upstairs, locking myself in my room. I collapsed in front of my laptop on my bed, searching the Olympians, just to review the stuff I already knew. Greek mythology fascinated me. Maybe Apollo…I was thinking, scrolling through the list.
“Hey, it’s Sam. We should do Apollo for the project,” I texted Gerard.
He responded quickly. “Uh no. Thanatos, the personification of death itself. What time do you plan to show at the coffee house?”
“5?”
“It works.”
I nodded slowly at the phone, tossing it aside. I typed “Thanatos” into the search bar.
“Thanatos is the god (personification) of death, the son of Nyx, goddess of night, and Erebus, god of darkness, twin brother of Hypnos, god of sleep.”
I stopped reading and scrolled through a few more links, all of them confirming it. Thanatos was indeed the personification of death in Greek literature, the son of night and darkness, brother of sleep. How lovely. But I could deal. It was actually kind of interesting, his story. He’d once been captured by the criminal Sisyphos who trapped him in a bag to avoid death.
I jumped when my mom knocked on my door. “Hey babe. Wanna come help with dinner?”
I glanced at the clock. Crap. Four thirty. I got up and slung my book bag over my shoulder, pausing to grab my phone, and opened the door to face my mother. “Sorry. I gotta go meet my partner for a project in school.”
“Who’s your partner?” she asked, letting me pass.
“This new guy named Gerard.” I hit the stairs running, willing this conversation to at least wait till dinner.
“Is he cute?”
I would have answered, but I was already out the front door and in my car, starting the engine.
This was starting to sound better and better.
“So, class, as you know, we have been studying Greek mythology lately. And, two weeks from now, you’ll present a simple oral presentation about one god or goddess. It can be a minor god, an Olympian, or any kind of mythical creature presented in the stories we’ve gone over in class. Pretty simple, right? All you gotta do is describe who they were, what they could do, and what part of the world they explained. Here’s where it gets harder. You’ll have to partner up with someone I already picked at random, and make the presentation together.” A collective groan passed through the class as Mr. Smith stood and began passing out papers explaining the requirements. “These papers list who you’ve partnered with. Have fun!”
Bite me, I snapped mentally just as one of the crisp white papers landed on my desk. I was paired with…Gerard. I felt my head hit the desk rather painfully. I just couldn’t escape this guy. Mr. Smith let the partners partner up (go figure) to work out a good idea. I was just straightening up to get my stuff together before the bell rang when I noticed Gerard was standing in front of me.
I rolled my eyes when I noticed his glare. “When are you free next?” I asked.
“Tonight, I guess. And the night after that. Being the new kid here doesn’t exactly open up a lot of chances to go clubbing.”
I had to snicker at that. “Tell you what. I’ve been wanting some good hot chocolate for a few days now. Can we meet at that coffee shop down the street after school?”
“Sure. You text?”
I laughed. “More than most people.”
So I’m pretty sure this is assault in some country in the Middle East, but he pulled out a pen and scribbled his number onto the back of my hand. I felt my heart beat speed up in my chest. His hand was cold. Not like stone or like he’d been outside too long, but cold and clammy.
Like that of a dead body.
“Call me anytime. I never sleep.”
Then the bell rang and he left, leaving me wondering what just happened.
I shook my head and gathered up my books. After stopping at my locker to dump in my stuff, I found my car in the maze that is the parking lot and threw open the spray-painted door. That’s right. I freaking spray painted my car. I decided, since it was a piece of crap and all, it didn’t deserve a fancy paint job. And I really wanted it black.
I got in and blared the crappy stereo so that it drowned out the wail of the engine. I flipped on a My Chemical Romance album, which sounded amazingly better than the radio, and I was on my way. When I got home I had three missed calls. I rolled my eyes, thankful that my music made it hard for me to answer when Tina called. I had a voicemail from her too, asking if I’d done it yet. I was wondering why I hadn’t deleted her from my phone already when I realized I was still in my car.
I climbed out and went upstairs, locking myself in my room. I collapsed in front of my laptop on my bed, searching the Olympians, just to review the stuff I already knew. Greek mythology fascinated me. Maybe Apollo…I was thinking, scrolling through the list.
“Hey, it’s Sam. We should do Apollo for the project,” I texted Gerard.
He responded quickly. “Uh no. Thanatos, the personification of death itself. What time do you plan to show at the coffee house?”
“5?”
“It works.”
I nodded slowly at the phone, tossing it aside. I typed “Thanatos” into the search bar.
“Thanatos is the god (personification) of death, the son of Nyx, goddess of night, and Erebus, god of darkness, twin brother of Hypnos, god of sleep.”
I stopped reading and scrolled through a few more links, all of them confirming it. Thanatos was indeed the personification of death in Greek literature, the son of night and darkness, brother of sleep. How lovely. But I could deal. It was actually kind of interesting, his story. He’d once been captured by the criminal Sisyphos who trapped him in a bag to avoid death.
I jumped when my mom knocked on my door. “Hey babe. Wanna come help with dinner?”
I glanced at the clock. Crap. Four thirty. I got up and slung my book bag over my shoulder, pausing to grab my phone, and opened the door to face my mother. “Sorry. I gotta go meet my partner for a project in school.”
“Who’s your partner?” she asked, letting me pass.
“This new guy named Gerard.” I hit the stairs running, willing this conversation to at least wait till dinner.
“Is he cute?”
I would have answered, but I was already out the front door and in my car, starting the engine.
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