"Why?' shouted an agitated voice from within the royal chamber .
"My. Wish." Responded someone in an equally furious tone.
The two hapless royal guards standing outside the closed ornate door flinched.
"What do you think happened this time?" whispered Nikos in the ears of his fellow guard Pedros .The latter just shrugged his shoulders in return. What happened in there when 'the two' of them were inside was beyond his realm of thought and he wished to keep it that way.
Their king was an intensely hot headed man. All the palace staff cared for their own life .
Who in the name of Zeus would willingly play with fire and tempt fate?
Unseen to the guards , the air in the royal chamber had reached a potential melting point.
The emperor of the world was fuming. Taut posture and disheveled hair of the most powerful man of the world would have made any mere mortal flee for life . Royal robes were falling off one golden shoulders. Alexander resembled a thunder cloud with his face betraying no emotion other than anger.
"I never thought that we could have secrets!" Alexander was breaking. But his soul mate remained as distant as ever.
"Well.." he replied from his corner. "Now you do my king."
Hephaistion concentrated on his book he had been him it was a wonderful escape route. His words had their desired effect. Hephaistion's response stopped an approaching Alexander on his tracks.
His Hephaistion had a secret. The truth kept on resonating within the corners of his clouded mind. A secret. A secret too precious to be shared with anyone. Anyone including Alexander…and that's what stung the most.
He had no idea when the walls of his inner abode had started falling off. His world a like a fiery pit of treachery, lies and deceit. His lover was the only bright spot in there. His very own sun. They never had secrets. It was not how things went on between them.
It all started with a small leather pouch he had discovered on Hephaistion's desk last night. An inquisitive Alexander wanted to discover its contents, only to be violently snatched away by an infuriated blue eyed lover.
A sound broke his reverie. Alexander's eyes fell on the bed. Hephaistion was already lying on his side of the bed , but he stubbornly faced away from Alexander who just sighed .
He was thankful that his lover still chose to sleep with him. But it was going to be one of those nights. Two bodies would sleep in the same bed with an ocean in between.
He still remembered the day when he had opened his heart to his best friend. The memory of the beautiful day eased the tightness in his chest. Reluctantly he fell into an uncomfortable sleep. He never slept well when he was apart from his Phai.
He knew Phai didn't either.
It was another golden afternoon in Pella. A mystical time hanging on a sensitive balance between day and dusk that made poets reach for their pens.
Classes for the day were over. The boys were now enjoying themselves in their own ways. A few had fallen into a merry gossip in the well lit dinner halls. Others ran in the direction of the royal stables. A few were frolicking in the nearby lake.
But one who was sitting under the apple tree in the middle of the huge yard.
"Dear Hephaistion, I have always loved you."
"No ..you moron! He'll laugh!"
Alexander crumpled the letter and it met the several others waiting on the green grass near his feet. He had been at it for the better part of the day and had induced scorn, anger and amusement from others. Opening your heart to your best friend can be a hard task indeed.
Especially if that said best friend was a magician with words himself. He had been so distracted in the class that even the master himself had rebuked him at one point.
"Your eyes remind me of the ocean."
"Stupid, stupid..stuuuuuupid!" Murmured the impatient writer. He looked at the setting sun and sighed sadly. He had dreamt of unlocking his heart to his beloved under the crimson rays of the setting sun. Maybe it wasn't meant to be. Hephaistion would never be his if he couldn't even compose a simple love note.
"My heart beats hard every time you look at me. Can you hear it?"
"Yeah he can! Along with the emptiness of your brain and foolishness of your mind!"
"The first time I saw you….
Alexander groaned in annoyance and threw himself on the grass. He couldn't do it anymore. No letter was good enough. No letter was beautiful enough. He should have paid more attention in the grammar and composition classes like Hephaistion.
The moist grass dampened his spotless chiton. But Alexander was as indifferent as ever. His mind was going haywire with all these thoughts.
"What makes you so sad Alexander?"
"I love Hephaistion so much but can't express my love to him." shot out Alexander before he even realized it. It was a bad day and his brain to mouth filter was apparently off.
But he sprang up as soon the words left his lips. Blush stained his cheeks when he found the object of his affection looking down at him with a face full of mischief , fondness and love. It was a strange combination but it suited the cyan eyes so well.
"Hephaistion..I..I..was just.." stammered the blond prince hiding his hands behind his back.
"But I know you love me my prince!" Hephaistion whispered in the ears of his best friend. Two strong arms went round the slender waist while a cheek rested on Alexander's shoulders.
"I don't need letters Alexander. I know everything in your heart." Ruby lips gently touched the golden cheek.
Lips met soon after. It was their first kiss. Crimson rays of the setting sun flooded the yard making it too ethereal and heavenly. It seemed as if it was no longer a place on earth.
It was paradise and there were just the two of them.
Soon it was dark and the new lovers went back to their room hand in hand.
The shrill cry of a night bird jerked Alexander to a rude awakening. It was almost midnight and his lover was under the throes of deep sleep which had ironically denied blessing Alexander.
He couldn't take it any longer.
It didn't bother him that Hephaistion had a secret. Everyone had secrets..big or small. What bothered him even more was that Hephaistion refused to meet his eyes even once. All throughout their argument Hephaistion averted his gaze and hid himself in his book.
It was unnatural. Alexander had to know what was in that pouch. He reached under his lover's side and picked the pouch up. Sleep had slackened Hephaistion's hold and made Alexander's crime rather easy to commit.
He stole a glance at his slumbering lover and walked towards the well lit balcony. He frowned as he opened the pouch. Documents ? His hands started to shake in nervousness.
Opening the first one…he started to read.
"Dear Hephaistion,
The first time I saw you was the day I met my heart. I didn't know it was there until the sight of a beautiful face made my heart jump out of my chest. You tilted your head and smiled at me. Boys were chattering around..running and playing in their usual abandon. I stood in the middle of it all trying hard to compose myself. I was in love…only I didn't know.
Yours Alexander
As if all the air was sucked out of the room . Unable to remain upright any longer, Alexander sank on the carpet. His letters. His first messages to his lover. He opened another crumpled note.
Dear Hephaistion,
I have always loved you. It's rather annoying..you know? You beat me in wrestling. You push me to study even when I don't want to. You tickle me when I'm distracted. You hug me for no reason but refuse to give me hugs when I ask for one. You stare at me all the time..but tell me not to when I do the same. You are annoying, naughty, silly and yet the best human being I have ever met.
One day without your insane silliness..and my world goes dark. Is it love?
Yours Alexander
Alexander's eyes blurred with tears. He had completely forgotten about these letters. They were the creation of an innocent lovesick boy who had too much time in hand. So many battles, bloodshed, intrigues, quarrels and victories…and his lover still treasured them. His crazy Hephaistion.
Dear Hephaistion,
Your eyes remind me of the ocean. No..not the unyielding ocean of the night..but rather the ocean of the dawn. Remember when you pushed me out of my bed and dragged me to watch sunrise ? The golden rays of the sun played in the crystal blue waves . You were transfixed. But do you know something? I was watching you. Your eyes are much more beautiful than the ocean.
Yours Alexander
Alexander picked up another note.
My dear Hephaistion,
My heart beats hard every time you look at me. Can you hear it? We would be studying. No scratch that. You would be studying and I would just pretend to study. All of a sudden you would look up and smile. Do you have any idea what that does to me? The whoosh..whoosh sound of my beating heart gets too loud for my ears. I want to lean forward and touch you every time you do that. But I am scared.
Yours Alexander
"I knew you would find them!" whispered a voice somewhere near him and Alexander jumped in surprise. He felt guilty as hell.
"Hephaistion? I sorr.." slender fingers pressed on his lips closing them shut. Hephaistion shook his head fondly and brushed the tears off Alexander's face.
"Shhhh! I went back that night. They are letters to my heart and I couldn't bear to leave them on the grass." Hephaistion smiled shyly.
Unable to resist any more..Alexander surrounded his soul mate in a mighty hug.
"You didn't read all of them my king."
Alexander frowned and reached inside the pouch . Sure enough..there was one more.
"But I just wrote four Hephaistion!" he gently inquired. Did his memory betray him so much? He knelt on the ground again, this time with the lover at his side.
"I decided to add mine too." murmured the beautiful cyan eyed man. Alexander's eyes widened with surprise as he started reading.
My dear Alexander,
You are my sun. You remind me of the sun in every possible way. Sometimes shining brightly, sometimes hiding under the clouds but always doing good for others. You have no idea how special you are. Your love makes me want to be better…to be all those things you think I am. Your eyes remind me of everything between heaven and earth. When shining brightly the sun..when sad and hooded, the clouds…when hiding a secret (that's not really a secret) the blue hills faraway.
I love you.. Because you are you and I don't know how not to .
But remember one thing…I will kill you if I find you leaving my precious love letters on the ground. Give them to me instead…because they are mine and mine alone. Clear?
Love
Hephaistion
The last line made Alexander smile. He kissed his lover whose head was resting on his shoulders…dropping off.
"My crazy crazy Phai!" he murmured fondly kissing his lover's temple.
"Let's return to bed hmmmm?" He carried his brunette to the bed and lovingly laid him on the bed.
It was back to perfect again. Alexander was spooning Hephaistion from his back . His breath sang an unusual lullaby in Hephaistion's ears easing him into a peaceful sleep.
The mingled sound of their beating hearts gently whispered the beautiful secret to the world.
Love is the ultimate answer.