"I have you now Psyche" The man lurked closer, his armour clanging with
every step he gained on her.
Psyche's heart was pounding so hard she thought it would jump out of her
chest; she doubled over in pain and exhaustion. "What do you want?" Psyche
gasped.
"Want do I want?" The man laughed cruelly over her, "You must know the
amount a half-God is worth, my little Psyche.that is even if I decide to
sell you. I just might keep you for my wife and you can bear me strong
healthy sons who'll become warriors and conquer all of Greece!"
Psyche looked up at her sneering capture, "Why would your sons want to
conquer their own country?"
The man thought about this for a while, "Well.Because.Shut up, woman!"
Suddenly there was a loud ear-piercing shrill and the sound of hooves
drawing closer.
Rae splashed her face with cold water and buried it in her thick towel. Her dreams had been occurring more often than usual, which meant less sleep. Rae was only thankful that school was over, so her lack of sleep did not have consequences besides the bags under her eyes. She made her bed slowly as she looked at her collaged walls of archaeological finds in Egypt, Turkey and Franck Goddio's recent finds in the bottom of the sea bed at Alexandria. Rae longed to travel the world and explore other cultures and places like Max, but a fear stood in her way. The closest she had ever been to the Great Wall of China was the poster on her wall.
Rae walked down the hall and passed Max's bedroom. She poked her head around the corner to se if Max was already awake. The bed was messy, but no one was in it, the walls were also collaged, but not with places or countries. Max had a great love of travel but her love for the Arts won as decoration for her room. A complete wall was dedicated to acting and singing legends such as Dorothy Dandridge, Roc Hudson, Sinatra, Elvis, River Phoenix, James Dean, Audrey Hepburn, Cary Grant, Katherine Hepburn and Jerry Lewis.
Max's other three walls were dedicated to current actors; such as Nicole Kidman, Jude Law, Ewan McGregor, Robert DeNiro, Cate Blanchett, Sean Penn, Judd Nelson, Kevin Kline and Charlize Theron, with pictures, interviews and movie posters. The back of her door and the doors of her cupboard were covered with her favourite musical bands or singers which ranged from Elvis to Dido to Pearl Jam to Groove Armada. Max's favourite movies, however, were placed in a spot that she held in high regard.the roof. On the roof were Max's favourite movies of all time, these included Dances with Wolves, The Breakfast club, Star Wars, Snatch and Bringing up Baby.
As Rae walked down the stairs, she could hear Max and Granny Maura talking in the kitchen. Rae stood outside the kitchen door and listened to the conversation, and through a crack in the door, she could see what was going on. Granny Maura and Max were sitting on either side of the kitchen bench. They were both sitting and sipping on their coffee; they both were addicts.
"I was thinking I might do Scandinavia this time." Max was saying
"How about you go to your Celtic roots?" Granny Maura suggested in her soothing Irish accent.
Max blew her long blonde hair out of her face, "But Ireland just seems so boring, leprechauns and all."
Rae walked into the room, "You're leaving again?
Max stood up, "Yes.and your coming with me!"
Rae shook her head fiercely, "No way."
Max made her way to Rae, "Raaaaaaaaaaaae! Come on! It will be exciting! We could even go to Greece to discover your roots."
"We don't even know if I am Greek for sure."
"Your name was Gianopoulouspoulous for crying out loud!"
"No it wasn't."
"No.it wasn't," Max agreed, and frowned slightly, "It's the whole flying- in-a-plane thing isn't it?
"No. It is the whole flying-in-a-plane-then-it-crashing-into-the-ground- and-burning-us-all-inside thing."
"I was close." Max sat back down and pouted.
"Don't pout Max," Granny Maura told Max, "It makes you look short."
It was an absurd comment but Max sat up straight and held her head up high. Rae laughed; Max's vanity was a very amusing thing, as she was the most beautiful girl in the world, but was only vain about her height. Max's greatest achievement, besides backpacking all over the world and meeting the Dali Lama, was her height of 5'11".
"Yeah, well, you look old." Max stood up, flicked her hair back and stormed out of the room.
Granny Maura just laughed and Rae sat beside her. "You should go with Max, dear. You two used to be so close but seem to be drifting away from each other."
"The only person who has been drifting is Max, last month, all the way to Tahiti." Rae reached for the milk and a cup, "But that was to get away from the annual meeting with her parents."
Granny Maura looked amused, "Yes, although it was a nice try, it was fairly useless because they rescheduled for next week."
"Is that why Max wants to leave?"
"No. I haven't told her yet."
"Oh." Rae took a sip from her glass of milk, "So they rung you.did you get the monthly scolding for taking her in."
Granny Maura laughed, "Yes.I know I shouldn't have, but she was just like me when I was her age and my Grandmother took me in and I felt I had to do the same. She just makes me laugh that lass."
"I AM GOING OUT FOR A WHILE BUT I WILL BE BACK FOR DINNER AND I HAVE MY PHONE IF YOU FEEL THAT YOU MUST TALK TO ME GOODBYE." Max slammed the door behind her.
Rae and Granny Maura looked at each other and laughed.
"Twelfth of May 2002, Noon exactly." Pierce spoke into his Dictaphone, "I am outside the objects basement window. He is in there with his girlfriend, Arial and is about to make an important announcement." He held the Dictaphone toward the window.
"Look, Rohan, I know you said you had something to show me but I have something Important to tell you and I think that I should go first." "Err, is it going to be long Arial coz what I have to show you is exceptionally exciting not to mention unprecedented." Rohan was trying hard to contain his excitement.
"There you go again!" Arial threw her hands up in exasperation.
"What?" Rohan also threw his hands up. "Damn! This Italian exaggerated hand movement-ness is a communicable condition!"
"Shut up Rohan I am trying to break up with you!" As soon as Arial finished yelling, she put her hands over her mouth.
Rohan looked confused, "What? Why?"
Arial sighed, "I love you Rohan, but you love your experiments and your inventions and even school more than you love me."
"No! No that not true. You know that is not true. I am always thinking about you I even named my-"
"Rohan listen to me, all you ever talk about are your experiments. Your eyes light up and no one can calm you down. You used to talk about me that way, and you used to be like that whenever you were with me but lately you have been cancelling all of our plans and I haven't seen you in a week!"
"But I have been busy with my new-"
"Your new invention, I know I know. And I hope it works out for you. I hope it ends better than we did." With that last remark, Arial left Rohan alone in his basement, in shock.
"And there we have it folks, not the excitement we were hoping to see, but excitement nonetheless.its not everyday we get to record live a man being so bluntly dumped." Pierce turned off his Dictaphone and shook his head, "Poor kid. He never saw that one coming."
Rohan stood still until he heard Arial's car pull out of the driveway and onto the street. Rohan turned his head slightly and sadly gestured toward a tall skinny object in the corner of the room, covered in a grey sheet.
"Behold the Arielle."
"Mother mother can you hear me
I'm just calling to say hello
How's the weather
How's my father
Am I lonely heavens no
Mother mother are you listening
Just a phone call to ease your mind
Life is perfect never better
Distance is making the heart grow blind
When you sent me off to see the world
Were you scared that I might get hurt
Would I try a little tobacco
Would I keep from hiking up my skirt
I'm hungry
I'm dirty
I'm losing my mind
Everything's fine
I'm freezing
I'm starving
I'm bleeding to death
Everything's fine."
Max parked her car outside the school. She slammed her door shut and saw Rohan sitting on the seat next to the school sign which reads CRESCENT UNIVERSITY SINCE 1964.
"Rohan!" Max called out to him but received less than a little pinkie twitch. Max ran up to Rohan and sat beside him.
"You have really bad taste in music," he greeted her.
"It was Tracey Bonham.no one likes Tracey Bonham.she can't sing and her lyrics are depressing and have undertones of her homicidal tendencies. No- one wants to listen to music like that." Max replied
"So why did you buy her CD?" Rohan gave her a puzzled look.
"Well I felt so sorry for it.besides, its just the one terrible single I have of hers.besides.I was in a 'Mother, Mother' mood."
Rohan shook his head, "You have the moodiest temperament. One day your all Sunshine with Salt 'n' Pepa, Maxi Priest and Will Smith, the next your all invincible with Guns 'n' Roses, Bon Jovi and Fun Lovin Criminals, the day after that you are all homicidal with Tracy Bonham, Metallica and Marilyn Manson, then after that you are popping the weasel with Robbie Williams, Destiny's child and Ronan Keating. Can't you just make up your mind?"
Max raised her eyebrows, "I am a-taken-back by your attitude Mr Kent! Who put you in this horrid mood of yours?"
"Arial."
Max was about to reply when a certain smell came to her. "Do you smell that, Ro?"
"Smell what?"
"That smell, of course." Max stood up, "I'd know that smell anywhere.the last I heard of that smell, he was smelling up the best friend of his girlfriend."
Ro was completely confused by Max's babbling so he stood up and began to walk toward the Café opposite the Campus. Max might have noticed, but was much to intrigued by the Smell to care. Max followed her nose around the corner and into the Campus where underneath, stood the Smell. The Smell was Hugo Boss, and the owner was the lush Eric Everett who at this very moment was chatting up three sophomores at the same time.
"Some things never change," Max muttered as she walked up to him.
"I know!" Eric was saying, "I feel the same way you do. That is why I spent most of last year in Ethiopia with World Vision."
"Really?" Skanky-boobe-tube-wearing-blonde squealed, "That is like, so cool!
"Did you see Ben from Big Brother?" Dimpled-mini-skirt-wearing-blonde asked. Eric laughed, "Oh yeah! We helped build houses for poor orphaned kids with our own hands."
"Your such a nice, caring guy, Eric!" Blonde number three exclaimed as she handed him her number.
"This would be my cue," Max whispered to herself, "James! What are you doing here again? I thought I locked the cars doors!"
Eric's eyes nearly popped out off his head when he saw Max, "What?"
"Don't play dumb with me James, we have to get you back to the Institution before they stop letting me have visitation rights."
Eric saw what Max was playing at and shook his head in disbelief, "No way!"
"Yes way Jamie, if you keep running away from me I am going to have to start handcuffing you to the steering wheel again."
"Um, who are YOU and what are you talking about?" asked Skanky-boobe-tube- wearing-blonde.
"I, am James's sister and I have to get him back to the institution before it is too late."
"What?" Dimpled-mini-skirt-wearing-blonde asked.
"Well, my brother is a little sick. He hears the devil talking to him and burns down buildings and rapes unsuspecting girls. That's why he is at the Mental Institution, so he is off the streets and little girls like you are safe."
"He is not James, he is Eric." Blonde number three informed Max.
"Is that what he told you?" Max shook her head, "That's what he told another girl too, except she ended up in the gutter, naked and bruised. If I were you girls, I'd run along before he gets your numbers."
Blonde number three's face went all pale, "I gave him my number."
Max pretended to look shocked, "Oh dear! James, give back this girls phone number."
Eric stood there in disbelief, "What? No!"
"GIVE IT BACK TO ME! GIVE IT BACK TO ME!" The Blonde shrieked. "James." Max urged.
"Whatever." Eric gave back the piece of paper to The Blonde girl and stormed off.
"Thank you for warning us." The Blonde said.
"That's okay," Max began, "But lets hope that he didn't get a look at the paper because he has a photographic memory. Bye!"
Max walked off, smiling to her as the Blonde girl ran away to catch up wit her two friends who had run off earlier.
Rae splashed her face with cold water and buried it in her thick towel. Her dreams had been occurring more often than usual, which meant less sleep. Rae was only thankful that school was over, so her lack of sleep did not have consequences besides the bags under her eyes. She made her bed slowly as she looked at her collaged walls of archaeological finds in Egypt, Turkey and Franck Goddio's recent finds in the bottom of the sea bed at Alexandria. Rae longed to travel the world and explore other cultures and places like Max, but a fear stood in her way. The closest she had ever been to the Great Wall of China was the poster on her wall.
Rae walked down the hall and passed Max's bedroom. She poked her head around the corner to se if Max was already awake. The bed was messy, but no one was in it, the walls were also collaged, but not with places or countries. Max had a great love of travel but her love for the Arts won as decoration for her room. A complete wall was dedicated to acting and singing legends such as Dorothy Dandridge, Roc Hudson, Sinatra, Elvis, River Phoenix, James Dean, Audrey Hepburn, Cary Grant, Katherine Hepburn and Jerry Lewis.
Max's other three walls were dedicated to current actors; such as Nicole Kidman, Jude Law, Ewan McGregor, Robert DeNiro, Cate Blanchett, Sean Penn, Judd Nelson, Kevin Kline and Charlize Theron, with pictures, interviews and movie posters. The back of her door and the doors of her cupboard were covered with her favourite musical bands or singers which ranged from Elvis to Dido to Pearl Jam to Groove Armada. Max's favourite movies, however, were placed in a spot that she held in high regard.the roof. On the roof were Max's favourite movies of all time, these included Dances with Wolves, The Breakfast club, Star Wars, Snatch and Bringing up Baby.
As Rae walked down the stairs, she could hear Max and Granny Maura talking in the kitchen. Rae stood outside the kitchen door and listened to the conversation, and through a crack in the door, she could see what was going on. Granny Maura and Max were sitting on either side of the kitchen bench. They were both sitting and sipping on their coffee; they both were addicts.
"I was thinking I might do Scandinavia this time." Max was saying
"How about you go to your Celtic roots?" Granny Maura suggested in her soothing Irish accent.
Max blew her long blonde hair out of her face, "But Ireland just seems so boring, leprechauns and all."
Rae walked into the room, "You're leaving again?
Max stood up, "Yes.and your coming with me!"
Rae shook her head fiercely, "No way."
Max made her way to Rae, "Raaaaaaaaaaaae! Come on! It will be exciting! We could even go to Greece to discover your roots."
"We don't even know if I am Greek for sure."
"Your name was Gianopoulouspoulous for crying out loud!"
"No it wasn't."
"No.it wasn't," Max agreed, and frowned slightly, "It's the whole flying- in-a-plane thing isn't it?
"No. It is the whole flying-in-a-plane-then-it-crashing-into-the-ground- and-burning-us-all-inside thing."
"I was close." Max sat back down and pouted.
"Don't pout Max," Granny Maura told Max, "It makes you look short."
It was an absurd comment but Max sat up straight and held her head up high. Rae laughed; Max's vanity was a very amusing thing, as she was the most beautiful girl in the world, but was only vain about her height. Max's greatest achievement, besides backpacking all over the world and meeting the Dali Lama, was her height of 5'11".
"Yeah, well, you look old." Max stood up, flicked her hair back and stormed out of the room.
Granny Maura just laughed and Rae sat beside her. "You should go with Max, dear. You two used to be so close but seem to be drifting away from each other."
"The only person who has been drifting is Max, last month, all the way to Tahiti." Rae reached for the milk and a cup, "But that was to get away from the annual meeting with her parents."
Granny Maura looked amused, "Yes, although it was a nice try, it was fairly useless because they rescheduled for next week."
"Is that why Max wants to leave?"
"No. I haven't told her yet."
"Oh." Rae took a sip from her glass of milk, "So they rung you.did you get the monthly scolding for taking her in."
Granny Maura laughed, "Yes.I know I shouldn't have, but she was just like me when I was her age and my Grandmother took me in and I felt I had to do the same. She just makes me laugh that lass."
"I AM GOING OUT FOR A WHILE BUT I WILL BE BACK FOR DINNER AND I HAVE MY PHONE IF YOU FEEL THAT YOU MUST TALK TO ME GOODBYE." Max slammed the door behind her.
Rae and Granny Maura looked at each other and laughed.
"Twelfth of May 2002, Noon exactly." Pierce spoke into his Dictaphone, "I am outside the objects basement window. He is in there with his girlfriend, Arial and is about to make an important announcement." He held the Dictaphone toward the window.
"Look, Rohan, I know you said you had something to show me but I have something Important to tell you and I think that I should go first." "Err, is it going to be long Arial coz what I have to show you is exceptionally exciting not to mention unprecedented." Rohan was trying hard to contain his excitement.
"There you go again!" Arial threw her hands up in exasperation.
"What?" Rohan also threw his hands up. "Damn! This Italian exaggerated hand movement-ness is a communicable condition!"
"Shut up Rohan I am trying to break up with you!" As soon as Arial finished yelling, she put her hands over her mouth.
Rohan looked confused, "What? Why?"
Arial sighed, "I love you Rohan, but you love your experiments and your inventions and even school more than you love me."
"No! No that not true. You know that is not true. I am always thinking about you I even named my-"
"Rohan listen to me, all you ever talk about are your experiments. Your eyes light up and no one can calm you down. You used to talk about me that way, and you used to be like that whenever you were with me but lately you have been cancelling all of our plans and I haven't seen you in a week!"
"But I have been busy with my new-"
"Your new invention, I know I know. And I hope it works out for you. I hope it ends better than we did." With that last remark, Arial left Rohan alone in his basement, in shock.
"And there we have it folks, not the excitement we were hoping to see, but excitement nonetheless.its not everyday we get to record live a man being so bluntly dumped." Pierce turned off his Dictaphone and shook his head, "Poor kid. He never saw that one coming."
Rohan stood still until he heard Arial's car pull out of the driveway and onto the street. Rohan turned his head slightly and sadly gestured toward a tall skinny object in the corner of the room, covered in a grey sheet.
"Behold the Arielle."
"Mother mother can you hear me
I'm just calling to say hello
How's the weather
How's my father
Am I lonely heavens no
Mother mother are you listening
Just a phone call to ease your mind
Life is perfect never better
Distance is making the heart grow blind
When you sent me off to see the world
Were you scared that I might get hurt
Would I try a little tobacco
Would I keep from hiking up my skirt
I'm hungry
I'm dirty
I'm losing my mind
Everything's fine
I'm freezing
I'm starving
I'm bleeding to death
Everything's fine."
Max parked her car outside the school. She slammed her door shut and saw Rohan sitting on the seat next to the school sign which reads CRESCENT UNIVERSITY SINCE 1964.
"Rohan!" Max called out to him but received less than a little pinkie twitch. Max ran up to Rohan and sat beside him.
"You have really bad taste in music," he greeted her.
"It was Tracey Bonham.no one likes Tracey Bonham.she can't sing and her lyrics are depressing and have undertones of her homicidal tendencies. No- one wants to listen to music like that." Max replied
"So why did you buy her CD?" Rohan gave her a puzzled look.
"Well I felt so sorry for it.besides, its just the one terrible single I have of hers.besides.I was in a 'Mother, Mother' mood."
Rohan shook his head, "You have the moodiest temperament. One day your all Sunshine with Salt 'n' Pepa, Maxi Priest and Will Smith, the next your all invincible with Guns 'n' Roses, Bon Jovi and Fun Lovin Criminals, the day after that you are all homicidal with Tracy Bonham, Metallica and Marilyn Manson, then after that you are popping the weasel with Robbie Williams, Destiny's child and Ronan Keating. Can't you just make up your mind?"
Max raised her eyebrows, "I am a-taken-back by your attitude Mr Kent! Who put you in this horrid mood of yours?"
"Arial."
Max was about to reply when a certain smell came to her. "Do you smell that, Ro?"
"Smell what?"
"That smell, of course." Max stood up, "I'd know that smell anywhere.the last I heard of that smell, he was smelling up the best friend of his girlfriend."
Ro was completely confused by Max's babbling so he stood up and began to walk toward the Café opposite the Campus. Max might have noticed, but was much to intrigued by the Smell to care. Max followed her nose around the corner and into the Campus where underneath, stood the Smell. The Smell was Hugo Boss, and the owner was the lush Eric Everett who at this very moment was chatting up three sophomores at the same time.
"Some things never change," Max muttered as she walked up to him.
"I know!" Eric was saying, "I feel the same way you do. That is why I spent most of last year in Ethiopia with World Vision."
"Really?" Skanky-boobe-tube-wearing-blonde squealed, "That is like, so cool!
"Did you see Ben from Big Brother?" Dimpled-mini-skirt-wearing-blonde asked. Eric laughed, "Oh yeah! We helped build houses for poor orphaned kids with our own hands."
"Your such a nice, caring guy, Eric!" Blonde number three exclaimed as she handed him her number.
"This would be my cue," Max whispered to herself, "James! What are you doing here again? I thought I locked the cars doors!"
Eric's eyes nearly popped out off his head when he saw Max, "What?"
"Don't play dumb with me James, we have to get you back to the Institution before they stop letting me have visitation rights."
Eric saw what Max was playing at and shook his head in disbelief, "No way!"
"Yes way Jamie, if you keep running away from me I am going to have to start handcuffing you to the steering wheel again."
"Um, who are YOU and what are you talking about?" asked Skanky-boobe-tube- wearing-blonde.
"I, am James's sister and I have to get him back to the institution before it is too late."
"What?" Dimpled-mini-skirt-wearing-blonde asked.
"Well, my brother is a little sick. He hears the devil talking to him and burns down buildings and rapes unsuspecting girls. That's why he is at the Mental Institution, so he is off the streets and little girls like you are safe."
"He is not James, he is Eric." Blonde number three informed Max.
"Is that what he told you?" Max shook her head, "That's what he told another girl too, except she ended up in the gutter, naked and bruised. If I were you girls, I'd run along before he gets your numbers."
Blonde number three's face went all pale, "I gave him my number."
Max pretended to look shocked, "Oh dear! James, give back this girls phone number."
Eric stood there in disbelief, "What? No!"
"GIVE IT BACK TO ME! GIVE IT BACK TO ME!" The Blonde shrieked. "James." Max urged.
"Whatever." Eric gave back the piece of paper to The Blonde girl and stormed off.
"Thank you for warning us." The Blonde said.
"That's okay," Max began, "But lets hope that he didn't get a look at the paper because he has a photographic memory. Bye!"
Max walked off, smiling to her as the Blonde girl ran away to catch up wit her two friends who had run off earlier.
