I rolled my eyes. “He's too proud. You know that means we will probably have to help him if he does buy that boat right?"
"I hate fishing," she pouted.
“Yeah, but you like food on the table more,” I added.
"You know I don't like it when you're right."
I pulled the phone away from my face to look at the date on the screen. Bringing it back I said, "It's okay, in a couple more weeks we will be able to get our allowance from Sam, and we won't have to worry about it as much."
"Oh, ye’ old reliable sam. I would assume that you got that job today?” she asked.
I glanced over at Thesis, who stood staring out the window with this peaceful smile. Seeing him like that, I couldn’t help but smile as well.
“Yeah, I got the job.”
“Good, get home safe, okay?”
“Okay,” I replied, hanging up.
I groaned and walked over to Theseus.
Noticing me, he stopped looking out the window and faced me. "Judging by that frown, I’d say your ride isn’t coming?”
“Unfortunately no,” I said crossing my arms over my chest. “I’ll have to hitch a ride. Do you think Dorris would-”
“I can take you,” he offered.
My eyebrows shot up. "You can drive?”
He rolled his eyes. "Of course I can drive. Damn, and you were doing so good.”
“So good with what?”
“Not asking the stupid questions. Most people ask all sorts of stupid questions and act weird when they realize I can't hear, like slowing their speech or speaking loudly as if that would magically make me hear them,” he mimicked, slowing his voice down and then raising his volume before returning to normal. “But you didn’t do that. You even knew to look at me when I spoke to you.”
“Oh,” With a closed fist, thumb on the outside, I rubbed my chest clockwise in a circle. “I’m sorry if I seemed rude.”
His eyes widened, and as he spoke he signed along with his words, “You know ASL?”
I shook my head. "Very little. Back in middle school, I had this girl in one of my classes who was born deaf. She couldn’t speak, but it’s how I knew not to do the slow speech thing and how to get your attention. I didn’t really get much of a chance to learn sign language, though.”
A smile spread slowly across his face. “Well, there's always a chance to learn, and I can teach you if you want.”
“I’ll look forward to it then.”
He nodded, his face lighting up even brighter. "Let me just go get my keys, and I’ll take you home.”
He hurried off to the office behind the desk, and I certainly was not checking out his overall-clad ass. I certainly had more dignity than to do that. Slowly, my eyes travelled over to Dorris, who was staring at me with this sly smile.
With the blush slapping my face, I spun and faced the door.
I was not just caught checking out his ass! Nope. Because I'm not that kind of girl.
“Ready to go?” Thesis said after coming back out of the office and wiggling his keys at me.
I nodded and followed behind him out the door and to his car.
Okay! Okay! I WAS checking out his ass.
Chapter Seven
Theseus
Not for the first time in the last seven years was I disappointed by my condition. It had been a difficult transition from hearing to deaf, of course. Having to relearn how to live my life and such, but I had mostly adjusted. That was until I met someone new, someone I wanted to get to know and had to be reminded I would never hear their voice, never hear their laughter or their sorrow.
Atalanta was one of those people.
She seemed down to earth and I was drawn to her from the moment I saw her standing there with me on that stage.
Yet while she seemed to feel the same way towards me—as she kept close and didn't shy away from my touch—I knew it wasn't real.
She had heard my voice, heard me singing when she came to meet me in the music room, and there was no doubt in my mind she had been affected. That was to say I felt terrible for manipulating her will but I knew the effects would wear off in a few days. So that immediate trust I knew she felt would also fade.
I was determined to work extra hard to gain her trust the natural way, and the first step to that was insisting I took her home. There was no way I could allow for someone to walk God knows how far in this mess. Especially when they weren't wearing clothes fit for the harsh winters of Argos.
Sauntering out of the community center, I headed towards my car in the parking lot, glancing behind me several times to make sure she had followed. I wanted to reach out and hold her hand, pull her close to me to be sure she stayed by my side, but I knew I needed to stop doing that.
Unlocking the car, I quickly moved to the passenger side to open the door for her. When I looked at her face, I saw that her eyes were somewhere off to my left. Following them, I spotted a man walking up the path from the forest behind the library.
“That’s Percy, the librarian,” I commented, my eyes flicking between Percy and Atalanta.
I caught her lips moving and focused on them.
‘-The other day.’
“What about the other day?” I asked.
She turned her head back to face me. ‘I met him the other day when I donated some books.’
I watched as her eyes moved away from mine to look back towards Percy. There was a pang of sadness in her eyes, and I couldn't help but get a little defensive for her. I knew Percival could be a brash man and had no doubt he said something to Atalanta to upset her within the first few moments of meeting him.
But then to my surprise, Atalanta waved at Percy, seeming to call his name to get his attention. Her smile was wide like a fox as she stared at him. It made my stomach drop. Perhaps she wasn't saddened by something he had said.
'Have you started reading that book I gave you?' she asked.
I looked back over to Percy who had spotted us by the car.
‘No, I have not.’ he replied.
My gaze flicked back and forth between the two to follow their conversation. She berated him, calling him a...book snob? Which he seemed to laugh at, considering the shaking of his chest. He proceeded to say something along the lines of 'I'm not a teenage girl, so why would you think I would like a book for one?'
I had never seen him look so happy. Oh. My. God. He was flirting with her! I could see the signs, clear as day, as he fidgeted awkwardly. His eyebrows were raised in a quizzical expression while he would go from both hands in his pockets to one hand messing with his hair, which was out of its usual ponytail and laying loose around his shoulders.
Damn it! My chances of getting Atalanta to notice me were slipping away in front of my eyes.
It was then that Percy seemed to have noticed me standing next to the car. That millimeter smile he wore dropped completely from his face, and the fidgeting stopped.
I watched as the same expression cycle he always had whenever he saw me crossed his face. Indignation, remembrance, then finally guilt.
With a curt nod to me, he said goodbye to Atalanta and fled back into his library.
Appearing confused at his sudden mood change, Atalanta turned back towards me. 'What's his problem?'
I shrugged, schooling my features so to not show my own guilt and annoyance. “I don't know. Maybe he remembered something he forgot."
I watched as she read me like an open book, her hazel brown eyes intense, seeing right into me with this expression that said she had seen plenty of shit in her life and my bullshit wasn't anything new. But then she shrugged, as if it ultimately didn't matter to her one way or another, and got into the car.