He was bouncing a little as he stared at me, eyes scrunching as he bit his lip. Oh, the poor boy was so nervous I couldn’t help but feel my heart melt for him.
I was closing in on their secret whether he wanted me to or not. And it wasn’t like I didn't have secrets of my own. At least he was apologizing and admitting that I wasn’t crazy. If I were being honest, that’s what had bothered me the most. Probably what bothered me the most about this whole thing. I hated being called crazy, and it only drove me to want to know the truth even more.
“No more trying to play it off like nothing's happening, okay? If you can't tell me, just say it,” I said, pointing at him sternly.
He nodded vigorously. "Okay.”
With a small smile I pointed at myself and then ran my right hand along my left palm and then pointed at him, in an attempt to sign ‘I forgive you’.
He stopped bouncing immediately and a relived smile spread across his face. He took my hands and pulled me close into a hug.
He really was a marshmallow.
After letting go, he invited me out to dinner, to which I said yes. I did not internally squeal like a little girl. Nope, I did not.
As we walked to his car, I glanced back at the library. In one of the windows I saw the three men I had run from talking. Ajax, who was facing in my direction, caught my eye, studying me before flicking his eyes over to Theseus, his expression questioning if I was okay. I nodded slightly, and his shoulders relaxed, but he continued to watch me until we drove away. Like a stone sentinel, ever vigilant.
Theseus took me to one of the few restaurants in town. A little hole in the wall Italian place that every town needed. It was called Tino’s and was classic brick and mortar that stood out from the wood of the surrounding buildings. Bill, the owner, was a classic New York Italian. Very loud, friendly, and made sure I had enough to eat. I ordered probably the creamiest fettuccine alfredo I have ever had, while Theseus had a seafood medley. Bill, who had visited our table multiple times despite being the head chef, was calling me doll by the end of the meal.
I'd have to say that I loved it. The only time I felt overly uncomfortable was when Bill would get too close into my personal space, sitting down next to me in the booth and chatting all about his years growing up in Brooklyn. He said that when he came to Argos he completely fell in love, even if they didn't have any tall stone buildings like he was used to. He said it's why he made a point to make his place the first brick building established in the area.
It wasn't that I minded his stories; they were pretty interesting. It was how he would lay his arm over the back of my seat and with his other hand gesture closely and ends animatedly towards me.
Luckily, Theseus noticed my discomfort. Making a quip about favoritism, he scooted over to make space for Bill. At first Bill looked a little confused, but he shrugged and simply hopped over to Theseus’ side.
My belly full of fresh baked garlic bread and creamy pasta, I practically waddled out of Bill's restaurant, a big fat smile on my face.
Instead of taking me back home immediately, Theseus suggested we walk down the Square. Strolling alongside the little park which sat in the center of all the town's main shops. There were plenty of people about, either enjoying their day or doing some last-minute shopping. Those same kids I had spotted the other day were back at the park. Still in little to nothing, chasing each other around and playing in the snow had lightly piled up on top of the grass. But right now, I wasn't supersleuth Atalanta, I was well fed and sated Atalanta with a warm heart and belly.
I tapped Theseus on the shoulder. "If the owner's name is Bill, why is the restaurant called Tony’s?”
“He once told me that it was because the name Bill just didn't sound Italian enough.” Theseus replied.
I giggled. “I mean, he's not wrong. I still find it silly. If I owned a restaurant, I would want it to have my name.”
“Is that what you want to do with your life? Be a chef or own a restaurant?” He asked.
I pursed my lips. “If I'm being honest, I don't really know what I want to do with my life.” I chuckled. “I know I can't cook though.”
“I can't cook either,” He smiled. His gaze was tender and warmed my heart.
“What about you?” I asked. “Do you want to be a janitor your whole life, or do you have some big plans for your future? Not that being a janitor isn’t a good profession! But you don’t strike me as the type to settle with that kind of job.”
“Well, I wanted to be like them,” he said wistfully, gesturing towards a little group of people I hadn't noticed.
They were huddling together, some with chairs and some standing. In their hands were instruments. I watched as they settled into a semicircle and poised themselves in a long pause. A man with a violin lifted his bow and pulled it across the instrument’s string, letting out a wavering sorrowful note. He played a few measures of music before the rest of his group joined in, weaving together the beginnings of a sad melody.
“You wanted to be a musician?” I asked as I stared at them.
When I didn’t get a reply, I looked up at Theseus to see that he too was watching the players. The easy smile that he had kept throughout dinner had fallen into a frown, his eyes mirroring the sorrowful tunes that the musicians played.
He looked back at me as I continued to study him. "I wanted to be a musician. But that was before my accident.”
I bit the inside of my cheek, trying not to let the tears come to my eyes. “But there are plenty of deaf musicians, aren’t there? I mean, Beethoven was deaf, and he was probably one of the world's greatest composers and musicians.”
“I guess I just don't have that kind of resilience,” He said, bitterness spitting out with every word.
I pulled away from him, feeling a little stung by the self-loathing and hatred in his eyes. I knew it wasn’t directed at me, but I couldn’t help it.
He noticed this, and that spark of hatred dissipated immediately, leaving behind only self-loathing. He turned his face away from me, effectively cutting me off.
I bit the inside of my cheek harder and the remnants of warmth from our dinner began to fade. This date had been going so well. Neither of us had actually called it a date, but it had felt like one.
I ran my hand up and down along my opposite arm, feeling my mind sinking back into the darkness of my thoughts.
‘You always ruin things’
‘Why do you bother trying?’
‘Look how upset you made him.’
I felt a warm hand lay on top of mine which was still running up and down my arm. It pulled me from my thoughts.
I looked up at Theseus. He was still looking over at the musicians, but the self-loathing and sadness that I had seen were no longer there. Instead, reflected in his gray blue gaze was something akin to determination.
I stopped rubbing my arm and clasped his hand in mine. I realized that this was the hand of someone who understood pain; someone who had the same demons lurking behind those smiles. In that moment I felt a kinsmanship.
With a gentle tug, I pulled him away from the musicians and turned us back in the opposite direction towards his car.
The walk wasn't uncomfortable as we made our way back along the street, but it was silent. I pondered what it must be like for him. While there was silence between us, there was not silence around us. I could still hear the musicians in the distance along with the children's laughter. People were conversing with each other as we passed and there was the light sounds of our footsteps, almost buried by the whipping of the wind. Yet I knew that to him, none of it existed. What was most likely only the memory of sounds were seen through his eyes. That was the world he lived in.