Modern Mythology
4/12/21
Day C
PD 8
Narrative
Eden barely needed a glimpse of the other boy to know he was up to no good. For one, you’re not supposed to be in a classroom without a teacher, and Eden knew that Ms. Russel and some other teachers were downstairs trying to resolve some crises in the cafeteria. For another, the jangling of metal on metal coming from the figure squatting behind the teacher’s desk was practically screaming that there was trouble to be found. Should Eden confront the mysterious boy or report him to a staff member immediately? Before they could deliberate for long, the boy spun sharply around with an assessing gaze and relaxed just as quickly. John Ormr, smiled pleasantly at Eden, his posture leisurely. If it weren’t for the tools and screws peeking behind his foot, one would never have guessed the boy was doing anything wrong.
“You’re very studious, Eden!” John chirped at him, his cheeky smile never wavering. “School’s ended and you’re still here! Doing some extra studying perhaps?”
Deciding to cut straight to the point, Eden addressed the elephant in the room.
“What are you doing to Russel’s desk, John? You’ll get into serious trouble if you get caught vandalizing school property.”
“Eden, would I ever do something so devious? Where is your faith?” John gasped dramatically with a hand over his heart. “You know, I could’ve been here for some tutoring myself,” he replied back straightening from his position with hands on his hips.
Everybody at school knew that John Ormr was a troublemaker. He didn’t start fights or such, but he loved to tease and prank. John’s humour was peculiar, so everything was a joke to him; even the things that shouldn’t be. And more infamous than his love for practical jokes was John’s complete disregard for studying. His academics were so neglected that his peers often joked how John Ormr’s continued passing of classes was one of the wonders of the world. Eden was highly skeptical at John’s proclamation. His face must have shown it because with one look John roared with laughter.
“Yeah, not my best fib,” John said, barely containing his glee.
“Look, John, whatever you’re doing, you need to quit it.” Eden told him. “The teachers are going to come back–”
“From the cafeteria and by then I’ll be gone” John interrupts him while going back to his task by the desk which, upon closer inspection, seems to be an addition of some sort to the underside of the desk.
“Wait, how did,” Eden stutters to a stop, making the connection.
“What a coincidence that the teachers are focused on the mess downstairs. It’s perfect timing, really,” Eden remarks. It’s not much of a surprise, really. Despite his lackluster school records, John Ormr is quite clever and an excellent planner. The infamous horse prank–4 horses were discovered in the school football field one morning and gym classes had to be rescheduled–comes to mind. So the theory that John was behind whatever incident that somehow drew the teacher he was pranking down to the cafeteria was not unfounded. With the pleased quirk of John’s lips, Eden knew the deduction was correct.
“Bravo!” John applauds, an ear-splitting grin now on his face, “that’s not to say you’re correct, but it’s a good conclusion.”
“And why shouldn’t I just report you to a teacher?” Eden should. There must be a teacher still on the floor to report to. Probably on the other side of–
“Quick, catch” and an object being tossed breaks Eden from that train of thought. Eden barely catches the wrench, freezing and staring at it.
“Now you’re incriminated too,” John announces, “so I wouldn’t go and blab about this to anyone else.”
Disbelief roots Eden to the spot. No way would anyone just believe that, not if Eden explained. But an uneasy feeling churned in their stomach. While they weren’t a troublemaker like John was, Eden didn’t have a spotless record either. That Eden was loitering around the school and that they hadn’t reported John upon discovery was suspicious. Could they risk that? This most definitely merits a suspension and Eden knows that if they got suspended for vandalism, their parents would be livid.
Before they could do anything else, the sounds of the stairwell door opening and conversation reached both student’s ears. The teachers were back; early, based on the shock on John’s face. In a blink of an eye, John has gathered his tools and pushed past Eden to bolt out the door. Eden is halfway down the hall, a few steps behind John, before the regret hits them. Eden doesn’t know what spurned them to follow John, but they couldn’t go back now. They’ve made it out the side entrance before they stop and John laughs.
“Well now, you’re definitely in on this.”
His laughter rings in their ears. Even well after Eden had made it home.
Standing in the snack aisle at Ralph’s Deli on a Saturday afternoon, Eden stared speechless at the scene before them. Browsing the drinks section was John Ormr. Eden had lived in this neighborhood for almost their whole life, and they had never once seen or heard of the boy living nearby. Why John would ever be at Eden’s neighborhood deli eluded him. With a blink of their eyes, John was gone and Eden gaped. Where did he go? Was it a hallucination? Teenagers don’t just disappear whilst browsing sodas.
“Whatcha staring at?” chimes a familiar mirth-filled voice behind them, and Eden jumps to face around.
“Don’t do that!” Eden says, heart racing, hoping they come across as annoyed and not scared witless. John hums an affirmative, his lips twitching with the obvious effort to not smile.
“You never answered my question, y’know,” he replies back.
Eden busies himself selecting the snacks they came for to allow their heart to come down from the adrenaline spike and to ponder how John had sneaked behind them.
“I’m pretty sure you don’t live here, do you? How come you’re here?” Eden asks instead of answering John’s question. They don’t know why, but they know that the mysterious disappearing act Eden glimpsed just then shouldn’t be brought up. John doesn’t pursue his question, and answers Eden’s instead.
“No, I don’t live here. I came to buy Eclipse,” John replies, holding up one of the cans of the familiar energy drinks.
“Why seven?” they ask, walking to the cashier at the front, John on his heels. A group of three are up front with their own purchases, and Eden and John line up behind them.
“Why not?” he replies and laughs to himself. Eden looks back, bewildered. There’s a joke there, but they're not sure they want to ask. A shout rings out and Eden turns to the disturbance. One of the kids in front of them, a tall and surly-looking boy, is holding a dripping bag before turning his glare to the two of them.
“What the- ! Did one of you just pour drinks on my bag?” the boy shouted.
“What? No! Of course not!” Eden fires back, squaring his shoulders already preparing to defend themself.
“Do you think I’m stupid? So my bag somehow just gets soaked, huh?” the boy replies, stepping closer.
“There’s no one else here. So one of you two must’ve done it,” his friend to the right chimes in.
“Yeah, or both of you,” the one on the left says with a glare.
Before they could defend themself, John cuts in, pushing himself in front of Eden. He walks to the cashier, ignoring the rapidly-blinking teens who had just watched him walk by them like they were nothing, pulling Eden along with him, and placing their items on the counter.
“How much?” John asks the cashier. She glances between the kids in front of her and then towards the items on the counter, before turning back to John.
“$18.89,” is the brisk reply and John quickly hands over the cash.
The other teens seem to come out of their stupor. They reposition themselves so the boy with the bag is face to face with both of them once more.
“Hey, ” he calls out. But before the boy can finish, John interrupts again.
“How much are their purchases?” he asks, jerking a thumb behind him to indicate the gaggle of teenagers who now openly gape at his question. Eden is also confused at where this is going.
The cashier stares incredulously for a moment, and answers, “$14.99.”
John, again, quickly hands over the cash before turning around with a pleasant smile.
“I’ll pay for your stuff as an apology, of course,” John says pleasantly and smiles. Caution seeps into Eden’s very bones, because John Ormr does not apologize! It’s not long after this thought that John grabs Eden by their shirt, their bagged snacks and drinks in the other hand, and leads them both out the door with three very confused kids and an exasperated cashier behind them.
They stop at the park 10 minutes from Eden’s house, sitting on one of the benches near a biking trail. By then Eden had enough time to get over the shock and focus on the fact that John had just paid for their snacks as well.
“John, why, ” they begin hesitantly, but when Eden looks over, the other boy is looking straight at him. Tense, for some reason.
“Look,” they start again. Gathering their resolve, they continue, “thanks for paying for my stuff. And for paying for those other kids. You didn’t have to, but it was nice of you, especially cuz we didn’t do anything.”
With that, the tension breaks and John is laughing, holding his sides, while Eden stares at him. This is a recurring theme with John, Eden thinks: this constant state of bewilderment.
“Oh no, Eden. I did spill that drink on that idiot’s bag,” John says between the giggles escaping him. Eden is taken aback, and goes to ask why before stopping. Why does John ever do anything? Because he thinks it’s funny, Eden thinks to themself.
As if hearing his thoughts, John smiles proudly, legs swinging with glee and eyes glittering with mirth, and opens one of his drinks.
“How did you do that? I was right in front of you and didn’t see you do anything?” Eden asks instead, but gets no more an answer than a shrug and a smirk.
“Alright, keep your secrets,” Eden says, their eyes rolling, “but you still didn’t have to pay for the stuff, so thanks.”
“Well,” John drawls. Dread fills Eden’s gut.
“I technically didn't pay for it.”
“Explain,” was their brisk demand. The vein in their temple was already throbbing with an oncoming headache.
John whips out a wallet and announces with pride, “I stole their money.”
Eden just stared at the wallet. Then the statement finally registered. They wanted to shout. Wanted to scold John and yell about how that’s wrong, and John could get into so much trouble. They want to, but they don’t. One look at John’s mirth filled eyes, and Eden knew that he didn’t feel remorse for his actions and probably never has.
Before Eden can continue his questioning, John spies something across from them, and tenses abruptly. Eden turns around, not seeing anything beyond trees, grass, and two birds circling around a nearby lamp post. They turn back to ask John what’s wrong, but the seat is empty. Instead, right behind Eden on the opposite side of the bench, is John sitting on the ground with his back on the bench’s back.
“Are you alright?” Eden asks. John smiles back at him, but Eden thinks it’s more of a grimace.
“Fine. Just don’t like birds,” is John’s reply. Eden chooses not to say anything, they don’t want to pry at the obviously uncomfortable topic, and nods. It’s not like they would have gotten an answer anyway.
They sit there like that for an hour or two. Eating and drinking their shared purchases, talking about anything that comes to mind: school, sports, games, new movies and TV shows. Although, talking with John is a test of patience at times with the boy’s tendency to joke and laugh about everything.
The sky is bleeding red when John stands up to leave.
“Here you can have my last Eclipse,” the boy says, handing Eden the energy drink.
Eden pauses at the gift. It’s just a drink, but they think there’s more to it than that. In the two years they’ve shared class with John, they can’t remember a time that John had ever shared anything, let alone gifted something.
“Thank you.” It’s genuine gratitude for the rare act of generosity.
John stares at Eden. They’re being assessed. Like a predator looking at prey. A snake and a rabbit. Eden’s heart hammers at the intensity and of John’s sudden gaze. As quick as it comes, the feeling is gone and John is looking at him with a small smile.
“You’re welcome.” It's a sincere response for the rare moment of appreciation.
Eden stares at the boy’s retreating back until it disappears around a corner.
He stays there, tracing the red moon design on the energy drink’s can. In all honesty, Eden is disturbed at the interaction, but finds no regret nor fear. It’s an odd feeling. He opens the can and takes a sip of the drink.
It takes them a while to notice, but when they do, they startle at the discovery. The two birds by the lamp post Eden had spotted when they arrived were still there. Is that normal avian behavior? The birds are eyeing Eden from their perch. Like little guards. Or spies.
The random thought shocks Eden and they shake their heads as if to rid their brain of it. With a caw and a flash of black plumage, they take flight. Eden watches as the crows disappear in the horizon.
The morning of April 1st dawned and students from Eden’s homeroom class were planning. For not only was it April Fool’s, but their classmat’s birthday party would take place after school that day. The general consensus was the class would play a group prank on their classmate during the party; the opportunity was too good to pass! A group of them meet at the entrance of the school parking lot to prepare.
Listening to their peer’s discussions about the rise in earthquakes in Europe, Eden notices a figure approaching from the corner of his eye.
“Lose the sweater John. It’s April Fools, not Christmas.” The sweater was extremely tacky with it’s display of trees and mistletoe.
“Oi! I will have you know that this is my favorite sweater!” John replied fervently.
“Why? No offense, but it’s hideous,” Eden remarked, eyeing the multitude of leafy designs crowded on their friend’s sweater.
“Inside joke,” was John’s reply, and Eden sighs. John had lots of inside jokes and they were sure that they wouldn’t ever know even half of it, let alone understand them.
“Why do you need these cupcakes again?” John asks.
“We’re going to a party after school for our classmate, and since it’s April Fools, we’re making cupcake roulette. Half of the cupcakes are normal and half are filled with gross stuff. We’re going to randomize it, so no one knows which is which,” Eden explains and almost immediately regrets it.
“So you do have a sense of humor,” John crowed with glee and the look in his eyes sent shivers down Eden’s spine.
“Shove off.”
Eden took the disfigured cupcakes from John’s hands and placed them with the rest of the cupcakes.
“Come on, let’s go inside,” they say, walking in to get to their first class.
The anticipation for the party was high and increased for every class that passed. Lunch arrived and, with it, the start of Eden’s problems of the day. Eden had wondered in the middle of his 2nd period class what John had put in his cupcakes. Realizing they never asked, which was ridiculous now, had churned their stomach. John was unpredictable on the best of days and had no limitations on what was deemed okay for a joke.
“John!” Eden called out over the chatter of the cafeteria. With a quick jog, Eden reached the other boy’s usual spot for lunch.
“Hey, what did you put in your cupcakes again?” they asked.
John raised his eyebrows, clearly unimpressed by their late question.
“Soap, why?”
“You’re kidding,” they gasped. “Non-toxic, right?” Eden prayed to all deities they knew that John had used some precaution, but their hopes died pitifully at the shrug they received. Eden couldn’t help the groan that escaped from their mouth.
“What?” John says. “You said put something that tastes gross. Soap is gross.”
“Soap is toxic John!”
“And gross!”
Eden doesn’t know why they're even surprised anymore. But the problem remains: what do they do about the cupcakes? They don’t see Alby, who had them now, again before the party and they don’t know his schedule well enough to know who they could ask to warn him.
“Come on,” Eden says, getting up to head towards the exit. “We’re going to get those cupcakes.”
“But why do I need to go? You can’t do it just fine,” John protests as he shrinks in his seat away from them.
“Because you thought soap was a good idea to put in a cupcake,” Eden replies back. “Besides,” Eden continues with a smirk, holding out the phone they had just taken from the boy’s bag with a move they had seen John do many times, “If you want your phone back, you’re going to help.”
“If it weren’t me, I would be so proud.”
“Stop being a grump. Look we’re here.”
Eden and John stop just shy of the door to Alby’s class. Peering through the door’s window, Eden can see Alby in the back.
“How do we get to him?” they ask. What could they do? They don’t have Alby’s number and trying to get the boy’s attention would risk being caught by the teacher. What to do?
“Eden, stand behind the corner at the end of the hallway. Go in through the back door when the teacher leaves the room,” John orders. The boy stands and leaves, walking to the door before Eden could say anything. They could do nothing but follow John’s directions before the door opens and the teacher is turning to scold John for whatever he had done to get his attention. Seeing the opportunity presented, Eden rushes quietly to the back door, cracks open the door and slips into the room.
“Alby, where’s the cupcakes?” Eden hisses, crouching by the startled boy’s desk.
“Wait, dude, what–”
“Don’t ask! Just give it to me Alby. It’s important!” Eden pushes, glancing at the front. They don’t know how long John can distract the teacher, but they definitely didn’t want to be there to find out.
Alby hands them the bag of confections and they crawl back to the door to wait for their opportunity. When John leaves with the teacher, probably to the dean’s, Eden slips out of the room before the substitute can see them.
Eden spots John afterschool on their way to the party. They hand the bag of desserts, sans soap cupcakes and run over to the lounging boy.
“Not even going to ask what you did, just tell me you didn’t get into too much trouble,” slips front their mouth before they’ve reached him.
“Nah,” comes John’s easy reply with a smile, and Eden sighs with relief. An idea pops into their head.
“Hey do you want to come to the party?” they ask. John is surprised at the invitation. He takes several moments and contemplates them, before shaking their head.
“Can’t” he declines, “need to get going.”
“Alright,” they say, but they don’t leave just yet. It takes a second to decide, but with a nod, Eden knows what to do.
“Are you going to be at the park tomorrow morning?” Eden asks referring to the one both students fled to on their first meeting outside of school.
John nods.
“Good,” they say and with a smile, “see you tomorrow.”
Eden turns around and leaves, running to catch up to their classmates.
John stays rooted to the spot before the second rush of kids leaving the school prompts him to leave.
They open their eyes to darkness. No surprise. They’ve been there for longer than they can tell. It’s been too long since the last time they saw anything other than the dim flickering shadows on the cavern walls. Too long since their body could feel anything but stiff muscles, cramps, and burning pain.
Their sigh joins and blends with the echoes of drips and hisses.
“You’ve been gone for a while now,” says the strained voice beside them.
They hum in response. Even after all this time, their love’s voice was still sweet to their ears. Sweeter, especially with the hissing that has become their life.
“I’ve found something interesting,” they reply after a while.
A pause.
“I see.” The next reply takes longer.
“Did you find what you were looking for?”
They think of the signs. A smile slowly spreads on their face and they hum in acquiescence. Face cracking from long disuse of the muscles.
The End was coming.
Eden barely needed a glimpse of the other boy to know he was up to no good. For one, you’re not supposed to be in a classroom without a teacher, and Eden knew that Ms. Russel and some other teachers were downstairs trying to resolve some crises in the cafeteria. For another, the jangling of metal on metal coming from the figure squatting behind the teacher’s desk was practically screaming that there was trouble to be found. Should Eden confront the mysterious boy or report him to a staff member immediately? Before they could deliberate for long, the boy spun sharply around with an assessing gaze and relaxed just as quickly. John Ormr, smiled pleasantly at Eden, his posture leisurely. If it weren’t for the tools and screws peeking behind his foot, one would never have guessed the boy was doing anything wrong.
“You’re very studious, Eden!” John chirped at him, his cheeky smile never wavering. “School’s ended and you’re still here! Doing some extra studying perhaps?”
Deciding to cut straight to the point, Eden addressed the elephant in the room.
“What are you doing to Russel’s desk, John? You’ll get into serious trouble if you get caught vandalizing school property.”
“Eden, would I ever do something so devious? Where is your faith?” John gasped dramatically with a hand over his heart. “You know, I could’ve been here for some tutoring myself,” he replied back straightening from his position with hands on his hips.
Everybody at school knew that John Ormr was a troublemaker. He didn’t start fights or such, but he loved to tease and prank. John’s humour was peculiar, so everything was a joke to him; even the things that shouldn’t be. And more infamous than his love for practical jokes was John’s complete disregard for studying. His academics were so neglected that his peers often joked how John Ormr’s continued passing of classes was one of the wonders of the world. Eden was highly skeptical at John’s proclamation. His face must have shown it because with one look John roared with laughter.
“Yeah, not my best fib,” John said, barely containing his glee.
“Look, John, whatever you’re doing, you need to quit it.” Eden told him. “The teachers are going to come back–”
“From the cafeteria and by then I’ll be gone” John interrupts him while going back to his task by the desk which, upon closer inspection, seems to be an addition of some sort to the underside of the desk.
“Wait, how did,” Eden stutters to a stop, making the connection.
“What a coincidence that the teachers are focused on the mess downstairs. It’s perfect timing, really,” Eden remarks. It’s not much of a surprise, really. Despite his lackluster school records, John Ormr is quite clever and an excellent planner. The infamous horse prank–4 horses were discovered in the school football field one morning and gym classes had to be rescheduled–comes to mind. So the theory that John was behind whatever incident that somehow drew the teacher he was pranking down to the cafeteria was not unfounded. With the pleased quirk of John’s lips, Eden knew the deduction was correct.
“Bravo!” John applauds, an ear-splitting grin now on his face, “that’s not to say you’re correct, but it’s a good conclusion.”
“And why shouldn’t I just report you to a teacher?” Eden should. There must be a teacher still on the floor to report to. Probably on the other side of–
“Quick, catch” and an object being tossed breaks Eden from that train of thought. Eden barely catches the wrench, freezing and staring at it.
“Now you’re incriminated too,” John announces, “so I wouldn’t go and blab about this to anyone else.”
Disbelief roots Eden to the spot. No way would anyone just believe that, not if Eden explained. But an uneasy feeling churned in their stomach. While they weren’t a troublemaker like John was, Eden didn’t have a spotless record either. That Eden was loitering around the school and that they hadn’t reported John upon discovery was suspicious. Could they risk that? This most definitely merits a suspension and Eden knows that if they got suspended for vandalism, their parents would be livid.
Before they could do anything else, the sounds of the stairwell door opening and conversation reached both student’s ears. The teachers were back; early, based on the shock on John’s face. In a blink of an eye, John has gathered his tools and pushed past Eden to bolt out the door. Eden is halfway down the hall, a few steps behind John, before the regret hits them. Eden doesn’t know what spurned them to follow John, but they couldn’t go back now. They’ve made it out the side entrance before they stop and John laughs.
“Well now, you’re definitely in on this.”
His laughter rings in their ears. Even well after Eden had made it home.
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Standing in the snack aisle at Ralph’s Deli on a Saturday afternoon, Eden stared speechless at the scene before them. Browsing the drinks section was John Ormr. Eden had lived in this neighborhood for almost their whole life, and they had never once seen or heard of the boy living nearby. Why John would ever be at Eden’s neighborhood deli eluded him. With a blink of their eyes, John was gone and Eden gaped. Where did he go? Was it a hallucination? Teenagers don’t just disappear whilst browsing sodas.
“Whatcha staring at?” chimes a familiar mirth-filled voice behind them, and Eden jumps to face around.
“Don’t do that!” Eden says, heart racing, hoping they come across as annoyed and not scared witless. John hums an affirmative, his lips twitching with the obvious effort to not smile.
“You never answered my question, y’know,” he replies back.
Eden busies himself selecting the snacks they came for to allow their heart to come down from the adrenaline spike and to ponder how John had sneaked behind them.
“I’m pretty sure you don’t live here, do you? How come you’re here?” Eden asks instead of answering John’s question. They don’t know why, but they know that the mysterious disappearing act Eden glimpsed just then shouldn’t be brought up. John doesn’t pursue his question, and answers Eden’s instead.
“No, I don’t live here. I came to buy Eclipse,” John replies, holding up one of the cans of the familiar energy drinks.
“Why seven?” they ask, walking to the cashier at the front, John on his heels. A group of three are up front with their own purchases, and Eden and John line up behind them.
“Why not?” he replies and laughs to himself. Eden looks back, bewildered. There’s a joke there, but they're not sure they want to ask. A shout rings out and Eden turns to the disturbance. One of the kids in front of them, a tall and surly-looking boy, is holding a dripping bag before turning his glare to the two of them.
“What the- ! Did one of you just pour drinks on my bag?” the boy shouted.
“What? No! Of course not!” Eden fires back, squaring his shoulders already preparing to defend themself.
“Do you think I’m stupid? So my bag somehow just gets soaked, huh?” the boy replies, stepping closer.
“There’s no one else here. So one of you two must’ve done it,” his friend to the right chimes in.
“Yeah, or both of you,” the one on the left says with a glare.
Before they could defend themself, John cuts in, pushing himself in front of Eden. He walks to the cashier, ignoring the rapidly-blinking teens who had just watched him walk by them like they were nothing, pulling Eden along with him, and placing their items on the counter.
“How much?” John asks the cashier. She glances between the kids in front of her and then towards the items on the counter, before turning back to John.
“$18.89,” is the brisk reply and John quickly hands over the cash.
The other teens seem to come out of their stupor. They reposition themselves so the boy with the bag is face to face with both of them once more.
“Hey, ” he calls out. But before the boy can finish, John interrupts again.
“How much are their purchases?” he asks, jerking a thumb behind him to indicate the gaggle of teenagers who now openly gape at his question. Eden is also confused at where this is going.
The cashier stares incredulously for a moment, and answers, “$14.99.”
John, again, quickly hands over the cash before turning around with a pleasant smile.
“I’ll pay for your stuff as an apology, of course,” John says pleasantly and smiles. Caution seeps into Eden’s very bones, because John Ormr does not apologize! It’s not long after this thought that John grabs Eden by their shirt, their bagged snacks and drinks in the other hand, and leads them both out the door with three very confused kids and an exasperated cashier behind them.
They stop at the park 10 minutes from Eden’s house, sitting on one of the benches near a biking trail. By then Eden had enough time to get over the shock and focus on the fact that John had just paid for their snacks as well.
“John, why, ” they begin hesitantly, but when Eden looks over, the other boy is looking straight at him. Tense, for some reason.
“Look,” they start again. Gathering their resolve, they continue, “thanks for paying for my stuff. And for paying for those other kids. You didn’t have to, but it was nice of you, especially cuz we didn’t do anything.”
With that, the tension breaks and John is laughing, holding his sides, while Eden stares at him. This is a recurring theme with John, Eden thinks: this constant state of bewilderment.
“Oh no, Eden. I did spill that drink on that idiot’s bag,” John says between the giggles escaping him. Eden is taken aback, and goes to ask why before stopping. Why does John ever do anything? Because he thinks it’s funny, Eden thinks to themself.
As if hearing his thoughts, John smiles proudly, legs swinging with glee and eyes glittering with mirth, and opens one of his drinks.
“How did you do that? I was right in front of you and didn’t see you do anything?” Eden asks instead, but gets no more an answer than a shrug and a smirk.
“Alright, keep your secrets,” Eden says, their eyes rolling, “but you still didn’t have to pay for the stuff, so thanks.”
“Well,” John drawls. Dread fills Eden’s gut.
“I technically didn't pay for it.”
“Explain,” was their brisk demand. The vein in their temple was already throbbing with an oncoming headache.
John whips out a wallet and announces with pride, “I stole their money.”
Eden just stared at the wallet. Then the statement finally registered. They wanted to shout. Wanted to scold John and yell about how that’s wrong, and John could get into so much trouble. They want to, but they don’t. One look at John’s mirth filled eyes, and Eden knew that he didn’t feel remorse for his actions and probably never has.
Before Eden can continue his questioning, John spies something across from them, and tenses abruptly. Eden turns around, not seeing anything beyond trees, grass, and two birds circling around a nearby lamp post. They turn back to ask John what’s wrong, but the seat is empty. Instead, right behind Eden on the opposite side of the bench, is John sitting on the ground with his back on the bench’s back.
“Are you alright?” Eden asks. John smiles back at him, but Eden thinks it’s more of a grimace.
“Fine. Just don’t like birds,” is John’s reply. Eden chooses not to say anything, they don’t want to pry at the obviously uncomfortable topic, and nods. It’s not like they would have gotten an answer anyway.
They sit there like that for an hour or two. Eating and drinking their shared purchases, talking about anything that comes to mind: school, sports, games, new movies and TV shows. Although, talking with John is a test of patience at times with the boy’s tendency to joke and laugh about everything.
The sky is bleeding red when John stands up to leave.
“Here you can have my last Eclipse,” the boy says, handing Eden the energy drink.
Eden pauses at the gift. It’s just a drink, but they think there’s more to it than that. In the two years they’ve shared class with John, they can’t remember a time that John had ever shared anything, let alone gifted something.
“Thank you.” It’s genuine gratitude for the rare act of generosity.
John stares at Eden. They’re being assessed. Like a predator looking at prey. A snake and a rabbit. Eden’s heart hammers at the intensity and of John’s sudden gaze. As quick as it comes, the feeling is gone and John is looking at him with a small smile.
“You’re welcome.” It's a sincere response for the rare moment of appreciation.
Eden stares at the boy’s retreating back until it disappears around a corner.
He stays there, tracing the red moon design on the energy drink’s can. In all honesty, Eden is disturbed at the interaction, but finds no regret nor fear. It’s an odd feeling. He opens the can and takes a sip of the drink.
It takes them a while to notice, but when they do, they startle at the discovery. The two birds by the lamp post Eden had spotted when they arrived were still there. Is that normal avian behavior? The birds are eyeing Eden from their perch. Like little guards. Or spies.
The random thought shocks Eden and they shake their heads as if to rid their brain of it. With a caw and a flash of black plumage, they take flight. Eden watches as the crows disappear in the horizon.
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
The morning of April 1st dawned and students from Eden’s homeroom class were planning. For not only was it April Fool’s, but their classmat’s birthday party would take place after school that day. The general consensus was the class would play a group prank on their classmate during the party; the opportunity was too good to pass! A group of them meet at the entrance of the school parking lot to prepare.
Listening to their peer’s discussions about the rise in earthquakes in Europe, Eden notices a figure approaching from the corner of his eye.
“Lose the sweater John. It’s April Fools, not Christmas.” The sweater was extremely tacky with it’s display of trees and mistletoe.
“Oi! I will have you know that this is my favorite sweater!” John replied fervently.
“Why? No offense, but it’s hideous,” Eden remarked, eyeing the multitude of leafy designs crowded on their friend’s sweater.
“Inside joke,” was John’s reply, and Eden sighs. John had lots of inside jokes and they were sure that they wouldn’t ever know even half of it, let alone understand them.
“Why do you need these cupcakes again?” John asks.
“We’re going to a party after school for our classmate, and since it’s April Fools, we’re making cupcake roulette. Half of the cupcakes are normal and half are filled with gross stuff. We’re going to randomize it, so no one knows which is which,” Eden explains and almost immediately regrets it.
“So you do have a sense of humor,” John crowed with glee and the look in his eyes sent shivers down Eden’s spine.
“Shove off.”
Eden took the disfigured cupcakes from John’s hands and placed them with the rest of the cupcakes.
“Come on, let’s go inside,” they say, walking in to get to their first class.
The anticipation for the party was high and increased for every class that passed. Lunch arrived and, with it, the start of Eden’s problems of the day. Eden had wondered in the middle of his 2nd period class what John had put in his cupcakes. Realizing they never asked, which was ridiculous now, had churned their stomach. John was unpredictable on the best of days and had no limitations on what was deemed okay for a joke.
“John!” Eden called out over the chatter of the cafeteria. With a quick jog, Eden reached the other boy’s usual spot for lunch.
“Hey, what did you put in your cupcakes again?” they asked.
John raised his eyebrows, clearly unimpressed by their late question.
“Soap, why?”
“You’re kidding,” they gasped. “Non-toxic, right?” Eden prayed to all deities they knew that John had used some precaution, but their hopes died pitifully at the shrug they received. Eden couldn’t help the groan that escaped from their mouth.
“What?” John says. “You said put something that tastes gross. Soap is gross.”
“Soap is toxic John!”
“And gross!”
Eden doesn’t know why they're even surprised anymore. But the problem remains: what do they do about the cupcakes? They don’t see Alby, who had them now, again before the party and they don’t know his schedule well enough to know who they could ask to warn him.
“Come on,” Eden says, getting up to head towards the exit. “We’re going to get those cupcakes.”
“But why do I need to go? You can’t do it just fine,” John protests as he shrinks in his seat away from them.
“Because you thought soap was a good idea to put in a cupcake,” Eden replies back. “Besides,” Eden continues with a smirk, holding out the phone they had just taken from the boy’s bag with a move they had seen John do many times, “If you want your phone back, you’re going to help.”
“If it weren’t me, I would be so proud.”
“Stop being a grump. Look we’re here.”
Eden and John stop just shy of the door to Alby’s class. Peering through the door’s window, Eden can see Alby in the back.
“How do we get to him?” they ask. What could they do? They don’t have Alby’s number and trying to get the boy’s attention would risk being caught by the teacher. What to do?
“Eden, stand behind the corner at the end of the hallway. Go in through the back door when the teacher leaves the room,” John orders. The boy stands and leaves, walking to the door before Eden could say anything. They could do nothing but follow John’s directions before the door opens and the teacher is turning to scold John for whatever he had done to get his attention. Seeing the opportunity presented, Eden rushes quietly to the back door, cracks open the door and slips into the room.
“Alby, where’s the cupcakes?” Eden hisses, crouching by the startled boy’s desk.
“Wait, dude, what–”
“Don’t ask! Just give it to me Alby. It’s important!” Eden pushes, glancing at the front. They don’t know how long John can distract the teacher, but they definitely didn’t want to be there to find out.
Alby hands them the bag of confections and they crawl back to the door to wait for their opportunity. When John leaves with the teacher, probably to the dean’s, Eden slips out of the room before the substitute can see them.
Eden spots John afterschool on their way to the party. They hand the bag of desserts, sans soap cupcakes and run over to the lounging boy.
“Not even going to ask what you did, just tell me you didn’t get into too much trouble,” slips front their mouth before they’ve reached him.
“Nah,” comes John’s easy reply with a smile, and Eden sighs with relief. An idea pops into their head.
“Hey do you want to come to the party?” they ask. John is surprised at the invitation. He takes several moments and contemplates them, before shaking their head.
“Can’t” he declines, “need to get going.”
“Alright,” they say, but they don’t leave just yet. It takes a second to decide, but with a nod, Eden knows what to do.
“Are you going to be at the park tomorrow morning?” Eden asks referring to the one both students fled to on their first meeting outside of school.
John nods.
“Good,” they say and with a smile, “see you tomorrow.”
Eden turns around and leaves, running to catch up to their classmates.
John stays rooted to the spot before the second rush of kids leaving the school prompts him to leave.
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
They open their eyes to darkness. No surprise. They’ve been there for longer than they can tell. It’s been too long since the last time they saw anything other than the dim flickering shadows on the cavern walls. Too long since their body could feel anything but stiff muscles, cramps, and burning pain.
Their sigh joins and blends with the echoes of drips and hisses.
“You’ve been gone for a while now,” says the strained voice beside them.
They hum in response. Even after all this time, their love’s voice was still sweet to their ears. Sweeter, especially with the hissing that has become their life.
“I’ve found something interesting,” they reply after a while.
A pause.
“I see.” The next reply takes longer.
“Did you find what you were looking for?”
They think of the signs. A smile slowly spreads on their face and they hum in acquiescence. Face cracking from long disuse of the muscles.
The End was coming.
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