Medusa

8

Lately, I've often felt like I was standing on the edge of a knife, balancing between who I had once been and who I was forced to become.

Today, though, the blade felt sharper, cutting deeper as I navigated the strange dynamics of this foreign territory.

The north side of Serpent's Bay, though less than a thirty minute drive away, felt like a different world than what I was used to.

Here, the streets buzzed with a different kind of energy, one that felt raw and unfiltered. In the south side, it felt all felt like a facade, a place where everyone parades their clean clothes but hides away their dirty laundry.

The park where Eros, Apollo, and Orion had brought me was a microcosm of this world. Kids from the once Hades High gathered, their laughter and shouts filling the air. There was a sense of camaraderie here, a bond forged in the shared experience of growing up in a place that didn't coddle its inhabitants.

As I stood with the trio, watching the ebb and flow of the crowd, mostly I just felt like an outsider. My instincts were on high alert, my body tense and ready to react.

It was the same feeling I had every time I stepped into the halls of my school, but here it was amplified by the unfamiliarity of my surroundings, and confused by the way that my defences didn't seem needed.

For now.

"You doing okay?" Eros asked, his voice cutting through my thoughts.

I glanced at him, catching the lack of sarcasm in his voice. "Yeah, just taking it all in."

He nodded, his expression not giving much away. "Have you ever been around the north side before?"

"Not really," I admitted.

Apollo grinned, his easygoing demeanor a stark contrast to the intensity I felt. "Maybe you'll see why we hate the south side so much."

Orion, seemingly the ever the calm presence, added, "give it a chance."

I nodded, though I wasn't entirely convinced. The energy of the place was intoxicating, but it also made me feel exposed, like I was under a microscope.

As the afternoon turned into evening, the park transformed. The daylight gave way to the warm glow of streetlights and the flicker of a small campfire someone had started.

The crowd thinned out, leaving behind the older teenagers who were looking for a place to unwind and let loose.

The trio seemed to move effortlessly through the changing atmosphere, their presence commanding respect and admiration from those around them. It was fascinating to watch, but it also made me feel even more like an intruder.

And it made Orion's words linger in my mind, trying to understand the meaning. Figure it out, yet?

What exactly was there to figure out?

I found myself standing alone near the edge of the park. There was a mess around me, open paint cans and wet paint brushes lay scattered on the table beside me.

Then I saw the fresh, small, child-made hand-prints that were pressed onto the cement in all different colours, making a rainbow of memories. Of innocence. They were delicate, and held a promise of naivety. They reminded me of the sweet spot.

The boys had finally stopped their lingering.
They glanced back at me occasionally, but for the most part, they seemed comfortable leaving me to my own devices.

Ella, the girl that I had been briefly introduced to, approached me with a friendly smile, her blonde curls bouncing as she moved.

She had a natural warmth about her, an easygoing presence that seemed completely strange to me. Her eyes sparkled with genuine interest, making her seem approachable in a way that was almost disarming.