The Reason and The Muse

Chapter 2

Damien

~~~

Damien had a dream, and he had a reason.

Her name was Vasilia, or that's what he called her. He didn't actually know her name, or who she was, or what she liked; all he knew was that every winter day for the past two years, she had come to the park and watched him figure skate, and while he skated she drew, or wrote, or did whatever it was she did in that little book of hers.

Damien never looked directly at her, but as he skated his routines, he would glance at her and watch as she sketched and looked up at him, sticking her tongue out and tilting her head to find the angle she was searching for. He loved to watch her as he mindlessly skated his different memorized sets. Vasilia had dark brown hair that fell over her shoulders from under her beanie, and her eyes were a light color that he couldn't place from so far away. She always wore the same thick jacket, and the color of her beanie and mittens changed nearly every day, always matching.

In Damien's dream, he was a world-famous skater, and everyone knew who he was and looked up to him, and in his dream, he did it all with Vasilia at his side. She was his reason; she was the one who always watched him, and in his mind, she was the only one who believed in him, though he wasn't sure if she did at all.

She never talked to him, and really, he was thankful for that because he was afraid that if she spoke to him, he would find that she wasn't the only one who believed in him and his dream, that she didn't believe in him at all, he was afraid that if they spoke, he would find that all she put into that book were little mockeries of him, like the ones everyone threw at him. So he stayed silent and simply danced for her.

For two years, ever since he had tried to ignore his dream and go to college, she had watched him. He had left to go and pursue a 'real' career like his parents wanted, but he still skated every morning, and ever since he had started, she had watched him, believing in him as he imagined it to be.

The day was Monday, the first one of December, and Damien was in his third year of law school. He silently tied on his skates and wrapped his scarf around his neck; the sun had just risen, but because of the cloud cover, it was still a dim gray, and the trees in the park were surrounded by a light fog that gave the place an ethereal feeling. Damien let out a breath, and the air blew before him in a white cloud, he loved winter because it meant that he could skate and it meant that he could see Vasilia.

He always hated the summers when he had to go home and pretend to everyone that he had long ago given up his skating. He still tried to skate when he could during the summer, but it wasn't often that he could get away with a good excuse, so he waited patiently until he could return to his frozen pond and his silent observer.

Damien stepped onto the ice and warmed himself up, skating in some little circles and practicing his backward skating. He couldn't help looking up every now and then, though, hoping that Vasilia would show up; he tried not to have any doubt of it, he knew that she had faithfully come every day for two years, why wouldn't she come now? Then, the light crunch of someone walking through the snow was heard, and he looked up to see Vasilia in her warm coat with her pencils and sketchbook, walking over and sitting on her bench. He smiled and quickly looked away, hoping she hadn't caught him watching her. Damien took a deep breath and started dancing for her.

~~~

"Where'd you go this time?" A tired voice asked as Damien tip-toed into the house with his skates hidden in his bag.

Damien stopped and looked up to see his roommate, Oliver, sitting on a stool at the kitchen counter, eating cereal. "Uhm, just for a run." He said quietly.

Oliver raised his eyebrows, chewing on a mouthful of Cheerios. "Running in this weather?" He asked disbelievingly as he swallowed.

Damien nodded, "Yeah, I like the cold air, it's refreshing," he replied with a slight smile.

"Hm," Was all Oliver responded with, shrugging and going back to eating his breakfast.

Damien sighed and went to his room to get ready for school. He wasn't sure why he kept the truth from Oliver; he was pretty sure he wouldn't care anyway, but he was still afraid that it might get to his parents that he was still skating. Or maybe Oliver was like all the kids Damien grew up with, the kind of kids that made fun of him for wanting to figure skate, calling him a 'girl' for wanting to 'ice dance.' Damien shook his head, shoving his skate bag into the closet; he didn't want those meaningless words of children to keep him from his dream. He wouldn't let them, not as long as Vasilia still watched him, at least.