“Don’t you understand, Min?” his voice echoes in the quiet of the town.
A stray cat walks slowly across the street and turns to look at us. It stares at me and winks before running off.
I look back at Hunter. His hair is still wet and there is water dripping on his face though it had stopped raining a while ago.
“Do I understand?!” I scream at him, “DO I UNDERSTAND?! I understand NOTHING. I have no idea why the Earth is the way it is, or why the Gods created us! Do you think I enjoy being used as a tool for them?!”
I stand up from where we were sitting on the sidewalk across the street from City Hall. Hunter also jumps up and stands so close to me that our arms brush against each other. I flinch and try to step back a few steps but before I can, he reaches out with both hands and grabs my shoulders.
I try shrugging him off but he leans in closer and squeezes my shoulders. His hands are muscular yet slim and I feel the tension in start to leave from my back. I sigh as I feel my muscles start to relax.
“There. Are you okay now? Look, I know it’s a lot to handle but you need to stay calm. Listen,” he says and pulls me in for a hug. He cradles my head and places it on his chest.
He bends his head down and whispers, “You hear that? My heart. Do you hear it?”
I nod my head, not sure what he’s getting at.
“Yes. I hear it,” I say. I do. I do hear it. The steady drum of his heart pumping blood. It’s one of the most soothing things I’ve ever heard.
“Good. You know why I want you to hear my heart? Because I have one, and so do you.”
I look up at him, and I feel wetness sliding down my face. I taste the saltiness on my lips and realize that I am crying. I never cry.
I am glad we have our glamour. This would have been quite the sight. A young boy and girl, standing on the edge of a sidewalk, holding on to each other, clinging for their sanity, in the middle of a puddle. Completely soaked to the bone, it looks like we’ve been out here for hours, instead of just a few minutes.
He looks into my eyes and says, “We both have hearts. They both beat. We both have blood cursing through our veins. Yes, the Gods created us, but they can’t take our human side from us. Just remember, we belong to the Gods, yes, that’s the truth… But they can’t control us.”
I stare in awe at him as he finally drops his hands from my shoulders and takes a few steps back. He looks sad again.
I don’t think anyone has ever spoken out against the Gods like this. Rebelled. It’s unheard of. Maybe the reason it’s unheard of is because anyone who has talked against the Gods is dead by now. I don’t want Hunter dead. As much as I hate to admit it, I need him…
And I think he needs me.
