The House of the Rising Sun

Chapter Twenty-Six: The Good Men Fall

Chapter Twenty-Six: The Good Men Fall

Alexander

Aquilina and I came out of the theater laughing so hard we were both crying and stumbling over our feet.

“Oh, good Vesta, that was the best play I’ve ever seen!” Aquilina exclaimed.

“I’m telling you, I’ve never heard of a better playwright than Terence!” I laughed. “His comedies are the best!”

“I loved Andria. It was the best comedy ever.”

“We should definitely do this again, Aquilina,” I grinned. “I’ve never had so much fun!”

Politics were beginning to get nasty. Octavian and Antony argued more often and any meetings we had were tense and awkward. Antony had gone to Egypt last winter to get Cleopatra on his side (but knowing Cleopatra she had something to gain), and Octavian was furious. Antony wanted to escape the tensions of Rome, so he spent the winter in Egypt. He had since come back, but the tension was awful. That’s why I decided to take a night for myself. I turned it into a date night for Aquilina and I, and I had taken her to the theater to go see Andria.

“And the genius behind the play!” Aquilina gasped. We were walking hand in hand, our fingers intertwined. “Terence was only nineteen when he wrote that.”

“A prodigy,” I stated. “Gods, that play was hilarious!”

“Comedies are always the best, Alexander. They always manage to make you laugh and take away your troubles for the while.”

I nodded. “That is very true. Speaking of which, thank you so much for joining me.”

Aquilina smiled a graceful smile. “Thank you for inviting me,” she said. She looked nice tonight, with a royal blue pleated dress and silver jewelry. Her gray-green eyes glowed with the light of the moon. She had her curly brown hair down, reaching to the middle of her back, and she had a strand of pearls woven into a braid.

“Would you like to come home and have a glass of wine with me?” I offered. Aquilina smiled.

“I’d be delighted.” She squeezed my hand looked up at me. I had a surprise for her.

I took her to my house, which wasn’t too far, and I opened the door for her.

“Always with the manners,” she noted with a grin.

“Always. One can’t forget to be a gentleman,” I stated back. I led her into the house and closed the door behind me. We went to the kitchen, where I grabbed two goblets and filled them with diluted red wine.

“Thank you, Alexander,” she said, taking the cup. “I had a marvelous time at the theater.”

I walked over to her and kissed her cheek. “And I too.” I took a sip of my wine and offered her a seat at a small table. I sat in another seat next to her. “So what play will we go see next?”

Aquilina laughed and thought. “I don’t know. Do you want to see another comedy or would you prefer something different?”

“I don’t know…” I said, thinking. “I think I’d like to see another comedy. Life is too hard right now to watch a tragedy.”

Aquilina nodded. “I agree.” She placed her delicate hand on my shoulder. “So what play?”

“I’ve always wanted to see the Greek play Dyskolos.”

“I think Menander was a brilliant playwright as well as Terence,” said Aquilina, agreeing on my choice of play. She took a sip of the wine.

“You are so smart, Aquilina,” I commented. “I’ve never met a woman so knowledgeable about plays. You are a very unique woman.”