The Argonauts

Chapter 16 The Road to Ithaca

Chapter 16

The Road to Ithaca

"Don't wanna wait 'til she finally decides to feel it."

~The Chainsmokers~

He tossed and turned, feeling the sweat trickle down his forehead and back. Theo was unable to sleep well that night, and now that it was almost daybreak, he finally had a good reason to get up. In a rapid motion, he opened his eyes while panting hard. His vision, still a bit blurry, slowly did its job to take in the surroundings. As per usual, he was laying at the base of a tree trunk, and the day was very bright. Green, beautiful and in their bloom, all the trees his sight crashed with were scattered about, indicating that they were a good distance away from the forests.

There was a slight feeling of disorientation before his eyes fell on Arethusa who was sitting by Alekos within a circle of dirt she had made. Theo was a bit too far to really see what she was doing, but he could still make out a white color within the center of where the circle was. Deciding to approach her, he stopped midway when he noticed a small campfire that was burning a glorious-looking piece of meat.

Unintentionally, his mouth watered and his belly growled. The glossy chunk of food was getting to a good toasty texture and it dripped with its juices, making the fire sizzle every now and then.

'Man that looks good,' he thought to himself before Arethusa's voice chimed in.

She noticed his presence, and decided to address his hunger.

"That's actually for you Theo," she called out to him, while turning her head to eye him. Her snow white hair, adorned with flowers and leaves, caressed her cheeks, making her look all the more inhuman.

Even though those words made Theo happy, he refrained himself from taking the food. Serena was not present, and he suspected that she had prepared it for him. After everything that happened with Ariadne, Serena seemed to retreat within herself. He did not know what exactly was going through her head, what she thought of him now or if she even cared, and because of this, he did not know how to approach her.

'If she would only communicate with me we can at least understand each other's feelings.' With a frown and a scowl, a face that was very customary on Theo, he scoffed and spoke to Arethusa.

"Where did she go after preparing this?" he asked.

"What? Oh no, I was the one who cooked." Without turning to face him, Arethusa simply refuted his suspicions.

But Theo, unwilling to be taken for a fool, walked up to the nymph and crossed his arms over his chest as he glared at her.

"Really now? You went and cooked meat for the group, a nymph?" he said with obvious skepticism.

Arethusa, refusing to meet his gaze, decided to continue to work on her potion with the white powder that she had acquired from the Onion Queen.

"Yes." Her voice almost cracked when she said that, realizing that Theo was no idiot.

"I know nymphs only eat fruits and vegetables. I'm not an idiot, and this isn't the first time she's made me breakfast."

When that was said, Arethusa became angry. She scoffed and lifted her gaze to eye him from the position she was in.