watching eyes

Mary couldn’t decipher what details of the painting had immediately caught her attention, whether it was the visible grief painted on Achilles’ face or the fact that she saw Fabian’s body instead of Patroclus’. Mary was just mesmerized. She kept staring and staring, tears blinking in her eyes until a voice behind her startled her.

’Achilles was the reason he died. Some might say it was love that killed Patroclus, but it was Achilles.’’ Mary turned around and was startled as she saw a blonde-haired, fairy-like-looking girl. Her eyes were breathtaking. Clear blue with a tint of green. The girl’s ears were decorated with long, strawberry earrings, which, to Mary’s surprise, suited her. The girl, however, didn’t spare Mary even a glance, her eyes sternly focused on the painting. 

‘’You know, he could have avoided it. I don’t know how familiar you are with Greek Mythology, but I reckon you are aware of the story of Achilles and Patroclus?’’, the blond girl asked her, for the first time looking at Mary. Mary could have sworn she saw her eyes sparkle.

‘’I am indeed aware. It is most tragic. But in my opinion, it was both their fault. One cannot blame a love-blind person without blaming the other. Patroclus shouldn’t have fought. He knew he was shit. The Gods were against them. They never had a future.’’, Mary stated, turning her back to the girl and once again facing the artwork.

‘’Still, love was stronger. Love always wins in the end.’’, the mysterious girl concluded.

Mary snorted. ‘’You deem yourself to be a hopeless romantic. And you know, in the end, there never was a happy hero. In the end, love did not win. They died.’’

‘’That’s not true. Even in death, love wins. They were buried together. They never left each other’s sides. Love is such a strong feeling that cannot simply vanish through such an unremarkable event as death. We are merely bones and flesh, everything must come to an end.’’, Pandora voiced, tears collecting in her eyes.

‘’Probably says a person who has never experienced a loved one dying. It is easy to say so.’’

‘’Everyone has trauma. Bold of you to assume I am an exception.’’, Pandora said, arching an eyebrow at Mary. She didn’t seem to be angry, as most people would have been at the assumption.