Revealed

by Stephanie Appadou

"Now tell me," Athena said.

  Unfortunately, Rosie then entered the room and served Eva the glass of water.

  “Thank you, Rosie!”

  "You are the most welcome. Please, take a seat at the table – dinner will be served in some seconds," Rosie replied.

  Eva and Athena sat at the table. Within seconds, Athena started to tattle, forgetting that Eva had something to tell her.

  “Though really, I have a bunch of things to tell you about! Do you know that Damon and Olivia broke up? Apparently, Olivia was cheating on him with her boss. Do you know Mr Brown? The one who was on Forbes’ last month magazine’s cover,” Athena started to blabber on and on.

  Eva preferred not to talk about her powers now as Rosie was around. So, she just listened to whatever Athena was saying. "Wait? Are you serious? Damon is such a nice and respectful guy."

  "Yes, but wealth and fame tend to be effective weapons when it comes to blinding someone’s self-consciousness. It's really sad, poor Damon," Athena remarked.

  "Yeah, poor guy," Eva added.

  "By the way, after my appointment, I've been at the orphanage. The little brothers of the late Lana were welcomed there. It was very pathetic to look at the sadness which was reflected on their faces... It's really unfortunate."

  In fact, Athena had opened an orphanage three years back, and every year, almost 100 children are registered there. Athena is well recognized for her benevolence and indisputable wisdom, and these are the characteristics for which Eva has always looked up to her.

  "I hope that these little boys get adopted by a good family soon," Eva added, "by the way, I really admire the way you care for other people."

  "Thanks, dear!"

  Rosie broke into the room and served them. Caviar, lobster and smoked pork were on the table. She then served them the red wine brought by Eva.

  “Oh! I'm famished!!” Eva said laughingly while looking at this mouth-watering menu.

  “Savour your meal”, Rosie exclaimed while leaving the room.

  "Thanks!"

  While devouring their sumptuous meal, Eva commented on Rosie’s personality by describing her as a pleasant and jolly person.

  Athena then replied, “Yes! Rosie is a very kind person; I have to agree."

  "Well, where have you met her by the way?"

  "Hum, actually she comes from a destitute family and I met her during one of my visits to the impoverished areas of the country. She was working in an association as a maid but was underpaid. So, when I got this news about such kind of labour exploitation, I decided to hire her. Anyway, now she is like part of my family. I mean I like her, and I suppose that I treat her well."

  “That’s very nice of you. You have perpetually been a good Samaritan towards people, right?”

  “Hum, yes. You know, caring for others is everybody’s common duty, but it tends to slip out of people’s mind,” Athena answered.

  Eva then added, “You are right! You are such an incredible human being, Athena! I’m fortunate to have you! ”

  Athena then added after some seconds of silence, "You know...I didn't have the chance to live in a happy family during my childhood. I lost my mom when I was still an innocent kid and I had no one to take care of me. I know how badly it hurts. That's why as long as I can, I will keep helping others because I don't want them to live such situations where they feel abandoned by the whole world." Athena could not contain herself as she remembered her hard childhood – she broke into tears.

  Eva then approached her and hugged her in order to console her – she knew that no words would be able to alleviate Athena's grief of the past.

  Athena then wiped her tears and hugged her best-friend – a sincere hug.

  Wait, a heartfelt hug? Eva suddenly sensed something bizarre emanating from Athena. Eva's startled face was noticed by Athena.

  Confused, Athena asked, “What happened? Are you all right? Oh...Is it about the thing that you wanted to tell me about earlier…?”

  Eva was seized by an eerie feeling. She then nodded and exclaimed, “No! It’s nothing, I just felt a bit dizzy…!”.

  "Are you sure?"

  "Yeah..."

  Athena carried on with her tattling about this and that.

  Eva did not hear a single word from what Athena was saying. She was completely misplaced in her psyche. She could sense the aura of Athena, her so-called 'best friend'. That was a very disappointing aura. Eva could feel an extreme degree of jealousy and hatred emanating from her. These were feelings that Eva would have qualified as impossible for Athena to have towards someone. Eva was on the edge of breaking down into tears, but she constrained herself from doing so. She acted as usual with a well-hidden resentment gnawing her soul.

  “Hey? Are you here with me?”, Athena asked while devouring her caviar.

  “Hum, yes!” Eva replied while trying to conceal her real emotions.

  “If you say so, because I felt like you were in some other universe. Are you already celebrating your honeymoon in your mind or what?” Athena asked teasingly.

  "Oh, not at all," Eva replied firmly.

  "By the way, I am glad that you found such a gentleman like Greg. You worth the best for you’re an amazing soul, my dear!"

  Despite the praises, Eva could only hear Athena's aura boasting about the fact she got a stupid girl as a best friend. That stupid girl was Eva.

  At that exact moment, Eva understood that Athena befriended her for her own behoof. Eva could hear Athena’s soul craving for fame and riches. Thanks to Eva, Athena acquired both.

  Eva knew the latter since she was fifteen, but now she has just witnessed nine years of nepotistic friendship enrolling without pity in front of her eyes. Eva tried to mask her consternation by taking a sip of wine, although she could hear her heart being broken into pieces.

  After some minutes of prattling (which seemed like an eternity for Eva), Athena proposed to Eva a visit of the newly bought apartment. Eva was reluctant, but she finally accepted as she thought that this could be an excuse for her to forget about the upsetting discovery. At first, Eva wanted to blurt the truth into Athena's face, but she was too curious and wanted to know more – so, she had not yet told Athena about her powers.

  The condo was well-furnished by the well-known interior designer, Tiffany Brooks. The most picturesque corner was surely the balcony with a panoply of beautiful flowers of different tints and shades. Both stood there for some minutes admiring the scenic view which was polluted by the wenches walking down the streets, molesting the gents passing by.

  "What a scenic view," Athena commented.

  "Hum, yeah..."

  "Let's go in," Athena then added.

  There was one more room left to be visited, but Athena ignored this one and Eva could feel that Athena was intentionally doing so. This triggered Eva's inevitable intrusiveness.

  “What about that room?” Eva asked her curiously.

  “Oh, nothing,” Athena replied in a low quivering voice.

  “What do you mean by nothing?”

  Athena grabbed Eva’s hand and tried to drive the latter away from the door. This left Eva with a more inquisitive mind. So, she pushed Athena away and abruptly opened the door.

  It was a well-adorned room, painted in pink. There was a gilded cradle with stuffed animals everywhere.

  “Oh! That’s very cute. Seems like you are very eager to welcome the baby. I mean you have always keep saying to me that you feel a great animosity towards the unborn one since he is a fruit of sin,” Eva commented.

  “What do you mean?”

  “I just mean – how come you got such a sudden change of mind... Anyway..." Eva said, looking astounded.

  Athena remained silent for some seconds and tried avoiding the subject, “I don’t want to talk about this right now… Please, Eva. You already know that it is so hard for me.”

  Eva could feel that Athena was withholding something from her, but the latter’s thoughts were not clear enough for Eva to deduce something. S
he knew that a piece was missing from this intricate puzzle. Eva suddenly imagined the worst. Only by this thought, she felt even more disappointed, but she better inquired.

  “Athena, I am really sorry… I know that this was a devastating episode of your life… I cannot even imagine what you must have gone through last year… I just really can’t forgive myself for letting Dave approach you,” Eva tried to subtly bring the matter up.

  Athena replied reluctantly, “No, you don’t have to feel sorry for anything. It’s all over now… Please, Eva… it’s not your fault! I've already told you that I've forgiven him. I was just not ready to accept that baby...”

  Athena then broke into childish tears. Eventually, Athena's words could not stand by the revelation Eva got. That was what Eva feared the most. Although Athena was crying, Eva felt neither grief nor anger coming from Athena' aura and mind – only love. Eva could clearly deduce that it was not a rape. Athena was having an affair with Dave, and the pregnancy was surely the fruit of the lack of precaution. Eva was dismayed and felt the urge to run away and convince herself that she was just living a terrible nightmare.

  However, she tried to pull herself, but she could not handle her emotions and vomited onto Athena; the vomit of grief, anger and deception.

  Athena goggled at her, trying to find out what was wrong, "Hey? Are you okay?"

  Eva was momentarily speechless.

  With a trembling voice, Athena then asked, "Wait, are you pregnant for Greg? Please, tell me, Eva."

  Eva looked at her with disgust and repugnance on her face and heart. She ran out of the apartment and got into the car. She busted into tears by realising that she had been betrayed by both Dave and her so-called sister, Athena – a person whom she thought to be innocent as a baby.

  Athena was wholly afeard by Eva’s sudden reaction. She tried to stop Eva from going away, but in vain.

  That day was a deception point in Eva’s life. She had been a victim of betrayal in its purest form. Christian was right, Eva’s perfect life was turned upside down after this revelation, but that was just the beginning of her journey.

  ∞∞∞

  Chapter 4

  Coming around

  Vertiginously opening her eyes, Eva found herself lying in Greg’s guest room. With Adonis's beauty, Greg was sitting on a velvet couch next to the bed. Eva let out a sigh of relief on seeing Greg. After the chaos which she had to face, Greg’s arms are undoubtedly the first place where she would like to find refuge. Still, Eva wondered how she ended in Greg’s guest room. The last thing she remembered, was the moment she drove away from Athena's apartment in disgust.

  Greg approached the bed while simpering, “Good morning beautiful! Are you feeling okay?”

  “Hi, yes, just a bit giddy,” Eva said. She then added, “What am I doing here?”

  “Don’t you remember anything?”

  “Remember what?” For some seconds, Eva thought that she had always been at Greg’s house and that what had happened yesterday with Athena was just a nightmare.

  “You met with an accident… The hospital called your father, but since he is abroad, he told me to take care of you. Thus, I got you here.” Greg then added, “Apparently you were going back home from Athena's apartment. I’ve telephoned her to inquire, she told me you were not feeling well and that you drove away in a hurry!”

  “Oh, yeah…”

  Inquisitive, Greg asked, “What had happened there?"

  Speechless, Eva broke into tears and threw herself in Greg’s arm. Greg was very astonished as he had never seen Eva in such a disposition. He wanted to utter some words of consolation, but he kept quiet and hugged Eva tightly. Greg could feel the devastating sadness of Eva through her massive droplets of tears. He was feeling helpless, as well as bemused.

  “Eva, please, tell me what had happened?” Greg asked once again as he was feeling distraught.

  “Athena… she… she… she…,” Eva mumbled. She was unable to contain her agony while remembering the bitter truth of her best friend.

  Angered, Greg asked, “What has she done!!?”

  Soon, Eva could feel a wave of cataclysmic anger engulfing Greg. In his eyes, a firestorm was ready to turn everything on his path into ashes. Eva knew that Greg’s love for her had no limit, he could do anything for her.

  Greg’s blood was boiling out of wrath. He was going back and forth in the room, trying to figure out what Athena could have done to her fiancée. Affrighted by Greg's reaction, Eva heart nearly fell as she had never experienced this side of her betrothed.

  “Greg, please quiet down,” Eva said calmly while grabbing Greg’s hand.

  Greg looked at her and tried to pull himself back together. He kneeled in front of Eva, who was still sitting on the bed. He then asked, “What had happened there? I'm very worried. What has she told you?”

  “I will tell you. It is quite complicated, though..."

  Greg sat next to Eva and hold her right hand between his palms, “Please, tell me…”

  Eva took in a deep breath, “It all started when I met Christian…”

  “Who is Christian?” Greg asked confusingly.

  “He is my childhood friend… I met him when I went to Cafe of Hills,” Eva started to tell Greg about her encounter with Christian. She then told Greg about the necklace, the old lady, the cashier and the powers.

  Greg looked at Eva as if he was not able to understand a single word of what Eva was saying. He speculated that Eva had some misconceptions about the reality due to her accident. However, Greg understood that Eva was inwardly stable. So, he kept quiet so as not to upset her furtherly. Greg asked how all this was related to Athena. Eva did her utmost to cope with her emotions and started to tell Greg about her discoveries – Athena’s hypocrisy and about the affair between Dave and Athena. Greg was literally shocked. He deduced that Eva was traumatised upon these discoveries, and that was the reason for which Eva’s mind was playing tricks on her and that she started to believe in superpowers. Greg felt very bad for Eva and embosomed her very tightly. Some decent droplets of tears rolled down his cheeks.

  “I know that all this seem completely impossible… I mean the powers – I was not able to believe it myself at first, but please tell me that you believe me…,” Eva said.

  “Yes, sure!” Greg asserted despite his real verdict. However, he just wanted to avoid hurting Eva. The latter was already annihilated.

  Greg was still shocked about the fact that Athena was having an affair with Dave.

  Eva rested her head on Greg’s shoulder. They remained silent like this for some minutes. Meanwhile, Greg was asking himself how he could be helpful instead of remaining idle.

  ∞∞∞

  Chapter 5

  A devoted betrothed

  The Maldives – a perfect escape from a hectic life to a romantic one. It was not a duck soup for Greg to convince Eva to fly to the Maldives. Eva just wanted to be alone and keep mourning over her fate, but Greg was so strong-willed. He craved to bring Eva’s gaiety, back. So, he thought that travelling away from home might be therapeutic for her.

  From a private jet full of roses to an underwater bungalow in the Maldives, it was undeniable that Greg was a romantic perfectionist. He planned everything meticulously, hoping to make this trip an indelible one.

  “Wow! That’s extremely wondrous!” Eva commented while roaming about the underwater bungalow.

  Colourful shoals of fishes swimming all around the see-through structure were beyond picturesque. That was just breath-taking as well as unwinding. Seeing that Eva was feeling less depressed, brought a subtle smile on Greg’s face. Eva sat on the bed and let out a sigh of relief after taking a deep breath.

  Greg approached her and bent over her. He stroked her hair and gave her a gentle forehead kiss with his hand on her cheek. Eva smiled sweetly. She felt loved and cared for – she did not need to read Greg's mind to know that the latter really loved her for it was an equivocal fact.

  “Are you feeling
better?” Greg asked.

  “Yes…”

  “Great, because we have to go to Maafushi in one hour! Thus, you better go and freshen up quickly!” Greg exclaimed proudly.

  “Maafushi? In one hour? Why?!”

  “Water sports! Maafushi is known for its sandy beaches and water sports! We can’t miss that!”

  Eva tried to cut in as if she wanted to refuse to go to for water sports, but Greg immediately turned away. Eva rolled her eyes slightly. She knew that Greg was headstrong and that arguing with him was for sure to no avail.

  She paced to the bathroom.

  After her bath, Eva went into the bedroom. Thither was a dark blue swimming costume on the bed and a piece of paper alongside. She let out a silly smile and took the letter.

  “Hey,

  May this colour accentuate your blue eyes in which stars have been dwelling since time immemorial.

  Kisses,

  Greg.”

  Meanwhile, Greg was sitting impatiently in the dining room. He countlessly glanced at his gilded Rolex. Greg started yawning, but suddenly Eva entered the dining room, leaving him grinning from ear to ear. He stood up and approached Eva.

  “How come do you always look that beautiful?” he asked teasingly.

  “Come on! Don’t attempt to make me blush!” Eva said laughingly.

  That subtle laugh, which was unseen by others was everything for him. At that exact moment, Greg knew that the Maldives was a great idea. He took Eva’s right hand and set off for Maafushi.

  The drive was not too long since Maafushi was situated about only thirty minutes away from the bungalow. The sun was at the rendezvous, and the sound of the splashing billows was so relaxing; the birds’ singing on the trees was as mellifluous as a lullaby – that was paradisiac. Greg took in the fresh air of holidays.

  Within some seconds, a hulking young man, with a fair complexion and dark brown eyes approached them with a steady gait.

  “Hello! You must be Greg, right?” the man asked.

  “Hello! Yes! I suppose you are Ronaldo.”

  “Yes.”