Sequel: A Ship in Harbor is Safe ›
Status: complete
Dangerous Light
four.
“You were late this morning,” Norma Oliver’s tone is not one of anger, but curiosity, “tell Grandma about it.”
Perched on the couch, Athena looks up from her cell phone resting on her thigh to watch her grandmother sitting in the recliner. The woman's hands are not moving fast but Athena cannot decipher the motion her small, wrinkled hands make with the yarn and knitting needles. “What is there to tell?”
“You’re never late. Ever. There’s got to be a good reason.”
In an attempt to cover her smile, Athena purses her lips. Sometimes, she is convinced that her grandmother enjoys juicy gossip more than high school girls.
“See? There is something.” Norma smiles and temporarily creates more wrinkles around her eyes and mouth.
Slowly, Athena begins to shake her head and tucks a large chunk of hair behind her ear.
“Or someone.”
Smirking, Athena looks at her grandmother – the woman’s hands are still moving the knitting needles meticulously but her deep set eyes, full of a unique wisdom of sorts, are set on her granddaughter. “That’s quite the assumption, Gram.”
“It’s not an assumption when I know.”
“How do you know?” Athena smiles.
One of Norma’s thin, arched eyebrows slowly raises and her lips pull over her false teeth into a small, smug smile. “Do I look stupid, Athena?”
“Of course not,” the young blonde nearly scoffs, “I just don’t know how you know it’s a person.”
“Well,” the gray-haired woman smiles, “you pretty much just gave yourself up on that one now. But, I could see it in your eyes.”
She tucks her chin as she smiles, but lightly shakes her head. “He’s just an old friend, Gram. Nothing romantic there.”
“Oh, really?”
Athena can tell that her grandmother thinks that she is being lied to. “He and I have been friends… way too long,” she shakes her head, looking at the older woman, “you remember Jordan, don’t you?”
Norma sighs, “Jordan…?”
“Staal. He’s really tall. Really blond.”
A look of realization crosses Norma’s face, “from Thunder Bay?”
“Yeah,” Athena smiles and nods. “I told you that I’ve known him forever.”
Norma nods slightly, still knitting but at a slightly slower pace. It is clear that the gears in her mind are turning. “Yeah, y’all were two peas in a pod last time I was there. How’s he doing?”
“He’s a professional hockey player.” Athena nods at the look of utter shock that crosses her grandmother’s face. “Yeah. But he’s in town for the weekend. I saw him last night… it was nice.”
Slowly, Norma stops. “So, what are you doing here?”
“What do you mean?” Athena laughs.
“He’s in town for the weekend, Athena. Not a month. Spend some time with him.”
Shaking her head, Athena rests her head on her right hand. How can she tell her grandmother that she was the reason that Athena is not across town right now, lounging in a five-star hotel room suite. “I don’t need to spend the weekend attached to his hip, Gram. We’re not like that anymore…”
“Why not?”
At the question, Athena looks at her grandmother. Why aren’t she and Jordan attached at the hip anymore, on the rare occasion when they actually do see one another? “It was just a naïve and childish dream, Gram. You can’t live your life with your best friend. Life gets in the way.”
“Your grandfather and I lived with one another for over sixty years, Athena.”
“Gram… You guys were a,” she pauses in thought, “different kind of best friend.” Athena scrunches her nose slightly at the thought.
Rolling her eyes, Norma stares at her granddaughter. “You’re just like your father, Athena. And, maybe it never occurred to you that maybe you need to find another best friend. One that you can spend the rest of your life with.”
“I’m never gonna find another friend like Jordan, Gram.”
With a shrug, the older woman nods. “Obviously. You’ll find someone better.”
“That’s not possible,” Athena answers under her breath with a smile.
“With that attitude it’s not. You’ll never find anyone if you hold them to the standards of another person, Athena. That’s something you need to learn while you’re young and can still find someone.”
Her thin hand remains tangled in her hair, holding her head up with her elbow on the couch’s armrest. The young woman lets her grandmother’s words sink in, not moving from her position with her thin legs curled under her small frame.
“You know, maybe there’s a chance that you’ve already met that person. You just don’t know it yet.”
A genuine laugh escapes Athena’s lips, “Gram, I don’t exactly live a very social life. I don’t meet people.”
“You do too meet people.”
The only response that Athena gives is a slight shrug.
“You’ll see what I mean one day, dear.”
Perched on the couch, Athena looks up from her cell phone resting on her thigh to watch her grandmother sitting in the recliner. The woman's hands are not moving fast but Athena cannot decipher the motion her small, wrinkled hands make with the yarn and knitting needles. “What is there to tell?”
“You’re never late. Ever. There’s got to be a good reason.”
In an attempt to cover her smile, Athena purses her lips. Sometimes, she is convinced that her grandmother enjoys juicy gossip more than high school girls.
“See? There is something.” Norma smiles and temporarily creates more wrinkles around her eyes and mouth.
Slowly, Athena begins to shake her head and tucks a large chunk of hair behind her ear.
“Or someone.”
Smirking, Athena looks at her grandmother – the woman’s hands are still moving the knitting needles meticulously but her deep set eyes, full of a unique wisdom of sorts, are set on her granddaughter. “That’s quite the assumption, Gram.”
“It’s not an assumption when I know.”
“How do you know?” Athena smiles.
One of Norma’s thin, arched eyebrows slowly raises and her lips pull over her false teeth into a small, smug smile. “Do I look stupid, Athena?”
“Of course not,” the young blonde nearly scoffs, “I just don’t know how you know it’s a person.”
“Well,” the gray-haired woman smiles, “you pretty much just gave yourself up on that one now. But, I could see it in your eyes.”
She tucks her chin as she smiles, but lightly shakes her head. “He’s just an old friend, Gram. Nothing romantic there.”
“Oh, really?”
Athena can tell that her grandmother thinks that she is being lied to. “He and I have been friends… way too long,” she shakes her head, looking at the older woman, “you remember Jordan, don’t you?”
Norma sighs, “Jordan…?”
“Staal. He’s really tall. Really blond.”
A look of realization crosses Norma’s face, “from Thunder Bay?”
“Yeah,” Athena smiles and nods. “I told you that I’ve known him forever.”
Norma nods slightly, still knitting but at a slightly slower pace. It is clear that the gears in her mind are turning. “Yeah, y’all were two peas in a pod last time I was there. How’s he doing?”
“He’s a professional hockey player.” Athena nods at the look of utter shock that crosses her grandmother’s face. “Yeah. But he’s in town for the weekend. I saw him last night… it was nice.”
Slowly, Norma stops. “So, what are you doing here?”
“What do you mean?” Athena laughs.
“He’s in town for the weekend, Athena. Not a month. Spend some time with him.”
Shaking her head, Athena rests her head on her right hand. How can she tell her grandmother that she was the reason that Athena is not across town right now, lounging in a five-star hotel room suite. “I don’t need to spend the weekend attached to his hip, Gram. We’re not like that anymore…”
“Why not?”
At the question, Athena looks at her grandmother. Why aren’t she and Jordan attached at the hip anymore, on the rare occasion when they actually do see one another? “It was just a naïve and childish dream, Gram. You can’t live your life with your best friend. Life gets in the way.”
“Your grandfather and I lived with one another for over sixty years, Athena.”
“Gram… You guys were a,” she pauses in thought, “different kind of best friend.” Athena scrunches her nose slightly at the thought.
Rolling her eyes, Norma stares at her granddaughter. “You’re just like your father, Athena. And, maybe it never occurred to you that maybe you need to find another best friend. One that you can spend the rest of your life with.”
“I’m never gonna find another friend like Jordan, Gram.”
With a shrug, the older woman nods. “Obviously. You’ll find someone better.”
“That’s not possible,” Athena answers under her breath with a smile.
“With that attitude it’s not. You’ll never find anyone if you hold them to the standards of another person, Athena. That’s something you need to learn while you’re young and can still find someone.”
Her thin hand remains tangled in her hair, holding her head up with her elbow on the couch’s armrest. The young woman lets her grandmother’s words sink in, not moving from her position with her thin legs curled under her small frame.
“You know, maybe there’s a chance that you’ve already met that person. You just don’t know it yet.”
A genuine laugh escapes Athena’s lips, “Gram, I don’t exactly live a very social life. I don’t meet people.”
“You do too meet people.”
The only response that Athena gives is a slight shrug.
“You’ll see what I mean one day, dear.”
The local weatherman’s report of a heat index of over one hundred and five degrees for the day is the only thing distracting Athena’s mind from the words her grandmother spoke only an hour before. Her cellphone ringing, however, pulls Athena’s mind from this distraction. Bringing the phone to her ear, she lets out a heavy breath. “Hello?”
“What in God’s name are you doing?”
A rather large, amused, smile pulls on Athena’s lips and a chuckle escapes them. “What does it sound like I’m doing?”
“You really want me to answer that?”
Scoffing and shaking her head, Athena grabs for her towel and dabs her face. “You pervert. I’m riding a stationary bike. What are you doing?”
The noise in the background, no doubt a ton of people, is painfully obvious. “I’m layin’ out by the pool. You should come over and join me.”
Athena looks around like the few other patrons in the apartment complex’s gym, who are all in their zone, can help her make the decision. “I’d have to go home and shower because I am sweating balls right now…”
“Just go home and grab a bathing suit and come to the hotel. You can change up in the room. C’mon, you know you wanna.”
Sighing, Athena begins to slow down her pace. “Fine. Give me, like, thirty minutes and I’ll be there, alright?”
Jordan chuckles, “I guess I can wait a half hour.”
Not bothering to do a five-minute cool down, Athena slowly pulls herself off of the bike. “Well, you’re gonna have to. Should I just go up to the room then?”
“Yeah,” Jordan pauses, “I’ll probably head up there in a few to wait for you anyway.”
Athena nods as she puts her hand on the heavy exit door closest to the general direction of her apartment building. As soon as the door opens, she gets the urge to groan as the maliciously hot air hits her face, engulfing her entire body as she steps out into it. She nods and quickly puts her sunglasses on, feeling her pores open slightly. “Yeah, I’ll see you when I get there, alright?”
“Okay.”
Quickly ending the phone call, Athena shakes her head as her feet carry her toward the building in which she resides as quickly as they can, without speeding above a brisk walk. She tells herself it is to get her already warmed up body out of the heat, ignoring the excitement in the back of her mind.
“What in God’s name are you doing?”
A rather large, amused, smile pulls on Athena’s lips and a chuckle escapes them. “What does it sound like I’m doing?”
“You really want me to answer that?”
Scoffing and shaking her head, Athena grabs for her towel and dabs her face. “You pervert. I’m riding a stationary bike. What are you doing?”
The noise in the background, no doubt a ton of people, is painfully obvious. “I’m layin’ out by the pool. You should come over and join me.”
Athena looks around like the few other patrons in the apartment complex’s gym, who are all in their zone, can help her make the decision. “I’d have to go home and shower because I am sweating balls right now…”
“Just go home and grab a bathing suit and come to the hotel. You can change up in the room. C’mon, you know you wanna.”
Sighing, Athena begins to slow down her pace. “Fine. Give me, like, thirty minutes and I’ll be there, alright?”
Jordan chuckles, “I guess I can wait a half hour.”
Not bothering to do a five-minute cool down, Athena slowly pulls herself off of the bike. “Well, you’re gonna have to. Should I just go up to the room then?”
“Yeah,” Jordan pauses, “I’ll probably head up there in a few to wait for you anyway.”
Athena nods as she puts her hand on the heavy exit door closest to the general direction of her apartment building. As soon as the door opens, she gets the urge to groan as the maliciously hot air hits her face, engulfing her entire body as she steps out into it. She nods and quickly puts her sunglasses on, feeling her pores open slightly. “Yeah, I’ll see you when I get there, alright?”
“Okay.”
Quickly ending the phone call, Athena shakes her head as her feet carry her toward the building in which she resides as quickly as they can, without speeding above a brisk walk. She tells herself it is to get her already warmed up body out of the heat, ignoring the excitement in the back of her mind.
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I'm sorry that I took so long to get this out, but I hope you all like it.A lot of things came up in my life that needed some assessing, but I'm pretty sure that I am back. :)