Nepenthe

I met him in an abandoned library.

The abandoned library located at the edge of the town, overlooking a cliff that looks like it could collapse sometime in the near future – it was boarded up eleven years ago, so the weakening wood allowed an entrance in the back window.

The shelves were covered in dust, and so were some of the books – but they were still readable.
The rows were quiet, save my footsteps and the turning of pages.

This has been my afternoon pastime for the whole year so far.
No distracting noises from the bustling streets; no human interaction.

Only myself and the various words on the pages that never cease to paint glorious images in my mind.

And then I heard a raspy cough as I turned a yellowed page in Animal Farm.

A normal human would think to run, not to engage, correct?

Yet I found myself tightly holding the book in my hands as I slowly inched my way towards the source.

A tall man, holding a white handkerchief to his mouth as he scanned the various books with sea green eyes.
Another raspy cough followed by a small groan in pain.

“Are…Are you all right?”

He jumped back a little at the sound of my voice.

“…I didn’t think that someone would be in here.”

A moment of silence passed, broken by another raspy cough.

“Why are you even in here? This place has been abandoned for over a decade.”
“So I’ve heard.”

I dog-eared the page that I was reading before closing the book and placing it back onto the shelf.

“Why are you in here?”
I turned back towards him, giving him a small smile.

He narrowed his eyes at me – I don’t think he took too kindly to me turning his own question against him; a childish move.

Then again, I’m still a child for the most part – a child that’s lived for nineteen years so far.

Eventually, he dropped his gaze and let out a shaky breath.

“…I’m looking for a nepenthe.” – a melancholic statement intended for himself, but it was loud enough for me to overhear.

“‘Nepenthe’?”
His eyes widened a little at my response, but quickly returned back to normal.

“You do know what the word means, don’t you?”

I could answer him truthfully.
Maybe when he hears that I couldn’t afford to complete secondary school, he’ll deduce that I’m an idiot and leave me alone.

But if I lie, will he stay?

But, why would I want him to stay?
I’ve been fine on my own so far.

But…

I decided to tell him the truth, waiting for a laugh or some sort of ridicule before he leaves forever.

However, there was nothing.

He rummages through his small, black messenger bag, pulling out a worn out, burgundy journal.
He flipped through a couple of pages and stopped.

“I assume that you’re fond of reading, so here.”
He comes close, holding the journal in front of me and pointing at the aforementioned word.

{Nepenthe /nəˈpenTHē/
noun
anything inducing a pleasurable sensation of forgetfulness, especially of sorrow or trouble}

“Nepenthe…Nepenthe.”
I repeated the word.

A beautiful word, but with a definition that matches his melancholic tone.

I glanced more at the page, feeling my heart beat with excitement – more than when I read the books that decorate the shelves around us.

‘Placid’
‘Metanoia’
‘Sophrosyne’

The list goes on.

All words that I’ve never heard of before.
All with their pronunciations and definitions written neatly next to them.

“I don’t know if you were wondering, but… It’s a habit that I’ve picked up. Whenever I hear or read an interesting word that isn’t used in regular conversation, I tend to write it down, along with its definition.”

I looked back up at him, studying his features – sadness and emotional damage was etched into them.

Dark circles under his sea green eyes.
A slight pale complexion, enough to notify someone that a small illness was there.

His breathing was shaky, somewhat ragged.

Yet, he was still a beautiful sight to me.

I gently brushed my thumbs over the words written in ink, my heart beating with excitement again.

“…I want you to teach me.”

“What?”
“I want to learn every word that is in this journal, along with the new words that you find from now on. Please…”

He stared down at me for a moment, but eventually he smiled at me.

And it seemed to give his complexion some life.

I almost returned it, but it was cut short by another raspy cough.
He struggled to breathe for a moment, but soon composed himself again.

The smile was gone.

“…I’ll do it.”
“R-Really?!”

“Yes. However, you’ll have to find a word for me as well. Something that catches your interest. Holds your attention. There’s no use in teaching you if you’re only willing to receive. Nor is there any use when the words don’t have a strong meaning to you.”

I raised an eyebrow at him.

“You’ll learn the importance eventually. We’ll meet here every Saturday afternoon; that should give you plenty of time to find a word or two. And I’ll give you a word or two in return. Deal?”

I closed the journal and handed it back to him with another small smile.

“Deal!”

He takes it and puts it back into his bag.
Another, harsher cough, this time with the handkerchief over his mouth again.

“You never answered my question, if you were all right or not.”

He hesitated to answer.

“Honestly, I am not all right. However, I’ll only choose to think about it when the time comes.”

He turns to leave; another cough into the handkerchief.

“Wait…!”
He stops to turn to me; the paleness returned.

“I-I’m Victor…!”
“...Christopher. It’s nice to meet you.”

And he was gone.

His name is Christopher.
I met him in an abandoned library.

And I think that I have become his Nepenthe.