I’m going down to get some ice cream from the kitchen: if a bandage
Very creamy Häagen-Dazs is probably not enough to patch up my
broken heart, it can help ease the pain. I take a jar out of the freezer and prop it in the crook of my elbow to grab a spoon, but I drop it when I hear a voice behind me.
How touching, Ever. Lovely, really.
I lean over to massage my toes, where a large tub of vanilla ice cream with chocolate-coated almonds has just been crushed, and when I raise my head I see Drina dressed to the nines, legs crossed, hands clasped on her hands. knees, a real little doll, sitting at the breakfast counter.
It was so cute to call Damen after imagining
this chaste little love scene in your head, she hisses at me
looking from head to toe. But yes, I can still read you. Your psychic shield? Thinner than the Shroud of Turin, I have some
fear. Anyway, as for you and Damen, and your “they lived happily ever after until the end of time and beyond”, you know that
I can’t let this happen. It turns out that my life’s purpose has been to destroy you, and take my word for it, I’m still capable of it.
I don’t take my eyes off her and concentrate, continuing to breathe slowly and evenly, trying to clear my head of any thoughts she might use against me. The problem is that trying to clear your head is as effective as telling
someone not to think about elephants – from then on it will be impossible for him to think of anything else.
Elephants? Do you see that? she said with a grunt
cynicism that resonates in the room. My God, what can he see in you? she adds, giving me a disdainful look. It can’t be your intellect, nor your mind, because
that I have proof that you are devoid of it. And your conception of a
love scene ? So Disney, or Harlequin, in short, distressingly banal. Ever, really, need I remind you that Damen has lived through centuries, including the sixties and s*xual liberation?
Pfft…
If it’s Damen you’re looking for, he’s not here.
My voice is hoarse, as if it hasn’t been used for days.
Drina raises her eyebrows.
Oh, but I know where it is. I always know where he is. I remind you that he is my reason for living.
You’re some kind of obsessive maniac, if I understand correctly.
It may not be very wise to provoke her, but what have I-
I to lose? She came to kill me.
Her mouth twisted in rage, she raises her hand as if to inspect her perfectly manicured nails.
No way.
Yes, well, if this is your only occupation for three hundred years, one might think that…
Six hundred, you mean, you pitiful troll, six hundred years, she corrects.
Six hundred years? Does she want to laugh?
She stands up to her full height.
You mortals are just too stupid, stupid, and so predictable, so ordinary. And yet, despite your obvious flaws, you always seem to encourage Damen to feed
the hungry, to serve humanity, to fight against poverty, to save
whales, to no longer throw papers on the ground, to sort trash, to campaign for peace in the world, to refuse drugs, alcohol,
unnecessary expenses, in short, doing one’s best to be a good guy – one altruistic quest chasing the other. And all this for what ? Do humans learn anything? The proof that no: global warming, does that remind you of anything? Yet,
who knows why, Damen and I always fall back on
our feet, even if it can take a long time to deprogram it and find the voluptuous, hedonistic boy,
greedy and selfish that I love. But believe me, this is just a minor setback, and before you can say phew, we will be masters of the world again.
She walks forward with a big smile, going around the counter with a smooth movement, like a Siamese cat.
You know, Ever, I don’t understand what you see in him. I do not
don’t talk about what all women, and even most men too, see in him. No, what I mean is that you are suffering because of him. It’s because of him that you find yourself in the worst situation, like today. If only you hadn’t survived that damn accident! It’s true ! Just when I thought I could finally rest on my laurels, when I thought you were dead and buried, Damen moves to California because, lo and behold, he brought you back to life! Pfft… You would think that after all these years I would have learned patience, but no! You really annoy me too much, and it’s not my fault, I assure you.
I refrain from reacting. I try to digest the information – could Drina be responsible for the accident?
Yes of course ! You really have to explain everything to you, it’s boring! I’m the one who scared that deer into running into your car. I knew your father was poor
sentimental bugger, ready to risk the lives of his entire family to save an animal. Mortals are so predictable! Especially honest people who strive to do well. Except in the end it was almost too easy to be really funny. But don’t be under any illusions, Ever. This time, Damen isn’t here to save you, and I won’t leave until I finish the job.
I look around the room, searching for some sort of protection. I see the knife block at the other end of the
kitchen, but I know I’ll never reach it before her. I’m not as fast as her or Damen. Well, I don’t think so, and it’s not
really not the time to try.
Oh, but please go get the knife, it won’t change anything, she sighs, looking at her diamond-encrusted watch. On the other hand, I would like to start, if you don’t mind.
Usually, I like to take my time, have a little fun, you know? But it’s Valentine’s Day today, and I’ve planned a dinner with my crush as soon as I’m done with you.
She has cloudy eyes, a tense mouth, and for the space of a moment
moment, the true darkness of his nature emerges to the surface. But it immediately fades away, giving way to breathtaking beauty,
almost unbearable.
You know that I was his true love, before you showed up, during one of your… previous reincarnations. And then you came along, and you tried to steal it from me, and ever since, it’s been the same cycle repeating itself.
As she speaks, she approaches with small, soft steps and is right under my nose before I have time to react.
I came to take it back. And let me be clear, Ever, he always comes back to me eventually.
I grab the bamboo cutting board to hit him with it
on the head, but she lunges at me with such speed that my feet come off the ground and she pins me against the fridge. There
The violence of the impact takes my breath away, and I collapse to the ground, struggling to find air. I hear my head bang with a
thud and I feel a drop of blood running into my mouth.
I don’t have time to move or make a move to
defend that Drina is on me, and slashes my clothes, my hair, my face, hissing in my ear:
Give up, Ever. Let yourself go. Go join your pretty little family, who are very eager to see you again. You are not cut out for
this life. You have nothing more to do here. I’m giving you the chance to get out.
