CHAPTER 5 - Golden Sun and Blue Moon

CHAPTER 5 - Golden Sun and Blue Moon

"Hey, Athena, aren't you going to wait for Marcus?"

It was past five in the afternoon. The street was still bright, almost as if it had been painted with gold by the setting sun. As Clara stepped out of the Central Library, she found herself in awe of her surroundings.

From a distance, Clara looked like a child being brought to an amusement park for the first time — her innocent eyes, an expression of wonder on her face, and her lips slightly agape. Unbeknownst to her, as she marveled at her surroundings, she unwittingly captivated the attention of those around her.

"Good... afternoon?"

Suddenly, Clara heard a voice. From her side, peeking playfully from behind her, was Athena.

"Miss Athena."

Athena stood up straight, "Ah, sorry, did I startle you?"

After a brief moment, Clara nodded gently.

"Oh," Athena said before chuckling, "I was on the other side of the road when I saw you. I was about to call you, but you seemed in a trance, so I approached to greet you. I didn't mean to disturb you. Sorry again," she said, smiling.

"It's okay," Clara replied. Athena continued to gaze at her for a moment before exhaling, replacing her smile with an expression of concern.

"Are you thinking about last night?"

Clara's eyes sparkled for a moment before she shook her head.

"Then why does it seem like you're thinking about something profound?"

Clara didn't respond, but her eyes blinked several times, causing Athena to realize her own actions.

"Sigh, you might think I'm intruding. You don't need to answer."

Suddenly, Clara's lips curled upward. In Athena's eyes, the freshman gave her a sly smile. The innocent look she had just wanted to comment on disappeared. Athena halted as Clara spoke.

"The afternoon is beautiful."

"Huh?"

Clara looked at a maya bird perched on an electric post, "The surroundings are golden. Noisy but quiet. It feels good. I forgot about everything that's happening."

Athena turned her gaze from Clara to the maya, to the cars running on the road, to the people passing by who couldn't help but glance at them, and back to Clara, now bathed in the golden light of the afternoon. They had started talking earlier, but now it seemed like something had caught Athena's attention, something she hadn't noticed about herself.

After school, Athena immediately headed to her car. If someone invited her to go out, she would join, and if not, she would go straight home. Time flowed quickly on the road, so whenever she drove, she accompanied the journey with her favorite tunes and music to enjoy it. 

Athena didn't understand Clara, but as she looked at the girl now, she realized that the afternoon was not just strange but mysterious. The noise of chatter at school, the honking of car horns on the road, and the silence when she got home. How could what she was seeing can erase the noise of the chaotic surroundings?

"You're weird," Athena chuckled while shaking her head.

"I'm weird? But I just greeted you back," Clara explained, looking puzzled, "Miss Athena, don't you like this kind of scenery?"

"The road and the cars? There's no scenery there."

Clara nodded before returning her attention to the birds on the post. This time, two birds were perched. She observed them for a moment before starting to walk, and Athena quickly followed suit.

"You called me weird, Miss Athena. Before you came, I was appreciating the surroundings. Even though it's chaotic, there's still a source that we should be thankful for. I forgot about what happened last night, but you came, and you reminded me. Then you called me weird."

Athena suddenly stopped walking. Only her gaze followed the freshman. She wanted to say something, but she was at a loss for words. When she returned to reality, she hurriedly caught up with Clara and stopped her by holding her arm.

"Cla—"

Clara turned her head to look at Athena, making her stop talking. Both of them stood still in the middle of the pathwalk.

"Ahh..." Athena scanned Clara's face – arched eyebrows, pouting lips, and rosy cheeks blending with the golden afternoon. Athena couldn't discern whether Clara was angry, sulking, or making her feel guilty. It dawned on her that it might be the latter, prompting her to offer to take Clara out to eat to make amends for her actions.

"Are you going home? Let's grab a bite to eat," Athena changed the topic.

"I'm going to work."

"Ah, I see. By the way, where's your workplace? I'll drop you off."

"Are you feeling guilty?" Clara suddenly asked, surprising Athena. She grinned, catching Athena off guard.

"Yes," Athena replied, winking at Clara, "I didn't expect you to have such a strong force on making someone feel conscience."

"It's not my fault if that's what you felt. It just means you know you're wrong."

Athena stared at Clara before slowly breaking into a chuckle until she burst into laughter.

"Are you going to accept the ride or not?" Athena asked, still with a joyful expression. The sun had been shining on her for a while, but Clara only noticed it now.

When Clara bumped into Athena, she immediately felt a sense of unease for an unknown reason. Although she was nervous because she might be late on the first day of class, she could differentiate her feelings. However, even though her nerves came from different sources, they both disappeared when Athena smiled at her and assured her that it was okay to be late.

"No."

The smile faded from Athena's face. The silence returned. Athena felt the warmth she had been feeling since earlier now intensifying. Suddenly, she felt a headache coming on.

"Okay."

Clara and Athena bid farewell to each other. Clara turned to leave, and Athena remained standing on the road, gazing at Clara until she disappeared from her sight.

The journey from the Central Library to the Central District, where Clara's cafe was located, would take only five minutes by jeepney or fifteen minutes on foot. Despite the events of the previous night, Clara chose to walk, given the pleasant afternoon. Clara arrived at Cafe Martina on time. Upon entering, she noticed the crowded space. Vicky and Maan, who were serving different tables, greeted her.

"Hey, here comes the reason we're being mobbed," Vicky said with a laugh. Clara was puzzled by what she heard until she glanced around the cafe.

"Good evening," Clara greeted the customers who were looking at her. She quickly entered the staff room, where she found Emerald, who had just arrived.

"Good evening," Clara greeted.

Emerald responded with a stern look and left the room.

♦️♦️♦️

The electric kettle was already steaming, but it seemed that Athena hadn't noticed. She was in the kitchen, sitting in front of the dining table with her laptop. Her eyes were fixed on the screen, but her mind was elsewhere. She was only drawn back to reality when her cellphone rang.

"Hey, Athena!"

"Ah, yes?"

"Weren't you and Marcus supposed to go home together?"

"No."

"Ah okay... Hey Athena, is there a problem? You seem down."

"Really?" Athena reacted before she noticed the boiling water on her electric kettle. She stood up, turned it off, and said, "Nothing. I'm just thinking about something."

"Thinking about something? What's making you sound like that? Don't try to tell me nothing."

Athena laughed. She was about to make coffee, but she decided against it. She went back to the dining table and closed her laptop.

"I think I miss Marcus... God, I should meet up with him," Athena said, chuckling, "Sorry, Karina, I'll end this call. I'll call Marcus."

"You don't need to. We're here at Tipsies, and he's been waiting for you, hehe. That's why I called you, to ask you to come over."

"Oh, I see. But I don't want to drink... Tell him to come to Le Centre."

"Ah wow! Okay, okay! I'll tell him to hurry. Speed."

Athena quickly got ready. In no time, she found herself at Le Centre. Le Centre is a 5-star hotel located in the Central District, close to Central Market, and behind it is the Central Amusement Park. This place is where Athena often spends her evenings with Marcus.

Marcus was at basketball practice when he learned that Athena had gone home ahead of him. He felt a bit disappointed, thinking she would wait for him like she did during lunch, but he quickly understood. Throughout their relationship, Marcus learned that there were times when Athena wanted to be alone. It was one of the traits not easily understood by others due to Athena's outgoing nature whenever they invited her.

In Marcus's mind, that was the only thing he had to contend with from Athena's past relationships, and that's why they are still together. Because he didn't want to lose Athena, he was ready to understand her in a way he hadn't done with his previous partners. It was something he hadn't done before.

The moon outside was bright, casting its glow on Athena and Marcus, who were now lying in bed after sharing the past few hours together. Marcus, who was previously sad, was now wrapped in happiness. The pure moonlight reflected on his sturdy face.

"Karina mentioned that something seemed to be bothering you when she called... and then you asked to meet me. You should have told me earlier so I could have excused myself from practice. You know that my time is always yours," Marcus said while hugging Athena, who only had a sheet as a cover.

"I didn't realize it right away," Athena replied, looking at the large moon.

Marcus chuckled, "It's okay, that happens. The button just suddenly gets pressed. I bet you were watching porn, huh? Well, just remember to call me when it's on," Marcus said jokingly, then hugged Athena tightly. Athena shifted her attention from the moon to Marcus.

"You know I don't like to watch things like that," Athena said before sitting up, "Anyway, we should go now."

"Go?" Marcus suddenly sat up, "I thought we were sleeping here?"

"We have classes tomorrow."

"O— Okay."

At ten o'clock, the two left the hotel. Since they both had their own cars, they didn't leave together.

"Athena, take care. I love you," Marcus said while standing by the driver's seat of Athena's car.

"You too. I love you too," Athena replied before closing the window and driving away. Marcus watched her car leave.

"Am I asking for too much? At least give me a kiss before leaving," Marcus said before heading to his own car.

♦️♦️♦️

Athena drove in silence, without the usual music or tunes she was accustomed to while traveling.

When she got home after school, there was something she couldn't understand about herself. However, that thought vanished when she was with Marcus. But now, alone again, her mind started to wander. Athena briefly stopped on the side of the road. She was about to call Karina, but when she saw the time, she decided against it, thinking Karina might be asleep. She scrolled through her contacts and saw Annabelle's name. She called her. She heard the ringing, but Annabelle declined the call. Athena chuckled to herself.

"I should have had a drink," Athena muttered. She saw Marcus' car parked behind hers. She bit her lip before signaling him to go ahead. Marcus followed her instructions, and Athena started driving.

Whatever confusion Athena felt earlier disappeared, replaced by irritation. She focused on the road and the people around. The drive was quiet, the road well-lit by streetlights and the unique glow of the moon that night. Athena briefly smiled, but before she could hit the brakes, her annoyed expression returned.

Athena stopped on a road where only one streetlight illuminated the surroundings. There were still quite a few people around, but Athena couldn't comprehend why the logical thing wasn't happening with the person she stopped. Athena rolled down the window on the passenger's side.

"Why are you still here?" Athena asked, her expression furrowed.

"Miss Athena... Good evening," Clara replied, looking surprised.