Iridescence

Chapter Five (Vanessa)

CHAPTER FIVE

VANESSA

School was kind of weird that day. For one, I suddenly had some new friends to acknowledge. I figured that's what we were now, considering a bunch of Greek Gods had just informed us we shared a destiny. I mean, what else are friends if not people walking along the same destined path, right?

Eliza, Krissy, and Faith stuck together as much as they could. When they spotted me, Krissy eagerly waved me over. I joined them in the cafeteria during lunch.

One thing I noticed we all seemed to agree on was that cafeteria food in New York City public high schools is toxic and should be avoided at all costs. Krissy was eating chips from the vending machine and had also purchased three cans of soda. Eliza was eating an egg salad sandwich. Faith had grabbed the traditional New York meal of bacon, egg, and cheese on a roll from the neighborhood bodega. I had some leftover chiwada my mom made for dinner the night before.

"Indian food?" Faith asked as she looked at my lunch.

"Yeah. My mom was born here, but her parents are from New Delhi, so she was raised making Indian food," I explained.

"What about your dad?" Krissy asked curiously.

"He was born in Mumbai and moved here as a teenager. He's back there now. My parents got divorced when I was nine. Dad was kind of an asshole. He had a really bad temper, and he hit my mom one day, so she took me and left him. He decided to go back to India and that's when I felt safe enough to tell Mom I was a girl."

"How did she take it?" Eliza asked.

"She said she figured that out when I was a toddler," I replied with a laugh. "Since she was granted full custody, she changed my name and let me live as the marvelous butterfly that I am."

"It's great that your mom supports you," Krissy replied.

"My mom's awesome. I'm really lucky to have her."

Jenna came toward us then. "Hey girls," she said with a smile. "Can I join you?"

"Of course," Eliza replied politely.

Jenna took a seat. Her lunch consisted of an apple and a protein bar. She took a bite of the apple before saying, "So... Yesterday really happened, right?"

"Considering it's today, I'd say so," Krissy replied with a grin.

"We met Greek Gods yesterday... And battled a chimera... And flew through the sky on magical  motorcycles... I wasn't dreaming." Jenna shook her head. "Alright, my life has officially gotten weird."

"Weird, but fun," Faith replied.

"At least it's interesting," I added.

"You're all coming later, right? To the woods, to meet up with Artemis?" Jenna asked.

"I'm definitely in," I replied. "I like the idea of being part of something bigger."

"I'll be there," Krissy chimed in. "And so will Eliza."

Eliza looked a little nervous, but she nodded. "I feel like we have to at least see where this is going," she replied.

"It's not like I had anything better to do today," Faith added. "Besides... I want to see Artemis again."

"You do realize she's a virgin Goddess, right? She's not interested in relationships," Krissy pointed out.

"Artemis has a well-documented hatred of men," Faith replied. "That doesn't mean she's opposed to dating girls."