Medusa guides me to her home, which she tells me is a cave.
I can hear the soft dripping of water from somewhere deeper in the cave and my footsteps echoing off the cave walls. The sound of her tail slithering against the stony ground warbles off the walls, making it sound a bit eerie.
"So tell me," Medusa begins, "who has caused you such pain?"
I stay silent for a moment, before speaking.
"My boyfriend, Achilles. Not the famous one, of course," I let out a soft, self-deprecating laugh.
"What did he do to you?" She whispers. I can feel one of the snakes in her hair brush against my cheek with what feels like affection.
I breathe in slowly, then let out a heavy sigh, then begin.
"It all started when he drank for the first time in our relationship," I whisper. "Achilles had never hit me before this. He always held me sweetly, kissed me tenderly. He was so kind, until he got drunk. I...I don't even remember what I said to him, but he threw my favorite vase at my head, shattering it."
I pause, remembering the feeling of the shards slicing my face. I unconsciously touch the largest scar on my face, which crosses from just below my right eye to the left of my chin. I swallow hard, remembering the gasps from the women of the village when they saw me after that.
A soft squeeze of my shoulder brings me quickly back from my memories.
"Th-thank you," I whisper, setting my hand over hers.
YOU ARE READING
New Beginnings
Short StoryIt's modern Greece. Our main character awakens to find themself blinded after being abused. This is the last straw as they find themself running away to look for a safer place to live. Where will they go? Will they be safe? A Medusa inspired story
