[Ajax POV]
The moment I slid into the passenger seat of Percy's new car, I regretted everything.
Not just agreeing to cover Wednesday's shift. Not just letting Enid talk me into this "totally platonic" outing. No. I regretted existing in general, because if there's a hell designed specifically for me, it probably looks exactly like this: trapped inside a rusted car, with a pastel werewolf at the steering wheel and a speedometer that I prayed was broken.
Enid hummed happily, hands clamped around the steering wheel like she was in a driving simulator. Which, honestly, would've been safer, because then at least when she crashed we could just restart the game instead of becoming meat paste on Jericho's asphalt.
I tried to distract myself by staring out the window, pretending the blurry trees weren't vibrating past faster than physics should allow. That's when I saw it: a big white shield-shaped sign on the roadside, neat black letters spelling out SPEED LIMIT 50.
Fifty... That seemed reasonable.
Then I looked down at the speedometer.
One hundred and four.
Which meant we were doubling the limit... good to know.
I gripped the seat so tight my knuckles went white. Whoever's listening, please don't let me die like this. I refuse to end my life in a car crash with Taylor Swift's evil twin humming along to the radio.
"Relax," Enid chirped, swerving around a cyclist that had the audacity to exist. "I'm a natural at this!"
We hit a pothole so hard one of my snakes hissed in protest. My head smacked the window. "Yeah. Natural at vehicular homicide."
She ignored me, of course. She was too busy grinning at the open road like a wolf set loose in a chicken coop.
By the time we rolled into Jericho, I was already halfway to writing my will in my head. Step one: leave all my comic books to myself in the afterlife. Step two: donate my snakes to a sanctuary, preferably one far away from Wednesday so she doesn't "experiment" on them.
Enid slammed the brakes with the enthusiasm of a warlord conquering a city. The car squealed, tires smoking, and I swear I saw my soul float out of my body again before it reluctantly snapped back inside like a rubber band.
"Made it!" she announced proudly.
"Yeah," I muttered, clutching the dashboard.
She beamed at me like I was overreacting. Then, as if the universe hadn't already cursed me enough, she added cheerfully, "We're going to the arcade! Last time I went with Percy and it was sooo much fun."
I forced a smile that probably looked like a grimace. "Sure. But first… parking." I pointed desperately at a blessedly empty space just ahead. "There, take it… Please."
"Okay!" She yanked the wheel, eyes shining with confidence. Where do you have all this confidence?
The car lurched sideways, nosed into the spot, and then — crunch.
I closed my eyes and prayed.
Metal groaned as she scraped the side of a pristine sedan, leaving a long, jagged scar of peeled paint.
Enid froze, gripping the wheel. "Uh… do you think Percy will notice?"
I opened the door slowly and stepped out. One look at the damage, the deep silver wound etched across the car and I whispered the only word my soul could muster.
"…No."
Enid hopped out, looked at the scrape, then looked at me. "It adds character," she said brightly.
"Yeah," I muttered, staring at the dent.
Percy had literally just bought this Nissan Skyline ER34 GT-T last week, because the last one got wrecked by Wednesday.
Honestly, the guy's some kind of saint. When we saw what was left of his Fiat Panda after Wednesday drove it, everyone was like: how the hell are you not furious?
He just shrugged. That car didn't fit Wednesday's driving style. I'll buy a cheap one that does.
How much pocket money does this guy get? And why isn't the rest of us on that allowance plan?
Meanwhile, Enid didn't seem the least bit worried that she'd just carved a racing stripe into Percy's car.
She just shrugged and walked toward the arcade before I could thank whoever listened to my prayers and let me survive.
The arcade was loud. Blinding lights, machines flashing like slot machines on cocaine, kids screaming over who got the last turn at the zombie shooter.
Enid thrived in it.
She bounced from game to game like a glittery pinball, dragging me along. Skeeball, air hockey, Dance Dance Revolution. She demolished me in every single one. At one point, she was spinning in the middle of the dance platform, hair flying like a golden whip under neon lights, laughter bursting out of her like it couldn't be contained.
And I caught myself staring.
Not in the "wow, she's my friend's girlfriend, I better look away" kind of way. More in the "oh fuck, she's gorgeous and I'm doomed" kind of way.
She laughed, breathless and glowing, her cheeks flushed from the game. For once, her energy didn't feel like overcompensation. It felt… real. Untamed. Wild in the way it was always meant to be.
And me? I forgot to breathe for a moment.
By the time we stumbled out of the arcade with bags of useless plastic prizes, I had lost count of how many times I almost let myself get hypnotized by her smile.
Which is probably why I didn't see the guy until he slammed straight into me.
I started, stumbling sideways. My body lurched into Enid's, closer than it ever should have. My lips were inches from hers, her breath ghosting across my mouth.
Her eyes widened. For one horrifying, exhilarating second, it felt like I was about to kiss her.
Then her hand shot up, covering her mouth, and the other hand snapped into claws, already poking into my stomach like a warning blade.
The guy who bumped me, some normie with messy hair and a cheap hoodie, froze.
"Uh… sorry," he stammered, fumbling with a stack of arcade tickets. He shoved them into my chest, muttered another apology, and bolted away.
I looked down at the tickets in my hands. "Cool! Free skeeball."
Enid rolled her eyes and walked away.
The drive back to Nevermore was only slightly less traumatic than the first. Which meant we were still one pothole away from meeting whatever afterlife committee was waiting for me. By some miracle, we made it through the gates alive.
By the time we got back to campus, I spotted the red-haired teacher Thornhill pacing the dorm courtyard like a guard dog. One look at her heels clicking across the stones, and I knew if she caught me sneaking after the curfews, I'd be dead meat.
I slowed, glanced at Enid, and muttered, "Uh… can I crash in your room tonight? She is wandering around the boys dorm and I'm not in the mood for detention."
Enid barely blinked. She just smiled, all casual. "Sure. Wednesday's out with Percy anyway."
Relief hit me. "Thanks."
Inside her dorm, she rummaged in the closet, humming some pop tune. A moment later, she pulled out an inflatable mattress and tossed it at me. "Here. You can sleep on this."
I caught it, unimpressed. "Really? Can't I just take Wednesday's bed?"
Her eyes narrowed instantly. "No."
I raised both hands. "Fine."
I set it up, flopped down, and the plastic squeaked like it was mocking me. I stared at the ceiling, wondering if it might collapse and save me the embarrassment of existing.
Enid disappeared into the bathroom, and when she came back, she was wearing an oversized green pullover that hung off her frame. The sleeves swallowed her hands, the hem brushed her thighs, and I realized I'd seen that sweater before.
I squinted. "Wait. Isn't that… Percy's?"
She tugged it tighter around herself, burying her nose in the fabric. "Yeah. It still smells like him."
"Oh," I muttered, rolling onto my back.
She flopped onto her bed, lying on her stomach, kicking her legs. Then she turned her head toward me, grinning. "So, Ajax… when are you finally going to tell me which boy you like?"
I groaned, dragging my hands over my face. "I don't like boys."
"Yeah, sure," she sing-songed, smirking. "I've never seen you trying with a girl. Not once."
"Because the girl I like is already taken," I muttered before my brain could slam the brakes.
Her grin widened, gossip mode fully activated. "Ooooh. Who? Tell me! Come on, I won't tell anyone. Is it Yoko? Divina? Oh my god, is it Bianca?!"
She wouldn't stop. With every guess, my brain whispered the same question: What if I fall?
And every time, my beating heart answered back, soft and reckless, like it wanted me to step off the edge: Oh, but my darling… what if you fly?
Finally, I snapped. "It's you!"
The words burst out like a gunshot.
Silence.
Her smile faltered, cracked, and then vanished completely. Her voice came out calm, quiet, final. "I love Percy."
She rolled onto her side, pulling Percy's sweater tighter around her, and whispered, "Night."
And just like that, she was gone.
I lay on the inflatable coffin, staring at the ceiling, my brain screaming in every language it knew. What the fuck did you just say? Why would you listen to your heart? Since when do you have a crush on her? Why couldn't you just keep your mouth shut?
Because I'm an idiot, that's why.
A few hours of her laughing, pulling me from game to game and my heart decided that's enough reason to fall. Like I'd never learned the difference between fun and love. Like I was just waiting for an excuse to ruin everything.
I buried my face in the squeaky mattress, groaning into the plastic.
Congratulations, Ajax. You survived Uriah's Heap and Perseus. You survived Enid's driving.
But your own heart? That's the weapon that's going to kill you.
************
Author Note:
The next chapter is a masterpiece and until now, only one of the published ones felt that way to me.
So yeah, with this new info… have fun waiting two days. Hehehe
Good morning, and in case I don't see ya, good afternoon, good evening, and good night!