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.Then again, I do have powers.I growl.I need a distraction.Obviously there are no books in here, not in 1000 BC.How is it that I, Little Miss Bookworm, didn‘t pack ajust-in-case-I-travel-through-time-and-need-distraction paperback?I lie on the bed, my arms folded against my chest, and try to figure out my next move.The Oracle said Mount Olympus was waiting for me, but now that I‘m here, it doesn‘t even seem to have noticed.If I am ―destined for one true thing,‖ as the Oracle told me, I‘d love to know what it is.Because right now it looks an awful lot like sitting around in a strange room without friends.All that talk about my destiny and my fate and the order of things, and the Oracle can‘t spare me a single hint?I‘m in the middle of a real self-pity attack when I hear door open.I sit up.Please god, let it be Zeus.―Hey, Zoe.‖―Hi, Z,‖ I say, relieved, as he appears in the doorway.―You know,‖ he says, his face reddening, ―I actually hate being called‗Z.‘‖ I smile.He likes me.―Did you get a chance to wash up?‖I stammer and try to climb off the bed but I‘m moving too fast and I almost fall.―Um, sort of.‖―Well, if you‘re busy doing that, I can come back another time.‖―No, I‘m fine.I‘m all cleaned up.‖That‘s right, Zeus.I‘m actually sort of a slob at heart.Do you still like me?―So it‘s okay if I come in?‖―Sure.‖He shuts the door and slips out of his cloak.There are those golden wings, folded away.I want to touch them but that would be rude.And I don‘t want to make him feel like a freak on our first date in Olympus.Oh no.I‘m calling it a date.―I have to admit,‖ he says, ―I‘m relieved you‘re not angry at me.‖―Why would I be angry at you?‖―Well, that wasn‘t the warmest reception out there.‖―It‘s okay.I mean, I told you how I‘m not exactly, you know, a group person.‖―It‘s not your fault, Zoe.They‘re just—I tried to warn you about them but…‖―Yeah, wow.Your friends seem really, um, attached to you.‖―We‘re just stuck up here together.You know how it is.You mentioned that you‘ve spent time away.‖Yes, Zeus, at a boarding school in Connecticut with around five hundred students and teachers.Not an unreachable palace with twelve spoiled gods and goddesses.―Look, they‘re really not as bad as they seem,‖ he says.―Are you trying to convince yourself or are you trying to convince me?‖ He looks at me and I can‘t tell if he‘s hurt or impressed.I want to tell him that it‘s simple.He‘s like the captain of the football team and his friends will never be my friends.But I can‘t even read his face.Sometimes I think his real power isn‘t those wings but the power to stop his feelings from appearing on his face.―You don‘t have to apologize for your friends,‖ I say.―I‘m not, really.Hera, she‘s just a little wary of girls.She argues with everyone.You shouldn‘t take that personally.‖―The queen bee.‖He takes this in with surprise, clearly never having heard the expression.―That‘s a good metaphor.‖―Well, you don‘t have to worry.I‘m not going to get all sad because the queen bee thinks I‘m lame.‖―She doesn‘t think you‘re lame.‖―Oh, Zeus, they all think I‘m lame.‖―That‘s not true.‖―It‘s nothing new.Really.‖―They‘ll come around.‖―I don‘t see it happening.‖He grabs my hand and says, ―I do.‖We‘ve held hands before, but it‘s different in a bedroom, a locked bedroom.I wish I had put those sandals on.His words ring in my ears, I do.―You don‘t have to say that.‖―But I mean it,‖ he says.―They don‘t know you like I know you.‖ Kiss me.Kiss me.KISS.ME.―Um, do you want me to show you around?‖ he asks.―Sure.‖As we make our way through Olympus, with its sweeping grounds and million-dollar views, I find myself wishing we were just sitting somewhere, because really, I‘d rather just be looking at him [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]