"You like her eh?" His voice was gruff and harsh giving the sensation of sandpaper scratching the inside of my ear.

I turned. His face clear and smooth, unblemished. He wore a plain blue shirt, two buttons undone, cream trousers and jacket and a little red handkerchief protruding from his breast pocket. I couldn't believe his voice, one that sounded like it belonged to a geriatric ex-coal miner, had come from someone so youthful and polished.

"I love her." I whispered as my eyes shifted back across to the bar. "I've always loved her."

She wore a tight dress, one that showed every curve beautifully. Her curled brown hair cascaded effortlessly over her shoulders. She had a cute button nose and porcelain clear skin, and the deepest, pale blue eyes you can imagine.

"Yeah I think I love her too." The man whispered in my ear, then licking his lips.

"It's not like that, I've known her since we were little."

The man sat next to me quite uninvited.

"I'm Coop, or Cooper, take your pick." He extended his hand, I shook it reluctantly, I didn't know this man and I didn't think I wanted to.

"Vance."

"Cool name, don't hear that very often."

I didn't reply, I hated my name, always had, what child is called Vance? It couldn't even be shortened. Cooper leaned in, whispering in my ear. "Listen Vance, that girl, I can make her yours, you just need to ask."

"If only. She has the pick of all the guys, she's not interested in me. I'm small, scrawny and broke. Look at her she's stunning."

Cooper leaned back in the seat, a sadistic smile stretching across his face.

"But I've got a golden arrow!" He winked at me.

"I'm sorry?" It sounded like a drug, I'd heard of a lot of drugs I'd never heard of a golden arrow.

Cooper slowly reached in to the pocket on the inside of his jacket breast and pulled out a little yellow triangle in a bag.

"She can be yours Vance..."

I must say a part of me was tempted, a deep corner of my being knew what it was and knew it was an opportunity to get closer to her than I had ever been, will ever be. He smiled at me, swinging the plastic bag slowly back and forth, suspended between his middle and forefinger. He did not break his gaze with me.

"I can't do that to her." I said, my gaze still fixed on the bag, the room around me seemed to have frozen. "I love her,"

"Now Vance, don't be silly, there's no such thing as love. Sure, when I was younger I believed in love too, preached it even. I soon learned that it was just lust, desire in it's rawest form." He had his arm around me. I was still fixated on the little bag. "Just take the fucking arrow and put it in her fucking drink, Okay sweet cheeks?"

He dropped the bag on the table in front of me, stood up and left. I reached out and picked it up. I find it difficult to express the sensation of power I felt as I held it in my palm. She could finally be mine, if just for one night. My thoughts had begun to sound like Cooper's coarse voice.

I rose from my seat and walked over to Penny as she stood by the bar, surrounded by guys from the local rugby team.

"Vance, so glad you made it." She said to me, "Hey guys have you met Vance? He's my friend, I've known him since, like, well forever."

The men all seemed laugh under their breath and shook their heads. Normally I'd be intimidated by guys like this but I knew I had something they didn't, I had my golden arrow, my way in.

I slowly reached around her back to where her drink sat on the side of the bar, clutching the pill in my palm.

"You okay Vance? You had a few too many to drink?" She laughed as I desperately tried to demonstrate some confidence to get my arm around her.

"Mate give it up, you ooze desperation." One of the 'larger' lads who clearly had no chance either blurted out at me.

"Shut it Tom you fat prick." Penny confronted him, my hand edging ever closer to her drink. "What is your problem? He's a decent guy, more than I can say for you. Sorry about him Vance."

And with that I froze, remembering why I was in love with Penny, it wasn't just her looks. Adolescence had made those a distinctive feature, it wasn't even the shared history. No it was the fact that although she spoke and acted all ditsy and coy she was actually a smart, strong willed, decent human being. My hand froze above her drink. I went to pull it back, changing my mind but it wouldn't move.

"Excuse me miss," the bartender had my wrist, "I think this young man was going to spike your drink."

If time had not froze earlier with Cooper it definitely did now, the rugby boys all stared at me, I could see the disappointment in Penny's face.

The tallest of the rugby boys grabbed me by the scruff of the neck as the others grabbed my feet and wrists. They carried me to the door of the pub. Even if I wanted to I couldn't resist, but I didn't want to, I deserved it.

They threw me out into the road, and with that two lights came towards me and I felt my body temperature drop into a deep freeze.

My eyes shut like a long, hard blink. As my lids creaked open I realised I was on my feet looking upon my demise. I stood to see the frantic rush of people from the bar as they desperately tried to resuscitate me. Not through guilt or caring but through fear of what may happen to them if I were to pass. I already knew it was too late.

I looked at my body, there lie a bow. A pure white bow, so elaborate you would have thought it made by the gods. I lifted it and examined the bow, everything had gone monotonous around me, grey, unfocused, except this beautiful white bow and it's beautiful, ornate carvings. It struck me as odd however there was no string or arrows.

I lifted it and, as any boy would with a new toy, held it as if pretending to fire. I ran my finger through the gap where the string would sit and a red flame flew forth striking the elderly bar tender in the chest. I had no idea how this worked but had to have another go and fired another red bolt at Tom. The obscenely large man met eyes with the grey haired barmaid and the two shared a secretive, flirty smile.

It struck me how much fun I could have with this. How easy it would be to make Penny fall in love with me. Who needs a golden arrow with this?

It's not a toy Vance, you must use it to save my son, save Cooper. It was not my voice that I heard, it was a beautiful voice, feminine, calming, enticing.

I must admit I was lost, overwhelmed, no idea where to start, all I knew there was a man called Cooper and I assumed I needed to shoot him with an arrow. That must be it, otherwise I'd be given a stronger weapon than one that apparently made people develop a crush on each other.

I figured the best way was to sit in the bar and wait for a desperate loner like me to arrive, wait for Cooper to make his move.

It took three weeks but finally he did. In the mean time I had entertained myself by matching up unlikely couples, having a bit of fun my new toy. I set up some of the most beautiful women with obscenely fat, acne ridden guys just to watch their faces light up with disbelief. I persistently made boys out on their 18th birthday fall deeply in love with 60 year old married women just to watch them get rejected all night. Sure it was cruel but what else could I do with my time, I was dead and they couldn't see or hear me.

They couldn't, Cooper could.

He instantly saw me, grinned a sadistic grin and approached me. I slipped the bow down the side of the seat I was sitting on so he couldn't see it. He'd instantly know the job I had if he saw it. I must admit he looked glorious, such an eminant white glow against the monotone background that had haunted me these last three weeks.

"Vancey, Vancey, Vancey, I heard you were stuck in this world." He jumped on to the seat next to me, "limbo isn't it called nowadays? wow that sucks."

"Who are you and why can I see you?" I thought if I played dumb I may be able to take him by surprise easier.

"Now Vance, don't play dumb, you recognise me. It's your buddy Cooper." He threw an arm around me and pulled me in tight, he must have looked very strange to all those in the bar that saw a guy in a white suit hugging the air, yet no one looked. "And you can see me because you're dead and I live between both worlds, the living and the dead. creepy huh?"

"I guess."

My fingers slid down the side of the sofa to where the bow lie, Cooper's eyes drifted towards my hands and the clear realisation of what was now in hand, he knew what I was going to do. He quickly stood to his feet, from his back emanated two huge, black, feathered wings. He jumped, flapping wildly, a flurry of chaos in an otherwise placid bar.

I had a grip on the bow, I reached forward, grabbed Coopers ankles as he flew. I closed my eyes as he screamed, trying to throw me off. I gripped for all I was worth, I held on until I passed out.

And then I awoke.

The room was dark, not the dark that comes from the dulling of the senses that I had experienced for the last few weeks, the dark that comes from hatred and cynicism. Cooper was face down on the floor in front of me and in the corner was a woman.She sat in a rocking chair, rocking forth and back, almost menacingly. That was until I managed to make out her posture. She was curled up, head in her knees, crying, uncontrollably.

"Are you OK?" I forced out through my bruised and battered lungs.

Her head lifted and stared at me, I froze. She looked just like Penny just strangely more hypnotic, more ageless. Her gaze quickly darted across the room to Cooper and then down to the bow that lay beside me. Her tears turned in to chuckles of joy, sheer happiness.

"I'm amazing, thank you, thank you so much!"

"What for? Where am I?"

"You've come to save me haven't you?"

"Have I? Who are you?"

"I'm Psyche...How have you not heard of me, am I not still adored?"

"I have no idea who you are, sorry."

"It doesn't matter, all that matters is you save me, shoot Cooper with his bow, let him love again."

"Who do I make him fall in love with?"

A glow came, she appeared, the face that fitted the voice. again, beautiful. Not sexy, not arousing, just beautiful. I had heard her voice before, it was that same hypnotic voice from when I found the bow.

"Vance please..."

"Who are you?" I asked.

"I'm Venus. Look Cooper, he's my son. Years ago I sent him to make Psyche marry a monster, she was so beautiful she was taking my followers from me. I told him to make her fall in love with a monster. He fell in love with her and over time has become that monster. They've both had long, horrible lives, they cannot handle immortality, and so I have a deal for you."

I couldn't speak, I was trying to process this information but it was too much, too quickly.

"All I ask is simple, use the arrow, make these fall back in love with each other, I'll make them mortal and you can take over his role, the bow will be yours, you can spend eternity with whoever you like."

Penny. My mind instantly went to Penny. She wouldn't love me after what I had tried to do, but with this bow she might. We could be together forever.

I obliged, I fired a shot at Psyche, I fired one at the still unconscious Cooper. He opened his eyes and we were back in the bar. The room around me disappeared and there Psyche and Cooper lay on the floor either side of me. They smiled. Tears of joy. They could finally die old together.

I couldn't hang around, I knew what I wanted to do. I spread my newly gained wings, they shone a brilliant white. I flew out the building and into Penny's bedroom. She lie there looking beautiful, no make up, hair in a messy bun and PJs with bunny rabbits on. I just wanted to nestle in next to her as she watched TV and fall asleep together.

I raised my bow, took aim and paused.

I had seen what had happened when Psyche was granted immortality with Cupid. He had got bitter over time, turned in to Cooper and punished his true love. I couldn't let it happen to me. I walked towards her, kissed her on the forehead and flew away, maybe I could find her true love.

But it wouldn't be with me, it wouldn't last forever.