A P O T E L E S M A: (Latin) the influence that stars have over human destiny

Destiny is an extremely tricky thing. Some embrace it, some believe they can change it, some loathe it, but all recognize that it brings the most unexpected things.

"So, what's your name, shy boy?"

It was a Thursday afternoon, the day after I'd tried and failed to get Nova's number. But I had shown up to the cafe after school, as she'd suggested I should.

I'd been anticipating our meeting the entire day. Nova intrigued me, and I was interested in getting to know her more.

When the day was finally finished, I walked over to the café, a spring in my step. It was cloudy, though it didn't look like it would rain quite yet.

After arriving, I took a seat towards the front, at a small table for two. She was nowhere in sight, but all I had to do was wait a few minutes before she stood in front of me, smirking slightly, as if she knew something I didn't.

"Afternoon, Freemont," Nova addressed me. "What would you like to eat?"

"I was just gonna sit and do some homework, if that's ok with you. You know Freemont is my last name, right?"

"I apologize but you gotta order something to stay. And I know, but it's the only name I know you by."

"Ambrose," I quipped, smiling. "My name is Ambrose. And I guess just a strawberry milkshake then."

"Well," she shifted on her feet. "That's quite a unique name you have there, dude.  As for the milkshake, I'll have it out in a jiffy. Wouldn't want to keep you waiting." She winked before gracefully making her way away from my table and behind the counter.

My phone buzzed thrice in three second increments.

Yo, where were you after school?

Damn, I'd forgotten about my study date with Jenny. She'd been a little too preoccupied with Hunter today and I hadn't gotten to tell her I was going to be here.

I went out. I forgot, sorry. Make yourself at home. And make me some popcorn please. I'll be home soon.

She knew where the key is, she would be fine. I'd just have to suffer through her questions later.

Her response came as did my shake.

Okey dokey.

"This seat taken?" Nova gestured to the seat across from me, eyebrow raised.

"It's all yours." The chair scraped against the scuffed tile as she sat down across from me, sliding me a strawberry milkshake before sipping her own.

"Vanilla?" I took my first sip, tasting the burst of sweetness on my tongue.

She merely shrugged, a glint in her eyes. "What can I say? I'm a classic kind of girl."

My mouth curves into a lazy grin. "Then I guess I'm the kind of guy who likes classic."

Color bloomed in her cheeks, betraying her cool demeanor. "Well aren't you bold? Quite the change from the guy who could barely ask me for my number yesterday."

Now it was my turn to blush. I swallowed before quipping back. "What can I say, you do strange things to me." I threw in a big wink at the end, hoping to add comedic effect to my half true statement.

She definitely did something to me, that's for sure. I was a lot more nervous than I was letting on. 

Bingo. She laughed, a clear sound that tore through my thoughts and stopped my heart momentarily.

"So, tell me about yourself, Ambrose Freemont. What's a girl gotta do to learn more than a name?"

"Maybe if you do a handstand, I'll tell you something about me." I continued after a giggle. "But for real, what do you want to know?"

"Well," she started, leaning forward on her elbows. "I don't need your whole life story, I don't have too much time, you know. But some of the basics. Anything you think is important. I want to know who you are."

So I told her some things. I was the youngest of two, my parents were doctors, I played soccer, and liked reading. Everytime I said something, she looked like she wanted to say something, make a comment in response. But she stayed silent, patiently listening to every word I said.

If I asked about her, I was given short but satisfying answers. She was an artist, she drew and painted, though she was modest about her talent. Her music taste fluctuated depending on the day. She was interested in a lot of different genres and sounds.

She spoke about herself, but not too much.

Nova was the kind of girl who had a lot to say, her mind always churning and forming opinions. But she never spoke them, threw them out into the world. She could, if she wanted to. She had so much to share, too much to keep to herself. She was brilliant.

But she wasn't ready, she never would be.

No, the Nova that I knew was only a remnant of a girl who spoke beautiful ideas to people who couldn't hear her, wouldn't hear her.

But it only made it that much more special when she shared something with you, a piece of her mind. A taste of her soul. The stars.

I could see it in her eyes that day. She wanted to say more, longed to share her thoughts with me. But she didn't. She feared sharing the most valuable part of herself with me: her mind. A fear of being left behind, the product of too many people leaving her in just the short time she'd been alive.

She kept the conversation going, but mostly about me. She gave short but intelligent answers, hiding parts of herself, testing the waters to see if I was worth risking pain.

What she said was true, she was classic. But only in the sense that she was a one of a kind girl, a lot deeper than most girls seemed. Granted, everyone often doubts themselves and end up seeming shallower than they are because we're all just scared really.

She was one of a kind, and that's what made her classic to me. There was no one quite like her. Nova Halley Pemmington was unique in many different ways. She had an intricate mind, way of doing things. Even the way she walked, the way she talked, it was all in a completely different way than other people. The way she sipped her milkshake that day, never breaking eye contact, bright red straw directly in the center of her glossed lips.

We were only there for an hour that day. Barely enough time to even learn a little bit about each other. She had to work, she'd already stayed way over her break, and I had to get home and study with a probably furious Jenny. But we'd see each other again. I knew that for sure.

She wanted to be chased. I knew this because I left the cafe that afternoon after an hour and a strawberry milkshake and plenty of conversation with a beautiful blue eyed girl. But I also left without one crucial thing.

Her number.

This meant that unless I somehow managed to catch her at school in a hallway between classes, I had zero way of seeing her or contacting her again. My only option was to visit her again at the cafe.

She wanted to be chased, liked the attention. And who could blame her? Of course she'd make  me work for it, I had no complaints about it.

Nova was worth chasing after. She was a very complex, detailed creature, as most humans are. And I found myself quickly entangled in her world, her mind, her ways.

But I discovered something chasing her.

Nova thought she controlled the game, with cute little tricks and quirks like making me work for her phone number while conveniently only being available after school during work. She painted a picture of us, a beautiful mural, depicting herself as an innocent, unsuspecting rabbit. I was the fox, cunning yet charming in my ways. 

Little did she know that I enjoyed being the fox. And even more, rather than getting tired of the chase, I enjoyed it. It was all worth it for the day that I finally caught her. The day that Nova would become mine.

At the time, I didn't see it. It was worth it, fun, even. She was worth all of that to me.

But that's the thing about classics. They're hard to come by, beautiful, rare. You'd do anything to have them. A classic is priceless.

That's what Nova was. Priceless. And if there's anything I learned from her, it's that nothing priceless can ever be truly owned. That's part of the appeal. The chase is the most exciting part.

In the end, a classic book is just a dusty old thing worth so much no one can put an amount to it. But when you can't put a price to something, when it's worth that much, what do you do when you finally get it?

N O T E:
Wow, it's been a painfully long time since I've uploaded a chapter on here. But I've returned to writing and I'm working on this story a lot. I apologize for my unannounced hiatus.
This chapter is really short and might not make a whole bunch of sense, among needing editing but it is extremely crucial to the plot.
I hope you've enjoyed reading it and I hope to upload soon! Thank you to my readers for continuous support and love.
xxx
Jazzi