The House of the Rising Sun

Chapter Twenty-Eight: The Gods and Our Destiny

Chapter Twenty-Eight: The Gods and Our Destiny

Alexander

I couldn’t believe it. Selene. It…it was…Selene. The moment I knew it was her, my heart was set on fire. A month ago you could have asked me about any girl I had known and I would have told you Aquilina was my world (she was still back in Rome). But would that be lying now? I didn’t know. Confusion set in and my stomach didn’t feel so wonderful. Ever since yesterday at the dinner…

“Alexander.”

I ignored the call.

“Alexander Helios.” It was Antony. Somewhere in the distance. Physically, we were in the house that we always stayed in when we came to Egypt. Mentally, I had no clue where I was. “Alexander Helios!”

I looked up. “Yes?”

Antony looked weary and tired as he slouched down on his bed. I was sitting on mine, just thinking. “Gods, Alexander, you have no clue how sorry I am,” he said hoarsely.

“What can be done about it now?” I asked coldly. Antony sighed.

“To you I must be the biggest hypocrite in history,” he muttered. “I tell you that you can’t associate yourself with any Egyptian girls and here I go and get the queen of Egypt pregnant.”

“Yeah, well…” I murmured in a voice that said, ‘it must be awful to be you right now, but whatever.’ I had a hard time trying to figure out if I was angry at Antony or furious.

“I just…the reason I taught you that was because I never wanted you to get in trouble. I cared about you too much.”

“But look who’s in trouble now,” I fired. “The pharaoh will pop any day now with your child and there’s nothing you can do about it.” I was cold. Antony buried his face in his palms.

“I am so sorry,” he said hoarsely.

“Aren’t we all?”

Antony sighed. I was being relentless with my anger.

“Why did you want me to come anyways? To show off the fact that you could do whatever you wanted with the queen and not get in trouble, but that I couldn’t have feelings for a woman who just happened to be Egyptian?”

Antony shook his head. “No, Alexander, it’s not like that,” he argued. “I brought you because you would be the most understanding. Because you are my friend and…” his voice trailed off. I sighed.

“Well what do you want me to do?” I asked quietly.

“Forgive me.”

I clenched my jaw. “For what, exactly? Because I don’t know if I can forgive you for taking me away from someone I loved, whether I still love her or not. I was hurt for the longest time.”

Antony ran his fingers through his hair. “Then if not for that, then for being such a hypocrite,” he said. “I don’t deserve your forgiveness, but I’m asking anyways.”

I was quiet, reflecting upon his words. Antony didn’t speak either, and I figured he thought I gave up on him. To be honest, I wasn’t sure if I could forgive him. But right in front of me sat a broken man about to be a father. He hadn’t planned it, but now he could not do anything about it.

“I forgive you,” I whispered. Antony looked up and his eyes were misty. “I forgive you,” I said with a little more strength.

“Gods, Alexander, thank you. Thank you so much,” he whispered.