16 AUSTIN? YES, THAT’S HIS NAME!

***

“Austin!” Andrew was calling his name.

After comforting her, Vanessa pushed him away. Without any prior knowledge about what happened, he just walked to visit Austin and his purpose of visiting him. However, his purpose shifted when she saw Vanessa crying on the hallway. He began knocking the door and calling his name. After few attempts, a girl was walking out from his apartment. When he saw the girl, without any explanation, Andrew grasped the whole thing and why he found Vanessa weeping.

He went inside and Austin was still naked. Andrew began telling that she saw Vanessa on the hallway crying. Then, he went on to the point of her seeing them having sex. Austin was quiet and Andrew took that as an answer to his question.

“Do you like her bro?” He seriously asked.

Andrew asked him again but Austin was too silent as if he were a man without a soul. He was not even moving, he was trying to organize his thoughts, he was trying to ponder the fact why he was massively affected when Vanessa walked away. When Andrew posted the same question for the third time, he eventually replied.

“I don’t know bro! I really don’t know!”

Andrew began preaching. He mentioned that if he was not serious enough to any girl, it would be better to stay single. At that moment, Andrew was protecting Vanessa and even disclosed the reason why Vanessa paid a visit to his apartment. He said that Vanessa came to tell her feelings towards Austin. Vanessa fell in love with Austin.

“You won Austin! You won! This is what you like right? This is what you were planning for. To make that girl fall in love with you and it happened. Now, tell me Austin. Are you happy?”

Andrew left him without even hearing his answer to the question. Austin was entirely thinking about what Andrew said. He was thinking if he was happy after he knew that Vanessa was into him. He was trying to organize his thoughts and to stay with this feeling. Austin was still unsure if he has feeling for the girl but he couldn’t deny the fact that he was so badly sad at that moment.

When he woke up the following day, he went back to the situation where Andrew came to his apartment and started asking him questions. He was still searching his heart if he had cultivated feeling for her. Then, he took his phone and tried to call the girl. He kept on calling her but his calls were declined by her until he wasn’t able to contact her.

He tried to call Krist and he asked his help.

“Hello Krist!”

***

“So, do you like him?” Angeli asked.

“I hate him before.” Vanessa answered,

Then, Vanessa went on to elaborate the entire scenario to her mother. She said that he was a playboy and a cheater. Most girls were into him because of his looks, he was varsity player and even the king of the university. She said that Austin was using his charm and appeal to make everyone fall in love with him and after getting what he wants, he used to leave the girls at once.

“I began chasing him because I hate him. I really want to drag him down. I tried to gather information and fact about him regarding his past relationship and I was correct. He was an asshole. Ma, he couldn’t even try to stay in the relationship for a month and you know, my friend, Mitch was a victim. After they had sex, guess what? He left her! One day, I don’t know, but maybe I was the next girl on the list. He tried to chase after me. We texted, he was calling me every night, he was even bringing me iced coffee, he was visiting me in the school publication office and brought snack. He also knew my favorite novels and even bought fries and sodas on the first night of our deal.” Vanessa explained.

“Deal?” her mom asked.

“Yes ma, deal. We had a deal. If he would be able to change his behavior for a month, I would allow him to be part of my life. Until one day, one day I found myself falling in love with him. I asked Krist to help me, I wanted to disclose my feelings towards him so we could stop the deal and enter to a serious relationship. I went to his apartment, the door was opened, I gradually came in and suddenly I saw him. I saw him having sex with another girl.” She added.

Vanessa burst into tears again while she was trying to recall the moments that she had with Austin and that night that changes everything. Her heart was full of hatred and vengeance. She wanted to do something for him in return. She wanted to do that in behalf of all the girls she hurt. She was willing to do something in order for that guy to be punished.

“We need the Goddess of Love.” Angeli mentioned.

“Ma, who?”

Angeli was eager to help her daughter about her present quandary. She also determined to pass the book of curse to her to call the Goddess of love. It was the same book and the same god she called when her husband cheated on her repeatedly. To give that man a lesson was her motivation to let her daughter know about it. She mentioned that later tonight, they’ll be calling the Goddess of love, so it would be better to prepare herself.

Petrified as it may sound, Vanessa took the risk because she was already decided taking revenge towards Austin. She knew that someone like him needed to be cursed. She was sure and certain that Austin needs a punishment for hurting girls. The time had come that the girls he hurt would rejoice!

***

“Where are you bro?” Rick called.

“I am on my way to Vanessa’s house” Austin answered.

“What the hell will you be doing on Vanessa’s house?”

“It’s a long story bro. I get back to you later.”

Austin asked a huge help to Krist. He asked him to drive his way to Vanessa’s hometown. Austin was still unsure of his feeling but he felt that he needed to explain something to Vanessa, reason why he had to meet her face to face. Krist with his never-say-never attitude followed Austin’s request undoubtedly. Krist tried to call his friend, Vanessa but her phone was off that’s why he wasn’t able to inform her about the action taken by Austin.

“Sorry Krist for asking you this kind of help.”

“It’s fine.”

***

9:00 in the evening, it was already time for them to start calling out the Goddess of Love. Angeli took the book and asked her daughter to stay in the bed. Angeli turned off the light and began lighting the candles. She read the page where the Goddess of Love’s sacred ritual words is located. She started reading it aloud and Vanessa closed her yes. The tension was rising and the temperature in the room changed abruptly. Angeli repeated the words until Vanessa felt unconscious. When she saw her daughter lying on the bed, she even started shouting the words from the book.

“Ξυπνήστε το καλό της αγάπης Xypníste to kaló tis agápis!”