Page 1 of Dionysus
My mother’s humming in the taxi annoyed me. She had been praying the entire time we’ve been in here. I had the driver turn around because I’d left my paint supplies at home, and there was no way I would leave them behind. It was all I had.
I scrolled through my phone to see if Dio would at least text me to let me know he had gotten my letter, but there was nothing. A wave of sadness overcame me because I knew deep down, he cared for me, even just a little. When the driver stopped at my apartment, I quickly got out, rushing into the building. We had only a few hours before I was off somewhere hidden from the world.
I fumbled with my keys to put them in the door, which had slightly opened. My nerves became bad because I wasn’t sure why my door was open. I slowly entered the small space. I eyed the portrait of Dio as it stared back at me. “Hello?” I called out.
The silence of the apartment scared me.What if someone was lurking in the bathroom? Samara, get it together.I steppedinside, rushed over to the portrait, grabbed it, and the bag of supplies sitting next to it. I glanced around the place I had called home. Although this wasn’t the new beginning I was hoping for, anything would be better than this. I tried to hurry out the door when I saw something on the counter. It was an envelope with Dio’s name on it. I set the picture down and picked up the envelope. In it was a bus ticket and a letter that read:
Mars the Star,
A nigga hope you didn’t go to that Charles Manson cult. I know you probably think I don’t care, but I do. Listen, I reached out to my people, and they said you can come to Toussaint. I promise it’s better than a fucking cult. Her name is Zaria, and the number is at the bottom.
Call her!
Love,
Your Best Friend Dionysus.
A smile eased on my face.
“My sweet child, we have to go. The sun is bright, and so is your life,” I heard my mother’s voice.
I glanced up at her, then at the letter. I was afraid, but I trusted Dio. “I’m not going,” I mumbled.
“What did you say?”
“I said I’m not going.”
She smiled brightly as she stepped closer. “My sweet angel. You are of the Mighty One, now.”
I stepped back, “You are delusional. What did you let them do to you? I said I’m not going. Now leave!”
She jumped back and then bowed. When my mother glared at me this time, I saw fear in her eyes. She didn’t want to go back herself. However, she committed herself to something beyond her, and no matter how much she tried to back out, she knew she couldn’t. Without saying a word, she turned and left.I dialed thenumber on the paper and nervously waited for someone to pick up.
“Hello?” a calming woman’s voice answered.
I froze. I couldn’t say anything because I was fucking scared.
“Hello? Is this Samara?” she called out.
A piece of me loosened up. “Ye-Yes,” I mumbled.
I could hear a giggle. “Dio told me about you. Are you coming?” she asked. I then heard a male’s voice. “Z, who are you inviting? You know—”
“Baby, stop. We’ll talk. Samara, we’ll be waiting on you,” she told me.
“Ok.”
I quickly hung up and glanced at the ticket. I snatched up my picture and bag and left out the door. When I got outside, the taxi was still waiting for me, but my mother was nowhere to be found. The driver rolled the window down. “She said, take you where you have to go.”
I glanced up and down the block but saw nothing. A part of me felt sad, knowing I would never see her again, but the other part was happy that, for once, she did something kind for me. I got in and gave the driver directions. The drive was about thirty minutes when we pulled up to Dio’s condo. I told the taxi driver to wait. I hoped that Dio would choose to go back with me. New York hadn’t been kind to him. It swallowed him up so badly that he was losing his mind. I rushed inside the building, straight to the elevator. Once I reached his floor, I ran down the hall to his door.
I softly knocked, but there was no answer. This time, I knocked harder. “Dio, it’s me, Mars!” I called out.
I paced back and forth and waited for him to answer. I knocked again, “Dionysus, answer the door. I got your ticket. Come on, Dio damnit!”
He had to have left, there was no way that he would ignore me. Then I thought about Bianca. He was probably with her. I felt defeated. I turned to leave. By the time I got downstairs and outside the taxi had left leaving my shit on the curb. “Fuck man!”
Of course, this would happen. I glance down at my phone to check the time. I needed to get to the bus station before it took off. The sun had since gone down, and the cold began creeping up. A man's hand swooped up my bag as I began picking up my things from the curb. It was Dio’s driver. A smile eased on my face because I figured Dio was inside the SUV.
