Chapter 4

RHEA

I'm a little nervous about saying yes to meeting up with Jack outside of the grief support group, but I'm also really hungry and having someone else buy me food isn't something I'm going to say no to given my limited budget.

And there's also a part of me that's kind of curious about what he wants to talk about that can't wait until next week.

I spot him hurrying towards the pub and wave in his direction, realising that even if I'm curious and a tiny bit worried, I'm also looking forward to spending some more time with him.

"Hey," he says brightly when he reaches me.

"Hi."

"So, inside and get you food before you become a grumpy gorgon?" he asks.

I laugh. "How long did it take you to come up with that one?"

"All afternoon. I went through loads of different hangry suggestions for my opener first."

"I don't get hangry," I counter. "I just don't like being hungry."

"To be fair, I don't think you're supposed to." He pushes open the door to the pub and gestures for me to head inside.

I smile at him as I pass, realising that I actually like the idea of the two of us hanging out while we're not at grief support group. I haven't been many times yet, but I can already tell that being there is helping. Or maybe time is just passing and that makes it easier. It's hard to know.

The pub is surprisingly busy considering it's only just gone five, but if they do good chips, then maybe that's why.

"We should grab a table then order. I have the app on my phone, unless you want to get the points," Jack offers.

"Nope, if you're buying, you get the points. It's only fair."

"Ah, true. What about this one?" He gestures towards a booth which is out of the way of other people and kind of private. It makes me wonder exactly what he thinks this is.

Though when I got his message, I assumed it was because he wanted to talk, and this is a better place than out in the open where everyone can overhear us.

"Looks good." I slide into the booth and make myself comfortable, rolling my shoulders. They're aching a little from carrying my stuff around all day.

Jack gets in after me and scans the QR code so he can pull up the menu. "What do you want to drink?"

"A coke. And a burger."

"What kind?"

"I don't know, what have they got?"

"Hmm, let's see...just a burger, Hawaiian, Caribbean, Everything, Fully Loaded, The Jack..."

I raise an eyebrow. "The Jack?"

"Don't believe me?" He turns his phone around so I can see the title of the burger.

"Huh, something to do with the cheese. You know what, I'm feeling adventurous, let's try the Jack."

He chuckles. "Hopefully he won't disappoint you."

"He hasn't yet," I joke.

"To be fair, it sounds pretty good," he says. "I'm going to try it too." He clicks a few times and then puts his phone face down on the table.

I study him intently, trying to work out exactly what's different about me.

"What are you thinking?" he asks.

"Just that you seem so relaxed. It's strange, you've been so on edge when we've been in the grief sessions." I don't even think about lying.

"Don't you feel more relaxed here too?"

I frown. A part of me wants to deny it, but I realise he's right. "I guess so."

"Because you didn't come here to talk about what's bothering you. When I go to the grief sessions, that's all everything is about. But here, it's different. We're having some food and chatting. We could completely ignore that either of us have lost family members if we wanted to."

"I hadn't thought about it that way. I guess every time I have a glimpse of a good time now that Granny is gone, I feel guilty."

"I know what you mean, but you're not supposed to stop living your life because you lost someone. You can be sad about them being gone, and happy about the rest, all at the same time."

"That's a lot of feelings to hold in at once."

"It is," he agrees. "But to some extent, that's what we're built to deal with."

"You're very wise about all of this."

He shrugs. "Just practised."

A bartender appears and sets two pints of coke swimming with ice down in front of us.

"Thanks," I say, reaching out for one of the glasses at the same time as Jack does. Our fingers brush against one another and I feel a tingle I don't think I've felt before.

I dismiss it. I'm just imagining things, and this isn't exactly the time to be thinking about anything like that. Not when everything is so volatile within me.

Jack clears his throat as soon as the barmaid is gone. "Okay, so I have a really weird question for you. It's actually why I asked you to meet me."

I raise an eyebrow. "How weird are we talking?"

He clears his throat and shifts in his seat. "Will you try and turn me into stone?"

I blink a few times and Hiss even slithers down onto my shoulder to see what the fuss is all about. In Jack's defence, he doesn't even flinch at the appearance of my snake, which even people who have known me for months sometimes do. "What?"

"Will you try and turn me into stone?"

"I heard," I respond. "I'm just...confused. No one's ever asked me to do that before."

"I imagine no one has needed to ask."

"Why do you need to?"

He looks around, clearly making sure that no one is listening in. "I've been having a bit of a problem accessing the gargoyle part of me."

"Aren't you all gargoyle?"

"What?"

"Well, I'm a gorgon regardless of if I'm using my magic or not." I reach up and tickle Hiss under his chin. He lets out a low hiss that I know is enjoyment and goes to make himself comfortable amidst my braids again. "So surely you're a gargoyle all the time too?"

"I suppose. But I mean I've been having difficulty turning myself into stone and using my wings. I know it doesn't sound like much of a problem, but I can feel the block."

"And you think me using my gorgon magic to turn you into stone is the solution to that?" I don't even know if that'll work.

"I have no idea."

"What if I actually turn you into gorgon-type stone and you're stuck?"

"I wait for it to wear off. It's not permanent, right?"

"No. But I don't know how long it lasts. I've never actually turned anyone into stone."

"Not even when you were a baby?"

I shake my head. "My family are all gorgons, they knew what I was when I was born. Typically, gorgons don't go to school until they're seven or eight to stop us from accidentally turning kids into stone in the playground."

"It would give a new meaning to the Turned To Stone game."

"I never much liked that one. It didn't make sense to me. Gorgon magic doesn't work by touch, so why would touching someone make them stuck like that?"

"Why would crawling through their legs undo it?" he responds. "I'm guessing that doesn't actually work?"

"No."

"It's just a kids game. Didn't you ever play What Time Is It Mr Wolf?"

"Of course."

"But you're not really going around thinking that wolf shifters are going to eat you for asking them what time it is," he says.

"That's...logical."

"Mmm." He picks up his pint glass and takes a sip. "And that's why I said it."

"You really want me to try turning you into stone?"

He nods. "If you don't mind. If you do mind, then just tell me and I won't ask again."

"Okay, I mean, if you're sure, then I guess we can try. But we should do it on Friday night so you don't have lectures the next day. And it gives you time to think about it."

Hope lights up his face. "You're saying yes?"

"I am. But that's not to say I'm not nervous about it." Though if I'm honest, I'm mostly still in shock about it. I've never considered that someone might want me to try turning them into stone on purpose. It's just not the done thing, even for those who are curious about how gorgon magic works.

"I can put it in writing that I want you to do it, if that will make it easier."

"Maybe?"

He grabs his phone and types out a quick message before hitting send. "There you go."

I don't check exactly what he sent, I'm still trying to work out what's happening and why.

A waitress appears with our burgers, then disappears to get us some condiments, effectively putting a pause in the conversation while we awkwardly wait for privacy to return.

I pick up one of the chips and take a bite. "Hmm, good, but they're not as good as the chips at Dessert After Dark."

"Seriously? They're the worst chips around campus."

"I'm not sure I can trust you after a statement like that," I joke, picking up another one and biting into it. "These are fine though."

"I'll take that."

The waitress returns with the caddy of other bits and sets it down between us before leaving us blissfully alone.

"Okay, so where are we supposed to do this?" I ask. "If you do turn into stone, then you'll need to be somewhere safe. Maybe your room would be best?"

He nods and eats some of his chips while he thinks. "My room makes sense."

"And you should make sure to eat a good meal and use the bathroom first. From what I know of gorgon magic, if this goes wrong, you'll be aware the whole time and I can't imagine that's going to be fun if you've got a full bladder."

"Ah, fair point."

"And...then I guess that's it?"

"I think so. And it won't necessarily go wrong. Hopefully, it'll go right and then I'll be able to turn into a gargoyle again."

"Again? So you've had gargoyle magic in the past?"

He nods. "My whole life. Everything worked fine up until about five or six months ago. I'm not sure exactly when because I don't try and turn into a gargoyle every day. But since then, I haven't been able to change at all."

"I'm sorry, that must be really stressful."

"It isn't great," he agrees.

"Then I'm glad I can help, even if it is really weird to have someone ask me for this."

"There's a first time for everything, I guess?"

"I imagine this will be the last too."

"Depends if it works. Maybe you'll have gargoyles with magic problems lining up at your door if it does."

I snort. "Somehow, I doubt that."

"You never know." The way he smiles at me puts me a lot more at ease about the potential of turning him into stone. And if he's okay with the risks, then that's something I can respect.

I just have to hope I don't do any permanent damage.