She knew what that really meant:
Imagine when you can no longer exist as you once did.
Suddenly, the elevator seemed too small and just when she thought she couldn’t take another breath, the doors opened. Helen popped up from behind her desk, smiling, oblivious to Persephone’s internal battle.
“Welcome back, Persephone.”
“Thanks, Helen,” she said without much of a look in her direction. Despite this, Helen followed Persephone to her desk. As she stored her things, she found a white rose sitting on her laptop. Persephone picked it up, careful to avoid the thorns.
“Where did this come from?” she asked.
“I don’t know,” Helen said, frowning. “I didn’t accept anything for you this morning.”
Persephone’s brows knitted together. A red ribbon was tied around the stem but there was no card attached. Maybe Hades had left it for her, she reasoned, and set it aside.
“Do I have any messages?”
Persephone assumed that was why Helen had escorted her back to her desk.
“No,” Helen said.
That was unlikely. Persephone waited.
“They can wait,” Helen added. “Besides, they’re all leads for other stories, and I know you’re working on that exclusive—”
Persephone’s eyes must have flashed because Helen stopped speaking.
“How do you know about that?” Persephone’s mood dampened.
“I…”
She’d never seen Helen stumble over her words before, but all of a sudden, the girl couldn’t speak, and she looked close to tears.
“Who else knows?” Persephone asked.
“N-no one,” Helen finally managed. “I overheard. I’m sorry. I thought it was exciting. I didn’t realize—”
“If you overheard, you’d know it wasn’t exciting. Not for me.”
There was silence, and Persephone looked at Helen. “I’m sorry, Persephone.”
She sighed and sat in her chair. “It’s okay, Helen. Just...don’t tell anyone, okay? It...might not happen.”
She hoped.
Helen looked panicked. So she had heard a lot more than she was letting on.
“But...you’ll be fired!” she whispered fiercely.
Persephone sighed. “Helen, I really need to get to work and I think you do, too.”
Helen paled. “Of course. I’m so—”
“Stop apologizing, Helen,” Persephone said, and then added as gently as she could. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”
The blonde smiled. “I hope things get better, Persephone. I really do.”
After Helen returned to her desk, Persephone started research on Apollo and his many lovers. She realized she’d promised Hades she wouldn’t write about the God of Music, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t start a file on him and there was no lack of information, especially from antiquity.