Stone Eyes
After battling the constant bombardment of bitter winter clouds, spring
finally opened its gates for the sun. The
Jensen Webber came home especially early one Thursday afternoon from the Snoqualmie railroad yard. He pulled his red Dodge pickup into the driveway of his single story house. His two daughters Maxine and Ava were just returning from school. They both turned and stopped in the middle of the brick path leading to a front porch.
“You’re home early,” Maxine called out to her father as he pulled a tool box out of the bed of the truck.
“Yeah, got the signal at the edge of the yard fixed early today,” he replied. “Doug started it last night so he said I could come home early. Sweet deal, eh?”
“Yeah it’s nice,” Maxine replied. A thick red and black, plaid head band was wrapped around her head. The sun glistened off her nose ring and prominent, tapering cheeks. She was pretty in an unremarkable way, like her younger sister. Only a year different in age, they were often mistaken as twins. They both had pointed noses, long thin eyebrows, and prominent round eyes. However upon closer examination, one could spot two very distinct and rather noticeable differences; while Ava had brown eyes and straight brown hair, Maxine was born with bright green eyes and serpents in place of hair. They were thin dark green serpents, more peaceful than most would expect. Their dark red eyes maintained a dead stare, never seeming to be looking at anything in particular. The serpents just swayed back and forth in a controlled motion, all in an organized tangle of glossy scales.
“How was school today? Finally some nice weather, eh?” Jensen said as he headed towards his waiting daughters.
“It was cool, all the girls competed to see who could wear the shortest skirts, being the first warm day and all,” Ava returned.
“Hahaha! Doesn’t seem like it stopped you gals from wearing your skirts.”
“Oh come on dad, ours aren’t revealing our panties like the rest of those hoes at school!” Ava chuckled.
“Hahaha, how was your day Maxy?”
“It was fine,” Maxine replied. Her simple response told Jensen that her day had not been fine at all. She gave a wide smile like only Maxine could give, except it was hollowed out by her sad eyes. Jensen didn’t pry though. They all walked into the house and shut the screen door behind them.
It was hard for Maxine to go to school this late April morning. She had almost made it through high school, an achievement that was no small feat for a girl with her condition. She kept straight A’s and became quite an accomplished jazz guitarist. She had no shortage of free time on her hands to do school work and practice since she was surrounded by fear and rejection. She lived a young life in complete social exile. It didn’t take long for others to believe that she was the real Medusa. Not a single person would look her in the eye from fear of turning into stone.
After wrestling with the sheets, she climbed out of her bed and began to dress for school. In the presence of no one, she stood nearly naked; however she felt more than naked revealing her serpents out into the open. She stared at the thin snakes slowly moving through each other like hellish dreadlocks. Oh how she hated those little snakes. She had tried to cut them off when she was six years old. But it felt like cutting off a finger, and the two that she did manage to behead grew back faster than she cut them off. She grabbed a long black cloth out of her dresser and wrapped it around her head. She was surprised at how willfully the serpents followed her lead as she tied them up. They must have been tired, she thought, probably because she was tired herself.
Maxine’s serpents tended to express her feelings. It made it impossible for her to hide her emotion for her snakes would hiss or thrash about when she became upset or angry. This, of course, didn’t help her make any friends. In the fifth-grade, a nerdy boy in the back of her math class, spilled clam chowder all over her new flower-covered dress. Her snakes flared up into a frenzy, hissing with vigor, and snapping at anyone who approached. She watched helplessly as the students poured out of the classroom, screaming in horror.
Besides her sister and father, she only had one real friend. His name was
Tony Ethans. He was a tall, half Native American boy with roots that tied back
to tribes that inhabited the western regions of
“Hey Maxy, Tony is waiting outside,” Ava called out. Tony was waiting for Maxine out front to walk her to school. He was wearing dark shades which he often did when he spent time with her. “Hey Maxy! What took you so long?” he inquired.
“Aww, nothing. I went to bed late working on that physics shit,” she replied.
“Yeah I did too. That class is a bitch! Hey, so me and a couple of friends are going over to the lake. You wanna come?”
“Uh, I don’t think that would be a very good idea Tony.”
“Oh come on, it’ll be fine. I already talked to them about it and everything. It will be fine.”
“Oh cut the shit Tony, look at you. You can’t even look at me in the eyes! Take off the shades. Take ‘em off!” Maxine’s headband began to shiver uncontrollably. A loud hiss filled Tony’s ears. The hiss filled his mouth, his nostrils, and his eyes. Tony became startled at her sudden shift in mood. He quickly swiped them off but gazed at the ground. “Now look at me,” Maxine demanded. Tony forced his eyes at her body. He would not lift his head from his downward stare. “No, Tony, look at me! Look in my eyes!” Maxine’s eyes began to glow a bright luminescent yellowish-green. Her serpents now broke free of her wraps and were hissing and slithering in a controlled chaos.
Tony lifted his head, but could not force himself to meet Maxine’s eyes. He simply closed them and looked back down at his feet. “I’m sorry, Maxy. I really am. It’s just, you know. I can’t. Forgive me, please!”
Maxine disarmed herself. She seemed to shrink in size as her chest filled with disappointment and isolation. “No, it’s okay Tony. It’s okay,” she said softly. Tony could feel her soft words reach his ear, but could barely make them out. Her words were like icy pillows. They continued on their walk to school in silence.
The
Maxine pulled up to the Bellagio Hotel. She switched the engine off and sat motionless. She looked down at her sparkled and silver mini skirt. Her bright green fingernail polish caught her attention as she then let down the sunshade in her car. She took off her dark shades that had seemed to have become part of her face now. She rarely went anywhere without them, regardless of the time, from fear of turning others to stone. Maxine peered into the mirror and found a tattered face of despair. Her green eyes were faded and distant. Her heavy makeup tried to hide her exhaustion. Her serpents however were as glossy and potent as ever. They slithered back and forth as they usually did, like drunken dandelions in a soft summer breeze. Occasionally one would gently nip at another, but they remained much quieter than they had before. Maxine hated them. She stared at them with despise, thinking of cruel ways she could kill them, cut them off, anything to be rid of them. Maxine touched up her black lipstick and left the car. She hurried to the Bellagio Main Stage for her show.
It had been several years since high school. She barely graduated from college without much fanfare, finishing with a less than remarkable degree in psychology. As in high school, social acceptance did not come to her. She remained an outcast, searching for companionship and love. She was more alone than ever now.
“You’re late,” snapped Stefan. Stefan was Maxine’s overseer at the
Cirque du Soleil.
He was a short blonde Frenchman with a heavy accent. He spent most of his time
harassing the performers.
“I know,” Maxine replied in a dry voice. She looked past him as she
gathered her props for her set.
“So then get your ass here on time if you know,” Stefan snarled. Maxine
closed her eyes and contemplated responding. But she remembered what her father
used to say about small men like Stefan; he was suffering from small dick
syndrome. It wasn’t worth the trouble. The thundering roar of the crowd erupted
into the dressing room as the stage door opened. Six yoyo clowns walked in
meaning it was time for Maxine’s routine. Three girls, dressed in lavish snake
themed costumes, escorted Maxine onto the stage. It was only about a twenty foot
walk, but it seemed like an eternity.
“Please welcome to the stage… Medusa!” called a booming voice as the
crowd cheered. The lights flashed through the stage door as Maxine slipped on
her shades, shielding her eyes. As the other girls began to dance around her,
she began her routine, following the choreographed movements and dances, slowly
revealing her serpents to the shocked crowd of thousands. Yet there she stood in
the center of the stage; feeling small and alone.
Suddenly, a powerful burning sensation filled her eyes. Her serpents,
free of any wrappings, began to quiver violently in a hectic fashion, hissing
loudly and uncontrollably. Maxine could feel herself tremble as she stopped in
the middle of her routine. She balled her fists and began to walk toward one of
the other performers. The music kept blaring as her assistants became confused
and lost.
“What the hell are
you doing?” one assistant whispered.
“Take off that
pathetic costume,” Maxine snarled at her. The performer looked away to to avoid
Maxine’s razor-sharp stare.
“What the hell are
you talking about? What do you think you are doin’?” the assistant snapped.
Without another word, Maxine grabbed the assistant’s serpent headdress, and
ripped it from her head. The crowd gasped as Stefan came running from behind
stage.
“What the fuck are
you doing?” he shouted. The curtains began to close as the crowd erupted into
confused conversation.
“I’m done with
this shit!” Maxine shouted. “You hear me, I’m done!” She stormed off the stage
as Stefan followed.
“The hell you
are!” he called out to her as he clutched her arm.
“Let go of me you
pig!” she shouted as she yanked free. Her serpents hissed and snapped at Stefan.
One caught his hand as he reached for her again.
“Ah! You little
bastard!” he shouted as blood trickled down his arm. He then grabbed Maxine by
her serpents. She howled as the stinging of a thousand needles stabbed at her
head. She swung around and slapped Stefan in the right cheek.
“You little-“ but
before Stefan could hurl out another insulting name, Maxine’s serpents began to
bite his face. He screamed as they ripped his cheeks and lips. Maxine gasped in
disbelief. She stared at Stefan, now rolling on the ground, clutching his
bleeding face. Maxine turned and ran as fast as she could. She could taste blood
as it dripped from her serpents’ fangs.
Atop one of the red bar stools at the local Hard Rock Café, Maxine sipped
on a cup of coffee. It had been a month since her incident at the hotel. Now
jobless, she dwelled on nothing but money. She kept waiting for the day that
police would bust in and arrest her. But to her surprise, Stefan never pressed
charges. She tried to ignore the hateful stares that surrounded her. Her legs
were crossed, while both of her hands clutched the grey mug. Her silver laced
high heels, light blue designer blouse, and matching pink finger and toenail
polish would make one think she was about to meet someone.
Suddenly a familiar voice bellowed her name from behind her. Half
startled, she quickly swung her head around from her distant stare into her cup
of coffee. “Maxine? Is that you?” She peered back through her dark shades to
find Tony standing before her.
Tony seemed taller Maxine thought, with much broader shoulders and
chiseled facial features. He was handsome.
“Tony! Oh my God, where have been? How are you? How did you find me?”
Maxine jumped up with excitement. Others in the restaurant glared at her.
“I’ve been good. Wow, it’s great to see you. It wasn’t hard to find you
after your little episode with the circus in the papers,” Tony chuckled. “You
look good though, Maxy,” he replied. Maxine blushed. It had been some time since
someone had called her Maxy, let alone compliment her. She forgot that she was
embarrassed about the reason Tony found her and replied,
“You look good too, Tony. It’s good to see you.” Tony smiled.
“Hey I was just about to head back to my apartment. Why don’t you come
back with me and we can catch up on life. If you aren’t busy of course. I
haven’t seen you in years.”
“Oh I’d love to!” Maxine replied with exhilaration. She wished she could
have limited her excitement for she felt desperate. Tony chuckled.
“Great, let’s go,” Tony smiled as he began to lead Maxine out of the
restaurant. “Oh wait, Maxine,” He added as he stopped and turned towards her. “I
almost forgot.” He reached across and began to remove her shades.
“Wait, Tony, don’t!” she yelled.
“No it’s okay, I’m ready,” he whispered.
“But wait!” Before Maxine could stop him, he pulled off her dark shades
and stared directly into her brilliant green eyes.
“They’re, so beautiful,” he said to her. Maxine stood frozen, fixated on
Tony’s eyes. It was the happiest moment of her life.