They told me there was no such thing as paranoia. I begged to differ at every turn of my head that it is a lie.

I am paranoid. But no one would have blamed me for it if they walked a mile in my shoes. It all begins with the day I was born. Or, actually, I don’t want to blame my mother and father for this. The paranoia first began with my physical appearance. Born the not-so-average Greek man with pale skin, piercing blue eyes and a tuft of chestnut-brown straight hair, since the age of four, I was praised as “god-like”. At first, this seemed appropriate for mostly vain reasons. Then school began. It was horrible. When my being unique became a reason for being bullied (and this going throughout for 6 years) I started hating myself. How could I not? I felt like an outcast. I wasn’t able to play with the other children in the gardens, couldn’t take part in trips.

By the time I was 13 I hated myself. I hated the people who looked to me and thought I was beautiful. I hated the gods. I cursed them. I cursed Aphrodite and Eros especially, the goddess of beauty and love and her son, god of sex. They cursed me.

That was my first paranoia. The second one didn’t follow until recently.

Or, more precisely, until a week ago.

Working for and with my father was easy. I knew the trade secrets since I was three. While he took care of trading at the market, I took care of the providers, our sheep. I walked them up and down the hills from dawn to noon, milked them and 5 sheep would be stripped of their wool. Last week had been a particularly hot so I had taken a rest, in the shade as my skin burned easily, at around 10. From the other side of the Olympic meadow, a man in a short toga walked by. He had appeared in deep thought; until he stopped by the tree and asked if I knew Kurt. My first reaction was to punch him in the face for not recognizing me. That reaction maintained for the whole time I assessed if I knew him – and I didn’t. He looked familiar. All Greek men did to me. They had the same tan, the same curly dark hair. But this man, who asked me about me, wasn’t from the region. His nose was…too aquiline, it was almost Roman in a way. So I only replied that I was Kurt. He made me walk off, saying a friend was looking for me. He looked so lost and embarrassed, l left anyway. Not without a good look at him, that is.

Looking past the Roman-esque look, he was over-all toned. He had broad shoulders which slimmed to a narrow hip. His muscles bunched with every step he took.

I haven’t stopped thinking about him. The truth was, I kept thinking about him because ever since I saw this man, I have had suspicions of being watched. Not stalked as it is an exaggeration. I just began feeling watched.

This was maybe around a couple of weeks ago when, out in the fields like the usual, I thought there was a bird following about. That must have been the first time I thought out loud “Thank Zeus that eagle is just flying in circles to target some field mice.” That same eagle began being around. I counted on it sometimes. Until at the end of the sixth day, it landed next to me. Of course I was shocked at first. With all circulating myths, I was surprised the eagle didn’t go for my liver! It just STOOD there, calm, assessive. That was when I felt that this eagle was watching me. And every day this would happen. Eagle, now baptized Aaron, would always do the same thing, land close to me, watch the sheep with me. Occasionally it would scare off the odd animal or two and be fed from me. What most astounded me about Aaron was that he never came close to me. He always stayed at an arm’s length from me.

And then today happened.

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I’ve had it with observing Kurt. The eagle had been a brilliant idea. But after today, I couldn’t face going back. I had to be more decisive in action. And no one could help me more now than Tina. I found her in her temple, observing Athens, the city named after her persona Athena. There was a slight problem with Tina. She knew. “I know what happened. But I want to hear it from you nevertheless to understand how you feel about it and help you better with taking the next step, if you will.” she solemnly said, still gazing into her oracle with only an eyebrow raised to signal she knew of my presence. Thanking the Seven Muses for her taking the upper hand in this conversation, I sat down on the steps next to her and began babbling. “You know I was always close to him in my eagle form. I was trying to learn what his personality was like, after all. And what they say about him is true. He is god-like. Kurt possesses qualities none of us could ever think of owning; he’s humble. Patient and kind. He’s selfless. You know he fed me, occasionally. I helped with guarding his sheep. And then today, GOD WHAT A STUPID MISTAKE!” I balled my hand into a fist and smacked the marble pavement. Superhuman strength just meant that I couldn’t break myself to let the frustration out. “I thought it was safe. That he’d think I was a wild eagle gone addomesticated. So I moved closer. Did you know the horrible thing about being a bird is that you’re always looking at someone with a side of your head? Damn the 180° visual field! So I looked him in the eye. He jumped back with a scream of surprise and fear. I jumped as well and flew off.”

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I KNEW THOSE EYES. THEY. BELONGED. TO. THAT. HOT. STRANGER. OF. A. FEW. WEEKS. AGO. OH MY GOD. How did Aaron, the eagle happen to have such strikingly identical eyes?! Someone had to tell me it was a dream. Please.

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Tina puffed her cheeks and then let her breath out. Looking me deeply in the eyes, she assessed and chose her words carefully before she spoke. “Blaine, I think the solution is simple here…” she hesitated there “…you need to get to know him more. Bring him here on Olympus.”