Cassandra in Reverse

by Holly Smale

But life isn’t like that, so books are dishonest. Maybe that’s why humans like them.

My boyfriend sounds tired, as if having dinner with me is like climbing a mountain in inappropriate footwear.

I’m not being dumped because I did something wrong, or said something wrong: I’m being dumped because I am wrong.

I don’t understand it, but there’s just something in me that knows how to stand still when the earth shatters.

Because if things can be broken, then things can be changed; and if things can be changed, then it stands to good and logical reason that they can also be fixed.

History has repeatedly established that what a man says directly after he dumps you is literally whatever will get him away from you fastest.

I’d say it’s destiny, but if the last forty minutes have taught me anything, it’s that fate is an entirely made-up human construct,

But, of all the goddesses, I think Eos is the most powerful. Love is a courageous thing to pursue, and to me Eos represents hope, and resilience, and light in the darkest hour. She represents the strength to keep trying, even when you know you’re doomed. She represents new beginnings and refusing to accept defeat. She also represents the ability to change your husband into a cicada when he gets very old and kind of annoying.

I really like loudly knowing all the answers to everything: it’s one of the least “likable” things about me.

It always happens. Always. Little by little, something inside me comes to the surface and drives everyone away.