Twenty-five-year-old Juniper Evergreen sat on a bench in front of a fountain with the statue of Aphrodite at the center. The goddess held a shallow basin above her head which sprayed water so high in the air that she felt a slight bit of moisture on her skin.

People from her neighborhood had been going on about the newly installed water fountain in the park. The rumors said its waters had been blessed by the goddess of love and beauty herself. And anyone who would throw a coin as an offering to the goddess would be guaranteed a soulmate. 

Absurd it may sound but Juniper had no other choice but to take the bait. Another family reunion was just around the corner and she wouldn't be able to stand more than three hours of her relatives making a big deal of her relationship status. For them, being single meant she was living a miserable life. But quite opposite to that, she was actually enjoying herself.

Although there was one time, at least in her teen life, that she wished to have a boyfriend. But she was also the kind of a woman who didn't have men looking at her twice. Juniper blamed her unattractiveness for that. She thought men find women with fairer skin attractive; her chestnut brown skin wouldn't stand a chance. 

It was nearing dusk, streetlights were already on and the crowd around the park was thinning. When she was sure that the coast was clear, she stole her way to the fountain and threw a coin that sank immediately at the bottom.

"Um, Aphrodite?"

The wind whistled in the background and the water continued to sputter as Aphrodite's statue remained unmoving from her place.

"Oh, do I have to kneel?" she asked to no one in particular. Despite the embarrassment, Juniper got to her knees and lifted her arms up in the air. Then slowly, she hunched her body forward until she was almost kissing the ground. "Oh, great goddess Aphrodite, no other beauty will measure up to yours. Please send a man who will save this poor, ugly barnacle from her relatives this Saturday."

There was another prolonged silence except for the cat meowing from the distance. She remained in her position until she could no longer stand the blaring quiet. 

Juniper got up with an unnerved feeling as she brushed the knee part of her jeans. She looked at the goddess' statue, so sharp, as if she wanted to drill a hole in Aphrodite's body. 

"Hmph, figures! You're a fraud." Then she stomped away, dreading the weekends to come. 

But that night, not long after she was asleep, Juniper found herself in a massive throne room where twelve extravagant seats were placed in a U-shape, each decorated differently. One throne emitted sparks of lightning and the one next to it was covered in seaweed and barnacles. The rest were equally strange as the two. All were empty except for the one decorated with roses at the very right. 

A woman with shining eyes sat on it. She wore a perfumed and silken garment, a crown of gold flowers sat atop her head, and sparkling jewelry covered her body. She stared down at Juniper with an unreadable expression as she sipped wine from her goblet. Beside her throne was a birdbath and a white dove was perched on its rim. 

"W-Where am I?" Juniper finally asked when she found her voice. She was stunned to see that a woman this beautiful actually existed. 

"In Olympus, my dear," the woman on the throne answered with a voice so soft; it enveloped Juniper as if a thousand smooth feathers surrounded her.

"No way," Juniper said, feeling both scared and excited at the same time. 

"This is the reality of your dream, Juniper and I believe you called for me?" The woman stood up and vacated her throne, the sound of her heels rolling around the throne room, making her heartbeat fasten its pace. The woman was now in front of her, cupping her right cheek, smiling sweetly in front of her. 

Juniper's eyes widened at the sudden realization. "You're Aphrodite?"

Aphrodite nodded once, a smile still plastered on her lips, but her next words came out sweet but deadly. "I was contemplating your punishment when you called me a fraud. But oh, believe me. Unlike the other gods, I'm a bit... merciful." 

Juniper shuddered, and she believed that the goddess was anything but merciful. "No, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like—"

"Silence," the goddess hissed, overriding Juniper with a wave of her hand. "Humans. So fond of excuses." Aphrodite walked in a circle around Juniper, eyeing her from head to toe. "I have been listening to all prayers, my dear. That birdbath beside my throne is where I can hear all the silly wishes of the poor humans. So tell me... are you still up for it?"

She gulped and her palms were already sweating, but at that moment, this was not about her relatives anymore. This was finally having a man to like her. "Yes," she said, although her voice cracked a bit. 

"Good," Aphrodite cried out, but Juniper could sense a word "but" to follow. "But the services of a goddess aren't for free. You have to do something for me."

"What is it? I'll do anything."

"There's someone who needs saving and I want you to influence his life so he won't make grievous choices that'll lead to his downfall. For that, you shall turn into a nymph to blend in his world."

"Who are you talking about?"

The goddess only gave her a tender smile and said, "I wish you luck, Juniper." Then Aphrodite touched her forehead and the throne room swirled out of view, pulling her into the depths of total darkness.

When Juniper stirred into consciousness, she felt herself lying over a pile of dead leaves. It crunched under her weight as she tried to get up, noticing that her sleeping clothes were replaced by a pale green short tunic, reaching only to the knee, and her ears were long and pointed, curving slightly upward. She indeed turned into a nymph as what the goddess promised.

A fast and heavy sound of footsteps made Juniper stand on high alert, preparing for the danger, but she was taken aback when it was only a beautiful girl, with the same clothing as hers, who ran past her, crying soundlessly. 

"Poor Echo," a voice said, not far in the distance. "Even the fairest of the nymphs couldn't soften Narcissus' heart. And now, she has to suffer the same heartache as the rest of us." With that, sounds of pained whimpers followed.

She looked to her right at the source of the sounds. A dozen nymphs hid behind a tree, silently watching a young lad who sat peacefully under the shade of a fig tree. He had his eyes closed. The moment she lay her eyes on him, Juniper forgot to breathe. And from what she heard from the nymphs, this man was a terrible jerk and a heartbreaker. She couldn't let herself be lured into his trap as well. 

This person, whoever he was, must be the one Aphrodite asked her to save from a dreadful fate.

Juniper waited until all the nymphs got tired of only staring at him from afar so she could give him a piece of her mind. And when there was no one else but them, she made her way past overgrown roots and stood before him, her hands on her hips.

"You self-loving terrible jerk—"

"Leave." His voice so deep and cold as the winter season made Juniper's knees buckle.

It's hot, damn it! she scolded herself when unwanted shivers haunted her veins, urging her to yearn more of his voice. As he opened his eyes, they were bluer than ice. When he looked at her, her skin froze. She did not, could not look away. This is sorcery!

"For your information, I'm not here to confess," she said in a haste through gritted teeth when Narcissus attempted to get up and leave her be. Juniper laughed mirthlessly and snorted. "I don't even like you a bit." She wanted to kick herself for lying because all that she wanted for him to do right now was to take her into his arms.

Narcissus studied her intently, the valley between his brows deepening. After pondering for quite a while whether she was harmless or not, he sighed and leaned back on the tree. "You are one strange nymph..." His sentence hung in midair.

"Juniper."

"Juniper," he repeated, then patted the space beside him. "Come sit here with me."

It caught Juniper off guard but still, she sat not too near him. "You want me to sit beside you. Does that mean we can talk?"

"What do you want to talk about?" he asked, his eyes closed once more. Good. Juniper didn't want him staring at her.

"Why do you keep rejecting your admirers? Don't you believe in love?" She didn't expect him to answer. She assumed he would pretend to be asleep to avoid her persistent chatter.

"I want to believe in love," he said after a brief pause ensued between them. And when he opened his eyes, he stared straight at her. "Tell me, Juniper, would you happen to like me if I'm not this beautiful. I can tell with the way you look at me, although I can see you're trying to keep your feelings at bay. You see, what I long for is genuine love. Honest and never-ending love."

Juniper didn't know what to answer, so instead, she said what she first thought of. "Me? Liking you? I only like your eyes."

To her surprise, Narcissus broke into a burst of amused laughter, clutching his stomach. It took a while for him to calm down. And when he did, he was looking at her with the first genuine smile he had for years while looking at her tenderly. "If you like my eyes, then I like your skin. It's the color of the forest. It reminds me of nature."

For the days that come, the two had grown closer together. Narcissus told stories of his adventures and misadventures as part of being a hunter. And in those times, Juniper recalled that one myth her grandmother, who was fortunately fond of reading mythologies, once told her. So she did her best to refrain Narcissus from seeing his reflection in any way and even warned him which he constantly brushed off. 

But fate really was a cruel enemy and what was meant to happen, would happen. She was only gone for a while to find forest fruits to eat. It had not been that long and yet, there was nothing else that Juniper could do but weep in silence while staring at the figure of Narcissus hunched over the still pool of water. 

Juniper felt herself rising into the air; the summer's day evaporated around her; she was floating upwards through icy blackness. Then she woke with a start, sweating profusely and a tear sliding down her cheek. At that moment, she felt deep regret and failure. She spent a good one hour staring blankly at the wall, before her mother came barging into her room, ordering her to buy a bouquet of Camellia before they head to her grandparents' place.

As she was paying for the flowers, she kept her eyes glued to her phone. It was not until she was out of the shop that she noticed, among the bunch of Camellias, was a lone white daffodil flower. Juniper suddenly went nervous. On top of it, her heart was beating fast. 

She came rushing back inside the shop. And with a loud clanging of the bell, the person behind the counter looked up and she was met with the same blue eyes as Narcissus' but a different face from who she hoped it belonged. 

-ˋˏ ༻✿༺ ˎˊ-

🏅Winner – Reclaim Your Myths

PROMPT FROM FreethePOC

Eternal Matchmaking — Having heard the rumors, you went to the statue of Aphrodite in the middle of the city yard, threw a coin in the fountain, and wished for a destined match. That night, Aphrodite came into your dreams, granting your wish on the condition that you experience a myth chosen by her.