Monster

C7: Normal

Chapter7-Normal

Mitchell was a killer and a demon and a really bad person but his apartment looked completely normal. He had random Chinese food boxes lying around and energy drinks left empty.

"I really wasn't expecting this place to be so... normal." I said.

He laughed. "I sleep just as much as you do."

My eyebrows rose but I didn't say anything. I didn't want to make it seem like him being a demon was a horribly bad thing. If I wanted to get on his good side, I had to act like I was okay with it.

"Okay, I really need to know, what really happened between you and Isaac? I thought he liked you."

I hadn't really thought it through. If my lie wasn't good enough, I could die. "You know that whole I-don't-kill-people thing he has going on? I think it's total crap. I mean, some people deserve to die."

"Like me?"

I sat down at his table, making it clear that I wasn't going anywhere, and answered him. "You're not so bad. At least when you aren't trying to kill me."

He smiled and sat down beside me. "I'm very surprised that you came, to be honest. I thought I'd have to drag you kicking and screaming."

"Seems like you don't know me all that well then."

"I don't. But I'd like to."

I held out my hand. "I'll tell you anything you want to know. But you have to promise not to kill me."

"Seems fair enough."

Being around Mitchell wasn't as bad as I expected it to be. He didn't kill me, which made things so much easier. He acted like any regular guy would. Except he was a demon, not a human.

"Okay, so I told you about Isaac and I. Tell me about yourself. What's it like being a demon?" I asked, watching his reaction to see if I was being too suspicious.

He smiled a little. "You know, I can show you better than I can tell you."

My eyes widened and it was impossible to hide my fear from him. I knew being around Mitchell would be hard but letting him turn me into a demon? I couldn't do it. Things had to end. I couldn't keep up with this lie any longer.

"I know what you're thinking," He said quickly, holding his hand up to stop me from saying no. "But it won't hurt."

I got to my feet quickly. "No, no way."

"Cora, I never said you had to."

"But..." Now, I was starting to get more confused than angry. Which was a good thing, really. It wouldn't get me killed.

"But what?"

"Why are you being so reasonable?"

It was his turn to look confused now. His eyebrows strung together. "You expect me to be unreasonable or something?"

"No, I-"

"Cora, I don't know what Isaac told you but I'm not that guy. I'm not out to hurt you or kill you or something along those lines."

I met his gaze. "I don't want to be a demon. But... can I stay here with you?"

"You wanna stay here. With me."

I nodded.

He crossed his arms over his chest. A big red flag shot up in my head. "What happened to you being afraid of me?"

"Isaac kept telling me how bad you were and all the bad things you've done. But I can't stop wondering if he just hates you and wants me to, too."

"He's really big on that, isn't he? Pushing his values on everyone else?"

I nodded.

Mitchell got to his feet and took my hand; his skin was cold against mine. "Enough talk about him. I've talked enough about him to last a lifetime. Are you hungry? I can order something."

"Okay." I said, smiling tentatively.

He ordered food from the kitchen, letting me check out the rest of his apartment. He had two bedrooms though he only used one and a full bathroom that was styled nicely, for a demon at least. He wasn't an entire slob but he didn't pick up after himself much. He had even more food boxes in his bedroom.

I took the few minutes of freedom to text T, letting her know that I was with Mitchell now. That our plan was working as we expected.

"I hope pizza's okay. I know it isn't much of a breakfast food."

I smiled. "It's great."

He sat down beside me on the couch and look over at me. It was hard to make eye contact, with his eyes a full black. "If this ever gets too weird, let me know. I'd hate to freak you out."

I laughed. "The wings freaked me out. I mean, that's not normal. You could pass for a human without hiding anything."

"Almost." He pointed to his eye. "Just because I think it's cool, doesn't mean it won't freak others out. Though I usually don't have to worry about that. You know, taking their soul and everything doesn't take long. And they don't remember a thing after it."

"What... How does that work?"

"Well it unfortunately works the same if you want to change a person into an angel or demon. You kinda... suck their soul out of their body. Though it doesn't require physical contact like CPR does."

"How do you keep from turning into the wrong one?"

"That requires will power. Whoever does it has to decide."

"Is that how you became... what you are?" I asked hesitantly.

He nodded. "Pretty much."

"That's a lot... to take in."

He squeezed my hand with his own. "You don't have to make a decision based off of that. I mean, it'd be great to know you picked the right side of things but I wouldn't want to force you to decide."

"Thanks."