Chapter One: You Know Him?

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It had been about 5 months since your untimely death. Life in Heaven was unchanging as the days passed. What did change was you. You no longer cared for what little earthly family or friends you had. You didn't need to worry about their lives, you told yourself. They would get here eventually. Your main thoughts now were about all the frivolous activities you used in Heaven to fill your time. That, and some concerning feelings that wouldn't go away.

Waking up to the same beautiful perpetual daytime, you go through the motions of your morning routine. You had been given a well decorated, spacious apartment in one of the city's giant buildings. A few minutes before noon, you headed out.

As you stepped out into the daylight, you observed that it was a day like any other in Heaven. The streets were occupied, but not crowded, with angels leisurely making their way between shops, chatting and laughing with each other. Everything was bright and sunny, and there wasn't a sad face in sight. You thought you might grab some lunch at a fast food place just around the block from your place.

You head inside, your face buried in your phone, mindlessly scrolling. You look up and take in your surroundings. You are pleasantly surprised to see your good friend, Matt, standing in line. Matt was a short humanoid angel with glasses and bright ginger hair. He had been a fast friend of yours in heaven, having died within only a few years of you, and having an easygoing, approachable personality. He often liked to indulge in cheap junk food, so it was no surprise to see him there. What was surprising was that he was in very important company.

Standing next to him, slumped over and rubbing his chin as he examined the menu, was Adam, first man, leader of the exorcists, and decent guitarist. Your eyes brightened upon seeing Matt, only for your face to drop in disbelief and shock when you noticed his guest. 

A pale woman was also accompanying the group, standing tall. You had seen this woman a few times with him, and had come to know her as Lute, Adam's second in command. She always stood rigid, almost in a fighting stance, and with a serious expression on her face. Her head pivoted left and right, almost as though she was scanning a crowd, looking for danger. Her eyes periodically glance up at Adam, and then continue on this rotation.

"Hey, Matt!" You called to him, a little shakily as you got in line behind him.

He turns around, surprised, then beams excitedly when he notices you. "(Y/N)! Good to see you, man!" Adam is seemingly paying no attention to the conversation, but Lute eyes you intently,  almost suspiciously. You smile a nervous, friendly smile at her, and turn back to Matt.

"Yeah, yeah. Hey man. Are you... with them?"

"Hm? Oh, Adam? Yeah he's a buddy of mine."

"Oh... how do you know him?" 

Matt smiles glancing behind him at Adam. "Played bass for him at a few gigs. Real chill dude. You wanna eat with us?"

Your face flushes a little but you try to keep your cool. "Oh, is that okay?"

"Yeah, totally." He turns around towards the other two. "Hey guys, this is (Y/N). He's a friend. Thought he could join us for lunch since he's here. Don't worry, he's cool."

"Yeah sure whatever." Adam doesn't turn away from the counter where he is now ordering his food. "Yeah, I'll also take a number five with fries, and a fuckin... uhhhhh..." Adam rattles off a comedically large order, and then you and Matt order your food. Lute doesn't order anything. The four of you get your trays, and then pick out a table by a window to sit down at. You end up sitting on the outside seat, next to Matt and across from Lute, Adam being diagonal from you.

Adam goes right for one of his multiple burgers, which are spilling over to Lute's side of the table. Lute timidly takes a fry from his pile, suddenly seeming soft. 

"So..." says Matt as he unwraps his sandwich. "How's the exorcism been?" He chuckles a little at the absurdity of his own question.

"Ah you know, same old shit." Adam says, and Lute nods, serious again.

You look down at your own food and begin to eat, avoiding eye contact. "Uh, how's your music going... Adam?"

He looks up at you from his food, only for a moment, seeming surprised to hear you speak to him. His eyelids and eyebrows are low, uncaring as he looks at you, then he cracks a smile and shoves a handful of fries into his face. "Yeah it's been great. Got some unreleased fire, gonna fuckin wow people. Why, you a fan?"

"Uhh..." You feel your face get hot, wishing you could stop the visual cues of your nervousness. "You know, I actually saw you in concert a couple times. Your music's... cool." You take a few more bites, embarrassed as your voice naturally raises on your last sentence. 

Adam begins to laugh a little. He playfully punches Matt's arm from across the table. "Ah man, did you bring me a groupie? I thought you said he was cool."

You start to stammer, now trying your best to make your voice sound normal and casual. "No man I'm just-it isn't-" but Adam cuts you off.

"No, it's cool I get it." He wipes a tear of laughter from his eye. "I mean, who wouldn't listen to my shit anyway, I fuckin rule."

You looks down at yourself, noticing your sweaty palms and red face. "Right..." You force a smile.

"So how long have you been obsessed?" he gestures at his face, with inward facing palms and splayed fingers at his last word, a cocky smile with hooded eyes displayed on his mask.

His gesture makes grit your teeth instinctively, your eyes going wide. Matt eyes your uncharacteristic behavior with confused eyes, but quickly smiles and tries to move the conversation forward. "Oh, please. Come off it, Adam."

Adam laughs. "Sorry, sorry. How long have you been listening to my music?"

"Oh, pretty much since I got to Heaven, so, about half a year. Maybe less?"

"Damn." Says Adam looking genuinely surprised. "Newbie huh? Guess you'll have to hang with us more. Someone's gotta show you the fuckin ropes."

You can't fight the smile that crawls onto your face. "Uh... yeah, sounds great."

You suddenly notice Lute, who hasn't breathed a word since you arrived, looking at you strangely. You can tell she's trying to relax her face, but her jaw is clearly clenched. She immediately looks away as your eyes meet, but you can see her cheeks go pink with embarrassment. 

"(Y/N)'s been getting along great. Handlining it much better than I did anyway." Matt puts his arm around your shoulder. "But yeah, this is a guy you wanna get to know." His bright and confident smile compliments your small one. He releases you and shifts his gaze to Adam. "We'll hang out again, I can promise you that."

You notice that Lute has sunken into the booth a little, taking some of Adam's fries, which are almost completely gone. Her eyes are locked on Adam, who is paying her no attention. She periodically glances at her phone. You look away after just a second, fearing making eye contact with her again.

The table is almost completely empty. You and Matt have both finished your meals. The only thing that remains is Adam's final sandwich (half eaten), his drink, and one container of fries. Adam's phone buzzes in his robe and he checks it with a sigh. "Welp. We gotta bounce. Very important soldier shit." Lute straightens herself out and stands up, giving Adam room to shuffle out of the booth. He grabs whatever is left over and stands up from the table. "Nice to meet you man, catch you on the flipside. Matt, I will fuckin see you at practice. Don't you dare be late." He leans down towards the table, looking at you, his voice dropping. "Don't let this be the last time I see you." He straightens up and turns away, leaving you blind sighted, blushing at his words. He hits the two of you with finger guns as he backs away towards the exit. "Bye bitches!"

After a moment of silence, you turn back to the table. You and Matt look at the scattered piles of crumbs and wrappers, mostly accumulating on Adam's side. Matt looks at you with a shaky smile. "So... I guess we're cleaning this up."


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