A Deal With Dark

Two

"Unfortunately, I didn't forget. But I'm only supposed to PRETEND to be your girlfriend - you must have forgotten that part," I sassed him.

"And you're going to do a great job of acting like my girlfriend, since I still have my knife from last night," he demanded, pulling the shiny weapon out of his sweatshirt. I gulped, knowing that this could easily turn into the movie Psycho if I wasn't careful.

"Fine. Please just get out of my bathroom so I can finish getting ready and we can go." I didn't exactly like having a demonic presence with a knife in the room while I was naked in the shower.

"As you wish." Suddenly, he wasn't in the room anymore, as if he had teleported or something. I had no idea how he worked, but I wasn't sure if I'd ever figure that out. Instead of wasting my time trying to, I finished showering, got dressed, put on a little makeup, and walked into my living room to find Dark sitting on my couch, playing with his knife. The sight of him startled me.

"Ready to go?" he asked, standing up when he noticed me.

"As ready as I'll ever be," I responded.

We headed out, walking the sidewalks of LA. One of the pros of living in the city was that there were lots of things in walking distance, including the coffee shop. That was the main reason that I visited it so often - it was closer than the nearest Starbucks was.

I wondered if Mark would even be there when we got there, or if Dark was just trying to trick me. As awkward as it might be, I almost hoped that we would see him. I didn't feel safe by myself with Dark, even in public. I let out a breath of relief when we arrived and we did see Mark sitting alone at a table, taking a bite out of a bagel.

"Order whatever you want, I'll buy," Dark told me, speaking somewhat loudly. I wondered why until I saw Mark look up from his phone, a worried look on his face. Dark smiled maliciously at him before turning towards the cashier. I ordered an iced coffee and a muffin and he ordered a regular coffee, completely black. I guess I expected nothing less from him. He was dressed in all black, too. But then again, so was I. Did it look like we were purposefully trying to match each other? Maybe, to passersby.

Once we got our coffees and I got my muffin, Dark led us to Mark's table and pulled up an extra chair so we both could sit.

"What are you doing here?" Mark asked Dark, his brows furrowed.

"Getting coffee with a friend," Dark replied.

"A friend?" Mark cast a concerned glance towards me.

"Well, potentially more than a friend," Dark clarified. "We're going to see how things go."

"Is that true, Maddy?"

"Yeah. It's just a casual coffee date," I answered, playing my part. But I quickly realized that a casual coffee date was how Mark and I had started dating, and I saw how his expression changed. I hoped my comment didn't hurt him, but I also was afraid to try to take it back or fix it, knowing what Dark could do to me or Mark or anyone I cared about if I didn't keep up my act.

"Well, enjoy your casual coffee date. I was actually about to head out. I still have another video to record," Mark said, but he wasn't even halfway done with his bagel and it was clear that he was lying. He picked up his coffee and threw the rest of his food into the garbage as he went out the door of the shop, not saying another word to us before leaving. I looked over at Dark, who seemed content with the outcome of our encounter.

"He hates me now. This was how him and I started dating, and now I'm here with you," I thought out loud.

"Why do you think I wanted to come here with you?" Dark inquired.

"You're a monster," I scoffed.

"I'm a demon, and we have a deal," he answered cooly.

I finished my muffin and he walked back home with me, although he didn't come inside. He disappeared as I entered the apartment building. I almost expected him to randomly pop up somewhere as I got ready for my next client's photoshoot, but he didn't show. He apparently was done with me for the day. I had met my quota of time with him around Mark, and that was all he needed me for. So I met with my clients for the day and did shoots with them and when I got home, I worked on editing and talked to Allison about her day. And as much as I wanted to tell her about Dark, I couldn't get myself to mention him. I knew she would sense that something was up, so I acted like I got coffee by myself and I hadn't even seen Mark there at all.

That night, I had a hard time falling asleep. I felt so uneasy, knowing that there was someone in my life who could appear wherever he wanted, whenever he wanted. I ended up grabbing the Build-a-Bear that Mark and I had made on a date once. It had been in my closet for a long time, but it was now finally making an appearance. I brought the bear underneath the blankets with me, hugging it against my chest. I felt so stupid - I was an adult and I needed a stuffed animal to fall asleep. But it really did help. It was soft and it still smelled faintly like my favorite cologne of Mark's, and that helped me finally feel safe again until my eyes got heavy and I slipped out of consciousness.

Mark's POV

It was late when I finally recorded my second video of the day. I didn't usually procrastinate recording sessions all that much, but it took a while for me to forget about the coffee shop incident enough to completely focus on a game. I couldn't believe I had seen Maddy out with the most terrible being I had ever met. And the way she played it off like it was nothing, practically mocking our own relationship and how it began...it honestly hurt. But at the same time, I knew Maddy would never purposefully try to hurt me, and I knew how manipulative Dark was. I had a feeling she might have been tricked into something, but thinking about any of it became too much for me. Instead, I knew I needed to get lost in a video game.

I guess I shouldn't have chosen to play a horror game. Right after playing one, I always feel slightly paranoid - at least, I do if it's a good game that's actually atmospheric. This one was, and the entire time I felt like there was someone there, watching me. I knew it was just the game freaking me out. I had looked around several times in the middle of it only to see the normal furniture and decor of my recording room, after all. But the eerie feeling was there, nonetheless.

I removed my headphones after editing and got up out of my desk chair, and that's when I noticed that I actually had a reason to feel paranoid. I jumped and clutched my chest as I saw Dark leaning up against the wall.

"Sorry I scared you. I thought you would have caught me a long time ago, to be honest," he said casually, looking incredibly bored.

"Why the hell are you here? And why did I see you with Maddy earlier?" I asked, rage boiling inside of me.

"I told you earlier, it was a date," Dark responded shortly. "She agreed to it."

"There's no way she would agree to that unless you tricked her or forced her to. What the hell are you doing to her?" I demanded an answer from him, completely furious.

"There's no trick, and I'm not forcing her. She could have said no to my request, but as I told you, Mads agreed to it."

"Don't you dare call her that!" I roared, shoving him. The physical contact must have set him off, because he pushed me against the wall harshly and held me there, his eyes looking darker and more sinister than usual.

"If I were you, I would learn to control my temper. Especially considering the fact that if you shove me like that again, I won't hesitate to slit your throat. Oh, and another thing: if you try getting information out of Maddy and warning her about me, you can be sure to find her dead on your doorstep. Because I can promise you that I'll find out if that happens, and I don't mind killing if I have to." Dark was inches away from my face, his menacing knife in his hand. I fully believed his threats, and I knew I'd have to keep my mouth shut for a while. But that wasn't going to stop me from being concerned or even dropping subtle hints to Maddy. I just had to figure out how to do so without him knowing. I had a feeling that Dark would hurt Maddy even if I stayed out of it, and I couldn't let that happen.