In the night, they were both sleeping peacefully...
However... Alex began wincing in pain, he moved around in the bed, but it was becoming unbearable, holding his head, he started pulling his hair from the pain
His wings spread out by instinct, stretching as far as they could, almost touching the ceiling, his entire body was trembling
He was breathing heavily, groaning out loud. It felt like his body was being torn apart... but the part that hurt the most was his chest
The pain wasn't even his...but it was so intense
It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts, It hurts
When he lifted his head from the bed however, he wasn't in the hotel anymore, but in a forest, he heard quick footsteps, it sounded like running...
They were light, similar to Niffty's, but not as fast as she normally runs...
He looked around, seeing nothing...
Suddenly he heard a gun shot, a gut wrenching pain in his chest...he looked to the source of the sound and saw a small girl there, she had several bullets holes on her chest, visible due to the excessive ammounts of blood gushing out
He ran to her aid, holding her head a little high, he was still feeling a strong pain in his chest, but still wanted to help
Alex: "H-hey are you okay-"
He cut himself off, gasping out loud when he saw that the girl in question was Niffty...but...she was human...
She quickly sucumbed to her wounds, unable to say a single word, and died
Alex: "W-why isn't it working?!" He yelled, desperately trying to heal her
He blinked once, then twice, and suddenly he wasn't on his knees anymore...Niffty was gone, and he was back at that same spot in the forest
"What the...?"
He heard the same gunshot sound again a few minutes later, it tore through his ears, leaving a ringing sound in its' wake...
He could only run a few meters before being reset back to the same spot again
This time he was prepared however, and ran towards the same direction the shot came from the first two times...
When he got there, he saw Niffty running from someone, he could feel everything
Fear, anxiety, guilt, betrayal...
Pain...
She was guilty of homicide, her friends of betrayal, they left her to die, either sentenced or in attempts to escape...
The world is an unfair place
Maybe if she hadn't met certain people in her life, this moment could have been avoided
Oh...so that's why i can't heal her
Alex realized something important...
This...already happened in the past
She was so scared...terrified, he never saw her afraid, it felt wrong...it gave him goosebumps...
He was starting to feel useless again, she was stuck in this nightmare, and he couldn't pull her out of it
He still tried, pushing her out of the way, pulling, shielding her...but the bullets never seemed to miss, not matter what he did
It was fate already fulfilled, he can't change the past, especially if that past is only a memory
As he held her corpse in his arms again, suddenly she spoke
"Who....are you?"
He was shocked, he flinched but still managed to speak
Alex: "Niffty!?, i-it's me! Alex!"
Niffty: "..."
"I never met any Alex before..."
Maybe it was because they were in a dream, but she couldn't remember him at the moment, he felt her regrets, and...he felt nostalgic...for some reason
Niffty: "But... you sound so familiar... your voice makes me feel warm..."
"Do i deserve such a thing? After all the wrong things i've done?"
Alex was at a loss for words...what could he possibly say to comfort her in this torture?
He knew she wasn't innocent or blameless....
But out of everyone in hell, she was making the most progress towards redemption
He shut his eyes tight, his voice wavering, the pain was intense...
Alex: "I....i think you do..."
"But i'm not that great...now am i?"
"I can't even save a single soul, or you...from all of this."
Niffty: "..."
"Why is it your fault?"
Her voice sounded more high pitched now, he opened his eyes again, seeing how she was turning into a demon, the bullet holes becoming marks on her skin, and her right eye, which was shot, disappearing, leaving only one
"Those were my choices...and oh man...i made the wrong ones."
"In the end, this is what i deserve"
"Why are you blaming yourself for something i did? Besides....you're here, aren't you?"
She caressed his cheek with one of her hands, her skin turning into its' usual pale white...he held it close with his own hand
"Sigh....i guess you're right, i just... have a hard time believing in myself sometimes... but when people say stuff about me...it sounds so true"
"Especially when you say it"
She smiled. As she had always done, but her smile faded when she saw him trembling from the pain of her wounds
Niffty: "Sorry, you can... feel this too, can't you?"
"I'm dragging you through all of this..."
Alex: "Well...like you said, it's not your fault, is it?"
He looked up to the starry sky, seeing how there was something worth it in all this pain... maybe God was being merciful
Niffty: "I remember this sky, it's so pretty... I wonder if... God was trying to comfort me here"
He felt her shame and regret when she said "God", which gave him hope for her redemption...
Alex: "I'm sure he was...he's God after all..."
She felt comforted by this...maybe there was hope for her afterall...despite being out of touch, despite being able to get by in hell, wouldn't it be nice to go to heaven?
Silence took over, they were completely quiet, Niffty was half way through becoming a demon, but she still wanted to say something
Niffty: "You know...when i first saw you, i thought...you were kinda weird...i followed you around, but nothing would happen, no killing, no kidnapping or anything like that...you just...wandered around, and kept to yourself, it was...boring...because i normally like bad boys....but i couldn't stop following you"
"I don't know...maybe it's fate...but i felt like talking with you, and i got lucky that you went so close to the hotel that day, i was...excited, more than usual"
"And when i did talk to you, i felt...happy, warm too, i was so used to the cold...that i forgot it felt so nice to talk to someone kind, someone who can give me more than just a few minutes before walking away....someone who can tolerate how energetic i am all the time"
"And...i felt like a thief, stealing something i shouldn't have..."
"But i still wanted more, i wanted it- no...i wanted you all for myself"
"But i still wonder if i'm allowed to have you..."
Alex was...speechless, for the lack of a better term, they had recently confessed to each other, but she was feeling this way?...he felt bad for not expecting her to be so complex...
But it also made him love her more
Alex: "Well...i...felt the same..."
Niffty: "Really?"
Alex: "At first, i felt awkward...i didn't trust you...i thought 'this is a trap', or 'she'll stab me the moment i look away'...but it never happened...and each time i was more eager for you to visit me...to the point where i couldn't really wait...y'know?"
"I wanted to stay with you...all day..."
"But it's so embarrassing to say out loud...and, i was going through some stuff"
"I didn't know how to ask you that"
....
"Maybe i know why i was sent down here afterall"
Niffty: "..."
Alex: "I think i was sent here to save you all...i can make this work...and i'll start with you...'kay?"
He leaned down, and kissed her lips, it was a long, and satisfying kiss, due to them holding back all this time...
When they pulled away, Niffty had fully turned into a demon...and she giggled a little
Niffty: "So are you some kind of hero?"
Alex: "Nah....good things don't happen to heroes, and i have you...and...probably new friends, at the hotel"
Niffty: "Give them a chance will you?"
Alex: "Of course..."
The earth opened its' mouth, and swallowed them both, they held each other tightly as they fell back down to hell
Alex woke up in bed, feeling exhausted despite having slept all night
Niffty was already awake, right next to him, both of them blushed when they caught sight of each other
Alex: "uhh...did you have...a weird dream?"
Niffty: "Oh...so it was real"
Alex: "Well damn..."
They both slowly looked at each other again...and after staring for a little while, they kissed again...
Real life experience was always better afterall, and technically this was their very first kiss
It was even longer than the other one, however here they actually needed to breathe
So they had to break the kiss more abruptly, looking at each other with half closed eyes, and breathing heavily...
Alex: "I...really wanted to do that...for a while now..."
Niffty: "Same here...geez...it felt better than expected"
They both locked eyes with each other, their eyes sparkling in awe
Their faces painted in red, they laughed together quietly
Alex: "sigh, feelings are complicated"
Niffty: "I know right...it's so frustrating"
"What time is it?"
Alex: "...uhh...6:00 A.m"
Niffty: "Oh thank God, i still have some time before cleaning"
There was an awkward silence between them, and they couldn't help but kiss again, they were barely holding their urges in for the past few days, and so it backfired
Alex: "O-okay...i might get addicted to this..."
Niffty: "Pff-...that's a relief..."
"That was my first kiss by the way"
Alex: "Yep...same here"
Niffty: "Wait wha? For real!?"
Alex: "Yeah?"
She was extremely confused, did he not realize how handsome he was?
Niffty: "Are the girls up there blind!?"
Alex: "M-maybe?"
Niffty: "They are!, 200%!!"
Alex: "Alright, I get it! Geez!"
Niffty: "Don't 'geez' me!!, it's true!"
Alex: "Well-!!..."
"Crap i would say the same applies to you but...that's a lie!, there are tons of creeps down here"
Niffty: "Pff-!!"
She let out a heartwarming laugh, which felt genuine and...of course, looked incredibly cute
Alex, feeling mocked, pinched her face, and stretched it to the sides
Alex: "Stop being so cute!!"
Niffty: "I won't!! Not if i get to see you blushing!"
Alex: "Arrgh!!"
They both got a little too carried away in their conversation, and half an hour already passed
Alex looked at the clock and smirked
Alex: "Hey Niffty...it's 6:30"
Niffty gasped out loud
"What!?, since when does time fly by so fast!?"
And immediately she ran outside the room, doing her usual self-applied routine
Alex was about to walk outside, but remembered that suit Charlie gave him as a gift
So he went back, and after struggling, he managed to put it on
Alex: "Huh...not bad...not bad at all actually..."
He walked out of the room, feeling more confident in himself
Today's gonna be a great day...even down here, i can feel it
He greeted Charlie, and later on Husker, Sir Pentious and Vaggie , who seemed to be more accepting of him being in the hotel now
He also, begrudgingly greeted Alastor, who enthusiastically offered him a handshake
But one person he did not greet...was Angel
Wait...where is he?
He looked outside, and he was nowhere to be seen
Don't tell me...he's still there??, after two days!?
He needed to warn Charlie about this
He went over to her office right when she was heading out aswell, they spoke at the same time
"Alex! I need-"
"Charlie i-"
Charlie: "Uhh...you first"
Alex: "No no, you...ugh nevermind!, it's about Angel, have you seen him?"
Charlie: "I was about to ask you the same thing!, he's been out for 2 days, i'm worried...i hope he didn't get hurt"
Alex: "Shit!"
They called Vaggie
Charlie proposed to tell the others to search him too, but she denied her
Vaggie: "Sorry hun...but do you really think they'll be willing to help?"
Charlie: "It won't hurt to try!, it'll also help for redemption!, c'mon! Have some faith on them"
Vaggie: "I don't have faith in anyone else other than you..."
Alex: "Oh so that's where the black spots come from..."
Vaggie: "What?"
Alex: "Uhh"
He glanced at Charlie, who was behind Vaggie, frantically doing a neck slice gesture, telling him to NOT tell her about it
Alex: "Nevermind"
Vaggie: "Well... sigh...i'll tell them about it, but don't expect anything!"
When she walked away, Alex whispered to Charlie
Alex: "Why won't you tell her?"
Charlie: "I just...i wanna see if she can have some faith in my cause too, i love that she's here for me, but i think it won't do any good telling her that she's THAT close to going to heaven"
He smiled at her...
Alex: "You sure that's all?
She stepped back a little
Charlie: "And...m-maybe i just...don't want her to leave yet, i-i need her here a little, is that too selfish?"
Alex: "It's okay, you need her, besides, you're right...it's better that she improves without knowing it, also...i bet she'd prefer to stay with you as long as she needs to"
She let out a sigh of relief
"Thanks Alex..."
"It's nothing"
Vaggie came back with a shocked expression
Vaggie: "Well kill me again, because they actually agreed to it"
Alex: "That's really not surprising at all"
Vaggie: "Oh fuck you"
Alex: "Tell Niffty to do that"
Vaggie: "What?"
Charlie: "What?"
Alex: "What?"
"..."
"Alright pretend i never said that"
Vaggie: "Wait a fucking minute-!"
Alex: "L-look! The others are getting out, let's go!"
Vaggie: "Hijo de perra-"
They all got out, each one going to search for Angel...
Alastor: "This will be wonderfully entertaining!"
Alex: "hah...of course you're in just for that"
Alastor smiled cockily at him
"Let's go my fellows and dears!"
Alex and Husk flew together to search through the city, while Niffty went with Charlie, Vaggie and Sir Pentious
Alastor went alone, though he kept a close watch on the others, just so he could catch a pleasant unfortunate moment happen to anyone
Meanwhile
???: "Hey~~~ Angel Cakes~, you'll stay with me another day right?...won't you?
Angel: "Y-yes Val- I mean! Boss!!"
Valentino: "Good boy~, tomorrow you have a ton of shoots to make, just stay in the studio okay?"
Angel: "O-okay"
Valentino: "hm? I didn't hear you well"
Angel: "Y-yes boss"
Valentino: "Good..."
The tall Overlord put a strong grip on Angel's shoulder, to further solidify his control over him
Holding a contract on his hand, which was signed "Anthony", he walked with confidence, and welcomed Angel inside the studio...