The Dominant Demon (Finished)

8. Breakfast

The next morning, I wake to Jade shaking me awake. "Salem, hey! Salem," she says, urgency in her voice.

I slowly open my eyes and groan. "Hmm?"

"What happened last night? The diner called the house phone a million times, asking where you were."

Panic hits me as I realize that I am now probably jobless. "I got sick last night."

She gives me a funny look. "And you didn't come home?"

"No, my friend came to pick me up," I explain, shortly.

She nods. "O-Oh. OK. Well, uhm, do you feel better now?"

I nod, sitting up. "Yea, just need some coffee."

She smiles. "I brought you some. Here," she says, handing my favorite mug to me. "I need to talk to you."

"OK," I reply. "Talk."

"Well," she trails off, nervously. "I feel like we should go into the living room to talk."

I look at her, puzzled. "OK, then. Let's go I guess."

I follow her into the living room, and that's when I see Rory sitting on the couch. "Wow," I scoff. "I am officially convinced that you live here now."

He grins. "You're not wrong."

"Babe!" Jade exclaims. "I was suppose to tell her!"

"Tell me what?" I ask.

Jade turns to me, smiling. I can tell that it's more of a begging smile than a cheery one, though. "Would you be mad if Rory moved in with us?"

I shrug. "I don't care," but my eyes flicker over to him, and he shifts in his seat, uncomfortably. Why is he moving in all of the sudden when all of this stuff with Colvin starts to happen? Could it be connected?

"Really?" Jade shouts. I hear her squeal, and she pounces on me, wrapping me into a tight hug. "I'm so excited!"

"Me, too," I reply, smiling. "We're like a little family."

"I'm gonna go make breakfast!" Jade says, happily as she pulls away.

Rory and I watch as she leaves the room, and then I turn to him, hands on my hips. He gives me a sheepish grin, but I continue to glare at him. "What's this about?" I ask, skeptically.

He stands and quickly crosses the room to me. "Keep your voice down," he mumbles. "Some things in the demon realm are happening, and Colvin just felt like I needed to watch you a little closer."

I feel my face begin to burn, anger bubbling up inside of me. "This is so not fair to Jade," I hiss.

He frowns. "Don't you think I know that? I really am happy to live with her though, Salem. You have to believe me. You keep assuming that I am being forced to be with her, but if I were human again, I'd pick her to be with a hundred times over. I really care about her."

I huff a little and then glance up at him. Looking up into his eyes brings up a quick flash of us playing together as kids. I realize I looked nearly the same as a child in that life as I did in this life. A question pops into my mind. "Do I look the same in every life?" I ask.

He is caught off guard by my question, but he replies. "You look very similar, yes."

"So, do you still see me as your sister? I mean, we kind of look alike," I state, thinking deeply.

A smile appears on his face. "We do look alike, and yes, I do see you as my little sister still. Why do you think that I am so hell bent on keeping you safe?"