Demonic Influence (I hate my co-workers)

It Was A Cold And Windy Day...

Brett couldn't believe he was doing this. Unacceptable. Why would he ever begin to think that this was a good idea?

He felt bad, that's why.

Eddy had been locked up in his basement for two weeks now, and despite Brett's increasingly exciting attempts at entertaining him, there was only so much fun one could have playing cards tied to a chair. And so, that's how he found himself untying Eddy, finding his fluffiest coats to bundle the demon in, and taking him outside.

Eddy was right, he did cave eventually.

"You have to hold my hand the entire time though, okay?" Brett told him this sternly. "And don't even think about getting away from me, I'm more than capable of replicating that little stunt in the alley."

"Okay!" Eddy looked like a little kid on Christmas morning, lacing his long fingers through Brett's before they had even left the basement.

When they stepped outside, Brett immediately began to feel guilty again. A sharp gust of wind blew by them as they walked down the front steps, piercing through their layers as though they were nothing. He should have bundled Eddy up more, the demon was surely cold. As discreetly as possible, Brett spared the tall boy another glance.

Eddy, for what it's worth, looked ecstatic. His cheeks burned a rosy pink in the cool air, and he gripped Brett's warm hand a little tighter as they walked further. His eyes lit up every time he looked around, almost as though he were a small child. It was incredibly endearing.

"I thought demons were supposed to be like mini space heaters or something," Brett teased him quietly.

Eddy wrinkled his nose. "Well maybe I'm the one demon in all of hell that runs cold."

"Lucky you," Brett replied, gently steering Eddy to one of the nearest shops. "Come on, in here." He opened the door for Eddy, but since the angel refused to let go of his hand, the two of them were forced to do an awkward shuffle squeeze past one another into the building.

Eddy nearly tripped over his own feet as he entered the room, giggling and grinning. "Ah wow, thanks dude," he said, only a slight teasing edge to his voice.

Brett dragged him up to the counter. Fairy lights decorated the entire shop, and the walls were a pleasing shade of pastel yellow. The woman behind the counter smiled up at the two of them. "What'll it be today?" She asked cheerfully.

Brett glanced over at Eddy, watching as he bit his lip, looking over the options. "Anything you want I can get for you," he murmured to him.

Eddy smiled endearingly down at him. "Thanks, I feel so stupid for forgetting my wallet," he replied. Then, he turned to the hostess. "One medium original please, black."

"One original, coming right up," the girl nodded, making eye contact with Brett next. "Anything for you, sir?"

"Um, same as he's having please, and... can we grab one of those giant cookie things over there in the case, too?" Brett made a motion in the direction of said case, filled with appetizing looking sweets and pastries with one hand, rummaging for some cash with the other.

"Of course. If you would like to, you can just sit down wherever, we'll have your food and drinks brought out to you," The girl smiled, accepting Brett's payment. "Oh, and I just have to say, you two make simply the most adorable couple!" She gave them a glittering smile.

Brett froze at that, feeling Eddy's hand tighten a little bit around his. His eyes grew as wide as saucers. "Oh, uh..." his tongue felt too big for his mouth.

Eddy, however, gave the woman an appreciative smile. "Thank you so much!" he said, holding their clasped hands higher for the woman to see. "It's only been a couple of weeks, but he finally caved and said we could go out together!" He let out a little giggle, looking the part of the flustered new boyfriend. "He was a little worried about it though," he whispered to her, still smiling.

"Well, you two seem very happy together," The woman nodded happily. "We'll have your drinks out for you shortly."

"Thank you!" Eddy called back over his shoulder as they began to turn away, and then he was the one leading Brett by his hand to a booth in the back corner, dragging him along only a bit.

"Well, she seemed nice!" Eddy plopped down in the booth, the corners of his lips quirking up. "I figured you'd still want to hold hands so the booth would be best."

Brett just nodded, heart still feeling like it was beating out of his chest.

"So, angels take their coffee black then?" Eddy asked, doing his best to strike up a conversation with the almost robotic looking boy to his right.

"Yeah, yeah," Brett said, distracted, "You learn black works best pretty quickly after you have to deal with the archangel's shit for a couple hundred years-sorry did you tell her that we were dating?"

Eddy just laughed softly, and Brett could feel a warmth overtake him that had nothing to do with the fact that they were seated right next to a heater. "I hoped you wouldn't mind," he said, casting his gaze down. "It seemed easier than arguing with her about it."

Brett considered it. It checked out. "Fair enough."

Eddy mumbled something else, cheeks flushing bright pink as he did so.

"Sorry, I didn't quite catch that," Brett said, leaning a little closer to him.

Eddy was about to repeat himself when, with a small thunk, a tray was set onto their table. "Two coffees, black, and one of the almond horn cookies," A deep voice announced, and the two of them looked up, making eye contact with a dark skinned man, a somewhat tall and imposing figure. The only part about him that didn't strike fear in Brett's heart was the fact that he donned a pastel green apron over top of the rest of his black attire. A shiny nametag glinted on his apron, but Brett couldn't quite make the letters out.

Eddy's hand tightened in his own as the demon sucked in a quick breath. There was a moment of silence, during which Brett could see this man's gaze go straight through him, before he turned his burning gaze on Eddy. Eddy's grip on his left hand tightened further. Brett could feel himself losing circulation.

Then, the tall man spoke. "Eddy?"

Eddy let out a small, nervous laugh, his grip on Brett now excruciatingly painful. "Fred, good to see you."