Demonic Influence (I hate my co-workers)

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Brett was ninety percent sure that he and Eddy were dating. Now, usually, it would be in his best interest to be a hundred percent sure, but he was also pretty certain that Eddy had just decided this without his input and ran with it. Not that he particularly minded, of course.

What tipped him off, one might ask?

After Brett had bid Eddy goodbye at the park, earning himself another small peck on the cheek, he had frankly expected to never see the demon again. And who could blame him for thinking that? It's not often that the kidnapee runs straight back to their kidnapper.

So one can easily imagine his surprise when he walked downstairs into his bright and shiny kitchen the next morning, only to find the tall demon slouching on one of his cream colored chairs.

"Dude, there's like no back support on this thing," Eddy complained, cracking about six different bones in his neck. "Where did you get these?"

Brett had been shocked, and more importantly, dressed in nothing but his boxers and a fluffy robe. He managed to contain his gaping to only a couple of seconds while his brain, waking up and in desperate need of caffeine, rebooted. "Uhhh, I think they came with the house," he responded, doing his best to sound like Eddy had not caught him off guard and unprepared, first thing in the morning, when he looked like a hedgehog and sounded like he had just smoked a pack.

"Oh, okay then." Eddy's face split into a huge grin. "Good morning, sleepyhead!"

"Good morning," Brett responded, bewildered. How did he get into my house?

From then on, it became almost an unspoken rule that wherever Brett went, Eddy would eventually pop up. Sometimes he saw him every day of the week, sometimes he saw him four or five times a month. It didn't matter, Eddy would always come back at some point, a fact that Brett had begun to trust blindly, looking forward to each visit more than the last.

Brett was walking to get bubble tea? Bam. Eddy was there, all soft smiles and offering to cover the cost. The employees had started whispering to each other about the two of them, as well as Brett's change in attitude. Their strange, almost daily customer had been transformed into a blushing, stuttering, smiling mess in the time it took for them to blink their eyes, all thanks to the mysterious man in black beside him.

Brett thought it would be nice to go busking? As he played, Eddy would often slink up behind him and watch. Sometimes, if he felt like it, the demon made small suggestions about what to play next, or even offered up tiny facts about the pieces that should have been lost to humanity at this point.

Brett didn't think that was fair. He had already been playing for two hundred years before Eddy had even died, and yet the taller boy was so much more knowledgeable about the 'composer's original intent,' just because hell got all the good musicians. It wasn't his fault that heaven was so stingy!

Brett would often busk for hours, simply because he could, not to mention he loved the sound of it. There was nothing more relaxing to him then playing his violin out in the open air, the natural hustle and bustle of the park behind him, and Eddy standing there watching, a small smile on his face.

They would walk around afterwards, sometimes holding hands, Brett's violin case still slung across his back. Brett would stop occasionally, dispersing the money to whoever he felt needed it most.

Eddy had let out a fond chuckle the first time he saw, though there was no malice whatsoever behind his words. "Of course you would do that. It must be a huge part of your job. 'Do a thousand selfless acts, each one more thoughtful than the last.'" He paused. "Or maybe it's extra credit. Is it extra credit?"

Brett had smiled back at him, though his was a bittersweet one. "Actually, no," he whispered. "It doesn't matter what we do on our own time, as long as we're getting rid of sinners, no one really cares."

Eddy's smile had dipped for only a moment, before returning full force. "Well that just makes you all the more special, then."

That was the first time that Eddy had kissed him, right there in the middle of the sidewalk. Wind blew around them, But Brett wasn't cold. Eddy's eyes were closed, and he had slid his hands around Brett's petite waist.

Brett almost dropped his violin. Almost.

It was like he had forgotten how to kiss back. Eddy pulled away, slight confusion crossing his features. He had opened his mouth to ask Brett... something. He would never know, because that was the moment his hands reached out, grabbing the collar of Eddy's jacket and pulling him back down, kissing him again.

When they pulled apart, Brett's breath fogged up in the open air, what little of it there was. He felt breathless, high enough to touch the stars.

It made sense for Eddy to be there, made sense for him to be a part of Brett's life. He wasn't quite sure why, but they fit together like puzzle pieces.

So of course it made sense that Eddy would be there when the archangels came for him. Brett had woken up early, thinking he could make breakfast for two, in case his usual company came over. That much he expected, Eddy had been coming for breakfast most days that week. The one thing he didn't expect was to find his company standing in his living room, pinned against the wall by one hand. One hand that belonged to a very tall, very skinny man.

Even as Brett reached the end of the stairs, Eddy's attacker turned to face him, lips curling into a cruel imitation of a smile as he curled his fingers tighter around Eddy's pale throat. Brett's ears were ringing as time seemed to slow to a stop.

Eddy wasn't moving anymore. Instead, he hung limply against the wall, head lolling to the side even as his attacker squeezed harder.

Someone was screaming. It took Brett a moment to realize that that person was him.

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A/N: Thank you all for your input! It's definitely helped me with the direction that I want this story to go. Unfortunately, that means I need to clear a certain angst hurdle first... So hopefully it won't be that bad and we can go back to our regular scheduled fluff and crack soon enough. Thank you all for sticking with the story and the comments and votes! You all make my day! :D