Game On!

Part Twelve: Confusing Emotions

"Holy shit, so he kissed you then left you high and dry?" Cherri Bomb flicked her long strawberry blonde hair then settled herself back on the couch next to Angel Dust and the pale pink spider sighed heavily.

"I know, I know.. I shouldn't give a fuck but I can't help it. It's stuck in my head. It's all I've been thinkin' about these passed couple of days, you got any advice?" He wailed slumping back onto her red sofa looking tormented for a moment before he groaned covering his face with two of his four hands. He had snuck liver to her place just to get a breather from the hotel and Husk. Though neither him or the demon cat had mentioned it the day after it happened it was eating the spider inside like some parasitic organism that was threatening to burst out of his chest any second.

"Nope. Your fucked. You got it bad Angie.." Cherri smirked flashing him a sympathetic look from her bloodshot single eye, her X-shaped pupil focusing on his face. "He must be one hell of a kisser to have you fawning over him like this."

"Rrrrr.... I can't fall for him. I just can't.. Val will bust a fagioli.. Ya know he doesn't like me gettin' personal with guys outsida my work." Angel growled feeling annoyed with himself because his crush had deepened not waned since the kiss on top of the hotel.

"Screw him! Figuratively, not literally." The female demon exclaimed looking somewhat annoyed that he was trying to talk himself out of this. "Do something for you. It's time you had a little happiness in your shit show of a life down here. How long have I been telling you to get yourself a real man?"

"Ya've been hairpin' on about it for fuckin' years.." The lithe male spider demon replied with a small sad smile.

"Exactly and your just gonna let this guy go when he falls into your life?" Cherri Bomb scowled.

"Manifested. He manifested right in fronta me actually.." Angel replied automatically remembering the moment Husk appeared, looking momentarily confused by his surroundings and then enraged by the Radio Demon's presence. He then shook the memory of the first time he flirted with him away remaining dispondant. "But it doesn't matter, it ain't that simple—"

"Yes it is! You said it yourself while your in that place your under the Radio Demon's protection, so what's Valentino gonna do about it?" The female demon flicked her long strawberry blonde hair in a top half ponytail back behind her and frowned. Her words made Angel blink before smiling at the realisation of her words.

"Nothin', heh, he can't do shit to stop me.." The spider demon perked up, smirking a little.

"There he is, there's that fuckin' man eater.." Cherri Bomb responded with a wide grin, flashing her massive sharp teeth as she leaned one arm on the back of the red couch in her small apartment.

"But he wants me to show him the real me, not this persona.." Angel deflated a little looking somewhat nervous. "What if he doesn't like what he finds?"

"Well.. You won't know until you give it a shot." The female demon got up and went to a cabinet nearby pulling out a bottle of spirits labelled 'Peach Snappz' and a couple of bomb shaped shot glasses. "How about we give you a little Dutch courage for when you go back.." She replied with a wicked grin making the spider demon smirk.

"Heh.. It couldn't hurt." Angel responded accept the shot of translucent liquid she offered him.

"Ok, so I wanna know everything about this guy. He must be really something to catch your eyes.." Cherri said watching her best friend knock back the shot of alcohol before knocking back hers and pouring them a fresh one..

........

By the time Angel Dust returned to the Hazbin Hotel he was pretty drunk, the two of them had finished off the bottle of liquor as they chatted and caught up on things. He smiled a little lop-sidely as he pushed open the main doors to the hotel and frowned a little looking around the foyer unable to see Husk anywhere but he did find Alastor stood in his standby mode.

"Hey Al, where's Husk? I wanna talk to him.." The spider demon put his lower hands on his hips and folded his upper set across the 'bust' of his fluffy chest. He knew the Radio Demon could hear him and sure enough the moment he stopped talking Alastor's red eyes seemed to come to life.

"Ah, Angel I— Whew, someone's been on the Peach Snappz.." He waved one deep maroon coloured gloved hand in front of his prominent nose before continuing, his grin never faltering. "Where was I? Oh yes, he's out back on a smoke break. Filthy habit, my mother always claimed but it seems to be the in thing down here, filling your lungs with smoke.." Alastor chuckled to himself as Angel began to move away from the Radio Demon.

"Uh, yeh.. Thanks." He flashed the red suited deer-like humanoid demon an odd look, waving him off before carrying on through the empty dining room to the rear door in the huge empty kitchen. His heart skipped a beat and his smile tweaked upwards as he saw the unmistakable red, white and black wings, long grey tail with matching plume and rear profile of the one demon he had been looking for.

Husk hadn't been sitting there very long, in fact he had only taken a couple of drags of his fag, his yellow eyes merely looking listlessly ahead. He wasn't focussing on anything or particularly thinking of anything either, he was just enjoying his brief break from the bar before returning for the night.

"Hey, mind if I join you?" Angel uttered leaning on the doorway making the hulking grey and white cat demon with long red plumes for eyebrows look up.

"Free doorstep.." He shrugged returning to his smoke taking a long drag and blowing out a ring of smoke as the spider demon perched himself down.

"Can I—" Even before he had spoken Husk had pulled out his smoke packet, caught a fresh one in his lips and lit it. He took the first drag before passing it over to Angel. "Thanks. You knew I was gonna ask that." He flashed the type of giddy smile that was usually seen on Charlie and accepted the fag, taking a drag.

"Was obvious. How much you had to drink?" This was not the question that the spider demon expected to be asked and he stared back in surprise at the serious look he was getting.

"Why does that matter?" Angel queried.

"Can't serve you if you don't sober up a little, the Princess won't let me." Husk responded hardly missing the fact that Angel was more than a little wasted. "Besides, Alastor has invited an old friend to sing in the bar tonight and she draws a crowd."

"Is she a friend of yours too?" The spider demon asked curiously.

"Kinda..." Husk retorted with a non-committal shrug as he took his last drag, unconcerned by the spider's question yet gave no more information on the subject. Angel Dust looked a little uncertain as he watched the large demon cat stub out his fag end and get up. "Do yourself a favour. Take a shower, get something to eat and I'll get you a soft mixer when you finally show up at the bar, got it?"

"Sure.." The spider demon uttered looking somewhat despondent as he sucked on the fag in his hand making Husk groan and slap his forehead, hating himself for what came out of his mouth.

"What's the problem.." His jaded voice sounded and this made Angel turn to him.

"I was kinda hoping we could talk.. Y'know, about the other night?"

"Hmf. Make it through my shift without getting blind drunk and then we can talk. I gotta go, I gotta get back behind the bar.." The demon cat spoke gruffly, shaking his head as he left. He wasn't sure what there was to talk about it, it had just been a kiss. Plain and simple. It meant nothing.. At least to him, it didn't.