Chapter 8 Sagitta
Sagitta
I felt like a total fool during the rest of the walk to Chase’s apartment.
The prickling heat of shame still lingered on my skin. I couldn’t believe I’d nearly stepped into traffic and been struck by a car all because I’d panicked like some prey animal, desperate to bolt. I was glad Chase was the only person I knew around to witness it.
My heart was still racing with quick, sticky beats by the time we reached his place. I wanted to shed the embarrassment like shrugging off a coat, but time was the only thing that would make me feel better.
Time away from Chase. Which, unfortunately, I’d locked myself into. Why did I suggest such an idiotic scheme?
To hide my botched exorcisms from Cygnet, that was why.
I pinched my eyes shut. If I hadn’t screwed up the exorcism in the first place, I’d never be in this mess. Now I was hiding behind layers of lies, and I was stuck living with the physical manifestation of my failure.
“You okay?”
I tried not to start at Chase’s voice. He was in the kitchen placing the boxes of donuts on the counter. I got the sense he was giving me space after my little episode.
“Yes, I’m fine,” I replied without really meaning it.
A nagging voice in the back of my mind told me I’d never be fine again, not after my monumental blunders. Cold dread seeped up my spine. What if I couldn’t exorcise Faust within the week? I couldn’t return to the temple. The shame would be too great.
And if I couldn’t return, then my whole life was over.
“Uh... you sure you’re okay?” Chase asked again.
“Fine,” I replied, clipped. In an obviously not-fine way.
Chase didn’t reply. He stood where he was, watching me with scrutiny. Then he opened the box, picked up a donut, and sauntered over.
“Eat this,” he commanded.
“Excuse—”
“Eat the donut, Sagitta.”
It was a casual order, but an order nonetheless. Heat briefly flowed into my cheeks at the implication that he deigned to boss me around. But indeed, our dynamic had shifted. This wasn’t the temple. We were in his domain. His messy, slightly sweaty bachelor pad of a domain.
Chase raised a brow, lifting the donut higher to draw my attention to it. The tawny ring of dough was coated in a tantalizing honey glaze that glinted like cracked ice. The scent of it made my mouth water.
Yet it was more than just a donut. It was Chase’s peace offering, and I’d be a fool not to accept.
With a sigh, I got over myself. I pinched the donut between my thumb and forefinger and took a bite. I tried not to let it show on my face just how damn good it tasted.
Chase grinned. He casually slipped his fingers between his lips and sucked off the leftover glaze.
I sharply glanced away. I didn’t need to see that. Or think too hard about it.
“Cool,” Chase said, wiping his hand on his jeans. “Then we’re friends now.”
His words squeezed my chest like a warm, gentle fist. It was a statement, not a suggestion.
As its meaning sunk in, I felt a novel sensation stirring within me. It was embarrassing to admit, even in the privacy of my own mind, but Chase was the closest thing I’d had to a friend in a long, long time.
“Yes,” I agreed.
Chase perked up. “Hey, you want a coffee or something? Can’t eat donuts without it.”
I found it endearing that he continued to offer me refreshments. At least he was a good host. Perhaps the demon had possessed Chase because it found his inviting personality... well, inviting.
“Sure,” I agreed.
Chase strode towards the simple coffee machine perched on his kitchen counter. “Let me guess. You want it pitch-black and steaming hot.”
“Actually, no,” I corrected.
His brows flew up as he grabbed a mug. “Really? I figured with your smouldering personality and all...”
“I suppose you don’t have the ingredients to make Thai coffee.”
Chase looked sheepish. “Er... No? Maybe?”
“Let’s see.”
I joined him in the kitchen and rummaged through his cupboard. Besides salt, pepper, and a half-eaten bag of dry pasta, it was startlingly empty. What did this man eat?
I discovered the answer when I checked his fridge. Aside from some basics—a carton of eggs and milk, a bottle of ketchup, a head of broccoli dangerously close to expiring—the item taking up the most real estate was a pack of vanilla-flavoured protein drinks.
“Chase,” I said in a chiding tone.
“Yeah?”
“Do you cook at all?” I asked, already knowing the answer.
“Uhhh.”
I shut the fridge door. “Let’s go shopping.”
Chase blinked. “Right now?”
“I’m here for a week, remember? Unlike you, I can’t exist off of ProteinBlast drinks alone.”
He scratched his head. “I guess I do eat out a lot...”
“We’ll change that.”
He nodded. “Okay, let’s do it.”
His quick affirmation surprised me. Maybe I was too used to Cygnet’s combativeness. In comparison, Chase was relaxed and easygoing, like a golden retriever. It didn’t take much to brighten his mood. A treat, a toy, a pat on the head... that was all he wanted.
Was that why he’d been possessed so easily? Because he was simple? Or was he a gentle soul, pure of heart, the perfect target for a malicious entity?
A dark feeling twisted in my gut. I couldn’t lose track of my goal. We could be friendly, sure, but I wasn’t here to be Chase’s friend. I was here to rid an innocent person of an invading demon.
And if I failed to accomplish my task for a third time, then what good was I?
“Hey, Sagitta. Doesn’t this potato kinda look like a dick?”
In the produce section of the Asian supermarket, I glanced over to see Chase holding an admittedly phallic-looking tuber. My lips curled in amusement before I could stop myself. Then I cleared my throat, trying to maintain a professional vibe.
“Sort of,” I agreed. “Put it in the basket if you want it for dinner.”
He smirked as he plopped the potato in with the other vegetables. “Is that a joke about me being gay?”
“No.” I pushed the little cart into the instant coffee aisle. “Why do you keep asking me that? Do you think I’m some kind of homophobe?”
“Nah. If you were, you wouldn’t move in with me.”
The insinuation that we lived together sent a weird curl of heat up my spine. “I didn’t move in with you,” I stated firmly. “I’m just visiting.”
“For a week.”
“It’s not a vacation,” I grumbled. “It’s to ensure I finish my job.”
Chase nodded offhandedly. He scanned the shelves full of foreign-to-him coffees and teas. I thought the topic was over until he said, “Plus, you did kiss me that one time.”
My body jerked, and I accidentally swerved the shopping cart into the shelf. A shower of instant milk teas rained down. Half of them landed in the cart while the other half crashed on my head. They were light, so it didn’t hurt, but my face burned with embarrassment.
“Oh shit,” Chase said, grabbing a couple boxes from the floor and returning them to the shelf. Then he hissed under his breath, “Stop laughing, asshole.”
My blood boiled. He was talking to the damned demon again. That pissed me off more than his clueless kiss comment.
“Cut that out,” I warned, lowering my voice. A few people had poked their heads into the aisle after the boxes fell. My skin prickled hotly at the fact that we were being watched.
“Huh? Cut what out? Oh, you mean the...?” Chase touched the tips of his index fingers together in the loose miming of a kiss.
“No,” I snapped. “I mean, yes, that too. But I mean talking to the—”
A supermarket employee dashed into the aisle and efficiently tidied up all the remaining boxes. “Sorry, stand aside, please! Are you all right, sir?”
“Yes, I’m fine,” I said, disregarding the humiliation that crawled up my back. “I apologize for the mess.”
Before we could make further fools of ourselves, I grabbed Chase’s arm and dragged him out of the aisle.
I did my best to ignore the pointed stares of other shoppers, but I couldn’t dull the burning heat in my face.
Once we were safely in the personal hygiene aisle, I stopped to catch my breath and calm down.
Chase picked up one of the boxes that fell into our cart and examined it curiously.
“Brown sugar flavour... Hey, this looks pretty good!” he said, putting it back.
My grip on the shopping cart handle tightened. The sooner I finished my task and got away from this meathead, the better.
“Sorry, dude, what were you saying before about stopping something?” Chase asked.
I exhaled a hot breath through my nostrils. I needed him to listen, to actually hear me. First I scanned the aisle exits to make sure we were alone, then in a swift motion, I grabbed the drawstrings of his hoodie and yanked him closer.
“Stop talking to the demon. I’m serious,” I warned. “The more you communicate with it, the more you risk forming a bond. And when that happens, an exorcism becomes nearly impossible.”
Anxiety flickered across Chase’s expression. “Uh... what happens if I’ve been talking to him the whole time?”
“Just ignore it from now on.”
His mouth twisted into a grimace. “Easier said than done. He’s very insistent.”
“You have free will,” I ground out. “Use it.”
Chase pouted like a puppy. I withheld a growl of frustration. How could I get through to him?
“You lift weights, right?” I asked. When he nodded proudly, I said, “You have the willpower to go to the gym and train. Use that same willpower to ignore the demon whispering in your ear.”
Chase shuffled on his feet. “I guess I can try.”
“Do you want to be possessed for the rest of your life?”
“No...”
“Then do as I say.”
My gaze was drawn to his lower lip, still stuck out petulantly. Since I’d pulled him closer, I couldn’t not notice its fullness.
A flash of memory suddenly struck me like a box of instant coffee to the head. The night we’d first met. The party.
Kissing him.
A rush of heat spread out from my core, seeping into every limb until my whole body tingled with warmth.
Thinking about that while so close to him was a mistake. I unhanded his drawstrings and all but shoved him away in a desperate bid to escape his radius.
Chase just blinked. His lack of reaction made me feel crazier. He brought up our kiss. Did he feel anything about it at all, or was it just a casual party trick to him? No doubt he kissed men all the time. There was no reason for him to think the one we shared was meaningful.
I whipped around so he couldn’t see my expression. Whatever was on it, I’m sure it wasn’t pretty.
“Let’s finish up here,” I said. “We have a lot of work to do.”