“Sit down.” Kieran had told her as he took a seat on a sofa himself. Leila did as told while she avoided his eyes. With crossed arms and furrowed eyebrows, Leila kept quiet. For a while, Kieran had done the same. They looked at the ground or the machines on the ceiling.
Kieran then opened his mouth to say: “Listen, I don’t like this.”
“Me neither,” she responded.
“I don’t like this mission or my demon duties but I have to do it.”
“I’m listening,” she said peeking at Kieran from time to time.
“We’ll have to work together. We’ll both be at peace after that. You’ll go home and I won’t be bothered with demon duties for a long time,” he pleaded.
Leila sighed, “Alright,” she slowly said with hesitation.
“Alright?” he asked to confirm.
“I have no other choice do I?”
“Right…”
“One thing,” she started, “stop being mad at me for no reason, I did not ask to be here. I’ll try my best but please…” Leila did not have the force to finish her sentence.
Kieran guiltily gazed at her, “I’ll try.”
“That’s strange,” She remarked with a raised eyebrow.
“What’s weird?” he asked, embarrassed.
“This simple talk was all we needed to stop fighting.”
“I admit, it is strange but let’s move on before it gets too awkward,” Kieran said scratching his neck.
“Alright then, let’s move on. I heard from your friends that you are quite passionate about my planet” she said with a smirk.
He abruptly coughed, “Nonsense.”
“But I saw all your drawings and it showed how much you
that planet,” she used a teasing tone while she spoke.
Kieran did not want to reply, he simply muttered the same word: “Nonsense.”
“I’m supposed to believe that you don’t care about the earth and simply draw earthly things you hate to release all the hate that resides in you?” He was quiet once again. Kieran could not answer. He did not want to admit anything nor did he want to agree with what he thought was a ridiculous accusation.
“We need to keep our boundaries clear if we’re going to work together,” he strictly said.
“But I’m from the earth and could answer all your questions. I’m sure you’re dying to know all there is on earth. You don’t need to hold yourself back.” she said with a grin that grew larger by the second.
“That’s enough!” he said loudly as he stood up. “I don’t want to know anything about your planet.”
Leila was quite annoyed by his attitude, “Sit down,” she said in a rather cold tone. Surprised by her change in tone, Kieran sat down. “I suppose we are going to be together for a while. I don’t how long it will take me to become a witch but I know it won’t be short nor will it be easy. It would be good to know some things about each other. So, ask away and I’ll do too.”
She thought that he would be less embarrassed if it was more of an ice breaker rather than him acting like a happy child who met a celebrity.
“I’m kinda tired,” he said rubbing his eyes.
“Demons don’t need sleep and you said naps are a waste of time.”
“You first,” he said giving up.
“Alright! Will I be stuck in this tiny apartment for my whole stay in Hell?”
“Once you start developing a dark aura, you’ll be able to get out.”
“A dark aura? How do I get that.”
“By training and practicing witchcraft.”
“And how much will that take?”
“I don’t know! I’ve never done this before,” he answered feeling anger rising again.
“Here it is again that temper,” she said pointing at his obviously irritated face. “You were almost going to show me your demon face,” she laughed.
“You don’t want to see my demon face.”
“You’re right, I don’t. Now it’s your turn.” Kieran straighten his back and crossed his hands together.
“I’m not sure…”
“You have to, I asked you something. It’s the polite thing to do.”
“We’re in Hell, no one is polite.”
“I’m trying to accustom myself to your culture so try it for mine too.”
“What’s your favourite place besides your home on earth,” he finally asked.
“Funny of you to assume that my home is one of my favourite places.”
“What?”
“Nothing. I really like coffee shops.”
“What are coffee shops.”
“It’s a place where you can buy a cup of coffee, it’s a delicious bitter drink. You get to sit down at one of the tables and listen to some peaceful music. You can look out the window or do some people watching. Some people come with their laptops to work or some come together and have meaningful conversations.” He listened carefully to her words with pure confusion. Within that confusion hid some amazement, the lifestyle on earth seemed much different and it was not every day he could learn about it. In fact, it was the first time he could hear it directly from a human.
“It seems great,” he quietly said.
“Right? I usually go there to write peacefully.”
“You write?”
“Yes but not professionally. I edit other people’s books for a living but hope to edit my own book one day. What about you do you have a dream?”
“Yes,” he had said but he immediately put a hand on his mouth realizing the word that left it.
“What’s your dream?” she asked intrigued.
“It’s nothing,” he brushed it off. “Go to sleep even if you’re not tired. We’ll have many things to do later.” Kieran stood up and went into his office.
Leila stayed alone in the living room but she couldn’t complain. She knew that it was only a matter of time before he would open up. She lay on the rough sofa wrapping her arms around herself. She shivered as it was cold and there was no blanket near but all that happened to her was enough to send her back into a deep sleep.
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