Chapter Text
19:00
My home
“Are you seriously wearing this to a party?” I sighed, smoothing a plain T-shirt over my stomach, unsure if I should wear it in or out. With my figure? I probably should not be going anywhere at all. My (one and only) friend, Kathy, stood behind me in a dress that revealed her long, slender legs and bunched up a bit over her thighs any time she took a step. I am pretty sure if I bent forward and looked close enough, I could see her cunt staring back at me. She was a bit tan, with long, gorgeous black hair.
My god, I thought, my bestie is a fucking bimbo. “Yes, Kat. I do not have anything else that is clean and appropriate.” I watched her eyes roll far back at the last word in the sentence, then she bent down to fasten her heels around her ankles. I was nothing like her. She was pretty, charming, and confident. I am about to wear Nike sneakers and cotton underwear that does not match to a party. From us two, only she is counting on any kind of socialization. After getting shitfaced, of course.
Why am I even going? Oh yeah, to make sure nobody spikes her drinks while she is making out with someone. And because this is the first time ever I was invited somewhere. How sad. I am so nervous, but I want to know how it is. At least for the sake of experiencing it once. I am spending more time mentally preparing myself for the music, unknown people, and sheer awkwardness in case someone decides to talk to me. I certainly won’t start any conversations today.
“I swear, you are such an uptight, meek girl.” Kathy murmured, straightening back up and fixing her hair behind her ear. “What are you so scared of? People are idiots, you can come up to them and say anything you want, and they won’t remember you two minutes later. I assure you, everyone will be so drunk nobody will notice that you put some makeup on for once.”
For someone like you, that may be true. “I do not wear makeup, I am allergic to it.” And I do not have the confidence to pull it off anyway.
“You are allergic to everything fun.” She walked up to me, digging her fingers into my scalp and gently puffing out my hair. I winced at the body contact but let her do her strange female magic.
“That is not true. I read dark fantasy vampire smut novels.” I said with an absolutely straight face. Kat laughed her ass off and let go of me.
“I love you, you know that? Ha-ha!” She smiled. “Oh, the shit you say sometimes needs to be studied. At least you get to read about what sex is, while you could have it IRL. Maybe one day you’ll get to actually experience it.”
I sighed, not sure how to feel. What am I even feeling right now? Nothing good.
“Are you done pimping yourself up? We will be late.” I looked at the time on my phone. 19:15.
“I know you don’t know this, but if you don’t want others to think you are a nerd, you have to be at least half an hour late.” I winced.
“It starts at eight.” I insisted. Why would anyone say a party starts at eight and expect everyone to come half an hour later???
“It is not a shift at your fucking diner, bestie.” Kathy sprayed a ridiculous amount of body glitter everywhere. I am pretty sure the can spelled ‘edible,’ too. Jesus. “And now we will go to the nearest parking lot and pregame it.”
“I will just get myself an energy drink, thanks.”
I sighed. I already anticipate a whole month of demasking once this party is over.
19:45
Devil May Cry
Right. A party. What could go wrong? It’s been seven months since things with Kyrie ended, it is about time I get out there. At least it is what Dante keeps saying, and I am at this point in my insanity that the old bastard starts making sense. Fuck. What do I even expect from tonight? A kiss? Someone’s number? A simple conversation? Sex? Can I even pick up a girl after living in Fortuna for most of my life and dating someone like Ky—agh! I can’t think her name anymore. Stupid fucking everything.
Not like I even have condoms with me.
I killed countless demons, I am a cambion myself. I am powerful and handsome, and all I have to do is mimic Dante. Right? Wait, he doesn’t even have a girlfriend—whatever. What happens, happens. I ruffled my short silver locks like I usually do, wearing my usual clothes. Killing demons and picking up women are just two different kinds of parties, doesn’t mean I need to fucking dress up.
My eyes fall on the Red Queen and Blue Rose. Should I take them with me? Nah, what am I thinking? If there is a threat, I will manage with DT only. But hopefully there will be no demons tonight, because I plan to drink as much as possible and numb myself from this fucking existence. I sound like a hormonal idiot—my feet already carrying me down the staircase. I am practically flying. Am I really excited to go out? I guess there is no point in thinking about it.
“Is it my nephew actually going somewhere? In the evening? Instead of sulking and thinking about love?!” My uncle’s voice rang behind me. I can tell he is smiling. “They grow up so quickly.”
I could feel my eye twitching. “Yeah-yeah. Maybe you should do that too once in a while, Dante. You look moldy.”
“Are you inviting me to go and talk to hot twenty-five-year-old chicks?”
I cringed, and Dante laughed. “Why do I even bother talking to you?”
Dante threw his hands up and laughed some more, leaning back in his chair and balancing it.
“Don’t forget protection, kid. You know what they say, once you screw it in—”
“Okay, BYE!” I felt my face flush a bit as I exited the office and rubbed my nose. Fucking idiot.
Where was I? Party. Yes.
20:45
Someone’s house. God knows where.
Kathy had taken pregaming seriously. As we walked inside a very noisy and overcrowded house, she immediately spotted someone she knows and squealed, calling another girl’s name. That woman turned and squealed back. Her makeup was done very aggressively, her grey eyes seductive with the perfect smoky eyes technique blended into her eyelids. I trailed behind Kathy, biting my lower lip. The anxiety was already eating me up.
Breathe in, breathe out. Just smile, parrot after them, and nod. That’s what all the books say, right? You just need to make them talk about themselves, and they will like you. Right?!
My clothes resembled more that of the guys around us, while women were glowing with makeup, glitter, swirls of beautiful hair, and clothes that did them right. I wish I were like them. Something tightened in my chest.
“And who is this?” One of the women Kat greeted looked at me. Her question pulled me out of my thoughts. I opened my mouth to introduce myself but felt Kathy’s warm hand between my shoulder blades. She introduced me. Everyone stared. I said nothing. That should be it, right? She pinched my skin, and I had to suppress a yelp.
“Oh, uh—” FUCK! I already feel my face grow red. How hard can a simple greeting be? “Yeah, that’s me.” I say with an awkward smile. “Nice to meet you.”
I feel Kathy let me go with a sigh that only I seem to hear. The two other girls give each other that one look, and I already know I failed. Again. One of them had her eyebrows slowly climbing up, and another suppressed a laugh into a small ‘ghhhhh’ as her shoulders shook. Maybe they are just drunk? Yeah, that must be it. They seem nice enough. Kathy would not be friends with them if they were not good people.
Right?
21:30
Kathy left when she spotted a guy she liked, leaving me alone. First I stood in the middle of the room like a lost pet, the situation around me making me overwhelmed. Maybe I should bail- No. I promised myself to endure. I was just about to find a corner to hide away in when a female voice stopped me. I turned to see Kathy’s friends from before. Hope rose inside me. Did someone really want to talk to me?
„I am Amanda,“ spoke the woman with the smoky eye makeup.
„And I am Summer,“ The other one piped up, her red dress insistently hiking up over her ass that was admittedly too big for the seams to hug securely. She shifted, crossing one leg over another in an attempt to make it stay. I noticed but said nothing.
Not like I had much to say, anyway.
„Hey,“ I began, my mind clumsily stumbling over things to say. „Did Kathy send you?“
„Oh yes,“ Amanda began, smiling. Her eyes dug into my face like she was trying to excavate it. I felt uncomfortable but did not let it show. „She told us to take real good care of you.“
„You are not a...usual guest at parties, I bet.“ Summer continued. These two must finish sentences after each other often. „Nervous?“
I completely missed the tone she spoke with, taking everything at face value like I always do. Very considerate of them to ask if I am feeling alright. I sighed, letting some vulnerability peek through the mask.
„Actually, yes. I am not very good with this.“ I motioned around us, the Chinese LED party lights spinning and blasting into my eyes like some kind of torture device. How do people bring themselves to enjoy this chaos, let alone to relax? I regretted fifty times over coming here, but I promised Kathy to try. „I am on the spectrum.“
Admitting this was no easier than years ago when I first found out. Some people take me seriously and adjust to my needs. Others...not so much.
The two women in front of me exchanged that one look again, slowly smiling to each other. Why are they smiling? Did I say something funny? What did the books say about smiling? Mirror? Ah yes, imagine you are smiling at an infant and let a sincere, wide smile ripple through your face like a waterfall. I tried to mimic exactly what the book said, smiling back at them. They laughed, which I took as a good sign. Success? Success!
„Tell you what,“ Summer leaned forward, a fake stainless steel pendant with a piece of tinted glass in the middle falling off her cleavage and hanging in the air. „How about we help you relax? What do you say we get you to loosen up a bit?“
„Well, I don't know—“ They already pulled me deeper into the house. I turned my head to look for any sign of Kathy but quickly reminded myself I am a grown-ass woman. Gotta quit hiding in my best friend's skirts. She is not my mother. „What did you have in mind?“ I straightened up a little, trying to give my short gait a look of confidence no matter how obviously fake it looked.
Amanda put a red plastic cup on a counter, opening two random bottles 'chef style' and pouring them in together like an evil scientist. „There we go.“ She handed the drink to me, which was an awful lot considering how it smelled. Strong.
„What is this, exactly?“ I brought it closer to my nose, taking a quick sniff. The drink had a bit of foam on top and smelled fruity. Probably from mixing it together so violently. White bubbles popped and disappeared quickly as I lifted my eyes.
„Vodka and cranberry juice. It‘s tasty, you have my word.“
„I usually don't drink.“ I began, unsure if I should risk getting drunk and doing something out of control. And I promised Kathy to look after her. It is not like I am driving us back home, hell, I don’t even have a license. But I do get embarrassingly red even from a drop of alcohol in my system.
„Oh come on,“ Summer put her hands on her hips, giving me a once-over. „Do you want to keep being a boring little nerd or finally do something different for once?“
Did I? Different was a nightmare word for my kind. Routine, rules, and efficiency are a holy grail of my existence. I could feel an invisible clock ticking over my head as if I were at the ‚Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?‘ show and the host were about to make fun of me for my indecisiveness. No, I will not shy away this time. What is the worst that could happen? The bet (which was more of a mockery, to be honest) emboldened me enough to let go of my little sensibilities and drink. I made several big gulps, the sweet juice indeed making it better just as Amanda said it would, but the sheer burn of warm vodka had me coughing and wiping my mouth.
The girls in front of me cheered as I gave them a look of a lost puppy. They are cheering and laughing. This must mean everything is okay, right? Did I do it right this time? A sense of joy washed over me. For someone barely capable of interacting with people outside of scripts and formal situations, I felt immensely proud of stepping out of my comfort zone. It would be obvious to anyone else that they only laughed because my behavior amused them, and they had no intention of making it good for me. But as fate has it, you won’t know what’s around the corner unless you make the turn.
A loud voice rippled through the party house. Someone was speaking into a microphone (or so it would seem), and the big sound system I saw positioned in the corners of the living room made sure everyone heard the announcement. Do many people have subwoofers this powerful in their homes? Whoever was speaking was definitely drunk, if the hiccups in his voice and the choice of words were of any indication.
“To all horny dudes and hot chicks, listen u-uuuup! I—ick—announce that every room, closet, or remotely tight fucking space in my house can and will be used to do indecent things you only ever got to see on Discovery Channel! Huh?” Someone spoke to the announcer, another male voice echoing in the speakers, but it was impossible to understand what was being said. “It just came to my attention that some of us want total fucking mayhem, so be it! Grab your nearest loser virgin friend and lock them in with someone for seven minutes in heaven. You better time it!”
My mouth hung open at what I had just witnessed, while the space around me became a flood of bodies, screams, laughs, protests, and other sounds that added to the cacophony inside my head. One moment I stood next to Summer; the next, someone pulled me by my arm, making me stumble and walk forward like a stubborn donkey.
“Hey! Who the hell are you?” It was not Amanda or Kathy, and the guy pulling me forward did not seem to react to my question. We stopped near a room where another guy just shoved someone in and held the door closed. Whoever was inside definitely did not like the situation, banging on the door. The young man with raven-black hair turned, seeing me and whoever this other stranger was.
“Pfffff—” he began laughing drunkenly. “Dude, you could not have brought someone else? Look at her!” My face grew even redder, the warmth from the alcohol I drank two minutes ago not helping the situation. A string of very elaborate curses could be heard from behind the door. Is this a goddamn bathroom?
“He will manage. Come on, she’s cute.” I could finally see the face of the guy who pulled me across the house. I did not know him.
“Let go of me or I will scream.” I made the bravest face possible, but it only prompted them to laugh.
“Bro, I can’t hold any longer; get her in before he pulls the door off the hinges—” The door creaked but did not give way. “Son of a bitch is strong.”
“Alright, sweetheart, it’s nothing serious. Don’t worry, you’ll be okay.”
21:40
I did not get to protest again as two strong hands guided my tipsy ass to the door and then swiftly pushed me behind it. The door closed as quickly as a virgin’s legs on a summer day, a key turning inside the lock marking the start of seven minutes. I turned in the nearly pitch-black room, looking for whoever this was I got trapped with. My heart beat out of my chest, strong emotions rippling through me as I realized the situation I was in.
“Hello?” I spoke into the darkness around me, my hands desperately gliding on the nearby walls, looking for a light switch.
“Don’t bother looking for a light switch.” I heard a male voice somewhere near me. “It’s outside the room.” I gulped.
“Um… I am not sure I should be here right now, were the two outside your-”
“Friends. If I can call these assholes that.” He sounded very annoyed, taking a couple steps here and there, as if he were restless. “Calm down, lady. I am not a creep. I won’t touch you. Unless you want me to.” Coming to think of it, there was an intense smell of whiskey in the room.
A shudder of some unknown feeling went through me, a gasp of what seemed like relief washed over my chest as I held onto some kind of cabinet to keep my balance. The darkness made my eyes go wide, starved of any light to catch a glimpse of my surroundings and keep me balanced. I could hear my own heart racing, how I gulped down cranberry-tinged saliva, and how the sheer presence of the person in front of me seemed to press against my temples.
“Well, now we have seven minutes to ourselves, I guess. Those motherless bastards won’t open the door until the timer’s over. Relax.” It sounded like he perched himself onto something, accompanied by a creak of leather and a shift of cotton over skin. Just how graceful is this man that he can prowl in the darkness and not trip over a rug or something? “The name’s Nero. And you are?”