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Maria purses her lips, casting a subtle glance around the sleepy little cafe as she waits, checking for what must be the thousandth time now if any eyes are straying her way for more than a second too long. She does not wanna be dealing with the paparazzi tonight of all nights! Or she may be spending her evening on a date with death instead of a normal date. Ugh, she wore her favourite blouse too, she’d hate to get it all covered in blood…
She draws in a deep breath to soothe her buzzing nerves. It's fine, no one will recognize her. She’s mostly all by herself out here anyways, save for the older couple sitting at the table across from her chatting softly and the nice young waitress with the green ribbon in her hair and a choker that is just a shade too dark to match her uniform coming out to check in on them every once in a while. She momentarily wonders if she should have gone for a table inside instead, even if it would be a bit more crowded. It's turning out to be a kinda muggy evening, bugs buzzing around the beautiful flower pots hanging from the eves of the cafe as they sway in the breeze. Sure, sitting inside where there are more people would up the risk of getting recognized and having the only night to herself she’s had in months turned into an impromptu interview, but what’s a little bit of risk? She isn’t a thrill-killer for nothing.
She strategically selected her outfit to make herself as unrecognizable as possible, while remaining presentable of course. She went with a lacy white blouse, a simple black skirt and matching stockings and the lowest pair of heels she owns that aren’t flats. Probably a mistake given the cobblestone streets in this part of town, but oh well. She just hopes she doesn’t trip and fall on her face in front of her date. How embarrassing would that be? Her hair is worn in a pair of buns instead of her signature style, bangs framing her face in a far more natural way than how her stylists like to do it. She went rather low-key on her makeup too, soft pink lip gloss, a slight touch of blush paired with low-volume mascara. She looks great, and no one would ever in their right mind think that The Maria De La Rosa would go out in something so… basic. It's perfect.
Ok, so maybe going on a blind date wasn’t the best idea she’s ever had. Ronin will certainly laugh in her face when he finds out, but can anyone blame her, really? She just wants to find someone who will like her for her, not ‘Maria De La Rosa, Influencer and Model Extraordinaire’. Sure, she knows there’s like, a negative chance of this working out, but… she still wants to try. Who knows? Maybe she’ll be pleasantly surprised.
She leans down, taking a short sip of water to cool herself down, literally and figuratively. Vince would definitely enjoy the sunset, though. At least she’ll have his beautiful pictures to look forward to when this eventually goes south and she probably winds up taking over the vent channel for the rest of the night.
Well, for good choices she can at least say she picked a good cafe for this little jaunt outside of her comfort zone. The Rabbit’s Foot Cafe is an old favourite of hers. She used to drag Ronin here all the time whenever she could catch a break from work. It’s a cozy place, a little hidden gem where she can come for a much needed breather from idol life.
She doesn’t come around as much as she used to at least, so if she does get recognized then she has other places she can go and this hidden delight of a shop can earn a little publicity off her poor decision making.
A soft breeze whistles down the quiet street, tickling her cheeks with a few loose strands of hair as it offers a brief relief from the suffocating heat. Ok, she definitely should have chosen a table inside, maybe she still has time to do that, it’ll probably take them a little while to find this place since its so out of the way-
“Hi, are you perhaps ‘Angelic’?”
Her eyes widen as she looks up to see a rather handsome stranger standing across the table from her. Tall, with black hair woven into a lengthy braid, bangs parted amateurishly to frame their pale, angular features like a painting. Tattoos mimicking the body of a serpent wind up their toned arms and around their neck like a pretty noose with a pair of inky wings spreading outwards from their collar. A bluebell sundress she recognizes from the racks of Ruismart falls down to their knees, a floral yellow sash tied around their waist to match the striking hue of their eyes.
They’re nervous, but trying very hard to hide that fact. A battered sneaker tapping restlessly against the cobblestones with their hands clasped awkwardly behind their back as they await her answer.
“I might be…” She leans back in her seat, playfully tapping a perfectly manicured finger against her lips, “If you’re ‘CupidsArrow’, that is?”
The stranger’s mouth quirks in an amused smile, “Then CupidsArrow I am, nice to meet you, Angelic.” They slide into the seat across from her with a flourish.
She stills, tensing ever so slightly as they draw their hands out from behind their back. It’s unlikely, but not impossible for her to have been matched with another serial killer tonight, online dating is dangerous like that. Her eyes widen as she sees what they were hiding. Not a rusty knife or a filthy syringe or some other weapon for amateurs but a single red rose proffered across the table.
“I… know this is our first meeting and all, but since this was a date, I thought it would be appropriate to bring you flowers.” They explain, anxiety dancing across their face, “The date is blind, but they say love is blind as well, so… why not get a little romantic?”
Angel can feel the blush rising to her cheeks as she reaches across the table to tenderly lift the flower from their hands, “It's beautiful, thank you! You know, red roses are actually my favourite flower!”
They chuckle softly, “Really? Mine too, actually.”
“No way!” She exclaims, a genuine smile splitting across her face as she clasps her hands around the gift.
“Yes, way.” Their smile grows in turn as they shoot her a wink, “If you have such good taste in flowers, I wonder what else you have good taste in, Angelic?”
Angel giggles, “Please, just call me ‘Angel’, everyone does!” Well, not everyone, but close enough.
“Of course, Angel.” They nod, “In that case please do call me ‘Cupid’, ‘CupidsArrow’ is such a mouthful.”
“Of course!”
-
Eros crosses their arms in front of them and rests their chin on their hands, doing their best to give off a ‘suave’, ‘relaxed’ impression. They have no idea if it’s working. They can’t recall the last time they’ve been on a date like this. Or, at all. They’ve always been a bit too busy to so much as think about putting themself on the market. God, that sounds like they’re a pig auctioning themself off to the butcher. They wonder where that turn of phrase came from in the first place: ‘putting yourself on the market’, they’ll have to Shhhearch it when they get home.
That said, he’s still a bit too busy for this as-is, between work as a reporter and his novel in the works… But Psyche was worried he was ‘lonely’ and Heaven's Above he cannot say ‘no’ to his baby sister when she starts pouting at him like that, grown up as she is these days.
So, here he is, sitting across from one of the most beautiful women he’s ever laid eyes on at a quiet cafe he didn’t even know existed until last week when he made this date. Angel is almost familiar, but he can’t quite place it. Her smile is dazzling, drawing soft creases at the corners of her eyes, the colour of a clear blue lake on a summer’ day. God, he’s so done for. Been on a date for a mere minute and a half and he’s already getting flustered like some schoolkid.
“So….” Angel starts, twisting the rose they gave her around in her hands. They’re glad she likes it so much. It was just a silly impulse buy on the way over and yet… it would seem it paid off. “What’s your favourite colour?”
“Blue.” Eros answers quickly, maybe a bit… too quickly. She swallows a grimace, “I don’t have a favourite hue exactly, but I like soft blues the best. Like the sky. Oh, yours?”
Angel nods, “Pink, of course!” She gestures to the tips of her hair with an elegant flick of her hand, “Although…” She purses her lips, tilting her head to the side, “Red is a very close second.”
Eros blinks, nodding along, “Red is a rather stunning colour. The colour of lifeblood, danger and death…” Their eyes drop to the rose clutched in her hands.
Angel giggles. “Yeah, it is!”
“Excuse me, are you ready to order?” A sweet voice asks from behind.
Eros twists in her seat to find the waitress standing patiently beside their table, a perfect customer-service smile on their face. Eros shoots them a brief smile of her own before casting their gaze downward to find where the waitress's nameplate sits over their heart. ‘Emily (She/Her)’ she reads before offering her an apologetic look. “Not yet, I’m afraid, unless…” They cast a questioning glance at Angel, “You can order now if you have something in mind. It doesn’t bother me.”
“No, no, you take your time.” Angel smiles understandingly before turning towards Emily and clasping her hands, “We’ll be a little bit longer, I hope that’s ok?”
“That's perfectly alright.” Emily nods before turning to go perform the usual spiel for the elderly couple at the table behind them about if they’re enjoying their food and such.
Eros watches her go before turning back towards Angel and picking up one of the menus stacked on the table and turning it over in their hands, “We should probably figure out what to order. Or, I should anyway, you haven't mentioned if you know what you want.”
Angel nods, carefully resting the rose on the table and grasping her own menu. “I don’t actually. I know I’m the one who suggested this place and everything, but it's been so long since I’ve been able to come by, so much has changed…” She trails off.
“Well then, I guess we can discover some new flavours together.” Eros offers, victory washing over them as Angel brightens at the words.
“Yeah! I guess we can. Oh, if you’re a coffee person, I highly recommend their chocolate nut roast, it's to die for.”
Eros nods before turning his attention to the menu, “I’ll keep that in mind.”
-
Maria’s model smile never falters as they hand their menus back to the waitress as she finishes up jotting down their orders. She just needs to keep her cool. Sure, Cupid is handsome and pretty and polite and gave her flowers, well a flower, but she’s not in love with them. She hardly knows them. There is no reason for her to be getting butterflies like she is! Oh, she really hasn’t been on a date for a while hasn’t she? She hopes it doesn’t show too much. How embarrassing?
They’re just exchanging pleasantries like a pair of actresses ad-libbing a scene for one of the tropey rom-coms she watches on Ruisflex when she needs a break. This… needs to change. She wants to get to know them, not listen to a list of their likes and dislikes all night long. God that would be so boring.
“Say, you got any fun facts to share?” She questions, “Party tricks… trivia, anything like that?”
Cupid’s eyes narrow for a moment, searching their surroundings before landing on something above her head and they all but light up. “You see those flowers there?”
Maria casts a glance upwards to a hanging black pot overflowing with pale pink flowers, “Yeah, what about it?”
“Those are azaleas, they’re a type of rhododendron. When bees make honey from their pollen, like so…” Their voice grows mischievous as a fuzzy little bee flutters up to one of the flowers and begins to gather pollen, “It becomes a poison of sorts, known as ‘Mad Honey’. Eating Mad Honey won’t kill you exactly, but it will make you rather dizzy… lightheaded… delirious…” Their gaze begins to wander across the street, a sharp smile playing on their painted lips. “It lowers blood pressure to a dangerous degree. Ingesting larger amounts can cause nausea and even hallucinations.”
Angel nods along eagerly to their story, “That is a fun fact!”
“It doesn’t end there.” Cupid grins, clasping their hands gleefully, “Mad Honey is actually used as a medicine across the world, and even as a recreational drug. Though, don’t go trying to take any in Korea. It's been banned there for a few years now.”
Angel laughs, “That is so interesting. How did you come across all this? Are you into botany?”
Cupid chuckles, shaking their head, “Nope, I’ve got about the furthest thing from a green thumb, actually. My brother, the meathead he is, has always been far better with plants. I’m… an author, actually.”
Angel nods, “I see, research for your books then?”
Cupid huffs, “Yeah, I suppose you could say that. Now what about you, do you have any fun facts, Angel?”
-
“Hmmmmmmmm” Angel hums, tapping a delicate finger against her lips thoroughly, “I don’t know if it's a fun fact exactly but I have been thinking a lot about one of my favourite movies lately… Black Swan, have you heard of it?”
Eros props his elbow up on the table, resting his chin in his palm as he settles in to hear her story. “Heard of it? Yes. Seen it? No. I don’t mind spoilers if that’s what you’re worried about.”
“Ok! So you know ‘Swan Lake’ right? Well Black Swan is about a production of that famous ballet! It's about a troubled young woman, Nina Sayers. See, her mother was this infamous ballerina and she is dead set on Nina following in her footsteps, so when auditions for the head roles of the White and Black Swan in the up and coming production of Swan Lake opened up, of course Nina auditions. But… despite her picture perfect performance as the elegant and innocent White Swan, Odette, she… didn’t get the part. She just couldn’t grasp the role of the salacious and sensual Black Swan, Odille, the same way…”
Eros shifts her cheek down into the palm of her hand as she listens to Angel ramble. Her passion is captivating as she recites the movie’s events as if she’s seen it a thousand times. Heh, perhaps she has. Eros isn’t a movie person but there are a few cartoons she’s burnt into her own brain that way when she needed something to watch on a rainy day.
“So of course she asks the director, a sleazy man named Thomas, to reconsider.” Angel’s voice grows dark, eyes clouding over as she spits the word ‘man’ and the director’s name like the worst curses she can conjure. “He forces a kiss on her, and she sinks her teeth into his mouth, tasting his blood on her lips just to make him stop.” Angel’s fists clench as they rest on the table, her knuckles beginning to turn white. “But, she got the part.” Angel giggles, all that tension vanishing in a heartbeat, “And that’s all that matters, right?”
Eros nods for her to continue, only to be caught off guard as Emily sneaks up behind them once more. “One slice of our signature Rabbit Red Velvet Cake and a white chocolate latte with sprinkles.” She sets a plate with a sliver of cake the same hue as a slab of meat with smooth white frosting and a lavish strawberry topping in front of Angel alongside her drink, “And a Lemon Danish and a chocolate nut roast coffee.”
“Thank you, Miss.” Eros shoots Emily, grateful nod as she deposits their food in front of them. She nods back before vanishing back into the cafe, empty tray in hand.
-
Maria sinks her fork into her cake, savouring the rich taste on her tongue. Cupid seems to be enjoying their danish too. Whew, looks like her cafe choice worked out.
“So, you mentioned a brother?” She asks, gesturing encouragingly with her fork.
Cupid nods, “Yeah, I’ve got a little bitch of a little brother and a baby sister too. She’s the one that convinced me to put myself out there, actually.” They pause, soft yellow eyes resting on Maria’s face. “Can’t say I’m not glad she did. For once.” A wry smile crosses their face.
Maria blushes, “Well, I’m pretty glad she did too.” Now it’s finally Cupid’s turn to flush a pretty shade of red.
“I… uh, what do you do?” They stammer out, finding a sudden interest in the colourful mural across the street. “I’m a writer, like I said, what about you?”
“Oh,” She exclaims, “I have a Ruistube channel. Beauty, mostly.” She sighs, voice falling as her exhaustion slips past her lips, “But, I’m looking to expand my brand one of these days!” She perks up.
Cupid nods, “You could definitely do film analysis videos, you’ve got the passion for it. Actually, have you ever thought of doing a video essay? Because I could listen to your voice for hours.” They wink at her before blushing harder as they seem to realize what they just said.
Maria giggles, “I have actually. The reason Black Swan’s been on my mind so much lately is, well, I want to make a video essay on it! Dissecting the themes of perfection and insanity as explored between it, and another favourite movie of mine: Jennifer’s Body.” A weary sigh escapes her lips as she stabs her fork into the remains of her cake and twists. “The idea just won’t leave me alone,” She continues through grit teeth, “I know it wouldn’t fit my channel. It would probably tank views and my manager would be mad at me…”
“So?” Cupid raises an eyebrow at her as they take a sip of their coffee. “It’s your channel, isn’t it? Not your fans’ and certainly not your manager’s. If you want to make a video essay, go for it. I’d definitely be watching, for one.” They finish as they set their cup down.
“Thank you.” Angel rests her fork on the side of her plate so she can make heart hands unhindered, “It means… a lot to hear you say that. Like, a lot, a lot.”
“Of course.” Cupid shrugs, returning the gesture with a soft smile, “I’m a creator too, you know. Your art shouldn’t be shackled to what someone else wants from you. What you create is yours first, always.” Their voice is tender.
“That’s very insightful.”
Cupid chuckles, “Thanks, I try.”
-
“I try.” Eros releases a breathy laugh, barely managing to soften their smile into the face of politeness they use for interviews as opposed to the toothy thing that always makes their colleagues flinch.
Angel seems like such a creative person, as passionate as a flame and as driven as a raging hurricane, it leaves a sour taste in their mouth to see her so afraid to pursue her ambitions. They know that fear. They swallow a sneer before she can see. It's… not pretty. At least their words seemed to help loosen those chains. They don’t know her very well, but Angel seems like a strong woman, they have no doubt she’ll set herself free soon enough, even if she needs a little outside ‘push’ to get there.
Now that he thinks about it, he wonders if that’s where he recognizes her from. If she’s as famous as she seems to be implying then he probably would have at least heard of her. His brow furrows slightly. That would certainly explain the preference for a blind date. Celebrities have it rough when it comes to love, between the super fans and stans who think their favourites owe them something and the outright stalkers. It's no wonder Angel would want to avoid the hassle.
He takes another sip of his coffee, enjoying the bitter nutty taste as he washes it around his mouth before swallowing. She has good taste in coffee too. Beauty, content creation, coffee dates, what can’t she do? He smirks across the table.
“So,” Angel pipes up, daintily licking a couple blood-red crumbs from her lips as she polishes off the remains of her cake, “What’s your book about? Since you mentioned being an author and all.”
Eros blinks, “Ah, well, nothing’s published just yet, but I’ve been working on this novel for a couple months now. Trying to break away from reporting. The death threats were starting to get to me, is all.” She laughs wryly, “It’s…” She pauses, “A crime thriller.”
“Ooooh,” Angel leans forward, interest plain on her face, “Tell me more?”
Eros purses her lips, “Well it follows the exploits of a serial killer in our very own beautifully rotten City of Elysium known to the world as the feared ‘King of Hearts’. A murderer with a tendency towards making examples of those who are filthy and corrupt yet parade around on high horses as if they’ve never known sin.” Her voice drops naturally into a dramatic rhythm as she begins her tale, reveling in Angel’s undivided attention. No one could blame her, really. How often does she get anyone willing to actually listen to her ramblings like this, let alone someone who seems to be enjoying it? It’s a once in a blue moon occurrence, and she refuses to let it go to waste.
-
Angel finds herself utterly entranced as a sailor hearing a siren’s song as Cupid weaves their narrative before her very eyes with sweeping hands. Sure, you’d think that as a serial killer herself the idea of yet another tired, tropey thriller would be a disappointment, and in most cases, you’d be right. But the way Cupid frames their protagonist, a fallen angel of sorts, sympathetic in all their grotesqueness… It speaks to her.
Cupid talks about this ‘King of Hearts’ like they’re a person, flesh and blood and bone, not some ‘monster under the bed’. It's… refreshing, and Cupid is such a wonderful storyteller too. Their every word is a work of poetry as they’re slowly carried away by the tide of their own story, describing each and every potential murder scene in visceral detail.
Angel laughs under her breath as she listens. It almost reminds her of chatting with the others in The Slaughterhouse if any of them had a half dozen misconceptions about death and murder but more than made up for the lack of hands-on experience with raw enthusiasm. “It sounds like you’ve put a lot of thought into this.”
Cupid nods, chuckling. “Well, yeah, that's my job.” They shrug, turning away so she can’t catch more than a glimpse of the look of pride on their face, “It's still… missing something, though. The King feels… flat no matter what I do and…. Ugh.”
“Well..” Angel hums. What’s one more risky decision tonight? The first one already worked out so well, anyhow… “What if I helped you brainstorm a bit? I’m no expert of course, but two heads are better than one, right?” She raises her pointer finger in emphasis.
Cupid blinks, an owlish expression settling on their face, “Uh, sure. If you want to.”
Angel nods eagerly, “Of course! I offered, didn’t I?”
Cupid smiles, a tender thing that makes her stomach flutter. “Yeah, guess you did.”
-
“So, what weapon does The King use for their murders?” Angel questions, startling Eros with the look of genuine interest flattering her features, “You’ve mentioned a few ideas for their kills, but none of them use the same weapons. Most serials have one or two favourites that act as part of their signature.”
Eros nods along, resting a thoughtful hand on his chin. “It’s changed a few times now. At first I wanted them to have a crossbow for the ‘cool factor’, but that didn’t quite seem grounded enough considering in all my years of crime reporting I’ve seen maybe one case with a crossbow involved at all, and that one wasn’t even a murder. Then it was a bayonet, but unsure how they would hide the murder weapon in that case, now I’ve started thinking about melee weapons like knives and crowbars…”
Angel nods, leaning back in her seat with a thoughtful look on her face, “Have you considered maybe giving them a shotgun? They could still improvise weapons on-scene sometimes since that would fit their whole ‘karmic retribution’ thing pretty well, but that way they’d have a signature that’s even legal to own in our state!” She smiles brightly.
Eros nods slowly, “Yeah… that could work.”
“Now, what’s their calling card? Almost all the best serials have one!” Angel gestures emphatically.
Eros signs, “ Well… I have an idea, but it's pretty out there and I’m not sure if it would work…”
“Let's hear it then!” She encourages.
Eros draws in a breath before continuing, “Well, playing cards are just so cliche at this point, so I was thinking why not lean into the ‘hearts’ part of their theme? Have them stab an arrow into the rotten heart of each corpse. Like… a serial killer cupid.” They snicker.
“Hmmm, that could definitely work!”
“Really?” Eros raises an eyebrow, “I don’t even know where they would get the arrows, and-”
Angel cuts him off with a laugh, “You’re overthinking it. I’m sure you could find a way for them to get the arrows. They don’t even have to be real arrows right? Since they’re not using them to do their kills.”
“I guess so… I’ll have to think on it. Would still be good to have some alternate ideas though.” Eros hums.
“Of course!” Angel agrees, “Hmmm, what about… potting flowers in the bodies of their victims?” Her voice drops to an enchantingly macabre tone, “Shotgun blasts would make a big enough hole for it, and that could also fit well with the whole ‘repentance’ theme…”
Eros nods enthusiastically, staunchly ignoring the heat gathering in their stomach, “Yes, they could use flower language to reveal the dirty truth about their victims… like they had to pull verity out of their guts like weeds from a garden bed...”
Eros is startled from his thoughts by the awkward stutter of a throat clearing behind him. He turns to look over his shoulder to be met with Emily shifting nervously from foot-to-foot, check machine in hand.
He swallows hard, offering her an apologetic smile for what she just heard.
“Are… you two ready for the check?” She stammers out with a hitched breath, making Eros’s heart skip a beat in embarrassment.
He nods, “Uh, yeah, I think so?” Before looking to Angel for confirmation.
She nods as well, mirroring his look of mortification, “Yeah, it's… getting pretty late.”
A quick glance at their surroundings confirms the words. Eros had hardly realized that dusk had faded into night as they talked, plunging the desolate cobblestone street into darkness around them. Angel is just so bright… they hardly noticed the darkness surrounding them.
They move to reach for their wallet before Angel’s voice stops them.
“Wait, I can pay! I was the one who suggested coming to The Rabbit’s Foot, after all.”
Eros opens their mouth to protest before letting it fall shut, “Alright, I’ll just have to foot the bill next time?” They wink at her.
Angel smiles as she taps her card to pay for their meal, “We’ll see about that!” She winks back, the warm glow of the streetlights illuminating the look of pure mischief on her face.
“So… there will be a next time?” They hazard.
Angel laughs, “I mean, I certainly wouldn’t say no…”
“It's a second date then!” Eros grins.
-
Maria catches herself humming happily along to Chantel Rowen’s latest single as she makes her way home. That worked out way better than she thought it would. Cupid was so sweet and funny and fun to talk to… They may have only spoken for a few hours at most, but it felt like they really saw her. Not the image she curates for herself, but the girl behind it.
She smiles to herself as she opens her messaging app with a flick of her thumb, seeing the name ‘CupidsArrow’ right at the top of her contacts before tapping on the Slaughterhouse to check in with everyone for the evening.
Sure, Ronin will definitely tease her when he finds out, as will the others… but… worth it. Definitely worth it.