Page 59 of My Demon Neighbor
"Right," Pythor agreed with a nod, and I tried not to feel disappointed about that. "But I can make my human form look like it's aging, so I'm going to be right here for as long as you live. If you'll have me," he added a touch sheepishly, and I smiled.
"And when I die?"
He frowned, like he didn't like thinking of my death. "When you die, we'll both go to Otherworld together, and then you can decide if you want to stay and be a soul collector, or if you want to move to Afterworld."
"And you?"
He shrugged, chewing for a moment before answering. "If you decide to be a soul collector, I'd stay a demon until you were ready to move on, and then we'd go to Afterworld together, at which point I'd stop being a demon and just be a soul like you."
"Do you want that? To stop being a demon?" I asked curiously, and he shrugged again.
"I don't know. I've been a demon for so long, and all my memories are of my life as one. But the idea of a peaceful afterlife is also tempting, and it's not like I'd lose the memories I've made."
I nodded, then shook my head. "We have years to think about this, don't we?"
"We do," he agreed with a smile, and I turned my focus to our meal, which I should've already been doing because this curry was awesome and deserved all my attention.
Pythor
It'd been a few days since we talked about the afterlife and everything it entailed, but it was looking a lot more temptingnow as I waited for Vanessa and Alia to arrive. We were having dinner together, and after the last meal we'd shared, I was suitably nervous.
It wasn't that I thought she'd change Codie's mind about me. It was just that I had to make up so much crap when talking to her, and I didn't like it. I knew Codie also wasn't a fan of lying to his best friend, which just made it worse.
My phone buzzed, and since Vanessa and Alia were nowhere to be seen yet and Codie was busy puttering around the kitchen, I pulled it out.
Fressia: Anyone sense any of the dark souls or Mammon? They've been suspiciously quiet recently
Eshim: Probably because we caught one of them. They're being careful
While I'd been pretty caught up in Codie, I had been on the lookout for the dark souls, since it was my job. I hadn't gotten lax, though I also hadn't gone on many patrols around the city since I met Codie.
Me: I haven't sensed them either. What about you, Arnick?
He lived only a few towns away, so it was possible the dark souls had altered their route—the one Maximus had predicted—and hit Arnick's town next instead of here.
Arnick: Nah, I haven't sensed anything either.
Ryk: Arnie! What's the status with your boyfriend? Have you decided to find out if he's your mate yet?
Arnick: Maybe. We've gotten pretty close, and I feel like I need to know before I let myself fall for him, you know?
Star: Then go call Kym and do it dumbass
Arnick: Yeah...
I didn't understand his reluctance to find out if the human he was dating was his mate or not. Why wouldn't he want to know? If the human wasn't his mate and he still loved him,there were no rules against him continuing to date the man as long as he didn't reveal his demon side. And if they were mates, well, that would be wonderful, wouldn't it?
The doorbell pulled me out of my thoughts, and I put my phone away before walking over to the front door.
Vanessa grinned at me as soon as I opened the door, then surprised me by giving me a tight hug.
"Thank you. You've been so good for him," she murmured against my ear before pulling back, and copying her, Alia hugged my legs, making me smile as I patted her back.
"He's good for me too," I assured her, meaning every word. Codie made me feel lighter, more confident in everything I did. He made me feel like I had a purpose, like as long as I continued making him happy, I would be content.
"Nessa!" Codie hurried into the living room from the kitchen as we walked in, and the two friends hugged before Codie picked Alia up and gave her a little twirl, making her laugh.
Surprisingly, Vanessa had no prying questions for me this time, and Codie spent most of dinner telling her about his trip to the art store, reenacting his conversation with the old man much to hers and Alia's delight.
