I say casually, “I bet. Want to watch something?”
“Sure.Friends?”
I have a plan.Fuck. I have a plan—the one Matthias gave me. I force my voice to remain cool and calm. “How about something different? We’ve been watching a lot ofFriendslately.”
“Oh. Sure.” Kit moves so he’s seated and grabs the remote, turning on a streaming service. He scans through the options. “What’sCrestwater?”
“I likeCrestwater, but I’ve seen it. Kind of in the mood for something I haven’t seen yet.”
“Gotcha.”
He keeps scrolling, and that’s when I spot it. “What aboutLore Hunters? Ever heard of that? It’s a million seasons long, but I’ve heard good things.” I cross my fingers.
“Huh, maybe?” He reads the description, lips mouthing the words. “Sounds interesting. Oh, it has some guy froma showBreanne was obsessed with about coffee and fall.” He sucks his teeth. “I bet she still is, actually. I haven’t…you know, I haven’t seen her since I came back.”
My chest softens, drawing me away from my plan as I focus on him. “Really? You haven’t checked on your family?”
“No. I went to California once. Stood outside my parents’ house for an hour, but never saw them. Then I decided I couldn’t see any of them. It was best to not know.”
“I’m sorry, Kit,” I say genuinely.
“Whatever. Let’s watch this.”
He clicks play. I purse my lips, but I don’t press further.
We watch an episode, and I keep my fingers crossed theentire time that he will like it.This is going to work, I tell myself. It has to. We need to make it to episode 4 of season 1. That’s all.
The episode ends, and Kit doesn’t say anything, but he lets the next episode play, so I think I’ve succeeded. I hold my breath through the next two episodes. Will he really want to watch four in one night? He doesn’t sleep, so bingeing early in the morning is a reasonable ask. We’ve definitely watched eight episodes ofFriendsin a row before, maybe ten. When time is endless, it all fades together.
It turns out yes, because soon enough, the fourth episode, “Devil in Disguise,” starts to load.
I take a deep inhale in an attempt to steady my pounding heart. This plan right now is the sole thread I can grasp. So, I pinch it between my fingernails and pull. “Have you tried one of the seltzers Matthias brought by yet?”
Kit doesn’t pick up on my nerves. “No, I was saving them for you.”
“Well, try one. I’m curious what you think.” I don’t know for sure that there’s holy water in them, but I do hope that’s what Matthias meant in his note. Kit pauses the show to fetch one of the seltzers—the blackberry flavor—then sits back down. He cracks the can open and takes a sip.
“Huh,” he muses. “Not bad. Want to try?”
“Sure.”
He gives me access to my mouth and lets me take a sip. It’s been days since I’ve tasted anything, so it truly does taste heavenly—even if the blackberry flavoringis half-assed. It doesn’t taste particularly holy, though.
“Not bad,” I echo.
Kit clicks play and laughs when he realizes what the episode features as its monster of the week: a demon. A demon rather similar to real demons. So similar, in fact, I think the writers may know something real about this world, but that’s beside the point. “Hey! I’ve never felt so seen by a TV show.”
I laugh with him and say, “We can skip the episode if you think they’re going to be offensive with their portrayal.” Why the hell did I suggest that? I cross my fingers, pleading he doesn’t agree.
“Nah, it’ll be funny, I’m sure.”
Thank god. I don’t know when the scene I’m waiting for is coming, so I’m at the edge of my seat for the majority of the episode, nails digging into my palms. I hope this works. It’s my only plan besides slowly trying to take full control of my body and boot him out. It’s taken me this long to get an arm, it may be a month or more before I can gain full control.
In the latter half of the episode, the main characters, Morgan and Calder, are on a train with the demon. It has to be soon. They think the demon is possessing the conductor. The conductor comes to the back of the train at the prompting of a member of the train’s crew whose help they have enlisted. Morgan and Calder prepare to exorcise them.
“We’ll see how accurate this is,” Kit scoffs, taking another sip of the seltzer. He rubs his chest absently. “This seltzer is giving me heartburn.”
“Old man,” I comment, voice rattling with anticipation.
