“Alright, what’s it about?” I asked.
“This priest gets turned into a vampire, and he fucks this whole little fishing islandup!It’s absolutelyhorrible. You’re going to love it,” Shem explained, grinning like a maniac.
I chuckled, nodding. “Sounds right up my alley,” I said, sliding onto the bed. I reached out and tugged on Lilith’s collar. “Get in my lap,” I ordered, and she did so without question or complaint. I tucked her in between my legs and pulled her back against me. She felt so small and fragile in my arms. I kissed the side of her head and nodded at Shem.
“Alright, put it on,” I said, and he smirked and clicked play.
The show started, and before long, Shem and Lilith were enthralled again. Lilith excitedly pointed things out to me as we watched, and Shem had to pause several times so she could explain who the characters were and what had happened to get to the point in the story I had joined in on.
Her little face lit up as she talked, and I realized how much I had stolen from her by not allowing her to have any friends. An aching pit of guilt grew in my chest as we watched. The happier and more animated she became, the more I felt like absolute shit.
When the show was over, she twisted in my lap and looked up at me with a giant smile on her face, her eyes shining.
“Thank you for letting me watch the end,” she said softly, and to my surprise, she leaned into me and gave me a soft kiss on the lips.
My rotted heart struggled to beat, and I melted into the gentle feel of her willing mouth against mine. I ran my fingers through her long hair, massaging her scalp, and she smiled against me.
I suddenly didn’t want to fuck her anymore. I wanted to make her smile again.
“What should we watch next?” I asked her softly, and her eyes widened in surprise.
“We could watch Gerald’s Game,” Shem suggested as he flipped through the options on the screen. Lilith made a face and twisted back around in my lap to face the TV.
“DefinitelynotGerald’s Game,” she said as Shem played the preview. I chuckled when I realized the premise of the movie was about a woman whose husband passed away from a heart attack shortly after chaining her to the bed, leaving her stranded.
I could understand why Lilith wasn’t interested in watching that one. It likely hit a little too close to home.
“What about a classic… Want to watchScream?” Shem asked, and Lilith squealed.
“Yes! Oh my G—” she stopped herself and glanced up at me sheepishly. “Oh mygosh,I haven’t watched Scream in so long. Ramel, have you seen it?”
I shook my head, and her jaw dropped.
“You haven’t seenScream?”
“Dude, you need to get out more,” Shem said, shaking his head in disbelief. He queued up the movie, and Lilith settled back into my chest.
“Okay, you have to tell me every time you have a prediction for who the killer is,” Lilith ordered, and Shem manifested a bowl of potato chips.
He slid back to sit with us and put the bowl on Lilith’s lap.
“If you want to feed me chips like old times, I won’t complain.” Shem smirked at Lilith. She rolled her eyes and shoved a chip aggressively into his mouth.
“It’s less cute when you’re my captor instead of my cat,” she grumbled, though her tone was light. Shem laughed and crunched on his chip with a shrug.
“Maybe from where you’re sitting, but on my end, they still taste better hand-delivered.”
She just laughed and fed him another chip.
“Fine, you asshole. Watch the movie.”
“I’m not losing you again. You’re staying right here.”
—JACK DAWSON, TITANIC (1997)
The next few days started to feel… almost normal. I wasn’t sure if it was because human beings are resilient creatures who are capable of adapting quickly to traumatic situations or if I was just actually happy.
Being held against my will by two demons didn’t seem too bad when it came with things like company. As depressing as it was to admit, the night I watched spooky movies with Ramel and Shem had been one of the best nights of my life. I’d never been able to watch TV with other people before. Shem’s commentary was hilarious, and Ramel seemed truly interested in every single opinion or thought I had about each scenario.
