Perfectly human dishes; strawberries in cream, a bowl of grapes, huge bowls of ramen, many different types of meat and cakes and two large goblets filled with a dark liquid, all of it spread out in front of Leviathan, who was still smiling, that stupid proud look on his face. He was dressed…nicely. Cullen fought the urge to tug at the collar of his baggy sweatshirt self consciously, though he felt a slight flush come to his cheeks.
“How was the rest of your day?”
His blush deepened at the dreams that plunged to the forefront of his mind. “It…it was fine.” He said carefully. A tense, awkward pause before Cullen convinced himself to whisper, “How was yours?” Why did he keep playing nice with this fucker?
“Good.” Leviathan answered calmly, though excitement flickered in his eyes. “I would have preferred to spend it with you but…” He shrugged.
Such a natural, human movement.
He scowled. “Well, maybe if you didn't grope me every chance you get, I would be just slightly more inclined to talk to you for more than five minutes.” A lie. Even if Leviathan stopped pushing him, he wouldn't want anything to do with him. But it was probably better to play along.
Leviathan rolled his eyes. Most likely seeing right through him. “Grab some food.”
Cullen hesitated, examining it all, looking for any sign that it was more than what it seemed. It looked and smelled normal enough but…
“So…Is it all infused with blood or…”
“Nope.” Leviathan interrupted calmly, popping a grape into his mouth. “It's all completely ordinary human food. Now eat.”
He hesitated again, knowing it was a lie, but when his stomach let out a vicious snarl, he reached for a grape, giving it a small sniff before popping it into his mouth. He had to bite back a moan at the taste of it, at the sweet, somewhat off flavor. He swallowed it quickly and began to pile food onto his plate without giving himself anymore time to think on it. Leviathan watched him with a small smile, drinking whatever was in his goblet without eating anything else.
Once Cullen had had his fill, he sat back with a groan and closed his eyes, his hands rubbing at his stomach.
“Feeling better?” Leviathan asked quietly.
Cullen nodded and then hesitantly murmured, “Thank you, Leviathan. For…figuring out a way for me to eat.” He figured a thank you wasn't completely horrible at the moment. Leviathan may have been a monster that he hated but…he had been kind to him. More so than he would have expected.
“My pleasure, pet.” He dropped his head onto his hand, looking pleased with himself again.
Cullen didn't comment on the pet name this time, leaning forward to grab his goblet instead. He examined the dark red liquid inside suspiciously.
"Perfectly ordinary wine." Leviathan murmured, takinganother long drink from his own cup.
"Does it affect us like it does humans?"
Surprise flickered in his eyes."That's the first time you've referred to yourself as a demon."
Cullen shrugged, taking an experimental sip. He made a face. He'd always hated wine. "It's not as if I can pretend I'mnota demon." Not with that darkness hovering over him like a threat.
Leviathan was smiling softly. "The wine does affect us, but we would have to drink quite a bit more than the average human."
Cullen nodded, still considering his next question.
"What is it?"
He flushed. "I just…I was wondering if I could ask you some things.”
The smile on his lips grew a little more dangerous. “Of course.”
After a long moment of watching him hesitantly, Cullen blew out a slow breath and murmured, “I still feel like…me.”
A quiet moment passed.
"Did you think you would not?"
"I don'tknow.”He snapped, flustered. “It's not like I had the chance to ask questions about this stuff."
Leviathan sat back in his chair, watching him thoughtfully. "You were the one that told me to leave you alone. You could have had your answers a long time ago otherwise." His head tilted to the side. "What would you like to know?"
