Dealing with Demons

by Melissa Haag

  I waited until he was already performing his graceful approach before opening my mouth.

  “I’m really thirsty.”

  The quietly whispered words had the desired effect. He turned toward the sound of my voice the moment he released the ball. It veered a smidge off course, costing him a strike, not that he’d noticed.

  I struggled not to grin at his distracted gaze.

  “A white soda, please.”

  He came back with two sodas, set them on the table behind our lane, then went to finish his turn. Since three pins remained, one to the right and two to the left, I didn’t think he’d get them all. He proved me wrong.

  Disgruntled, but hiding it well, I took my turn. I felt more comfortable releasing the ball and no longer worried about my fingers sticking, although I still didn’t attempt to put them in any farther. Trying to mimic Morik’s fluid form, I managed to get seven of the pins down, leaving three on the far right. By sheer luck, I gained a spare.

  Moving out of our bowling area, I picked up my soda and waited until he was about to release the ball before taking a sip. The loud slurp caused a gutter ball, and I almost choked on the soda, trying not to laugh. He turned to look at me, his face carefully blank. When he caught my smirk, he shook his head. The slight twitch of his lips indicated that he knew my game.

  After that, he returned the favor. However, with my already poor game, nothing he did made much difference in my performance. As he walked to the ball return, I caught the brown swirling in his eyes and his barely suppressed smile. He enjoyed the game we played.

  By the eighth frame, the man behind the counter brought a pizza over to our table. I plucked a piece of pepperoni off the top of a piece and waited for Morik to start his approach to the lane. Then, I plopped the pepperoni in my mouth and hummed with delight. Morik swung the ball back, but I sensed his distraction.

  “Do you want a taste?” I whispered as I picked off another piece.

  His head whipped around as the ball flew from his fingers. He watched me as I watched the ball sail in a beautiful arc and land in the gutter. The next lane’s gutter. Thankfully, no one currently used that lane.

  Still holding up the piece of pepperoni, I laughed. Even the group of men next to us laughed, having caught on to our antics.

  Morik glanced back at the ball then stalked toward me. He didn’t laugh. Black consumed his eyes.

  My laughter died, but my smile remained. He didn’t worry me.

  I playfully held up the pepperoni. He surprised me by eating it from my fingers. His tongue brushed the tips. Eyes wide, I felt my smile fade as we stood there staring at each other for a long moment.

  When I didn’t say anything, he flashed a small smile then turned away to retrieve his ball. I slowly released the breath I’d held. He confused and unsettled me. And made me nervous sometimes but content, maybe even happy, the rest of the time.

  For the rest of the game, I continued to distract him but didn’t use the pizza again.

  When we finished the last frame with Morik the clear winner, we sat at the table to finish our cooled pizza.

  “You’ve bowled before?” I asked when he sat next to me.

  “Yes. Several well-known bowlers have made deals to gain certain abilities. When people start asking for things, I get curious. I studied the game and found that I like it.”

  I didn’t dwell on which bowlers he might have helped.

  “How can you bowl, though? There are usually a lot of people in bowling alleys.”

  “It’s been a while,” he said quietly before eating another bite of his pizza.

  No doubt. With the exception of a new deal, I was the key to his contact with people. I wondered again if choosing him would be unfair to him. Would he be happier with someone else? I understood being lonely and wanting someone to talk to.

  We finished the pizza while we discussed bowling and the techniques he’d learned.

  “Thank you for this,” I said as we waited in line to trade in our shoes.

  “Any time,” he said, looking at me through his yellow lenses.

  I saw the brown floating in his irises and smiled.

  Mom stood at the front door, waiting for us when we arrived home. As soon as I saw her angry expression, I realized I’d forgotten to tell someone where we’d be. Though, to be fair, I hadn’t known myself until we got there.

  Morik killed the bike and waited for me to hop off the back.

  “Don’t bother turning it off. You can go,” Mom said, her curt voice ringing in the yard. “Tessa. Inside. Now.”

  I pulled the helmet off my head and turned toward Morik.

  “Go on, get!” she yelled from behind me.

  I froze. Shame flooded me over my mother’s behavior. Yet, Morik’s face remained impassive despite having just been talked to as if he were a dog.

  “Would you mind waiting a minute?” I asked quietly while I handed over the helmet.

  He nodded slightly and glanced at my mom.

  Steeling myself, I faced her. While I walked to close the distance between us so what I said wouldn’t carry to the neighbors, I fought to cool my temper.

  Mouth drawn into a tight line, Mom moved back to let me inside. I stopped at the front stoop, which only increased her anger.

  “You owe Morik an apology,” I said calmly.

  “No, I don’t. Get inside. Dinner’s almost ready.”

  “Mom, I’m sorry I didn’t leave a note. I get that you’re mad. But it doesn’t give you the right to treat him like that.”

  “No right? I have every right. You seem to forget that Morik’s the reason our family has suffered for over two hundred years.”

  Did she really still blame him for all our troubles? I closed my eyes briefly instead of rolling them. I’d thought, when I’d explained the story, that they would all see our history and his involvement in the same light I did.

  “No. Belinda is the reason. He was lonely and only asked for a chance. She was selfish and wouldn’t give him one. Because of her, we’ve lived in ignorance and fear. That’s done now, Mom.”

  “You’ve chosen,” she whispered in horror.

  “I’m giving him a chance,” I said. “And you should, too.”

  “You can’t trust him. If he were nice or honest, he’d remove the curse from us instead of continuing to try to get close to you.”

  She didn’t understand the rules surrounding his deals. And, it was my fault for not clearly explaining what I’d learned. But I doubted trying to explain now would help.

  “I’ll be home before nine,” I said.

  The door slammed shut behind me before I made it off the stoop. I cringed at the violence of it. Furious didn’t seem to cover Mom’s current emotion.

  Morik watched me approach, his face impassive.

  “Would you mind if we went to your house for a while?” I asked.

  He handed me the helmet, and I slid it over my head, not looking back at the house. Why couldn’t Mom see she was making everything harder on me? I only wanted to do what was right for all of us.

  The ride to Morik’s passed quickly. We turned into a back alley near my house, he stopped, then suddenly we appeared in his garage, still sitting on his motorcycle. I was grateful I didn’t have to endure the icy winds any longer and appreciated his ability to pop in and out of places.

  I tugged off my gloves and stuffed them into the helmet that I left on the bike seat. Morik led me in through the side door and immediately went to the thermostat. I watched him set it to seventy-five from fifty-three.

  “It will warm up in a bit. Keep your jacket on until it does,” he said, moving toward me.

  I nodded and looked around his mostly barren yet tastefully decorated house.

  “Why don’t you have any of your things here?”

  “Things?”

  “You’ve bowled, you’ve created shell combs. Over the years, you had to have collected stuff. Memories.”

  He reached out, took one of my hands in h
is, and led me to the couch.

  “I keep those hidden away. Neighbors tend to look through your windows. Some of my ‘things’ would raise questions.”

  It made sense. Sitting down, I looked up at him and apologized for my mom.

  “Your mom has every reason to be angry. She’s right. If I were honest and nice, I would release you.”

  “You said there’s always a price.”

  He shrugged and sat next to me, close, but not touching. Suddenly, I knew that he would be the one to pay if he released me from the original deal. An eternity of isolation. Humans used him to acquire what they wanted, and because of his loneliness, he went along with it. What choice did he really have if he wanted contact, any contact, with another being?

  “Morik? You mentioned others like you. Why don’t you talk to them?”

  He leaned back, resting his head against the back of the couch, and thoughtfully looked up at the ceiling through his yellow glasses.

  “We are all different. Some are so different it is difficult to spend more than a minute together without becoming extremely agitated. Many of my kind before me are violent and confrontational. Not many were created after me. Most of those who were, have already faded into nonexistence.” He turned his head to look at me. “Without purpose, they had no reason to exist.”

  “The older ones have purpose?”

  He nodded and looked away. “Many disasters that befall this world are their doing. They are chaos. Nature is control. Together, there is balance. Long ago, humans began to create their own chaos. The younger of my kind, no longer needed, ceased to exist.”

  “Then, your purpose is to cause chaos?”

  “It was, long ago. But I quickly saw what would happen to me and started to make deals with humans, creating a new purpose for myself. It was a loophole that few of us could interact with humans at all. Again, just to create chaos. Some of my earlier deals led to revelations that led to revolutions. Humans interested me. Their diversity and persistence were like nothing I’d witnessed before. I wanted to be a part of that. I wanted a reason to exist.”

  We sat together quietly, each lost in thought. His own persistence made sense. A two-hundred-year-old deal was the only thing keeping him alive.

  I tentatively laced my fingers through his and leaned my head on his shoulder as I listened to the air blow through the vents. Morik had made the deal because he’d felt lonely. Mom had flipped out because my being with him scared her. Which had more pull on me? His loneliness or her love and concern? Because of my ability to see my future and the consequences of it, I’d felt isolated my whole life. Until Morik came along. Despite my talks with Mom, she didn’t see that I couldn’t accept choosing anyone other than Morik. I understood her fear, though. What would choosing him bring me?

  Soon, the room felt toasty, and I sat up to discard the jacket. My movement broke the melancholy mood in the room. Morik got us both sodas and then dug out a checkers board.

  For the next three hours, we talked and played games. After the first game, I insisted he take off his hat and glasses when we were alone so I could watch the different colors that swirled in his eyes. For the most part, brown dominated them with an occasional wisp of black or green.

  Just before nine, I put on my jacket. He gathered me in his arms and instantly transported us to a spot just outside my front door.

  “What do you do when you leave me for the night?” I asked idly, not yet wanting to go inside.

  He looked uncomfortable for a minute then admitted that he never actually left.

  “Most nights, I talk to your Aunt Danielle. She doesn’t sleep, either.”

  “You never sleep?”

  “Not since finding you. Before that I did, but never for very long. I don’t need sleep like you do.”

  I stuck my hands into my pockets and tried to suppress a shiver from the cold. Leaning against him when we rode kept me warmer than I’d realized.

  “I guess I’ll see you inside, then.”

  He nodded with a small smile, and I let myself in even as I wondered if my mom knew he hung around after I fell asleep. Aunt Danielle opened her eyes and winked at me before she closed them again. I suspected that if Mom hadn’t caught Morik yet it was because Aunt Danielle seemed to be on his side.

  I hung up my things and saw Mom curled on the couch. I debated waking her up. I really didn’t want to fight again, but knew she was on the couch because she was worried. So I leaned over her and gently shook her arm.

  “I’m home,” I whispered.

  She opened her eyes, nodded tiredly, then got up and went to bed.

  Relieved that we didn’t need to fight, I called good night to Aunt Danielle and went to grab my pajamas so I could quickly change in the bathroom. When I finished, I tiptoed back to my room.

  Morik stood by the bed, the covers already pulled back.

  When he saw me, he started the chant. I stopped in front of him and put my hand over his mouth. As soon as the words stopped, the building lethargy faded.

  I removed my hand and flicked the hat off his head with a grin. He watched me, curious. I plucked the glasses from his face and set them on the desk. He arched a brow at me as I crawled under the covers and then patted the top of the blankets.

  “Try and get some rest,” I whispered. If he stayed in the house the whole night anyway, there was no reason he couldn’t catch a little sleep. It just seemed unnatural that he wouldn’t need a little after going so long without any.

  He moved to the door. I thought he might leave and felt disappointment. Instead, he turned off the light.

  In the dark, I listened to him remove his shoes and jacket. Then, he lay next to me. After spending so much time with him, it felt comforting. I rolled onto my side toward him and laid my head on his shoulder, not asking permission or worrying if he’d mind. His warmth lulled me to sleep as fast as his chant would have.

  Relaxed and warm, I didn’t want to wake up when the sun hit my eyes. My head still lay on Morik, only it’d migrated to his chest. His steady heartbeat drummed under my ear. I’d tossed one arm over his waist while the other remained pinned by my side. He had an arm wrapped around me, and I could feel his fingers lightly running through the ends of my hair.

  Something gave away that I was awake because he said, “Good morning.”

  “I don’t want to get up yet,” I said, too comfortable to move.

  He chuckled.

  “You’ll be late again.”

  We’d left his motorcycle behind, which meant I’d be walking. I sighed and lifted my head to look at the time. My internal clock must have still been set to seven. I’d have to hurry. I looked at Morik and lost my train of thought. Black flooded his eyes again, but this time, it had expanded beyond the irises and had completely consumed the ochre.

  “It’s kind of scary when they do that,” I said, moving to free my pinned arm so I could prop myself up.

  “Sorry,” he rumbled, closing his eyes.

  “It’s okay. I don’t mind.” I reached out with my free hand and brushed his cheek. His eyes opened, unchanged. “It catches me by surprise. I haven’t figured out what causes it.”

  He quietly watched me for a moment.

  “You do.”

  I didn’t say anything. We were getting into that confusing territory again. Was he attracted to me? Did he want more than a friend? Starting the day very similar to the day before, I chickened out, crawled over him, and grabbed what I needed to get ready.

  When I tossed my pajamas back into my bedroom, I saw a neatly made bed but no Morik. I found him at the kitchen table, waiting for me. Gran sat next to him, sipping a cup of coffee.

  “Sorry I didn’t tell you where I was going yesterday,” I said to her.

  “Don’t worry about it. Danielle told me you were with Morik.” She smiled at him.

  Apparently, Mom was the only one with a chip on her shoulder regarding him. I wasn’t sure about Aunt Grace’s opinion since I didn’t see her enough to know.<
br />
  “Where is everyone?”

  “Left early for work.” Gran picked up her coffee and moved to the living room to turn on a morning talk show. “Better get going or you’ll be late.”

  Tomorrow, the first day of winter break, I promised myself I’d sleep in. Staying up later than I was used to was taking its toll.

  When I put on my jacket, I was surprised to feel gloves in the pockets. I distinctly recalled leaving them at his house. Morik opened the door, and I spotted the motorcycle parked out front.

  “How did that get here?”

  “I got it while you were changing,” he said as he held the door for me.

  The ability to pop in and out of places at will would have been far handier than seeing my future.

  When I got to school, Beatriz waited for us.

  “Are you ready for tomorrow night?” she asked with a grin.

  I looked toward Morik.

  “What time do you want us there?” he asked, surprising me.

  “Does noon work for you guys?”

  It was his turn to look at me. After how mad Mom had been, I knew I should talk to her first.

  “I’ll call you tonight after I check with my mom.”

  School flew. Before I knew it, I was again settled on the back of his bike as we headed for my house.

  We worked on the earrings in my room until Mom and Aunt Grace got home. Despite Mom’s rude behavior and refusal to apologize, he accepted my invitation to stay for dinner. Mom was quiet when he joined us.

  After dinner, when everyone thought Morik left, I went back to my room to finish the jewelry for my family with his help. Before I went to change for the night, we wrapped the pieces so they’d be ready for Saturday night when we exchanged gifts. I couldn’t wait to see their reactions.

  When I returned, Morik waited for me beside the bed. His thoughtfulness made me feel guilty that I still didn’t have anything to give him. Oh, I knew what he really wanted. If only I knew how to make that happen.

  “Did you sleep at all last night?” I asked.

  “It was very comfortable,” he said, pulling back the covers.