by Layla Stone
To his delight she did scream, high pitched and panicked, just as the doors shut.
3
Naff let Baby Steps down as soon as the elevator doors shut. “You have good lungs, Baby Steps.”
She shrugged away from him with a scowl. “I don’t think that was necessary.”
He did, but he didn’t say that. She could think whatever she wanted; he didn’t care. All he cared about was getting to sleep.
Inside the apartment, he made his way to the couch deciding to sleep first, shower second. Letting gravity take him down, he landed with a bounce, settled in and draped an arm over his eyes.
“Well, I guess I won’t get the couch.”
“Quiet time, Steps.”
She gave him less than five seconds of quiet time.
“You heard Frank. I don’t have to leave. My contract is signed and done.”
Naff was hoping for a longer moment before he had to get up and negotiate a deal with her, but now that he was on the couch he wished he could avoid it.
Without moving his arm, he said, “You’re right, but I’m not leaving. So, I have a deal to offer you.”
“No… no. No deals. We can talk, but no deals, no threats.”
He lifted his arm and peeked out at her. Why did she say threats? He wasn’t going to threaten her. If she was a male… then yeah, he wouldn’t have hesitated to do so.
Baby Steps started pacing on the other side of his three-legged coffee table.
Ten seconds of quiet. He just needed ten seconds… or a million. He’d take either.
“Well? What’s your idea?”
Exhaling dramatically, he sat up, he rested both arms on the back of the couch, waiting for her to stop pacing. He didn’t mind watching her shuffle in one spot like a little mouse waiting for a predator to pounce.
He would have preferred to sleep, but it gave him a chance to take in her body without being obvious. Her legs tapered from her round hips to small ankles. Her legs were smooth, not muscular. The tiny shoes she wore were a liability. With the way she held herself, Naff knew she had never been in a fight in her life.
She stopped, nibbled on her lip, as if she wanted to say something. Instead of talking she narrowed her eyes and paced again.
Okay, so he was only patient for so long. “How about I put it like this: I’ll allow you to stay in my apartment, rent free. I’ll give you the rent money, and you pay Frank on time.”
She stopped. “I don’t understand.”
Reclining back and using the coffee table for his feet, he said, “It’s simple, I’m not going to leave. This is my apartment, and my stuff’s here, and there isn’t a person on this planet that can force me out of it. You’re my uninvited guest and the easiest solution is to let you stay until the end of your lease. Your responsibility for living here is getting the rent money to the rat bastard on time.”
She frowned.
Naff held up a finger to add, “Don’t speak until you think about it. Because if you object, I will want to know why. And then I will keep you here until we make a deal.”
Baby Steps shook her head. “This is a one-bedroom apartment. There isn’t enough room for both of us.”
“Trust me, there is plenty of room. I’ve lived in a smaller place with six people.”
Finding a place to sleep with six people was the worst. Years of sleeping on the floor wishing he got the couch made him a clever Demon when it came to sleeping arrangements.
“I’m not going to make you sleep on the floor. If that’s what you’re worried about,” he said, trying to sound reasonable.
“Why would I sleep on the floor if there is a couch and a bed?”
He lifted his hand up in a mock confusion. “Huh, well, I guess there is room for both of us.”
Her small round nostrils flared as if she was threatening bodily harm.
It was adorable coming from the short, curvy beauty. And she was a beauty, not the long legged, firm body types that walked around the arena dressed in scraps. Those females were all show, and no soul.
This female looked… delicate.
She licked her lips nervously. “What I mean is we don’t even know each other. How can I trust you when only a few minutes ago you encouraged me to scream as if you were going to drag me back up here and ravish me?”
Naff couldn’t help the small tickle at the side of his mouth. “Ravish you? That sounds like something you’d enjoy. Did you mean rape?”
“Yes.”
“But you said ravish…” he grinned this time.
Looking flustered she said, “You know what I meant.”
He wanted to challenge that, play with her like the predator he was, but Naff needed her to see him as an equal – or maybe even less than her equal. That way Baby Steps would believe she had the upper hand.
As a fighter, it was his signature move to lure his opponent get in a few good punches, let them think they were winning.
If she was an opponent… What would make her feel confident?
“I can’t remember the last time I ravished someone.” Naff confessed, and then added the embarrassing truth on top of that, “I’m more of a blitzer, you know. Pull it out, get it wet, get done and go home.”
Her eyes widened along with her mouth. It was contorted, disgusted. That was what he was going for. People didn’t fear things that appalled them.
“That’s… descriptive and gross. Look, no offense but I don’t want to live with you.”
“No offense taken, Baby Steps, it’s just that you don’t really have a choice.”
Her eyebrows furrowed, “That’s not my name, and I am pretty sure I do have a choice.”
Naff watched her eyes flick to the door. “If you’re referring to the key lock, you should know its worthless.”
“I’ll get it fixed.”
Why he was amused at her effort to get out of the deal? In truth, he enjoyed seeing her put in the effort. Futile as it was.
“That key lock is brand new, I bought it myself and installed it. The wiring inside the building is faulty,” he said matter-of-factly.
“I’ll put a lock on the door, then.”
“Good idea. Except, if you’re trying to keep me out, I learned to pick locks when I was thirteen.”
Not a lie.
Baby Steps inhaled and let her head drop back. “Of course, you did.”
“Living with me will be easy considering I’m not here most of the time.”
“That does not make it better.”
“What if I told you, I’m…” he was going to say a decent person for the most part, but it had been so long since he lived with someone, he didn’t know.
Baby Steps faced him. “You’re what? A sweetheart? A cuddly bear?”
“No,” he said, cutting his hand through the air, “and don’t say crap like that again. I have a reputation.”
A flicker of mischief sparked in her eyes and he recognized it for what it was. Subtle confidence.
“Says the guy who told me to scream, just to freak out the building manager.”
Giving her a wry smile, he said, “If it works, use it. That’s what I say.”
“Fine. I’ll take your deal on two conditions.”
“Lay your conditions on me, Steps.”
Another spark in her eyes said she noticed the innuendo. Quick-witted. He liked that.
“First condition. The bedroom is mine. You can’t come in unless you knock, and I let you in.”
“Got it, I make a little noise, get you going and then you let me inside,” he said, knowing it would lower her opinion of him even more.
“You knock and I open the door,” she corrected, “and if your innuendo is any formula for your blitzes, no wonder you haven’t gotten any in a long time.”
Naff pressed his lips together, but it was not out of anger. It was to hide the smile. If she was willing, he’d figure out how to ravish her – and do a good job of it so he could do it again and again.
“My second condi
tion is, no guests, no bringing home people to blitz. You don’t have a room and I don’t want to walk in on you doing someone on the couch.”
The female was fixed on his blitzing. Was she imagining how poorly he performed? Should he invite her to show him how it’s done?
No. She’d probably talk about how other males touched her and he didn’t want to think about that.
“I never bring people back to my room. You’re the first person who’s seen it since I signed my lease three years ago. This is my place and I don’t share it with anyone. I’m willing to do it with you because I like the idea of my rent being paid on time. And you smell good.”
Naff had no idea why he shared the last bit. The female’s expression said she was just as confused as he was.
Behind him was heavy pounding. “Open the door. This is the Federation Guard.”
The manager must not have called right away, or they would have been there sooner. Did Frank want her to get raped?
Baby Steps covered her mouth, as if she was too scared to speak.
Naff moved from the couch to the door. As soon as he opened it, the Federation officer lunged forward and shot a pulse phaser into his chest directly into his barely healed rib. He took the hit and winced.
The yellow-skinned Krant who shot him wrapped a meaty hand around his arm and smashed his face into the wall. Pain flashed before it numbed.
The officer was responding to a rape call, and Naff used that thought to keep his hands balled at his side, shaking with effort to keep from cracking the male’s monstrous face.
The Yunkin officer rushed in and blocked his view from Baby Steps. “Did he hurt you? Are you okay?”
The Krant behind him took his arm, pulled and twisted it back applying the Federation cuffs.
A large hand at the back of his head, pushed his face into the wall. The bruises under his cheeks made him want to shake, but he kept himself still.
“Did he hurt you?” The Yunkin said again, talking to his roommate.
“No. He didn’t. What are you going to do to him?” she asked.
“We were told you were screaming. That the Demon was going to rape you. Did the he threaten you? Touch you? What did he say?”
“Nothing, we talked, that’s all.”
“What did you talk about?” the officer pressed.
“Stuff. Rent.”
Naff knew this would happen, had planned it, but hearing Baby Step’s voice sound small pissed him off. Was the Yunkin scaring her?
“Did he threaten you? Did he make you take a deal you didn’t want to?”
“No, not like that. He didn’t threaten to kill me or anything. But we talked about sharing the apartment.”
There was enough silence for Naff to assume that the security guards were looking at each other, trying to judge what to do.
“If I were you,” Naff said to the wall, “I would want to know why you got called out to a room where two people were talking about rent.”
“Shut it, Demon,” said the guard behind him, smacking the back of his head.
“Wait, no, he’s right. Um… we had to talk about rent because the manager rented me this apartment without evicting him first. We tried to talk to the manager, but he acted like he only cared about the security deposit I gave him.”
Nice. She focused all the attention on Frank.
Naff was about to drop another hint, when one guard asked, “Why didn’t you ask for the manager to move you to a new room?”
“I did – I mean, he did.” Naff assumed she was pointing at him. “But the manager said the place was full. And that the Demon had to leave. But we arranged to stay here together. He’d pay the rent, and I pay it on time.”
Naff closed his eyes, knowing that his well-laid plan just went sideways.
Her quick summary of their deal sounded ridiculous even to his ears. The guards would jump all over it.
“He pays the rent and you stay for free? Sounds very one-sided and Demons never make deals where they get the heavy end of the scale.”
“It’s not like you’re making it sound.”
Naff wished she would shut up. But she didn’t.
“We’d be roommates until my lease ended.”
“Look, I don’t want to scare you but if you think that he’s going to let you stay here rent free, you’re mistaken. You will become Demon property. No Demon in the universe will offer you a deal without something of equal value in return.”
It was true, and yet… that was exactly what he did, because he was desperate, exhausted, and hungry.
“Why don’t you come with us? We’ll get this situation taken care of. There is a chance this Demon was lawfully evicted and he’s just selling you lies. They do that.”
There was a moment of silence and Naff wondered if she would take the offer. And if she did, he would have to go through this again when Frank tried to move in someone else.
He had to stop this. “Only idiots like you would think sex could be used as a payment. Demons deal in money and product, get your facts straight. But, by all means, keep talking stupid and maybe after a while you’ll remember the manager broke Federal regulations by renting a room to two parties at the same time.”
Silence.
Steps said, “The manager rented me this room saying it was furnished. Not that it was someone else’s stuff. That sounds like an untrustworthy kind of guy.”
Silence.
“Let him go, Rezz. And let’s go check the manager’s contracts. If the female wants to stay, we can’t stop her. And if the manager’s done this once, he’s probably done it before.”
Naff felt the cables loosen. Once they were off, he rubbed the skin feeling the bumps from past scars.
The two Krants stood in the doorway. The Yunkin gave Steps a disappointed frown. “If you were my daughter, I wouldn’t let you make the mistake of living with a Demon. You can’t trust them.”
Naff snapped, “If she was your daughter, she would beg me for a walk on the wild side. Yunkin sex is as boring as watching the sunrise.”
The Yunkin officer curled his upper lip, “At least sex with a Yunkin won’t make her want to vomit afterwards. I doubt anyone you’ve blitzed allowed you to keep the lights on.”
Naff sneered. “I may be ugly, but at least I have a Demon-sized dick.”
The Yunkin didn’t respond, possibly trying to act like he was more civilized, but after a conversation about dick sizes and sex in the dark the officer wasn’t fooling anyone.
As soon as they were gone, Naff closed the door, used the wall lock. He turned to face his new roommate and her bottom lip quivered. “You’re bleeding all over your shirt.”
Naff took the bottom of his shirt and then touched his nose. Huh, when did that happen? “Yeah, it will be fine in a few minutes.” He took the end of his shirt and wiped the excess blood from his face and headed to the couch. This time he laid down, puffing the heavy orange pillow behind his head and closed his eyes, with no intention of opening them until his Minky watch alarm went off.
“Are you sure you don’t need a doctor?” she asked.
“I’m sure. With as many injuries as I’ve had, I know when it’s bad. And this isn’t even worth my attention.”
Baby Steps moved to the arm of the couch and sat. “Why have you had so many injuries?”
He could answer in four words or he could explain in detail taking hours. Considering he had to be up in an another few minutes, he opted for the quick version. “Because I’m a Demon.” Opening one eye he said, “Remember when I said I was tired? I meant it. I need to be up in a soon so, if you don’t mind, pretend this is my room and I need it quiet.”
Baby Steps stood up. “Sorry. I remember. Goodnight.”
He grunted. “By the way, what is your name?”
“Adya.”
Oddly enough, he lifted his head, to see if she was playing or serious. “Is that a nickname?”
“No.”
“Adya,” he said, getting a feel for th
e letters.
“What’s yours?”
“Naff.”
“Are you going to call me by my name now?”
Naff let his head fall back. “Probably not.”
4
Naff woke up to his alarm, rubbing his eyes amazed how extra tired he felt. Rolling up from the couch it took him a second to remember why he was sleeping on the couch and not in his bed.
Seeing the bedroom door shut he remembered. Adya.
Naff rubbed his face and walked to the door and started to bang loudly. A second later she pulled open the door. “My gosh, why would you bang so loud?”
Had he? “I need to take a shower. The only bathroom is in your room.”
Her eyes turned back to said bathroom, and she growled as she opened the door. “I didn’t think about that.”
“Me either.” On the way to the bathroom he grabbed his stained and ripped clothes and walked into the bathroom, relieved himself and showered quickly.
When he walked out, Adya perched on the corner of the bed. “That’s an interesting choice of clothes to wear to work.”
He rubbed his face again, feeling the exhaustion deep in his muscles. “Mornings I clean dishes at Charlie’s Barbeque and evenings I am a fighter at The Pit.” He pulled at his shirt and added, “Not going to wear something that will bother me when it ends up ripped and bloody in a few hours.”
“Bloody?”
Naff didn’t stop walking towards the door, but he didn’t answer. “Yeah, Baby Steps, I get bloody for the paying customers who come to watch Demons act like savages.”
Behind him, the bed squeaked and Adya rushed to his side. “The Pit? Is that an underground arena? And people die there?”
“The Pit’s a club for high-rolling asshats. The real underground arenas don’t have names.” He walked to the kitchen, saw her rice bowl with non-barbeque sauce covered meat chunks and snatched it. Using three fingers as a spoon, he shoved as much food in his mouth as he could. Even cold, it was good, and he was starving. Five bites in his stomach extended, and he relished in the fullness.
He felt better already.
Adya, looked horrified.