Harlee POV
Zeev left me with a tender kiss at the corner of the customer service area.
"No pressure." He reminded me gently before walking away. I sighed and leaned against the wall, watching him leave.
"Ooh, who's that hunk o' handsome?" Ash asked walking up behind me.
"The biggest puzzle of my life right now." I replied with a sigh.
"Uh oh, I'm sensing a story here-details!" Ash demanded. I waved a hand.
"Nah, not important." I responded.
"Well, I don't know if the big boss told you, but I'm kinda new and I really don't know how all this stuff works, so you'll sorta be training me a bit. Hope that's ok." Ash grimaced. I blew out a breath.
"Of course he forgot, but it's no problem." I walked around the counter with Ash trailing after me and leaned on the counter top. "Unfortunately for you, it's mostly just a bunch of waiting until someone shows up. And ninety percent of them are gonna have a problem, and at least eighty percent of those are gonna be rude." I stated.
"You sound jaded. Kayla told me you quit. Why'd you come back then? It sounds like you don't like it here." Ash pointed out.
"Nobody wanted this job. So it was easy to get, and easy to advance in, 'cuz nobody sticks around. Plus, there's really not a whole lotta people through here. Most days you just stand or sit here looking bored. And then occasionally something good happens. Somebody turns in a lost wallet, a kid gets reunited with their parent, you know cute stuff that restores your faith in humanity." I shrugged. Ash sat on the counter to face me and looked at me with curiosity.
"Interesting." Ash murmured. "You're not at all what I expected." I laughed.
"Based on our last two interactions, yeah, I'll bet." I shook my head. "Sorry about that-you kinda shook me for a bit there. I hope you don't take this the wrong way, but you're very beautiful and I kinda get tongue-tied when I look at you."
"Oh, are you hitting on me now, gorgeous eyes?" Ash asked, holding a hand to their chest.
"Uhm no-that puzzle I was talking about? He's my other half I guess you could say." I smiled wryly. "You're a stunner, that's true-but he.. holds a piece of my soul." I finished quietly.
"Your soul.. but not your heart?" Ash turned my face to look into my eyes. I blushed.
"It's a little deeper than that. I love him, but it's.. more." I responded, looking away again.
"Hmm." Ash responded and hopped off the counter. "If you say so, but if you gave someone else half a chance, I bet they could steal your heart instead." Ash whispered near my ear. I jerked, but Ash had already moved.
"Hi, can I help you?" Ash asked brightly as a customer came around the corner of the customer service area. The woman was immediately smitten by Ash, I could tell, and was surreptitiously trying to discover Ash's sex by the way she was ogling Ash's body and clothing under her lashes. Ash smirked, but then turned to me.
"Harlee-I really don't know the key order for this. Is it this first, or do I scan it first?" Ash pouted, pointing at the register buttons.
"No, you push the entry button, then scan, then hit return.." I instructed. Ash tried to stumble through it, but messed the order up. "Here, like this.." I said and reached around Ash to press the correct buttons then scanned the shirt. Ash turned ever so slightly so that our faces were almost touching. I blushed.
"Thank you Harlee." Ash purred cutely, the warm scent of toasted pumpkin making me lick my lips. I drew back slowly and tried to breathe. Seriously, what was up with my reactions around Ash?
"Uh-huh, you're welcome." I blushed again and backed off so I could try to get myself under control.
"I don't mean to butt in, but are you two dating?" The woman asked Ash. Ash laughed.
"No. At least not yet." Ash laughed again.
"Can I..um.. I mean, are you a man? I'd love to have your phone number, but I'm not gay." The woman asked. I rolled my eyes.
"How about this. Here's my number honey. If you ever care to find out, give me a call." Ash wrote it on a piece of scrap receipt paper and handed it to her with her change. "Have a nice day!" The woman left flustered and Ash turned to me and smirked.
"What'd I tell you? First question they always ask." Ash sneered. I sighed.
"I'm sorry." I told Ash, and Ash's expression changed to one of shock.
"Why? You never did!.." Ash exclaimed.
"No, but it must be exhausting and hurtful to have people speculate and ask outright or make assumptions based on your appearance. People have the capacity to surprise, but they also have the capacity to disappoint." I sighed again. Ash's expression looked even more confused, then thoughtful.
"Hey, you want a peanut butter cup?" Ash suddenly asked, digging them out of a vest pocket.
"What's with you and the candy?" I laughed.
"So I have a sweet tooth!" Ash exclaimed and I laughed again.
"That's an understatement, but sure!" I replied and held out my hand. Ash took it gently, long cool fingers lingering on mine as they placed the chocolate in the center of my palm and curled my fingers gently around it. Ash leaned in towards me.
"It's male by the way." Ash said softly. I jerked, my attention diverted from our connected hands. "My sex, it's male, though I'm really gender fluid. Thanks for not making assumptions." Ash let my hand go.
"Uh yeah, no problem." I pulled my hand to my chest swiftly. I could still feel Ash's cool fingers on mine. My heartbeat was running wild. I needed to breathe..
Zeev POV
I already missed having Harlee around me at all times, and although the Bond helped settle the soul fragments, the ache was still reminding me that her soul missed her too. It was strange, you'd think I'd get tired of being around someone twenty-four-seven, tied to a human no less! But I hadn't. I suddenly felt like a planet whose sun disappeared. Lost, no orbit, no light. I decided to prepare a week's worth of meals to pass the time. That would leave Harlee and I more time for, well, if she decided she wanted a child.. I sat down on a kitchen stool. It was weird. I didn't know how to feel about this anymore. As a Demon, the possibility had always been intriguing, but I'd never found it useful enough to serve any purpose to endure the pain. What need did I have for little half-Demon Spawn? But then Harlee's soul became attached to my Heart, and suddenly it was less about the power advantages of reproducing, and more about how much I'd like to see Harlee bearing my child, a tiny version of herself that I helped create. To give her something no one else could-actual physical evidence of my love for her.
But now that Harlee was on the fence, so was I again. I had been right, the lightening enabled me to separate the tiny piece of myself and manipulate it away from body while keeping it alive. Would it survive long enough to join with Harlee's own genetic material? Who could say? but I had found a way that it could work for us. I just wouldn't have brought it up if I'd known she had any hesitancy...
Even her hormone surges were getting to me now, I had tuned myself in so closely with her body to prepare for this. So I felt the little spike as her heartrate jumped. What the Hell was that? I looked through our link and saw the black and green haired human. This one again? Who was this, and why were they so close to Harlee?
Harlee POV
Every time I turned around Ash was right there. The warm toasted pumpkin and Autumn leaves smell tormenting me with every move. My heart couldn't take much more of the surprise appearances or gentle touches. So when Zeev finally showed up to pick me up at lunch, I bolted straight into his arms, heart still beating wildly. Zeev looked at me curiously and then over my shoulder at Ash.
"Are you ok? He murmured and I gulped, nodding slightly. I didn't want to tell him that some gender-fluid stranger I'd just met was making my body behave in ways I couldn't control.
"Let's go home, please." I begged. Zeev looked over my shoulder once more. He wasn't prying in my head, but I could tell that he was curious. He nodded, and led me out.
"Bye Harlee! See you tomorrow!" Ash called in their melodious voice. I groaned.
"I hope not." I muttered. I wondered if I could trade shifts with Josh or Kayla..
Zeev POV
As soon as we reached the edge of the building, I stepped us into Harlee's home.
"Are you sure you're ok?" I asked her urgently, tilting her face to meet mine. Instead of answering, she leapt on me, digging her fingers into my scalp and kissing me desperately. It said something for her that she nearly knocked me over.
"Does this mean you've come to a decision?" I asked.
"Shut up and kiss me." Harlee snarled and so I did.