"Here you go. It's... just in case..."
Handing me a glass filled with the redness of what gave demons their sustenance, I could once again see the guilt filling Ms. Zito's face. Guilt over the fact that I had become one of Lucifer's kin.
Taking a seat next to me on the couch, I could feel the smoothness of the skin that wasn't covered by her elegant black dress, having already dressed herself for the event we were about to depart to.
"Just in case of what?"
"You will be surrounded by a lot of humans tonight, and although I don't think there will be a problem as your demonic traits are still very weak, I just want to minimize the risk of your desires running wild."
It was quite funny really, how she forced me to go to that party even though she had to fill me up with blood beforehand to make sure nothing would happen. At that point, wouldn't it have just been better for me to stay here?
"Alright..."
Still, I didn't say that. instead turning my gaze downwards at the glass in my hands, filled with the disgusting yet so delicious liquid that I both hated and loved. The fact was, that the last time I had consumed blood, I was almost more disgusted by the fact that I didn't dislike the taste of it.
In one fell swoop, I downed the whole glass in an instant, not wanting to catch myself enjoying the moment.
Because it had been the opposite of me disliking the taste. Tasting the succulent sweetness on my tongue, feeling the slight warmth streaming down my throat... I absolutely loved it. And that scared me the most.
Putting down the glass on the marble table, Ms. Zito's finger suddenly swept something off my lower lip, and as she put her finger in her own mouth, I couldn't help but feel my cheeks heating up as she sucked her finger clean of the blood she had removed from my face.
"That's no good, Aarick. You can't let your new clothes get ruined
Yes, I had also already gotten changed for the party, now wearing clothes that had cost more money than I had ever even seen in my entire life. Granted, it wasn't like I had been in contact with a lot of money, but the point is that they had been extremely expensive.
Standing up, content that I had drank the drink like a good boy, she made her way to the hallway.
"I'll be going first. It would only bring problems if they saw us arriving together, so you will, unfortunately, have to walk there. Do you remember where to go?"
During the day, while we were out in the city, she had already shown me where the club that Augustus had rented was located, just to make sure I knew where to go.
"Yes, I remember."
"Good. I'll see you later then."
*Click*
With Ms. Zito leaving the apartment, I let my head fall backward and stared at the white ceiling. Right now, I wasn't even able to talk to Lucifer about my worries, as she was once again sleeping, something she had been doing more and more every day that passed by.
So now, I was alone with my own thoughts, and I didn't like it. Because I didn't enjoy my own thoughts right now. Because in my head, there was only one thing I could think of.
The succulent and sweet drink brimming with energy. The red liquid which caused shivers to go down my back in pleasure when I consumed it. The symbol of life and the symbol of death.
****
[Lydia's Pov]
The club was already filled with freshmen when I and Stella arrived, both deciding to dress accordingly to our statuses. As it turns out, both of us came from families with ties in medium-sized guilds, which pretty much led to us being in the middle of the pack in terms of hierarchy.
So I was just wearing a black top with white jeans, and Stella was wearing a cute green dress that matched her eyes.
Around us, all of the men were wearing suits, but seeing the different qualities it wasn't hard to see who was at the top and who was at the bottom. And that's how it was supposed to be.
Everyone knew about it, and although most people didn't care too much, it was hard to say it wasn't quite a disgusting way of life. One person who truly didn't care at all though was the yellow-haired man called Astor.
Going around the different tables, talking to any and everyone without a care in the world, it was hard to know what was really going through his head. To be fair, he had a background that also allowed him to act this way, as well as the talent to back it up, so it wasn't like anyone could complain.
The biggest reason, however, was that everyone seemed to like him. Even if he was a bit loud, he was still just a friendly guy that got along with everyone. And after what we had seen yesterday, that seemed to even apply to...
"Let's find a table and sit down, Lydia!"
"Ah, sure."
Waking me up from my thoughts, Lydia pulled my arm a bit as she dragged me toward a table, most likely finding it uncomfortable just standing in the middle of the room doing nothing. Following along, it didn't take long until we found a vacant table and promptly sat down.
"Everyone looks so good..."
"Don't be like that Stella. You also look really good!"
"Ah?! Oh... Thank you..."
Just like always, the green-haired girl had no confidence, focusing more on what other people had and what she didn't have than vice-versa. Now, I hadn't known her for all too long, but just this week had been enough for us to bond enough for me to tell her off.
Feeling that something was missing in my hand, we were at a club after all, I stood up again even though we had just found a table.
"I'm going to get us something to drink. What do you want, Stella?"
"Oh, I'll just have some water if that's okay."
"Sure thing."
Walking over the sleek flooring of the club, was quite an impressive sight really. With Sovereign completely themed with black and gold décor, and the lights being to still see everything clearly, there was no question about how much money it must've cost the academy to rent this place.
"Hey, Lydia!"
Suddenly, a bright voice rang out from behind me and it didn't take long for me to start talking with Celina and Sophie who also had just arrived here, with Celina wearing an expensive white dress and Sophie trying but failing to hide her womanly blessings with a black turtleneck.
"Hey, what's up?"
"We just got here. Man, the traffic was awful! Though I guess it's to be expected, there is a lot of paparazzi that want to try their luck tonight, getting shots of the freshmen of Augustus."
Even while complaining, Celina still wore her characteristic friendly smile while Sophie was as mellow as ever.
In the end, after getting ourselves something to drink, they also ended up at our table.
"So, what do you guys think of tonight?"
"Hmm?"
Unable to understand what Celina was talking about, she quickly explained after seeing the obvious confusion on both me and Stella's faces.
"You know, about Levi and Will! I heard rumors that they are finally going to officially announce their relationship now that they are both attending Augustus."
'Ah, so she was this kind of girl.'
Though I had no real interest in gossip, I also knew that it was proper to at least act a bit interested when someone started a conversation topic.
"Is that so? But are they really even together?"
For some reason, Celina's body flinched when I uttered those words, but then she just continued to act as if nothing.
"I think so? I mean, they are always together, so wouldn't it make sense for them to be? Anyway..."
Suddenly, a loud bang could be heard from the entrance to the club, followed by the voice of a seemingly very frustrated young man who hadn't experienced trying to make his way through a crowd of paparazzi.
*Bam!*
"Damn it! I told you to leave me alone! How fucking hard can it be to understand?!"
With his white hair seemingly shining even under the dim lights of the club, and his pale skin that only highlighted the deep red of his eyes, I couldn't help but think a completely unreasonable thought when I saw him arrive.
'Hot...'
Clad in an extraordinarily luxurious white suit, complemented by a black shirt and black dress pants, I had a second of feeling my face get hot when I saw him. Then, as soon as my mind registered the way he was acting and the profanities he was spouting, the attraction was immediately blown away.
Or that was at least what I told myself.