[Spirit of Lust 2] Chapters 370 & 371. (Patreon)

Chapter 370: An uneventful day.

Magic. The fact that it’s real still leaves me stunned sometimes. Even reading up on runes at Frey’s behest, I still don’t understand much of it at all. At least, I think I understand that spirits like Frey are very rare and are beings capable of using it. Julian was possessed by one, too, if only for a while. I’ve been keeping an eye on him since then, mostly out of paranoia, but it doesn’t seem like he even remembers what happened. Good riddance, if you ask me.

Luke Allen… Was it possible that he could use magic, too? I mean, it WAS possible. A better question was if he was actually using it. All I had to go on was the strange feeling I got when he introduced his girlfriends.

It was more than a hunch but far less than proof. I felt something that’s hard to describe, like noticing something I shouldn’t have noticed. Thomas and Mila seemed to agree with me on that.

Honestly, I was worried. Frey had already casted… ‘wards’ on the girls, something to protect them from someone else’s magic, but… I don’t know. I had too many thoughts to list. At times I thought we’d be fine, at others my stomach twisted with worry.

I hoped that the man would just forget about us and go partying with his girls on his yacht or on a cruise or whatever it was that he had. But if he did contact us again… what should I do?

Such were my thoughts as I washed dishes at the coffee shop one day.

“Stop daydreaming,” Maria told me with a harmless smack on the back of the head. “We have more customers.”

“Ah.” I dried my hands, set the cloth aside and went back to the more involved part of my job. Two regulars had come in, a nice old couple who really enjoyed the coffee here.

As nice as it was to see them, I was a bit disappointed. Still no sight of the dark skinned girl. I had to wonder if she’d been so embarrassed by what happened the last time I saw her that she decided to never show up again. I think that’s what I would’ve done, at least. 

I blamed my daydreaming on the fact that it was one of those quiet, stress-free days. Sure, the shop was half-full, which was good, but once you take their order to the table, you mostly leave customers be. Maria even answered the phone to talk to a friend of hers.

“Hey! How is it going? You never call me while I’m at work. Are you doing well?”

I tried not to pay attention to her since it was, well, a conversation between friends, but Maria was practically talking next to me while I poured the old couple their coffee.

“How’s everything going at the new place? You brother’s not giving trouble again, is he? Oh, yeah, no worries, I can talk. I’ve got my slave here doing most of the work.”

“I’m expecting a raise or I’m quitting next week,” I told her as I walked past her with a tray with the old couple’s order.

“I’m joking, Oliver!” Maria laughed. “Hm? Oh, yeah, his name’s Oliver. Didn’t I tell you about him? No? By the way, when are you coming over for a cup of coffee, dammit? I’ll even make it Irish just for you.”

The old lady at the table chuckled as I set her coffee on the table. “Must be hard having such a carefree boss, eh dear?”

I chuckled with her. “She works hard. Sometimes.”

The couple laughed, thanked me and I left them alone to enjoy their coffee.

“Hm? Oh, sure, no problem. No, really, it’s not an issue. How much?” I got the impression that the topic became a bit more serious, because Maria had the tact to go to the back to continue her talk.

Not much more to say about that particular day of work. We closed for the day and I went home. Had dinner with the family, then went up to my room to practice some more ocarina of all things. Remember how Thomas gave me one for Christmas? Well, I wasn’t going to let it go to waste.

Cake lay on my bed right beside me as I practiced, comfortably curled on herself, while Isabelle sat at my desk and used my computer to check the stats on our video page.

“We’re growing, Oliver,” she said, cheerful. “Sure, it’s by like 10 people a week, but it’s something, right?” I didn’t answer and Isabelle didn’t expect me to. I was in the middle of playing a song. She turned the chair around and grabbed Cake, lifting her up. “And this ball of fur is taking about half the comments we get. You’re an internet celebrity now.”

At that, Cake yawned.

I finished the song and let out a sigh. “I don’t want to look at the numbers. They make me anxious. Like when I noticed we had 3 less subscribers than the last time I checked. Makes me wonder what we’re doing wrong.”

“...Do you ever get any sun with that dark cloud over your head?”

“Sorry, force of habit…” I shook my head. “At least I’m getting the hang of the ocarina. I think I might be confident enough to shoot a video playing it.”

“And Cake likes the ocarina, too.”

Cake meowed as if to agree.

So yeah. That was a nice, uneventful day, wasn’t it? Just another plain day of school, work and hobbies. Not a day worth talking about, right?

Yeah, I thought so too, but there’s a reason I’m telling you about it.

You’ll see.

************

Chapter 371: Intermission - Diana Black (Part 1).

Maria saw Oliver off before she closed the shop for the day, just like always. It was a Tuesday, so normally she would go back home, check the list of things she needed to order more of, like coffee beans and the like, and go to bed to start a new day with all the needed energy. However, she had received a call during work, and a very welcome one at that.

Her best friend had called. Sure, it was to ask for a favor, but Diana never asked for favors, much less asked to borrow money, and considering what she was going through, Maria was very happy to oblige. Her friend sounded stressed, and Maria wouldn’t blame her for it, so she asked her if she wanted to hang out.

With how busy Diana was lately, she half expected her to say no, but she accepted. And so, Maria got in her car and drove to her friend’s house. It was a little too far, at the outskirts of town. Maria couldn’t help but think about the daily commute it meant. It took her about an hour and a half to get there with traffic at peak hours.

Her friend’s house was on the small side. It had a single floor, a slanted roof and a white facade. Looking at it from the front, the garage attached to it seemed bigger than the house itself, but the house was longer towards the back. The grass at the front was getting taller and untidy, making Maria purse her lips.

She parked in front of the garage, and soon the front door opened. A dog came running out. It was a big, scary-looking german shepherd coming straight at her at top speeds.

“Red, sit!”

The dog stopped in his tracks, sat down and let out a single, playfully bark at Maria while panting with his tongue out. Maria grinned and kneeled in front of the dog.

“Oooh, good boy, you! How’s the little guy doing?” she asked him in baby talk, rubbing the fluffy mane around his neck. Red raised his head and let himself be petted.

“Sorry about that. He’s excited to see you again.” Out of the house came Maria’s best friend, looking… more tired than she expected. A small smile and bags under her eyes.

Diana Black had been Maria’s friend since university, where they both studied business administration. As such, they were the same age. Diana was a gorgeous woman of silky black hair in a bob cut, a killer hourglass figure and long legs. She was still in her work clothes, with black dress pants and a white shirt, the buttons of which tried valiantly to hold her chest in. Her cute face and piercing dark eyes made for an incredible contrast. Usually. Right now, Diana looked exhausted, and her normally firm gaze was unfocused.

Maria stood up and went to hug her. “I know it hasn’t been that long, but it feels like ages.”

Diana hugged her back and chuckled tiredly. The hug was uncharacteristically strong for her. “Yes. It’s been a full month, huh? Come in.”

“Are we drinking?” Maria asked, following her friend into the house.

“If you’re up for it.”

“Ugh, I shouldn’t. Oliver doesn’t have a shift tomorrow, so I’ll be on my own.”

Maria saw Diana’s shoulders flinching and didn’t understand why. “Didn’t you want to hire another part-timer?”

“Yeah, but the shop mostly fills up when he’s on shift. I doubt I’d get lucky enough to get another customer magnet like him.”

“...Is that so?”

“Anyway, I’ll still drink! So long as you let me crash on your couch, that is.”

Diana sighed. “You can sleep in my bed, I’ll… use my dad’s.”

“...” Maria pursed her lips and didn’t say anything.

Entering the house, Maria noticed it was also uncharacteristically unkempt. Boxes over by the dining room, clothes hanging from the chairs, and the place hadn’t been swept in at least a week. It wasn’t that it bothered Maria. No, it just worried her.

She sat down on the couch in the small living room, facing the TV on the wall. Meanwhile, Diana opened a cabinet and brought out two bottles of liquor. 

“A rusty nail, right?” Diana offered.

“You know it!” Maria answered cheerfully. Admittedly, some of it was forced. It was in hopes that her own attitude could cheer Diana up a bit.

Her dog had been following Diana around, but he stopped the moment she went into the kitchen. Instead, he turned around and went to kneel in front of Maria, who immediately started petting him again.

“She still won’t let you get on the couch, huh?” Maria said, chuckling.

Diana was strict. Red had his own, old recliner chair he could sit on and nowhere else other than the floor. It seemed Diana also managed to teach him not to go into the kitchen.

Her friend came back with two old-fashioned glasses filled with ice, the mix of the two golden-colored liquors and an orange slice on top. She set both on the wooden coffee table before glancing back at Red.

“To your spot, now.”

The dog obediently turned around and hopped on the old, peeled recliner chair, setting his chin down.

“He’s well trained,” Maria said. “I remember when he was trying to bite everyone’s legs.”

Diana sighed, sat down next to Maria and allowed herself a small smile. “It was mostly my dad who trained him. I’m… glad I brought him Red. He really cheered him up.”

“So… How’re you doing?”

Diana drank, not with a small sip but a strong gulp. The woman could REALLY drink and hold her liquor. “Better, believe it or not. Everything’s done, for the most part. Everything that can be. My brother is still pissed that I got the house, but he’s the one who spent the last three years traveling around Europe instead of looking after dad.”

“And emotionally?”

“Again, better. I’ve come to terms with it, and it’s a relief to know he’s not… you know, suffering anymore. The house feels a lot emptier, though. All the work I’ve been doing has helped keep me busy, at least. I think it’s helped.”

Diana drank again. This time, Maria joined her with her own sip. 

Diana’s dad was one of those stubborn old men who kept smoking despite being told it was killing them. The reason Diana got him Red was so he could hopefully relax a bit more. Apparently, it was helping, but the thing about so many years of smoking is that the damage is already done. The man passed away two months ago from lung cancer.

“Maybe I should quit drinking, too,” Diana said, moving her glass to make the ice cubes inside click.

“If you feel you have to,” Maria offered. “For what it's worth, I think you’re a responsible drinker. I’ve never even seen you outright drunk. Besides, you’re finally close to owning your own bar, right?”

“I told you, it’s not my own. I just got hired to manage one. I’ll take it, though. I’ll need the experience.”

“Just… don’t overwork yourself, okay? You need to take better care of yourself.”

Again, Diana sighed. “I welcome the work. I still have my shifts at the old hotel while working with Mr. Allen to set everything up for the opening of the new one. I’ve had to cover shifts everywhere, from cleaning to… reception.!” And yet another, heavy sigh.

Diana drank again, already downhing half her glass. She set it down and rubbed her face in frustration.

“You need to take a break, Diana,” Maria said. 

“I try, but….” Diana’s cheeks turned red, and Maria knew her friend well enough to know half a glass was not nearly enough to get to her. “I want to, okay? In fact, there was this time when I…” She stopped and rubbed her eyes. “Hey, Maria, there was something I… wanted to ask you.” 

“Of course. Shoot.”

“Your part-timer…”

Huh? “Oliver? What about him?”

“Is his last name… Brooks?”

What? Why would Diana know…? And that sudden change in demeanor…

Oooooh. Could it be? Maria hoped so, because this could be just the thing her friend needed.