The Chay Ong Casefiles, Volume One: Always Chasing Rainbows.

Chapter 6: It Hits When You Least Expect It...

Chay was still picking bugs off of her scarf when they got to Crol's apartment. Crol was swinging his key-ring around his finger.

"So small warning: I keep a lot of my ingredients in here, so it's a little packed...."

The door to his apartment swung open. It was pitch black inside.

"Hold on, I gotta get the light switch..." He walked into the inky blackness. Chay could hear rustling and climbing sounds before the lights flickered on.

He wasn't kidding about the 'packed' part.

On the far wall was an array of shelves, packed with large jars of pickled produce: Tomatoes, onions, carrots, cucumbers, and peppers were all neatly packed against each other. There was also an array of mustards, sauces, and other condiments, and below that was a mixture of cookbooks. All were positioned next to an open window, which was arrayed with a metal screen. Near the shelves was an enormous red and white box, plugged into an outlet in the wall.

"You have a kimchi refridgerator?"

"Pretty snazzy, right? That's where the kimchi for your stew came from. You were lucky you got it when you did, 'cuz I only got one more jar in there."

She couldn't believe that she was actually jealous. This guy lived in a quality three-room apartment while selling soup from a cart. Meanwhile she lived in a bombed-out one-roomer without a proper bathroom or cabinets. Granted, the conditions in Imp City were fairly dystopian on a good day...but somehow this seemed especially unfair.

"How the fuck have you managed to afford this?"

Crol sat down on his sofa ( because of course he has a fucking sofa , Chay moaned).

"Lots and lots of old fashioned hard work!"

Chay looked at the kobold-demon incredulously. "Seriously?"

" Fuck no! I got this because the previous tenant got shanked by an Exterminator. I still had to blow the landlord, though. Speaking of which...."

Crol began eyeing Chay up and down, licking his scaley lips.

"Stop that."

"Hey, you haven't said no yet. That's still an open invitation in my book."

Chay shook her head. "Can I at least use your shower first?"

"Go ahead. Just don't use up all of the hot water."

Chay audibly sighed. She unwrapped her scarf from around her face as she walked into the bathroom and shut the door behind her.

Crol hopped off the couch and went over to his kimchi fridge. He popped open the top and dug around inside, emerging with a wine bottle and some glasses. And a whiff of fermenting cabbage.

"Phew!, that shit is funky !"

He jogged back over to his sofa and popped the top of the bottle. It took both hands for him to pour his drink into his shot glass.

Meanwhile, Chay was still staring at herself in Crol's bathroom mirror. She couldn't believe how grody she actually looked. Not the fact that she was a walking skull, but the fact that she had allowed so much dirt and grime to collect in her eyes and nose-cavity. Now that she thought about it, it must have been months since she'd been able to properly bathe.

She pulled her shirt over her head and threw it in the corner. Her pants, shoes and underwear followed. She reached into the shower and turned on the water.

The spray from the showerhead was pleasantly mild. She had forgotten how luxurious a good shower could be. She could feel several weeks of dust and grime slough off of her. Tired muscles began to feel alive again. Tired nerves began to feel alive again.

A lot of things were feeling alive again.

....Oh no.

Her arm shot out in front of her in a desparat big to steady herself. She knew what this feeling was.

It was the Hunger . The desire. The curse of her karmic existence. The absolute ache to consume . She had been able to keep it dormant for several months, partly through her already Spartan existence in Imp City.

And it had mader her careless .

She had been able to remain stable and to ignore the gnawing aches in her solely due to being denied so many basic luxuries, with her strongest indulgence being the hot chilies in her morning rice porridge. But she had allowed herself to become complacent with the mild comforts of this apartment.

The jealousy she felt should have been her first warning. But she had denied herself for so long that she crumbled under the very first sign of possible comfort.

She was going to need to get this under control, and quick.

Crol was drinking directly from the bottle when the bathroom door swing open.

The ghoul named Chay came stumbling out, naked and dripping wet.

Crol raised his eyebrows.

He had been right, she wasn't too bad looking underneath all of that black.

"Um....Chay, you OK there?"

She walked slowly towards him, each step shakey and uncertain, like she was fighting against something inside of her.

She grabbed the little kobold-demon by his shirt collor and slowly lifted him up.

"Bed. You have one?", she asked.

"Um....yes. Yes I do."

She stared directly into Crol's eyes. Her pupils were now pinpricks, and her corpse-like skin was flushed.

"Need it."

Her toothy maw opened up. A long green tongue snaked out as she licked his scaley neck.

"Um...OK. It's through that door over there..." He pointed to the door next to his sofa.

She slowly dragged him over to his bedroom, and kicked the door end.

"Chay, my dear.....are you sure you're OK? Should I call a-"

"Shut up.", she grunted as she kissed him.