Sympathy for the Devil

31

It wasn't as restless a night as I had initially anticipated. I have Killian to thank for that. Why an undead Banshee needs to sleep at all is beyond me. My eyes were sagging, with black bags under them. I yawned as I stretched and forced myself to get out of bed. Five hours of sleep wasn't enough. School was a mistake. Backing out may be a bigger one. I need normalcy. My mental health scare of months past is getting better. I had to move on and scoop up the ashes of my past life to start anew and rise like a phoenix from the undeniable ashes of past Ellie 2.0. I am not that girl anymore. I'm Bethany Kent, a student who transferred from Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

I rubbed my fingers smoothly over the forged transcripts. The new identity was scripted. My new life would be an act. I amount to a few stapled pieces of paper.

All my brain could manage was thinking that my decision to attend school was wrong. Josh is gone. I'm gone. School seems unbelievably bleak.

I settled on a baby blue t-shirt and dark denim jeans. I can't have people think I care too much about my appearance. The silver necklace hummed blue as it transformed my appearance.

In the mirror, I saw a slight trace of what others would see, but my image distorted and conformed to how I always appear to myself.

Killian remained sleeping while I left his cozy bed to get ready for school. I'll see him later on when I get back from my first day of classes.

"You smell fruity this morning. Like fresh apple pie." He smiled as he continued snoozing. Did he seriously wake up for a microsecond to note my fruity apple perfume selection and immediately fall back asleep?

"I'm not asleep. Your mind is extra loud this morning. Can you pretty please with extra cherries on top bring me my Italian hot chocolate fix from Amorino on your way back from school?"

I nodded. "Of course. I'm pretty obsessed with them myself."

Killian tossed me his wallet. He did so with his eyes closed the entire time. It was almost comical.

His wallet was full of hundred-dollar bills—thousands of dollars held together by a money clip. There were a few scattered fifties as well, but nothing lower.

"Okay, I have to know," I admitted, curiosity eating away at me. "Have you been robbing candy stores? Banks?"

Killian laughed deeply. "No, my Dad thinks he's obligated to give me a ridiculous monthly allowance. I'm pretty sure he takes money from our latest corpses. I wish it were just candy stores. Ankou is not a very conventional father." He shook his head as he sat up in bed. "Take however much you want. Make sure you get breakfast this morning, too. I don't want my girl to starve."

I smiled at the mention of being his girl. My insides lit up like a Christmas tree. "Breakfast sounds amazing right now. You want to come with?"

"Gee, I would, but the sun isn't even awake yet, and my bed would get lonely without me. How many more months of school are you planning on enduring?"

"The plan is six more months. Whether today is shit or not will factor into whether I stay."

"You're smart as fuck. You could have graduated last year if you wanted to."

I nodded. "I wish I did—graduation cap and all. Bennett was right, though. I want to graduate and have normalcy. I have a boyfriend. We can now check that off the fucket list. Graduation should be checked off, too."

"Fucket list? What is that?" A smile teased on Killian's lips.

I blushed slightly. "I have a posterboard hanging on the back of my closet door back at home that I created when I was fifteen. It's a fucket list. Similar to a bucket list, but it's the things to have to say fuck it to and just do it, whether it means swallowing your pride or doing something completely out of the ordinary. Each task is organized by difficulty. Each time you have a birthday, you have to create a fucket list for the following year to complete. Ultimately, they must happen before you kick the bucket.  My list will now be the exception to that rule since I'm still here." I paused and flustered myself out of my own explanation. "I know, I know, completely stupid. I used to be a fucking sap."