All Celia wanted was to make tasty sandwiches for a friend's baby shower. When her cooking endeavors summon a demon in her kitchen, Celia thinks sending him back to his home will be the end of their story and that she'll be able to return to her mun...
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I awoke gasping for air, my lungs burning and tears streaming down my face. Residual pain from my nightmare assaulted my body while I attempted to force myself to refocus on reality. A monstrous golden face flashed through my mind, followed by agony rocketing down my spine.
I threw my covers off and stumbled into the bathroom to dry heave into the toilet. My pulse was racing so quickly that I felt lightheaded and dizzy. My entire body shook. Before I knew what was happening, I found myself staring at the ceiling of the bathroom, the cold stone tiles pressing into my skin. I couldn't seem to focus my eyes.
Demons were real.
My heart stuttered, the full weight of the realization hitting me at once. I had summoned a demon into my home. My family enslaved them and others. The demon I'd summoned had sent a demon dog to protect me. Nothing about my life would be normal again—and likely wouldn't last much longer once my grandmother found out.
I covered my face with my hands and attempted to take deep, calming breaths between my sobs. My grandmother terrified me even more than Tsukiyo did. She could erase me from existence with ease, and I might not even know she was responsible. She had too many connections.
A cold nose nudged my hands. I stiffened, splaying the fingers of one hand to peek at Mayar. He whined and nudged me again.
"Are you alright? Did you fall?" Mayar licked the back of my hand.
"No... Nightmares," I croaked the reply, then flinched when the same face from before filled my vision. Mayar released a low growl, his fur standing on end.
"Stay still." Mayar grew, purple energy coating his black fur. When his power engulfed me, my mind and all my senses went...blank.
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I stared blankly at my cup of tea and breakfast. Mayar had left to report to Tsukiyo once I'd woken up again. Upon reflection, I thought my breakdown was due stress and reality catching up to me after having spent a week in a daze.
Mayar claimed otherwise. Something had preyed on and brought forth my growing stress, anxiety, and fear. It had caused my nightmares and the reason I kept seeing its face was because it was trying to pull me back in. I shivered, hugging myself. I hadn't had a nightmare in years.
My phone vibrated against the counter, startling a yelp out of me. I hurriedly picked it up and looked at the display. Emily wanted me to come over for dinner once my shift was over. I hesitated, then declined. If I talked to her while I was such a mess, I'd just end up dragging her into my strange new reality. My gaze dropped to the counter top as loneliness took its grip.
I tossed my untouched breakfast in Mayar's bowl before grabbing my keys, a carry pistol, and headed for my car. Work. Work would help distract me. If David sent me home again, I didn't know what I'd do.
