Demons are Hot (bxb)

Chapter Twenty-Two

Theo's POV

I was relieved that my father was not too upset. As much as I tried to hide it, I needed his approval. I needed to be able to look him in the eyes and know I was worthy.

Father glanced at Aamon in boredom. "I will deal with you later."

Aamon looked up from where he was curled. "Sofia..." he groaned. "Please..."

Lucifer kicked him in the gut again. "This is boring to me," he scoffed. "Let us take this to my palace. You may return home, Theo, and I will question these humans about why they are here. It is a difficult situation. Living humans don't come to Hell, ever."

With a lazy wave of his hand, Lucifer changed the setting. We appeared in his throne room. I watched Cyrus' reaction, as he took in the gray marble columns holding up the ceiling, the intricate flooring design of golds and reds and blacks, and the impressive throne.

I always considered the room empty and cold, but Cyrus' eyes were lit with wonder.

"What to do, what to do," Dad hummed, eyeballing the guards who lined the room with interest. "Kill them?"

"No, Father," I gasped. "Please."

He sighed, obviously willing to respect my choice, probably because he had recently angered me and didn't want to do so again over something so small to him. "Perhaps keep them here, where they can't tell the truth to humans of the mortal realm?"

I didn't hate the idea, because I would be with Cyrus forever. But I knew in my heart that he would never be happy, being away from his friends and his sister. It couldn't end that way.

"No," Cyrus' mom spoke. "No, you can't. I have a job and another child. We have to return home."

Lucifer looked at her with interest. He smiled a little and I admired how handsome he was, subtly wishing I had his strong jaw and masculine features. "Hm. Well, I suppose. One of my fallen angels has done you an injustice."

Lucifer strolled over to Cyrus and placed his hands on his shoulders. Cyrus stiffened. "I'll keep the boy, then."

"You need to step away from my son," Cyrus' mom gritted out, fists clenching at her sides. I had never seen the woman so upset. An angry red blush had made its way onto her cheeks.

My dad leaned back and trailed a finger down Cyrus' neck. "Hmm. My son has taken a liking to him. And it is so refreshing to have a beating human heart in Hell. I'll keep him."

Cyrus' mom didn't say anything else. She strode forward with a determination that Lucifer had no doubt never seen in a human before. Which was probably why he just stared at her in confusion. And why he didn't move at all when—

Thump. Fist raised, eyes flashing, Cyrus' mom socked the King of Hell in the face.

"Hey!" Lucifer stumbled back and grabbed at his cheek. Cyrus' mom grabbed Cyrus' wrist and pulled him across the room.

"That is my son you're talking about!" she screamed. "And if you ever, ever, threaten to take him from me again, I will fuck you up! Do you hear me? I will fuck you up!"

I prepared for my dad to order his guards to rip her limb for limb. Or worse, do it himself and eat her afterwards. However, he simply chose to stare, mouth gaping.

"You... your name is Sofia?" Dad asked, eyes wide. "I didn't really notice you before. Hi. I'm—um. I'm Lucifer." He held his hand out awkwardly. "This is how humans greet, yes?"

Cyrus' mom glared and wrapped her arms around her son. "I'm not falling for nice guy bullshit. Take me and my son home. Now."

"Okay," Dad agreed mindlessly. Typical.

I grumbled a little under my breath. Leave it to him to see a fiery personality and loose his ability to function. Very typical Satan.

"Wait." He wrinkled his nose. "I need to ensure that you will not tell other humans about this realm. I must take your memories."

This time it was Cyrus' turn to have an outburst. "No! I don't want to forget Theo."

My gut wrenched at the thought of my Cyrus forgetting me. "Father," I spoke up, meeting his eyes evenly. I usually needed his approval, but this time Cyrus was more important. "Please. I've fallen in love with this human. I need him by my side."

Lucifer pinched the bridge of his nose. "Son, you've been gone for a week."

"It doesn't matter!" I declared, grabbing Cyrus' hand and trying to ignore whatever look he was sending my way. "I have never felt this way before. I love him. I need him to have his memories and I want him to live in the mortal realm, happy. Please. Even if they tell the whole world, Father, humans will dismiss them as crazy."

Sofia nodded. "It's true. Cyrus told me that Theo was mentally unstable when we met and it was very easy to believe."

Well. That was probably not supposed to sound rude.

Lucifer growled a little. "If you love him, shouldn't you want him here?"

I shook my head. "No, Father. I love him, so I want him at home where he will be happiest. Even if it means never seeing him again, I would suffer to see him happy."

"Theo," Cyrus whispered. "I don't want to leave you."

I looked at my human and my heart twisted at the tears in his eyes. My throat closed up and my nose started to itch. Something prickled at the corner of my eyes and I looked away in shame.

"Please, Father," I whispered.

Lucifer sighed and rolled his eyes. "You always have these grand ideas that never work out. But fine. I will send the boy and Sofia home, with the promise that I will kill them if they ever tell a soul about Hell."

We all nodded.

"Now," Lucifer said, "time for them to go."

With a flick of a hand, Cyrus and Sofia disappeared before I could even say goodbye. I bit my lip and blinked away tears, trying to ignore the hole that Cyrus left in my heart.

-

Yo what a sad chapter.

BUT in better news, my classes are going to be online for the next month due to the coronavirus! Like obviously the virus is a terrible thing, but I'm selfishly happy that I'll have so much more time to write. Anyone else have any major changes happening because of it?